Rim Nordic #1/Socal State #7

Yet another weekend of racing and next up was the Rim Nordic race which was also the 7th race in the Socal State Series. Going into this race with a very small point margin for 1st overall, I knew I had to have a good result and try to finish ahead of Barbee. As the season draws to an end, Barbee has become a real tough competitor and has greatly improved his fitness. Props to Mikey B for getting back in some serious shape.

I'm just going to get into it. After I lined up on the starting line I noticed the lack of racers in my category. I think there was only a total of 6, but I only saw 4 on the starting line. I think the orgainizers messed up with placing the 30-34 on the grid. We were starting ahead of the younger guys? Oh well, this actually turned out to be a good thing since the organizers decided to have us start with the SS guys. This actually allowed us geared guys to get out ahead of everyone and have a clear path for most of the way. The race started and I set out for a fast pace taking the lead. I was surprised that no decided to follow and before I knew it, I had a good 20 second or so lead on Barbee. However, this wasn't to last and before I knew it, Barbee closed the gap very quickly on the first set of climbs. He's a really strong climber. I thought I was pretty good, but apparently I need to work on that. Barbee was right on my tail with really no where to go around since we were on singletrack. I was able to slow down the pace a bit, but then I had a problem with my drivetrain. A pretty significant sized stick got caught between my chainrings and my chain stay. I couldn't shift my gears so I had to dismount and let Barbee by. He was encouraging me to get on it, but didn't realize the massive stick stuck in my drivetrain. I then spent about a minute wrestling trying to remove that stupid stick. I ended up breaking the stick 3 times and with each break making it harder to remove. I finally got it free and mounted back up to finish attacking the climb before the fireroad. I knew at this point that Barbee would be gone and I lost some motivation to keep pushing. It was pretty warm out and I sure didn't feel like I had the strength.

The 1st place SS guy caught up to me and I eventually let him by since I couldn't match his pace exactly. We would trade back and forth for most of the race. He would let me by on the singletrack descents. I approached the 1st singletrack descent and caught up the SS guy pretty quickly. I mentioned to pass and he kindly pulled aside except I was no longer behind him since I ran wide on one of the sandy turns and bailed from my bike before really crashing. I guess it was a semi crash since I didn't really fall or hurt myself, I just ended up dismounting while moving. I mounted back up and went on my way and eventually got around the SS guy. As I was near the end of the 1st lap, I rounded a corner and I see Barbee mounting his bike and started pedaling. I asked him what happened and he said his rear tire has a slow leak and he had to air it up 3 times now. What a bummer for Barbee especially during an important race. I rode with for a little bit as he pulled away on the smaller climbs before the Start/Finish line.

On the 2nd lap, I managed to catch up to Barbee on the 1st climb as he pulled over to air up his tire again. Being the true sportsman that I am...lol...I gave him my Big Air CO2. He really did appreciate it and I know he would have done the same in return if the situation was reversed. Again, he pulled away on the small climb before the 1st little section of singletrack. I did manage to pull up to his wheel on that singletrack, but I eventually went by when Barbee pulled over at the switchback close to start. That would be the last time I see him until after the race.

For the rest of the race, I tried to keep my pace high. I was definitely fatigued, but as long as I could hold onto first, that is all that would matter. My 2nd lap was much slower, but I did cross the line first with DJ coming in second 1 minute behind and Barbee finishing 3rd a few more minutes behind. This win really did help give me an advantage for the overall points leader. It was unfortunate that Barbee dealt with tire issues for most of the race. He finally did end up putting a tube in his tire. His tire wasn't in the best of shape to begin the race as I found out afterwards. He was dissapointed, but that's how it goes sometimes. It's all apart of racing.

Of course I was happy to win the race, but I wasn't overly excited about my performance. If it wasn't for Barbee's flat, I would not have been able to keep his pace. He would have smoked me for sure. He is a better climber and I guess it does help he has a cabin at elevation. I'm not a big fan of racing at elevation. I haven't felt good at any mountain races. Stay tuned for the Socal State Finale in my next post.

12 Hours of Rim Nordic

I know I'm slacking when it comes to updating my blog, but no one reads this crap anyways. Ryan, Matt and myself decided to participate in the 12 hours of Rim Nordic on June 20th. We entered as a 3 man team and we all decided to do it on our single speeds for fun. Too bad there was no single speed category for a 3 man team. They only had 2 and 4 man SS teams. Oh well, we just wanted to go out and have fun. My morning started out great until the CHP decided to ticket me for doing 51 in a 30 just passed the 330 and 18 interchange. Who takes the speed limit from 55 down to 30 in a span of a 1oo feet or so? To be honest, I didn't see the first speed limit sign and by the time I saw the radar, it was too late. First infraction in about 1o years. My little subaru wagon can't even drive the speed limit up the mountain. CHP officer cut me no slack. Needless to say, I wasn't very happy about that and it was pretty evident I was upset about it when I arrived to the Rim Nordic Ski area.

I met Ryan and Matt up there and we set up our mini camp at the Sho-Air EZ-up. To my surprise, there was a ton of riders and familiar faces up there ready to get their 12 hours on. It's always great to see these grassroots type of events draw lots of competitors. Matt decided he would go first which would later turn out to be not the best of choice. The race started with a couple parade laps before the racers were let go.

We basically did 1 lap per rotation and I was 2nd in line with Ryan to follow. I think the team did great for the competition we were against. I believe there were a couple of 3 man teams that were professional. We ended up finishing 5th out of 16 teams with total of 13 laps. Matt got the extra lap and the only night lap of the day. I ended up doing 4 laps with times I was very happy with. I started out with a 48 minute lap. My 2nd was a 47, my 3rd was a 49, and my 4th was a 50. I was happy to be consistent with my lap times and to get familiar with the course. The Socal State #7/Rim Nordic #1 XC race was to follow the next weekend. I felt the 3 man rotation was perfect. It gave you just enough time to rest and recover for the next lap. No sitting around for hours like we did at the 24 hour race last year with a 5 man team. The event seemed well organized until the final results were posted. There was some confusion on almost every teams lap count.

Me rounding the switchback

Ryan surprised by the camera.

Me ready to go for my 1st lap

Matt always smiling.

Velosport pits.

It was a good weekend to be on a bike and no one got hurt which is always good. I'm contemplating trying one of these 12 hour events solo, we shall see. Matt did get attacked by a tree branch that ripped his jersey.

SoCal State #6 (SBBF) plus US CUP West Final (CO)

It's been a few weeks since my last update, but to be honest I've been too busy and tired to write here. I've probably covered over 3000 miles in the past weeks (not pedaling) with races in Santa Barbara, Colorodo, and Big Bear. Four weekends in a row of back to back racing with an upcoming 5th next weekend. The season is almost over, but I still have 2 very important Socal State races to attend.

Earlier this month was the Santa Barbara Bike Festival. I've really enjoyed this course since racing here twice last year. It's mainly comprised of single track and is just plain fun. Steep switchbacks and fast descents. I drove up with Matt the morning of the XC event. I felt good and was really hoping for a good result. The usual guys were there at the start line with the usual chit chat about the course and such. I decided to make a change with my sports drink. I still haven't found something I totally like, but using Edurox R4 in my training rides hasn't left that sticky saliva in my mouth. I find myself trying to spit all the time with Cytomax. I know it's not the prettiest picture. That being said, I used Endurox for the first time this race and I was much happier with the end result.

The race started out with a blistering pace for position to the 1st singletrack. I was able to secure 4th behind the leaders and I wish I had sprinted for the lead. I was in a dust storm, but at the same time being held up by the slower leaders. I knew it wasn't going to last for long since the single track was fairly short until the 1st pavement climb. I passed 1 racer there and the next on the following single track. The leader wasn't that far ahead, but as the race progressed he slowly gapped me. I held onto 2nd place for the rest of the race which was 3 laps total. Most importantly, I was able to finish ahead of Mike Barbee who finished 3rd. This gave me a little bit of breathing room for overall points. Also to my surprise, I was able to post a time that was 7 minutes faster than my previous best on this course from last year! I guess all this training time on the bike is paying off or maybe it's my beloved Blur XC carbon? We all know it's the rider, not the machine. ;-)

The following weekend, Matt and I made the long haul out to Colorado Springs, Colorado for the final round of the US Cup West series. We decided it would be cheaper to drive instead of flying. It would be such a pain to pack and ship bikes. We most likely would require special cases which are pretty costly if we would have wanted to bring them on the plane. Driving was the best choice. We left on a Wednesday evening and my parents were gracious enough to embrace us with their hospitality in Prescott Valley, AZ. That's where my parents live. I couldn't imagine driving the whole 17 hours straight, so this was a good stop. We arrived in AZ pretty late. The next morning my parents took us out for breakfast at Jamie's Waffle House. I tried some Buckwheat Belgian waffles. Once breakfast was finished, we were off to finish the second half of the drive.

Matt posing in front of our ride. (Thanks Jerry)

Breakfast in Prescott Valley, AZ

Flagstaff, AZ. A must place for riding. Maybe next time

My home for 35 plus hours

Matt hard at work being a passenger.

Some AZ landscape

Awesome race machines

Entering Colorado from 4 corners.

Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado Springs

We arrived at the Doubletree Hotel in COS late Thursday night. I managed to get pulled over by the local authorities in CO, but was given a warning for going 80MPH in a 65. Everyone drives the speed limit once you leave CA. It's quite annoying. We got a good nights sleep since the plan for Friday was to get registered for the race and do some pre-riding of the course. We arrived at Cheyenne Mountain State Park around 1pm and we suited up for the pre-ride. The course ended up being the most technical course of the series as it should be since it's Colorado. All the climbing was done in the first half with the majority being a gradual grade with an occasional steep switchback and some rocky technical sections. The terrain was very similar to SJTas in hardpack with a fine pea-like gravel on top. The 2nd half was a rollercoaster of fun. Tons of natural and challenging obstacles to clear including rocks, boulders, and tree roots. We rode the course twice before the rain started to fall. No sense in burning more energy and getting wet.

We got back to the hotel and had plenty of time to kill. We decided to go see a movie. We saw Land of the Lost which was surprisingly good. I found it pretty funny while not being your typical over the top comedy with Will Ferrell. I'd say it's a rental though. Don't spend your hard earned cash at the movies on it unless you are out of state. I think the admission price was $8.50 in COS. I tried to get to bed early since my race started at 8am the next morning. The long drive really wore me out.

Packet pickup

Sweet number!

Woke up bright and early Saturday morning and made it out to the venue. After suiting up and doing a hill climb warmup it was time to line up on the grid. The start was very interesting. I'm used to having the age groups start in waves. This was the first mass start I've been in that wasn't a VQ or Traverse race. The gun fired and all the CAT2 men sprinted for position to get in the front since the course quickly went from a wide road to doubletrack and finally singletrack where passing became a problem. It was elbow to elbow racing for about 30 seconds. I didn't do a good job of getting position and was being heldup by alot of slower riders, but there was nowhere to pass. The pace felt like a social ride for the first couple of minutes. I grew tired of this and decided to up the pace and work around the other racers. This was quite tricky at times finding the right time to pass. What really sucks about not being in the immediate front is the traffic jams. As soon as one rider can't clear an obstacle, he gets off which causes everyone else to get off and HAB. I passed a bunch of riders as soon as this happend. I just ran with my bike around obstacles to get a better position. The first of 3 laps went ok for the most part. I was held up by a slower a rider for most of the 2nd half of the course. I had no idea what position I was in since there was no class marking.

I could feel the altitude was affecting my breathing. My HR was about 6-7 beats higher than normal and I didn't like that. I felt like my legs were tiring quicker than normal. I made up some time on the 2nd lap. I caught up to the 3rd place guy (knew this after the race) and eventually passed him just before the singletrack descent. I was able to hold him off until the fast road descent before the finish line. I need to work on pedaling more instead of coasting on the easy descents. I usually don't pedal as hard as I'm trying to recover. I guess more training will eventually correct that. On the start of the 3rd lap climb I was able to pass this guy again and then it happened. I ran out of energy and my legs had no strength. I was passed again and could no longer hold his wheel. I lost site of 3rd place. At this point I just wanted to crest the final climb so I could enjoy the fun and techy singletrack to the finish. I could see another racer slowly catching up to me on the climb, but it was in vein as soon as I hit the descent. I opened up a big gap and held it until the finish. I finished 4th after the results were posted and had an ok time of 1:35. I really wanted to break 1:30, but oh well. All in all, it was a really fun race.

Results here:

http://www.uscup.net/up/file/6-13-09_Amateur_Results.pdf

Here's a couple of links to professional photos:

http://photos.abouttheshot.com/p455426388


http://photos.abouttheshot.com/p77117095

Matt being aerodynamic. He had to race with the CAT1 guys since there is no CAT2 SS class. They were scheduled to do 4 laps, but due to time constraints the organizers shortened it to 3 laps. He was happy to not be DFL.

After we were done with our respective races, we decided to hike up some of the course to check out the pros go. It was fun to watch these guys blast down the hill. I got some pretty cool shots.

Matt being a badass

This race crowned me the US Cup West Champion for CAT2 30-34. I was a little bummed to find out there was no ceremony for the overall winners. After being told by the series orgainizers that I had to be present to collect awards months before the final, it turns out they weren't completely prepared and were going to mail out awards. I was really looking forward to getting that jersey after all the hard work I've put into it. Oh well, I should be getting my award soon.

Overall results here:

http://www.uscup.net/up/file/09_Kenda_Cup_West_Points-After_SandCreek.pdf

After the event, we headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up. Grabbed some dinner at a local Mexican joint for Margaritas and tasty food. Matt beat me at air hockey...damnit! Woke up the next morning and we hit the road. We stopped in Alburquerque, NM to visit a friend of Matt's. We ended up at this place called "Twin Peaks" which ended up being like a Hooters. Lots of eye candy, but I wasn't going to let the talent try to win me over in giving out a big tip. They sure try hard to be really friendly. We got back to my parents house around 8:30pm where my Mom made some kick ass kebob's for dinner. We watched the Lakers win the NBA finals while enjoying drinking more margaritas. Seemed to be the theme for the weekend.

The next morning Matt and I decided to get some pedaling in. We decided to hit up Granite Basin Lake. We were able to get about 3 hours in of exploring some new trails to Matt, but somewhat familiar to me. I wish this place was bigger, but the trails are really fun. We went out to lunch at "Casa Bonita" as made famous by Southpark before heading back home.



Overall, it was a fun time and I would totally do it again. It ended up costing more money than I would have liked it to, but I honestly don't know when I will get a chance to go back out there again. I also wish I had more time, but both Matt and I couldn't afford to anymore time off from work. I need to get rid of this "work" thing so I can ride a MTB full time. One can dream. I'll make a new post for this past weekend recap at 12 hours of Rim Nordic.

State Series #5/Big Bear ShootOut #1

After a nice month off from racing, this past weekend marked the beginning of the 2nd half of the season. I took some time off of the bike and enjoyed a few fun rides with friends. I also got all my repairs taken care of (Fork, wheel bearings) as well as mounting some new tires to finish off the season. I finally got my new bike dialed in and it's feeling incredible. I was feeling good about this race.

I'm just going to get into it. Some new riders showed up to this event and the turnout seemed surprisingly high compared to last year. This is great for the sport. The race started and I tried to get an early lead, but my legs weren't on the same page. Usually I can come out of the gate attacking, but not today. I turned the jets down a bit and settled into a moderate pace trying to keep up with the leaders. This wasn't happening and could see myself drifting backwards in the pack. I was probably sitting in 5th or 6th place and wasn't making much ground. The first climb seemed to keep going and the legs were still feeling weak. As I started to crest the climb I was able to get a little break and recover. I turned the big gear to gain some ground on the others and my legs felt alive finally. I was trading places with another guy quite a few times. The blur absolutely punished my competitors on the single tracks...that could just be my mad skills too. ;-). I was able to make up time on the first single track. Unfortunate for me, there wasn't much of it and the course again catered to those that ride fire roads mainly. I consider myself a pretty fast climber, but I don't know why it seems I'm going backwards. Anyways, more than halfway through the race I get passed by a guy I have never lost to. Now I'm in trouble. What was the problem? I didn't feel horrible at all. I felt pretty good. Is everyone else improving and getting faster? I thought I was improving. I kept him and another guy in my sights for awhile until we crested the final climb but I could no longer see them on the final fire road decent before the last single track. As soon as I got to the single track, I could see one guy in front of me. I attacked hard as there was some climbing still to do before the fun began. I passed this one rider and started making ground on the next guy. I was moshing through the technical and rocky parts as now I was flying down the single track. I passed another guy in my class and kept going. I then see another racer in my class not too far ahead and I'm making ground. I had no idea what place I was in, but I just made up 2 places. I attacked more and passed him on a short little climb and then bombed down looking to make up more time. I remember even passing a Pro rider on the Pirates or Fall Line single tracks. That's got to be demoralizing for a CAT2 rider to pass a Pro. I see another guy in front now and I kept gaining ground on him. I knew the end was only a few hundred feet away or so. I got right behind him but couldn't pass him on the final turn of the day and that was the difference in the race. I need about another 100 feet or so. Turns out I lost out on 3rd by 1 second! This was definitely the closest race I have been in. In the final half mile I could have given up and settled for 7th or 8th place. That would have been my worst finish if I did that. I don't know what's wrong, but I need to step up my game if I want to retain my overall lead. The 2nd place guy overall, finished 1st today which means he made up alot ground on my overall lead. I believe I'm only 6 points ahead which really is the difference between 1st and 2nd place. It's that close right now.

The final turn where I lost by a second. Dissapointment on my face.

I've worked so hard this year, but looks like I'm going to have to work harder. Next weekend is the Santa Barbara race and I'm hoping this will favor more to my style. It's 80% single track and very fast. Lots of quick ups and downs so I hope to really take advantage of the terrain.

Idyllwild Spring Challenge 2009 Update

One word describes this race course.....AWESOME!!!!

I highly recommend this course to everyone to do at least once.

Walked away with 1st place....literally. 2nd place wasn't even close. My race time was just over an hour and fifty minutes. I raced CAT2 Single Speed, but for some odd reason, CAT2and CAT3 raced against each other. Most likely because there was only 5 CAT2/3 Single Speeders. I just had lots of fun with the course and didn't give it my max effort. I still managed to cramp up a bit towards the end of the course though. Don't know what's up with that.

This race doesn't count towards the State Series championship. It was just a one-off fun race for me. There's about a 4 week break before the next state race. Some much needed rest and more fun time is over due.

I've decided to take care of a couple of repairs on my bike since there is a break. I'm having some work done on my fork to finally fix the lockout on it. It's been broken for about a year. I'm also having the bearings replaced in my rear hub because there is small amount of play in them that causes my rear brake to drag while leaning in turns. Can't wait to get the Blur out there on the race course for it's debut. Next race is at the Big Bear Shoot Out #1 on May 31st. This is the 5th round of the Socal State Series.

Santa Cruz Blur XC Carbon = Next Chapter

After my first ride on it last night, I'm very impressed with the Blur XC carbon. This is my 3rd Santa Cruz ride and they have yet to let me down. Hope it stays that way.

First of all, this bike is a completely different animal than my previous Superlight. It climbs and descends in a whole new way that I didn't expect.

Climbing:

Great amount of traction compared to the Superlight. I prefer locked out shocks and the Rock Shox does a great job with their gates. The Monarch 3.3 has 3 settings of Open, Mid-Gate, Max-Gate. I started out with the shock open and as expected it felt very plush while pedaling through Whiting. Once I reached Mustard, I put in it the Max-Gate mode. This totally caught me by surprise. I was expecting the bike to feel more like a hardtail since that's how my Superlight felt with Max Pro-Pedal on. However, the suspension was very compliant. While spinning in the saddle the suspension would just open up enough to absorb the smaller bumps while keeping the rear tire planted, tracking and more importantly my efforts being applied to the wheels. Out of the saddle, there is no bob what-so-ever relating to even more power put to the wheels. Still, the suspension would give just enough over bumps resulting in maximum traction. The bike would react very well to my power inputs and is just responsive as hell. Traction was the biggest thing that surprised me. With the superlight I would be bouncing off small bumps, rocks, which would lift the rear tire off the ground just enough to slip under power. This was not the case at all with the BXCc. I couldn't say maybe it's the tires because I transferred all my components from my SL over to the BXCc. Only thing different was the frame. I'm sure this can be contributed to the VPP as well. One thing that I wasn't happy with was the amount of lift on the front wheel. I felt that the front was just a tad to light and it would come off the ground more often than the SL, but I believe that will be solved with lowering my handlebars for more of a XC position. I did have them in the highest position. That's small potatoes to me. BTW - This was my first time riding a VPP bike.

Descending:

Nothing but awesome things here. The Luge is practically my second home and I never tire of it. I really wanted to see what this bike could do and it didn't disappoint. The steering was the first thing I notice over the SL. It felt a tad bit slower due to slightly slacker head tube (69.5), but after I was used to the steering, everything just started to click. This bike is amazingly smooth and holds a line so much better than the SL. The bike induces much more confidence and speed all around. The SL is a fast bike, but definitely more twitchy in the turns than the BXCc. Again, I was so surprised by the amount of traction this bike has. I was able to carry more speed in the twisty sections which allowed me to brake even later into the corners. The bike was very lively and responded very well to my weight transfers and movements. I just felt like it was in sync with my thoughts doing exactly what I wanted to do, when I wanted to do it. I was completely amazed. This put a huge grin on my face knowing that my investment was well worth it. Only thing that was annoying was the slapping of my chain on the aluminum protector on the chain stay. Made for much more clanks than I was used to. I'm sure I can do something to quiet that down a bit. SL has those elevated chain stays where this was a non-issue. I couldn't wait to get to Live Oak and Cow Serrano in Whiting for some more fun...and fun is what I did.

Overall:

This bike is FAST! After a couple of small tweaks, fine tuning, and more saddle time, I should be able to put down faster times on the race course. This bike holds a line far better than the SL. It feels more connected and planted with the trail. The traction is great! It's stiff, yet very smooth. It's a very very efficient climbing machine. It's a great all around trail bike. Did I say it tracks great!? This bike is capable of way more than just XC. It easily could dabble in the AM terrain, but it's bigger brother the Blur LTc can stay there. This bike was built to go fast and fast it goes.


Huge thanks to Jake for building it and to Switchback Cyclery for getting it in for me.

US CUP #5/Santa Ynez Update

Short and quick.

Camped the night before with Matt. Cold and windy in the morning.

Raced...chased cows off the trail...bunny hop'd cowpies...not so great performance.

4th place finish.

Prentending to be happy below:



PS: Matt got his first 1st place finish. Huge congrats to him. I'm still the current points leader for the US Cup West series with the penultamate Round #6 June 13th in Colorado Springs. I will be there for that adventure.