Heritage Park Race

Well it has been over a month since my last GSC race so I was looking forward to hitting the trail for a race shorter than 12hrs today. We were riding in style up there with The Bike Store trailer and truck courtesy of Bill Stoudt and Charles Reeves. The weather looked promising for a dry race however it apparently decided to rain yesterday up in the Heritage park area so the trail was slick in some of the rooted areas but just tacky enough to provide traction in alot of areas as well. There was quite the central Georgia showing at the event with Charles, Chip, James, Monte, Dean, Chad and the Fields. There was quite a few Bike Store kits out there as well. I could tell I need to get back on the trainer and get a few high intensity workouts in before Ellijay/Carter Lake in two weeks and get the legs strong for the climbs felt a little slow today. The flow of the trail was intermittent as well, with the wet rooty areas really interrupting any area you could get a flow thru. But it was a good challenge with some technical up and down hills with some roots and ruts that made it pretty difficult to keep a good momentum. However if I remember correctly than this was a good warm-up for Ellijay. Anyway I had a 4th place finish so while I am feeling disappointed with my effort today I wont complain about the finish. Charles posted a 11th place sport finish, which considering he hasn't raced or trained for a mountain bike race at all this season is outstanding. Chip had several mechanicals with two flats during the course but still managed a top 10 if I remember correctly, Chad won his group of course. Well my goal for the next week and a half is to get in some pretty intense power workouts and get the legs ready for the hills up in Ellijay in two weeks, most of which will be done in the spin classes or trainer with a couple of rides at Thomson and a ride at Dauset should weather permit this Sunday coming up so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

12hrs of Tsali

Lets see how to describe the 12hrs of Tsali this year.........AWESOME! To start with the accommodations, we stayed at the Nantahala Resort Cabins this year very nice. We had a Jacuzzi on the deck and a two person jacuzzi tub in the bedroom very nice and secluded area.





As for the race accommodations the setup of the transition/feed zone was idea for the race right in the parking lot off of the county line road so that we didn't have the 1/2mile hike up the hill to set up the pop up.






Next the weather was looking rough for the day prior to the race overcast and rainy, locals said it had been raining the previous three days as well. However when race day came it was clear, blue and 72 degrees out, perfect race weather. Trail conditions were as good as could be asked for it was pretty dry for the most part, with some low spots that held water that made it just sloppy enough to cover the bike in mud each lap.



So to the race start, we had the typical Le Mans style start so I did the stroll up the hill to the bike and headed out just about my typical dead last. I did notice at the start that the participation in this years event didn't seem to be as large as the previous year but it was a pretty good turn out. So for the first lap I did the typical catch and pass until about 6 miles in were I hit that spot between casual rider and serious racer were I was pretty much riding by myself for quite a while. it was pretty uneventful at this point with the occasional pass and getting familiarized with the trail so I could get the flow down. With the first lap down I settled into a pretty good routine with about a 10min pit stop in between laps and back out to the trail about lap 3 the knee started to let me know it was going to let me know it was there so I popped a aleve in between lap 3 and 4 and away I go. Anyone who has ridden Tsali knows the last climb starts with the climb up the steep V shaped cut with a large tree to the left of the trail and pretty good roots. I almost managed to clean it on the second lap got 90% up and lost traction, that was pretty much the only area I couldn't clean on the entire trail. By lap 5 Granny was getting rode hard on the steep parts and some of the not so steep parts as well. About 8:45pm I started my last lap with the lights ready to go, the combination of the NiteRider Tri-Newt on the handle bar and the Flight HID on the helmet lit up the trail like it was day, for the combined cost of the lights it should but if your looking for a night riding setup that is a sweet match. Anyway on lap 8 the knee was letting me have it I could peddle up the hills but the slightest resistance and I was feeling it, if I stood on it I was feeling it, and if I tried to race it was screaming at that point I realized this was the last lap for the evening. So even though I finished in time to start another lap I had to call it a night conditioning wise could have made another lap but the knee wasn't going to allow that, plus I have the GSC race this weekend so all told I had the 8 laps for about 85 miles in about 10hrs and 45mins which I considered pretty good for Tsali. Based off of what I saw at about 10:30pm had me 11th place in the combined 12hr Solo male, female, and single speed riders. The plan is to take it easy enough to recover from this race while still do enough riding to keep me ready for the race this weekend and not aggravate the knee anymore than it already is. So if your out at Thompson this Wednesday I Will See You on the Trail!

Off to The 12hrs of Tsali

Well we are packed and ready to go, just have to load the bike rack in the morning and get the family packed and will be on the way. We are staying in Nantahala Cabin resort so the family will be extremely comfortable and I will have a jacuzzi to come back to after the race. Last year I only completed 6 out of the 12hrs and didn't run any night laps I am hoping for a better showing this year. I have been taking it easy with the training the last two weeks since I just came off of the 12hrs at Ft Yargo so I need some recovery time as well hopefully I didn't let myself go too much we will see. I am going to be running a new light set up at Tsali I received a TriNewt NR light for my B-Day and the angled helmet mount for the Flight HID so this should be a solid set up for the race checked out the lights tonight at Thompson and combined they really light up the trail. Well it is getting late and I need to get up early so I will wrap it up hopefully I will have a good ride to report on when I get back. I Will See You on the Trail!

The BIG 40

Photo courtesy of Carl Mesta Photography


Well it has arrived, I have lived to see my 40th B-Day. Many a time my father stated he would be suprised if I lived to see my 18th B-Day but somehow I managed to squeak out another 22 on top of that. In light of this significant milestone I have set up several goals before I reach the next big step at 50 as they relate to biking.
10. Compete in a 24hr event Solo
9. Podium finish in the Sport Class
8. Acquire national level sponsor for racing
7. Convince Army to sponsor MTB Team
6. Convince wife I need a new Carbon Fiber Full Suspension Racing bike
5. Establishment of Mountain Bike Promotion Company
4. Sponsor one local and one regional event
3. Learn how to maintain my own bicycles completely
2. Win a open catagory 12hr Solo Event
1. Compete in the Trans Rockie MTB Stage Race.

How we Roll and Ruff Ruff

Travelling Dauchsunds


Rolling in the first class section

12hrs and 108miles of Ft Yargo

Army Strong with a before race breakfast burrito!
Still looking good with one lap down - 8 to go
Top 3 male Solo Beginners 12hrs
Yes I fit all of this in a Saturn Vue.....
Along with the four bikes on the Saris Rack


I believe this is a first - 12hrs without busting my butt or running into a tree! That was without a doubt the best I have ever done on a endurance event and I was pleasantly surprised with the results. The weather was great it was overcast enough to keep it cool all afternoon with enough rain to cool ya off during the first couple hours. The late afternoon the sun broke thru and it was beautiful for the rest of the evening and into the night. I hadn't run a 12hr solo in 2yrs so was a little concerned how I would hold up once I got passed 6hrs. Most of my training in the desert was short interval 1hr spin class with my longest ride being about 4hrs. My longest trail ride was out at Duaset after my return about 3hrs so I knew I would have to work my on pace and not bonk half way through. So a month after being in the flat land of the desert I was out in the hills of Georgia winding my way around the trails. The trail was fast, clean and flowing after the field got spread out alot of the smaller uphills could almost be cleaned on momentum.
We had the perfect feed zone location right after the start/finish line thanks to Mark D. who set up our pop up for me the day prior right off the tape. So after getting in a pretty good pace for the first 4 laps I tried to back it down on the next two so I would have something left for the evening as I was pacing myself for 9 laps. Granny gear was used frequently during the last couple of laps on even the some of the smaller hills but I managed to keep a fairly steady pace through all of my laps which was my goal. The trail was awesome combination of twisting single track with downhills you could rail and catch air on according to the Garmin I topped out at 30mph down some of it. The steep uphills were usually led into by some equally steep downhills so if you picked the right line it was just a matter of timing the shift and using your momentum to get up and over. There was of course the unavoidable long steep uphills that you just had to downshift, lock the fork and go for the rpms. Overall I won the beginner group with 9 laps in a time of 11hrs 54min. This was a good warm up for the 12hrs of Tsali in 2 weeks which I only did 5 or 6hrs of last year so hopefully this indicates I am better prepared to ride compete in this event. I have to give a shout out to Charles Reeves and The Bike Store for getting my bike in great condition for racing it ran perfectly the entire time on the Trail and definitely helped me ride as well as I did. The new Saturn Vue was outstanding in loading up all the gear for the event plus, 4 mini dauschunds, my 11yr old son and all the DS gear that comes with him plus the Saris Bike Rack and all four bikes that travelled on it. Well I will be taking tomorrow off pretty much with a recovery ride Wednesday and then a Friday afternoon ride, this week will be kinda busy so sneaking in some riding to keep the legs fresh for the 12hrs of Tsali will be a little tricky but I am sure I will manage while not overdoing it. So if you are out there when I happen to be I Will See You on the Trail!