Every cloud has a Titanium lining

This will probably be my last post for the year, so first up I want to thank you for reading. It is cool seeing folks from all the over the world hitting my blog to see what's happening and I hope in the years to come I can visit a few of your favourite tracks outside downunder.

It's taken a week to gather up the energy to write this post and to be honest I am still not quite sure what I will type. The reason being that the last round of the STM 8 hours series at Awaba turned into a bit of a tragedy, but then again, there is always something good to take away from any time spent whizzing around a beautifully crafted purpose built xc mountain bike trail, and a better venue than Awaba to finish the year on, you couldnt wish for. If I knew my Shakespeare a little better and had the mental agility I might have crafted this post into 3 acts; the first being "The Promise", the second being "The Expedition" and the final I might have titled "The demise of MightyMike", but it's not really that bad, so settle back and let's get into it.

Act 1
The Sunday before had me setting off in the fastest group of 90+ riders for the 190km Wisemans Ferry Gran Fondo, and what a day it was. Perfect conditions, superb support courtesy of Turramurra Cyclery, and an awesome bunch to ride in. The pace was on from the start and the bunch worked like clockwork as we each took our turn on the front and keep the pace well over 35kph. The challenge was to catch the other bunches that had left between 40-60 mins earlier and to finish in 5hr 30 mins. As expected the bunch finally started to splinter on the climb to Mangrove Mountain and while I lost touch with the lead pack of 10 or so riders, I was feeling good considering I had done a good share of the work on the front and gradually picked up (and was picked up by) 4 or 5 similar riders and we worked together to keep our pace up to Peats Ridge. The second food drop was mayhem with many riders electing to ride through and I had to bring my MTB skills into play to hop a few obstacles out back onto the road and join a healthy bunch of 10 riders.
The rest of the way was a battle of attrition as riders came and went, but by Berowra we had a good bunch of 5 and we went as hard as we could all the way back to Turramurra to clock in at 5:20, just 5 mins before the main lead bunch. Huge kudos to Simon M who rode off the front and got back in 5 hours flat, simply awesome. All this boded well for the final 8 hour planned the following weekend.

Act 2
The expedition consisted of leading 12 Knox boys on the annual Year 10 Mt Kosciuszko expedition; comprising 4 nights and 5 days hiking across the highest peaks of the Great Dividing range. I have been fortunate enough to lead on this camp a couple of times and was looking forward to getting away from all the email, social media and mobile phones and just enjoying the great outdoors. The 5:30am start from school was a little tough after the big ride the day before, but the hope was that the week long walk would consolidate the legs without wearing them out too much and leave me fresh for Sunday. Starting out from Guthega, the legs were definitely feeling the exertion from the day before and climbing the track to White's River Hut with the fully laden pack with food for 5 days was quite a challenge. Overall the week was fantastic with perfect weather, a great guide from Land's Edge and a group of young guys who apart from the odd question like "how far have we got to go?" were awesome all week. Getting back to civilisation Friday night, I was a little concerned to feel how weary the legs felt but hoped 48 hours recovery would be enough.

Act 3
So here we are, ready to roll at Awaba and still the legs feel ouch, that feeling you get walking up stairs..you know what I mean? Well it was there and all I could do was hope that with a warm up lap the legs would start to fire. Warm up it did and before long the temp was ready 35 deg in the shade. This spells trouble.
I had a great spot on the grid and rode wheel to wheel with Gary up the firetrail and into the single track with Camo on the my wheel. I kept leaving space for Camo to pass, but for some reason he was happy to sit tight, perhaps that should have told me something. OK so far so good and the laps started to tally up. Before long the temp was pushing 40 and alarm bells started going off in my head, had I gone out too hard? By the 5th lap the engine was really starting to cough and splutter and Jason was steadily creeping up on me. There was the matter of a little crash with my good buddy Anne who in an attempt not to hold me up hit the descent a little too quick, clipped a tree with a handle bar and down we came. Jase saw it all from the back of a train of 6 riders and was good enough to wait and make sure we could all continue but now the wind in my sails had disappeared and pretty soon the wheels really started to fall off, I was dropping bottles and chains left, right and centre and most worrying of all the legs were telling me there was nothing left to give. Jase tapped it out up Camelbak hill and all I could do was wave bye bye. It seemed I had gone into an 8 hour race with only 4 hour legs. Worrying still was the fact that Phil had moved into second and a little voice in the back of my head said "series honours", I knew Phil wasnt far behind me in the series rankings at 4th, it was just possible with a 2nd place finish today he could pip me at the post. After a good rest and lot's of rehydration I decided to get back out and do a couple of more laps just to keep me in some sort of touch, but at lap 8 the legs said enough and I had to sit out to see Phil produce a terrific result and take 3rd in the series by a single point. Heartbreaker.

Sometimes the toughest lessons are the best ones so there is plenty to take away and ponder what might have been, but the real gold came when I stopped thrashing my body into a sweaty dizzy mess and took some time to catch up and really talk with a few of the good friends I have made from this sport. In the end I couldn't have asked for a better day and while the little trophy might have charmed my ego for an instant, this sport has so much more to offer than just what place you come in a race.

Finally I want to thank the guys that made this season one to remember, Garry J, Jason M, Phil W, Peter S and Chris T. The 6 of us have been riding hard against each other all year and every round has been a nailbiting finish (with the exception of Garry who smashed us all!) and all the while our mateship has gotten stronger through the blood sweat and tears that is solo 8 hour racing. One of my favourite sayings is "Iron sharpens Iron" and you guys have made me a better rider.

It has been a fantastic year of riding and racing with good mates new and old. I have no idea what's in store for next year, but right now I am happy to forget about training, get out and ride for pure enjoyment as we wind down for Christmas and celebrate the things that have mattered for all eternity.

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

Oranges and Sunshine

In the movie, a young boy under state care in post WWII England is promised Oranges for breakfast, lot's of sunshine and a horse to ride to school when he is deported to Australia under questionable pretences. What eventuates bears little resemblance to the promise and is a life under constant threat from predators, hard work involving big rocks and not much food. The first round of the Single Track Mind Series for 2012 reminded me a little of this movie. Now before you think "Is this guy having a whinge?" it really wasn't all that bad. In fact it couldn't have been much better and just 5 days after the event I am hungry and keen for the next round, but as I made my way home post race it struck me how conditions could not have been much better for me and yet I went away feeling somehow like I had underperformed and something had gone terribly wrong.

On the good side
I was fresh and fit, I had a great lead up week of light training, good pre-race dinner, slept like a baby and felt relaxed and ready on the start line. My competitors having raced 100km the day before were likely to be feeling a little 2nd hand, I had a great support crew, the track was pretty much perfect for the 7 hour epic that laid before me and Chocolate Foot as always were running the event to perfection.
As the gun went and I took off at what I thought was a sustainable pace and entered the single track on the back of the lead pack. The laps then flew by, the carbs were going in and the lap times looked good. Even better I knew I was in the lead of the Solo Masters and the few glimpses I caught of Garry and Jason were starting to get fewer and fewer. I was actually putting time into my heroes and I am ashamed to admit a bit of complacency came perching on the handlebars.

At the three hour mark I figured I had a nice little buffer and took a short breather in transition, and from there things started to slide.

On the bad side
I was getting hot, I had too many layers on, but I also felt the need to pee. Do I ride on hoping to sweat a little more and maintain the current fluid intake? Do I stop to pee or wait to see if it goes away? I had the wrong glasses, I had the wrong gloves and was developing some good blisters on my hands, my back and butt started to complain and before long I began to recall just how hard a 7 hour solo is. My next stop at transition and I was ceremoniously dumped to third place. As Garry and Jason sped past I was left thinking is it over yet and what do I need to do to rejuvenate the legs that till now had been running like a sewing machine, but suddenly felt like two lumps of concrete.

The rest of the day was just a slog fest and all I could do was hang on to the glimmer of hope that I could hold third, as two of the best riders I've ever met continued to build up a 20 min gap by the close of play. I did finally stop to pee, only to find I shouldn't have worried. I did stop again to strip off a layer and change gloves and I stopped even one more time to drop tyre pressure.
So what am I to take away from this race?
? Even the best laid plans can come to grief? Nah that's not it
? Just try hard next time and pace myself better? Nah that's not it.
? Forget the race, appreciate what a gift it was to ride amongst such great people, on a ripper track, on a perfect Autumn day and give thanks to the orchestrator of the universe who makes all things possible. Yep I think that's better

Congrats to all the TORC crew, to Garry Millburn making his comeback in emphatic style, Simey, Greg and Lopper for just being there, to Brad Tillack who in his first solo effort smashed out 12 laps, had a few stacks, broke his chain and will be back to do it again, you sir are a gentleman and finally to Penny for being such an awesome support crew and devoting your day to helping me race. Thanks to CWORBC for an awesome track. And what happened to the little boy in the movie? Well I wont spoil the ending of the movie, but I did manage to hold third place and podium which I would have given my right arm for a couple of years ago so maybe that gives you a clue :)

Keep riding
Mike