Recap of ORAMM

When I first heard of the ORAMM I had just finished the Dauset GSC race and was chatting with Monti after the race so I checked it out. Initially I looked at the web and thought that don't look any worse than what I had done out in AZ in the White Mountains 66 or the Whiskey Barrel 50 both sponsored by Epic Rides. So I figured what the heck I will sign up. Well I headed out this past weekend to see how correct I was. Packed up Friday night and loaded up the family and headed out Saturday Morning. We arrived in Old Fort around 5pm and drove around lost for 30min(I forgot to print out directions to the campground). Finally after asking directions I found the Catawba Falls Campground which was a very nice camping area with great owners




So after getting set up with the tents we drove into town and found the race registration made sure I was good to go and got my number. After that we headed back to the campground to cook some dinner and set up my sag bags for the race.



Hit the sack at a decent hour and set the alarm for 0630hrs got around had to make sure we got the morning coffee especially before this epic adventure. Now onto the race!



I strategically place myself in the back of the pack and started out cruising with about a 1/3rd of the field having the same idea apparently. After the nice warm up on the road we hit the first fireroad which was still a nice steady climb and still a good warm up. Well a half a hour or so later we hit the single track were we are welcomed by a pleasant hike-a-bike due to the back up.

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Phrases like "Not going anywhere for a while?" come to mind as I look up the long line of riders in front of me. Well we eventually get thru the hike-a-bike and start riding up the trail and make our way back onto the road up to the first really fun part of the trail Kitsuma! Switchbacks and climbing fun stuff there so I manage to hike the switchbacks ride the straights up to the top. After that we are greeted with a short section of some HECTIC downhill, fortunately the Hectic part was only for a short stretch and and when it finally went downhill again it was downgraded to radical! I saw some hardtails out there and as I smoked the bakes through this section I wondered how in the heck did those guys ride this??! Well it is down to the first sag stop and I am registering almost 17 miles on the computer(it was suppose to be 15mi). Anyway a refill on the water fresh bottle of accelerade and one of there gel packs along with a turkey and cheese wrap made by the wife I am off again more climbing up some twisty single track switchbacks. By the way when they say the trail is in its natural enviorment they mean it 6ft diameter trees and all across the trail. We were rewarded by some wide trail rolling downhill to the 2nd Sag stop at which point I am registering 30 miles(this was suppose to be at 24mi). So along with the other riders I was hanging with I sat there discussing the impending 9mi and 2800ft climb in front of us until finally I motivated myself and headed out. I can't say I rode the entire thing but if I had hit this trail 2yrs ago after coming out from AZ I think I could have, we used to ride a trail up Carr Canyon, steeper grade just about 2 miles shorter but that not being the case I walked about 2 miles of it. Well sag point three was a welcome site were I sat recouping for a good while especially once I heard that the fabled 5mi downhill on the parkway was more like 4mi uphill and 3mi downhill. So I switch out my mp3 player get another wrap and accelerade and head up the hill after the nice break on the road where I had to stop to take some pics of the great view



After that the real fun began. There was some serious hike-a-bike section where once again they emphasized the trail in its natural state



This hike-a-bike was followed by a wicked(fun)downhill section which left my tri's smoked and my rear brakes just as smoked! It was the same switchbacks we came up earlier just in reverse back down to the sag point 5 where you went back up to Kitsuma(thought this was the Off Road Assault on Mount Mitchell?) and then back down the radical downhill again, brakes screaming at this point. Further review revealed the pads where gone at this point so the noise was enough to keep any wild animals away! Well I came off the trail and hit the last three miles of road to the finish and manage to find some leg strength to finish off strong.



Overall it was a challenging and fun ride I took my time at the sags and enjoyed the trail as I rode through. It refreshed the definition of Mountain Biking for me versus XC riding and made me wish we had some of that terrain in this area. This is definitely a ride I will be looking to put on my calender next year as well

ORAMM Aftermath

1.Entry Fee for Race: $80
2.Biking Gear to Prepare $100
3.Gas for trip and camping cost $160
4.Being able to say I completed ORAMM - Worth it!

Well that was the toughest thing I have done on the East Coast without a doubt! There will be more to follow on the ride but for right now I just got back and unpacked this evening after a 7hr drive home I need some rest. For right now I'll just say I accomplished my goal and finished the whole event, will still continue to ride and unlike the Snake Creek TT I didn't finish saying "I'll never ride that again!" Here are the vital stats for now.

Total Time: 10hr 33min
Riding Time: 8hrs 38min
Distance:62.13
Average: 7.1mph
Max Speed 40.2mph
Goo Packs consumed 10
beers drank (After Race) 4

I will Leave you with some pics

On the Edge(Garmin Edge)

Well I finally broke down and let the wife buy me a GPS computer with PC Software, I know all of you avid gadget fans are thinking "that is awful big of you". I got a Garmin Edge 205 and based on the reviews and information I have seen so far it looks like a good investment. At least I will be able to tell at what location and altitude I am suffering the most this weekend! I did a early ride out at Dauset on Wendseday and I must say that the Crack Spider and his Bee-otch are alive and well and working in the trail at Dauset! If your not familar with the Crack Spiders Bee-otch go to this link. Anyway other than the spiders it was a pretty nice ride took a casual pace up huff and puff and focused more on staying in a even flow for the entire duration of the ride. Managed to get a short ride in today on the roade more of a sprint than anything else which was nice I will have to pack up tomorrow and head out on Saturday to get to the Campground and ready for Sunday so if your out there on Sunday planning to suffer I will See You on the Trail!

Seats and Squeaks

Seemed appropriate since I seem to history being a little less than conservative on my downhill riding


Well it has been a slow week and a half since I have returned from Carters Lake and a week of leave in MI. Which actually translates to I am not at tip top shape going into the ORAMM which should make it all that much more interesting of a ride come Sunday. Since the race I have ridden two painful laps around Thompson probably due to the fact that the seat was positioned incorrectly, that was Thursday since it rained on Wednesday, did a 4 mile run on Friday and then Sunday afternoon hit Arrowhead. I adjusted the seat this time and took off for a couple of laps around the trail. Well the seat adjustment must have been dead on because I felt really good on the lap no back pain or anything which had been a problem ever since I got back and had been riding the ETSX. The first lap went so well I rolled right thru the parking lot and did a second lap which felt just as good. I stopped for the third lap grabbed a gel and full water bottle and headed out. Well the back still felt fine but the suspension started creaking like I had a frog in the top tube. Not sure what it was but I couldn't take a pedal stroke without hearing it so made it kinda irritating but I finished the lap and felt pretty good about the ride. Didn't smoke myself too hard but did manage to make all the climbs and keep the bike upright finishing the 16.8 miles in just under 1hr 48min. On a downhill note I did manage to top out at 32.4mph on the utility trail downhill. Took the bike in today had Charles give it a once over check the suspension bushings and true the wheels to make sure it was ready for the 64miles of ORAMM on Sunday at least the bike will be well prepared even if I am not! Makes my goals pretty simple to finish with my pride, bike and body intact and enjoy what should be some beautiful scenery. I am doing a ride with the Company Commander tomorrow and probably do a road ride on Thursday just for some distance. I will pack the camera and try to get some good pics to add to the blog when I return so if you happen to be one of the brave souls riding the 64 miles with us then I Will See You on the Trail!

Good To Be Home

My favorite freedom on leave, The Beard!


Well it was a enjoyable week up in MI, I was able to get a couple of rides in and while it wasn't the terrain best suited to practice for Carter's Lake it kept me from getting rusty over the week. I rode Egypt Valley which was more like the Pig Trail really fast and smooth and Cannonsberg Ski Resort which had some hills but was pretty smooth as well. They keep the trails so clear of roots and rocks up there while it might be trails it is almost too smooth that it takes away some of the challenge and definitely made the trail at Carters Lake a welcome reminder of what true Mountain Biking is. We left MI on Saturday and drove from there to Ellijay arrived about 8pm or so and checked into the Stratford Inn, nice place after I got things around for the race was about midnight when I crashed out. Not the preferred way to prepare for a race - if you can AVOID traveling 14hrs the day prior to your race I highly recommend you do so!
Race day started off normal enough, good start with a small field, 12 total riders, and the road section gave us a chance to separate prior to the single track. Started out pretty good however the lack of preride of the course and the warnings of dangerous downhills made me a little too cautious as well as getting my butt handed to me by the big hill out there! I managed to keep the rubber side down the entire race so even though I finished 9th out of 12 I felt pretty good about it considering the lack of preparation coming into the race. My next major event to prepare for will be the ORAMM which I am looking forward to, I haven't had a long epic ride of this duration in two years so it will be interesting to see how I handle it mentally as well as physically. Should be out at Thompson on Wednesday for some riding and the OMBA meeting so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Slow Week

Well it has been a slow week after the Flat Rock Race Sunday, I quickly ordered another seat from WTB this time I am riding the Rocket V SLE another Gel Seat I am pretty fond of those. WTB did offer to replace the seat I broke at 15% under invoce but since I had already purchased the new one I passed on that. Went out to Thompson on Wenseday had a good time did a single lap and rode with my son and wife before that. Planning on doing a run tomorrow at PT and then it is off for a fun filled week in MI with the in-laws(good thing the wife doesn't read the blog huh?!). Anyway I am planning on doing a couple of good road rides there and hitting a trail out there called Eygpt Valley which should be pretty good training for Carters Lake on the 8th. Plan is to leave MI on the 7th drive back stop in Ellijay that evening and race the next day and hope for a wreck free lap! Congratulations to Charles and Stephanie on the birth of their Son all are doing well. So that is what is on my schedule for the next week I know I will see Mark and Ron at the Carter Lake race and if I have any readers from the Grand Rapid area and your out there at Eygpt Valley this week I Will See you on the Trail!

Deja-wreck

The new "Stealth" saddle from WTB so light you won't even realize its there-Caution when using this seat make sure your shorts have a chamois!


Well it was off to Columbus this morning for the GSC#6 FlatRock Race. I met Rick at TBS at O-dark 30 and headed out so we could get in a preride as neither one of us had run the course before. We arrived about 7am and set up the pop-up, talked to Bruce and headed out for our lap. It was a good thing we did because more than one rider would get confused about were the trail went and how many laps we were doing due to some of the changes that were thrown in. It was definitely a big ring course for the most part - fast and twisty with some sweet single track and just a bit of climbing thrown in for good measure. The start was tight we had two short sprints with a tight turn in between before we all bunched up on the single track. Being the "explosive" starter I am I decided to be smarter than I was at Dauset and wait until I got openings to make my passes and just settled in near the back of the pack. Well apparently that strategy is no good for me either, about a mile in there was a 3 foot tall ant hill- for lack of a better description, which caused a back up and as the rider in front of me stopped abruptly at the top of it I was stuck nearly vertical with nowhere to go but over - which I did. In the process I caught something with my seat which promptly snapped off the rails, which is better than breaking my seat post. I think I also tweaked the new XTR crankset because that was creaking from that point on thru the race, Charles is going to love seeing me this week. Anyway it takes me about 4-5min to figure out how to improvise the seat back on as well as put the chain back on meanwhile I get passed by the two waves that started after me before I get back out on the trail (this should be sounding familiar to some of my avid readers!). Surprisingly the seat stays put fairly well and I manage a half way decent pace, I finished the race sprinting it out with two other riders from the group and came back to finish 11th. The bad part was my time for the second lap we did was good enough to be top 5 and had I not wrecked I feel pretty confident I would have had a first lap within that group as well. Ron "The Phenom"Fields took mercy on us mere mortals and succumbed to technical difficulties I was looking forward to seeing him podium again, Rick took 9th in the beginner 40-49 age group and Jesse and Mark where both on there second lap on my way out. Jesse was looking good when I drove by clearing the rock wall with ease. Well I have a busy week ahead of me will probably only get one ride in this week before I head up to Michigan to spend the 4th with the wife's family. Plan on doing some riding up there at a place called Eygpt Valley, good trails kinda like Dauset. On the way back we will be coming down by Ellijay so we are going to time it so I can hit that race on the 8th of July and see if I can't get a race in without a wreck! So more than likely it will be a Wednesday ride at Thompson for me this week so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

1st Annual Fathers Day Trail Ride (unoffical)

Like Father....
Like Son!


Well it wasn't a announced event but if it gives me a excuse to use on Fathers Day to go ride, I figure why not? Myself, Charles, Gregg, and Rick all met out at Thompson at 7am and headed out for a good morning of riding. After a casual first lap and a reverse direction second lap I had to do a little motivating as some people where ready to call it a morning and go home - "Get me out here at 7am to do 2 laps?" So with a little motivation we headed back out and put down a pretty good lap time which I figured might have been our last lap however Charles turned the tables on me and piped up "lets do another one" so out we go for the fourth lap. During this lap Charles decided to redefine the phrase "just cruising" either that or me Gregg and Rick might have been a little tired. It was a great way to spend the morning and a good ride effort overall. This was the first time I had run the trail in reverse since they had made the changes to the trail and it makes for some good climb efforts going in reverse might have to do that more often just for the training effort it provides. I did manage to jinx Gregg on the second lap after he made a nice move to get a branch out of his rear wheel while continuing to ride as soon as I said "nice job" he wipes out after that he dumps it about 3 more times and then identifies a flat tire so I will refrain from saying that the next time we ride! To all the Fathers out there Happy Fathers Day and I should be back out on the Trail Wensday so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Super Excellent XTR!!

Now if that doesn't say Happy Fathers Day I don't know what does! Saw a smoking advertised deal in the Performance Bike sales add of $333.94 for the XTR-970 crankset I couldn't get on the phone fast enough - only to find out that the add was wrong! However, now follow the logic here, since the sale did knock $50 off it and then I got 25% back on my performance Team Card and a additional $25 at the time of purchase. So started at $550 knocked off $75 and then get 25% back($125) and now I am only paying $350 - nice math huh? lol. Of course no crankset would be complete without the XTR-970 rear derailluer which was actually the inital Fathers Day present from The Bike Store. With all this XTR Charles will be busy at the shop putting it on the ETSX, which will make it a tough decision whether to race that or the Vertex this weekend at Flat Rock - so any reader input hardtail or FS with XTR for the race?? Well I am meeting Charles and some others out at Thompson at 7am tomorrow so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

12hrs of Tsali Pics

12hrs of Tsali Pics

Well they are a little late but here they are,(I had to get them developed at Walmart)

Full Suspension and Trails again!

Boy did I miss that! Wow, I hit Thompson today around 4:30pm Jesse and Mark(new guy) were out there already doing a lap. It took me a little to work the rust out since it had been nearly two weeks since I rode the trail last. I managed to work out the kinks the first lap and still catch some air over the creek and the drop out at the end, maxed out the travel on the fork and rear shock though might need to check the air pressure just to make sure. Second lap some more people where showing up me and Jesse headed out to hit the trail for our 2nd time and ran a pretty good pace, got the big ring working through a couple of the sections felt pretty good. Work schedule is a little hectic this week but planning on hitting the Pig trail with Charles on Thursday for a few laps in the morning so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Hardtails and blacktop

Charles new helmet.....
Will go well with his new ride!

Well got out there this morning on the Vertex-70 and met Charles on his CycleCross bike for about 40 mile ride. It was good to get out there and stretch the legs I needed a start point to get back riding again as that was only my 3rd ride since I raced at Dauset. Felt pretty good we kept a fairly steady pace so it was a good base ride with a 16.4mph average for the ride which was probably a little slow for Charles but worked up a pretty good sweat for me. Ran across two good cycling stories on the AP that the wife found. This one will redefine when people say "I am to old for biking" and the next one adds a new "view" to the ride. Well the plan is to get in a couple of laps out at Thompson tomorrow and to hit the Pig Trail with Charles on Thursday so if the plan works out and time allows I Will See You on the Trail!

What a week - NOT!

Well started out this week ith early mission planning on Monday, Early sortie on Tuesday, early mission planning Wenseday, early simulation trainer on Thursday with mission planning for a sortie on Friday, which was the earliest day with a 4am rise and shine not only did I not ride I got no training of any kind all week! So Sunday I will be riding with Charles who will undoubtedly put some muscle failure on me. However tomorrow I am planning on sleeping in until at least 9am and I am riding some trail at least twice this week and will get some eliptical time in as well to get prepared for the ORAMM anyway short post tonight watching some movies. See you on the Trail!

Bling, Bling!

Well the new Diadoras came in today and dang if anything producing light hits these the people around me will be blind! These are the same style as my current shoes just a step up to the carbon team shoes, suppose to have a better energy transfer thru the sole and heel cup is more secure. I continue to find new ways to cause my LBS headaches with the Hope Mono M4's apparently the pads are not easily replacable with other pads and are not kept well stocked either so Charles is having a time trying to get me some replacements for me. Hopefully I will hit the trail tomorrow on the hardtail time permitting I am going to try to hit the Pig trail and then get a Sunday ride on the road, the second set of wheels comes in handy so I can switch them out depending on what I am riding. Well heres to hoping I make it out there tomorrow and if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Back to work again

Well this sucks, early into work, ugly weather in the evning(I am not as high speed as Gregg riding in the rain). I haven't worked out since Sunday - riding or otherwise these styling running shoes are sitting in the closet collecting cat and dog fur and I am getting a spare tire where I don't need it. I don't miss the desert but I miss the time I had to train, I know then quit my whinning and get up off my butt and get busy! I am trying just have to work out the timing is all so I can get my schedule in order-new priority is to make sure I am in good enough condition to have a good competative time at ORAMM and be at a minimum a top ten finisher in the GSC races I do compete in. Anyway hopefully I will be riding with the ETSX on thursday as well as a new pair of Diadoras so if I your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Sunday Rides

Is that a picture of my Bike or my But??
Oh yea thats a cool pose look for it on the cover of next months Mountain Bike Action!
One of the few times I was in front of Charles - Notice the styling Pink helmet Charles is sporting
Now is this a)A shameless promotion of The Bike Store. b) A styling pictures of my pale white legs. or c) A picture of what slicks look like covered in mud?
Yes that little red spec in the distance of that red muddy road is me trying to cach up with Charles


It was a B E A Utiful day for a ride after the rain cleared out the Morning was nice and cool and there was hardly any traffic at 8am when we started riding. Charles took us out on a 35 mile loop the Perry-Robidouex(sp) loop down some dirt,(MUD) road and down some other roads that were lightly traveled I think for most of the ride we saw less than 10 vehicles it was great.

I am planning on doing the Off Road Assualt on Mount Mitchell (ORAMM) in July I heard about it from Monte anyone else planning on riding it from the area? I think me and Charles are going to make the Sunday MTB Bike road ride a regular event for a while at least it felt good to stretch out the legs on a long steady pace with some good climb efforts thrown in. The longer I ride the more I realize that the trails provide the good technical training and sprint efforts for the races but the road riding is definitely a necessary part of a overall training aspect if your going to race competitively(hopefully someday I will be competative!).

Anyway The wife is now riding with some Candy Bros pedals on her new hardtail and wearing the Specialized Body Geometry shoes I had that seem to fit her better than the Pearl Izumis she has so we will have to see what we can do to get her into a pair of her own shoes that fit.

I am planning on doing some trail riding this week once the brake line is fixed on the ETSX Bonfire not sure where but if your out there when I am I Will See You on the Trail!

Let it Rain

Well for the good of the rest of the state as well as our area heres hoping it rains pretty good today even though I might have to reconsider trail riding tomorrow if it does, might have to get a road ride in with the CGC group tomorrow if that is the case. Charle got my new wheelset Mavic 223's with Shimano Deore hubs and a set of Maxxis Detonators for the tires so I can road ride the Vertex-70 with a quick switch of the wheels when I feel like it. Well my apologies to Dean and others for not being out there on trail maintenance but B-Day parties and Grocery shopping took precedence today. Speaking of which I need to get going so if it is Dry enough tomorrow I Will See You on the Trail!

Road Tires and Hard Tails

"OUCH"


Well has been a slow week since the Dauset Race on Sunday mainly due to the fact that I had to put the ETSX into the shop to repair the brake break (ha ha). Took the Vertex out to Thompson Wednesday for a lap need to get used to the hardtail on the trail again so I can race it at the Pig in August. Changing the priorities this summer though after this weeks race(even if I was a little more competitive) I realized that unless the top 6 decide not to ride 3 of the next 5 races I will still not crack the top five for the category since I missed the first 3 races of the season. Still going to race but races like the Ft Mountain may fall off the schedule that is little far to drive if I am not competing for the series. However that allows me to add a second endurance ride on my schedule for example The ORAMM which from what I have read is a real test of dedication as well as skill. As for the hardtail comment the wife is joining the fun and getting a Trek 6500 WS and joining me on some limited road riding. Not sure if I want her to though after she nuked me with a real stinger, after hearing about Ms Universe pageant were Ms USA took a tumble and finished as the 5th runner up she turns to me and goes "Hey Honey, look Ms USA wrecked too and she still finished better than you!" Anyway the Hope tech guys are suppose to get my new line to Charles tomorrow so I am hoping to be ride ready by Saturday and out on the trail Sunday morning again. Not sure where I am riding but will be somewhere in Macon if I can make it up to E. Macon on Saturday I plan on helping out Dean with the trail maintenance. So if you are out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Look Ma - No Brake

Well Dauset was a good race today, not quite what I had hoped for but considering the spill I took the first mile into it I wont complain. Managed a 10th place overall for the beginner group both SERC and GSC 30-39yrs out of 27 riders pretty respectable for my first series race this year. A Good start got me out in the top 10 but several of us got caught behind a slower rider with about 6 riders behind him and my patience wore out quick so about a mile into it I tried to make a pass got caught on the outside of a turn rubbed a tire and went down hard. Once I got up straightened out the handlebars and realized that my front brake line was torn out of the reservoir I was passed by pretty much the entire field. So with rear brake only I took off after the field and over the course of the next ten miles managed to work my way back up to the top ten, tried to pass two riders for about the last two miles but had wore myself out getting back to were I was by then so finished as strong as I could. Still Chasing Ron Fields - great race today believe he was top 5, will be interesting to see were I fall in with the GSC riders after they post the split results on Gone Riding. A shout out to Charles for setting up my pop up for me and letting me know what to expect out of the trail conditions and a thanks in advance for fixing my brakes as I know how much he enjoys working on my Hope M4's. Well it is the Ft Mountain Race on June 10th so I will be doing some road rides in the morning and some trail rides locally here at Thompson or something so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

Triple Threat

Work Sucks I'm going Mountain Bike Riding!

"Tires Anyone?



"Is it a garage or a Bike Shop?"
Well that was the thought this afternoon when I drove out to Dauset and hit the trail today. It was a enjoyable 17 mile ride with some good efforts thrown in on Huff and Puff and the other hills. Was definitely a better way to spend the afternoon than sitting in a classroom all afternoon and good prep for this weekends race since I hadn't been out to Dauset since I got home. Anyway with was feeling like the blog needed some photographic enhancement and gotta keep up with Charles with all those pics of great biking stuff usually found at The Bike Store. Well its late and I need to hit the hay for a early wake up for work so if your racing on Sunday I will See You on the Trail!

Rocky Mountain Mornings

The 12hrs, No Wait - 6hrs of Tsali

First let me say to the riders that were injured in paticular the one that was severly injured my well wishes for a speedy and full recovery. While I don't know the specifics there was a rider who was injured on the second lap that required a Air Evac. All told I believe they had to take 4 ambulances out on the trail in the first six hours of the race. As for my weekend I headed up to Tsali on Friday with the family we got up to the resort around 5 pm and checked in I dropped the family off at the cabin and headed up to preregister. I drove up to the park and once I got up to the registration site began to realize that the set up was going to be somewhat of a logistical challenge. So realizing that it would be a good 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile hike up hill with any equipment and family members in tow I prepositioned the pop up and some other equipment. Figured to be at least one trip up in the mornig and then the trips back down at the end of the race to get it all back at the end of the night. Anyway race day was beautiful! Wheather was perfect I did forget my sunglasses(left them at the resturaunt the night before)and a few other odds and ends but at least I had the bike and my riding shoes! Had nice stroll up the hill from the start line always fun watching them team racers sprint up the hill fighting with each other to see who gets the bike first. Anyway by the time I got to my bike and headed up the hill it was like I was on a Sunday ride out by myself. Well my first run down the first hill was interesting since I hadnt preridden the course I had no idea what to expect but it was a rocking ride! I came around the right hand turn into the section with the jump and saw the first casualty of the day, a 12hr solo rider who wrecked on the jump and was getting assistance from the EMT's with what appeared to be a race ending collar bone or shoulder injury. Turned out to be the shoulder and he was at the pop up right next to mine. From there I started to find out how much fun this course was, The downhills have great flow with AWESOME banked turns and the climbs were a challenge but weren't so rough the killed you right off the bat. I started picking off riders about halfway thru the course which wasn't a big deal since I am sure I was dead last off the start but it felt good anyway. Ran the first lap at about a hour went up the feed zone back to the pop up and took a 5min breather which was my plan for the day to do each lap with 20min breaks after every 3rd lap. The second lap I was running a little faster since I now had a idea of the course layout but as I approached the first downhill again this time there was a EMT at the turn before the jump warning of a ride down on the track. This time the individual was unconcious and bleeding he didn't look good I rode on but with the image of that in my head was a little distracting last I heard he was doing ok and was awake and responsive but didn't hear anything other than that. Any way my next three laps took me to the 6hr mark and if I had to compare this course to anything local it would be a faster flowing version of Dauset and a Kick Ass ride! However due to the afformentioned logistics and the cost of the lodging arraingments I called it a day at the six hour mark and packed up the tent as it was it took 2hrs to get everything together and get the family moved out couldn't imagine trying that at 11pm at night with everyone else doing the same thing. All in all if it works out that I can be stateside for the event next year and the weather is as good I would be willing to do it again, just arrainge to camp at the park this time. While disappointed in not completing the 12hrs as planned it was a enjoyable weekend and I rode away in one piece so I am happy with that and will look forward to this weekends race at Dauset. So if your out there I will See You on the Trail!

Thompson Evenings and Arrowhead Mornings

Well getting warmed up for the 12hrs of Tsali with a couple of back to back rides before I start preparations to head up to NC this weekend. Trying the Joe Freil recommended approach with a couple of race effort runs and finish it off tomorrow and give myself the recommended 72hrs of rest before the race. Also been trying out the Optygen suppose to increase VO2 Max and help hold of LT effects so will see what impact that has. Taking the family up to the race with me and staying at Nantahala Village resort figured make it a enjoyable weekend for everyone, my son will have a game room he can go to if he gets bored and I lose my pit crew about 7pm when the All Star NASCAR Race comes on. I am looking forward to the race I haven't done a 12hr Solo since Santos last year and from what I have heard thru the grapevine it is a challenging course so I am looking forward to the ride. Hopefully that 1500 training miles in the desert will provide me with the endurance I need to be able to keep a steady pace and ride for the full 12hrs. I will be sporting the new OMBA kits as well as The Bike Store Gear and should get a oportunity to wear the ARMY jersey and of course the Rocky Mountain jersey as well and get the wife to take picks so I can post a few here(talk about shameless promotion and I aint even gettin paid except by one and it aint for my riding skills!). Well getting late here and I am going to be up early so if your out there at Arrowhead I Will See You on the Trail!

Ergon Mania Strikes!

Can You spot the Biker in this Picture?
Well I am officially part of the Ergon grip crowd. Picked up a set today at TBS from Charles and already can tell I am going to like them on the 12hrs of Tsali. Also did the Bike Fitting on the ETSX by Jesse which was pretty informative and hopefully will help with the lower back pain I have been experiencing lately. Took the wife out to the Pig Trail Monday to allow her to get out on the trail again she hasn't been riding since the horrific wreck she had at Thompson last fall so this was a pretty big step for her it went well she managed to keep the rubber side down for the entire ride. I also had a chance to check out the new Maxxis Ignitors that I got from TBS. These tires have some of the lowest rolling resistance I have ever ridden on they are fast and reliable handling I would definitely recommend them. Tommorrow I will be heading out to Dauset for a birthday ride so will be seeing if I am still able to hang with Charles out there. So if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

I'm Back in the saddle again!!

Thats right folks I'm back less than 48hrs after my return I was on the trail! I may have put in almost 1500 miles on the road out there in my desert oasis over the past 3 months however the technical skills were a little rusty as well as the handling skills. However I did manage to keep the rubber side down for 2 1/2 laps out at Thompson so I felt pretty good about that. I don't know when I will be called on to return to my second home however until then I plan on having fun and doing as much riding as possible starting with the 12hrs of Tsali and the next GSC race at Dauset. Speaking of Dauset my plan is to hit the trail out there on Sunday not sure of the time yet but if your out there I will See You on the Trail!!

Flying and Riding

Well that is what I am going to be doing for the next several months. I will have the Vertex-70 with me this time so I can get some quality riding time in while I am gone. I have some driving goals to keep me focused while I am training, and recently added the 24hrs of Conyers to the list of events I am planning to do. I am trying to get one more ride in before my departure so I might be out at either Thomson or the Pig Trail so if you happen to be out there when I am I will See You on the Trail!

4hrs of Fun

Well it was a fun 4hrs at Thomson, just for the record I did 7 laps and had fun racing the other rider right at the end there it was a good ride before I have to go for a while. Between all the CGC jerseys and Bike Store bibs you would have thought we had organized a team just for the event. Charles and Noah blew my socks off right from the start but where gracious enough to take a long break so I could catch up and we rode the 6th lap together before I headed out for my 7th. They built in a nice little ramp to circumvent a good jump through some cool water to cool ya down during the lap which is what I went through every lap, it was warm to begin with so it actually felt good, Dans Bastard was enjoyable every lap as well. Anyway if I had a hardtail I might have been able to catch old boy at the end there but when he shifted it up at the end there and kicked it in even matching gear to gear I just couldn't catch in time with the FS. Well I will have some quality training time here over the next 4 months and will be doing some big gear riding and some interval training to increase my speed hopefully so I will be competative when I get back here. I am planning on riding Wenseday night and trying to get out to Dauset this weekend so if your out there either day I Will See You on the Trail!

Smoked in Milledgeville

Well went out to Milledgeville with Charles today and was enjoying the ride right up to the first good hill. Now I am not the billy goat I used to be out in Az but I am no slouch either. So when we hit the first hill and all of a sudden I couldn't catch my breath I was pretty suprised and concerned once I did we rode to the next good hill and I was working my way up pretty well when it hit me again. This time it was pretty persistant and wouldn't go away for a while felt like my heart was just out of rhythem and I was going to be sick. Anyway this scared me a bit and forced a slower ride than I think either me or Charles was planning. Well I have been taking prilosec for about 4 days and this evening I went on line to check out if there was any side effects of prilosec that might have been a cause and I found out that one of the less frequent side effects is a abnormal heart rhythm on a severe level so I am going to get off the prilosec and see if that stops the issue. Anyone else out there had any similar situations from a heartburn meds? Anyway I will be out at Thomson Day on Saturday which will be my last event until May but I will have plenty of training time so look out when I get back! Since this time I am shipping out the Vertex between being able to actually get some riding in and using the eliptical for intervel power training I should be able to do some pretty solid training. Well even though I am not doing much to help out at Thomson Day I will be out there riding and doing what I can so if your out there I Will See You on the Trail!

The Longest Miles

Well just shy of a year later and all I can say is I must be suffering from short term memory loss in my old age. Back to the Snake I went thinking oh yea I can do this in 4 1/2 hours this year....NOT! Anyway ride day arrives and we started off groups of 3 the first 5 miles weren't too bad the creek, the mud, and a few minor climbs and I was hanging pretty well with the group I started with and some single speeders(I was smart this year and let the women start ahead of me so they wouldn't have to pass me!). Anyway my limited lactate threshold kicked in and I was starting to feel the pain around mile 7 and the granny gear was barely helping, so I rode the next 5 miles of uphill reaching the first mile long stretch of downhill on the gravel road which allowed for a quick breather before the next climb. The following 4 miles after that took some time, I enjoyed that last mile of downhill right before the midway point, getting ready for that big climb on the start of the second half.
So I am sitting there at half-way point thinking maybe I should pack up and catch a four wheeled ride back when Grant, Mark and Jake all arrive. Not bad since they started 24min behind me and caught me already, somehow that provided me with the motivation needed to decide to gut it out and finish what I started. So away we go I was able to hang in there for awhile until once again my lack of conditioning kicked in and I started lagging behind again. the second half had some more interesting features, the root wall, which was a conveniently placed 3 1/2 foot vertical wall of roots right at the bottom of a fairly flowing downhill, the 500yrd mud slick located conveniently after a creek crossing going uphill of course, the dead fall downhill, where the was a large tree right in the middle of some technical downhill section which required a dismount crossing. This was also where I ate it pretty good when I managed to get a little left of the trail and almost plowed down a couple of saplings. Then of course the icing on the cake the 2 miles of rock garden or as I like to refer to as the hike from hell, while there is some ridable area throughout it has many more dismount points than any other trail I have ever been on. This is the section where you definitely can reflect on why you got started in mountain biking to begin with as well as questioning your sanity for putting yourself through so much suffering not to mention paying for it. Anyway I saw the towers as I approached the 32 mile point signaling the end of the torture and a pleasant 2 mile downhill split between a gravel and paved road to the finish line.
Now if my calculations are correct we have 2-3 miles of downhill in the first 17 miles and then about 4 miles of downhill in the second 17 most of which is in steep sections one mile or more at a time so once again my question remains Who was the sick individual that developed a 34 mile trail with 27 miles of climbing? And why do I keep riding it?? If nothing else it should me where I need to start focusing my training and getting my latctate threshold up as well as working on my power looks like I might be doing alot of interval training. Well with that I am looking forward to Thomson Day this Saturday and in light of 6hrs of trail time I had on Saturday and the 4hrs I plan on doing next Saturday I will stick with some light road rides this week, however if your out at Thomson Day on Saturday I will See You on the Trail!

In Memory of Oscar

My last post introduced a new member of the family, this post unfortunately says farewell, Oscar Duncan died prematurely last week. It is amazing how attached you can become to a family member, because thats what my pets are, in less than a week. His passing has made this week pretty hard to concentrate on the upcoming TT at Snake Creek but I will give it my best and try to make this a healing event. I am here in Dalton all my gear set and ready to go and looking forward to the challenge once again this year. This will be a good warm up for the 4hr ride at Thomson next week especially seeing how much more climbing it has and the higher altitude at this location. Anyway I will be out there giving it my best tomorrow in Memory of Oscar so if your out there I Will See you on The Trail!

Houghtling's Hounds (Dashunds)

Well another Christmas and another Dashund to and to the collection introducing Oscar "The Cat Slayer" Duncan Houghtling. Hopefully he will pay off in the future as we have a long hair miniature female we plan on mating him with so we will see. As far as the riding goes had to do some research on lower back pain and riding and do some adjustments to the handlebar height to see if that will help, don't need to be doing the Snake Creek TT and having a sore back a hour into it. Looking forward to the New Years day ride with the CGC rinding my Vertex hardtail with some Kenda slicks recommended by Charles at my local LBS . Should be a pretty good time, Also now that they gave us Tuesday off as a Federal Holiday looks like I will probably do some trail time thinking about trying out E. Macon haven't been there in a while. If anyone has ridden there recently and has a trail update or status would love to hear it. I have adjusted my schedule to still have a chance to be competitive in the GSC Series will have to make races 4-8 and fit in the make up in Clemson S.C. to be eligible for the Series I will only have one endurance race during that time so I am going to focus my training on strength and speed to be competitive. Since I will have about 20 weeks of nothing but training time hopefully I can make the most of it so if some of the more knowledgeable and experienced riders out there actually read my post and have some training tips for me I am all ears! Well that is about it for now I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and has a Safe and Happy New Year and I Will See You on the Trail!