WEMBO 24hr

As I approached the finish of this race, my throat tightened and my eyes began to water, not just from the dry dusty swirls.  This would probably go down as the best thing that has ever happened to me after my wife and kids.  Putting aside the slight setback of breaking my collarbone 12 weeks ago, I’d had a perfect lead up to this race in terms of training, racing and mental preparation.  You could even argue the accident was a blessing in disguise, forcing me to rest and then adapt my training as my body healed.  This is the story of how I went on to win a World Championship title and the place where I collect all my thoughts on the race and acknowledge those who made it possible.  It is a long one and will probably take you 24 hours just to read it, but I hope some of this is good reading for you.

Pit boss Andrew and I pre race

True to form I had little sleep the night before thanks to nerves, call it a little sleep deprivation training but wow it felt good to be finally on the start line.  The event centre and course had a great vibe of a true international event complete with “Crazies on the mountain” #popamono, the hippies with drums and trumpets and the volunteers at checkpoints calling out numbers and cheering on riders all night long.

Heading down Luge near the end of the race

1ST QUARTER

I like to break 24hr into 4 quarters.  The first quarter is where you settle into a sustainable pace and start building up the km’s, whilst topping up the carbs and sussing out the competition.  For the first 3 laps Michael Redman was pushing pretty hard and I was in two minds whether to push and keep him in sight or to let him go.  I concentrated hard to save as much energy as possible and still the avg heart rate was above where it should be for this race, and in the heat, that spelt danger.  Just as I backed it off, Michael flatted and I breathed easy again, thankful for a bit of race luck and a small buffer.

Putting in the big ones

2ND QUARTER

Going into the night, I had a nice gap of 10 mins and I worked on maintaining my pace in the hope of building my lead. About that time Ed came through to lap me and he was flying. It seemed like an eternity before the rest of the chasing elite group came by in dribs and drabs. What’s going on I wondered?  I never saw Ed again, but Jason English continued to lap me in what seemed to be ever shortening intervals.  Jason was exerting his stranglehold on the race and I was slowing.

Sarah passing out the energy

3RD QUARTER

After 12am, it is still pitch black and pretty cold.  The body is now taking an immense battering.  Hands, butt, lower back and triceps are all starting to give out and the stomach cramps are coming in waves.  I think I ate too much real food.  As we get close to sunrise I am ready to give up.  I can no longer corner the bike and I am hating sections of track like Luge and Breakout, normally the ones I love the most.  The only segment I look forward to is the gentle steady straight incline of Willo Link, and just then #572 goes past looking strong as an Ox.  I don’t know who it is yet, but I know he is in my age category and I basically wave bye bye to the championship.

 Getting back to the pits at around 5am, I am spent, it’s time to sit down and take a 5 min breather and break the emergency glass to reach for the Red Bull.  I was now seriously wondering if I would make it to the finish, let alone podium.

FINAL QUARTER

By 8am, the sun was finally revealing it's glory from behind a strategically placed bank of cloud.  I on the other hand was really struggling again.  The quick fix of the Red Bull had come and gone.  Coming into the pits, Andrew said "what do you need?" and I said "everything!".  I said to Sarah this is as tough as my first full 24solo in 2010 and I am so much fitter and better prepared this time round.  Five minutes later I had new knicks, chammois cream, nurofen, a toilet stop and a pocket full of gels,  I was ready to roll and the lights came back on.  I was moving again at more than a snails pace, I regained the ability to corner a mountain bike and now knew I could finish.  At this time Sarah asked Andrew "I don't understand why he doesn't just stop".

Apparently, Andrew, himself an Ironman veteran, just nodded knowingly and said

"I do"

Old Duffys

Two more good laps got me to 10:30am and I now had 2nd place secured.  I figured 1 more easy lap and I could call it quits, but my crew had other ideas.

"That was really fast Mike!" called Sarah and Andrew was in the zone, he wanted two more laps and what's more he told me I was putting time back into the leader.  Could I bridge a 15 min gap? Rolling back in at 11:50, my crew were going ballistic.

"He's just 4 minutes up the track!" "C'mon Mike, you can do this!" were the last words from Andrew as I pulled away.

Like a match to tinder dry bush, my energy levels ignited and I stamped on the pedals.  The red mist had entirely descended and I was on the chase.  My heart rate soared back to race pace, and Dean rock hopped all over the mountain meeting me at junctions with timing splits and cries of motivation.

Cockatoo 3 mins, as I charged up the climb the final time, and stomped over the jagged A line at the top to save precious seconds.  I had visions of making the catch on old Duffy's, holding Ian's wheel back onto the tarmac and sprinting for the finish line. Down Skyline, I felt like a heat seeking missile locked onto a target and when I pulled up behind a train of three slower riders, I asked them as gently as possible to make way for someone chasing 1st place and they promptly yielded the track.

Slant 6 just 2 mins Dean screamed, I spurred the legs again, and I still couldnt catch a glimpse of Ian, until I got to the picnic tables at the start of Willo link.  There he was, a blue jersey still some way off, but a rider who looked like he was being chased.  This was no slower rider about to be lapped.  By this stage the wind was howling and the sun was beating down and it felt like we were the last two riders on course.  As I came up behind Ian it was such a bittersweet moment.  It was clear there would be no sprint finish, Ian was running on fumes.  I gently said "Hi Ian, track please" he returned with "Well done Mike, I'm done" and tears welled in my stinging eyes as I felt his pain.  I held my pace back to the finish being careful just to bring it home in one piece and all 5 of us, my crew of 4 and I, danced, laughed and cried in disbelief and celebration over what had happened after saving my 4th fastest lap for last.

The scoreboard will never tell the drama of the final lap. Ian never finished the lap; after I caught him, he simply turned for home, his last lap turned to dust and was blown across the almost lunar landscape along with his dreams of victory on the hot, gusty winds now lashing Mt Stromlo.

FRIENDS AND HEROS

As I mentioned in my speech at the dinner, I love this sport and have made many many good friends through it.  Ian Brigland is a new friendship that has been forged in the heat of battle and there will be many rides together down the track.

There are so many characters I love and admire, but here are just a few,

Andy Hall dropped in for a chat sometime Sunday morning and took me for a guided tour of Party Line.  He completely stepped it up a notch beating some heavy hitters on the global stage to take 3rd overall.  Read about it here

Ed McDonald scared everyone with his show stopper attack on Saturday.  Is he about to re-build the diesel to be some kind of turbo-charged F1 racing machine set for XCO?  I'm sure we'll read about it here.

Jason McAvoy is probably the first elite mountain biker who caught my interest and the first of many mates in our nations capital.  He won again! If this guy has taught me anything it is the power of the human mind to make the body do things that should be impossible. He popped in for a chat when my engine had ceased to even splutter and it was all I could do to get back to the pits and curl up into a ball.  He said "The sun's about to come up and you'll not only come good but you'll win this race".  Thanks mate.  Read about his race here

Jason English, world class, set apart, cycling royalty completely at home having a chat with lil' ol' me in the shower queue #priceless

Peter Selkrig and Phil Welch, my 300 club buddies whose races didnt quite go to plan and still with smiles on their faces heading off to the Croc Trophy.  We salute you!

WHY?

All year I have been asking myself why WEMBO.  I knew I wanted to do it but couldnt put my finger on the "why".  As a Christian (*) there is a constant conflict between this resource hungry, time consuming, sometimes selfish sport.  It is not always compatible with family and or belonging to a church family.  My minister Tom Henderson Brooks put his finger on it one day as we chatted.  Mike you are good at this, and God gave you this ability.  So enjoy it, use it and ride amongst those who may be looking for some answers to life.  I dont have all the answers, and sometimes I am my own worst enemy, but given the choice of riding with mates who accept me or sitting in church with those who already believe what I believe, I think I now know what the right option is.  

(*) I meet with a bunch of blokes on Tuesday night.  There’s a teacher or two, an architect, a project manager who loves the Hawks and a good country pub, an arborist, a builder who is also a rugby tragic, an accountant who loves to sail and a minister with a pony tail and a cross on the collar of his leather jacket.  Ordinary blokes who share the things they struggle with in life, see what the bible has to say about it and then pray God forgive us when we stumble, help us to live up to those words and thank him for all the good things he's given us. That’s being a Christian.

THANKYOUS

Andy Blair was recently quoted by Flow as saying that "Solo 24 is a contradiction".  I thought that was a little presumptuous given he hasn’t done one, but given the guy "can ride" I gave it some introspection and well, yeah, he's dead right.  This is why.

Four of my nearest and dearest give up their weekend (two of them give up a night’s sleep and dedicate all their energies so I can ride my bike as far as humanly possible and beyond in 24 hours.

Thankyou to my pit crew Andrew Mackenzie, Dean Israel, Sarah Israel (nee Deane) and Fiona Mackenzie (nee Deane) and to both our Mum’s for taking the kids for the weekend. Without your commitment I would not have finished, much less won the race.  I love you guys so much.

CORC do a fabulous job every time we make the trip to Canberra and I’ve been there 3 of the last 4 weekends!  Congratulation Russ Baker and Sarah O'Callaghan

To the volunteers who stayed up all night at Western Wedgetail and Party Line to call out numbers.  That takes commitment, not only to do the job and suffer through a near freezing night, but to cheer every rider as they go past on every lap.  You rock!

Turramurra Cyclery and all my friends from Peloton Sports, need I say more.  This is where it all began for me 7 years ago and no matter what’s happening you always have time to deal with my tiny questions and my special needs.  You guys are like my second family. Mark, Brad and Simey set me up perfectly on two bomb proof Giant Anthem 29ers.

NutriScience, I’ll review these products separately, but thanks to Wes Hurrell for your support.  The NS products Extend and Refuel taste great and kept me going when I could stomach nothing else.

Peter Melville.  Peter is a great mate and coach.  This year we took a different approach, train on feel and keep an eye on the numbers.  No structured programs, just listen to your body and enjoy the ride. It works, thanks for you regular little messages of encouragement and follow up and thanks for keeping the faith when I did something a little stupid and crashed my road bike.

Lindsay Gorrell.  I call her the chick with nuclear warheads built into her thumbs.  Two weeks before the race, my body was smashed.  She kneaded the concrete-like knots out of my muscles and got me ready.  Thanks Lindsay, you are an amazing practitioner and an even better friend.

One last thought: As I exited Party Line for the last time and rode up the fireroad, I noticed all the gel wrappers had been collected off the ground.  MTBer's are normally very sensitive to the environment and at any race they carry their rubbish to the finish, but allowances are made for 24 solos.  Whoever you are, who picked up all those wrappers, you are one very special generous person.

So how about it Andy Blair, are you ready to find out just how far you can go?

Keep Riding

Mike

24 hours 46 minutes, 390km, 9000+ vm, 10000+ Calories, 1000+ TSS

Scott 2013

So I read a rather entertaining soap box piece on Flow this week that questioned the motivation to race and why we are so dead keen serious here in Oz.  And of course it got me thinking.  Not everything in the article was entirely balanced but the writer had some good points.  So being just one week away from perhaps the biggest race of my life, and heading for the 3rd race in as many weeks, I needed to really turn down the intensity factor and just enjoy this one.  Here are some things I found helpful for not racing at a race.  Most of them are obvious and I hate writing obvious things but perhaps some of these will resonate with you and yeah, some of this is a little tongue in cheek, I know, you think I am probably the straightest guy you know.

1.) Take 3 teenage boys to the race
Nothing quite takes as much energy and focus and herding three boys to a race three hours from home and making sure they are fed and watered, then get them home in one piece with as much of their gear undamaged and accounted for as possible!  Not to mention listening to their music!  Fact is it was an absolute pleasure, these guys were awesome, and in Charley and Lewis' case they did OK for a couple of roadies!  Tommy you rock!

2.) Go for a ride before the race.
It's a bit of a saga, this one, so I'll give you the abridged version.  How hard do you think it would be to find a pair of bibs that will go the distance in a 24 solo.  So it was that I rolled down to Woden to take my pick from bike shops and I think I found some bibs up to the task.  Bellweather Axiom.  Time will tell but early signs feel good.  And man, you Martians have some evil Magpies.  I will never again smirk at the determined rider with cable ties tied onto their helmet!

3.) Wear baggy shorts
Look, I havent bought into the whole shorts/lycra debate, because for me there is no debate.  Wear what you like.  I love wearing lycra and I reckon any half decent cyclist looks good in lycra.  I cant stand the thought of the excess fabric flapping around in the breeze.  Lycra is comfy, practical and isnt going to get caught on anything.  I get the feeling that the baggy shorts brigade have something against the human form as it is clearly on display in lycra, and I admit there are some human specimens who probably should NOT wear lycra (oh dear did I just make a judgement, I know that is very non-PC) BUT riding in baggy shorts just gives it a whole different feel and you get treated on the trail differently too.

4.) Leave the Garmin in the bag.
Just ride and stop staring at your stem.  Yes I can see you all nodding and saying see I told you so.  I like the Garmin and everything that comes with it as a training tool including the evil Strava, but going "by feel" every now and again can be extremely liberating.  My last lap, in baggy shorts, I went for a cruise, absolutely no racing, no efforts, no chasing rabbits, nada, just ride and enjoy the wind in your face.  Still clocked a 38 on Blue, so it goes to show, slow is fast-ish.

5.) Enter a category where you know you wont be competitive.  When Fi had to hot foot it overseas, we enrolled good old trusty Greg to make up the foursome, but that put us into Male Masters 4, arguably the category best known for racing for sheep stations.  We didnt have to ride every minute of the 25 hours and we actually pulled the pin and got an early mark home before race end (heaven forbid!).  We had an awesome weekend riding and socialising, we got some sleep and I didnt have to do any soul searching at 3am.  Save that for a week from now.

So there you go, that was the Scott 2013.  Fine weather, good food, fun company, dusty trails, what more could you ask for?

Keep riding
Mike

 The three teens

Riders starting their Blue lap on dusk

I STILL love 24 hour racing

It's a love hate relationship really.  At 10pm I was thinking, "What am I doing?" All I wanted to do was fall off the bike and curl up in a ball.  It was actually about that time that I ran into a small unsuspecting tree and then 5 minutes later binned it on a loose off camber corner.  Having only competed in two 24hoursolo's before (one of which was rained out during the night), I was coming into this race a relative beginner.  On the start line, it was a who's who in endurance racing, the only notable absentee being Jason McAvoy who took on the role of course designer and marshall, happy to keep his powder dry for October.

Off and racing, finally I can relax, we are on our way!

If you know Jase, then you know they dont come much harder than this bloke, so that should give you some idea of the course.  BRUTAL, was the word of the day! But that is Stomlo.  Host to many a World Cup level events, this place was made to test all riders, and test us it did.  For the most part I really enjoyed the course, it was the right length with plenty of climbing and fun descents, and a few rock gardens thrown in.  I took the approach early in the race to conserve my energy (and my back!) on the big climb.  Advice from two of my wisest MTB friends were
1) take it easy for the first 12 hours
2) keep it smooth stay out of the red.
Little Seymour I've ridden a few times and I love the mix of sketchy downhill switchbacks and rollovers.  Also the new entry into Luge is awesome.  The exit from the first big downhill berm (after the bridge) is flat and smooth so you can now actually carry some speed knowing there is another berm at the end the size of a safety ramp to pull you up.

Off the start the pace was manageable except somebody forgot to tell John Henderson (Trek Target) it was a 24 hour race and after a sleazy shortcut sent a burst of nitrous through the bunch and the pace lifted.  I was happy to see them go and meanwhile settled in for a sustainable pace with good mates Peter Selkrig, Dave Rae and Phil Welch.  The 4 of us (across for different age categories) stuck together for a good few hours and I was happy to be setting the pace on the front for most of it.  Phil quipped after the race that he was sorry (not!) to suck my wheel for so long, but that's where I like to be, setting the pace and riding my own race and it was great to have some company.  Eventually Dave dropped off and then Pete spun out in a big way, so Phil and I were left to duke it out for the rest of the race.  It was so good having four similar riders in a bunch keeping each other company and making sure the pace never let up.

Air time

With only 70 or so riders on course, it could get lonely and the time seemed to go in slow motion.  I remembering looking at the time at about 3pm and thinking 21 hours to go, oh no!
Hitting midnight, I really wondered if my race was over, barely able to stomach another gel, and thinking I am only half way, the Garmin showing some ridiculous tally of kilometres, Steve pulled out the life saver, a can of Red Bull and a cup of noodles.  "ZING ZING" The brain came to life, I stopped falling off and cut something like 6 minutes off my previous lap time.  Now I had the witching hour (3am) firmly in my sights.  It was a long and dark night, but eventually a wisp of light began to appear in the sky and strangely it started to get colder.  I rode the whole night with just a winter jersey over the top, but as a cloudy dawn took hold, I needed my leggings to keep the cold breeze from freezing my legs

Meanwhile my nearest rival Tony Rowley, was keeping it consistent and whilst I had a nice buffer of 50 minutes, I couldnt seem to crack him.  Every lap the gap was the same and I knew I would have to fight to the end to keep my grasp on the gold medal.  Finally at around sunrise, the news came the gap had lengthened to 1 lap 15 mins.  OK I can relax a little, just keep it smooth and bring it home.

Crossing the finish line

In my 3rd last lap I was enjoying an easy lap when I checked my frame and saw the existing crack had opened up big time.  During the week we noticed a little crack on the seat tube of my Anthem.  Unfortunately Giant didnt have a replacement frame available so they did the next best thing and gave me an identical demo bike.  How good is that! So rather than going in with a duallie and a hard tail, I'd have two comfy duallies at my disposal.  Interestingly the two bikes, mine with Rock Shox and the demo with Fox suspension behaved quick differently.  My Anthem is built for speed, the suspension is hard, the bike feels light and responsive and just a little sketchy, the handlebars are cut down, it is an XC racer.  The demo on the other hand was my roller.  Slightly bigger bag tyres, a soft ride and wider handle bars, this bike was built for 24 hours in the saddle.  I loved having both these bikes to ride and they both handled the punishing course with ease.

The Giant Anthem 29er demo with Fox Shox.  Nothing short of brilliant!

A big shout out my two new mates from JesusMTB; Ian Bridgland and Ben Eidel.  To Ian for a solid ride to pick up 3rd in Category and Ben for supporting and cheering us on all weekend.  These guys are regulars at St Matt's Manly if you are ever in the area.  You might have seen JesusMTB out and about, you might not, but we are just a bunch of MTB'ers who reckon Jesus is a bloke to be taken seriously, and yes he might just have ridden a rigid single speed had bicycles been around in His day.

I'd always been curious to experience the family vibe at Easter nationals and I can say it is alive and well.  Everyone there get's into cheering on all the riders.  We had Harry and Libby from Melbourne with there three kids on one side and Phil and Judy on the other side.  Another highlight for me were the 4 gentlemen who in the act of lapping me had the time for a chat and a word of encouragement, Brett Bellchambers, Jason English, Ed McDonald and Andy Hall (6+6) thanks guys, you make getting lapped something to look forward to!

4 of the best

Thanks to CORC.  These guys put on an amazing event with loads of enthusiastic volunteers, this is the biggest and oldest MTB club in Australia and the breeding ground of some awesome riders.

Thanks to the many friends who followed with interest, wished me good luck and gave a hearty congrats when it is was all over.  It is humbling to have so many genuine friends spurring me on, so thankyou for reading, I'm sorry this has been a rather long post!

To my pit crew, Steve, Tom, Liam and Sarah.  Steve, you were awesome, in the early hours of the morning when I almost refused to eat or drink anything, you concocted something I could swallow to keep the motor running smooth.  Not only that, but going into the night I realised that after losing a bit of weight over the last few months, my knicks were a size too big and if I kept going like this, pretty soon I'd end up with a......well you know.  Steve to the rescue loans me his road knicks, now that is taking suport to a new level!.  And son Tom the mechanic; I guess I changed bikes atleast 5 times and every time it was like getting on a new bike with gears and a chain that ran smooth as silk.  Not to mention keeping my lights charged and ready to go.  I love you buddy you are awesome!

To the crew at Turramurra Cyclery, Mark, Dan, Brad and Simey, as well as Pete Melville (coach) and the Giant rep.  It's a huge ask to get a rider ready for a 24 solo, let alone when you throw a cracked frame into the mix.  And I turned up with two awesome bikes from Giant, the 29er Anthem, I could not fault them, perfect, thanks guys.  Just look at the smile on my face at the finish, you need good bikes to finish 24 hours looking so comfortable.

Finally to my wife Sarah. It is a big ask for our partners to give up a weekend so we can run this race.  Thankyou doesnt quite do it justice.

National MTB 24 hour solo 45-49 male podium

As a believer, doing something like this at Easter might seem a little irreverent to some.  And even I had to think twice if this was the right thing to do.  I guess if you want to consider how Jesus suffered for humanity, then you could do worse than go ride a mountain bike for 24 hours.  Not that I am comparing a mountain bike race to the son of God being crucified, taking on the sin of the world and being cut off from his heavenly Father!  But for me, Easter is about how Jesus set us free from rules and ritualistic religion so that we might have life to the full.

Keep Riding
Mike

The real reason I got to race National XCM

Picture this, a wife at the end of her tether after weeks of report writing, marking etc...this teaching gig is TOUGH, it makes a 24 hour solo MTB ride seem like a stroll in the park. Now Sarah is not normally one for tearing off for a dirty weekend of mountain biking in the middle of term, so you can imagine my surprise (read GLEE!) when I casually mentioned the idea of heading to Canberra for the long weekend (umm yes I did mention that there was a tincy wincy little mountain bike race on) and she said "BOOK IT MIKE, TAKE ME AWAY!"
YEIIIIWWWW!
I was on Wotif quicker than Josh "Frother" Carlson rockin' it loose down Skyline.
So it came to be that our car was adorned with 5 MTB's and conveying the Children of Israel towards the Mecca of Mountain Biking (hmm might have mixed my religious metaphors there!)

We had a great run down to Canberra Saturday morning and arrived in plenty of time for the Junior Marathon. Tom and Liam were entered and off they went on their 25km loop. Meanwhile Sarah, Dani and I tackled the Trunk climb together, it was so good to be back here breathing in the fresh air and riding our bikes.




Tom and Liam had a great race in the U15, taking their time and enjoying the ride. This is their second real race (both times at Stromlo) and each time they get better and better. Thanks to the sweep rider who followed Liam every step of the way.

That night I cooked up a pasta storm and slept like a baby ready for my race the next day. I was feeling pretty good, the training is going well and I had a new bike to test out (Giant Anthem 29er). The idea here was to test the legs and see if I could pace myself a little better from the start. The field was completely star-studded. See Jason McAvoy's blog for some examples of the talent we were up against, but knowing the track and how hard the course would be I was confident I could put in a good show.

Interestingly the pace from the start was not the usual heart exploding 5km time trial and I settled into a sustainable pace for the first few km's. Eventually I did drop off the back but there were plenty of respectable riders nearby so I determined to stick to my plan and just ride solidly all day and enjoy it. Nutrition wise things were going ok and the bike was awesome. Really nice handling with the added luxury of a rear shock to bring into play on some of the techier sections. There were lots of highlights throughout the day, the only lowlight being when I heard something fall off the back of my bike through Little Seymour and realised my saddle bag had opened sprinkling a lovely trail of track candy through the scrub. On my second pass I managed to stop and pick up a few bits and pieces, but my trusty old Topeak multitool was nowhere to be found. RIP!

That said there were heaps of positives, including riding some long distances with Tim Kerle and Rich Peil. Rich went on the attack at about the 60km mark and ended up beating me by 5 mins and taking out 3rd, well done mate you got me again! Having my own cheer squad was also awesome as my family screamed and cheered each time I hit transition, thankyou my darlings you made my day.

The track was a ripper, signature Stromlo with heaps of climbing rewarded by several white knuckle descents. I especially enjoyed the two proper downhill sections thrown in for good measure.

The next day we had some time to spare and the kids were keen for a Questacon visit so in we went for some brain stimulation and it was great fun as always. Here is some huge froth for all my extended MTB family


Stats:
Food, 3L Energy, 0.6L Opti, 8 gels, 2 bars, 2 bananas
90km, over 2000m vertical, just over 5 hours, 5th in Masters
http://app.strava.com/rides/10566736

.

Scott 2011

The Scott is one of those races I had always wanted to do but never quite managed to get there (apart from last year which doesn’t really count). So when my mates from HORCC mentioned they were looking for another rider to make a team of 6 it didn’t take much convincing. The team (Captain Gavatron and the Mutineers) made up Gary, Dave, Gav, Dan and myself, all of whom have featured on the podium at this years STM series plus Paul who I hadn’t met before, but looked just a little too young and fit to be hucking it with us masters!
Camping at Stromlo was heaps of fun, especially with 3 teams of 6 from HORCC. The buzz around the camp site was always enthusiastic (even at 3 in the morning!) as guys rolled in from their lap fully wired, ready to recount many a glorious performance. These guys are seasoned campers and they do it in style. No sooner had I arrived they had the car unpacked and the TMC marquee erected. Wow, thanks guys! I also had Tom and Liam with me and they were pretty excited to be there. They had an awesome weekend riding their bikes around, camping, eating good food, Liam even picked up 2nd place in the U13 race (and he’s only 11, watch out for this guy in a few years to come ;)
Upon arrival Friday evening, the place was looking a little damp to be sure, and there was talk of a sloppy track from other riders but I wasn’t having any of it. Stromlo is built for MTB’s and it didn’t disappoint.
The vibe around the event centre was electric Saturday morning and a few of us from JesusMTB got together for a quick catch up and prayer for the race ahead. We asked for fine weather, safety, and an opportunity to share His love and gave thanks for our good health to ride and wive’s that indulge our passion. The clouds continued to roll past all weekend with the odd shower, but that only served to keep the track tacky, an experience I’ve not had at Stromlo before and I reckon it never rode so well. Fast forward to the start and Dan is our man who sprints off the line and get’s to the bike at the pointy end of the field to begin on the Blue lap. Gav followed in a similar fashion on the Red to put us in first place. By the time my lap came around, I was raring to go and raced off the line to tackle Blackberry and Willo Link. This was to be my best lap as I averaged 89% Max HR and seemed to really nail my lines. Also at this stage of race there was no slow traffic and after passing a few riders early in my lap, I settled in with a train of 3-4 riders and proceeded to bury myself. I came to love this Blue lap the best, it was so challenging with lots of tight techie corners and the Ellsworth really seemed to suit these trails. Heading into Skippys brought back memories of last years 24 solo and then into Deep Creek which I had never ridden before, a very tight section of trail but beautiful all the same. Just when you think you’ve had enough, of tight sketchy corners on a slight incline, you hit Shady’s, the toughest part of the lap, but it doesn’t last long and from there it is fun all the way home starting with Party line, what has to be the most flowingest sweetest stretch of single track on the planet. Oh yeah I almost forget Terminal Velocity, this will test your (insert euphemism to describe courage). A straight steep downhill fireroad that rolls into something like a safety ramp. The challenge is to pedal as hard as you can downhill without touching the brakes so you can roll up the other side and just pop over the crest of rocks at the top of the other side. I hit 60kph here, scary stuff.
My elation at my time of 43+ minutes was shortlived when I learn the guy I have been dualling with for the second half of the lap is from the competition (3FIDI6) and we drop from 1st to 2nd place with a gap of just 5 seconds. Game on! But it doesn’t end there. On the 5th lap, a team called “chain suck” put in a 41+ min lap on Blue elevating them to 1st, while 3FIDI6 fall back to 3rd and we hold 2nd. So now we have a 3 way battle for the category and it carries on pretty much that way for rest of the race. The whole team now gears up for a long battle, Dave and Gary both put in solid laps and Paul finishes the cycle with a 38+ min Red. Nice work. Dave, the team strategist floats the idea of the 3 strongest riders to pull a double and try and make up the gap to first, so I take the time off to mingle with other riding buddies including the crew from TORC, Sandy, Mark, Vicki and Stan. I watch my boys ride and catch up with a few more friends around the track. Thanks to the organisers for the kids race, I count the laps in the U11 and there are so many kids even two of us Dad’s cant quite keep up with it. It’s so cool to see all these kids out riding and loving it. My next lap is a 44+, which I am happy with as I hit a bit more traffic this time but the legs are still feeling good. I love being able to give it everything for a lap and then rest and recover till your next turn. It is only a brief rest this time as we are pulling our double which puts me onto the Red lap…in the dark. I am pretty excited about this, as I love the trunk climb and our course, Skyline and Luge and legendary. My lap is just OK, I have a few little offs, including a tangle of bars ends with a slower rider who picks the most narrow technical section of track to call me through…err fail, we pick our selves up, I apologise profusely and I’m on my way. I never really find my rhythm after that and to top it off I dump it in an unseen abyss on a fast left hander at the end of rascals. The lap also finishes through a bog resembling something out of the Jurassic Period so now my bike is dirty, not happy! But all is not lost and by the end of the cycle we now have a nice 8 min buffer over chain suck and a further 1 min over 3FIDI6. Turns out Dave hates the Blue lap so we swap over next cycle and everyone’s happy again.
My next lap is a night lap of Blue and this is tough. The corners are so tight and the shrubbery so dense, it makes it hard to anticipate where the track is going. There are times where I exit a corner, unsure of where the track goes next! Another lap down and still we We’ve now completed 19 laps (10 blue, 9 red) and we’re back in 2nd place. Every now and again chain suck wheel out their secret weapon and he puts 5 minutes into us all on his own. We’ve been off by up to 8 minutes but we are clawing back the time. It is now 1:30 in the morning. The boys are sound asleep but I cant rest. I take on some food, potter around the bike but I just don’t feel like resting and and my next lap isn’t till 5:20am. Then I remember my mate Phil, who is doing a solo impromptu performance. I roll down the hill to the solo transition to his hut to find the tell tale signs of a madman, gu wrappers everywhere! I tidy up and make some plans so I am ready when a shell of a man rolls in at 3:30am, completely shattered. The bike is a mess after negotiating many a bog on the red lap and he is out of petrol. OK noodles, that worked for me so I boil him up some noodles and get to work on the bike. He says he’ll stay put for a whle so I head up to the bike wash. When I get back, Phil is atleast smiling again though he groans when he realises he has to go out again. I rev him up, he is in 3rd place and 4th place is getting slower. All he has to do is keep circulating and he’ll podium. I see the spark behind the eyes and before he leaves he puts in an order for porridge next time round. OK cool I’ve got about an hour before I need to get ready and I can leave his porridge for him just before I go on my next lap. Perfect!.. Later on I pass his transition and see the porridge is gone. Phil goes onto hold 3rd place at the finish, and I feel just a little chuffed that I played a little part in getting him there. OK so back to our race, Dave rolls in off the Red lap bang on time and it is time for me to attack Willo again. I play a little game with my self each time trying to pushing a bigger gear up each section of this gentle climb. By the time I get back we are in the lead by 7 mins. Not enough, but this team will dig deep. There’s alot of excitement in the team, the dream is so close but a puncture or any little mistake could see it evaporate quickly. Strangely at this point I am ready for sleep, so inhale some porridge, curl up in my sleeping bag just as the sunrises and grab 90 minutes of shuteye.

When I wake up the mood is tense and so I start to prepare for my last lap which is a ripper. That’s me done. Our lead suddenly goes from 9 to 19 mins as chain suck post a 55+ min lap and the mood lifts as Dan, Gav and Gary get ready to bring it home. Dan returns with a flat back tyre off the Red lap. He flatted near the top of the climb, swirls the goop and puts a co2 in but no good, so he finishes the lap (yes Skyline and Luge) on the rim and still posts a 42. Inspirational! Gav puts in a solid Blue and Gary heads off for his last lap. Unbeknowns he comes off early in the lap….here is Gary’s account of the fall

>>>> 11:45, lead on 2nd placed team is approx 20 mins, but they have had some issues and have one uber fast guy who took 6 mins out of me on a red loop in the night when I was not mucking around. If they get out on the lap, and it's him, there's still danger. So I hook in- this is no last lap cruise. The time being what it is, as I drop down off the crit track into holdens creek, there is no traffic. The recent rain shower has re-slopped some small sections, but for the most part just kept the track tacky. So I'm really concentrating on lines and fast exits. I want a sub 40 min lap to put it to bed and receive gasps of amazement from my team-mates!! (I'd only done a 41 on this loop so far, at dusk). Sooo this was the mode I entered the little gully in. Only about 3-4 mins into the lap, you enter more or less straight, but as you cross the bridge you strat a turn right. The other bank forms a berm, which has you leaving the gully off to the right. As I start the drop I note the slick bridge from the recent shower. No worries, caution for a split second and then on my way. That was it. Whether I feathered the front brake or not I do not know, but I had a no-warning, lightening fast low side on the bridge. No leg down, no slide then down, just bike snatched out as if by a giant hand, with newton and his mates smashing me chest first into the pillow sized rock on the far side of the bridge. Chest lock. Could not breath a bit. Bloody, muddy knee and elbow. Mind racing: 'Can I make it back to transition? Is my elbow shattered? Have I broken two or three ribs?'. Breath returns. Some bloke comes along and picks up my bike, hovers in a concerned way. I wave him on. Roll and diagnose. So I climb on, but bars were way out. Fixed, then medium pace for a minute while I breathed and flexed various bits. Painful but fully functional. So... hook back in and rode a 41:-) Gee they hurt me in the first aid tent though... >>>>
Amazing he still posts a 41 and we celebrate the win as we wheel him off the first aid to get patched up. YOU BEAUTY!
Thanks to everyone for a great weekend
Keep Riding
Mike

C2C Winter 2011

Araluen Valley

Ed contemplates the wild descent off Mt Wandera

How does a 200km MTB ride starting in Canberra in the middle Winter sound? Yeah I thought you would say that. Never one to shy away from a challenge, I figured this was one ride I had to give a try. It's been going on for a couple of years I think run by some MTB diehards from CORC, yep them boys (and gals) down south sure do love their riding. I'll have to keep this post short, but here are the salient points

- 6am start at Dickson Maccas, there are about 15 riders gathered. This is a self-supported ride, so I have enough food and drink to get me most of the way plus more spares than I care to recall. Thankfully the ride went without a hitch for everyone I think, not so much as a pinch flat in sight

- we roll out into Majura, the first little climb to warm us up, but we have been blessed with perfect weather conditions, some high cloud, no wind or rain, I have less layers on than when I hit Bobbo Tuesday mornings!

- after Majura it's a fairly long road section out to Captains flat road. The climb out of Queenbeyan is a beauty, and the bunch breaks up into three groups. Everyone here is a seasoned cyclist and we form into groups of matching ability. I am happy to be near the front but I know the quicker guys will drop me before too long. This is coined as an unofficial "race" but I have to say it was just like our epic rides with TORC where the bunch sets a manageable pace, yet it is clear who the strong ones are as they take the main share of turns (Thanks Andy and Dave!) Later, Ed takes the reins for our sub-group , ensuring our quartet (Ed, Kev, Jeff and I) stick together and noone get's lost.

- Main Range Road at the 70km mark is a tough climb, but there is a monster lurking further down the road in the form of Mt Wandera.

- Once at the top the views and riding are spectacular as we cruise down to Harold's Cross

- Passing through towns like Hoskinstown and Rossi makes you think you are from the future, these tiny hamlets seem so remote and again I am struck by the beauty of this country and how lucky we are to be riding together enjoying this creation that rolls by.

- Major's Creek Mountain Road is a decent like no other. 600m straight down the escarpment, well thankfully not straight down, there were quite a few sharp turns to negotiate but we hoot and holler all the way down to the Araluen Valley.

- From there we follow the gorgeous meandering Deua River, and just as I ask how long does this undulating (think bucketty challenge dirt road) ride go for, we arrive at a climb that really will rip your legs off. 5km averaging 10%, with most inclines around 20% before it levels out ready for the next effort. That hurt, but rolling over the top was a great feeling and hitting 70k's down the other side on groomed dirt roads was fantastic, the grin get's bigger as the km's clock up at speed.

- Finally we hot Mogo forest and the reward is single track like Snake Trail, love it! Just hang on and rail those massive berms.

- Mogo is a welcome checkpoint were we can get some fuel in and set up for the last hour continuing through the forest onto Batemans Bay.

What a ride! Thanks everyone for an amazing experience, I enjoyed EVERY minute, I'll be back.

Who's coming with me from TORC next time?

Keep Riding

Mike

Nutrition

3 L energy

600mL Optimiser

6 gels

4 bars

hot chips and chocolate milkshake at Mogo

Here is the ride

http://app.strava.com/rides/954403