PrecisionMTB.com

Grampian Challenge 10/1/11

2011-10-02T21:18:00.004-04:00

I love riding my bike. I particularly enjoy riding my singlespeed mountain bike on trails, dirt roads, rail trails and paved roads. The Grampian Challenge was an inaugural event that I read about earlier this year. It billed itself as offering the chance to race on all the terrain listed above. This made it particularly attractive to me.

When I looked at the course itself, I realized it covered one of my favorite running routes in southeast Michigan. Indian Lake Road and Drahner Road offer some of the best hills in the area. This spring I ran a couple 20 milers here preparing for my marathon in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

But the weather was looking bad. Actually it was a full on horror show. Rain, wind, cold. I went to bed Friday and decided I would make a game day decision Saturday morning. When I awoke it wasn't raining so I decided I would go. Wind was forecast to be between 20-30 mph. Hills and a strong headwind when heading north. This was gonna be tough.

When I arrived at Addison Oaks registration went well. A pint glass was given to each participant with "Grampian Challenge" stamped on it. Nice touch. At 10:01 AM they lined us up and sent us out. And so it began. Some double track at Addison Oaks. Mud was there but not horrible. Next up Drahner Road and a big climb up. Legs still being fresh I powered up it easily. We made our way over to some dirt trails I have never ridden before. A bit more mud, I hit a couple corners a bit too hard and had to get on the brakes quickly.

Eventually we made our way out and onto Indian Lake Road. More rolling hills. And then we made a right hand turn onto a road that linked back over to Drahner. This was a long grinding hill that really put a hurt on me. My legs were feeling it and I was only halfway there. By the time we got to the top I was in need of a breather and welcomed the downhill section that followed. From here the course was a bit of a blur. Rolling hills, more climbing, and then a respite on the Polly Ann rail trail. Then some soupy dirt roads with more hills. At one point I thought I had a flat front tire and actually brought my front wheel up and was relived when it hit the dirt with no give. The mud was that bad.

Towards the end we hit a "ski hill" that I had heard some people talk about before the race. I had no idea what they were talking about as there is no ski-worthy hills in this region. While the hill was worthless for skiing, it was something to behold when your legs are fried and your pushing 61 gear inches on a singlespeed. I rode up as far as I could only to dismount and start pushing. And pushing. Once we hit the top, the ride down was sweet. The next thing I remember was finding myself back on Drahner Road and climbing up another long, grinding hill. My legs were protesting, my breathing labored but I was picking off some riders which made me feel a bit better. Grind - grind and finally the top. Back down and on our way to Addison Oaks. They finished the race on a long section of singletrack there and it was good fun. Except that my legs were gassed. And I had tapped my water bottle. And I was STARVING but had on winter gloves so I could not manage to eat at all. Still I managed to reel in an pass a couple people on cross bikes. The finish line as a welcome site.

When I crossed it I was greeted by JimmieC who was changed into clean clothes, smiling, and eating a banana. I was coated in mud, hungry, thirsty and grateful to be done. I was tempted to grab the half eaten banana from Jimmie's hand. That was tough, way tougher than I thought it would be. I think this race has great potential and really enjoyed it. If you are looking for a new race to try next year, give this one some consideration. Being so close to home makes it a nice bonus for me.

GPS Data

Results

Ore to Shore Review 2011

2011-08-17T15:58:00.000-04:00

In 2011 I had Ore to Shore on my calender for quite some time and had been looking forward to it more and more by the day. The thought of doing the Hard Rock in the Upper Peninsula had been eating at me for years but the long drive up and the usual conflicts always got in the way in the past. This year everything fell into place. My schedule at work could not even get in the way. Then when I weaseled my way into Camp Erickson it was full speed a head. Andy helped us immensely by arranging a great house for us to stay in for the 5 days(4 nights) we would need to make this trip worth the drive. That situation was perfect in all kinds of ways.

Race day and we were gearing up in downtown Nagaunee. Everyone was awake in this town for the beginning of the probably the biggest event of the year for them. Really cool atmosphere compared to some other races. Stress levels seem low and everyone was just excited to be there. After riding through the streets of Nagaunee and into the woods we came out about 8 miles later in Ishpeming. This is a city I have always been curious about and it did not disappoint. Not as big as Marquette but bigger then Nagaunee. I cheered the fans of this little town in passing and they were very receptive. I could be heard saying stuff like, "YOU ROCK ISHPEMING!" while riding past the fans. Then about 3 miles down some dirt roads later we found ourselves riding through someones private commercial property and in passing I asked the landowner sarcastically, "What town is this?". To which he replied, "Ishpatucky!" That guy gets a star for the quick wit!

The Hard Rock 48 miler was filled with every type of terrain possible. Luckily it was dry enough in the previous week so the mud was mostly minimal. Most of the singletrack was hard pack with the occasional loose rocky downhills. Plenty of sand on the snowmobile trails. Jeep type two tracks and finally tons of road riding. I never thought I would look forward to the roads but it gave me a chance to eat, drink and get my head back together. The aid stations through the course are probably the best I have witnessed. Great support from the community. These parts of the UP you can never see on your own do to all the private property being volunteered. I had to laugh when we made a left hand turn from the road and into someones driveway. That later led to a road for a utility company. Some property had damns and reservoirs that were spectacular.

Yes I was in awe. I enjoyed the sites and the friends I made during the race. Next year I will try and remain more focused but for the first time I was really enjoying the area(evident in my time) while still trying to finish the race in one piece. Next year I should be able to knock off a good 20 minutes.

Finally towards the end we climbed Kirbys Hill and that is where I was hallucinating and saw a bunch of "Nymphos" on the trail who enjoyed shoving watermelon in my mouth. I am not yet sure what all that meant but it was just what I needed at the time. They also told me that it was all down hill from there and I believed them. Never doubt a "Nympho". The last 2 miles were mostly road heading through the campus of NMU then towards the finish shoot. I could see the crowds of people growing so I kicked it into the highest gear and started really pumping. When I saw the last arrow for a left hand turn to finish, I also saw a large group of familiar faces screaming my name and jumping around like I just scored the winning touchdown for the Lions in Super Bowl 2012. I could only recognize a few of their faces without falling. Most of them were from the Novi Tree Farm and I know I saw my team mate and friend Tom Payn, so I swept my bike right to gather a few high fives before making the left to the finish. I was so happy at that moment I wanted to burst. It grounded me and made me consider my fortune among humanity that I had seen along the trail. I was happy to finish, glad I made the trip and consider myself blessed with friends.

The best part was taking the extra days to relax, ride and eat with friends and we did a lot of all three.

Really looking forward to next year and kicking myself for not doing this event sooner. It was an honor to be with my teammates representing PrecisionMTB.com. My Kenda Karma on the front ran great as a tubeless and the new Slant Six on the back is exactly what I needed for the diversity in the terrain of the course. My bike held out great! Even after smacking a tree on our last trail ride of the weekend my Niner EMD 9 performed like a champ. If you know how graceful I am at falling you would have really been impressed with that display. Unfortunately I was all alone at the time so no witnesses. This time. ;)

A few more pics from Stoney Creek Time Trial

2011-07-24T23:39:00.005-04:00

Another hot one at Stoney today. At least this one was shorter than the marathon a few weeks ago. Here are a few additional pics. Great seeing everyone today. Til next time...

Stony Race Pictures

2011-07-24T15:53:00.002-04:00

Lumberjack 100

2011-06-19T22:39:00.003-04:00

Well it's in the books. I completed my first 100 mile race on Saturday. I manage to struggle thorough and complete my first attempt at the Lumberjack 100. I had a good solid first lap and was on pace right where I wanted to be. I came to the pits after lap 1 feeling a little stiff but otherwise OK. My wife Tammy loosened my neck and help refill my bottles and food and sent me back out. About 10 miles in on the second lap my neck and shoulders were so tight I was ready to quit. I rode a bit with Tak (Trails Edge) and Rob (RBS) who helped me get through to the pits. Almost to the end of the second lap I lowered my seat a tad hoping to remove some of the stress off my neck. I headed into the pits 2 and was ready to quit. After Tammy massaged my neck and shoulders, took some Motrin and applied some Icy Hot I was ready for some more. Oh wait, the positive encouragement form Melissa, Jeff (Mom & Pop Racing), Justin(Team Tree Farm), and Kathy (Custer Cyclery) telling me not to quit I jumped back on the bike and headed for some more pain. I managed to struggle through and make it at 11:04. I was happy just to finish. Not where I wanted my time, but hey there is next year.

A big thanks to all of our local sponsors and a shout out to Stan's No Tubes and Kenda for rolling

me to the finish!!!

Great job to all those who came up for such a great event. See ya next year.

M22 Challenge

2011-06-14T20:46:00.000-04:00

John, Stevie D and I are back from our adventure and we all had a great time. CLICK ON BLOG TO VIEW PICTURES, THEY DON'T COME THROUGH VIA EMAIL. None of us had done a multi discipline event before. I think we are all hooked. The M22 was a run/bike/paddle event. The terrible storm that woke us (see radar pics below) cleared at 7:15 and by race time not a drop of rain fell. First up was the 2.5 mile run including scaling the face of Sleeping Bear Dunes. Lets just say there was no running up that bad boy except for the very elite runners at the front of the pack. The run was the hardest segment for me. Excluding a 3 mile run about a year ago you have to go back to 8th grade cross country to find the last time I ran. It showed, Steve and John were patient but faster. We planned to stay together and for the most part we did. Managing transitions was new for all of us & we learned some tricks for next year to cut off some time. The bike segment was my favorite and by far the strongest for all of us. We pass an estimated 100+ bikes during the loop. The roads were still wet and some of the downhills were quite fast. Caution was the word of the day. The Kayak was the segment that surprised us all the most. Post race we learned the boat makes a big difference and many of the faster paddlers had "Sea Kayaks" some 18 ft long. One of the other B&B guests came in 3rd in the 60 and over category and his time was 10 minutes faster than ours. An 80 year old competed and finished the race! The Kayak was harder than any of us thought but we all finished. Post race was really fun just feeling the accomplishment of doing it. They had Moomers Ice Cream at the finish! YUMMY. We have reserved the cottage at the B&B for next year and hope to have friends join us. We have room for 2-3 more in our accommodations. It was great to get out of town and have fun racing. Sunday morning before we headed back the road out from the B&B and did the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive in the National Park. It was KILLER. 40mph downhills and super steep climbs. Jeff & Katie were the inn keepers and the B&B and they were super cool. Katie fed us like kings and kept breakfast late for us when we were later returning from our ride. She is a chef and made everything from scratch including the pie crust in the Quiche Lorraine. Homemade granola, yogurt parfait, roasted potatoes, and cream cheese coffee cake, super yummy! FUN TIMES.

dave

GPS of Race from Dave's Garmin

GPS of Sunday ride on Scenic Drive

Race Results

Link to Glen Arbor B&B

Event Info

Mohican 100

2011-06-10T10:08:00.002-04:00

Whew... I can now say been there, done that in regards to the Mohican 100. And on a single speed to boot.

The course is a beast. In my opinion, it makes the Lumberjack look like child’s play. Not only it is probably the farthest I've ridden in a day, it's gotta be over the most varied terrain. That course has it all. Single track, log piles, rock gardens, white knuckle 40+ mile descents, stream crossings, dirt roads, paved roads, climbing, climbing more climbing.

After some investigation and inquiries to fellow Michiganders that have rocked out on a single speed at the Mohican, I chose to roll out 2:1. 36/18 to be specific. Good thing since this was what was on my bike and I had zero time for a test ride after a gear swap prior. I figured this was a bit a ballsy choice but, I was assured that there we a “ton” of flats and I would only have to walk a few hills.. Um yeah, right.

So, how to summarize a 100 miler? Let’s break it down in a some summarized segments. Disclaimer for accuracy due to the delirium that ensued within the race must be assumed.
First 30ish:
This has got to be what brings folks back to the Mohican year after year. Single track, log piles, stream crossings, rock gardens, you name it. Pure MTB love. This blew anything I’ve ridden in Michigan out of the water. Prior to my second endo, I was loving every inch of it. Every climb leg burning climb was rewarded with a rocking downhill. I felt great at this point. I certainly was feeling the gearing on the climbs but, was not burning the candle at both ends. I passing geared riders just due to the fact I had no choice but, to mash up the switch back climbs. Gears? Meh, who needs em?
Next 15ish:
While I did get a little gun shy after my second crash in the single track. The 14-16 miles between the 2nd & 3rd aid station was mostly a mixed of dirt and paved roads and I was admittedly a little worked up because after having to loosen my brake lever to unlock my bars after my second endo. I was PO’d that I hadn’t raised my levers enough to clear my top tube and even worse it put a big o’ scratch in the top tube. Yeah, Yeah, I know. It’s a mountain bike. Scratches, dents, bends, etc are just character. But, this was lame and my fault. Plus, I felt like an idiot standing on the side of the trail with my bars locked. And what was this stretch packed with? Hills… And what’s my favorite activity on my SS? Crushing geared riders on hills and putting myself into lung burning, leg cramping, problem dissolving, blues curing, oxygen debt. And that’s exactly what I did.
Aid station 3 to 5:
This 40ish miles is a blur. It was filled with suffering, delusion, regret, excitement, you name it. I had made two poor decisions in the first ½ of the race. #1 being not carrying enough to drink and eat in the first 1/3. To compensate, I decide gorging myself with a toxic mix of heed, lemonade, coke, endurolytes, etc at aid station 2 was a good idea. The was second letting them hang out a little early on the stretch between the single track and prior to stopping at this aid station. By this time it was hot, which didn’t help, and my stomach was a wreck. I dumped all my mixed drinks, filled up with water and headed out mashing up the hill immediately following the aid station. I was in high spirits and convinced myself I was a machine and was going to rock the second ½ of this mother. Then boom. Mistake number two hit me as soon as I hit the single track. No more “climby” in these legs. Thank goodness the single track dried up and much of the remaining of the race turned out to be road, two track & rail to trail. Cause I am going to tell you. I probably would not have made it. So, 2:1 had kicked my butt at this point. But was it the wrong choice? At least not on the promised flats and they were finally here. The hills became few and far between and when on the saddle and spinning I felt great. I was holding 16-17mph with ease and picking off geared riders left and right. Even a group of about 4-5 single speeders which really fired me up. I was lucking to have a few riders that were mixing it up with me to keep me motivated. But, it was bizzaro world. I’d spin away from them on the flats and they’d catch me after I bailed out and started walking the next big hill or anything I couldn’t mash up in 20 or less pedal revolutions.
Last 10ish:
I neared the last aid station with one of the riders I’d been trading positions with about the last 10 miles. After my first aid station poor decision making, I had been stopping at each and ensuring that I was topped off with liquid and fuel. I did a quick inventory and decided I was supplied enough to go the remainder and let the guy at my side know I was rolling through. Secretly, partially because I wanted to put a little gap on him with hopes I could keep him in the rear view. But, what’s the last 10 miles of Mohican? Yep, single track. Gears? Who needs em right? I wanted some! 2:1 proved too much for me at this point. The rider I was hoping to keep in the rear view? Yeah. Caught me in about a mile. I think he put 7 minutes on me by the end. Anything that required any extended mashing or uphill and technical got walked. Luckily, I was now mixed in with 100k riders and had someone to chase to keep me motivated. I have to admit. I walked an embarrassing amount of trail in this stretch. I was in straight up survival mode. Not sure if I blacked out at some point, was just so delusional, I lost track of time focusing on not cart wheeling off the trail but, something made time melt away. I rounded a corner and could see the Mohican Adventures campground. And that meant FINISH. But, of course not before those SOB’s ran you up another ball breaking hill. :)

I coasted across the line. High on life or delirious. Or some of both. Mohican 100 completed. In damn near 9 hours and on a single speed with gearing I was told repeatedly after the race was just nuts to even attempt. Good enough for 15th in the SS division. Equally as impressive, I managed to hold off all but, 2 of the women in the race. Which beating all us know is a tough thing to do. Cause those ladies are more than just respectable riders. Them “girls” are fast!

Hanging out post race watching the awards was a riot. Many of the top riders were hanging out and I placed myself strategically close to the trailer serving Great Lakes Brewing Co. beer. This meant I had no shortage of great people to meet and hang around with and my pint glass was frequently emptied but, rarely empty.

So, how was the recovery week post Mohican? Legs are still pretty tired. Likely in part due to the race but, also given I am still on some kind of weird high and have put 1 day of cycling and 4 days of running under my belt this week. Much of it prior to 6:30am. In fact, that is the most training I have strung together since post Lumberjack schooling in 2009. Let’s hope it lasts cause I have some crazy ideas for August and September.

Results

Mud Sweat and Beers

2011-05-14T22:50:00.000-04:00

The 2nd annual Mud Sweat and Beers took place this past weekend in Traverse City. This year's weather threatened to be a little chilly. Thankfully, despite and early 9am start time, things warmed up and even presented a chance to try out our new team shorts even. This year's course did not disappoint with the addition of a good deal of single track making it a legit 20 mile race. This course has become one of my personal favorites with the relentless climbs, white knuckle decents and lung burning flats offered by the Vasa Trail and surrounding area. "Sweat" is certainly not in short supply and this year was a mud spit was added just before the finish line to ensure that "Mud" was part of the equation. Post race activities were taken up a knotch from last year and plenty of Right Brain Brewery "Beers" were flowing. All said and done, this is certainly an event worth making the trip up north to attend.

PrecisionMTB Team Results:
Brian Deal 27th Expert 30-39
Adam Wheeler 15th Expert Single Speed

Results

Photo courtesy of Joel Gaff

Slant 6 Review

2011-05-12T10:19:00.000-04:00

I finally got a chance to test out the Kenda Slant 6 2.2's yesterday at Maybury. Off the bike the wheels felt heavier than the Karmas I had used last season. On the trail I haven't noticed the weight difference but it was only my 2nd trail ride of the season. Cornering stability felt good in hard pack and loose terrain. Straight line performance was good too and overall they seem like a good tire. One thing I did notice is the sidewall seems to keep it's shape better then my previous tires when aggressively attacking corners, which is a good thing. As my conditioning increases I'll have a better idea of how these tires will perform under hard riding for extended periods.

Pontiac Lake TT

2011-04-26T12:58:00.002-04:00

Congrats to Tom and Roger on two very strong showings at the Pontiac Lake Time Trial this past weekend.

Tom Payn 7th EXPERT MEN 30‐39
Roger Pelkey 4th SPORT MEN 50‐59

Complete Results

Yankee Springs TT

2011-04-23T10:50:00.001-04:00

Despite cold temps, a little snow and the fact that for many of us, the race was the first single track we'd ridden in 2011, a contingent of the team couldn't wait for a chance to debut their new Kenda tires at Yankee Springs TT this past weekend. As the day wore on, the snow dissipated and the weather took a turn for the better. Trail conditions turned out to be fairly good as well. Unfortunately, temps didn’t quite rise high enough for much socialization after the race but, it was still great to see some of the team after a long winter and what seems like a non-existent Spring.

Team Results:
CLASS: EXPERT MEN 29 & UNDER
18 Cisler Nick 91 PRECISIONMTB 58:51 1:04:33 2:03:24.1

CLASS: EXPERT MEN 30-39
4 Payn Tom 52 PRECISIONMTB 53:24 55:10 1:48:33.6
5 Simpson Scott 78 PRECISIONMTB.COM, SMITH OPTICS, ODI GRIPS 53:33 55:39 1:49:12.4
16 Wheeler Adam 88 PRECISIONMTB.COM 55:29 1:01:08 1:56:37.8
21 Bryan Deaz 178 PRECISIONMTB.COM 1:04:49 1:10:38 2:15:26.1

CLASS: EXPERT MEN 50 & OVER
1 Fulkerson Ray 90 PRECISIONMTB.COM 50:18 51:15 1:41:32.9

CLASS: SPORT MEN 30-34
24 Brian Brown 399 PRECISIONMTB.COM 1:08:24.0

CLASS: SPORT MEN 45-49
9 Andrew Staub 264 PRECISIONMTB.COM/BTT 1:02:31.8

Results

A few pics from the race:
Bryan

http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p463264988/e3ac2813a

Tom
http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p463264988/e3cceceb2

Scott
http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p463264988/e8b41991

Nick
http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p463264988/e1c781af5

Brian
http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p463264988/e2d663c53

Adam
http://www.jhkunnenphoto.com/p463264988/e25241192

Look Dad No Training Wheels

2011-04-12T21:03:00.000-04:00

Paige finally did it!!

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

BTT 4/9

2011-04-09T08:34:00.000-04:00

20mi in and heading to breakfast.
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Kenda Slant Six 29 x 2.2

2011-04-03T17:26:00.005-04:00

New for this year is inthe John Tomac line-up from Kenda is the Slant Six. The tire I am reviewing here is the 29 x 2.2. Tires both can it just under the 740g claimed weight. They are a tad heavier than the previous tires I am use to, but they look to roll very fast. This tire is supposed to bridge the gap between the Small Block 8 and the Nevegal. The Karma was also one of my previous favorites.

I have them mounted tubeless on a pair of Stan's NOTUBES Crest 29er rims.

The ramped knobs and good size side knobs took to provide a fast rolloing tire that will grip very well in the corners.

The test rig for this tire will be a 2011 Redline D680. Both front and rear tire also have pleanty of clearence in the frame and Reba fork.

I am hoping to get these out on the trail this week to see just how they preform.

Stay tuned........

1st Training Ride of 2011

2011-04-02T14:05:00.001-04:00

We hit Hines Dr today for a 30mi road ride. Cool temps, but a nice morning. Pictured is Brian, Bryan, Phil, Nick and Jason.
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Kenda Tires

2011-03-30T16:10:00.001-04:00

We want to thank Kenda for helping up out wit some new tires this year. Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Corktown 5k

2011-03-13T22:15:00.001-04:00

On two feet, rather than two wheels, PrecisionMTB made its season debut at the Corktown 5k this morning with a strong showing of 3rd in the team category. The weather cooperated for not only great race day weather but, St. Patrick's day parade and post-race festivities. Looking forward to another fun filled season.

1 Lee Shaw 17:44
2 Adam Wheeler 18:36
3 James Senska 19:17
4 Bryan Deal 24:38
5 Scott Simpson 27:41
6 Cristine Simpson 27:45
7 Phil York 29:37

Team Results

Overall Results

Photos

Great day for some pre-season cross-training.

Precision CPS award

2011-01-30T15:10:00.001-05:00

Great job guys. 2010 MMBS CPS awards.

See ya next year!
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Iceman 2010

2010-11-07T20:12:00.005-05:00

The PrecisionMTB team wrapped up the 2010 season this weekend in Traverse City at the Iceman. This year the race once again earned its name with 20 degree temperatures at the start and a mostly snow covered course. The team braved the elements, slippery conditions, frozen body parts and water bottles and posted some very respectable performances.

Scott Simspon 2:00 7th Men 35
Ray Fulkerson 2:00 6th Men 51-52
Adam Wheeler 2:02 5th Men 32-33
Roger Pelky 2:10 4th Men 58-60
Brian Brown 2:13 20th Men 32-33
Bryan Deal 2:13 21st Men 32-33
Jason Weida 2:17 24th Men 35
Brandon Bailey 2:18 26th Men 35
Lee Shaw 2:20 28th Men 36
Tom Sterling 2:20 39th Men 41
Andy Staub 2:29 85th Pro Men
John Schram 2:32 65th Men 41
Melissa Mabry 2:37 7th Women 30-34
Phil York 2:47 65th Men 37
Dave & Shelby Smith 3:35 25th Tandem

Full Results

IRLA Iceman Training

2010-10-10T18:28:00.000-04:00

The blog has been a little dead as of late. Lots of racing going on but, some fun training too.

Roger, Lee, Jim, Andy S., Jason, Brandon and I from the team made it out for a couple of fun filled laps at IRLA this morning. Lee managed to stay upright for most part but, Roger had an unfortunate run in with a rider who moved to the side of the trail to let our group pass and then cut directly behind me and in front of him resulting is both of them going down. Jimmy who we know from LA Fitness and BTT basically tacoed a wheel but, some how it survived lap two. Although it had a heck of a wobble. Our first lap started off and remained pretty quick. Luckily things settled down for most of the second lap. It was also fun to have 3 singlespeeds in the group. Man is Roger fast out there. Especially, when you run out of gear and watch him pedal away in the big ring in the flats.

Great weather and it felt really good to get out on the bike. I am definitely not 100% after being sick all week but, the weather was just too great to pass up the chance to get out for a ride.

A quick snapshot of the group from my phone.

My mostly creak free steed post ride.

Jimmy and Roger surveying the damage to Jimmy's front wheel. I think the count was 16 spokes with little to no tension on them.

Ronde Van Stony

2010-09-27T09:16:00.001-04:00

It was as chilly start to the first Ronde Van Stony dirt/gravel road race in and around Stony Merto Park. Approx. 130 riders left the mass, rolling start. Body temps rose and numb fingers thawed as the race left the two tracks of the park and the never ending, relentless climbs begain. The course was in interesting mix of gravel two track, pavement, hills, hills and more hills. But, mostly consisted of pothole & washboard dotted, hard packed, dirt, roads with a handful of fun filled 30+ mph decents. The terrain gave MTB's the advantage is some areas and CX bikes in others. Pace lines crucial to success which had formed after the two track near the start, melted away once the groups hit the two track near then end of the race. Resulting in an "every man for himself" sprint to the finish. Overall, it was a great way to spend the morning. Hope to be back again next year.

Race Results
Age Group Results:
Tom Payne 6th Expert 30-39 1:44
Adam Wheeler 10th Expert 30-39 1:49
John Gonway 14th Expert 30-39 1:59
Jim Senska 3rd Sport 30-39 1:51
Brian Brown 9th Sport 30-39 2:06
Paul Mann 4th Sport 40-49 1:56
Tom Sterling 9th Sport 40-49 2:05

Garmin Data at My Blog

Couple of race results 8/8/10 & 8/14/10

2010-08-22T10:36:00.001-04:00

Hine Park Time Trial
First ever road race. I figured this would be a good introduction to road racing since there would be an extremely low likelihood of crashing. This format of racing is simple but tough. Probably the best way to judge cycling fitness short of doing a VO2max test. You basically race the clock and attempt to reel in a couple of riders and get passed by a couple (at least in my experience).
Result 15/30 Time 34:07 (3mins 16 seconds off first place pace)

Ore to Shore
My first time in the UP of Michigan was to run this 48 mile mountain bike race. I heard that a lot of roadies liked to race this course since it was not real technical. I also heard some people call this race "Sand to Sand" due to the large amounts of sand on the course.

Race day JohnS, AndyE, Jimmy and I did a warmup ride through the streets of Negaunee. I guess we got carried away and rode too long, we lined up almost dead last. Fortunately Jimmy is big and strong, the first two miles were on the road. The three of us formed a draft line behind our horse and passed LOADS of people. About a half mile into the dirt I made my move and broke away from the gang. I continued to pass riders left, right, in between, and completely off the trail. This was a fair amount of work, especially so early in the race. But I knew eventually I would be with riders of similar ability. Unfortunately this did not happen before the course ran over some very climbable hills that EVERYONE was walking. Not what you want to see on a singlespeed.

After ~12 miles I was surrounded with riders of a more reasonable ability level. This was a huge help. At some point before mile 20 we rode through a section of trail that was underwater. Its hard for me to say how deep but I think it was close to the level of my bottom bracket. I actually laughed at this point since I would never ride through such nonsense except in a race. My feet were drenched, the lenses on my shades were trashed from the rider ahead of me spraying me, and I could not see the end of the water pit. I was happy when this part ended although the cool water felt wonderful on this hot day.

I finally ran down teammate Melissa shortly after "Misery Hill". And when I say ran down, I mean I was running my bike up a hill and passed her riding her rig. It was great to see a familiar face out there, I was going to try and ride a bit with her but this section was tough. I decided I better focus on safely getting myself through and did not see her again on the course.

My next big concern was that I was going through my water bottles much faster than I had anticipated. I made the decision that I would burn through all my fluid and make a pit-stop at the next aid station and fill up. When I came across the aid station, volunteers were out in force with cups of water and sports drink. I weaved in between a couple of them and stopped under the tent. A woman ran up to me and I asked if I could please fill up my bottles. She grabbed the bottles from my hands and said to wait there. What service! I then noticed some cut up orange slices, they looked good so I ate one. One became two and then my bottles were back in my possession. Damn - these oranges were awesome. I decided at the finish I would eat my fill of these tasty things.

So onward we went, many miles on the streets. The geared folk would pass me on the flats and downhills, I would reel em in on the hills. It became comical after a time because it was the same people I would keep trading positions with. I actually took to trying to draft them on the flats but it was a big effort. Hearing that there were more hills up ahead from spectators simply became words of encouragement to me at this point.

The rest of the race passed by in a blur, there was a great singletrack section that was a blast. I had 4 or 5 guys lined up behind me at one point. When I asked if they wanted to pass they said, "NO, you're carrying the best lines we have seen all day". A rare compliment on my technical skills but I'll take it.

Sometime later it is almost time to finish. I am working pretty hard with a couple miles to go when this big dude passes me on a singlespeed. I make an attempt to go with him but the tank is running low. Not enough explosive strength left to fend off this guy - not even enough to try and hang with him. I finally cross the finish and hear a, "Let's go Senska" and am all confused. Who the hell do I know in the UP? Everyone I know should be on the course still? Then I see them and it's BTTers Dearborn Don and JayB with big smiles on their faces. Very cool, and then it was over.

Bring on the orange slices... ;)
Result 15/43 Time 3hrs 21mins (that big dude beat me by 45 seconds)

Lessons learned: I need to be able to push more gear inches and not start so far back to improve my time at this event. The gear inches is tough; there are lots of steep hills here but there seem to be even more flats and downhills where I would be less likely to spin out and perhaps make up more time.

Tree Farm Relay

2010-07-26T10:10:00.005-04:00

On Saturday I headed to the Novi Tree Farm for the Tree Farm Relay. We had three teams that were competing in this event. The day was filled with a mix of sun, clouds and lots of rain. The course was good at the start and got kinda muddy as the race went on. My team managed a 6th place finish in the sport men class despite a crash on had 2 miles into my lap. I was going down a hill a clipped a pedal that tossed me over the bars. I like to thank Jason Sparks from MTB Patrol for fixing me up while I waited for the Novi EMT's to check me out. I also found that I cracked my helmet in the crash too. I am glad it did its job. The other teams finished 3rd in sport men and 5th in the advanced men. All in all it was a good day. I can't wait for this event to come next year.

I also want to give the guys at Stan's Notubes a big thanks for getting me my new set of wheels for my 29er so that I could race my new bike this weekend.

Group Ride 7-18 Maybury to Tree Farm Epic

2010-07-16T11:44:00.000-04:00

Time: 7-18 @ 8:00am on MTN Bikes
Weather: surface of the sun
Distance: ~32 miles (no drop)
From: parking lot across from northville downs

Its about 8 miles from northville to the 12mile road 'entrance' to tree farm. Well ride out do the 10 mile loop, ride to Maybury and call it a day. bring the water, gonna be a scorcher!

See ya there!

Bryan
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

One Helluva of a Ride - July 10

2010-07-14T10:46:00.000-04:00

Jim Senska and I headed out to Chelsea this past Saturday morning for the Ann Arbor Bicycle Touring Society 'One Helluva Ride', with intentions of doing the century ride. Spent some time the evening before getting the Kenda Kontender 700 x 26 tires on my bike... had worked on them Thursday evening, but didn't have any rim tape.

They rolled sweet for the ride. The weather Saturday was great, and stayed nice (unlike the past two years with rain at some point in the day), though it did get a bit warm as the day went on. So far so good at the first stop:

Not to long after the first stop, we joined a group of triathletes out getting some miles for their training. Working with them, we were able to scorch through the first 52 miles in 2 hours and 20 minutes (of riding time).

Paul (orange & red shirt), Ben (light green shirt), and John (red shirt) Warning: Riding with JimS and serious triathletes can put the hurt on your legs (though to Ben's credit he never drafted).

The second half went pretty well for me, eventually Jim, Paul and John dropped me a ways after the 75 mile food and drink station. I tried to keep my 5 hour of riding time goal within reach and kept at it, but my legs were feeling it. The span between 85 and 90 miles was a slog... on the last jog north I was able to hook up with a crew who had passed me and that bit of drafting helped immensely. Pulled into the fairgrounds with 101.4 miles in 5 hours 9 minutes... hit 100 miles in 5 hours and 5 minutes.

Virtually a flawless day of great riding... thanks to Jim, Paul and John for a great group effort. No mechanicals, good company and food, great weather.

Boyne Marathon

2010-07-12T10:55:00.003-04:00

It was a hot day in July and a another challenge arrived. It was the Boyne Marathon. After I fixed my front tire after it blew it off the front rim during a crash on lap 1, I managed to get a 3rd place finish. Tammy kept us hydrated between laps handing us bottles and food as we needed it. Bryan finish 4th, Tom finished 8th and Andy also finished up solid with a 8th place finish. On to the next race......

Stony Creek Marathon

2010-07-12T10:40:00.004-04:00

It was a beautiful day for racing. We had a good showing for the PrecisionMTB crew. I am starting to see the training that I am doing show up at the races. After a long afternoon I finished 4th at a very tough race. We also had great finishes by Bryan, Andy, Nick, Joe, John, Paul and Melissa.

Big M Weekend

2010-06-28T15:33:00.006-04:00

On Saturday Bryan and I headed up to the Big M for Sunday's XC race. We got to the cabin unloaded our gear and headed over to the Big M for a pre-ride for Sunday's race. This was the first chance to ride my new 29er. Bryan was also getting his first taste of a 29er. When we got the Big M parking lot, we realized we left the keys to the rack on the back of the truck. I managed to get the lock open and got the bikes on the trail. We did a few laps and headed into town for a pizza. On our way back to the cabin we saw sign "Thule Keys Lost". We stopped and grabbed them and headed back to call it a night.

We woke up Sunday Morning to a Thunder Storm. Big M is a giant sponge so no big deal we thought. About 8:45 we headed over to the Big M. As we arrived it stopped raining. Bryan got his gear on and turned in a great 6th place performance in the Expert Men 30-39 group.

I then geared up and headed to the start line. It was starting to rain just as we were staging. Just sprinkles I thought. About 2.5mi in it started to pour. I finished lap 1 thinking it has to stop some time. Covered in mud I decided just to finish the race. It stopped raining at the end of lap 2. Lap 3 was better, but it was a struggle just to finish. I managed to make my way to 5th place and was very happy I made it to the end.

My trip to NMU and Mt. Marquette.

2010-06-24T10:53:00.003-04:00

Recentley my family and I went up north to Marquette for my daughters orientation at Northern Michigan University. We are certainly proud of her and excited for her and I was excited to have the opportunity to ride in such a beautiful area. Doing some research I decided that riding from campus where we were staying in the dorms south through Marquette to Mt. Marquette ski hill was my best opportunity. I had to be creative when I took this window away from the family and also had to reschedule due to rain. Need less to say I found the window and weather was very cooperative around 11am Tuesday. Once at the trail head you basically have 4-5 options. Blue, red, yellow, green and strategic mixtures of all four. I heard that the blue was the most difficult and of course had to see for myself. It did not disappoint. As you can see by the pic what kind of work I had to do on the blue and that was only one place I had to get off. The climbs were not so bad but the jagged rocks were somewhat daunting. The pic is only a small taste of what else is up there. It was a fun trail but highly suggest full(front and rear)suspension. After finishing the blue and reading the map trying to make my decision another rider rolled up doing the same thing. He was a local named Brian and also rode from home closer to the lake. Since he had also just finished the blue he offered to show me the red. It was across the highway and had a steep climb up a jeep trail as a welcome statement. Once at the top of that climb there is a great view of Mt Marquette. Looks like that's the bonfire party area from clues left behind. Note to self. Brian and I continued to climb the Benson Grade and he pointed out where the trail took a fork to the right were all the Free Ride stunts. We were not really equipped for that so we continued left on some awesome single track climbing. For about a half mile I was following Brian's line when we came to an opening. That's when he said "Go ahead, have at it.". So I took the lead and shot down this ultra smooth rail of hard pack with the occasional rock and root at a turn with slight up hills that just sucked you into a few pedals and down again through another rail with a little moisture to create a two wheel slide that makes you wake up real quick. I think I had the most fun on this trail because of spots like that to keep me honest. The red had awesome flow and still challenging climbs. After rolling out of the woods, across the freeway and back to the map, Brian said he had to show me "Gorgeous" which is part of the yellow. We went a slightly different rte that he knew and were able to circumvent most of the yellow and get to that area. This was the most beautiful area I had seen all day and and the name did not disappoint. At some points you are riding on a bench cut made into the side of the ravine and looking down 30-50 feet at the rapids of the Carp River. That was incredible and only regret not stopping to take a picture if not for having so much fun during the ride. I knew Brian the local was excited just by my reactions. It felt great to be the one to be shown around a new area and I understand how he felt by being the guide. I hope to get some more time in that area in August and October. Let me know if anyone else wants to go. Also for anyone doing the Ore2Shore you should check this out after if you have time. I will be there a few days after the event.

ILRA to BSRA Epic

2010-06-13T17:34:00.002-04:00

What an awesome time today. The trails were great and the but riding with the group was even more enjoyable. This was such a fun ride that we need to do this again. Here is my garmin activity showing the route!

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/36777115

Brighton Epic 6/13

2010-06-13T17:18:00.004-04:00

On Sunday morning myself, Bryan, Adam, Jim S, Andy S, Brandon, Roger, Melissa, Jimmie headed out from Island Lake State Park for our Brighton Epic ride. We followed the Blue loop until we took the path that led to Lee road. We then made our way to Brighton Recreation Area where we rode the Murry Lake Trail, Torn Shirt and the "Lost Loop". We the headed back to Island Lake, picked up the Blue Trail. We then finished up the ride on the Yellow loop. All total we covered 40mi. This was a great ride and we plan to do it again later in the year.

Tuesday Training Ride

2010-06-11T09:03:00.003-04:00

Our first "Team Training Road Ride" was a blast last night. We eventually split up into two groups with the faster riders pulling away. The B group pace was still faster than any pace I would run on my own. It was motivating to ride with Melissa, Andy S., and Andy E. as we traded the lead position and helped each other by drafting. It should also be noted that Andy E. was riding a fixie with only a front brake!!

Hopefully we can continue to have a good turnout for these training rides. Here is my Garmin Activity showing a map of the route!

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/36432439

Brandon

My New Friend

2010-06-10T09:00:00.004-04:00

Here she is folks! After patiently waiting 3 months my new friend finally arrived. She sure is pretty but don't let that fool you. This bike is fast! After one ride I decided that I didn't have room for another so I have broken up with my Epic.

Many thanks to Jimmie for assembling my new ride! I swapped the cranks for the current XT, brakes for the real Elixer CR's with carbon blades and anodized red fittings, and shifters for X0 all from a pile of "new" parts that I took off the Kona I built last summer. She weighs 24.2 pounds and has a beautiful carbon fiber body but could lose a little weight. Jimmie also re-taped her wheels with some Stan's tape and converted her slippers to tubeless. She needs a PrecisionMTB tramp stamp!!!

Thanks to http://www.klmfitness.com/ and to Jimmie Coleflesh.

New road rig

2010-06-09T21:54:00.002-04:00

I FINALLY got a road bike from our friends at KLM this past Saturday. Living 1 mile from Hines Drive, it seemed like the right thing to do. Sure its been fun to rolling with the roadies on the Cannondale (pictured behind the Giant) but its kind of like bringing a knife to a gun-fight. Sure you get lucky - sometimes. More often than not though its just a beating.

AndyS and I took her for a spin on Sunday. We planned on hitting Hines but realized that it would be more appropriate to swim due to flooding. We enjoyed a nice relaxing ride down Outer Drive. I am looking forward to stretching the legs on this Thursday night with the team and seeing what it can do.

Thanks to KLM and sales associate Paul Mann. He was very helpful and offered some good insight into the purchase. Now I just need to figure out what to do with all these G-E-A-R-S ;)

Dragon Gap Race

2010-06-09T21:21:00.002-04:00

John G & I represented the team tonight at the Dragon Gap race. It was a good challenge for me mentally and physically, the single speed was humping tonight. Think Bloomer but worse. Waiting on the results to be posted. I rode from home and needed to get back before dark so I didn't stay till they were posted. This race is being held again next Wednesday at 6:45, pizza for everyone after, it was a cool event. Starts at Lake Orion High School

Here is the GPS

2010-06-07T19:54:00.003-04:00

Today Brandon and I volunteered our time and participated in a community service project on Hines Drive at the Newburgh comfort station. Several of Brandons Ford coworkers, Parks n Rec and Wayne County employees, and other volunteers removed invasive weeds and plants from the surrounding grounds, spread 10 yards of mulch, planted a couple pallets of plants, posted Grow Zone signs, and filled approximately 25 industrial garbarge bags with brush, debris, and general trash.

As an avid cyclist of Hines Drive I appreciate all the effort and man hours volunteers put in for cleaning the area and making it an environmentally friendly place for all users.

Scott

Hanson Hills Part 2

2010-06-06T16:00:00.002-04:00

It was a rainy day at Hanson Hills. The expert and elite riders a slight drizzle at the start with a finish under the rain drops. The sport riders left and finished in the rain. The course was very fast with a lot of mud in the turns.

Bryan, Joe, Ray, Nick, and had a great day. I managed a 2nd place finish in the Sport Men 30-34. My best finish of the year. Maybe one the times we can ride Hanson Hills in some dry conditions.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Hanson Hills Part 1

2010-06-05T18:10:00.001-04:00

Bryan and I just completed our pre-ride lap at Hanson Hills. The trail is in great shape. Looks like it will be a great race on Sunday.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Bling, Bling!

2010-06-05T09:14:00.005-04:00

After a two week wait in my basement collecting dust while we worked to sell our house, the new MTB is finally built up and ready. Welcome the latest addition to the family. It's a 2010 Specialized Stumpjumper 29er SS. And yes, the reflectors are staying. At least for its debut. Check out that profile. That's one sexy lady.

Inevitable customization has already begun. You may have already spotted that Thomson seat post in the previous picture. Check out the red KMC BMX chain wrapped around the stock 32 tooth chainring on the 180mm Stylo cranks. This was originally intended for the Motobecane's single speed conversion but, wouldn't work with the tensioner I bought. It's a nice addition to the red highlights already present on the bike.

Out back, the stock 20 tooth gear has been dumped for a 17 tooth Surly and mounted up on the stock DT Swiss 240s hub. Making the gearing just under 2:1 and hopefully just right for all that climbing on June 19th at the Lumberjack. The tubes have been pulled and after a failed attempt with the stock tape job, tapped with genuine Stans NoTubes tape, filled with sealant, inflated and are now holding air just fine.

This thing is sex on wheels. She's tipping the scales at 19.4 lbs as she sits. That's basically 4.5lbs lighter than the Motobecane sans gears. More updates are certainly in her future. Likely some Ergon grips and cutting down the extra wide bars.

Many thanks to Jimmie Colflesh for the help putting the finishing touches on it and the team sponsor KLM.

More 5/29 BTT Pics

2010-05-31T16:40:00.000-04:00

Check out "Kona Jim's" (Jim Senska) blog for some great BTT shots.

http://detroitbikes.blogspot.com/

Looks like a real blast. I need to hit another BTT ride just to see Henry Ford's house. Another piece of history, I've yet to see. Maybe this coming weekend.

This is a good one to follow on Blogger. Jim gets some great shots of the D.

Bloomer XC 5/29

2010-05-30T23:35:00.001-04:00

PrecisionMTB had a great showing at Bloomer this past Saturday. The course was tough and the weather was hot but, fantastic. Take a look as some of the pics my wife took.

From Bloomer XC

Once you click on the picture above, click on "Bloomer XC" under "Belongs to" on the right-hand side of the screen to see the whole album.

More pictures, info and results to come.

Beat the Train 5-/29

2010-05-29T13:01:00.005-04:00

After finishing my 10.5hr shift, which ended at 4:30am, I went home got my bike and my gear and headed down to the Historic Fort Wayne for the Saturday morning Beat the Train ride. I met up with Tom Sterling, Andy S, Andy E, Jim, Dave and his daughter Shelby at 6:30am. All total we had 49 riders. When I was finished I had a total of 30 miles for the ride. It was a beautiful day for a ride and I had a blast meeting up with these guys for the ride. I hope to fit more of the rides in as the year goes on.

Sunday Morning Ride-Poto

2010-05-27T18:38:00.001-04:00

Day: Sunday, May 30th, 2010

Time: 8 am, clipped in!

Location: Pinckney State Rec Area - Poto

What: Lumberjack Training of course! Adam and I are heading out to see how high our pain tolerance is. We are planning on three laps in a row on the 14 mile loop starting at 8:00 sharp. If you can't ride at 8, look for us between laps in the parking lot at my car. Figure on hour laps. We will be coming through for fresh bottles and sustenance.

RSVP: please let me know if you will be coming so I can look for you.

Note: I rode there last night and its in great shape!

Memorial Day Ride For the Fallen

2010-05-25T20:50:00.003-04:00

Day: Monday, Memorial Day, May 31, 2010

Time: 8 am, wheels down and ready to go

Location: Holdridge Trailhead, I-75 at Grange Hall Road, go west about 1/2 mile and file the signs; more info here: http://mmba.org/index.php?option=com_trailguide&task=trail&cid[]=14

What: Memorial Day Ride For The Fallen: dirt roads up to the Great Lakes National Cemetery (http://www.cem.va.gov/cems/nchp/greatlakes.asp) where we will pay respects to the fallen. Then, we will head back to Holdridge for a ride in their honor through the trails at Holdridge.
Stuff to bring: patriotism; a good story of a veteran, known or unknown to you; I will be bringing flags to attach to the sky

RSVP: please let me know if you will be coming so that I can make sure that I have enough flags

Note: there is a handpump at the trailhead so we can refill water bottles

Maybury Tuesday 5/25 @ 3:30pm

2010-05-24T22:27:00.003-04:00

I'll be at Maybury Tuesday afternoon about 3:15. Plan on being on the trail at 3:30 for a couple laps then head back to the car for any 4:30 arrivals, a quick bottle swap, then head back out for more abuse. I can't make it to Bloomer for a pre-ride so this will have to do.

Scott

313-720-0217
Text or voice mail

Quad Trail Training Ride

2010-05-23T20:41:00.004-04:00

Had a blast today in north country. John S, John G, Melissa, Jimmy, Paul, and I hit the dirt, and a bunch of Mud. Good Fun & 48 Miles. Big Thanks to Melissa & Jimmy for making the hour haul up here!

Here is a link to some mud pictures

GPS Post

Where's Wheeler Part 2

2010-05-23T13:20:00.003-04:00

Despite Wheeler's absence, we still managed a good ride on a beautiful day weather-wise. The sun was out and mud was flying on the trail. LOTS of new bling on out there today:
*Jason rockin his new Specialized
*AndyS rockin his new Niner
*AndyE sporting a rolloff hub
Singlespeeding on the road can be boring but today was not one of them, I was hanging on for dear life trying my best to not let the peloton drop me. Thanks to all those who let me draft! I had 37.1 miles on the day with a solid effort.

Wheeler, should you need any muscle to help move BIG things let me know. I can help you out so we can once again enjoy your company on the trail. You know how to get a hold of me. This cross-training of moving will not yield dividends come Lumberjack but you will be used to suffering ;)

Where's Wheeler

2010-05-23T09:59:00.000-04:00

We had a great turnout for the Maybury ride this morning. We were surprised Adam didn't show though!

Bryan
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Turning it up another notch;

2010-05-22T22:28:00.003-04:00

A few months back I posted about my increased Winter training regimen and my commitment to making it to the gym 5 days a week. That went real well and I have witnesses. I lost a little weight and gained a ton of stamina and new strength in my legs. Thats the first winter I have been so dedicated in...., well never mind.

That said, this post is about my commitment to my equipment. Not that equipment Bryan. I'm talking about my new bike. Its a Niner EMD frame that I bought from Bikes in Town last year. Got it just in time. This spring I took it to our new shop sponsor and friends KLM Bikes in Rochester Hills. There through several consultations with Zach, Ryan and the rest of the staff were extremely helpful when ordering parts for this bike. They were able to recommend great parts and compatible components to match the frame. They treated me extremely fair and I really enjoy the casual atmosphere they have in that store.

Its set up as a 1x9 with a Niner Carbon fork(Godzilla Green which I love!), deore XT, Avid BB7 with Nokon cables. MRP chain guide. Race face evolve seat post and stem. I have ridden it a few times. The first time out I had the Stan's ZTR 355's on as tubeless and the bike just wanted to fly. The next few times I put the heavier rims on til I get used to all that down sizing.

Anyway, here is a pick of the bike in its glory.

Group Ride 5/23-Maybury Miles

2010-05-21T22:47:00.001-04:00

Time: 8:00am on MTN Bikes
Weather @ ride time: 60+ degrees and sunny
Distance: ~39 miles (no drop)
From: Nankin Mills

Group ride from Nankin Mills (33175 Ann Arbor Trail, Westland
Mi 48185) to Maybury and back on mountain bikes. This is a no drop
ride. Total distance is about 39 miles. That's 13 miles there, two 6.5
mile laps and 13 miles back. Weather will be 60 degrees and sunny when
we roll and about 70+ degrees and sunny when we finish, don't forget the hydration!

See ya there!

Bryan
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Heart & Sole and Brighton Day 1 Recap

2010-05-15T20:55:00.000-04:00

Definitely a full day for the PrecisionMTB team.

Racing today started off with our very own Tom Sterling and Lee Shaw mixing it up in the Heart & Sole Bike race in Chelsea, MI. Both Tom and Lee put in a solid effort. Lee, over coming shifting issues, claimed 4th overall. Tom put in a valiant effort, making an attempt at a hole shot, taking the lead early and leaving it all on the course today, finshed 6th overall and 4th in his age group. Being a glutton for punishment, Lee took on the 5k run after the race and crossed the line 6th overall to claim 1st over all in the bike & run combined event.

Full Results Here:
Bike & 5k Run
Bike Results

Lee headed out to Day 1 of Tailwind's Brighton Stage race to provide us with some great pictures of the short track and time trial races. Congrats to Tom Payn, Bryan Deal, our team Captain Brian Brown and Roger Pelky for solid efforts in today's events. Extra thanks to Tammy, Brian's wife and his family. As well as, Lee's son Lucas for moral support throughout the day.

From Brighton Short Course

Beat the Train - 5/15

2010-05-15T17:00:00.001-04:00

PrecisionMTB team members were not only hitting the race scene in Chelsea and Brighton this weekend but, banging out another fun filled Beat the Train ride in near perfect weather in D-town. Andy S, Andy E., Jim S. and Adam W. from the team put in a decent effort and fun filled day of riding, taking on another BTT Epic. Which started and ending in the Westland/Dearborn Heights area. Andy S. mixed things up this week and threw in a new route with some interesting landmarks. Such as a flame throwing car. We even spotted some local Detroit wild life. More specifically, a rooster and peacock. The day was a total success with 31 riders safely enjoying and navigating the D.

Some not so professional pictures from my cell phone.
Click on the picture of the flame throwing car below and then the "BTT - 5/15" on the right see all of the pics.

From BTT - 5/15

Garmin Data:

Weekend, baby!! Get your rides in!!

2010-05-07T16:04:00.001-04:00

Life is not a journey to the grave
With the intention of
Arriving safely in a pretty
And well preserved body,
But rather to skid in broadside,
Thoroughly used up,
Totally worn out,
And loudly proclaiming,
WOW !!!! What a ride!

-- Anonymous

Fort Custer: Not Another Missed Opportunity

2010-05-06T08:10:00.005-04:00

Fort Custer is a wonderful place to ride. My last visit there was phenomenal-- it is just a great trail, period. I missed the chance to race there last year. Last week I bailed on the Pontiac Lake Time Trial Race due to MMBA matters, soccer conflicts and (the final nail in the coffin) rain. So I was determined to make it to Fort Custer for the race.

The Fort Custer Stampede is a benefit race for the Southwestern Chapter of the Michigan Mountain Biking Association-- a chapter that I have been working with a great deal over the last year due to the equestrian conflict issues at Fort Custer. It was great to see so many Southwestern Chapter Members and their beautiful tool trailer—a proud display of the importance of supporting the MMBA.

But, then there was rain on Saturday and more rain forecast for Saturday night and Sunday morning. Getting up early to drive 2 and 1/2 hours to slop around a water-logged course was not very attractive.

Dave Smith and I talked that night and I pushed for us to go anyway. Dave's a gamer so he did not take much convincing. Morning came and the weather still looked very iffy. Dave was in my driveway and he said he spoke with a friend that lives near Battle Creek who indicated that they received an inch and a half of rain out there. That gave us pause.

Well, we loaded up and went anyway. We stopped and saw Deal on the way to pick up our new kit. Things were looking up. Then, we stopped in Ann Arbor and sold one of Allie’s old bikes: Princess.

We got to Fort Custer and the sun was shining. You gotta love Michigan!! We talked to Ray Fulkerson who indicated that the experts had dried up the course significantly, as had the sun. Nice. God and cyclists make the world a better place.

Off to the start line and away we go. Well, we were kinda late to the start line so there was no more room in the front line. Dave was able to squeeze in at the end and I told him cool I would just latch on to his wheel and we would be fine. The gun goes off and Dave immediately misses his right pedal and gets dropped. I am pretty sure that this is part of his race tactics, but I bridge to the group and yell to him to grab my wheel instead. (Dave and I are bears of very little brain and only 2 gears between us so this kind of nonsense goes on all the time-- it really is shocking we have not hurt each other more often!!! More on that later).

So we did not quite miss the bus, but we were barely holding on and we were getting dragged by the bumper.

Then I broke loose in some of the tight twistys. They were a little slick and the Racing Ralph on the front started to drift, then it caught a root or something and checked up violently-- as in rubber separating from rim, John looks tired let's lay down in the mud and send the handlebars every which way but loose.

At this point, Dave is still on my wheel and he musta checked up on his brakes nicely cuz he navigated on by without running me over. All sarcasm aside: thanks, Dave!! Dave asked if I was ok and I was and told him to keep on going.

I called for the team car but no one showed up-- slackers!!!!! I gotta get better people. Quick check: don't flip the bike over to work on the tire until you pull the Garmin off the stem-- right, Pauly? So I assess the damage. Tire off rim, Stan's fluid everywhere, cats sleeping with dogs and my hair was mussed!! It was anarchy.

I took a second to enjoy the nice mud sandwich formed between my tire and rim. I panicked and hit it with he inflator. Doh!!! Too much mud. The tire won't seal. And there goes one inflator cartridge. So now I am cleaning out the mud. Fun stuff. Hit it with the inflator again and it starts to seal. I am a god. I am gonna be rolling…but what is that hissing sound? Now we are doing the Stan's dance to get the fluid in the right places. Air leaking and I know I have one inflator cartridge left. After a recent episode like this I learned that my only chance to get this tire sealed is to get it back up to pressure asap. So I fumble around for my last cartridge and bam!!! We are in business.

I am back in the saddle and trying to make up ground. But things are moving slowly and my rear brake housing decided to go out for a walk or something-- the damn thing is hanging way off the bike and my leg is rubbing on it. And the front brake is dragging…and some of the adrenaline from the crash is wearing off and I can start to feel the injuries from the crash.

Well, I gotta figure out the brakes first. Brake housing is hanging 10 cuz I broke the housing stay. Nice. Nothing to do there unless my team car catches up with a welding torch. Not likely to happen.

I already lost 4 minutes so I need to get moving and I need to figure out why my front brake is dragging. Ha-ha!! The cable and ferrule got pulled out of the lever housing. Easy fix. Pull and plug it back in.

Now I am really rolling and I am catching people.

This is my first race up in Single Speed Expert. I just gave up 4 minutes so I figure I am going to finish last, but I also knew that I was not going to take a DNF. So I kept turning the cranks and enjoyed a pretty good race.

I finished strong and thanks to the help of Tom Payne and Bryan Deal (they recommended some electrolyte supplements) I was able to finish hard without even a slight hint of cramping. That was enough of a victory in light of the crash and past cramping problems.

I was resigned to calling Leslie after the race to tell her that I must have finished last. But I checked the race results on my phone on the way home and was happy to find out that I had actually finished 12 out of 14. Race results are here: http://www.raceservices.com/10/fc/050210_sst.txt

When I got home and told Leslie, Gabe and Allie that I had not finished last Gabe asked if I was 1st. I said no and Gabe put on his best Southern accent and said: "If you ain't first, you're last." A victory for child-rearing—a son of mine that can quote Will Ferrell movies with aplomb!! (Leslie, if you’re reading this, it was not me that let Gabe watch Talladega Nights—it was Uncle Don.)

All photos have been suppressed to protect the innocent and to spare my QBall the embarrassment of exposing the damage to the frame.

Gu Is Here

2010-05-05T01:11:00.001-04:00

We would like to thank Gu Sports for helping us with our nutritional needs for the 2010 race season.

Mud, Sweat & Beers - 5/1

2010-05-02T19:16:00.004-04:00

Quick recap from Mud, Sweat and Beers this past Saturday.

Despite some serious rain the night prior, the weather turned out great and the course actually benefited from it. The venue was fanastic and could be considered a Spring Iceman, only harder. Mostly because much of the course was run on the Vasa in the reverse direction of the Iceman. Including a climb up the Wall, opposed to down it. Which now sports notches in the trees that were so narrow it was nearly impossible to clear with your bars. The Vasa presents an interesting challenge with relentless climbs, sand, plenty of all out flats, more climbs, more sand, climbs and more sand. The course as well as, the beer tent easily accomidated the 500 participants before and after the race. All said and done, it was a very tough course, ultra competitive racing and an all around great time. Definitely worth putting on your calendar for next year.

While we didn't a have a large team showing , we took two top 5 places. No age categories here. Just an all out battle.
Melissa Mabry - 4th - Expert Women - Stout 20 Miler
Adam Wheeler - 5th - Single Speed - Stout 20 Miler

From Mud, Sweat & Beers

Garmin Data

Results

My race recap at my blog.

2010 Team Kits are Here

2010-05-01T22:31:00.002-04:00

We want to thank Kimiko and Melanie at Louis Garneau USA for helping make our 2010 team kits a success. Please look for the PrecisioMTB.com crew at the next event near you.

New Commuter: Giant TCR Advanced 2

2010-04-24T12:33:00.025-04:00

It's here to make commuting a joy again. Not exactly what one thinks of when someone says commuter, but I kinda like it. Earlier reports had this bike weighing in over 16 pounds, but it appears that tales of its girth were exaggerated. Bike weight was originally calculated with the saddlebag bracket and water bottle cage-- how bush league!!! We are now comfortably under 16 pounds with grams to spare-- well, about 14 grams to spare!!! 15.97 pounds is the final verdict.

No name for her just yet, but standard issue name is the Giant TCR Advanced 2; Full Ultegra 6700, Ksyrium Elite Wheels, full specs here: http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-US/bikes/model/tcr.advanced.2/3885/36661/

Check out the full frontal:

Black and white and grey and carbon goodness all over.

Check out how the seatpost is cut out for the wheel to slide underneath-- no fatties allowed here:

Massive bottom bracket juncture:

She wants to go fast!!!

I had been riding an early 1990s vintage Pinarello Montello for the last couple of years. Classic steel and really a thing of beauty, thanks to a good friend at my office. Jeff lent the bike to me because it was his backup bike (he has a newer Pinarello Opera). A great bike to be sure, but I needed some newer tech-- Campy downtube shifters are beautiful, but not the most functional.

Life is good; I gotta go ride. City limits for the first round? Ready, set, GO!!!!

Yankee TT - 4/18 Part II

2010-04-18T20:13:00.000-04:00

Can't contest with Dave's pictures but, Here are a few I took before and after the race. Great race guys. It's going to be a great season.

Yankee Springs Time Trial

2010-04-18T18:07:00.002-04:00

Just got back from Yankee, well worth the drive. It was good to see everyone and begin to building the race legs, and endurance. The trail was in great shape, lots of trouble to get in and sand, sand, sand. Lauren was my co-pilot on the ride there and back, so that was fun. She imposed a no burping rule while in the car. Consequences were an item of her choice at the gas station on the way home.........she got 5 candy bars. Racing Expert is a whole new ballgame, I felt like a moving pylon, and from the results you can see I was!

Below please find the GPS from my garmin for the ride, photos that Lauren & I took, and the race results. Next week is Pontiac Lake, and Fort Custer after that. Fun times.

Single Speed Results Expert Elite Results Sport Results

Click image below for photo album.

2010-04-18 Yankee Springs Time Trial

GPS Link
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/30496172

New addition...

2010-04-17T18:48:00.004-04:00

The latest addition to the team. It's a Giant TCX 1. In case you missed the about 20 labels on the bike. Which brings the total to two on the team. Can't wait to get it dirty.

Click here for a close up:

From Just CallMe Wheeler

Many thanks again to our sponsor KLM Bike and Fitness.

Group Ride 4/10

2010-04-09T22:05:00.001-04:00

Time: 9:30am
Weather@ride time: 40 degrees and sunny
Distance: ~39 miles-no drop
From:Nankin Mills

Group ride will be from Nankin Mills (33175 Ann Arbor Trail, Westland Mi 48185) to Maybury and back on mountain bikes. This is a no drop ride. Total distance is about 39 miles. That's 13 miles there, two 6.5 mile laps and 13 miles back. Weather will be 40 degrees and sunny when we roll and about 55 degrees and sunny when we finish, dress accordingly.

See ya there!

Bryan
Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

New Season, New Sponsors, New Bike

2010-04-07T07:00:00.006-04:00

I though I would share my 2010 race weapon. It is a 2009 Giant Anthem X2. I want to thank KLM Bike & Fitness for helping make this new ride possible.

Look for the PrecisionMTB.com crew showing off their team colors on their bikes.

Stan's Wheels

2010-04-07T04:00:00.018-04:00

We would like to thank all of the staff at Stan's NoTubes for once again supporting the PrecisionMTB.com crew for the 2010 season.

Here you will find the wheels set found on Brian's Giant Anthem X2

This wheel set was built with Stan's ZTR Crest Rims laced to their ZTR hubs with DT Swiss Super Comp spokes. The weight of this wheels set is quite amazing for the price. These came in a 1468g. Wheels come with the yellow tape and valve stem installed and ready to go. They also include a pair of Q/R skewers.

The rim used on this wheels set is the new Stan's ZTR Crest rim. This rim is a blend between the ZTR Race rim and the ZTR 355 rim. Thees rims are 559 x 21mm and have a published weight of 340g

This front wheel was built with a 9mm Q/R Stan's ZTR hub. This wheel weighs 684g. These hubs have sealed cartridge bearings and are convertible to 15mm with a quick change of the silver end caps.

The rear wheel is also built with the Stan's ZTR hub. This wheel weighs 784g. This hub also has sealed cartridge bearings and features a 3 pawl 30 point engagement an alloy freehub body. This is a very nice hub in this price point.

Here you will find that these wheels were wrapped with a new set of Kenda Karma 26 x 2.0 DTC tires. These tires were mounted tubeless with some Stan's sealant.

For more information on the products featured above. Please visit Stan's NoTubes , Kenda USA , PrecisionMTB.com

Precision Adventures March 2010 - Short Version

2010-03-30T09:36:00.005-04:00

As many of you know, Tom, Bryan and I from the team recently returned from a long weekend of riding in Tennessee and North Carolina. The trip was fantastic and consisted of a difficult climb and an intense, white knuckled descent on an attempt to reach Clingmans Dome in Gatlinburg, TN. An attempt which was thwarted by weather (rain and snow) and a road closure due to construction. A scenic ride into the clouds up closed roads on the Blueridge Parkway in Asheville, NC. Then wrapped up with a wicked ascent and fun filled up descent on the steep, winding roads surrounding Cold Mountain. We put in approx. 125 miles over our three days of adventures in the mountains. No small feet considering much of that was spent on 7+ degree climbs and over many pedal mashing hours. We could have asked for better weather the first two days but, our final day on our ride around Cold Mountain melted any complaints away. The rest of the trip consisted of laughter filled drives, great southern food and hospitality, relaxing evenings recovering in local micro breweries and tales of the day told around the fire. In the end we all made it home safely with our only mishaps being a torn tire, one flat, some seriously stretched chains and cables, extremely worn brake pads and a speedometer stuck at 120mph in Tom's Envoy.

Click Here For The Full Version

A few trip highlights:

(Attempt on Clingmans Dome)

From Precision Adventures - March 2010 Edition

(Blueridge Parkway Climb to the Clouds)

From Precision Adventures - March 2010 Edition

(Cold Mountain)

From Precision Adventures - March 2010 Edition

Well folks, there it is...

2010-03-21T13:53:00.002-04:00

No more cassette and rear derailleur for the time being. Plus, shiny new SB8 tires. I am not happy with the conversion and I haven't even ridden with it. However, I am determined to try this single speed thing. To spare the group, I saved all of the lengthy whining for my own blog.

Corktown 5k

2010-03-14T21:56:00.004-04:00

A handful of PrecisionMTB team members braved the weather this morning and gambled successfully that the relentless, Michigan, Spring rain would break for the race. The race turned out to be a real success. I am not sure what the number of race participants were but, the sea of green easily stretched 2 miles of the course along Michigan Avenue. The vibe from crowd before and during the race was fantastic. Green shirts, beads, hats, skorts and clovers galore. Irish music filled the air. The after race celebrations turned out be just as high spirited and successful as the race. It was great to see so many people enjoying themselves in D.

Results:

Adam Wheeler - 20th Overall - 4th 30-34 Age Group

Bryan Deal - 431th Overall - 80th 30-34 Age Group

Jim Senska - 449th Overall - 58th 35-39 Age Group

Andy Staub - TBD

Corktown 5k Results

Thank you to Andy Erickson and family acting as official cheering crew!

Weekend Rides - March 6th & 7th

2010-03-04T15:33:00.005-05:00

**** UPDATED****

March 6th & 7th Weekend Riding Plans (Lower Eastside):

When: Saturday, March 6th, 2pm
Where: Livonia (Nankin Mills, Lower Lot)
Route
Tires: Road
Distance: 50+ Miles
Pace: Medium
Contact: Wheeler wheels_emu@hotmail.com

When: Sunday, March 7th, 10am
Where: Westland, Nankin Mills, Lower Lot
Tires: Road
Distance: ~30 Miles
Pace: Easy
Contact: Wheeler wheels_emu@hotmail.com

***Times subject to change due to weather and/or lack of interest. Check the team blog for updates.

For those with access, feel free to add to this posting with additional Westside, Lower & Upper Eastside riding plans.

FYI: Posting this direct from my email to the blog. Then hoping the routing Brian set up will notify all of the team members of the post. Should be pretty slick. Think near real-time race and event postings throughout the season.

I need some kind of a cool, inspirational slogan to stick at the end of my postings. Like "Keep the rubber side down", "Born to Ride", etc. Guess I'll work on that for the next post.

Hotmail: Powerful Free email with security by Microsoft. Get it now.

2010 Kits

2010-03-01T17:30:00.000-05:00

Here is our 2010 kit. Please be sure to watch for the guys and gals wearing them at all of the races.

Countdown to Lumberjack

2010-03-01T17:02:00.000-05:00

Since a certain teammate of mine provides me with a count down to Lumberjack each time we talk, I figured I'd make it official.

Why a countdown to the Lumberjack? Why not Barry Roubaix, Yankee or Boyne? Cause it’s the Big MF. It’s more than a race. It’s not only a test of one’s fitness but, one’s ability to survive. Survive? Seems a little dramatic, huh?. You haven’t heard about anyone dying at the Lumberjack. I am pretty sure that’s because nearly 1/3 of its entrants fail to complete the test of mental and physical fortitude each year instead of collapsing on the course. I’ve been told it has the highest dropout percentage of most, if not all, of the 100 mile endurance races held across the county. Some say it’s because most of the 100 mile races are point to point, with little chance to drop out. That may be part of it but, I believe there is more to it.

I too nearly fell at the hands of the beast in 2009. I barely resisted the urge to curl up in a fold-up chair and call it a day after the third lap. Without the persistence of a teammate, I would have done just that. I was not prepared. I came prepared with a decent base of physical fitness but, I had no plan for nutrition or hydration and I stubbornly refused to give into common sense and come prepared with the right equipment. I breezed through the first ½ of the race. I felt great, I was passing people effortlessly, powering up climbs, forcing myself to drink my sports drinks to prevent dehydration and eat pop tarts each lap to ensure I had fuel to continue. However, lap three was a different story. My stomach started rejecting the sports drink and pop tarts that I was force feeding myself earlier in the race. My stubborn decision to stick with my rigid fork had taken its toll on my shoulders and neck. My head was pounding and it felt like it was going to snap off my neck each time I descended a now choppy and rutted downhill. I became delirious about ½ way through the 3rd lap and on a completely flat and clear section of single track, grabbed a whole handful of my front brake. This prompted an endo directly onto my neck and shoulders which already had me wincing in pain. Luckily the incident and jarred me back to reality. I pedaled back to the start/finish at what seemed like a pace I could maintain walking, sat in a fold-up chair, debated whether I should give up or try to continue to fight back my urge to vomit and climb back on my bike and attempt to finish. I sat there and watched the clock and made deals with myself like “3 more minutes and then you go” until those deals became “2 more minutes and if you don’t feel better, you’re done.” I knew I was looking grim based on the looks I was getting from the folks in the tent beside me. I am sure they could see the pain and discomfort on my face. Approximately 15 minutes passed before my teammate Ray arrived. It felt like I had only sat there for a few seconds. I was still feeling terrible. He relentlessly urged me out of my chair and got me back on the bike again. I staggered up the first sandy climb and Ray was gone. The rest of the 4th lap is a blur. I remember grazing at the last support tent and meeting up with my former high school teammate. I am sure he could see the misery in my eyes. He offered to ride in with me to the finish. An offer that on any other day would have only been answered in a challenge to a race to the finish. However, this day was different. I was just trying to survive. I accepted and we rode in together. That day I promised myself that I’d never attempt another Lumberjack.

So, back to the topic at hand. Why the countdown to the Lumberjack? Because I’ve never been one to “just finish” a race. A former US running stand out Ryan Shay use to say that “excuses are for lack of preparation.” This year I want to come to Lumberjack prepared and finish the race I know I can ride. Not be beaten down to considering a finish a success as I did last year.

2010-03-01T15:43:00.002-05:00

We would like to give a warm welcome to our newest sponsor. Our local franchise of Buffalo Wild Wings will be supporting the PrecisinMTB.com crew for the 2010 season. Look for our riders a the Westland, Dearborn, Howell , and Ypsilanti locations.

MMBA Annual Meeting & Expo, Part 2

2010-02-14T15:39:00.005-05:00

In Part 1 on the MMBA Annual Meeting, I discussed the goings on at the Meeting and Exposition. I arrived about 9 am that morning and with the number of meetings and program events I was pretty tired by the time 4 pm rolled around. Preparing for public speaking and meetings seems to take a great deal out of me and I constantly felt like someone was tugging at my sleeve about advocacy questions, MMBA affairs, PrecisionMTB team events and all of the other things that go along with a busy day in the world.

By 4 pm I was happy to have some down time to write down some notes from the day's meetings and collect my thoughts. On my way out, I ran into someone I still had not had a chance to talk to. With just a mere dozen or so people milling about as the last stragglers to leave the MSU Pavilion, one of them happened to be Dave Wiens. It was a delightful surprise.

Looking back, I often remember the phrase from Gone With The Wind (it happens to be a paraphrase of a Ben Franklin quote): "Do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of." It reminds me that the greatest gift is the gift of time. So happening upon Wiens at the 11th hour of the MMBA Meeting was uplifting. Away from his home and family, he made me realize how much we all are capable of in our efforts to give back to this sport that has given us so much.

I was able to sneak in a few minutes to ask Dave Wiens about training and life in Colorado. He even took a minute to take a picture with me, as you can see from my MMBA Annual Meeting, Part 1 blog entry.

Dave Wiens made me realize that I can do more. And, it will be nice to see his familiar face when I approach the starting line at my first Leadville Trail 100.

MMBA Annual Meeting & Expo, Part 1

2010-02-02T17:34:00.008-05:00

On the left: yours truly; on the right: 6 time Leadville Trail 100 Winner Dave Wiens from Gunnison, Colorado

On Sunday, January 31, 2010, I attended the Michigan Mountain Biking Association (MMBA) Annual Meeting & Expo. It was a great chance to meet up with teammates, talk to guys at the KLM Bike and Fitness Booth (http://klmfitness.com/index.cfm) and check out the things going on at the MMBA.

I am the Director of Advocacy so I actually had to behave myself and not act like a complete bike geek at all times (though there was one notable exception, discussed in Part 2). I had MMBA business to take care of. I gave a presentation on the MMBA's advocacy efforts over the past year, introduced my staff, and talked about new advocacy efforts for 2010.

I have been going to the MMBA Annual Meeting for years and this was the best one yet. It starts with a great venue: the MSU Pavilion was perfect. It had plenty of wide open space through the hallways, bathrooms, and expo area. So much room that one could ride their bike into the Pavilion and never get off; I mean it. I guess it is one of the bonuses of making everything ADA compliant-- ramps everywhere! One could ride into every area of the expo, everywhere!!!!

-----------Through the expo area? Yep.
-----------To the swap meet? Sure. Stop by the beatthetrain table (http://www.beatthetrainindetroit.com/) and eat chips and salsa on 2 wheels!!
-----------To the auditorium? Why not!! Plenty of room in the pit area to listen to the MMBA annual meeting presentations, chapter presentations, Dave Wiens' presentation, etc.
-----------In the dirt arena where they set up a pump track? Duh, it's a pump track-- just make sure to sign the waiver and get your wristband for admittance.
-----------In the bathrooms? I didn't see anyone try it, but there was plenty of room-- just be careful with those handlebars.

It was a great day to be involved in mountain biking. As I prepared to leave the MSU Pavilion, I had a few minutes to think of all the people I had met, the good stories we shared, the accomplishments of the MMBA and the good feeling of a day spent in earnest contemplation of activities that made my soul feel better. It was a good day. The kind of day that reminds one of the great things that mankind is capable of.

-John Gonway

2010 Team Roster

2010-02-01T16:22:00.002-05:00

I would like to introduce our 2010 Team roster.

Adam Wheeler
Andy Erickson
Andy Staub
Brandon Bailey
Brian Brown
Bryan Deal
Dave Smith
Jason Weida
Jeff Jager
Jim Senska
Joe Reddy
John Gonway
John Schram
Lee Shaw
Melissa Mabry
Nick Cisler
Paul Mann
Phil York
Ray Fulkerson
Roger Pelkey
Scott Simpson
Tom Sterling
Tom Payn

Good Luck Everyone!

MMBA Expo

2010-01-31T20:50:00.003-05:00

Today marks the second expo that has taken place since I joined the team and consequently, the MMBA. I will admit, I boycotted last year due to the change in location and I what I felt was going to be too lengthy of a drive from the Detroit Metro area to Lansing. Well, I'll be the first to admit, my decision not to attend last year was a mistake. I made the trip out this year with teammate Lee with three children in tow. Given I now commute nearly an hour one way to work, the drive flew by and before you knew it, we were unloading my son's BMX and I was hollering at him to watch for cars and people as he rode it through the parking lot and most of the building. Once you got over the smell of manure in the MSU pavilion, there was really nothing bad to say about the venue. We hung out for awhile at the Beat the Train table and watched Andy spread the BTT message of bicycle happiness on early Saturday mornings in the D. Not, to mention I think my children were some of the biggest fans of his wife's chips and salsa he kindly provided at his table. Conveniently, the Big Kahuna cycling team was providing fruit punch at the table next door so, the kids were in snack heaven. But, BTT, chips and salsa and fruit punch were just the appetizers in the full course meal the expo provided. The deals at the vendors were fantastic. I am pretty sure, I didn't see an article of clothing for less than 50% off. There were a great selection of bikes. To top it off, I got to do some undercover, stealth recon on the KLM employees at their booth. As I was when I met Ryan in the Rochester store, I was impressed with how friendly and eager they were to help me out with any questions I had or any other help I required. I tried my best to refrain from cracking open my wallet and going on a bender of bicycle parts and attire purchases at the KLM booth. However, I couldn't pass up a smoking deal on some riding shorts for the wife. I am not sure if the discount was due to lack of material. But, I wasn't asking too many questions. At 70% they were mine. The famed silent action was also ripe with a great potential purchases. After the mayhem of the Iceman registration last year, I couldn't resist putting in a bid in on an Iceman entry and noticed another teammate had already employed the same strategy and went for the small jersey/entry combo instead of the obviously more popular, large. And no, I didn't outbid my teammate. There were two small/entry combos. Figured it was was a worth a shot. Given we had the kids, we didn't have a chance to attend the guest speakers presentations. I am sure they were great but, the kids would have been too stir crazy fueled by sugar and salsa. So, what could possibly make this event any better? Well, besides Hooters girls and free samples from local micro-brewers? An indoor pump track. Given it's put up again, the pump track will be the deciding factor of me debating or without doubt, returning next year. My son had an absolute riot out there today. He started off barely being able to ride over one mound but, by the end of the day, he was riding all of the sections and even the second largest mound/jump. There were even a little tears when it was time to head home and his second session of the day on the track had to come to a close. I was proud dad to see him leave with some sweat in his hair, dirt on his knees and elbows, new scuffs and scratches on his bike, a little blood and a smile from ear to ear. A quick stop at McDonalds on the way home, celebrating my grandfather's 80th birthday and movie night on the couch with the wife and that's a wrap for the day. I am going to chaulk this one up as a good one.

Future Pump Track Legend...

KLM Bike and Fitness

2010-01-14T19:58:00.004-05:00

We would like to welcome KLM Bike and Fitness as our newest sponsor for 2010. We are very exited for a great year of racing. Go stop by and check out their two great stores!

Screwing Up the Right Way

2010-01-12T13:06:00.003-05:00

I just read a fascinating article about problem-solving by screwing up the right way. The gist of the article-- don't just throw out the failure by hitting the delete button. Study the failure and seek outside help to understand the lesson or knowledge developed by the failure. In cycling, we all have problems that need solutions: equipment glitches, physical ailments, poor planning, the unfortunate consumption of low quality beer. Solve them and create an intellectual knowledge base for solving other problems by learning from your failures.

Read more at Wired: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2009/12/fail_accept_defeat/all/1

MRP 1.X Chain Guide

2010-01-06T06:00:00.002-05:00

I have taken the leap to 1x9 for the 2010 race season. I have chosen to not only take advantage of the simplicity of less shifting, but also about a 3/4lbs weight savings.

The parts I have chosen to complete my project came from MRP located in Grand Junction, CO. I'm using the 1.X Chain Guide and 36T Podium Chainring.

The MRP 1.x Guide, 36T Podium Chainring, and track bolts came in at 126g. The front shifter, derailleur, cable, triple chainrings, removed chain links and bolts weighed 473g. This change made a net change of 347g or 3/4lbs.

With all the parts installed My Specialized Epic tips the scale at 23lbs 12oz as pictured. I can't wait to get it out and begin the transition to a 1x9 drivetrain.

Ice Road Truckers - Mountian Bike Edition

2009-12-27T15:50:00.002-05:00

John S & I hit the dirt (er...ice roads today) Started out fun ended up fun but the middle of the ride was tough. 28 degree departure time temp and a 20 mph wind. It did not get warmer and the sun played hide and seek behind the clouds. We both really strugled with the road conditions. John went down once early & I was down 2x before the 1/2 way point. We managed to keep it together from there. Nothing hurt to bad as we were mostly frozen. As I am starting to thaw my hip feels like it was used as a landing pad, oh wait it was. Hard to be cool when your clipped in with hands on the grips and laying in the road. The second time I went down fast. The GPS popped off and I did not realize it was missing till we were 3/4 mile down the road. Was able to return to the scene of the crime and it was still there. It spend the rest of the ride in my pocket.

Somewhere north of lake orion as we were navigating the crowned road full of Ice 2 other team riders blew by us, they had to have had studs on their tires. We kept pace on the flats but after the first corner they were gone.

Below is the GPS from our loop. It felt much more hilly than the GPS post looks like. We were in the boondocks.

dave

GPS - Link http://connect.garmin.com/activity/21112489

Happy Holidays

2009-12-15T15:47:00.003-05:00

It's that time of year again. The Xmas tree, lights and decorations are up. The temperatures have dropped, sometimes below zero. Any shape or form of cycling for me has moved to solely indoors. But, where's the snow? Rain, Rain, Rain all spring, summer and now December. For the last two years, I've been able to strike outdoor lights from the "honey do" list due to snow late November/early December. No excuses this year. My grass is still growing.

It's nearly time for the Wheeler family to make their yearly trip to Montreal to visit the Canadian out-laws. Which for me, usually means a solid week of running. Sometimes in knee deep snow. Remembering back to this time last year, I hadn't ran two months before the December holidays but, somehow I was lighter, leaner and generally felt like I was in better shape. Most likely due to a near religious routine or riding the rollers and spin class post Iceman. Opposed to a few weeks off inbetween then and now this year. Training has definitely started up for me. I've been hitting spin class with teammate Andy Staub, runnning and have got on the rollers and trainer once. Definitely a lot of work to do before now and the beginning of the season. I think the key will be just getting into routine again. The rest should take care of itself.

The picture above is a picture of our Xmas tree arriving home from Home Depot on my "suburban life pickup truck". I've been giving some thought lately about modifying my little trailer, adding some 2x4's, skewer mounts, my car topper and maybe a cooler to create a unique bicycle, bicycle gear and beer transportation device. Maybe a couple of flags, etc. Maybe I'll put a few hours in and gear it up for an event this coming season. It'd probably end up being more a rolling embarassment but, it'd be worth a laugh or two.

Anyways, back to the point of this post. Wanted to wish everyone on the team and in internet land Happy Holidays to you and their families.

Happy Holidays!

Season End

2009-12-08T07:21:00.002-05:00

We would like to thank all of our sponsors for a great 2009 season. Without your help none of this would be possible. 2010 here we come!!!

I am trying to turn it up a notch

2009-12-07T23:14:00.003-05:00

Its really encouraging how many miles I have gotten on the bike since after Iceman. Most seasons I don't touch the bike between November and March. Fighting that seasonal disorder is really hard for me. The weather until just recentley has been great with no rain, sleat or snow. The temps in the last few days have been a bit nippy and I have been off work.
I just today signed up at LA Fitness mostly to take advantage of there spin classes. I have been there twice in the last four days and plan on making a ritual out of it in order to be ready for the 2010 season. I really want to strengthen my core and drop a few more pounds to be worthy of a certain light wieght frame I hope to be riding. Doing the classes is great! They are quick, intense and I can feel the results just by doing something slightly different. Afterwards I have been doing some super secret calastentics I learned from a Bruce Lee movie then I get the heck out of there before my family has a chance to miss me.
The 2010 season I hope to be a special one. It will be my last year in the category I have raced the last 3 years. I will either be moving up by age or skill level but it will be progress no doubt.

Good night!

Barry-Roubaix Registration Open

2009-12-07T17:49:00.002-05:00

Nothing like new race announcements to get the competitive juices flowing!!!!

Registration is now open for the Barry-Roubaix!!
http://www.mmba.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=94418&sid=4cfde648ee9558c559bf8082adcf4e88

"Training for next season started yesterday."

2009-11-30T22:08:00.000-05:00

I took an involuntary week off after Iceman due to illness. I took the next week off, excluding an easy couple of loops at IRLA to recover from a long season of training. I took a third week off (Thanksgiving week) due to pure laziness. As I usually do while indulging in adult beverages with the guys, I shot my mouth off to a couple of fellow team members last week that I would put my mind to it, figure out a plan for preparing for next year and start Monday (today). I like talking trash. Not only is it fun and a true male bonding experience but, it's probably the best motivation out there. Well, Monday am came and the alarm went off at 5:00am (Spin Class). It was quickly silenced with a slap of the snooze bar and reset for the standard 6:30am wake up for work. Luckily, I was able to escape work at a decent hour, throw on the running shoes and head out to put in 45 minutes before it was time to take the lil'man to swim class. 44 minute and 2 seconds. That's what it took to finish my normal 6.5 mile loop. I made it about 1 minute and 30 seconds before my lungs started to burn, about 5 min before my right achilles started aching, another 15 min before my left knee/IT band started to hurt and limped home the last 12 min with my right knee/IT band pretty much locked up. Given my math is not the best but, that's about 42 minutes and 30 seconds of pure pain. Running is sure tough after taking the better part of a month off. I don't have words to explain the value of stretching once you pass the 30 year mark.

So the plan is pretty simple. Target 45-60 minutes, 5-7 days a week of cardio. Rotating between running, spin class, fluid trainer and rollers. Minimum of 3 hard days a week (running or spin class) and easy/medium days for the rest (fluid trainer or rollers). Why no marathon rides outdoors or on the trainer? Cause that's just plain nuts and the season don't start till April. Not to mention, I am a simply a wimp when the temp drops below 40 degrees. After a steady month, I'll throw in some sprint drills (lunges, bounds, skips) and possibly some strength training (push ups, sit ups, weights, etc.). You say lunges are for sissies? Stop by my house and we'll do 50 my way. You'll barely walk the next day. I'll bet you a case of beer on that.
That's the plan. It's nothing special or scientific. I've trained with Olympians and have seen what it takes, it doesn't need to be. It's about building/maintaining a solid base in the off season. Aerobic fitness & strength conditioning is key. I'll start considering some longer rides/runs and more anaerobic training as the season nears. Probably about a month out. Before the weather breaks and the Michigan outdoor riding season begins.
Why am I writing this? Cause it's part trash talking, I hope part informational and with hope, it's a little inspirational. The bottom line is that I didn't meet my goals this year and this is what it's going to take to meet them for next year. No reason to wait. "Training for next season started yesterday." Mine started today. ;)
Wheeler

Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman - Jon Krakauer - Hardcover (ISBN 9780385522267)

2009-11-30T14:47:00.004-05:00

Training is hard; and when you're doing it right it is gut-wrenching hard. The Pat Tillman story is a story about training as not just a means to an end; training is the end.

Ever since I heard the story that he had walked away from millions in the NFL to enlist in the US Army, I was fascinated by his story. I would have to think that many of us were caught up in post-9/11 patriotism. I thought Tillman's decision was the prime example. Boy, was I wrong. His story is so much more enthralling and important than that. This book details his intelligence, his commitment to nature (and the solitude of hiking) and his steadfast commitment to honoring his obligations.

I turned away from the Tillman story when rumors were surfacing about the cover-up regarding his death in Afghanistan. I was disgusted and the subject made me wish I had never heard of him, made me ashamed of the US Army, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and their cohorts.

When this book came out, I was finally able to open up to the story again. It is a great read-- thought-provoking, deeply moving and adventurous. Tillman would have been a great person to know. His ability to see beyond the moment and understand that he would be training all his life was best summed up in this exchange: when Bruce Snyder, Tillman's football coach at Arizona State, told him he planned to red-shirt him as was done with most freshman-- extending his eligibility and adding 1 year to his college stay, Tillman replied: you can do whatever you want with me, Coach, but in 4 years I'm gone. I've got things to do with my life.

Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman - Jon Krakauer - Hardcover (ISBN 9780385522267) - Buy Books, Music and Movies at Borders

My trip to the Bloomer Velodrome

2009-11-28T19:45:00.002-05:00

A few weeks back I went up to Bloomer to watch a Cross race. I had never been to Bloomer but had heard all about the Velodrome in the park and had always wanted to try it so I took two bikes. I was only there to spectate the CX race so I wanted to ride the trail and the track. I brought my fixey inside the car and my mtb on the rack. Once there I wanted to ask permission if needed so I went right to the track. There was one guy there on his track bike talking to a few people. I waited for a break in the conversation and asked, "Can I ride the track?". The guy said "I don't have any extra bikes.". I replied, "I have mine in the car.". He said, "Is it a fixed gear?", to which I said yes. I think he was trying to throw me some obstacles but I had come a long way and was ready. Then he said, "I'll need to to sign a waiver.". I said "No problem.". So I went with Jim and Matt and we rode the trail for about an hour.

Once back at the track I met Bruce Carleson the coach and director of the Velodrome. He turned out to be real cool and gave me some good pointers on the techniques and etticette of track riding. All of which I was ignorant. He gave me some advice before attacking the track and made me run some drills for him to judge the control I had on the bike. He pointed out the importance of a few warm up laps then also the cool down laps. I did a few laps on my own then we did some together while he was pointing out the needed adjustments in my posture and body positioning. We traded positions in the paceline which takes some special technique.

All in all it was a great experience that I have put off for a long time. I do not think I am ready to pursue racing in that genre of cycling. Its fun but it would take some serious concentration to avoid insanity after doing so many laps. I love the constant change of scenery in the woods and on the open road. As my coach Bruce would tell me; "Your a masher!". I guess mashing comes more with trail riding then track racing.

Matt's most recent video is more of the cross race but features some scenes from the track at the end. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8Wur20XZQc

BTT

What a year...

2009-11-20T11:37:00.001-05:00

It's been a h*ll of a first season of racing for me. Cycling has for the most part, filled the large void in my life that running once filled. While I admit, I am not nearly as competitive or as gifted of a cyclist as I was once a runner, I am sure having a ton of fun. Given it's nearly Thanksgiving, I guess it's seems fitting that I say that I am thankful for finding the great group of individuals that make up the PrecisionMTB.com team. The team's camaraderie in, at and outside of races is second to none and I’ve been happy pad my Facebook friends list with many of the folks on the team.

Given my season last year consisted of only one and my first race, “The Iceman.” My only personal goals for the season were for the Iceman this year. Sad to say, I came close but, didn’t obtain either of them. While most of the people that know me and how much I’ve was riding during the season may not agree, it all came down to lack of conditioning. I simply didn’t have what I needed in the tank in the latter part of the race. Anita’s Hill emptied it and there wasn’t enough in the reserve. Not exactly the way I wanted to put an end to the season but, pretty positive for a guy that couldn’t seem to finish a race this year without flipping head first over his handlebars at least once and/or dropping his chain a few times.

While I am hoping to squeeze in a few rides before winter is upon us, my sights are turning to the off season. Like last year, I hope to start a regimen of roller riding, running and spin class. I am fairly certain that if I would have kept up the regimen I started last off season and simply replaced the roller riding, with morning rides on Hines, I would have had what it took to turn the time I was hoping for at Iceman this year. So it’s time to stop typing and get doing. As my high school track coach used to say “Training for next season started yesterday.”

Can't wait until next season,

Just CallMe Wheeler

Iceman 2009

2009-11-18T02:21:00.000-05:00

I made the journey to the 2009 Iceman Cometh in Travers City, MI on November 7th. This was my fourth time racing this event. This was also my first time racing this event in the Expert Category. We headed to the Start line in Kalaska where the weather was chilly at about 42 degrees. I made the mistake of overdressing for this race. I had to make an unscheduled pit-stop at Williamsburg Rd to take off my leg warmers as I was overheating and they were the easies items to remove. I continued on down the trail playing cat and mouse with my teammate Bryan who was also racing in the same category as me. We hit the Vasa where the hills continued to get harder and harder. I was able to stay on the bike and make it up all the hills and find my way to Timber Ridge where the finish line was. I made it to the line in 2:12:21. I was very pleased to finish 55 out of 70 in my first expert race at the Iceman. Last year I finish 2:09:55 which was a little better, but with the added distance for 2009 it was about the same pace. I will be looking forward to a little break in the coming winter months and start my training for the 2010 race season.

2009 Iceman Cometh Results

2009-11-18T01:49:00.002-05:00

Our team had 22 riders make the journey to Traverese City , MI for the 2009 Iceman Cometh. Of those 22 riders, 21 made it to the finish line. Joe Reddy had a mechanical issue causing him to turn off at the half way point at Williamsburgh Rd. It was a great event and we look forward to next years race. Great job everyone.

Iceman 2009 - Ride Post

2009-11-17T17:52:00.003-05:00

The Iceman 2009 Race was a blast. There were over 4,000 racers all converged on downtown Kalkaska last Saturday.

This was an interesting year for me from a training standpoint. Last year's Iceman was my first race ever. This year I had a full season of racing under my belt. I think last year I was in better shape and had trained harder for Iceman. This year my racing performance peaked in July and then life got kind of busy and riding took a second chair for the balance of the summer. It felt a bit like "show up and ride" this year.

Last year was 2:07 vs. 2:09 this year. The 2009 course was 1 mile longer than 2008 so I figure roughly the same time as last year. The course was really fast this year and I felt the 2x1 gear ratio cost me time on the flats but am not sure a taller gear would have netted a faster time as the hills would have been really tough. I think next year a carbon frame 1x3 would be the fast ticket. I was in wave 10 and had many of my single speed younger friends in wave 8 just ahead. Many friends were in various waves all over the entry field.

At around the 3 mile mark the rider immediately in front of me wiped out in a major sand pit and I promptly went over the bars on top of him. No damage and we were back on the course quickly. The rest of the way was fairly uneventful with a bit of a challenge on the nutrition side. I used honey this year and the consistency made it a bit hard to get out of the flask quickly. The finish this year had many more vendors and activity than last year including local food vendors. We stayed and watched the pro's finish. The promoters had a large digital leader board and that was fun to see the names of teammates pop up.

It was a great year of racing for Team Precision MTB, thanks to Brian and Jimmy for everything this year. Jeff hosted a killer party in a one room school house just blocks from the finish with killer homemade Chili and Chicken Noodle soup, thanks Jeff & family.

I can't wait for next season and the winter rides that are soon to come.

Garmin GPS Race Data

Picasa Photo Gallery

Dave YTD Riding Summary

2009-11-17T17:51:00.001-05:00

I ran a quick report off the garmin connect website to check miles for the year. This is the first year I've had enough data to gather how many I'd logged. and this is the first time I have added them all up. Didn't realize the software had a report feature so it was quite easy. I've heard many team mates and friends quoting miles recently and had no idae what I'd actually done. So below is the report. There was one BTT ride that said 214 miles, they are long sometimes but not that long so I deleted that one and re-ran the report.

On a side note - indoor training season is started, today was day 2 of riding the rollers in the am, there is an art to it. I have a fixed gear on the tri-cross flip flop hub. I hope to get good enough by the end of the winter to ride the fixie on the rollers.

I'd love to see more than just me posting to this blog come on BERC, BTT, and PrecisionMTB guys and Gal get on the ball and post up your Iceman & 2009 riding summaries! If you do not have author rights to this blog but would like them shoot me an email, for those that already have the permissions lets get posting!!!

Progress Summary Report for dfsmith2
2009 YTD Riding Summary as of 11/10/09
Count:	121 Activities
Distance:	2,479.33 mi
Time:	205:40:01 h:m:s
Elevation Gain:	138,382 ft
Avg Speed:	12.1 mph
Avg HR:	124 bpm
Avg Run Cadence:	--
Avg Bike Cadence:	67 rpm
Calories:	177,347 C

Iceman 2009

2009-11-17T14:39:00.003-05:00

I hate it; I love it; I hate it; I love it. Alright, I am a bit ambivalent on the Iceman Cometh Challenge. I hated the idea of it at first. 4000 people on one trail left me wondering what kind of abomination we had wrought. The thought of the race when I thought it was 3000 people back at the time of signing up in February was enough to make me reluctant. NOW 4000???

Well, my theory going into the season was this: train like I'm gonna race and if I do well, great. If not, at least enjoy the fitness level. Then I joined the PrecisionMTB.com race team and I was committed to racing. So, I figured I would apply that to Iceman. I made the commitment so I might as well go for it.

Prior to the race I started reading about all the logjams that could occur on the trail and I figured: screw it!! Go out and race and be ready to deal with everyone else that might get in my way. If things went badly, just treat it like a 27 mile weekend ride; keep the cranks going and look for the beer at the end. What's not to like?

The start was one of the best I experienced in terms of anxiety level. No teammates in my wave or my class but I started in the same wave as a couple of guys I ride with frequently: Jim Senska and Jeremy Hansen. This helped since familiar faces in a wave of humanity always help settle me down.

My ride was pretty uneventful-- no major crashes, no discourteous riders, just good fun.
Well, uneventful until the cramps set in about 20 miles into it. I was able to manage them so that I did not lock up the quads, so that was a blessing. This was the first race I used electrolyte supplements to manage my electrolytes. I was a bit conservative in using them and I think I would have been fine if I had followed the exact directions. The directions indicate that you should take them every 45 minutes of hard exercise. I took some right before the start, but then abstained until about 90 minutes into the race when I started to feel the cramps come on. My mistake, but I felt better about having slight cramp issues than I did about really upping my usage on this supplement.

During the race, Jeremy and I rode together. About 5 miles in, I pulled away from Jeremy and was pretty much riding by myself-- no one else was around to ride tempo with me. Jeremy eventually caught up to me at about mile 15. He was stronger at that point and I tried to latch on to the back of his wheel. I stayed with him for about a half a mile, but no dice. He had a great tempo and I was struggling. We talked for awhile, but I eventually let him go.

One funny event: me and a number of singlespeeders were walking up a hill (don't ask me which one; I was in the pain cave and they all looked the same to me). I was walking along and a guy in my class was off his bike and running up the hill, passing me. I mocked disapproval, telling him it was cheating to pass while walking. He replied, "I'm not walking." Touche. He was running and he went right by me. Rats!! But it was worth the laugh.

Also worth a grin was the aid station dude handing out bananas dressed as a banana.

Coming to the finish was fun. I passed a guy in my class with about 500 meters to go. The crowd was HUGE. It really took me by surprise. I was dazed and confused when I got off the bike. I really felt out of it. Luckily, I ran into a teammate, Jeff Jager. He was nice enough to buy me a water (thanks, Jeff).

All in all, it was a great weekend. Seeing all the teammates and other friends and familiar riders was a blast. Jeff Carek threw a nice party afterward with good beer and awesome chili.

The final verdict: I like Iceman. If for no other reason, I liked it because it is a great measuring stick. Looking at the race results, one can measure oneself against some of the best racers in the country. The prospect of doing the course x minutes faster next time would place me right there in my class and only y minutes behind the pros. That'll motivate me to spend more time on the trainer this winter.

Gotta go; I gotta go train.

John "Do you have the keys to unlock this quad?" Gonway

Welcome

2009-11-17T12:20:00.001-05:00

It is official. PrecisionMTB now has a blog.