TORC Canberra Training Camp

After a very soggy Sydney Summer, you could be forgiven for getting just a little bit excited about heading to the mecca of mountain biking for a weekend of single track serenity. Sure enough 17 of TORC’s finest climbed aboard the MTNBike Express in search of some sweet dusty trails

First stop was Kowen forest and again we had the privilege of mixing it with Ben Henderson, still recovering from a virus, Ben was kind enough to come out and set the scene for a weekend where the object was to ride your bike as fast as possible through every conceivable type of corner. Before long the natives got restless as Kowen’s beautiful lines beckoned and it wasn’t long before a few keen beans blasted off to stretch the legs and the lungs. The name of the game was “Where’s Brad?” Hardly a puff of dust had been raised one of our team were missing in action. Turned out he thought it was the Roadies tour coming up in a couple of weeks and decided to take a detour via Queenbeyan! Steve also pushed hard on the power limit and broke his chain link by link until he had to scooter back to base camp. There was plenty of “Yieeeew!” and “Yeaaaaah” and “Whoooooa” calls coming across the valleys, these are the mating calls of the mountain biker and the better the single track, the more frequent the calls.

Back for lunch and Will and Laurie really fed us well. The whole tour was expertly organised and the food was a hit for tired legs, then it was out for another couple of hours of soaking up the trails over Sparrow Hill, just 25km of uninterrupted singletrack.

Peter took the prize for the hard man of the weekend, taking particular offense to a certain pine tree and both he and the tree were left missing some bark. Of course the tree won, but Peter has the bragging rights and got a nice ride in an ambulance for his efforts.

Post ride coffees and a good quality “all you can eat” buffet at the AIS were very welcome after a big day in the saddle and then it was off to sample the night life in Dickson. Yes there is night life in Canberra and we all enjoyed some carb loading in the cool summer evening

Sunday morning provided another opportunity to ride the “all you can eat” single track, rolling out at sunrise to take in the manicured trails of Bruce Ridge to roll the legs over the before breakfast. It really was the perfect morning at 12 degrees and clear blue skies and not a puff of breeze. Ben, Hayden, Will and Isy had a great time navigating this tortoise shell of criss-crossing trails with gentle climbs and sweeping bends on the descents.

Our final ride started with an easy bunch ride through the suburbs from the AIS to one of the oldest and best love MTB precincts in Canberra, Majura Pines. The trails were a little damp which made for tricky conditions as one moment you had loads of grip on a tacky corner and the next you could be two wheel drifting over a slippery tree root. There were heaps of riders there including families and heaps of girls all enjoying the best of MTB in Canberra (Great to see more girls getting into this sport!). Mike Farkas was having a shocker and no sooner was he singing the praises of Scarlett and the next, going rubber up at low speed over a couple of sketchy obstacles, very unlike Mike. Fankles also revealed his talents for inflicting pain and made a foursome with Nick, Mike and Isy to explore this area that is some areas resembled the Blair Witch project, gothic aged pines trees, plenty of hills and made for some gorgeous scenery.

All in all a fantastic weekend of riding with friends and right on queue the storms reappeared as we made our way back to Sydney, wishing we never had to return

.

Single Track Mind - Round 6

It's hard to describe just how ideal conditions were for this race, so I'll just resort to bullet points
- perfect weather
- virgin single track carved through pristine native eucalypt forest
- a great bike and great company
- a team mate you'd give your right arm for
- all within 2 hours of home

My training has been a bit hot and cold lately, so I figured it couldnt hurt to head out for a gentle road ride on Saturday. Of course there is really no such thing as a gentle road ride when you tackle West Head and McCarrs creek in the company of other Peloton Sports members, so by the time I got home I was worried I'd overcooked it and would be fatigued for Sunday, but as soon as the gun went I felt totally primed. The Ellsworth motored almost effortlessly up the first climb with the leaders and together she and I held a solid pace for the first lap to return to transition in 1st place for Masters pairs. The laps continued on this gorgeous track, with barely 30m of vertical over a 10km loop. Later on a few riders were almost critical of the off camber corners, tight meandering and lack of a climb, but personally I loved it. It was the sort of track that rewarded smooth, controlled, smart riding, and as I was to learn on lap 3, punished those with poor timing or technique. It was a relatively straight forward double that I had already cleared twice, but 3rd time was to be unlicky as I dumped the launch and buried the bike into the front side of the landing ramp, therby ejecting myself over the bars in superman style. As I got back to my feet, I was amazed to see such little damage to the body, but both wrists were damn sore, and it was with a little concern that I rolled back to transition. A quick clean up thanks to St John's and a pair of socks from SRAM for my war story and it was time for another lap.

Dave looked worried for me (and himself!) and told me "Take it easy, dont do anything stupid!" Too late mate, but on I rolled just a minute behind Dan and Gav. And that's pretty much the way it stayed all day. In the end we just couldnt bridge the gap and my last lap was one of resignation as realised today we'd have to settle for 2nd.

Special thanks to Hugh at CBD who spent atleast a total of 60 mins fixing my brakes, it's a long story that I wont bore you with, but it's all good now. Also special mention to all the guys from TORC who made the effort to come and race, it's always such a great vibe in the tent when you have a few more riding buddies to share it with; Danielle and Daniel, Theo and Arainer, Simey, Jeff and Mick, and of course Farkas who brought the tent. Big props to CTMBC who cut this track in record time, especially to the guy in charge of the track who went on to claim the Merida gift voucher, a worthy winner for sure! Thanks to the organisers Chocolate Foot who always run a faultless event, to the sponsors for my prizes SRAM, James Estate Wines, Aussie Butt Cream (anyone need butt cream I'm your man!!!) And finally to my mates from that other bike club HORCC, an awesome bunch of guys who really know that MTB spells fun.

That's probably my shortest blog of all time, it sums up another memorable day on the bike. There was a moment on the track, when the XPT train slowed quite nearby and I pictured myself sitting on the train watching the riders and thinking "Wow look at those lucky people out there being active, riding bikes through the bush, how good would that be?" and then coming back to the present and realising how blessed I was to be actually doing it. I love it!

Keep riding
Mike

PS thanks again to Dave Bateman for a great photo

Single Track Mind Nowra

Picture from the recent TORC Skills Session with Mick Ross

It’s been a long time between drinks, but what was planned to be a full on racing season has morphed into a busy life off the bike with many different demands tapping into my training time. Put that together with a trip to Brazil and some unsettled weather and the year is shaping up more as one to enjoy rather than to achieve and maybe that’s OK.

I loved the STM series last year and had some success running solo, so I thought it would be cool to form a team and take some time to actually enjoy the event instead of just thrashing my body for 8 hours straight. Gary and I have known each other for years but it wasn’t until we nearly ran each other over at the 80km drink stop in the 2009 Doctor that we became good friends. We both suffered through a wet Sydney 24 and then Gary was my mechanic at the 24HoA last year plus we’ve worked together “spreading the word” about JesusMTB. So I was stoked when I floated the idea with him about forming a Masters Pair for this one and he accepted. He was typically humble and warned he might not quite be at his peak for lack of training, but I had a feeling we’d be pretty close in form and as it turned out our lap times couldn’t have gotten much closer.

I drew the “short straw” for the first lap, but truth be told I love the start. That first drag race up a stretch of fire trail to spread the field is a pure adrenalin rush and I entered the single track right on Gary James wheel which is good and bad. Good coz you know you are lucky to be there, but bad because you know you aren’t going to be there for long. Sure enough he slowly pulled away on the first little climb but there was plenty of traffic and I soon fell in with a train that suited my pace. My only mistake all day was on this first lap when I ran a little wide on a corner and the front washed out on the soft sandy edge. No real damage and I dusted myself off and got rolling again as Farkas went past in a blur. By the end of the day that corner had shaped into a beautiful berm. The next challenge was the fireroad and coming out of the sequence of six switchbacks I hooked onto a fast wheel and had a good chew on the handlebars. I was soon pushing over 90% but I got a great tow and passed a good many riders and the HR pretty much stayed there right to transition where I handed off to Gary.

With Gary James and Rich Peil setting a blistering pace to control the race and Dan and Gavatron matching them in a battle for 1st, we were happy to settle into 3rd place but by early afternoon the Yeti Gu team had cut our 8 minute lead down to just 3 minutes and it was game on in a battle for 3rd. We realised our plan of pulling double laps was slowing us down so it was back to single’s where you get a shorter recovery but you can atleast give it all you’ve got for just one lap. With 5 mins to go Gary put in a great effort to log a 28min lap and I finished with a solid 27 to hold 3rd by nearly 6 minutes.

Thanks to everyone for a fantastic day, the track by SCUM was simply awesome, fast and well prepared, the organisation by Chocolate Foot was terrific and what an advantage to have Castech doing the timing! Thanks also to the sponsors who were generous with their support especially SRAM, Lezyne, Aussie Butt Cream, James Estate Wines and Hammer Nutrition who provided some nice little tidbits to take home for our efforts! and of course my LBS Turramurra Cyclery who always look after me with whatever I need.

10 laps – 93km, 3225Cal

Avg HR – 81% (150bpm), Max 94% (174bpm)

WHAT Gatorade 3 bidon x TORQ Organic with a Shotz tablet 2 bidon x Optimiser 1 serve dutch pancakes 1 TORQ bar 2 Shot Bloks 2 Gu gel 2 Endura gel TOTAL

ENERGY (Cal) 191 573 612 100 (?) 220 400 200 212 2508

CHO (g) 46 143 120 30(?) 47 96 50 52 584 (73g/hour)

Picture perfect day for Willo's race

Photo courtesy Brendon Mulloy

To say I was looking forward to this race would be understating it ever so slightly! This being the first race in nearly 4 months, it felt like I had been training for so long, I wondered if I would be able to remember everything I needed to race and it took all my powers of mind control not to spending every waking moment thinking about the upcoming test.
Knowing the organisers had set a fast course, my goals were not to use the granny gear and to finish in under 4 hours. You never know who is going to turn up to these things so a Top 10 finish is always a good feeling. Any better is a bonus and when Fenz didn't show at the start, that was one less machine I had to worry about!
The week lead up was pretty much perfect, with just a couple of nice easy rides to keep the legs open, but I really had very little idea of where I would stand in this field.
As we rolled out, the pace was hot as usual but I found I could settle into a sustainable pace and still keep in touch with the young guns, so far so good. It must be said from the outset that the track was a ripper. Just the right balance of flowing single track, some fast fire road and a couple of climbs to keep everyone honest, without any heartbreakers.
Again the Ellsworth 29er was the weapon of choice and I am constantly amazed at what this bike is capable of. Just over 3.5 hours at race pace and I only had to clip out once when I ran wide on a soft corner. The slightly wider handlebars with bar ends are great but there were a couple of tree gates where I clipped the bark with the bar end trying to squeeze through the eye of a needle at speed. During the week I fitted a new Crossmark (2.1) on the back in place of the tired old Racing Ralph (2.25) and there was an instant improvement in handling and stability thanks to the smaller bag and stiffer side walls.
As the 1st lap progressed I formed a little trio with Garry and one other rider, but I soon found myself riding off the front and building a little buffer.
The race pretty much continued without event and I was enjoying riding to my heart rate, keeping the pace up and the gels going down and just enjoying railing the corners. On the 2nd and 3rd laps there was a little traffic to negotiate, but most riders were quick to make room for me to pass, so thanks for that guys.

I knew Garry wasn't far behind as he called out to me on every switchback so I knew he had me in his sights. On the second lap at about the 15km mark he made his move and put 40 seconds into me. I knew we were riding for 1st and 2nd so decided to keep riding my own race and if I caught him later then I'd challenge otherwise I'd be happy with 2nd and so it was.

It was great seeing so many TORC riders there all riding strong and performing well as always, with a good number making the podium. Well done Martine, Larri, Garry and Steve!

So that was the warm up, looking forward to Capital Punishment next weekend, let's hope the weather holds!

Keep Riding
Mike

Time 3:32
Distance: 75km
Cal: 3110
HRavg: 83%
What I ate: 6 gel, 2.5 ltr TORC energy

WSC24 - 2010 Mt Stromlo

My Race
Morning of the race and I am feeling absolutely primed. The pit crew have been briefed, the marquee is all setup, and everything has fallen into place. Literally 9 months of planning and training has boiled down to this one morning. My pre-race nutrition is perfect and I am in the best condition probably of my life. Of course, life likes to throw little curve balls every now and again and with 10 minutes before call up, I head out for a warm up. I roll off a little drop and pshhh, the back tyre gives way! I roll back into the pits and there is a tiny little cut in the tread but of course the goo seals the hole and there is no problem (NOT!). As usual the goo continues to spew out of the hole. Go to plan B, I’ll be starting on the trusty Trek, the eye catching Ellsworth will have to wait. The start is a blast; I get a good start out of the gate and reach my bike after the 300m run near the front of the pack. The bunch head out at light speed, Rich P for one, goes past me like a freight train and my HR goes straight to 85%, touching 88 at times. Not good, but it is early days, so I figure I can hold this pace for a little while without jeopardising my race. After two laps, the pace is still hot but I know this isn’t gonna last and I can hear my coach talking to me, “Remember, this race doesn’t really start till 3am!” Time to back it off. At the same time I catch Peter from KOM and he echo’s my coach, “Let ‘em go Mike, they will all blow up later down the track.”. Lap 3 and I swap onto the Ellsworth 29er (which has attracted more than her fair share of interest this weekend! What a sexy bike J). It feels so good climbing on this bike, but on a switchback, I lose my balance, my foot gets caught on a stump and over I go like tall timber. Crunch! I fall hard on a granite boulder on my hip and ribs and it knocks the wind out of me. I think I might have cracked a rib and I walk a little way to regain my composure and make sure I haven’t done any serious damage. 20 minutes later trying to keep on track, the front washes out and I run into a small tree, I am fine, but the bike has suffered some damage and I have lost the bottom four gears on the rear cassette. That’s OK, but the effort of ejecting the bike causes my right leg to cramp. Damn it! 4 hours and I am cramping? Let’s see what happens.
Back to the pit and I swap back onto the Trek. Oh darling Trek, I am sorry I ever doubted you. This bike is blessed and despite the issues over the last two weeks, it is running perfectly and eating rock gardens like Pork Barrel for breakfast as usual.
Getting back to the pit’s after lap 4 and I find I am in 21st position. Hmmmm, not happy, but feeling good, stick to the plan Stan. Gary and Bernard are running the pit like a pro team, my transitions are fast, I barely finish my lap and I am rolling again within a minute with a fresh camelback, food in my pocket and like magic, my bike is lubed and perfectly tuned again. I even have a pit row girl, my gorgeous wife Sarah, she smiles and cheers for me, cleans my glasses and give me a kiss for every lap I complete. How’s that for motivation! The EDC crew of Andrew, Vered, Dillan, Guy and Sarah B are there as well screaming my name each time I go past and Karl is like a ninja, rock hopping over the mountain to get the best camera angles. Gav my oldest and best friend of 36 years is there with his family, Derna, Petra and Linc cheering me on as well. I have a healthy cheer squad and every time I see them it brings an even bigger smile to my face.
The rest of the afternoon slips away without incident and I am enjoying the race and riding with a great field of riders. Track etiquette as you would expect is nothing short of exemplary with all riders showing patience and consideration.
I have to laugh when I pull into the pits at 5:40 and some joker is telling everyone it’s time to put the lights on. I check with Gary that after 6 is the rule for lights, so Gary promptly sets the joker straight! I am loving this pit crew. Back at 6:50, another solid lap and on go the lights, the lights fades fast and the new moon rising to the west sets the perfect night sky against the observatory buildings, but all of a sudden I notice the bars I am eating aren’t going down so well anymore. By the time I get back to the pits, I am a shivering, sad, gooey mess. The guys sit me down for a few minutes and get some warm clothes on me and we chat about what we need to change on the food front. I honestly can’t remember what they gave me to eat, but it worked and by the time I get back after another lap at around 11pm, I am psyched. I down a Red Bull which is my “break glass in case of emergency” card, a couple of nurofen as the hip and ribs are starting to hurt again and a mug of noodles. Sarah is still here and she asks me how the stomach feels as I inhale the noodles. “Well I am eating this aren’t I?” comes the focussed reply? We laugh about this after the race and I head off into the night once more. I punch out another solid lap getting back a few minutes earlier than expected to catch the crew napping. Gary is dazed as we swap the main battery and I am off in a whirlwind leaving the guys wondering what the hell hit them. We decide to stay on the Trek thru the night and see what the new day brings.
All this time I have been thinking about my position and I have been climbing steadily now to 15th. My plan was to wait for 3am which stood out as a huge milestone. I felt if I could make it in good shape to 3am, then I would definitely reach my goal to finish the race and then like magic, it suddenly ticks over to 3am. I have developed a little rapport with a dear couple who are watching from the top of the mountain, and every time I go past they cheer, “Good on you 414, you’re doing well!” I tell them thankyou and how much I look forward to seeing them each lap and they respond they aren’t going anywhere.
The 3 hours to sunrise race by and come 6am I am ready to attack. Lap 15 is a scorcher and I knock 6 mins off my previous lap time. Gary asks if I want to know where I am. Yes please. You are 10th! YEEEESSSS!!!! COME ON!!!! Wind up the machine and give me the beast. I hop on the Ellsworth 29er, shove it in the dog and I motor into 9th, back on the Trek, a super quick lap for #17 and the crew are wondering if I can fit two more laps in, but no, one more will do it as roll thru the pit into 8th place, tragically miscalculating my onboard fuel. The final lap is a killer and the legs are now fatigued but I am determined to finish strong. I rider pulls up behind me and we have a bit of a chat, only to realise we are in the same category and fighting for 8th position. “Can we settle this like gentlemen?” he asks. I tell him he can ride with me for as long as he likes, but he swallows hard and drops me like a stone. So I am back to 9th which is fine by me, but there is no way I am giving up 9th, so now is the time to delve into the “suitcase of courage”. I ride the entire lap despite the excruciating pain in my back and backside and cross the line just 2 mins ahead of 10th place. I am elated and very, very emotional. I am completely spent and as I get off the bike I realise I cannot walk. My friends carry me to where I can sit and we celebrate the amazing result. My first ever full 24 hour race completed and my immediate reaction is “Never again”. Eventually I make it back to the marquee where I sit for goodness knows how long. The TORC team of Ben, Tony, Steve, Kelly and Sandy drop by with looks on their faces that half say well done and the other half, he’s completely bonkers. No sooner do I voice a desire to eat something and Karl is back with the best looking slice of pizza I have ever seen in my life. It tastes like pure gold, I will never forget the sheer bliss of eating this piece of food. With a lot of help from Karl and Bernard, we pack the essentials and make a B line for the hotel. I am into the bath and then into bed as quick as can be. An hour later I am up to go to the loo and completely pass out. I manage to slide onto the floor and that’s it. I can’t move another millimetre. Unsure of what’s happening, I get Sarah to call the Ambulance and they arrive promptly, check me over, and ask lots of questions, by which time I am coming to and am able to sit up. Food and rest is the prognosis, which is great because I would have been shattered to miss the preso dinner. By dinner time I am feeling a lot better and I enjoy the atmosphere and the food, as well as applauding all the champions of each category, secretly cataloguing each rider and what it took for them to win. Sarah should have gotten that “Never again” quote in writing because already I can feel the hunger returning and I reckon I have atleast one more 24 in me. Time will tell.

The Course
What an amazing course! From the outset it was clear this was going to be a tough track. Just check out the 100 odd posts on http://www.rotorburn.com/ and you will see this was probably one of the most hotly debated topics. Was it too tough for a 24 hour race? Maybe, but I still think the race organisers made the right decision. Pork Barrel thrown together with a double crest of Mt Stromlo would be a test of epic proportions and I think that putting on this course has taken the sport to a new level. The first 3 km were great for recovery, some fireroad and Holden’s creek gave the rider’s some recovery time and plenty of flat road to drink. Then it’s into the first climb. I love this climb. You can just push tempo all the way or you can go a bit harder if you want to. Over the crest and you are into Western Wedgetail, one of my favourite sections, it winds its way slightly downhill with some fast sweeping turns. Into yet another rocky section, then Pork Barrel, which isn’t too bad once you work out the best line. I happen to think this got better as the race went on and my strategy here was to slow down a fraction just let the bike flow over the rocks and not hold on too tight. The next section is also quite technical with some false flats and steps to get up which was probably my least fav part of the track. Then we are on the firetrail. Thankfully the hardest climb is the first one, and it takes a bit of effort but is quite rideable and I spin up here in the granny for all but one lap that I walk just to stretch the legs (no really!). From there it’s a series of pinches most of which are preceded by a reasonable downhill section. They are challenging but each pinch makes a perfect goal to conquer as you go about constructing another lap in your mind. The last pinch before the summit is a beauty as it had a fast roll in where you could really pin it in the dog and let your momentum carry you half way up. From there it’s grins all the way home. A 250m descent over 3km on some of the fastest sweetest single track you will find anywhere. I frequently found myself in a procession of 4 or 5 riders all screaming down the hill together at 40+ kph whooping and yeehawing all the way. So much fun!

The Support
If you read no other part of this report, just read this. My sensational performance would not have been possible without the support of literally 100’s of people. In fact if you are reading this, you probably supported or encouraged me in some way, so I thank you for being the person you are and for showing an interest in me.
To my wife and kids for bearing with my obsession and getting excited for me when things were going well and for being there when things weren’t. You guys have had to make sacrifices so that I could do this race well.
To the gang at EDC, especially Andrew L, Karl M and Sarah B for your generous support, I would not have made it to the start line without you.
My coach from FTP training Dave Hunt. For being so available and flexible and for not only developing a program that pushed me to the brink but for teaching me the knowledge I needed to achieve my goals.
To Mark and Simon at Turramurra Cyclery for setting me up with two awesome bikes and putting in a heap of time to make sure everything was just right, thanks guys you are the best.
Stuart Burns and Line break for providing the Cyclist’s compression wear that just works. I wore a long sleeve compression garment for the entire race and have no doubt it was a major factor in my arms still feeling pretty good after 24 hours of hard work.
Anne Deane, my mother-in-law. For happily taking the kids for 3 days while Sarah and I were racing. The kids had a ball, thank you so much Anne, we really appreciate your constant support.
To everyone at Knox, my workplace. So many of you followed my journey with genuine interest, I thank you for your friendship and support, not to mention the many people who gave to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
To my riding mates from TORC and Peloton Sports. Everyone has been so encouraging, spurring me on to train hard, riding with me and even checking in on me at the race, thanks guys. I love being a part of this club.
My Pit Crew, Gary Eastment and Bernard Chan, what can I say. I couldn’t have dreamed of a better pit crew, this result belongs to you as much as it does to me.

To the riders, there are so many people I have met thru this sport whom I am proud to know, Kev, Jase, Arran, Chops, Fenz, Andrew H, Andrew C to name a few.
And finally I dedicate this blog to my Nan, Bessie Lorraine Israel, who passed away 29 September 2010, aged 90.
It was her strength and endurance that inspired me to push on thru the night.
It was her courage that taught me to never give in.
It was her love of life and her laughter that showed me not to take life too seriously but to enjoy the journey.
Keep riding
Mike

STM3 and Husky100

A big couple of weekends have just blown by, first with the STM3 7 hour at Yellowmundee and today the long awaited Husky100. The training is starting to pay dividends with two very satisfying results,
Yellowmundee was the race that might have been and after a good start, riding my Giant XTC 29 1 for the first time it was eating up the rocky trails and it certainly wasn’t slowing me down after setting the fastest lap in my category. The dual for 2nd and 3rd continued for a few laps between Jeff Rooney and myself, but about the same time that Jeff put a gap between us I realised my back tyre was steadily losing pressure, not good when riding a tubed wheel on a hard tail at speed over a rocky trail! I stopped a couple of times to pump it up but sure enough on lap 7 the tube gave up the ghost and I was left to run back along the trail to the event centre to find a replacement. Now there is a story here. The bike is an ex-demo, apparently straight from the guys at AMB. When I inspected the blown tube there were no less than 4 patches on it! Thanks AMB! I must write to thank you for this learning experience! The guys at Lifecycles were great and swap out the dilapidated thong for a brand spanker and I was rolling again, but down to 6th place. I fought my way back to 5th, and finished feeling pretty happy with my effort and glad to still be in the series points. One other thing, Giant can you please put some decent brakes on what is otherwise a brilliant bike? This bike deserves better than Avid 3’s!!!
The Husky today was an awesome race and starting just behind the Elite’s the pace was furious to start with but I soon settled into a nice steady rhythm and again the 29er was rolling beautifully. This trail was made for a 29er and having ridden all these trails over the last few summer’s I knew this would be a fast race. There were a few mud puddles to contend with but basically the track was in great shape until about the 85k mark and then the mud really started to bite. Our dear organiser Amanda who did a fantastic job today quipped that it can’t be a MTB race without some mud, but let’s be clear. It is one thing to jump off for a few impassable pools, but wading through 4-5 thigh high slop traps is not what we want. MTB’s are not cheap to run at the best of times and it is about time MTB event organisers realised that replacing multiple drive train and suspension components after every race is not sustainable. Please guys show some consideration for the people who support your events and avoid running on really wet muddy trails. There are still folks out there that crumble into a sobbing mess at the mere mention of Capital Punishment
OK so having got that off my chest, let me repeat this was by and large a fantastic course, with plenty of fun single track and fast flowing fire trail often over hard baked clay, nice and fast. I had the nutrition dialled and felt pretty fresh at the end, perhaps I should have gone a little harder? I achieved a PB today, finishing a solid 4th just 2 minutes behind 3rd place. A podium would have been nice but
It’s been great racing this last two weeks, but even better chatting, riding and recovering (eating!) with top people I have met through this sport, there are too many to name! Also congrats to the other TORC riders, Larri Brittan winning her category and Kelly Mapleston 2nd. Peter Cheesman and Sandy Logie also completed the 50km and 100km races respectively
Keep riding
Mike

The Mont 2010

Well it has been a while since I wrote something here. After the euphoria of qualifying for the World 24hr Solo Championship, things predictably, took a bit of a slide. I mean I was still riding, but life got in the road a little, and it didnt seem all that important to train anyway since the WSC isnt until October!

You see, we all need goals and not just long term ones, that's why this weekend was so good. A 24hour race, albeit in a team of four, but a great chance to test my speed and fitness on what is meant to be some of the sweetest single track anywhere, and sweet it is. A continuous 19km loop of winding single track through pine forest, punctuated by the odd fire road pinch climb.

I will spare the description of the drive down Friday night, setting up camp at 10pm, all the usual stuff and skip straight to the start. Was a rush! 500 riders standing on the start line, you feel the adrenalin and then we are off. A 400m dash up hill to your bike, a literal stampede of flesh and lycra. You see there are 2500 riders entered in teams of mostly 4 and 6, add to that almost every rider brings a significant other or the whole family and it means the population of a small city decends on this place called Sparrow Hill just outside Canberra. And they all line the dirt road as you run for your bike, they are waving flags and cheering, I have to say it bares a remarkable resemblance to a typical spectator lined climb on de Tour.

Grabbed my bike off Steve and I off on my first lap and it is a good start at 53min. Steve and Bernie put in solid laps of 55 and 58 mins, then Ryan lays down the challenge with a sub 50min. We all take another lap and the track gets faster, although the dust makes it a little difficult. Into the night now and we are onto doubles. My double is just over the 2 hour mark and I come in a little bonked. So it is time to replenish and get to bed. I sleep like a log and awake at 3am after 4 solid hours on recharge ready to roll even though I am not due out until 6am. So I eat my breakfast and see Ryan come in smashed after riding a triple. The temperature still above 20 so we are riding in Canberra in the middle of the Autumn night in just a jersey and still struggling to stay hydrated!

I spend some time servicing the bike and get that coffee I have been waiting for all weekend and then get up to transition just in time to meet Bernie who has completed his double. At 6:15 it is still pitch black, but I am thrilled to know I will be out here riding when the sun rises and is it just gorgeous listening to the noises of the forest mixed in with the rattles of 500 mountain bikes rolling on hard pack.

I finish my double in just over 2 hours and feel satisfied with my 6 laps. All being well we will complete our 24 laps in 23 hours and secure a top 20 ranking in the Open 4 Mens.

23 hours you say? Last week James "Willo" Williamson passed away while competing in the Cape Epic in South Africa. In short, this guy was not only a world class MTB champion, but gave heaps to the sport he loved as well as being a highly respected sports journalist. Basically, he was a really great guy and the consensus is that he always had time and a smile for anyone. Stu, the MC for the event, read out a moving email describing Willo's incredible life and then following a minutes silence, the whole field proceeded on a non-competitive 4 km loop, called the James Williamson Honour Roll. It was a time to reflect on our sport, Willo, and what he accomplished and also why we ride, and more importantly why we live. Two of my team mates think Jesus was a pretty cool guy as I do and I showed them a new web site called www.jesusmtb.org, that aims to just be a signpost for anyone in MTB asking the big questions. A good mate of mine, Gary who is currently pastor at a church in the Shire, just happens to be a pretty handy rider and this is his brainchild and I am proud to support it. So check out the site and keep an eye out for the jesusmtb sticker on a seat post near you.

Where was I? Oh yes I finish my double at 8:20ish and off goes Steve to complete his 6 pack with a respectable double. Bernie put in his last lap, possibly his fastest for the weekend, then sends Ryan on his way at 11:30 to complete the race for our team "Bird TORC". Ryan planned to finish like he started and pulled out another blistering lap, narrowing missing sub 50. Well done mate! We might have even snatched 16th place!

There were a few other TORC diehards there which was good to see, Stephen K, Tracey R and Kelly M to name a few. My 10 year son Liam also made his MTB debut entering the 10-12 year old race and riding well. He has a great weekend with Dad camping and eating pancakes with chocolate topping and icecream

So back to my original comment, we all need short term goals. This race has got me back on track and hungry for the Worlds in October. Recovery ride tomorrow

Keep Riding
Mike

Jet Black 24hr 14-15 Feb 2009

As I begin this report, I am struck by two scary themes,
1.) this is the second ride report in 2 months where I question the suitability of the name “Wise”man’s Ferry
2.) This ride was so wet and muddy it actually became easier to ride up the water courses flowing down the middle of the track than to try and find a line that didn’t leave your rear mech dragging in 6 inches of mud.
In the lead up to the race, we were praying for the Weather forecast at Google to change, for this cloud to clear, but alas the only thing become clear was that this race would be test of man and machine not likely to be matched for a very long time.

Starting off for Team TORC was Mark who set a hot lap around the 8km track of 26 minutes, with Peter, Mike and Greg following all with sub 30 laps. After a couple of hours we were into 4th position in the Open Men’s 4’s with Tim Kerle’s and his team leading our category. The other interesting action was taking place on the river (ie. the Hawkesbury River not the river we were attempting to ride through every 30 minutes). The 08/09 Water Ski Racing World Selection Trials were on and what a sight (and sound) to see these boats rushing by with humans in tow at around 70 miles per hour. Mountain biking in these conditions certainly makes you want to take up Water skiing.
By late afternoon the rain was getting heavier and the track was working its way into a lovely thick oozing consistency.

A word on the track. Ahh ….yes….. well…. it has potential I suppose, but being the type who calls a spade a useful implement, it’s hard to see what the designers were thinking when they put this torture test together. Apparently the brief was as follows “Make the climb impossibly steep and rocky then add water to achieve complete destruction of 300 mountain bikes”.

Despite the obvious challenge, riding through the wet bush was at times fun and at other times hair raising especially when attempting to negotiate a wet slippery downhill rock garden...oh and did I mention the slight brake problem that began raising its ugly head. At around 5:45pm, there was sudden rush at the Blackman Cycles Stand for brake pads, seems the combination of water, sand, grit and clay makes for the perfect brake pad destroyer. A set of $40 brake pads was lasting just 3 or 4 laps, so half riding, half sliding down a slope and discovering you left the last remnant of pad lining in the last dam you rode through certainly get’s the adrenalin pumping. (Note to Avid, please design some wet weather brake pads)

Despite all this our team of masters pressed into 3rd position in the open category, half out of shear bloody determination and half because most sane people by this stage had packed up and gone home. At around 7:30pm the word came that a number of riders had fallen down a gully and now the race would be paused until 7am tomorrow morning. Around the same time, Mark appeared back at transition with a stream of red mud oozing from his shin. It didn’t take long for first aid to dress it and dispatch him to the hospital for an x-ray and stitches. All OK, he’ll back in no time, tough man! Fast forward to 7am, and we are thinking “please please call it off”. We are still in 3rd position but down a rider. But no luck, the marshals inspect the course after a night of torrential rain and declare it open for racing at 7:30am. Go figure.

I think that’s all that needs to be said now about this race. You may have detected a little negativity in this report, and maybe I have a few things to get off my chest, but I can’t finish on a negative and we managed to finish a very credible 4th for a masters team in a field of much younger riders.

To my team of Mark, Greg and Peter, you guys are top shelf, hard as nails and damn fine riders. It was a privilege to be part of this team, never once did anyone complain and through it all the camaraderie and the smiles remained.

To Sue Cheesman and Ann Hatton, what an amazing support crew you were. We could not have achieved what we did without your help and our time at Del Rio was made so much more comfortable with you taking care of us.

To the guy in the funny hat who cut a new track in the middle of the night so we didn’t have to ride through a 50 metre rice paddy anymore, my bike thanks you and I thank you.

To Ben, Chris and all the guys from Blackman cycles, who worked tirelessly to keep those many determined riders circulating, thank you. You guys are legends.

To Jet Black who provided enough lube to fill an Olympic pool, thanks heaps.

And finally to Rocky Trail. Thank you for your vision and determination to put on this event. Your organization was first rate and with some better weather and a rethink on the track, entry to this race could become a highly sought after commodity.

Now please excuse me while I go dig a grave for my mountain bike.