March

Well sometimes we have good intentions.  I did.  I wanted to keep updating my blog for my thousands of fans but did not.  But here I go again.

This weekend marked the return to riding, for me.  The sun is starting to have that power that says hey it's safe to be outside now.  I decided to rip off a 2 hr xc ride on Friday, it hurt.  My body had forgotten how to handle that kind of thing so by the end of it all I was pretty tired.  Also the trails are not the greatest this year.  With the big thaw we had in January and subsequent freeze and additional snow the single track is not worked in very well and has a washboard feel when they are.  So it is not as fun as it has been in years past.  Today's ride was better I was able to go for longer and I felt better at the end.  Here is to March going out like a lamb so that we can get onto more pressing matters like riding on dirt and racing our faces off.

Well it has been a while

Yup some time has passed since the summer; a few months in fact.  Now I set with with cross season behind me and thinking about what the new year might bring.  

Over the last few years I have gone through a cycle that works something like this.  When school starts I start to loose focus of bike racing.  I still enjoy riding and cross  comes at just the right time.  This year I thought I might be a little more into cross because nationals were here but I just did not have the snap that I thought I would so I did not hold high hopes for the big race.  Having said that I do feel that I did peak for that event, albeit a short peak that was not very high but I feel I had my best race of the season that day. 

Now getting back to that cycle I was talking about.  So september comes around and I notice myself shifting from racing and riding to learning and practicing more woodworking.  This continues into the spring when I then get the racing itch again.  I enjoy this because it gives me a break and I seem to return to each activity with renewed vigor.  I'm sure that this spring will be no different due to the fact that HARDCORE is celebrating it's 20th year and I am getting a new bike(Turner X, my first boutique bike). 

 

So right now instead of thinking about riding in Jasper or racing in Canmore I am thinking about how to cut mortises and tennons.

Day 7 & 8 Canmore

Arrived in Canmore Thursday evening.  Andre and Karen showed up round 11.  We all were tired from driving so we hit the hay.

Up on Friday to pre-ride the course and sign on.  The layout was similar to last years course.  Probably on of the best race courses I have ever ridden.  There is lots of climbing, fast descending and a few technical spots to keep you honest.  I felt good on the pre-ride and took my time on the descents so that I got a good idea of what line to take during the race.  I almost had a mondo crash on one of the technical descents but somehow managed to pull out of the high speed nose wheely that I had gotten into after going over a bit of a root jump.  

After pre ride we just laid low around the hotel and prepared for the next days events.

Saturday morning came in with a blue sky and slight breeze, perfect for racing in the Rockies. Steve and I rode up to the course and got ready as best we could.  

The whistle blew and we were off.  To start we headed off through a flat section and the began to climb.  I felt good so I went hard and got to the front and ended up staying there for the whole first lap, however Niclas, Devin and Steve were hot on my heels.  Going into lap 2 Niclas started to pull away from me on the climbs.  I never did see him again after that.  Legs were feeling good the second time up Georgetown( a significant climb about 2km from the finish).  So I pushed a little and managed to stay in second.  I knew that Steve and Devin would be charging hard so I did all I could on the descents and put a little extra effort on Georgetown and onto the finish.  So I ended up second which I am happy with.  Steve pulled in behind Devin for the 4th spot.  Mark raced as well but did not have his best day.  Here are the full results.

I can't say enough good things about the Ziggy Knarley course, it is a rip roarin good time. 

We partied a bit that eve and then hit the hay cause in the am it was back to E-town.

Day 6 & 7 The Pass

Well after the Seven summits trail we headed to Christine and Troy's.  A relaxing day was spent on Wednesday cleaning bikes, working on forks and relaxing.  A BBQ for dinner and of to bed. Not much to talk about really.

On Thursday Steve, Troy and I headed to Fernie to sample some of the sweet single track.  It was my first time riding in Fernie so I had to do my damdest to stay on Steve's wheel.  First we climbed up a trail called Cemetery Bypass and then sidewinder then we went on Kids Stuff to Slitting Bears and onto deadfall.  Next we headed across the river and rode up Fat Bastard and Mushroomhead  and then down Dem Bones.  Dem Bones was really fun, it had a real good flow and I let go of the brakes for a bit;)

Back to The Pass, pack up and head out.

We drove the Hwy 20 to 541 and then Hwy 40 and we finished up with the Spray Lakes road were we saw a Moose!

This was the first time I had driven these roads, it is a beautiful drive.  There are huge ranchlands, rolling prairie, foot hills, and you get real close to the mountains.

Tomorrow we are going to pre ride the course and enjoy Canmore a bit.

Day 5 The Seven Summits Trail

The Seven Summits

Well today was the day that we tackled the Seven Summits trail(link to article here).  Since we were going to head to Troy and Christine’s that night we had to get an early start.  After brecky and some trail research we headed off.  A short drive up and out of Rossland got us to the trail head.  Right away I knew we would be in for a treat.  The trail stars out as a buff single track cut beautifully into the earth.  The first part of the trail was a steady climb to a logging road, then on the road for a short bit the back into the trees .  Now the real fun started.  The climbing was awesome, good grades and great trail and it continued for 45 mins!  We took a break just before the hight point of the trail.  The next bit was a mix of climbing, walking over snow banks and short descents.  Once we rode along the ridge for a bit we began the first real long descent of the day.  Lots of rocks and medium drops made you concentrate 100% or else.  Next came some more climbing then some more descending.  Each time the descending got longer until finally we hit a meadow ridge and a super fast false descent onto a logging road.  The seven summits had been ridden.  We then did the Dewdny trail for a some more down, down, down until we popped out at the highway just after seeing a bear.  A 5 km up, up, up back to the hotel and we were done.

Words don’t do this trail justice, you simply have to ride of hike it to appreciate how well it was designed and built. 

A few stats from the day

Vertical feet climbing: 4800 ft

KMs: 44 km

Time: 4hrs 30 min

Bears: 1

Fun Factor:10/10

Here are the details that I left out 

Day 4 Kamloops to Rossland

Two words sum up today: Dri-Ving.  We headed out from the loops, after another delicious visit to Hello Toast, around 10 ish.  The drive south and west was neat, lots of beautiful scenery.  When we hit Penticton we stopped for lunch at some pirate joint, it was OK.  The temp was still HOT and only seemed to get hotter as we headed south.  After we left Osoyoos and climbed into the mountains the whole landscape changed from vineyards and orchards to large trees and big forests. 

After a quick stop at Christina Lake to refresh we made the final push to Rossland.  Arrived, drove around the town for a bit looking for the hotel, only to realize that we passed it on the way into town.  Then Mother Nature treated us to a light show.  Off to bed, big day tomorrow.

Day 3 Kamloops-Race The Ranch

So today was race day. Since we are staying so close to the course and we didn't start until 11:30 we had a good night sleep and a relaxing morning. Arrived at the course, sun was blazing, got ready, warmed up and away we went.
The start was an uphill double track for a bit then it narrowed for the final climb to the table top. On the top there was no shade so no escape from the heat. At the start I picked the wrong guy to line up behind and had to do a little zig zaging to get into the top 4. Once we we on the top the group thinned out, Steve was in third and I was in fourth. The rest of the lap continued this way but on the second lap we both moved up a spot. The Guy in first was ahead by about a minute thirty.

We were both riding well and I did not want to over do it in the heat( it was about 32 )so I keep a steady pace. Laps 3 and 4 were the same but each one felt a bit better as I got used to the course a bit more, the sand was like flour in some spots and the downhill parts had become really rutted.

On the last lap about 3/4 of the way through I saw a guy off the trail looking in rough shape. He had paramedics tending to him and as I got closer I realized that it was the guy who had been leading the whole race. Now we were one and two. Once I rolled across the finish line I headed for the tent and proceeded to dump 2 bottles of water on my noodle, which at this point was al dente.

I have to give a huge thanks to Tracy and Pepper who gave us bottles twice a lap and kept us cool. I will never forget the words "Do you want a dump?"

All in all a good day. Tomorrow we head to Rossalnd, with a few lake stops on the way.