Capital Punishment 100km MTB

Earlier this year when I locked in my entry for Capital Punishment, I got a little excited.  My focus for the last two years has been more towards the ultra-endurance end of the spectrum, so to be able to design my training and racing around this 4-5 hour discipline made for a welcome change.  Also as CapPun was going to be the first round of the Maverick Marathon series, it was pretty much a guarantee the race would be very well attended. by a strong field.

My excitement turned to a little anxiety when the start waves were published and I was relegated to Wave 2.  To be honest I probably didn't rate myself as a Wave 1 rider, but looking down the list all my regular sparring partners were in Wave 1, so I had to accept a race plan of chasing very hard all day.  Local legend Grantley Butterfield, promptly gave me a dose of HTFU and encouraged me to start in Wave 1 and so it was on a glorious mild Autumn morning that I fronted up like the badgeless guy with the clipboard, albeit it in the "wrong" wave but who was going to stop me?  That being said I did sit at the back of the wave so as not to raise too many eyebrows and hoped that the timing mats would take care of my sneaky self promotion.

Warming up in the dark is always fun and before long we were charging up the the fireroad.  I didn't have a great position so all I could do at this stage was ride at a comfortable pace and wait for the gaps to open up.  The other big change for me was the resurrection of the Ellsworth Enlightenment 29er carbon hardtail, fresh with a 1x10 setup.  This bike has been on the shelf for a couple of years due to a non-reliable drivetrain but with some input from Jordan and Camo at Ride in Workshop and a few parts at mate's rates from Mike Blewitt Marathon MTB, this bike was now race ready again.  And didn't it go hard.  I loved riding it again, so agile and light and compliant.  Don't get me wrong, I've had some great races on my alloy Giant Anthems, but there is nothing quite like riding a carbon hardtail on the sweetest single track around.

And we're off, with Brett Bellchambers preferring to give the field a headstart.  We rode most of the race together, errr that is he dropped me on the climbs and then I'd catch up on the flats again.

At around the 30km mark I'd had a great run with Brook Nelson, I'd never met him before but we were riding well together and helping each other through the single track. We caught a big group including Garry James and Paul Morgan.  I know that is disgraceful attempt at blog name dropping, but it was a great sign to me that I was travelling pretty well even if they did drop me on the very next pinch.  I just sat on Garry's wheel for a time, feeling content as an anonymous wheel at the back of the bunch rather than announcing my presence only to wave bye bye in the very near future.

Focussing on smooth and flow-ful riding, looking for the millimetre perfect line on some hand made single track 

The rest of the first section was a perfect mix of fireroad and dusty dry schlerophyll eucalypt forest.  I loved the course, last time I rode the race was in 2011 and endured the endless grassy airport fairways.  It was so good to ride this alternative route and made for some really enjoyable riding and with one little pinch over Majura, we crossed the mats for a welcome breather.  The feed station was a great place to have a chat, refuel and pick a bunch to roll out with.  Tristan White and Wayne Dickinson were there so I followed them out and meandered our way up to Black Mountain for the restart.  It's a strange phenomenon once you reach the restart.  Everyone stops, noone wanting to be the first over the mat for fear of being a marked man and giving up precious seconds at the finish, but you cant stand there all day, so just as I rolled out, Steve Henry and Rob Weiser came through, you beauty! A couple of mates I know who will work hard as a group.  The track around Black Mountain was nice and sketchy just to keep everyone on their toes and there were a number of punctures through this section. After the legs warmed up again I felt OK, but a few of the hills around the Arboretum soon started to take their toll and in the headwind to Stromlo I dropped a wheel.  At this stage, I was really starting to tire but with just 15km and one climb to go I put everything I had left into the pedals and finished with a shredding descent off Stromlo.

Great shot with Telstra Tower in the background, I'm really hurting on the front and only smiling for the camera

Well done to Matt Rizzuto and Minter Barnard, tearing the Master's field to pieces to take 1st and 2nd with a 15 min gap to Wayne Dickinson in 3rd and a further 5 minutes covering the next 5 places. For me, I beat my time from 2011 by 35 mins so I was very happy with my 6th place in Masters and 44th overall.  Thanks again to the Butterfields for putting me up Friday night.  You always make me feel at home!  You martians (Canberra locals) have it made; fancy having a 5 minute roll home to shower and recover after a 100km MTB race?
The final pleasure after a great ride with mates on the best trails was the vibe at the finish enjoying a beer and some good food in the sun.  That's why we race

Keep Riding
Mike

Quick Update

It's been a busy time of year with the Scott, the Spring Cycle and another round of the STM series racing by so here is a quick update on what's been happening.
The Scott
For a throw together team, we had an absolute blast and of course the icing on the cake was winning the Masters Mixed 4 category. One morning at coffee Sandy mentioned he had a team entry and no team, so I was in. Next up was Brad T, who had never done a 24 hour and was keen to get amongst it. Finding a willing and available female was a little harder, but a post on Silent Revolution did the trick and before long we had a few choices and Fiona got the nod. The lead up was hilarious, first Sandy had done some damage to his back at the TORC skills session. Picture this, a 60 something year old bloke turns up at the doctors and says "I hurt my back when I fell off my bike trying to do a wheelie". But old Sandy is as tough as old boot leather and rode like the hard a**e he is. Fiona couldn't decide what would slow her down more; the mysterious virus or the 8 stitches in her shin from a recent OTB. I have to say Fiona won the prize from most valuable team member, first for braving the rain which seemed to arrive exactly on time for Fiona to start another lap, but also for providing the lovely marquee heater and then the post race beers, boy did that taste good! The pre-race strategy was simple, have fun and dont hurt yourself, but secretly I thought we had a pretty good shot.

I got the to do the run start lap and by the time I reached the bike it felt like I had lifted both big toe nails. The track was good and it was a hoot heading up the trunk trail in a huge train, until we caught some of the younger and less serious solo riders. Not their fault but perhaps a note to the organisers to rethink the start order. The rain and mud was a bummer but sometimes that's just the way it is. I was lucky to do a Blue lap as the sun rose and the view from the top of Willo Link was something I will never forget. My last two laps in the morning were a blast as the sun slowly dried out the quagmire and best of all, Tom, my 14yo son in his first 24 had a ball, he'll be back!

I have to say the commentary and giveaways could have been done alot better. The idea of randomly distributing $1000's of dollars of valuable and kindly donated kit from generous sponsors to whoever was proud or brash enough to make up a story that appealed to the compere's idea of entertainment was frankly pitiful and the throwing of kit off the pavillion at the presentation to a bunch of screaming kids while the majority got cooked in the hot sun was undignified and amateur. For all the effort we went to and for winning our category we got a jersey we'll probably never wear. Whereas some random walking away with a coupla hundred dollars worth of kit just doesnt seem fair. It would have been nice to see this stuff distributed in the race bags rather than thrown randomly to the masses, oh well there's my rant, sorry folks now back to regular programming.

Picture thanks to Sportograf "bestof"

On the Podium, competition vanquished, but where is the lovely Fiona?

The Spring Cycle
A great fun day, usually I am crawling in the masses of every shape and size of bike and rider imaginable, this time Tom and I were fortunate to be invited to ride in the lead bunch. By the time we hit the bridge, the bunch had departed and we were left riding together through the city like we were the only two people on the road. We soon linked up with a bunch that included one Opposition leader Mr Tony Abbott and no matter which side of politics you come from it is always a hoot to ride with someone like that and be able to offer a wheel on some of the steeper bergs. Riding home Tom was beat but did incredibly well to keep up with the bunch and clock 100 k's for the day; his biggest ride to date.

After a feed and a change of kit I returned to Homebush for the crit run by LACC. The less details given here the better, as I pretty much sucked at this form of racing, but atleast I gave it a go and it is something I would love to get better at. I then took a slow ride home to clock 150km for the day. Rolling back through Eastwood late in the afternoon, the air was thick and warm after the threatened southerly buster dissipated was pure bliss.

STM Round 5 Rydal
I'd already had a big week, with lot's going on at home and work. What a blessing it was to stay with Mum and Dad in the mountains the night before to be fed and get an early night. I looked dog tired and hoped 9 hours sleep would recharge the batteries sufficiently to get through the 8 hours of punishment awaiting.
Off the start I was flying and as usual marked Jase and Garry who were dog fighting. In the first four laps I saw 4 good riders go down from momentary loss of focus. It was clear this track would be challenging. Interestingly I was noticing it was 26" riders struggling for traction while those on the circus wheels cruised a little more smoothly, but as the day wore on, the course started to get pretty cut up and every corner was becoming an exercise in playing chicken.
The weather also stuffed us up a bit, I had mixed my bottles a tad diluted expecting some warmer temperatures from the start, but it stayed cool for atleast 4 hours, the fluids weren't going in and so neither were the carbs. I managed to make up for the debt with some food, but many struggled late in the day as the fuel tank started to splutter.
On lap 9, I had a massive off. Having just enjoyed an awesome tow up the fireroad courtesy of a Mitch from Stevens team, I let him go and settled in for the rock garden when my front wheel caught an edge and I was ejected over the bars before I knew what happened, I was heading chest first for a stump that looked like it might impale me. Somehow I managed to dive to the side, but landed very heavy on my side. The reason I tell this is Mitch actually stopped and ran back the 20m to check I was OK. What a gentleman! thanks Mitch
No permanent damage done but it slowed me down a bit for the rest of the race as I went in a little more tentative.
The day after, my arms, hands and shoulders hurt the most as well as the hip I used to break my fall, so demanding was this course.
Late in the afternoon my lap times started to dawdle but I just focussed on keeping it smooth through the corners and keeping an eye out for Phil Welch who I figured wouldnt be far away. As it turned out Trent Moore was chasing hard and got to within 7 minutes to take 4th. Garry won again :( but the gap to me was just over 10 mins, not bad after 16 laps. Jase pulled out an awesome effort to take 2nd and get close to Garry. He sure can chase hard. Mid race I had a 30 second buffer, but he came back hard and just kept motoring. (A mistake in the entry process saw him grouped in the open males instead of masters and it wasn't discovered until after the cutoff). The other pertinent point is last year I broke my hand here. This year going the other way I still wasn't having any heroics and any doubles that came up I just playing it safe and mono-ed over them. That is until the camera crew camped by the biggest scariest jump on course and willed riders to boost it. Nothing for it but give it some air and what fun it was. For the last few laps I looked forward to that jump every time.
For a course so flat I have never felt so fatigued. The constant braking, accelerating and manoeuvering the bike takes it's toll and even though your heart never really goes ballistic, the course is a real test.
Thanks to everyone out there on the day and those cheering at home. I felt truly blessed to be enjoying such a great sport amongst so many friends and got to take home a prize as a bonus.

It's been by far the best year of my short cycling "career" with not only lot's of good results, but many many great people who have spurred me on and become very good friends. One more race for the year at Awaba, it's going to be a celebration of a huge year, see you there

Keep riding
Mike

PS Huge thanks to my buddy Brad T who generously lent me his ENVE carbon wheels. a light, stiff wheel is just what the doctor ordered for this course and these puppies were awesome. Not quite sure I can justify the price tag, but it was a thrill ride probably the best wheels currently on the market. Thanks mate, I owe you.

The Slugfest

Two weeks ago my fitness was pretty much as good as it get's, everything was on track for a recovery week to freshen up before the race and then I got hit with a cold, one of those little bugs that just leaves you whimpering in a fog of lethargy. Since then it's just been a case of trying to find some energy and right up until Saturday afternoon I was still feeling less than 100% and hoping a good sleep would see me right to race.

The drive down early Sunday morning was great and I scored a nice little shady place for a pit stop at the 2km mark on the course near transition and only metres from the car. The rider briefing was the funniest I have ever seen, but it was clear and informative with a brilliant demo of passing technique. I'm kinda chuffed to know that my bad luck from last round might have contributed to the new revised rider briefing. Well done Jo. Sure enough on a course where passing opportunities were few and far between, riders were showing the best of manners and I didnt see a problem all day.

The start was pretty sedate and I was happy to grad hold of JMac's wheel up the first climb and just tap away to find our place in the mad dash for single track. As the weather warms up, these races now extend for one extra hour of punishment and it soon became clear that this would be a battle of tactics and pacing.

Photo thanks to Dave Bateman from the STM round at Coondoo

The track had a bit of everything, a bit of flow, some techy bits, some pinchy climbs. I guess it reminded me of Appin with the all the rocks, but the most challenging segment came at around the halfway mark with a new section of trail that was very rough and tight and almost every corner off camber. It took every bit of skill and focus to keep it smooth through here and I have to say I wont be disappointed if I never ride that trail again. That being said, if the track fairies consolidate some of the rutts on corners into berms, add a few solid ramps (rather than loose rocks at the bottom of drops offs), and maybe a boardwalk or a small bridge over the creek crossings, this could be a pretty cool race track. The first descent was a ripper and I found on the Giant Anthem 29er I could tear into the sketchy ravine with confidence, just steer and hang on!

I think it was on the first lap as a group of us tackled a steep little pinch, I was second wheel when suddenly JMac came to an abrupt halt and I figured he'd dropped a chain or something, I slowed a little at the top to see if he was able to get going again but there was no sign so on I went. After just one lap it was obvious that this would be a war of attrition on both (wo)man and machine so I took the decision to enjoy the day, forget the clock, and just treat it like a full day's riding. This worked really well for a few hours, the time seemed to pass by effortlessly. The temperature began to soar and those in transition were getting concerned how dirty I was, "What happened, you OK?" a few called. It was just the combination of dry dusty trails and sweat that we all ended up looking like coal miners by the end of the day. Even today my eyes still look like someone decorated me with the eye liner on the weekend. On the trip home I stopped for fuel and some high stress chick was arguing with the shop attendant over the $2 ATM charge. I chimed in and told her "She'd made her point but wasn't going to win so move on and stop holding us all up!". She took one look at my filthy dusty face as I gave her a steely gaze. I must have looked a fright as she moved straight on and out of the shop.

The hours ticked by and every now and again I'd check back and no sign of my competing masters, then on lap 6, a buzzing free wheel came racing up behind me, Jase calls "Back in the Black! It's taken me 2 hours to catch up" and onto his wheel I jumped, rudely awakened from my social ride! It felt great to be riding for each other taking turns on the front, not talking much, happy in our own thoughts and focussing on keeping it smooth. Jase mentioned there is atleast one rider between us and leader Garry J so the goal is to stalk him down and sure enough we catch sight of Peter on lap 8. He looks like he is struggling and we whizz by but he doesnt respond so it's now a battle for 2nd or so we think! Turns out mystery man Chris T has made a comeback after Kowen and this time he means business. This guy looks the good's, basically the replica of a very strong bean pole!

At some point I pull away from Jase and the noisy freewheel goes quiet as the gap widens and I figure the energy he used to catch me earlier in the day might have taken it's toll, let's see what happens!

I started to do some sums in my head and struggle to divide 37 mins into 3.5 hours, but at some staged figured at this pace I had 5 laps to go (probably 6 but what's another lap between friends!). As the laps continued to mount, it got harder to ignore the clock, but I was having fun with my mind, shouting in my head "3 MORE LAPS TO GO" then 2, then 1, then none.....maybe. Crossing the line to start my last lap, the race clock said 7:15, so I thought I could ease off the gas a bit and just keep an eye on any chasers. I was super-sensitive to any noisy freewheel after JMac caught me on Lap 6, but the track remained quiet and I kept rolling to get back to transition at 7:56. OK now what to do, how far back was Jase? I resolved to keep rolling and asked Kylie if she could keep an eye out for any chasers and let me now when I got back to the 2km mark that came near transition. I switched off and rolled nice an easy just to get a little recovery in, but my stomach was not playing nice, time for a nature stop and keep an eye on that track, still nothing! OK I must be safe! I rolled back to my transition to find two cars had parked completely blocking access to my pit stop (nice one guys!) the look on Kylie's face said it all. Jase didn't make it but Phil has snuck in. You've got to go again to hold 3rd. OK no probs, I actually I feel OK after taking a pee and I still have a gel and a little Hammer Heed in the bottle, let's finish this. I love how you can fool your mind into thinking it's the last lap when deep down you know you've got one more.

Now Phil also has a pretty noisy free wheel, so I set a steady pace all the while looking back for the tell tale jersey but it never appeared and I was stoked to finish third. Phil rolled in just a couple of minutes later.
The following chart shows just what an arm wrestle this race was with 4 riders fighting it out for 3rd place. Chris and Garry well clear of the bunch.

All in all a really challenging and enjoyable event, thanks to TMC for your continued support. With two rounds to go the competition for series points is getting tight.

Keep Riding
Mike

Food wise
12 Hammer gels (3 with caffiene)
1 TORC bar
4 x 800ml bidon Hammer Heed (2.5 scoops)
2 x 600ml bidon Endura Optimiser
2 bananas

http://app.strava.com/rides/22118326