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Is This A Logo??

Tuesday 26 July 2016

The Summer Epic 8 Hour MTB Race Review

Well holy smokes...everyone and their dog (or should I say cat??) was out for this one!  Except for Unglued.  Apparently Unglued is embarking on a new career of escorting attractive, yet lonely young women on birthday holidays and has dropped all his mountain biking dreams.  SarahF wore zebra striped socks in Unglued's memory though (relax, she was wearing other stuff too...).

Oh, and ApexTed was not there; but he had his bestest padawan fill in for him.  Not quite the Ted ninja skills (but who does?)...but still great pics for everyone!!  (I hope...)

Anyways...I am off track right outta the gate....sorry.  Of course, I'm talking about the Summer 8 Hour Mountain Bike race held at Hardwood Ski & Bike this past Saturday, promoted by Pulse Racing folks.


And yes there were a boat load of people out for this one!


The front of the Start Paddock....can you find Waldo??

Perhaps this is better....
And there is Raf...in his pink kit on his fatbike...he tag teamed with JennKenn...a FatboyNation team.

And a huge number of Solo riders...so very stiff competition...

I waffled between entering solo singlespeed (where I would have had to compete against serious and dskunk), or entering solo male (to compete with Martin, Hal, and IanP).  I ended up entering solo male simply because my bike was already set up geared...



14Stone solo-ed on his fatbike...but he wouldn't be smiling long in this heat on that beast.

So on Saturday morning Lois and I packed into the truck, picked up Fig on the way, and headed to Hardwood.  Fig was also soloing, and Lois was our pit crew for the day.  Blaze was busy pitting for the R&R youth team...so they were guaranteed a podium spot.  Not that they wouldn't anyway...those kids are blazing fast!!

We got the pit set up, great spot on the course....right across from the Pinoy Pedal Pushers tent...who caught me preparing eating some champorado (that stuff is good...and high octane energy food)!!  Pinoy Pedal Pushers are seriously the nicest people on the planet!  They cheered me on throughout the day.  Then it was off to get registered, and to the start paddock.  10am and it was already scorching hot!!

Finally, we are off!  Then not even 200 meters in...a large pile up.  I see KarenG and Alexa picking their bikes out of the pile...luckily everyone is OK...I think.





Well, maybe not this guy...









Anyways!  The first lap went with someone directly behind me, and someone directly in front of me the entire lap...which made it difficult to drink.  Which was a mistake on this very hot, humid day.  I didn't drink enough on the first two laps....and that left me in a deficit for the first 3 hours or so of the day.

I rode most of the second lap with IanP and Hal...we were all in the same category...and then they were gone.  On lap 3 I caught Martin and we rode together for a couple of laps...both in our BicycleWorks kit...looking like a team almost...


Through the transition zone.

Until Martin had to drop me and ruin it all...

Lois did a great job in the pit (no Blaze you are not out of a job!), and kept me fed and watered throughout the day.  She got me back on track drinking properly after the first two laps.  It was great every time through solo pit alley...hearing the cheering from the PinoyPedalPusher tent, the R&R tent, Oakville Cyclepath where Brent Spinner was pit crewing (why was he not racing??), and from the BikeZone tent.


Solo pit lane (Fig and Clarkie going the wrong way...)



Little girl, big chair in the Rock & Road tent...


Once through the finish/transition zone, the course took you through solo pit lane, then back onto the course.  The first 3 kilometers were climbing...including a couple of loose gravel double track climbs.  The middle of the course was relatively flat...but included a couple of kilometers of wide open double track through a grassy field that was hugely bumpy...and out in the blazing hot sun.  I strongly disliked this part of the course...and it eventually tore my hands up.  I am still sporting some nasty blisters....



Can only show the one hand, the right hand is busy (holding the camera!!)...

The last 3 kilometers of the course was very fun...fast, flowy, swoopy, single track descent...including a fun boulder pile to ride over.  The entire course was tolerated, looking forward to this last few minutes of fun!  Then into the finish/transition zone.

Around the 3 or 4 hour mark...through the solo pits, Blaze calls out as I pass the R&R tent that I am several seconds out of third place.  I thought that was great as I was only out to enjoy the day and race my race.  I didn't really expect to compete with the amount of talented competition that was out on the day.

Me speeding by the pit at Mach 2 (or 2 km/hr...maybe...)


Actually I was hoping to get 13 laps in...I'm not sure I have ever managed 13 laps in an 8 hour race (each lap is about 10 kms).  As the day wound down, and the heat amped up...it was just a challenge to stay properly  hydrated, not to mention maintain a competitive pace.

At lap 10 I knew it was going to be tight, with a couple of hours to go.  I pushed it to try to get 13 in...but the heat was opressively exhausting.  Pushing as hard as possible (at Riot speed) through laps 10, 11, 12....I was managing about 38 minutes per lap.  At the end of lap 12...I had 32 minutes to complete a 13th lap.  It wasn't going to happen.  12 laps...I was done.  12 laps, good enough for 5th place...just 7 minutes behind IanP.

Martin took third...well done sir!  Hal took second.  GordR was in first by a large margin.

I was happy to get this...




And no crashes...no injuries.  It was a good day!

All the usuals podiumed.  serious took first in solo singlespeed, that is huge sir!!

Alexa took first in Solo Women on a singlespeed....after the first lap crash....very impressive!!  Also impressive, SSSarah crashed on her 4th lap, injured her shoulder and still managed 10 laps for second place!

Talk about impressive...Noriel solo-ed on a singlespeed fatbike!!  Ouch!!

And the friendly PinoyPedalPushers took third in their category!!  Well deserved!

As predicted, the R & R youth team on the podium.  Second place.

Well done, eh!!

I think the Shikaze's are going to start their own Own The Podium program....





Nucking Futs...always first.

And everyone got dirty!!



Fig with the Ernie/Burt unibrow...


Is that Ian or Kate??






So what's next?  Well for now I am off to north of Kingston to visit family for a few days.  (Actually I am heading up there in search of fresh new cat pics...)  I will be taking a gravel bike, but not sure if there is MTB trails up there...so not sure about the mountain bike.

Anyways...not sure I will be able to write a Thursday blog post from there either.  May have to find a way if the Apex folks get the 8 Hour pics up and ready by then!!  If not, then the next post will be Tuesday...

We shall see...till then...

Stay posted!!




Thursday 21 July 2016

Previewing the Summer 8 Hour

So...to take care of the important stuff right off the bat.  A fast (faster than me), competitive (more competitive than me), female (much more female than me....I hope) friend of mine (yes, believe it or not, I have one...), is looking for a team to race on for this weekend's race.  So if you are looking to fill a race spot, let me know and I will hook you up.

In case you don't know what race I am talking about (typing about??), it's this one...


Organized by Pulse Racing, taking place at Hardwood Ski & Bike this Saturday.

OK...that's enough serious business...




Speaking of serious...he will be at the race, but luckily for me he is racing Solo Singlespeed.  As is dskunk (hugely lucky for me!!).  Looking at the rider confirmation list I believe there is a Solo Singlespeed Fatbiker...which is just crazy!!

Speaking of crazy Fatbikers I believe Raf is tagteaming with JennK.  Will they be the only representatives of Fatboy Nation??  Actually, I think 14Stone will be soloing on a Fatbike...racing for ApexRacePhotography.

Sadly, my buddy Pinoy Ryder won't be there...but I believe Pinoy Pedal Pushers will have a team...always a party pit!

Actually, the Solo category seems to be huge this year!  Too many fast folks!  I expect I will get my butt kicked!  To be honest, I am not feeling the speed vibe for this one.  I think the 24 Hour race last month kicked some of the race stuffing out of me.  So I will be just looking to enjoy riding my mountain bike for 8 hours, and the company of all the good people that will be there.  Like one big happy family!



Hey hooman!  Izn't we'z family??  Den givez chipz!!


And it is supposed to be smoking hot weather this weekend.  The trick will be to stay hydrated and keep the electrolytes up.  But, hey, no excuses...







Although, the heat could be a factor on who can keep going for 8 hours.

Anyways, that's about it for today!  Luckily for you, short and pointless...
So, let's go burn some mega calories this weekend, stay uninjured, and answer some of those burning questions...

Does JeffS ride a fatbike to hide the motor?  (really, how is anyone that fast on a fatbike??)
Where is TeamColin?
Where is Unglued?
Will DonnaDub find a team?
Will Giant be podium bound yet again?
How many times will SSSarah and Alexa lap me?
How fast will Oggie pass me?
Where will ApexTed be hiding?

So much to wonder about...





Should make for some good stories to post about on Tuesday.
So....


Stay posted!


Enough freakin' cat pics already!!

Tuesday 19 July 2016

Pre Riding the Summer 8....and more

So, once again, no racing this weekend....but did some race prep.  After getting badgered by NewfieSteve for days about going to Hardwood to pre-ride the Summer 8 Hr race course...we decided we would drag our campers up there and make a weekend of riding out of it.  It would help me to decide if I would register as Solo Male, or as Solo Singlespeed.

Also we had ridden Copeland Forest and Horseshoe before...but had never really ridden the Simcoe trails but had heard alot about them.  We thought maybe we could take the opportunity to check them out as well.

So NewfieSteve (who is seriously the hardest working Newfie you will ever know) actually took Friday off, and we headed to Bass Lake Prov Park to camp out.  We got pitted in by mid afternoon...



Looks bigger from this angle (that's what Lois said).


With enough time in the evening we headed out to check out the Simcoe trails.  Being unfamiliar with the trails (we knew where the trail head was...but that was it, really)....we dove in...but didn't really know where we were going.  After about a half hour, we unexpectedly popped back out in the trailhead...and there was Meredith.  Meredith is a local (rides for The Bike Zone), knows the trails well, and gave us some directions on which trails to ride.  Thanks Meredith!!

We knew we were in the right place when this guy jumped out from behind a tree...




ApexTed!!  Seriously??  Yes, but no....
he wasn't really there...or was he???

So, the Simcoe trails are great!  Some climbing, some flowy singletrack, some technical...a little bit of everything.  Made for a great couple hour fun workout.  And I am sure we left alot of trails unridden...  I will have to acquire a membership...with so many trail riding options in the area, (and camping options) I am likely to find myself up there often.  Besides...Lois has friends and family up there too!

Anyways...back to camp for recovery shakes...






Some gourmet eats...






A quiet, relaxing evening around the campfire....




Well...Steve may have invited a few of his friends...

Not me though, I hit the hay early.  Actually, I have the best sleeps when camping!  Still, I wake up before anyone else on the campground (maybe before anyone on the continent...).  I have time for two full breakfasts' and four pots of coffee before Steve is even awake...






Anyways, we do eventually make our way to Hardwood, to pre-ride the 8 hour course.  Out there, we run into Meredith...quite the coincidence.  She is also pre-riding, with others of the Bike Zone team.  As far as the race course goes....the only real climbing is right off the start...some long drawn out climbs in the first kilometer or so.  Then plenty of double track...some seemingly endless stretches.  The worst bit being almost a full kilometer through a very bumpy wide open farm field...the roughness could make for a huge challenge for solo riders...even more so if it is a sunny, hot day.

Most of the single track is new and loose, hopefully to get more packed as the race progresses.  The last bit of the course is more mature single track...bits of the Sidewinder, Crank'd, and Serious trails...fast and flowy to lead into the finish.  However, almost nothing technical, which will be good for newer riders, who may be trying a race for the first time....and probably better for me...less chance to hurt myself.




So, we only did one lap of the course...then opted to ride some of the more challenging trails to get in a good 2.5 hours or so...

Then on the way back to the campers...we stopped at the Simcoe trail head again....and rode one of the newly cut Simcoe trails for another hour or so...

Then more recovery...and cheering for the Roughriders who played (and lost) Saturday...






We certainly ate well once again...this time vegan hotdogs (try them...they're great!!), and tamales from 50 Pesos (a Burlington company that makes great homemade latin american food!).







I know, I know...not exactly Newfie food!  What we had was great but I was kind of expecting something more like Brewis and toast...






Ah well, it was all good.  At least this night was a little more quiet.  None of Steve's friends showed up this time...not even this happy Newfie couple...






So another good nights sleep...and this time I used my native skills in the morning to get the crows and bluejays to make enough noise to get Steve up early enough to get in a couple hour road/gravel recovery ride on our CX bikes before we had to clear out of the camp ground.

On the ride out we ran into CoachRob...quite the coincidence.  He was driving Gunnar to some 'Welcome to team Canada, here is your $MM sponsorship cheque' photo shoot, or some such thing.  Then we ran into Lisa (CoachRob's 'boss')...quite the coincidence.  Then wouldn't you know it...on the ride back we passed the Simcoe trailhead and there was Meredith!!  Coincidence????  Hmmmm...







Haha...as Lois says...I wish!

Anyways...Sunday I eventually made it back home...maybe too early??





No...not really...


Human...you are home...about time!




Ya...we missed Pappy...


Sorry for the bad picture...but ApexTed wasn't at my house...or was he???

Anyways...once home I registered as Solo Male for the race.  Even though there are currently (as of Tuesday morning) only two Solo Singlespeeders signed up for the race.  However, one of them is dskunk...who, barring a mechanical or bad luck will be on the podium.  (He just completed the Tour Divide in 18 days last month!!)  Maybe he will be tired....but I doubt it.

The Solo Male categories for the race this year is huge!!  So many entrants!!  Some who usually solo, and some who, I think, may be trying it for the first time.  Should make for some friendly (ish...) rivalries.  Blaze is not racing...he just finished some crazy 4 day long sailing race (on a boat...not a bike...).

serious has not yet registered for the race...what are you going to do, sir???

Anyways...next post...Thursday...let's see what's what...till then I will be doggin it...





Stay posted!


Thursday 14 July 2016

A Couple of Steps Back

So on Tuesday I posted about a couple of long training rides I did...including scouting out DanOfSubstance's 100 km option from his upcoming Eager Beaver 2.0 100 mile gravel grinder.

However, there was a race last weekend that I did not attend.  It was the OCup #5 held at Albion Hills Conservation Area (Organized by Superfly Racing).  However, this guy did attend, raced and killed it!  Grant SonOfSeth, came in 2nd in the U17 Cadet Sport Men category!!



Well done Grant!  Getting on the podium at an OCup is quite an accomplishment...don't let dad take the credit, eh!

There were a kazzillion racers out for this Ocup.  Albion is a popular venue...as it is one of the closer ones to the GTA...and it is typically not so technical.

Then on Tuesday I caught a ride with Blaze to the Kelso weekly race series.  I didn't race...I just went to watch, and cheer on the several friends who did race.  Blaze, Martin, JeffS killin it on his fatbike!!  Raf on his fatbike.  Jody actually broke his fatbike at this race...




Nasty!!  On the lookout for a new fork!

Actually there were a kazillion racers at this race too.  This has become a major popular race series!

I used to race in this series...but haven't since 2013...when I crashed during the race resulting in this...





At first, I thought that it was just a bruise...and kept riding/racing for 2-3 weeks.





But it got infected, and swole up like a giant (seriously huge) zit.  I finally decided I should go see the doctor...and found out I had a 4 inch tear in my quad (vastus lateralus).  The wound eventually burst, and left a quarter sized hole (nickel, quarter, looney....something like that...) in my hip...which the doctor/nurses used to pack the wound with medicated bandages to get it to heal.  Took a couple of weeks (or 3 or 4) off the bike, for it to heal proper.  I won't include all the gory pics here...







Well maybe just this one...







OK...that isn't really me...(in case you are too young to know....that is from the original Alien movie...)

Actually, the entire story and pics of the injury are all documented in this blog series from 2013 if you are really bored and want to check back there.  They are here and here....and some in between...

Anyways...enough living in the past...




Actually...mine should look more like this....






Anyways...I will race the Kelso series again sometime....when the packed race schedule allows.  I also like the Albion Wednesday race series organized by Superfly racing.  Lot's of options!

For now...looking forward to the Summer 8 Hour race to be held at Hardwood, on the 23rd of July.  In fact, I am dragging NewfieSteve up to Hardwood to pre ride the course this Saturday (and some weekend camping...and ride Copeland and maybe Simcoe too.)  I have heard alot of good things about the Simcoe trails...I would like to check them out.  May be worthy of obtaining a membership.

So, if you are so bored from reading this post, you want to come to Hardwood and area to ride...we will be there!

Until then...

Stay posted!