Updates from Justin Mann

12hrs of Temecula

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 16:49:59 GMT

So I have completed my first 12hr race. I actually struggle with saying I "completed it". I didn't meet my goal of 12 laps, and I quit when I still could have done at least one more lap.

Saturday morning we were up before the sun, eating and packing the truck. We arrived at Vail sometime around 7am. I was really stoked that more than one person helped us schlep our stuff from the parking lot to our canopy. It was a long walk and we had a hard day ahead of us. After carrying all the crap I was already tired! Once we got everything set up I did small prep tasks and waited to get my kit on till the last possible moment.

When we rode over to line up I decided I didn't want to be at the back of the pack. I slid forward in the crowd, then spotted Luke and slid farther forward. :) Luckily no one got pissy with me for crowding in. Then the race started, I hit the start button on my Garmin and tried to stay calm. Luke was going fast so I tried to hold onto him. All of lap one went something like this. I kept telling myself that I was going too hard, but then either someone was right in front of me and I would feel compelled to draft or pass, or someone would be right behind me and I would want to hold position. I got to ride with Mary for a little bit which was cool. Every time I looked ahead a ways I would see Luke and think that it was cool that I was holding steady relative to him.

I also noted that there was a guy in my class with giant Pearl Izumi letters on his back. He was climbing strong, but I would pull away on the descents. For the first three laps we would swap positions at least 4 times. I hope he did well in the race, I am sure if he held that pace he was on the podium.

The first three laps went by really fast. Every time I would pull into the pits Luke was just pulling out. Things were going well for me.

Lap 4 things took a bad turn.

I was going strong and really enjoying the descents and passing lots of other riders on the DH sections. Then on the Ridgeline descent I pinch flatted the rear tire. I thought, "$%$#... no I can take care of this and get going quick. not a major problem."

Wrong.

I replace the tube and start inflating with my one and only CO2 that I had with me. I had used probably half of the CO2 when I discovered that the tire had popped off the bead on the other side (the one I wasn't paying attention to) and the tube was in danger of going pop. I quickly deflated the tube (only carried one per lap) and re-seated the bead. I emptied the rest of my only CO2 into the tire to find that I had maybe 20psi in the tire.

There was no way I could finish this lap without flatting again with that little pressure. Now things were bad. I started asking people passing me for a CO2. Most didn't stop. When Jens came along he stopped and offered his CO2, but it didn't fit my inflator! Sorry for holding you up Jens, but thanks bro. The next rider along was a girl I had met in the shuttle line at Fontana. She stopped too and offered a CO2, again it didn't fit. I was getting desperate though and this stop was nearing 10 minutes so I asked to use her inflator. She gave it to me and I was unfamiliar with the way it worked. I was trying to get it to work and nothing, nothing... The CO2 that was in it had been spent! So she gave me her other cartridge and I loaded it and filled my tire. I didn't get her name but want to thank her and tell her that I owe her big time!!!!!

Back on track. I finished the descent and caught the girl near the bottom. I rode with her for a while and we chatted. She was the only girl on a 4 man team so I joked that I would look out for the 3 angry guys that wanted to beat me up for slowing down their team mate. :)

I was kind of pissed that I had lost so much time with a flat. I decided that if I worked hard I could maybe get back to where I should be. I kept thinking of getting to the "pointy end of the race". I thought of the race as a spear and I wanted to be closer to the front than the back.

I almost left the pits without a new tube and TWO CO2 cartridges, but grabbed them and was off. Lap 5 was going good. I was still turning a decent pace and felt pretty strong. I was passing some people and being passed by some, but it seemed that nobody around me was going my pace. It was strange this feeling of being in no-man's land. I had fallen back from the leaders, and guessed that I was ahead of the slower riders. I didn't get to ride with anyone around my speed.

On Ridgeline I was descending strong and thinking about making up time from the flat tire the lap before. At the bottom of Ridgeline the trail makes a right hand turn onto a fire road and I was blazing down the trail. I missed my line and went a bit wide and slightly into the grass. I don't know if there was something in the grass, or if I had damaged my tube farther up and it waited to let go with the stress of a hard corner, but as I leaned the bike through that corner I heard the all too familiar hiss of air rushing out of my back tire. I screamed, "^%# NOT AGAIN!"

I was close enough to the aid station that I rolled over to it and started working on my tire. Jason Ranoa's dad was there and he said he heard me yelling. I was quite litterally deflated, in more ways than one. I asked if he had a floor pump but he didn't. This fix went much smoother than the last but I did burn both my CO2s and lost probably another 5 minutes or so.

Once I got rolling again I struggled. Mentally I was broken. Physically I was feeling crappy. I had expected to have Allison pass me but she never did. I would have been really happy for her company. I knew then and there that my race was over and that I wouldn't be able to get near the front after two flats. It was very depressing. I wanted to quit, but remembering Allison's blog post earlier in the week I resolved to not give up. Manns are not quitters.

Lap 6 I forgot to get a new tube and CO2. I realized this part way up the Marine Corps climb. I decided that I had to dial it back on the DH sections. I was afraid if I flatted without a way to fix it, I would totally break. I decided to make up for it by rallying on the easier portions. I was cranking hard and decided that I was out of the race, but was now just racing myself, my own demons in my head. I would put in hard efforts on slight inclines or declines to make up for slowing down on the high speed descents.

Then I started cramping. The first cramps came on the steep sections of Bridges and came back every time I put in a hard effort.

Lap 7 the cramps were moving all around on my quads, on the bright side I remembered to get a tube and CO2s. I was thinking that sooner or later more of the muscle was going to cramp than I would be able to work through. The cramps seemed to only hit localized spots though and I would will myself to work through it and keep pedaling.

Lap 7 marked another milestone. I got off and walked up a steep pitch for the first time. I hate walking my bike. For the first 6 laps I managed to not dab on course at all. Not once. I was proud of that and it was about all I had. When this happened it was like a spear had found a chink in my armor. My cramps seemed to get worse when I walked. My spirits were low, but I kept telling myself that Allison wouldn't quit.

When I came into the pits Allison was off her bike and getting changed. She had quit. I knew when I saw her standing in the pits that I wouldn't make my goal of 12 laps. I needed something to lean on mentally.

I stopped briefly in the pits and then headed out. I checked in at the finish line and then straddled my bike and started pedaling. I couldn't get my left foot in the pedal. As I rode past a few friends they were heckling me to start pedaling. I was laughing because I wanted to pedal but couldn't get my damn foot clipped in. Finally I rolled to a stop across from our pit area and got off the bike. What I saw was that my XTR pedal had grenaded. Awesome. Never had that problem with Crank Brothers. I walked my bike over to the pits and Luke donated his pedal to me from his bike. I was stoked to have it, thanks Luke!

On Lap 8 I decided that Allison quitting was a good thing for her. What I could lean on was the fact that she didn't quit in June or November. She had endured then, and I could endure now.

I was being passed more often. My pace had slowed down to a crawl. My HR was no longer responding to hard efforts. My legs were responding to hard efforts though, with streaks of cramps! I was walking up steep spots with regularity. I was no longer hydrating properly, or eating much on course.

Before I went out on Lap 9 Luke and Allison put my light on my bike for me. Night riding is sort of a novel thing for us. We ride at Vail at night one night a week. I am at ease with riding at night. Once it got dark on Lap 9 I decided that the novelty of night riding was over rated. I was sloppy on the bike and things were jumping out at me. I just wanted it all to end. Interestingly enough I stopped cramping for the most part.

When I got back to the pits after Lap 9 I told Allison I was only doing one more. I was broken. At this point there was still around 3 hours left to race. I was pussing out.

Lap 10 was the absolute worst. It was the first time I didn't make it up the steep hill across from the pit area. I was broken and riding by myself. I walked a lot more than before. I knew it was my last lap and that I was quitting early. I was giving up. Several times in the lap I thought that I could maybe just go out for one more. I had plenty of time. Even if I walked most of the course I had enough time. I was hurting though. The waves of cramps had given way to a horrible ache in my shoulders and neck. My legs hurt horribly and seemed to stop responding. My chest felt like I could no longer take a full breath. My arms were shaky and I was afraid they weren't going to hold up to another Ridgeline descent.

On the climb up Ambulance I caught up with Troy. He was broken as well and was finishing his 8th and final lap. For the first time I rode with someone else for more than a minute or two. It was nice to talk to someone on course. When we got to the top of Tunnel I let another rider pass before descending. I immediately found that it was a mistake because I was riding his rear wheel the whole way. It sucked to not rail my favorite portion of the course on the last lap. On the way up Vicks I caught up with a pair of women that were finishing up as well. They were on lap 7 or 8 and were totally done. I chatted with them some. It was nice to have people to talk to.

When I got to BMX I caught another solo rider. I decided that my race was over but that I could beat this one guy to the finish line. It would be a tiny victory for me. I dug deep. I pedaled hard. Tucked down behind my bars I was racing again. It was invigorating to have something to race for after so many laps of just beating myself up for the sake of beating myself up. It was close. I was right behind him through the jumps. Around the berm under the tree I was riding in his dust. When we hit the asphault I shifted to my big ring and tucked down. I could feel the gap closing. Turning left off the asphault I was right on him. I hit all my shift points and was on his wheel when we came off the sand and onto the grass. I shifted again and powered past him through the pits. I beat him to the line.

It was a small victory and he probably went out for another lap, but I had had enough and shut off my light and my Garmin. Allison met me at the finish line. It probably took me 45 minutes to change.

Much respect to those that compete in these events successfully. I wouldn't call what I did successful, but I learned some things and through experiencing it have a different perspective. From now on I will be happy to be the pit bitch and do my best to support the real endurance riders.

Some thoughts during the race:

-The people that invented packaging need to go back to the drawing board. The evil that is done to an endurance racer via packaging is horrible. Someone please make edible packaging. Thanks.

-Every now and then when suffering up a climb I would think to myself, "It has been a long time since I got lapped by Tinker." That guy is not human.

-A DH racer on a HT XC bike does not make a good Endurance racer. Especially if you throw in a few fast chunky descents for him to break parts and flat tires on.

-If you think a tire is too wimpy it probably is. I should have stuck with some decent meats on the bike.

-No matter how fast you descend you cannot win an endurance race without climbing fast, for a really effing long time, without slowing down.

-Quitting isn't the worst part. The day after riding my MTB for 92 miles is worse.

SRC Annual, 2008 Season Closer

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 17:05:16 GMT

This past weekend I raced at the SRC Annual. Saturday I raced my last race in Sport XC, and Sunday was my first race in Expert DH.

Saturday we were up with the sun and driving to Fontucky for the first time in quite a while! It is our home venue, but there aren't many races out there during the heat of summer. Unfortunately the heat of summer is not only unkind to the atheletes, but it also is hard on the trails. In quite a few places the trails are breaking down with the lack of water and maintenance.

I was looking forward to the XC race because it has been quite a while since I got to race with an early season nemesis. I got spanked in the Winter Series by Ryan and wanted to see how my fitness is coming along when measured against a good competitor.

Before the race I warmed up with a few different people and chatted some. It is always fun to hang out before the race with everyone and talk smack! We were called up to start with two age groups in front of us so I wasn't on the front row. I decided before hand to shadow Ryan and try to use some strategy in the race. Before I knew it we were off and Ryan and I were at the back of the group. We picked off a few riders here and there before the asphalt climb and when we turned up the road Ryan turned wide. I took it he didn't want me breathing down his neck so I took the inside line and started to spin. Not far into the climb I noticed one of the riders in our AG was up ahead a ways and I wanted to pass more people before we hit the next single track section so I stood up and got my climb on!

The rest of the lap was pretty uneventful, I was out in the lead and passing lots of riders. One guy crashed on a sandy descent right in front of me, but he seemed to be fine so I pedaled on. My heart rate stayed manageable and I didn't put myself in any difficulty. I passed Allison on the flats before the Start/Finish and told her she should not be coasting on the descents. (at least soft pedal!)

The second lap I didn't stand on the asphalt, I opted to sit and spin. On the first descent I managed to wash out my front wheel in a corner and crashed pretty good. My bars got twisted up and I had to stop to straighten them (you will see this was a trend for the weekend!) I pushed a good pace the rest of the lap and won by a decent margin.

After the race I felt really good. This was the first XC race that I can think of that I didn't blow up at some point on the course so it is time to move up to EXPERT! :) I had a great year of racing in Sport XC and will miss all the guys that I raced with (except those that also move up). Hopefully I can continue to train and improve my fitness and maybe finish mid pack in the Expert field.

After the XC race I went and practiced the DH course some. It was a fun course with not much technical challenge. The wall was being used which sucked because I was riding Allison's DH bike and it only has a 32T chainring on it.

Sunday morning I was back at the track practicing early and my first run was STELLAR! I felt great on the course. That didn't last long though as all the rest of my practice runs were pretty hurting. In my race run I had a good start and felt fast through most of the top of the course. Unfortunately there was a really loose and dusty left hand corner near the middle of the course that layed some smack down on me. I washed out the front tire and managed to knock my bars out of alignment AGAIN! I had to stop and straighten them AGAIN and saw any chances of a top finish evaporate. The bottom of the course went well and I avoided getting passed in my first Expert DH race.

I finished back of the pack, but I wasn't last. I learned some things that I want to implement for the next race and can hopefully improve on my results. I will continue to work hard and train, of course, but it will be primarily XC oriented. I am hoping to maintain pretty decent DH speed, it is hard to be a multi-discipline rider!

So this race wrapped up my '08 racing schedule and I feel that I was very successful in my first full year of racing. Thanks to all who helped me out, rode with me, raced with me, and laughed with me. I am looking forward to more great racing and fun in 2009!!!

Mt. SAC Fat Tire Classic

Tue, 04 Nov 2008 08:41:54 GMT

This past weekend I raced Cross Country at the Mt. SAC Fat Tire Classic.

Early Sunday morning we left home headed for the venue with blue skies overhead. The sun was still rising and we could see ominous clouds on the horizon as we drove North.

Allison had mentioned a chance of rain in the forecast, I had opted to keep my tires light with low rolling resistance. This meant a Kenda Karma up front and a Stan's Raven out back. The tires that I felt would be good for a muddy course were on Allison's bike so I didn't have much of an option really.

At the venue it had rained over night and it was alternating between drizzle and light rain as we checked in and started warming up. I rode the first half of the course during warm-up and my tires packed up horribly. It was like riding with the brakes on. I had lots of mud clearance, but the added weight and resistance was severe.

Before the race start I found a nice patch of grass and did my best to scrape off the majority of the mud that had accumulated. I also tried my best to stay warmed up which meant that I didn’t get onto the front row of the start. I managed to squirm up to the second row just before GO, I pedaled hard and picked the inside line on the first corner putting myself in the first few people up the first climb. I was first to the bottom of the first descent and second onto the first single track section. My plan to not get caught in a bottle neck worked perfectly!

The first lap was going pretty well. Unfortunately entering the tunnel that goes under the road my tires slipped out from underneath me. The combination of slick tires, mud, water, and a painted line on concrete conspired against my desire to remain upright. I was quick to remount but the leader had pulled a gap and continued to do so, he was out of sight by the end of the first lap.

The second lap I was feeling the effects of the hard start. My trip up the first climb was not as fast. I sat up and took some Hammer gel before the first single track and noticed that there wasn’t anyone on my wheel. Riding through the single track section I picked up a branch/weed in my drive train. As it wrapped itself around my cassette it started taking out my gears one by one. My chain was soon skipping so badly in every gear that I was forced to stop. It took at least a minute to break and pull out the majority of the weeds and several riders passed me. It is quite heartbreaking to watch a hard earned lead disappear like that.

Once remounted I found myself in great company, Steven Smith is a fellow racer one AG up from mine who passed me like I was standing still in every race during the Winter Series races at Fontana, we rode together for the rest of the race. The rest of the second lap was pretty uneventful, the rain had stopped and the course was improving quickly.

On the third lap I once again picked up a stick/weed in my rear wheel. This time it lodged itself in between the cassette and the spokes/hub rendering my bike into a fixie! After a quick stop to remedy the situation I remounted and found that I had not lost much time. I powered up the next climb and caught Steven who was also extracting a hitchhiker from his drive train. The rest of the last lap I put my head down and did my best to power through the climbs despite my calves threatening to cramp up.

I finished first for my AG and somewhere in the top 10 for Sport racers. I had a great time racing in the rain and mud for the first time, and had a total blast cheering for the beginner racers like Troy. Next race, Fontana XC and DH.

Bonelli XC

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 08:56:25 GMT

Well sometimes racing means you are horribly disappointed.

After all the work for the last two weeks preparing for this race, it was over for me less than 1 mile in.

Before the race I went out and pre-rode a lap of the course. It was mostly fire road but the relatively short climbs are ideal for my power to weight ratio and I felt that I would be very competitive. My legs felt great and I had a good strategy for the race.

As we lined up I was looking for guys in my class and it didn't look like there were very many. I was not happy with the low turnout as I had hoped for a good race.

We waited for what seemed like forever, it was somewhere around 10 minutes, and then were off. I pedaled hard to stay near the front as last year the first bottle neck was nasty. Up the first climb I picked off a couple of riders and felt awesome, my heart rate was staying pretty low. This was going to be great!

As we turned to head down the first steep/loose descent I passed a guy so as not to be held up, unfortunately there were a pair of roadies just ahead of him and they slammed on the brakes. I was looking for passing opportunities and found one near the bottom. I passed them both but the damage was done. I was in a tall gear and didn't carry enough momentum into the next climb. I stood and was putting all I had into the pedals when my chain snapped.

I flew forward on the bike smashing my knee into the crown of my fork. My knee left a big chunk of meat on the knob on the crown and was now bleeding pretty good. I stood there begging for a SRAM Power-Link to fix it, I was offering 20 bucks for one, nobody helped me out. I debated running the remaining 3.5 miles of the lap to continue racing, but the pain coming from my knee changed my mind. The race was over for me. My first DNF.

Although I am dissappointed and now dealing with a very swollen knee and no riding, that is racing. When I can ride again I will be back on the training for the next race and for next year! I will now make sure I have a light chain tool and a power link with me during races. :)

Cal State XC Champs...

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 08:18:33 GMT

So yesterday was a rough day of racing.

I didn't feel stellar during my warmup. I think we went too hard the day before the race. At the start line I met the guy who I expected to be the odds on favorite. We joked around a little and then were off.

On the first climb I went a bit too hard. I expected to be able to recover at the top where 2N10 does quite a lot of rolling hills, but had a bobble around 25 minutes into the race. Not a bobble with my bike though, I dropped my freaking gel flask! I had just passed my wife who had a 2 minute head start and was having a fantastic day (she was right behind the Pro women). According to my feed schedule I took a shot of gel and then was trying to put the flask back into the holder and fumbled it. Allison later told me I should have just left it, but I was afraid of not having any calories for the rest of the race so I skidded to a stop and ran back to get it. By the time I picked up my bike I had dropped a position (from a close second to third or fourth).

So then the chase was on. I did my best to control the negativity that was circulating in my head. Soon we were onto the descent and I let it fly. I opened it up and passed a couple of people on the short single track section. Once back onto the fire road I tried to keep the hammer down and did my feeds at the right time (thanks to picking up my gel flask).

At the top of the last big climb I wasn't far behind second so I shifted to my big ring and attacked on the descent. I caught second and passed him after being forced to follow him down some single track. I was now back in second with only descent between me and the finish line so I decided to let it all hang out and try to catch first. I was blazing down the fire road, drifting the corners all the way to the berm on the outside. I passed several riders and then was on the last single track section. I passed three more riders on the single track and was just going balls out, full speed, no brakes.

Then it happened. Coming out of a left hander there was a big rut. I unloaded over the rut before I noticed what was after it. A big dip and then a huge tree root maybe 6" high across the trail. I did my best to soak up the impact of the root but it wasn't enough. I DOUBLE FLATTED. I only had one tube so with about two miles left I just rode on two flats to the finish. I lost one spot and dropped to third for the day.

I waited around for a long time expecting to see Allison come through... but she didn't. I got really worried and started asking girls that I knew were behind her if they saw her. Finally one girl said that she saw her with a flat (whew! flat is WAY better than a crash). I guess a big nail went through her rear tire and she had some difficulty fixing it. In true Mann style she finished the race even though she was dead last. I am so proud of her. She could have DNF'd but she stuck it out and finished. Before her flat she had gapped all the Expert Women and was right behind the Pro Women. Sometimes luck plays a big part in racing. Better luck to both of us next time!

Intense FTW!!

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 20:53:38 GMT

Today I got the best customer service at Intense. I had an issue with my Socom frame that they dealt with in the most professional and customer friendly manner. I am not a sponsored rider, nor do I get any sort of factory deal, but they gave me great customer service!!! I will definitely continue to spend my hard earned money on Intense bike frames.

Thanks Intense Cycles!!!

One down...

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 20:15:15 GMT

One to go! I won the race this past weekend. From now on I will be racing in Expert DH. My times aren't too far off the podium times for the Expert guys so I shouldn't be in the way on race day, but we will see. Those guys are FAST!

It looks like I will have to retire my DH bike. Fortunately, it looks like the crack/buckle was a product of a manufacturing error. I have my fingers crossed that I will get hooked up. If not, I will have to steal Allison's Demo 7 to race on!

This coming weekend I will be racing XC. It should be interesting to see what happens. I know somewhere on the course I will be wondering why a DH racer is out there suffering with a bunch of skinny roadie types! With any luck I will have some fun out there in between all the climbing (the course can't all be up, right?).

Long time.

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:02:54 GMT

No post. The summer has flown by. Funny how that works. It seems like only yesterday that we were anxiously anticipating the time change so that we could ride after work, yet strangely enough at the same time it seems like Vision Quest was a lifetime ago.

When Allison and I laid out our race calendar for the year the summer months had almost no races in them. Unfortunately most of the summer races occur quite far from the sun scorched land that we live in. It takes a lot of money to travel to races and we decided to conserve a bit in that regard. We had a couple of good trips that certainly helped the summer fly by (Colorado is just such a magical place), and we really put in some heavy riding.

All of the miles/hours of riding have left me in top physical condition. I can say without hesitation that I am currently in the best shape of my life. As a test of fitness we traveled up to Rim Nordic for the last race in their series and although the intensity was a bit of a shock to the system I did pretty well. Allison tore it up and I was very proud of her and her efforts.

The month of September has a couple of races in it again. First up is a DH race, then an XC race. I have really neglected DH this summer, both my bike and my skills. Hopefully I can do well at the finals and win the jersey. With any luck my bike will stay in one piece, it is now cracked pretty badly. The XC race is going to be interesting. I will give it my all and see what happens. My fitness is good and my new frame/fork/cranks have been awesome.

This fall/winter I will be racing some more XC races including the Socal Triple Crown series. The only other DH race for the year will be the Fontana Annual. I will also be training with Allison as she will be working hard toward her goals for next year. We don’t yet know exactly what races we will be doing, but at this point it looks like next year we will be traveling to more races. If things keep going the way they are now it looks like our winter training will be pretty intense!

Stay tuned, things are heating up for sure!

Wow, been a while! Will try to update my profile ...

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:55:53 GMT

Wow, been a while! Will try to update my profile soon. Headed back east for a couple races.

Downieville and 12hrs of Temecula...

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:02:43 GMT

It had been a while since we had gone on a road trip not associated with racing, so after all the stress of work/racing/training it was great to get out last weekend and go camping in Downieville! Three days of riding up there and it was really hard to come home. I can't think of a better way to spend our 5th anniversary!

I didn't compete in the 12hrs of Temecula but I have been training with Allison and I devoted myself to making sure she had the best possible race. She did awesome and I am very proud of her. I would never have expected her to finish first in solo women (she beat all solo female competitors including the pro riders).

I have decided to do my best to improve my fitness over the next few months. I will be hitting the gym two days a week to maintain upper body strength for DH racing, riding lots of road miles (commuting to work, lunch rides), and putting in as much time on the mountain bikes as I can muster. I hope to find some time and training partners for DH, but it is difficult and fuel costs don't make it easier. Most of my time will be spent on the XC bike.

I keep thinking about what my racing schedule should look like for next year. I would like to make sure that everything lines up and I can do some races that will be both enjoyable and give me a good shot at podium spots. So far I think I will shoot for Counting Coup, Keyesville, Downieville, and the local races. I may give the endurance racing thing a shot since I am training with Allison anyway. At some point I am sure that I will reach a level that I can no longer compete in so many disciplines. I will be forced to narrow my focus and I really don't know what specific area I would pick. If only there were more races like Keyesville and Downieville, all-mountain races that rewarded a well rounded athelete, then I think that would be my primary focus!

Summer and Vacations

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 22:02:39 GMT

Not much racing going on lately.

This past weekend I rode a 54 mile training ride with the wife at Vail Lake in preparation for her assault on the 12hrs of Temecula. It was a good ride. I don't think I am cut out for the short lap endurance races though. I like to feel like all that pedalling and work gets me somewhere!

Sunday we did some shuttle runs for my birthday. It was a lot of fun. I was told that I couldn't post pictures from the ride. Sucks that DH riders have to be clandestine with their riding spots. Oh well. We rode some sickeningly steep stuff. I think I rode okay, but I really need to get more time in on the DH stuff. Hopefully I can find some good training places this summer.

Monday we went to the BMX track after work. I was having a blast airing out my Lunchbox on the big jumps untill I came up short on a big jump. I tore up my left side pretty good. Lots of missing flesh and bruising. Broke my DJ lid, it was the first time I had ever worn it!

I did this jump a bunch of times, then crashed when I tried to pull the second one too...

This weekend is going to be low key. I am supporting the wife's 12hr Solo effort and hope to get a road ride in on Sunday. Can't wait for our Downieville trip!!!

Golden State #3 and Some Thoughts...

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 18:18:12 GMT

I tried too hard this past weekend.

Instead of just racing at my usual 85%, I went all out. I wanted to see if I could lay down one run maxed out. I couldn't. With the two run format it gave me a chance to recover after crashing twice in my first run. Couldn't do that either. I crashed again even harder in my second run. I was sort of disappointed in my performance, but I think that this phase of crashing and learning is important for me to be able to compete at a higher level. In any case I got 6th place and am pretty sore this week. I am not sure there is a spot on me that isn't sore. Makes it hard to train!

That leads me to some thoughts...

I have been training really hard lately. Lifting weights, riding lots of miles, doing intervals/hill repeats, etc. The funny thing about all that is that I am in great shape and getting faster at XC, but have neglected my DH skills. I am thinking about trying to focus some attention on XC, and race in the 12 hrs of Temecula. It is very challenging for me to race XC. I really don't have the right build for it and I don't think I am particularly good at it. I feel I am much better at DH racing. What to do? I don't really know.

In any case this coming weekend should be a good mix. I will be doing a ton of XC miles training with the wife on Saturday and then doing a bunch of shuttle runs on Sunday for my B-day. Should be fun!

Non racing weekend...

Mon, 26 May 2008 20:43:43 GMT

What do I do when I am not racing?

I ride, ride, ride!

After debating several trip options for the long weekend, the wife and I decided to stay home and maximize our mileage for Memorial Day weekend. (We also needed to minimize expenditure, all this racing costs $$$!)

Saturday we hit the road. We did 54 miles and 3700 feet of climbing. Starting in Murrieta we rode out through Temecula, south through Rainbow, down 395 past Fallbrook and 76 to West Lilac. We rode West Lilac to Lilac, descended Couser Canyon, climbed Rice Canyon, and finally came back through Rainbow and Temecula. The route was very nice and we didn't encounter much traffic. I felt like I had plenty of gas left in the tank, but we had two more days to go!

Sunday Allison decided she wanted to do some laps on the 12 hrs of Temecula course at Vail Lake. She is racing it solo and is trying to be well prepared. We rode three laps totaling 32 miles and 4900 feet of climbing. It was a great day! We both felt we could have done more laps but were afraid that we wouldn't have anything left for Monday so we called it quits.

Starting out with a small group (on the last lap it was just the two of us)

I wouldn't want to be a girl competing with her...

What a great day to be out riding!

Monday we met up with an incredible local endurance racer who happens to work at the best bike shop in Socal (The Path) for an epic day in the San Bernardino Mtns. We rode from the Loch Leven up to Angelus Oaks then down SART to MIddle Control, down that to Glass Rd., up Glass Rd. back to SART, down SART to Middle Control, back up to Angelus Oaks and then down (a new to us) SART to 38. The loop was quite epic with freezing conditions and a nearly disastrous front tire failure on my bike. We wound up with 38 miles and 5400 feet of climbing.

Heading out at the beginning of a long day...

Front tire came off at speed... very scary!

My steed...

I was playing trail paparazzi too...

Luke, Brian, Allison

Climbing back out on Middle Control...

Awesome trails!

Scenery (it was sunny for a short time...)

So the three day grand total was 124 miles and 14000 feet of climbing and 14.75 hrs. of pedaling. Not too shabby if you ask me. I am tired. Time to go back to work!

Hope everyone else had a great holiday as well!

NMBS DH #2 Santa Ynez Valley National

Sun, 18 May 2008 20:42:27 GMT

So the wife and I decided to hit up the Santa Ynez Valley National and see how many points we could collect before the finals in Brianhead which we plan on attending.

I didn’t want to burn vacation time so we drove up Friday after work. The drive was horrible, nuts to butts almost the entire way. Driving with the big motor at less than 40mph for almost 5 hrs with the AC blasting due to the heat wave was strike one against keeping the weekend low budget, wasted a whole tank of fuel on the way up there.

We arrived in Buelton and had planned to share a motel with friends but due to poor timing and our impatience and surly attitudes after sitting in traffic all night we wound up getting our own room. Strike two on the cheap approach.

Saturday morning we drove to the venue early and got in a couple of practice runs. There wasn’t much time for practice. Definitely nothing like the wonderful time I had at Woodward West! I got a couple of runs in and decided that more runs in the sweltering heat would drain me of what little energy I felt like I had so I tried to find some shade and hide from the sun god.

As a side note, after pre-registering, my entry was somehow fouled up and I was placed in XC and not DH. When the seed list was posted I wasn’t on it. I wound up having to run near the end of Sport Men in a scheduled break time. I don’t know how an electronic pre-registration for DH gets messed up, but somehow “they” manage to pull it off.

Since I didn’t know when I was going to race, I headed up to the top of the hill very early. I got to hang out with Allison who was going off first, but I also had to sit around for a LONG time up there waiting (55.5 minutes) in the blast furnace like wind. I cheered for Allison on her run and then did more hiding from the sun god who seemed to have it out for me this weekend.

My race run:

The wind had really picked up and was blowing hard. I don’t like jumping in the wind. I need to work on that.

Out of the gate I cranked hard and started shifting right away. During my practice runs I slipped a pedal two times before the first jump which I attributed to spinning too fast. I took the inside line around the left hand sweeper and I got to the first jump way faster than I expected! I soaked it up as much as I could and then cranked.

I knew that as fast as I was going I was sure to over jump the first table, so I tapped the brakes, still over jumped.

I hit the right hand berm and carried speed through the next two little jumps. Slammed through the left hand berm and pedaled towards the hard right. The berm looked really beat up so I dropped a foot and slid through it carrying as much speed as possible. I pedaled hard towards the faux rock garden and rolled fast through the right hand line.

As I cranked past the tree on the next straight section my rear tire slid off the bench cut to rider’s left. This scrubbed a little speed so I really got on the pedals hard. This turned out to be a mistake. I wound up coming in way fast to the next jumps and over jumped every one of them.

I need to work on flat jumping and staying lower.

I slammed through the left hand berm carrying lots of speed and pedaled toward the off camber right hand turn. I heard lots of bad stories about this one from other racers, so I made sure to spot my line and stay low. I was shocked how fast I was able to get through it!

My run was going perfect!

I pedaled hard and then got on the brakes for the flat chicane before going over the bridge. As I came over the bridge I made sure to look through the next turn and slammed the bike through the left hand berm. I was going way faster than any of my practice runs.

Immediately after the left hand berm the track made a right hand turn and went down into a gully. When I hit the right hand turn I have no idea what happened. I felt like I had good weighting and body position. The front tire just disappeared out from underneath me.

I slammed down on the ground, face first, on my right hand side.

Immediately I jumped up and ran up to my bike. I grabbed it and jumped on. I was going to finish as fast as possible.

For the next few turns I felt a little off, my bell was rung a little, but I pedaled hard to try to make up for it.

I nailed the drop by the tree and carried some speed across the bridge which I am sure saved me some time against my competition.

Once into the bottom section I knew I had lost time to the crash so I put my head down and pedaled like a mad man. I sailed through the sandy right hander and pedaled through the culvert.

I stood up the whole way down the dirt road pedaling as hard as I could.

Right before the jump that leaves the road it felt like I slipped a pedal. My right foot went down without resistance and my butt slammed down onto the seat compressing my rear suspension. The un-intentional seat bounce nearly sent me over the bars, but I was able to ride it out. I tried to pedal as soon as I landed, but there was no resistance on the cranks. As I coasted up and over the table top I heard the announcer say that I had put in a blistering time while dragging my chain!

So with a crash up top, and a broken chain at the bottom I turned a 2:18, good enough for a 3^rd place spot on the podium!

Turns out the wife also had a mechanical in her DH run. We had bad luck, I blame it on the sun god who obviously had it out for us!

To finish up our Saturday I pre-rode the XC course with the wife. It was a very fun course with lots of flowing single track. Mental note: Race XC at Santa Ynez next year.

Sunday the wife vindicated our good name by decimating the competition in XC and then we drove home.

All in all it was a good weekend with a great deal of learning.

One thing that I feel I must bitch about is the fact that Team Big Bear feels that the Sport Women are second class citizens. They get started BEHIND the BEGINNER men and then have to pass the entire lot of them! This is totally bogus. My wife spends her entire race trying to pass Beginner Men, Sport Single Speed Men, Clydesdale Men, as well as the slower Sport Men. I think that Sport Women should be started after Sport Men and before Beginner Men. Please make it so!

Idyllwild Spring Challenge and SuicideD

Mon, 05 May 2008 14:29:50 GMT

Your first question will be, “What is SuicideD?” But to answer that question you will have to read further!

This past weekend we raced at the Idyllwild Spring Challenge. This race could easily boast that they have the best race course. It is certainly the best XC course I have ever ridden. Lots of technical single track, lots of climbing, great fast descents… this course has it all AND it has altitude!

I have not raced XC in a while and had been pretty focused on DH, so I was unsure as to how I might do. I was really looking forward to the SuperD as I just got my fork back from White Brothers and it really works nice now.

photo by DMC

Saturday morning I warmed up a bit before the race and then lined up. I marked the guys I figured would be the eventual winners and committed to doing what I could to hang onto them. We took off and the course quickly funneled down to single track. I was near the front and was really looking forward to seeing what I could do.

photo by DMC

As soon as we started up the Keen Camp climb I hit some bumps and my chain dropped! I had been in the middle ring and wasn’t even shifting at the time! I had to stop and put my chain back on, which put me behind a huge group of people and way back from the leaders. Once I was rolling again I decided to try and go as hard as I could to try to close the gap to the leaders. I started passing people almost immediately and continued to make passes for the rest of the climb and into the meadow.

I continued to push hard up May Valley Rd. but due to my position in “no man’s land” was unsure as to whether my efforts were paying off. I never saw anyone in my class that I know of.

This leads me to a bit of a rant. If I am going to put a mark on my calf to identify me on the course, everyone should have to! I saw way too many riders without numbers and didn’t know if I was losing or gaining spots during the race. Very frustrating!

On the Buena Vista single track I passed a pro female rider and then almost immediately crashed. I was very upset with that. I eventually passed her back, and then turned on the speed to make sure I didn’t trade spots with her any more.

On the Lower Southridge climb I was really hurting bad. I couldn’t seem to recover at all and was messing up lots of tech stuff that I know I can make. I fell off trail and into the bushes at least once, and did quite a bit of jogging next to my bike. :(

Once we hit May Valley Rd. again and dropped into the Snakeskin single track I was doing pretty well and tried hard to push my pace. I didn’t run into much traffic and only had to pull aside for a couple of pro riders that were coming through. I did cramp slightly in my right quad on the Cahuilla Cutoff trail, but managed to work through it.

photo by DMC

I crashed once more on Rage Through the Sage trying to let a pro rider pass me in a spot that was less than ideal. I was pretty pissed, but I didn’t want to hold him up and he was very anxious to pass. He wound up second in pro, and he said he was sorry that I crashed but that he was trying to chase down the leader.

I finished in 4th place, ten minutes or so behind the leaders. It was a very fun course, and although I didn’t have a great race I did have fun. I also decided that I would really crank it up on Sunday in the SuperD, little did I know!

We showed up Sunday morning to find out that the remainder of the races were cancelled. At first I was pretty upset, but then decided that since we were there and expected to race that we should just hold our own race! And the SuicideD was born! So off we went, a little group of 3 racers (and our 3 female spectators), to climb up the hill and race down the ISC SuperD course on our own terms. Along the way we picked up another contestant (although it seems he wasn’t taking it as seriously as us). We really had a blast racing each other down the course. I couldn’t imagine a better SuperD course.

The competitors...

Dan

Michael

Here is how the race went down:

I was last off the start. I accidentally left my bike in the granny gear from the climb up. I hammered really hard and caught up to the leaders; Dan out in front of Michael. I tagged onto the back of their train and we were FLYING. Michael put a good pass on Dan, putting him out front. Then all of a sudden on a right hand turn there was a BIG mud hole. Michael hopped it, Dan tried but stuffed his front wheel and very nearly crashed. I was RIGHT BEHIND him and almost crashed into him as I zoomed by. I was able to close the gap some to Michael before the single track (I had hit my brakes to help miss hitting Dan). Onto the single track Michael was ripping down the trail and I was right behind him. We were seriously moving! We ripped down Hombre Uno, I tried to make a pass on the inside of a big boulder but didn't have the right gear. We hit the short fire road stretch before Exfoliator and Michael was too strong for me to pass him. Going down Exfoliator i was only a few feet behind Michael and we were RAILING the corners! It was super fast and before I knew it we were pedaling onto Coyote Run. I was running out of time to make my pass and knew I had to make something work. I tried taking the inside line around a left hander and Michael shut the door on me (AWESOME RACING!). Finally I was able to stick a move on him and I was in the LEAD!!!! I saw Allison on the side of the road, and it looked like she was marking the entrance to the final single track so I turned. Flew through a rock garden and then through a big stream crossing. A sign pointed right but I went left and quickly figured out we went the wrong way! Michael took first and we all had a good laugh about it.

The Podium

Afterward we (Allison, Steph, Dan and I) drove by Vail Lake and put in some more mileage and climbing. It was a great weekend and I look forward to racing the Idyllwild Spring Challenge next year!

Cal State #2 - Woodward West

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 15:13:16 GMT

First I must apologize for the lack of pictures in this race report. I sorely missed my dear wife this past weekend, and I am sure that anyone reading this race report misses her photos. Please bear with me as all I have are words to share from this race…

The second in a series of four, this race was at a new venue for me. I had heard rumors that the course was lame and that it wasn’t worth driving to. I don’t think anyone could have been more wrong!

Friday night I was scrambling to get my gear ready, and pack up my stuff. Allison was to drop me off at Nancy and Rogers house so that I could ride up with them (Allison was to spend the weekend doing XC training). I crashed on their couch and we were on the road really freaking early on Saturday (do these people sleep? ? )

Saturday morning we arrived in Tehachapi around 6:00AM and went for breakfast at a little diner. I ordered a hearty breakfast which worked out really well for me. Once we got checked in and they opened up practice (around 8AM) I did run after run after run and didn’t take a break till some time after 2PM. I don’t know how many runs I got in, but I can tell you that I did enough runs that my ears are still sore from removing and replacing my helmet! I almost never do DH runs on non-race weekends, so my jumping and drifting skills were pretty hurting, but after all those runs I was feeling very confident on the course.

The course:

The start gate was on the top of a grassy slope, at the bottom there was a very slight left right chicane to a jump. The chicane was on flat ground and had marbles on hard pack, quite a few people crashed 3 seconds into their race runs! The jump didn’t have a good landing for race speed, so it was key to suck it up and flat land.

After recovering from the flat landing you get a few pedal strokes and then drop into a bermed right hand 180 downhill turn. This turn was one place that someone can really gain or lose time as the exit was a pretty flat pedal section for 35 yards or so. At the end of the pedal section there was a little rise (as you pass under a big ladder drop) into a left hand 90 degree berm.

This berm was followed by a jump over an unused berm and then a trip through some knee high grass. After that there was a high speed off camber right leading into another critical corner. The corner had two lines, an inside line that could reward a skilled rider with a very short distance traveled and punish an unskilled rider with a violent loss of traction, and an outside line with a berm that provided a more consistent cornering surface and good traction to pedal out.

The course then had a fast section across another unused berm which acted as a jump, one must soak this one up as immediately afterward you had an off camber right hander into a steep section followed by a quick left then right under a giant arch of a fallen oak tree. The left hander again had a couple of line choices and the corner speed, exit speed, and distance traveled through each line made the choices more difficult! The right was well bermed and was very fun to slam through if you had good exit speed from the left.

Immediately after this the rider needed to really crank it up. A short pedal section led to a very sketchy sweeping left hand turn, then traversing the hill went over a couple of rolling mounds, almost like a pump track but a bit too far apart and not steep enough. This section was pretty demanding and one would lose time if they let up on the pedaling!

At the end of this straight away, a flat right led into a series of three quite small drops. The drops would be insignificant if it weren’t for the fact that the last one was just close enough to an off camber right then left set of turns to make the rider compensate for the fact that their suspension could still be in rebound mode as they entered the corner. The exit speed from these corners was crucial as immediately afterward the rider was sent skyward over a decent sized table top jump. Lots of riders had a hard time with this location on the course.

Down-siding the table top jump was critical as it was really the only way to carry enough speed for the double jump immediately afterward. Even with a good pump off the landing of the table, I was pedaling to make sure I could clear the double.

After landing the double, the rider was sent skyward yet again off a left hand hip jump and down a nice landing area into a nicely banked high speed right hand turn. Nearing the finish line, the rider was then faced with a slight bump/jump, a left hand turn immediately followed by a jump over a fallen tree and then a few pedal strokes later a kicker of a table top right before the finish line.

As you can tell, I became quite intimate with this course over the weekend!

Sunday rolled around and I did a couple of practice runs. I took one run down pretty slow trying to help some riders with lines that hadn’t been there on Saturday for practice. I felt very good on the course and had gained a ton of confidence in my jumping, a stark contrast to the fear that I felt toward the jumps at Sea Otter. The race was to be a two run format; a first for me in my short time racing, something that I hoped would reward my consistency on the course.

My first race run was not so good though. I was trying too hard to pedal fast and shifted gears as I went through some bumps, the brief lack of resistance in my drive train combined with the un-weighting effect of a bump caused me to slip my left pedal. I nearly crashed, my left leg swung back violently and came all the way around to the right side of the bike, I hit my stomach on the saddle, veering to the right I nearly collided with the support for the ladder drop and came off the top of the left hand berm onto the grass. Somehow in all of this I managed to not come to a complete stop, get back on the bike, and pedal out of it! The rest of the course went according to plan though and I finished in the lead with a time of 1:24 and change. The second place rider was only a couple of tenths of a second behind me and in talking with him he felt he would be faster on the second run.

My second race run went very well. I was angry for my bobble in the first round and my friends were yelling for me to keep my feet on the pedals! I hit all my lines, pedaled hard and cleared all the jumps. Unfortunately my closest competition took a hard fall as I watched him come through the jumps. I was very sad to see him crash as I would have liked to have seen what time he could have done (he said that up till that point he had gone much faster than his first run) but I was impressed that he got up and finished the run, managing to stay on the podium! In talking with the other racers I said that I had hoped to shave 3 or 4 seconds off my time, thinking that was about what my bobble had cost me. To my amazement, I had shaved nearly 6 full seconds off my first time! My second run was a 1:18 and change!

All in all I had an amazing weekend. The facility at Woodward West was amazing. I hope that they start having gravity camps for adults as the features that they have built made my heart beat fast and my eyes bulge! I have to thank Nancy and Roger for hosting me this past weekend. A guy couldn’t ask for better team mates! Thanks again to all my racing friends; you are all what make the races special and it wouldn’t be the same without you.

Sea Otter 2008 - The Good, The Not So Good (Very L...

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 11:09:18 GMT

Last week we took a couple of vacation days to head up to Laguna Seca Raceway for the 2008 Sea Otter Classic. We have had the event on our minds since 2006 when we drove up to see the Expo and watch the races.

The cost to race this event is pretty significant; as entry fees go it is very expensive at around $90 dollars per event (between the two of us we participated in 4 events), fuel prices are steep and we spent around $200 to drive almost 900 miles round trip, we saved a bunch by sharing a room with friends and only spent $160 for 3 nights, then add up all the costs of food and drink and everything else… Sea Otter isn’t cheap!

Thursday morning we left home at 3AM and arrived at the venue around 10:30AM. We parked and got ready for our DH practice runs. Unbeknownst to us, we could have headed straight over and started practicing, but in our naivety we thought that we could only practice during our scheduled times. We mulled about in the Expo to kill some time before heading up to practice.

The DH course at Sea Otter is VERY fun! It is dramatically different than what we are used to at Fontana with big swooping berms and lots of jumps. There were no rock gardens, no real low speed flat turns, no deep silt-dust, we were in a foreign land! After getting two practice runs in due to long lines at the top and longer lines waiting for shuttles we were kicked off the course for the Expert practice. I felt really slow and was not making most of the jumps, I hadn’t hit anything as big as that since we were in Whistler last summer so I was pretty rusty and lacked confidence. No matter, we would have another practice session on Friday!

We headed back to the truck on the other side of the venue to change clothes and pre ride the XC course. The XC course was extremely fun. Fast, flowy single track descents with some slightly technical spots, a couple of deep sandy downhills, and a few climbs that suit my power to weight ratio perfectly. I wish that the organizers of the event had seen fit to schedule the event so that multi-discipline atheletes could participate without conflicts. After the XC ride we were both ravenous and headed to dinner and bed.

Friday morning we arrived at the venue before the sun came up. I had a lot of work to do on the bikes before I could go practice SuperD. This would be my first SuperD race ever and I was pretty nervous. While working on both of our bikes I managed to scarf down some breakfast, and then jumped on my bike to find the start of SuperD. I was pretty disappointed in the signs that directed you to the start; I was unsure as to which way to go but had seen a sign on the far side of the venue by the downhill course that said “SuperD Start” so I pedaled over there. I really wish that the organizers had put up signs by the paddock to direct us on the much shorter route up and across the footbridge.

Anyway, after pedaling all the way around Laguna Seca Raceway unnecessarily the signs seemed to just stop. I asked a parking attendant where the SuperD start was and he didn’t know, but pointed up the hill saying that lots of riders had gone that way. Another thing that would be nice would be to have the promoter educate the event personnel on some basic things like where the races begin! (Later I heard that Marla Streb had missed the Pro Womens SuperD start and I wonder if she had the same problems)

After finally locating the starting area I commenced my practice run. The course started out with a slight incline before descending down to the first turn; a flat left hander with loose gravel on it. As I approached the corner I decided that during the race I might want to stick the inside line so I went in fast and made an attempt. This approach didn’t work out for me as the bike quickly slid out and left me skidding along the road on my left side. I collected myself and hiked back up a ways to take another go at it. This time I found that the outside line might work better, but was also worried that the outside line would put me in harms way should someone wash out hard trying to stick the inside line. I decided there would probably be other challenges on the course and that I had learned what I needed for this corner (little did I know). I bombed down the rest of the course and found that there was one other corner, a pretty easy right hander.

I was really disappointed with the lack of technical challenges on the course. It was really just a high speed run down fire roads with two corners. Since I didn’t have a big ring on my bike, I was instantly at a disadvantage. I decided on the shuttle ride back to the venue that making a second practice run would be a waste of my energy. Once back at the venue I had time to kill so I went over and watched some Dual Slalom racing. Nancy had qualified really well and I wanted to see her ride the course. Unfortunately it was rather cold and windy on the hill and I only got to see her do one round. I went to the truck to waste time and re-fuel. I packaged up my DH gear and placed it with my bike on Roger and Nancy’s truck in the hopes that I would be able to get one DH practice run in after my SuperD race and then headed up to the SuperD start.

Once we lined up by class for the start of the race I was blown away at how many people I would be racing against (there were 60 of us!). When we were called to the line I tried to place my bike in the first row but was edged out and wound up on the second row, little did I know I would have been better off in the third row! At the start I sprinted up the hill, jumped over the third row of bikes and picked up my ride only to realize that the bikes in the first row were in my way. I hesitated to allow the riders in the first row to get moving and in doing so allowed a rider in the third row to place his bars into my rear wheel. I was off to a horrible start! Once I got moving I was probably in the top 20 or so, I ran until the crest of the hill and jumped onto my bike to ride and WHAM I slid off the back of the seat and landed on the back tire! This was a very uncomfortable experience but I did my best to get moving again, I ran a few steps and was finally successful at mounting my bike and pedaling. I was probably somewhere near 40th place at this point. There was lots of people pushing and shoving and tangling their bikes up. I pedaled hard and started passing people. I was riding off the side of the fire road in several places so that I could pass without causing a crash. The first corner came and went, I rode through it tentatively on the outside, partly due to the pain eminating from my groin and partly due to fear of having one of the guys on the inside slide into me. On the climb right after the turn I stood up and hammered the best I could. I passed about 5 more riders. Once I crested the hill I quickly spun out in my top gear. I did my best to stay aero and managed to not get passed. I negotiated the second turn and exchanged positions with a rider on a flat section of the course (I was spun out, he powered by me, then I passed him back on the descent). I gave it all I had and held my position for the rest of the race.

I was pretty disappointed with my race and right after finishing pedaled the one mile up the road to get on the shuttle. Unfortunately they had just finished loading the shuttle truck and there was only one truck. I was quickly running out of time to get a DH practice run in! Just when I was running out of hope, Robert Herber came driving through! I jumped in the back of his pickup truck and he gave me a ride up to the venue. He totally saved my day, a big thanks to Robert!!!!

My legs were pretty tired but I did my best to ride fast up the hill to the DH course. Once there I hastily donned my gear and switched bikes. Huge thanks to Nancy and Roger for bringing my bike and gear up to the DH course for me!!!! My practice run felt much better than the two runs the day before so I was very glad I got one in. The DH shuttle line was amazingly long and it took over an hour for us to get back up to the top. No second run for me! We headed back down to the bottom of the course on the road so that we could deal with a timing issue for Allison. After that we cruised around the Expo some and then went to dinner and bed.

Saturday morning we got to the venue early again so that I could get Allison’s bike ready for her XC race. I finally got her shifting issues squared away and then went to get my final DH practice run in before my race. I was the first person in line for practice. It was very cold and windy. I wanted to do a full race pace run. When I was finally cleared to start I pedaled hard out of the gate and went into the first turn really fast. Unfortunately for me they had watered the course just before practice and my Small Block 8 on the rear didn’t hold in the muddy corner (the course had been dry on all previous runs). Half way through the corner my rear tire came out from under me and I slid out and fell pretty hard. I looked up at the really long practice line and decided that if I tried to go back up for a run I might miss my start time. In the fall I had sprained my ankle and removed all the skin on the inside of it, and twisted my knee pretty good. I finished the run, trying to get my confidence back. I was not very pleased with my practice run. It would have been really cool to get a second run in, but that was not to happen. The shuttle trucks didn’t start running for nearly an hour!!! Another lesson learned is that self-shuttling, although technically not allowed, is used by many people to get extra practice runs!

Once I was finally back up top I decided that with as cold and windy as it was, it was in my best interest to head over to the truck and warm up some. I ate some food and blasted the heater. When it was close to my seed time I headed up the hill and staged with the other guys in my class. My race run was uneventful. I didn’t push hard going through the first turn due to falling there on my practice run. I overjumped the first double and scrubbed some speed not making the second double, but pedaled hard. I didn’t do the big step down jump but I don’t think I lost much time there. I did brake excessively heading into the steep rutted section, but I wanted to make sure I had a clean run. I pedaled hard on the lower section and crossed the line in 2min 45seconds even. I heard them announce my time and that I was in first. I waited around for the rest of my class to finish and then checked the print out to make sure… I had won DH!!!!

After jumping on a shuttle I rode quickly over to the truck to find Allison. We celebrated my win and she told the story of her XC race. We went down to the Expo and she jumped up on the podium. It was approaching her seed time so we headed up so she could stage, but it turned out that the medical delays had pushed her race time back by an hour or so. We watched a bunch of racers go down and when she finally went down I snapped a picture of her…

After her race run we went over to the truck and got a quick bite to eat. We then headed down to find out when the awards would be. On the way down, I saw other DH racers walking the opposite direction with awards and schwag. We had missed our podiums! This was very upsetting. I had worked hard to put myself on the podium. There were no announcements as to when podiums would be, no times, no one knew when they would start. I was very disappointed in the way Sea Otter handled the awards, and I don’t think I was the only one.

One thing that stands out in my memory from the weekend was a wonderful discussion with Dave Turner. He took the time to talk with us and it was a very pleasant discussion. I appreciated him sharing his viewpoints and insider information with us. Thanks to Dave Turner for spending the time to talk to us!

Sunday we watched the Pro DH, hang out some, and then headed home. It was a long drive. It was cool to see Rich Houseman driving home, his truck looks sweet with all those Yeti bikes in the back!!! All in all Sea Otter was a good experience. Every time we head out to the races there are things to learn, and this trip was no exception. Thanks to Roger and Nancy for helping us out with so many things! Thanks to all of my sponsors, and thanks to my wonderful wife!

Packing up and Heading Out.

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 21:00:49 GMT

Tonight Allison and I have been frantically running about as we are packing for our trip up to Monterey for the Sea Otter Classic. More about that in a minute, first lets to a little recap of the weekend as we put in some pretty good miles.

Friday after work we jumped on the road bikes for a nice flat 18 mile ride. The weather was really nice. The ride itself wasn’t anything special, but it is really cool that we can once again go out for a decent ride after work without worrying about running out of daylight!

Saturday we hooked up with my buddy Brian for a pretty good road ride. The intended route was to do a 60 miler (30 miles out and back) in the Cleveland National Forest. The route is primarily a one lane paved road that used to be known as Tenaja Truck Trail / South Main Divide. The surface of the road is less than ideal, but the lack of vehicular traffic makes for some fun when ripping down hill (and really exciting at speed when you throw in gravel, tight turns, water bars, and pot holes!). There is quite a bit of climbing as the route takes us from the valley, up onto the plateau, off the north end of the plateau down into a valley, and then up into the south end of the Santa Ana Mountains climbing up the southwest side of Elsinore Peak. At mile 23 I was pedaling out in front when I heard what sounded like a .22 caliber rifle shot; it turns out Allison’s Specialized Roubaix tire gave up on life. The casing ripped allowing the tube to pop. We were pretty worried that with no cell phone service and no people or traffic that we would have to walk back 15 or so miles to where we could get cell service. I managed to use a Fruit Leather wrapper and a Cliff Bar wrapper in combination to provide enough reinforcement to get 50 or 60psi into the tire. Begrudgingly I turned my bike around, knowing that the patch might not hold for the return trip let alone pushing farther away from civilization. Surprisingly the patch held out for the entire return trip which was pretty amazing considering the size of the rip! In any case, it was a really great ride. The weather was perfect, there were still wildflowers in bloom, and it was really refreshing to get out on a remote road ride (we saw 3 vehicles out there). I need to revisit this ride a few times this summer as it is a great training ride.

The steeds...

JRA, roadie style

uh oh!

this is what others usually see of me... :)

Sunday we met up with Steph, Dan, and Lisa (an expert level XC racer from Texas here for a seminar) for some dirt miles at Daley Ranch. All the rain this year really treated this place well, the ponds were full and the hillsides were green. This is of course a stark contrast to the Daley Ranch we are more used to seeing, the heat of summer dries up the ponds and green plants are a rarity, as the temps in summer often exceed 100F. Allison and I have spent several days out there riding in the summer when the temps reached into the high 90’s. Once again the weather was perfect. The air was extremely clear and in several places we could see the ocean and the Coronado Islands. We cranked out a nice 14 mile loop with some good hard climbs and some fast fun single track. After the ride we all chowed down at Chipotle and hung out enjoying each other’s company.

Fearsome XC girls, Lisa and Steph

Me tearing it up on my 'Box (what horrible tan lines!)

The steeds...

Me and Lisa

Allison's over-the-shoulder shot of Lisa

GREEN!

Me airing it out on a little gap jump...

YUMMY!

So now the truck is packed, the bikes are ready, and we are preparing to drive many hours north of here to race at Sea Otter. We are leaving here at 3AM in the hopes of getting up there and practicing the DH course before pre-riding the XC course. I will be racing SuperD on Friday and Downhill on Saturday. It should be fun, wish us luck!

Idyllwild Camping

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 20:39:39 GMT

This past weekend we participated in the second annual STR Idyllwild campout. It was much bigger than last year; over 60 mountain bikers invaded the Hurkey Creek campground!

Friday we left work an hour early and drove up into the hills. We got there, pitched our tent and headed out for a fun little sunset ride with some friends. It was getting dark just as we came back to camp so we timed it perfectly! After the ride I cooked up some of my famous burgers (turkey this time) and we then sat around the camp fire eating smores and joking around.

Saturday after breakfast we rounded up a group of riders and headed out to do a nice long ride. We rode most of the day and totaled over 30 miles and more than 5000 ft of climbing. The trails were awesome with lots of single track, some tech climbing, and stellar descents. When we got back to camp I cooked up turkey chili and chicken breasts and then we repeated our fireside antics before turning in.

Sunday we broke down camp after breakfast and headed out for another great ride. Our group was double the size of Saturday and the pace was slower, which was a really good thing as I was feeling the previous day’s efforts. The weather was perfect and I was railing the descents on my ‘Box. After the ride a bunch of us went out for dinner before heading home.

Weekends like these remind me that there is so much more to mountain biking than just racing. It is all about the people we share these times with that make them so special. I am very fortunate to have so many great people to ride with, I truly appreciate each and every one of you.

As a side note, it is pretty cool to see my name listed on www.mbaction.com as the winner of the NMBS #1 Sport DH 27-34.

NMBS #1 - My first National.

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:36:01 GMT

Thursday we did not go up to practice, due to time and gas prices we opted to ride a quick local XC loop after work. Allison was climbing very strong, I was struggling on the first lap but my legs came around on the second lap. Seeing Allison pull away from me on the first big climb I was glad that I wasn’t racing XC at the Nationals!

Friday we drove up and got a few runs in. I was amazed at the transformation our local venue underwent. Big team trucks, vendors everywhere! I was bummed that you had to be special to park inside where we usually park with our friends, but we eventually figured out the parking deal. We got in a couple of runs. The course was pretty fun, although they kept the hard stuff all on the expert/pro course. Funny thing, I know I can ride the stuff on that course, but I definitely have some anxiety about trying to race on it! My mom was out for the weekend to watch us race and that was really cool. After practice we all hit up Jose's for some good quality time, then we went to the hotel.

Sponsor Plug…

I can't say enough good stuff about my new toy! I had recorded a couple of practice runs with my new GoPro helmet cam and then watched them on the laptop before going to bed. I found new lines and was able to visualize the course much better. I highly recommend one for any racer, very cool tool. I meant to record my race runs, but didn't get around to it... although it is really light I didn't really want the weight on my head for race runs anyway...

Saturday we showed up early, but were forced to park in no-man's land. We rectified that situation eventually, but Allison was really freaked out for a while. My rear tire had flatted overnight from the previous day’s practice run, so I had to fix that before I could ride. We did some spectating and got a little practice in. My practice runs went well. I felt ready. My race run was good, but not great. Could have been faster, I was surprised to find that I had won by a big margin.

Sunday we showed up before sunrise and got to park wherever we wanted. I wanted to do my best to support Allison’s XC effort so I double checked her bike and helped her warm up some by chasing her around on my DH bike. I didn't stick around to see the start, instead I headed out onto the course to pick some spots to provide motivation. On the first lap I cheered from the top of the road climb, then on the single track climb, then on the single track descent, and then on the fire road on the backside. I then ran back over to the beginning of the course and cheered from there, I ran with Allison up one climb and tried to make sure she was doing okay, tried to help keep her motivated for that hard second lap. I waited for Steph and yelled at her. I followed her the whole way up the road climb yelling at her when she looked like she was dropping her pace. I then ran back down onto the backside of the course and cheered for every rider I could. I tried to provide them with motivation to keep pushing hard. After Allison and Steph passed me, I ran back to the finish area. They were already done when I arrived. I had worked up a mean appetite though and forced Allison to go get food with me before their awards. Before I got to do Cal State practice I got to see some pros killing it on their race runs. They amaze me with their skill and fitness. After they were done I got two practice runs. Both runs were flawless. I hit all my lines and had awesome speed. Unfortunately I was tired after the second one, probably due to running around all morning during the XC race. My race run was sloppy. I blew a corner right after the start, and then screwed up at least two more times, blew a corner after the saddle, and thought that maybe I had lost the race. I pinned it after that. I pedaled hard and almost crashed in the twists at right before the finish trying to keep speed. My race run was 5 seconds slower than Saturday but I still won (by a much smaller margin).

It was a good weekend of racing. I really miss doing XC though. I like the challenge. I would have been way back from the leaders of my class in XC though. I have a lot of work to do to catch up to them! Hopefully I can close that gap some in the coming months...

Thanks to my sponsors and everyone that was out to race and support the racers. I appreciate the pictures and cheering. I especially appreciate all the fun we have joking around on the hill. I have to say that after all the wise cracks, I was most proud of Frank and Adrian. They both were on the podium. I know that Adrian has it in him to be fast, it will just take work on fitness and I am proud of him that he is taking those steps!!!!! Good luck bro!

Photo by Winston

National Podium

Photo by Carla

Cal State Podium

Keyesville Classic Results are on Cyclingnews.com

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 07:50:27 GMT

http://www.cyclingnews.com/mtb.php?id=mtb/2008/mar08/keyesville08/keyesville081

Official results from the Keyesville race are up.

What an awesome event! Can't wait to go back next year!

Yesterday I was trying out my new GoPro camera. Here is my first uploaded video, riding behind my wife at Vail Lake after work...

http://www.vimeo.com/833121

Sorry, it appears that I cannot embed the video in my blog posts...

Fun with my 'Box

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 13:34:47 GMT

A couple of weeks ago I received my new frame, a Lenz Sport Lunchbox. The guys over at The Path Bike Shop in Tustin, CA ordered all the parts for me.

This bike is not the typical All-Mountain machine, long travel 29ers are not so common, mostly due to fork selection.

So what is it that makes my ‘Box so special? Is it more than just the sum of its parts?

Frame: Lenz Sport Lunchbox (Medium)

Fork: White Brothers Fluid29 150mm

Hubs: Chris King (Red, 36H 150mm rear, 36H T/A front)

Rims: Stan’s 29er Flow

Spokes: DT Swiss SuperComps

Nipples: DT Swiss Prolocks

Brakes: Hope M4 180mm front and rear

Cranks: Middleburn RS7 22T/34T/Ring Guard

BB: Crank Bros. Cobalt

Pedals: Crank Bros. Eggbeater Ti

Headset: Crank Bros. DirectSet

Seat post: Crank Bros. Joplin

Stem: Thompson X4 80mm 0 degree rise

Bars: Sunline V-One Carbon OS

Shifters: X0 Grip shift

FD: XTR

RD: X0 medium cage

Chain: SRAM

Cassette: SRAM
Seat: Specialized Phenom

Tires: Various (Kenda Nevegal and Small Block 8)

The bike weighs in at less than 31lbs ready to roll.

I finished building her in time for the final race of the SRC Shimano Winter Series and decided to let that be her shakedown run. I raced XC on her and was not so stoked on the experience. I had Nevegals on the front and rear, which made for a slow rolling setup when compared to the other riders on high end XC machines. I had an issue with chain suck when dropping to the granny gear (something that I still have not resolved). But in general the bike worked fine, I was approximately 10 minutes slower than two weeks prior on a bike that was 7lbs lighter and decidedly more XC friendly.

I decided not to let the experience at Fontana dissuade me from using my new bike at the Keyesville Classic for the All-Mountain Stage Race. Their Stage Race seems to me to be the perfect test of a bike and rider’s ability, combined points from DH, ST, and XC to determine an overall winner. I had a great time and placed second overall, winning my class for DH and ST! I had proven to myself that this bike was my most versatile weapon, that it would live up to my expectations!

Well this last weekend I put the ‘Box through another torture test, and she came out with flying colors!

Saturday we rode with a big group out at Marshall Canyon. We rode in the “A Group” and the pace was pretty high for a group ride. I had the XC tire setup up on there and had no problems keeping up on the climbs. The bike performed flawlessly. I had a blast riding and joking around with all the STR peeps.

Sunday we spent the day doing a full “Tour de Noble”. There are lots of challenging obstacles on this trail, and we did a lot of miles and climbing. I conquered several technical climbs that I had never cleaned before, and pushed as hard or harder on some descents as I would on my DH bike! I rode a few new stunts that we found and the bike took it all in stride. It was awesome!

I have to say that this bike is here to stay. It will surely be my go-to bike for everything between XC racing and DH shuttles. For XC racing I still have my Niner SIR9 and for DH stuff I will continue to use my Intense Socom, but the ‘Box fits perfectly between these two bikes and fills a long standing gap that I have had in my stable.

Special thanks to:

The Path Bike Shop in Tustin, CA

Devin at Lenz Sport

Tim Fry at White Brothers (MRP)

Keyesville Classic Stage Race

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 15:20:28 GMT

DAY 1 (3/14/2008)

After a hectic week of preparation the wife and I left home Friday morning as the sun was coming up. Our plan was to get up to Keyesville around 10AM when the official practice session was supposed to start.

We arrived at the venue on time, but found that very few other people were there and the DH course was not marked. Talking to a few other people that were trying to practice, we heard conflicting stories about where the track was, whether there were or were not two separate tracks, where the races would start, etc. There was one section that we knew would be on the course, it is known as “The Snake Pit”. I spent some time working with Allison to help her get over riding her XC bike through a rock garden that she wouldn’t even blink at on her DH bike.

After some work we headed down to the parking lot. We were expecting Steph and Dan and wanted to practice with them. They were there and after suiting up joined us for the hike back up to the top. Yeah that is right, I said hike. This event did not have shuttles for the DH, people power only! I have to admit it was funny for me to see my wife and my friends all geared up with full face helmets riding XC bikes! I was of course riding my new ‘Box!!!

Dan

Steph

Allison

Since we were all riding in the Stage Race, we all chose to ride bikes that we felt gave us a fighting chance in the Short Track and Cross Country races. We sessioned the known DH course a bit and dialed in some good clean racing lines and then decided it was time to eat and check-in/register. The check-in was not set up yet, so we ate a great lunch at KRBC (I had to have a pint of Class V Stout) and then checked-in.

We drove back over to the venue and decided to pre-ride the already marked XC course in the hopes that the confusion over the DH courses might be worked out when we finished. As we headed out on the ~9 mile lap we saw the race organizer setting up the tape for “DH Course 1” (we had apparently practiced “DH Course 2” before lunch). We thanked him for marking the courses and decided that we would finish the XC lap and then check it out. The XC course was very fun, lots of places where momentum would be key on race day. I was very glad to have pre-ridden the course!

After the XC course we rode “DH Course 1” and it seemed that there were more line choices on this course, as well as some pretty steep and bumpy sections (for a trail bike). Both courses seemed like they were more SuperD courses than DH, very fun with lots of pedaling, but not highly technical. We tried to figure out the partially marked Short Track course but wound up giving up and headed over to a friends house to close out the day. Our friend Jeff had quite a gathering at his house for the weekend and had prepared a killer meal for us all. Huge thanks to him and his family for putting us up!!!

DAY 2 (3/15/2008)

Up very early and off to the venue to make sure we were ready for DH. I stood in line to get pancakes but decided not to when I discovered that it would cost me $6, and they looked burnt. I geared up for my race run thinking that plastic courage couldn’t hurt, especially since I only had one run on “DH Course 1” and two on “DH Course 2”. I am not used to having such little practice when racing DH! I hiked up the course with my fellow racers, taking one last look at where I hoped to place my tires in the race run.

“DH Course 1” went well. I didn’t have any major issues, a few spots where I scrubbed some extra speed, and I figured I had a competitive time. While hiking back up the second course with Steph, I found some spots where I figured we could shave a bit of time and did my best to visualize them so that I could hit them in my race run. “DH Course 2” went just as well as the first and I felt that although I was a tad on the conservative side I was probably somewhere on the podium. As it turns out I won my class!!!

In the mean time the weather decided to make us suffer. It started to rain, then sleet, then hail, then snow. After suiting up to run Short Track and switching over to skinny tires we did our best to stay warm and dry. Luckily I had brought our EZ Up and a decent sized propane heater. I had never raced ST before and did not pre-ride the course. Needless to say I was nervous, but the cold definitely took my mind off things.

We were cold!

Right out of the gate people were pretty much sprinting. A riding buddy of ours from STR was in front of me off the start, he had the inside line but drifted out on the first corner. He crossed my front wheel and I was forced to stop and restart! I think I wound up near mid-pack due to the stop and start, but was already picking off lots of people by the top of the climb. The first lap or two was a bit hectic as I was picking through the pack. Around mid race I heard the announcer say that I was in fifth. I picked off another rider on that lap, but I was now into lap traffic as well and it was hard to tell who was on the lead lap. In the last two laps I made a pass which put me in first for my age category, and third overall, finishing on the lead lap with 9 laps.

The ST race was the highlight of my weekend! The course was super fun! I liked the corners and the short climb; it definitely paid off with my fitness and skill set! The high speed, shoulder to shoulder racing action was a rush! If this race was representative of what Short Track is at other events, I want to do more Short Track racing!!! Another cool benefit of ST is that the spectating is fun. After my race I ran around the inside of the course cheering for the Expert racers. Due to the relatively small course, you can see the riders at several spots on the course and see all the racing action. It was very cool!

After all the racing was done we had the awards ceremony and then went to The Pizza Barn in Kernville for some dinner. It was great to get some hot food after such a long cold day!! Post-meal we all went back to Jeff’s house and showered and went to bed.

DAY 3 (3/16/2008)

We were a bit slower getting out of bed on Sunday and I felt very rushed before the start of my XC race. I found a sticky link in my chain which had caused some skipping in my drive train during the ST race. I had to fix that, get my bike weighed in, and get a bit of warm-up before the start. On top of all that it was freezing out! In all the rush I did manage to check my tire pressure, but I didn’t put enough pressure in them. I had run 35psi in my Nevegals for DH, but the skinnier tires (Specialized Captain front, Kenda Small Block 8 rear) should have had 40psi in them. I had a commanding lead in the overall for the Stage Race…

I lined up for XC and felt good at the start. I kept towards the front and passed some people. I was railing on the single track a couple of miles into the first 9 mile lap and must have caught a rock just right pinch flatting my front tire. I pulled off the side and started working quickly to fix it, knowing that every second that I was standing still lowered my chances at the Stage Race victory. I replaced the tube, went to inflate with CO2, and when I turned on the CO2 the tube ripped inside the tire!!! I was in bad shape with no more tubes or CO2. After pumping up the original tube to see if I could patch it, a very nice racer came along and gave me his spare tube. He saved my day! I went to work re-assembling my front tube/tire/wheel and then hammered off down the course.

I did my best to turn my misfortune into anger. I growled and yelled at the trail, my bike, my legs! I attacked everything, downhill, uphill, flats. I went all out. On the first lap I caught and passed my wife and the other female Sport class racers as well as many other racers. On the second lap, just after where I flatted on the first lap I caught and passed the awesome guy that gave me his tube. I thanked him and he encouraged me on my comeback. Just after passing him I hit a steep incline, shifted to my small ring, and got chain suck!!!! I flopped onto the ground wrestling with the chain that was now stuck between my chain rings and the chain stay. I got it out and restarted, but was now behind several slower riders that I had already passed and there were not many passing opportunities on the single track descent. I lost yet more time...

On the fire road ascent my legs gave up. They started cramping. I started punching them as I climbed. I refused to give up. I got off and walk/jogged a short time at the steepest point. I had just caught site of a racer in my class up ahead and set the goal of finishing in front of him. I did manage to pass him and one other racer before crossing the finish line in 15^th in my age group. It was pretty emotional. I knew I had lost the overall win, and didn’t even know if I would be on the podium.

On the last descent I spotted some spectators by a jump and threw a tail whip. I later found the pic from a link on MTBR. Highlight of my XC race...

I went and spectated for the Expert/Pro XC race and it took my mind off the horrible XC result. When they posted the results for my race I did the math and found that I was either 2^nd or 3^rd for the Stage Race, my efforts after the adversity had paid off! I was still on the podium!!

I highly recommend this race to anyone! Riders of all skill levels and age groups will have fun at the Keyesville Classic. The courses were very fun and the atmosphere was great! Thanks to my sponsors and my friends.

Parting shots...

Good friends after the racing weekend.

And the drive home...

Excited for the weekend...

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 13:12:13 GMT

This weekend is the Kernville Classic and I am very excited about the race. The Stage Race format is pretty cool if you ask me. One bike, three events (DH, ST, XC)!! They are using a points system based on place (100 points for first etc...) which should make the competition pretty tight between the XC and the DH people. More excitement comes from the fact that I will be racing my new bike! I am very excited about this bike and hope to show what it is capable of with a great finish in the Stage Race! We will be heading up there early tomorrow morning...

I also saw that Orven had posted a video of my race run from last weekend so I figured I would post it here for people to see...

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v312/shyrmp/Fontana/2008%20Winter%20Finals/?action=view&current=mechman.flv

I also got a new sponsor, thanks to GoPro I will have a new digital camera for capturing video and stills. Hopefully I will be able to put together some good stuff to share on here! Go easy on me though, I am an engineer and not a graphic artist! Don't expect anything I post to look like The Collective!!! :)

SRC Winter Series Final

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 13:54:07 GMT

The final race of the 5 race series has come and gone. I was crowned Sport Men 27-34 SRC Shimano Winter Series Downhill Champion! More on that later…

Saturday we arrived at the venue with the bikes ready to go. My new bike was going to see it’s first race. At 31lbs it isn’t quite an XC race machine and I didn’t equip it with the best rolling tires. I felt pretty good in warm up and I tried to get the suspension tuned quickly. I hit a few jumps and the bike jumps well. At the start of the race I just didn’t feel fast. I hung onto the back end of the group until the first big climb, and then was jettisoned out the back. I honestly felt like I was pedaling backwards! I was pushing hard and just didn’t have anything for the other three racers in my class. On the descent I got tied up behind a much slower rider. On the second big climb I shifted down to the granny gear and the chain sucked up between the rings and the chain stay. I spent a good two minutes trying to extract it. At this point I realized that I was pretty much out of contention for a top three finish, but decided to keep a nice steady hard effort in the event that one of the three other guys in my class had some difficulty and let me move up a spot. It didn’t happen and I wound up taking fourth. I was about ten minutes slower on the course than the last XC race. There were many factors that contributed to the loss of time including bike weight, tires, training (VQ), use of a Camelbak instead of a bottle, etc.

The final race didn’t impact my overall standings for XC and I took 2^nd place in the SRC Shimano Winter Series. I think all things considered taking 2^nd place in the series this year is a considerable achievement and although it was not first place, I worked very hard and had some spectacular races. Quite a few of the races in XC this year were very close and I battled pretty hard with one of the guys in my class (except for the finals). I think I will continue to race at the Sport level in XC, especially considering that it isn’t my primary focus.

After the XC races and a protracted awards ceremony we were able to get a few DH practice runs in. I didn’t drive up after work Friday to check out the course and that hurt me. I spent the first two runs going slowly and figuring out the course layout, and then got one decent run in at sub-race pace. Saturday night I made the call to switch my rear tire from a Kenda Nevegal (2.5 steel bead Stick-E) to a Kenda Small Block 8 (2.35 folding bead single ply DTC). I figured that with the slick dust on hardpack and sandy conditions, this tire would not hurt much in the corners, but would provide much better pedal efficiency and ultimately a faster time. In practice on Sunday I spent one run helping Allison work on a few sections, then did two more runs at near race-pace. I felt pretty comfortable with the course and figured I could be fast.

As I often do, I hiked some of the upper section of the course before my race run to spectate and cheer for my friends and team mates. In the process of doing so, I discovered that at some point since my Saturday practice runs the tape had been moved and a new line was available. I watched several racers take the new line and it provided MUCH faster exit speed. I took a few good looks at the line and visualized myself hitting it.

Before I went back to the top for my run I made sure to stick around to cheer Allison on. This is a cool photo of her slamming through the rocks as I wait with bated breath in the background.

In my race run I was pretty relaxed, maybe too much so. The first corner gave me a rude awakening as I came in hot and set up wide, the rear tire let go just before I went off a drop. The rear end came around pretty violently to the left, fortunately I was able to recover without losing much speed. A couple turns later I had a second slight bobble, my line in practice had been beat up pretty badly by previous racers and I was not able to get purchase with the Small Block 8. I slid to the outside and had to drop my left foot momentarily. I held onto a small bit of momentum but had scrubbed some speed and pedaled hard to make up time. The rest of the run, including the new line, went really well and I wound up winning my class by 5 seconds, with a time that would have put me about 4^th in Expert.

So in the end I took 2^nd overall for the SRC Shimano Winter Series in Sport 27-34 XC, and 1^st overall for Sport 27-34 DH. I was very happy with my results and I feel that all my hard work to improve my physical fitness and my bike handling skills has paid off. 2008 has only really just begun and there are a lot of difficult races coming up in our schedule. Stay tuned and I will keep everyone informed as to how it all unfolds!!