Kirrawak State Forest Race Report

Moving a little further afield than in previous years, Chocolate Foot held their first round for 2014 in Taree last Sunday.  Having heard how sweet these trails were from last year, I made sure this one was firmly locked in the calendar well in advance.  Marking the first round of the premier endurance MTB series known as the Finish Line Single Track Mind Series, riders converged from up and down the eastern seaboard for what boils down to the most fun you can have in the dirt on two wheels.

Saturday night turned into something of a cross between a treasure hunt and the great race, in an attempt to find pre-race nutrition.  On the plus side we got to see the sights of Taree at night, and there were plenty of laughs and raised eyebrows amongst our steely MTB foursome of Chops, Phil, Tim and I.  As in all good boys nights out, we ended up playing pool and proving we should stick to cycling, when Tim pulled out the most amazing "single track" trick shot, rolling the cue ball the full length on top of the cushion that would have challenged the great Eddie Charlton.

Located just outside the sleepy country town of Taree, the park presents as a gorgeous leafy green pocket of eucalypt forest and the local club (Manning Great Lakes Tip Riders) take great pride in their trail network.  Ripping around for my first lap, I was struck at how smooth the trails were and also how perfectly radiused the many windy corners were.  This was indeed a track built with Flow and Fun in mind that would reward those who ride smooth and subscribe to the theory, slow is fast.  It even had white markings for obstacles, something that reminded me of early Saturday morning soccer matches eons ago.

Brad Tillack has been gradually building capacity and experience in this series over the last couple of years and has now been rewarded with his very own category, "Super Masters" where he can draw his sword against the many other 50+ warriors.  I’m a confirmed addict to this style of racing (first entering in 2007) and ended up causing extra froth in the coffee cup when the news got around; I'd not be riding solo, yes I finally found a friend (long time rival and good mate Phil Welch) prepared to team up with me and Masters (40-50yo) pairs would be my battleground.

The start was pretty civilised, these races tend to start with a long stretch of slightly uphill fireroad to sort the wheat from the chaff, and while there is many a boyracer who like to throw derision in the direction of those who potentially self-seed a row or two higher than their legs can deliver, it all get's sorted out in the mad rush for single track.

I had the first lap and enjoyed the feeling of fresh legs knowing I had 30 minutes recovery time at the end of the lap, so I let the horses gallop, there would be no room for pacing today, with atleast two other pairs fancying themselves in the stakes for a podium finish. 

By the middle of the day, the temperature was starting to climb and Brad was having to contend with a couple of issues, like some strange noises from the bike (or was it just his knees?) and a crash just adding to the drama of the race.  As solo riders come in each lap, the dust, drink, gu's, mud (and other unmentionable substances) tend to build up to the point where the rider resembles some creature from the murky depths.  Thanks to the crash, Brad also earned extra style points for the sizeable graze down his elbow and not a little claret flowing.  I was found reclining between laps enjoying some chit chat and a cool drink when Brad came in on red alert.  "Alright buddy you are OK?" I soothed, Brad got centred again, with a drink, some lube for the chain (and knees), and we sent him on his way in 2nd position.  "What's the gap to 3rd?" Brad asked. "You've got heaps of time Brad forget about 3rd, just keep circulating and you've got 2nd in the bag" I replied.  The addition of the SuperMasters category belies the swelling ranks of long time riders who are now still competing beyond the 50 year birthday. Brad completed the same number of laps (14) as the 2nd place getter in the Masters category showing age is no barrier to performance.

For Phil and I, it was a solid hit out with some intensity and some sharpening up of the skills.  Unfortunately the top step wasnt to be, as Trek Racing finished 20 minutes ahead after 15 laps in 7 hours, but there is no shame in coming 2nd to Rich and Darren who have always been extremely talented riders.  Ben and Mark kept the pressure on all day and finished just 10 mins behind Mike and Phil to round out the podium.

Russell Napier also made a cameo appearance in the shorter 4 hour format and finished tired and happy just the way MTB is meant to end.  Thanks to the crew from Chocolate Foot who put on a flawless event and to the sponsors whose generous support make these events just that little more enjoyable, as almost everyone get’s to go home with a little bit of bling for the bike shed.

Giant Anthem, what a great bike for a great track, Rubena on the front and Bontrager on the back is my current setup

Masters Pairs podium complete with Arsenal mascot following their dramatic win of the FA Cup final

Thanks to all the crew at TMC for your support, and hopefully we'll see a few more riders at the next round in Mogo.  Why not make a long weekend of it and join us on the beautiful Eurobodalla coast, you can even bring your roadie if MTB is just too much to ask, but I know TBG has a shiny Trek demo MTB bike just waiting for you to try.

Keep riding

Mike

Rocking and Rolling at Awaba

Have I mentioned racing has been a bit sporadic this year?  I've been racing the "8 hour" series for 5 years now and it is normally the staple of my racing diet.  I love the quality trails, the idea of spending a full day racing and I have made many good friends over the years by attending these events so it is odd that this should be my first "8 hour" for the year.  Of course it couldn't have been a better venue or timing for me, with WEMBO just two weeks away, I planned this to be a solid hit out just to fine tune the nutrition and remind the body a little of what is in store come October 12.
Rocking up to the track it was great to see all the regulars and the Masters field featured all the usual contenders with Peter Selkrig the one notable exception who was racing CX.  Conditions were perfect and on a quick warm up I was happy to find the legs werent too dead after a big week of training.  Macca quipped "you look too fresh" and he was right, sometimes the legs can still surprise, so as we leapt from the start line, I slotted into 1st place in the masters and tapped out a good lap.
For every metre of flow that Awaba has you can count on a metre of technical rocky trail and this time was no exception so I was very happy to be on the Anthem duallie as I floated down some of the bumpier ascents.  After an hour I backed of the pace a touch, as the goal for today was to finish comfortably.  Jason went past first and then a train of riders with Dave and Phil looking very strong along with Matt Clutterham.  OK I thought, 4th is good, no need to dig into the suitcase of courage right now and so the day wore on.
With about 3 hours to go, I caught a glimpse of Matt up the trail and soon caught and passed him, we had a bit of a chat and decided to ride together to maintain our pace.  Matt was comfortably in 5th place in the Opens so we put in 3 good laps with me on the front tapping out my consistent diesel pace.
Coming into transition with 2 laps to go we caught a glimpse of Phil's jersey, he took one look at us and took off like a scalded cat to preserve his lead.  No problem, I feel good, let's see what happens.  Matt commented how hard Phil had countered and we both wondered if he had enough left to stay away.
Coming round for the last lap, the pit guys gave me a split and said 2nd and 3rd were just 30 secs ahead.  2nd and 3rd? Hmmm that means someone is fading.  Time to pin the ears back.  With just 40 mins left to race, my legs were feeling fresh, I'd eaten and drunk well all day, so Matty wished me well and I lit it up.  I caught Dave first on the climb, he was sitting on empty and running on gel fumes.  He kindly waved me past and bid me good luck in catching Phil who was "1 minute up the track".  It was clearly on now and not normally being so competitive, the little voice inside was saying "What are you waiting for? An invitation? Get moving".  I started to see Phil on the switch backs and determined to catch him before salad bowl.  Right on cue, I pulled up beside him at the end of the fireroad but Phil had the line so I tucked in behind him.  Phil's shoulders no seemed like an impassable blockade now but I sat in patient waiting for a chance to pounce.  Sure enough on MurderHorn, Phil lost a little traction and I snuck past at the top, then recovered on the sniggle before putting in a big attack on the fireroad to gap Phil.  To Phil's credit he never sat up and the final margin was just 12 seconds at the finish.
Congrats to Jason who rode strong all day and outclassed the rest of the Masters to take 1st and special thanks to Kylie who always provides neutral support for us guys in the interests of close racing.  It is a true testament to the comeraderie in the Masters field that we race each other hard and fair and then enjoy the banter and a cold drink together when it's all over happy for each other no matter the result.
Thanks again Chocolate Foot and HMBA for an awesome event, to Turramurra Cyclery who continue to support me in so many ways and my family who have to put up with a grinning, dirty, smelly man coming home late Sunday afternoon gushing all about his big day out.  Next weekend it's the Scott where I will be racing with my social mixed masters team just chilling and dialling in the trails of Stromlo then it's the main event for the year, after which I say bring on Summer and the beach!
Keep riding
Mike

Going for Broke

It's been another long interval between updates, and the worst thing is, the longer you leave it, the more you have to tell, but so as not to bore you too much, and let's face it, the only one really that interested in these ramblings is the writer himself, here is a quick update.
- May - Returned from California a bit flat, I mean how do you return to a regular day job after that kind of experience, oh well you just get on with it and thank your creator (and your wife!) for such a privelege.
- June - easy riding
- July - Holiday to the Red Centre, I guess I'll get to publish that post one day.  Return fresh and fired up.  On track for a solid training block in the lead up to WEMBO.
- July 19 - first week of training and I get a little excited going down one of our regular descents which leads to a spectacular washout and my first ride in an ambo.  Broken collarbone and scapula, guess I'm a real cyclist now!
- August - Recovering.  3 weeks later I ditch the sling and 4 weeks I complete a 1 hour road climb feeling good.  After 6 weeks, the shoulder still needs more physio but we are back on and I sign up for WEMBO

Which leads to the week of the 26th August.  Back to training "proper" and after a fairly big week, I get a call from a 24 solo brother.  He says
"Hey Mike, how'd you like to come and ride 250km with us on Saturday around the Hunter Valley"

To which I answer

"Love to."

And this brings me to my central question for this post.

"AM I INSANE?"

After reporting this ride, it created quite a stir in the cycling twitter-sphere.  Lot's of pats on the back and incredulous looks, but strangely alot of people questioning my mental stability!!  I know, I know it's all in a bit of fun, and I am a 45 year old male ripe for a middle age crisis, but it does perplex me that our society links something that's a bit different to "that's crazy"

Firstly 313km is a very long way to ride in anyone's books and we ended up achieving a pretty good avg speed, but you know I actually feel incredibly liberated by such a ride, and when you think about it, riding for a day with a few stops to take on water and food isn't really that crazy, is it?

The thing is you see so much more on a bike, and if you ride you know what I am talking about.  Highlights that come to mind include:
- the bellbirds down Emily Rd
- the lady in the cafe who had cold water for us and didnt expect us to buy anything
- ah yes the smells of the country
- the comeraderie that comes from riding with two of your best mates and the relief when you fall into a nice bunch ride for an hour or so and then share the world's best egg and bacon roll + coffee in the beer garden behind the Royal Oak Hotel, Cessnock.  That's GOLD!
- The dirty big mine on Putty Rd outside Singleton, gold of a different kind.  My goodness that is a bloody big hole in the ground.
- the viticulturalist tending his vines just outside Broke.
- The friendly waves you get from other road users and even the screaming cyclopaths (similar to a psychopath, but only vents their fury at cyclists)
- the sun on your back and the wind in your face
- the faint mist from the irrigation sprinklers as we road through farmland
- the one maggie swooping us (yes only one swooper in 300km!!)
- running into an old cycling mate near Wollemi (he was out for a lazy 140k, slacker!)
- waking up for your club ride the next morning and finding you can actually still push the pedals at a pretty fair rate
- the views through Polkolbin.

It's a funny old world and I wouldnt want to do it every weekend, but thanks to Pete and Phil for an awesome day out I will never forget.

Keep riding
Mike

#ATOC Day 8....a gorgeous ride and some sight seeing in the city

So...
rule #1 - never call it SanFran, it's just the city and what a gorgeous city it is!

For our last stage, we planned to get out ahead of the Peloton and get into Santa Rosa in time.  We started with coffee at the Fairfax Coffee Roastery, Fairfax is held up as the birthplace of Mountain Biking with Gary Fisher starting out in this gorgeous little village.  The coffee was great and I have been surprised that despite the dish water generally on offer at the hotels, the US does have it’s share of proper coffee houses and they do it really well.

Once again the Bonk Breaker Boys/Helen’s Masters Team joined our group.  We were tapping along at a steady pace, along a beautiful road to Reyes Point; a tranquil area with just a few boats houses on the waterline.  Suddenly the call came that with 40km to go, the Peloton were catching us.  In a split second our pace lifted and we could almost feel the chase breathing down our necks

After another 20km of sustained effort I “attacked off the back” of the last four riders and was left to finish the ride TT style which works for me.  I loved riding  through the streets of Santa Rosa with the crowd cheering me on.

So this is pretty much it, our dream of living the life of a pro cyclist is almost over and it has been an absolute blast.  Mind you it’s not all  beer and skittles.

From long days in the saddle when you just want to fall off the bike and sleep, to times when you cant remember your hotel room number, you look in the mirror and think “Boy, I don’t look too great!”, the daily chores like washing your kit in the bathroom sink and trying to keep your bike running smoothly. And of course being away from home, I miss my kids and Sarah dearly and perhaps even the routine of a day job and being home for regular dinner. We’ve been staying at the Hampton Inn hotal chain mostly and they have been sensational. I wouldn’t swap this experience for anything, I have been incredibly blessed not only to be a part of this Masters team with great cyclists who are now life long friends but also to give back a little bit of hope and inspiration to those who have had to mortgage their health in the hope of a full recovery from some form of cancer.  I met a lovely couple today, Steve and Cathy.  So similar to us and Cathy has had breast cancer recently, but has been 6 months cancer free.  I hope and pray she continues in good health.

My facebook page already has all the video and pics from today so check it out

Keep riding

Mike

#ATOC Day 7 .... the Queen Stage

After a much needed rest day while the pro's time trialled, we were ready to get back into the saddle for  the Queen Stage, a 150km stage with 3 climbs (all with some 16% ramps) culminating in a 20km climb to the summit of Mt Diablo.  This climb is a beauty, a real European style climb with ramps and corners and flats.  At about half way up you look left and think "Really?  All the way up there?" It's a long way.  I was stoked with my form up the climb and the mountain was littered with cyclists and cycling fans.  The last 200m is the toughest and the entry lane to the finish line was cram packed with fans.  Being on the Amgen team, I was allowed through the final check to complete the climb and the fans were screaming at me at I put every last calorie of energy into the summit.  What an amazing experience! My only regret is I had the GoPro on the wrong setting so I missed some amazing footage of the fans, but those few minutes will live in my memory for years to come.
the day ended with a lovely family style meal with Malcolm's family in 20 Sycamore St Mill Valley.  It was just a lovely way to celebrate the approaching end of the tour with some great wines from the napa valley and some really goo food.  Thankyou Hill family, you guys are so dear to us.
The ride today centred around the town of Livermore, a beautiful little all American town.

#ATOC Day 5 - tough day at the office

Some more beautiful scenery today as we head north, but the block head wind for the last 75km was very tough and required focus and discipline.  In return the finish was situated in a gorgeous little beachside resort known as Avila Beach.  I woke up feeling very average and decided discretion being the better part of valour, that I would sit out the morning session and see how I felt later. After supporting for the first couple of hours, I was feeling much better and climbed aboard the peloton for the last 100km.  Tonight Janis, Heidi, JR, Paul and I had a wonderful Thai meal together at the Thai Elephant in Atuscadero and I drove a car on the "right" side of the road for the first time. Lot's of fun!
Highlight of the day was being there was Jens Voights inspirational solo attack at 5km from the finish.  What an amazing cyclist he is!
Also thanks to the Bonk Breaker boys who rode with us all day and helped us out with some great tasting bars
Enjoy the Vid

#ATOC Day 5 from Mike Israel on Vimeo.

#ATOC Day 4 - the best day, George turned up

Video here speaks for itself, see if you can spot the pro

#ATOC Day 4 from Mike Israel on Vimeo.

#ATOC Day 3 - Recovery..kind of

After the hell of Palm Springs yesterday, no one voiced any objections to a slight shortening of the ride today.  That being said we still taped out 80 miles with 5,500 feet vertical; do you like how I am using imperial now?  I even think I could safely ride on the roads on my own now without getting killed, it's only taken me a week to get used to being on the right side of the road, heaven help us all when I get home and start driving again!

The team for Day 3 ready to roll

The start in Palm Dale is in the "high desert" at around 1400m elevation and the one distinguishing feature is all the "Joshua Trees".

The Joshua Tree (yeah as in the U2 album)

Today's stage covered some more beautiful scenery with a 40 km gradual descent into Santa Clarita, yes 40km!!!!  It was one of the riding highlights with 5 of us in a train just motoring through this slightly downward sloping canyon.  There is some video below if you arent already bored of seeing guys descending fast on road bikes.

We did the Breakaway from Cancer mile walk up the final straight.  Again we got a little rock star treatment as we mixed with the community of Cancer survivors and supporters.  We also went back to Rob and Jills place for a swim and a cool off.  They have a lovely home in the hills overlooking Santa Clarita.  Rob's magazine Road Bike Action have been a great support to us with nutrition and clothing. Thankyou so much guys, I hope we can host you in Australia one day!

Well the washing is done, roomy Paul is ready, and I have a massage in 20 minutes to try and bring some very tired legs back to life.

Oh yeah, the pros finish was astounding and Sagan took the win by a whisker from our very own Michael Matthews.

The Americans are crazy over Peter Sagan

Keep Riding
Mike

#ATOC Day 2 - a very long day

Another amazing stage in the Tour of California today.  195km with temperatures north of 35 deg, finishing with a 5km climb average 10% at 47 degrees celsius called the “tram line”.  This climb has a wicked reputation with the local cyclists and sure enough it made for an amazing finish to the pro race.  The commentator wasn’t joking when he said it looked like someone had thrown a hand grenade into the bunch.  There were riders all over the place, but kudos to Van Garderen and the Columbian who rode to an inch of their lives, with the Columbian getting over in the end, for a truly inspiring win.  It’s also been awesome to see Cam Meyer riding so well and finishing strong in the lead bunch.

Back to our Masters team, you can see an awful lot of scenery when you ride almost 200 km and you will get a small taste from the pictures below that barely do this landscape justice. 

The first big climb of the day to Idyllwild was 1000m over 20km.  A beautiful climb and we kept it pretty tight.  After short descent, we rode across the mesa and a series of false flats got the heart rate up.  Thankfully Neil looked after us all and kept the pace steady.  The terrain gradually changed from green pine forests to arid desert with vistas so huge your eye could barely take them in and we were still hovering at 1600m elevation.

Support for the day was amazing and in the heat we needed lots of water.  Pete “Coffee Boy” Pattison took to the van after the first climb and looked after Jon and I all day.  Paul also had a ball and was busy keeping us hydrated and covered in water to get atleast some cooling effect from evaporation.  Every time I poured a cold bottle of water over my head was like getting a new lease of life, but in 10 short minutes I would be completely dry as I could feel the salt drying on my skin.  The tan lines are coming along nicely.  JR was also a great help and our drivers Heidi and Janice again did a sterling job.  This is no task for the faint hearted.

Also big kudos to Neil Shirley and Rich Meeker.  Two of the nicest blokes you could hope to meet in cycling and they did most of the work on the front today.  Malcolm rode strong and even though was cramping up the last climb, rode through the pain.  Finally KK was a great metronome for our bunch of 6 today, he kept us together and kept the chat going.

The descent into Palm Desert was one for the books.  The signpost “Beware downhill speed for the next 10 miles” says it all.   And we had already been descending for 15 mins! 

Another amazing ride and the hospitality tent was a Godsend.  The people there each day who have been impacted by Cancer are so excited about us riding for them and are so encouraging.  We now have a two hour drive to our next hotel.  We are all pretty smashed, but looking forward to a shower, dinner and bed.

Big shout out to Skatchlabs for the bottle to get me up tram line, thanks guys, but it would be remiss of me not to mention Cytomax who have powered the whole team the last two days, you guys are legend, I must have necked about 20 bottles today, thankyou

keep riding

mike

ATOC Day 2 from Mike Israel on Vimeo.

#ATOC Day 1

What a day! So many things I want to record here but time is short so here are a few quick thoughts.  We rolled out with about 20 or so riders and I found myself tapping it out on the first climb.  The first goal was to reach the 80km mark in good shape for the big climb of the day; Mt Palomar.  From a cycling point of view it doesn’t get any better.  As we climbed to 5000ft we marveled at the views but knew we needed to keep the fluids up as the temp continued to rise.  Going over the KOM was great as the crowds cheered us for our efforts and the reward was a 20 minute descent on smooth hot mix round perfectly radiused corners.

Riding through the valley the temp soared to over 40deg and water became the name of the game.  The final KOM was a heartbreaker, down to just 4 riders, we swapped off all the way through the valley. By this stage my water was gone.  The climb was by far the steepest hovering between 10-15% and here the crowds urged us on in the heat with water sprays and one lovely lady passing out iced towels.

The heros of the day were our sojeuners, Heidi and Janice. (and Scott)  They knew exactly where to be and with the temp rising, we were going through 1 litre an hour. 

A welcome pit stop came at the top of the last climb as we regrouped for the final 35km into town.  Some of the riders who had gotten a lift to catch up took up the pace with fresher legs and by about 10km to go I was feeling human again having caught up on my hydration.

The roll down to the sprint finish was somber as we thought of the purpose of our cause.  A quick drink and we met up with the Cancer Walk group and we rode at the head of the walk.

Finally we got changed and headed for the hospitality and how good it was to watch the end of the race in luxury comfort while refuelling the body.  The pro finish was a blast, and it was so good to see the break away hold off the sprinters. My first pro race finish and I was tingling at the excitement of the crowd and the main bunch sprinted for third with Sagan prevailing.

Sitting around the pool  with the team now having had a tuna salad for dinner, feeling very relaxed but knowing tomorrow will be a big challenge, as the forecast is for longer and hotter.

Keep riding

Mike

#ATOC Day 1 from Mike Israel on Vimeo.