Tour, local road races and durian cup photos

I've been away for a few days swimming and enjoying the sun at Shuswap lake. But now it's back to the grind and back on the bike. Being off it for a whole five days has been good, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss it. Tonight, there should be some street sprints happening in the city, and the weekend is filled with cycling events. Tomorrow morning everybody needs to get up early and watch the tour. Then there is a race in Sidney on saturday evening: http://www.sidneytwilightgp.com/mainpage.html This Criterium should be a blast to watch especially since it is raced on a figure eight course (although not quite like figure eight car racing, thankfully the race cource will not cross itself, that would be carnage!). It is also the final race in the BC cup which should add a little bit to the excitement.
On sunday there's another crit, this time in Oak bay, (see event here) so if you want to see some road racing action this would be the weekend to do it.
I had my old age confirmed to me last Thursday (the 18th) as a took the series win in the "Masters" (read oldman) category see below:

Picture courtesy of Dave Shiskoff

Me and my fellow winners got the very fancy durian cup trophies, of course made by Dave from reused wood, dried out Durian fruit husk and some paint he had lying around. Quite the craftsman, Dave is.

Durian Cup trophy

Durian cup and choppers with bike racks

I've often wondered if this would be possible, but I guess that if you can think of it, it can be done: Right, now I just need a motorcycle to put one of these on...hmmm where does that fit in the long list of priorities? Cross bike, track bike, dh/freeride bike, food... and somewhere down the line > motorcycle. I'll probably be one of those 65+ guys that gets their first bike in their old age and goes wobbling through the corners in a reflective vest.

Photo courtesy of Chris Schamp via Gabriel Amadeus

Portland has quite a bike scene, including a very successful summer short-track series. The picture above perfectly illustrates how you should commute to such an event. Not much room for luggage, but how much do you really need? Multi tool, pump, water bottle and a tube, all of which can fit in the back pockets of your jersey underneath the leather jacket. The coolness of this setup is substantial. Rock star points aplenty.

The last race of the Durian cup took place at Hartland last night. Me and Mitch made it out as we have for the last three weeks. This time it was the "Gravity Challenge." This race would take competitors from the tta up to the top of Jelly roll and then down the super-d course back to the tta. Deve Shiskoff's idea was that riders would do this in teams of two, that is, one would race to the top and the other from the top to the bottom. But as it turned out many racers did not have a partner or they simply wanted to challenge themselves and do the whole course solo. Mitch and I originally intended to do the race as a team but after some deliberations we decided to disband and race it solo. I knew this was a bad idea and would result in much pain, but it would be satisfying to do the race this way and since so many people were doing it solo, I felt kind of bad to race as a team. So we went ahead and did it solo, and yes it was painful but at the same time quite satisfying. Mitch won the race with an impressive time of 24:25 min, and I came in third with a time of 27:28. Rider's cycles with two placements in the top three! Yessss...
After the race we collected our customary draw prices and drank some beer and ate some vegan cupcakes. Good night of riding I'd say.

Poker race report

The "very serious" Billy idol pose captured by Kat Wright on my third checkpoint

The SIMBS poker run on Sunday was a great success. 40 people showed up for the race and everybody had a blast as far as I know. Awards were awarded for best time, DFL, best hand, worst hand, best team time, team hand, and best team name and whatever else category Mitch could come up with, so there was lots of nice swag given out to good people. The race was set up with four stations scattered around the park, and at each station you had to pick up a card, that would build your hand. The stations were located at Inventive/little Face intersection, at the Bench on Dave's line, the lookout at the end of Dave's line/start of Southridge, and at the bottom of Bottom feeder. Most people took their time between points and stopped to chat with the guys giving out the cards at every station. I did the run in about an hour or so and came in somewhere at the middle of the pack. I added some trails to my ride just for fun, and rode down Green Ribbon, and then did Crossover, Ruffles, Rolly ridge, Inventive and short cut on the way back, trying to avoid the fireroads. I had an absolute blast at the race which was organized by our own Mitch Thacker and he did a great job. He also destroyed the sprint race on Friday but more on that later.
Reinert from the Zone/Q cooked up some kick ass burgers after the ride, with his own barbecue and for free. That guy's awesome, he does not even ride mountain bikes but offers his BBQ and his time to SIMBS without hesitation. Very cool.

Race report, upcoming races, poker run

So after a mad dash in the shop van and a consequent rotor change in the Hartland parking lot I managed to show up for the race last night. Just before the race I thought: "Hmmm... that rear tire is a little low, ahh to hell with it, it'll be fine... NO IT WONT! If it can go wrong, it will at some point or another, said some guy named Murphy. Well, he was right. In the first few hundred meters, I got a flat. I was only half way up shock treatment too. So I walked back to the start, repaired the flat and got to start again. The second lap was pretty good, but on the third and last lap I felt the rear end getting loose again. Oh sh&%! Another flat?! Yes indeed it was, but it was a slow leak, and I managed to finish the race on a mushy tire...The race was good overall and my cunning strategy of getting a flat on the first lap so I'd only need to do two saved me from puking my guts out. These XC dudes have some weird perverted love for climbs.
There were about 22 people that showed up and the race was nice and casual, true Island style.
The loop that we did consisted of: Shock Treatment, second ave, emergency one, rolly ridge, crazy horse, little face, inventive, skull trail, and the regional trail back to shock treatment. Everyone had a good time even though competitors were somewhat plagued by mechanicals. I think there were 5 or six flats in the race, broken chain etc. The mixture of tough climbs, technical trails and the recklessness of full out racers combined to make for good carnage. Fun times where had by all though, and I'll be sure to show up for the second round which will be an orienteering race, whatever that means.
Tonight its sprints somewhere on the "mean streets" of Victoria. But the real race is on Sunday:
The glorious SIMBS poker run! It will be fun, it's dirt cheap ($5), not to mention all the sweet swag that will be there and the BBQ!!! - Bike race, free stuff, burgers, and beer...what else can you ask for really?

Check it: Poker

Durian cup

There's a fun event coming up tonight at the Dump. Dave Shishcoff of organicathelete.com has organised 4 races in cooperation with SIMBS. The first of the 4 race weekly series is on tonight. Sign up starts at 6:30 and racing starts at 7:00. The race fee is a meager $3 if you have a Cycling BC insurance. If not you can buy a day licence for $40. http://www.organicathlete.org/blog/durian-cup.

Unfortunately I don't think any of the Shop staff will make it out tonight, but I'm sure we'll be there next week.
This is a nice development. There have not been a lot of races at the dump for awhile, but after the first super d there last year and the second one this year there seems to be an increased interest for putting on races at Hartland and this will train the Capital Regional District in being more accepting of such events. It's a constant struggle to keep the little land we have for riding in the CRD and events like these, that show that there is a big group of energetic people using the trails might help in developing more land for mountain biking. What seems to elude the CRD is how much is to be gained from having a nice network of trails within the city limits. CRD tends to focus on liability issues, but forgets to think about how much mountain bikers contribute to the local economy...Somehow this goes unnoticed. BC is a Mecca for mountain biking and there are thousands of people that come here (BC) specifically to ride our trails, and if the city of Victoria is interested in keeping a healthy tourist population they should expand the riding in the region, not limit it. Mountain biking adds to a list of nice sustainable things to do in Victoria and it would be great if those that travel here would have more options in trail systems to ride.
but that's a whole different story...Go out there and race the Durian Cup... It should be great fun and I'm sure there will be some beers afterwards...

Super D. and stuff

Great race on Sunday we had a good showing from the store. Mitch, Justin, Chevy, Andrew and me showed up for racing. About 60 people showed up for the race which is a little less than last year but still pretty good. 35 people signed up for a SIMBS membership as well, which is great for everybody who likes to ride at the Dump. The course was the same for all competitors but there were a few line options to choose from at the top which enabled the more gutsy riders to take some short cuts.
The trails used were Jelly Roll, Lumpy Pants, Upper Daddy, Who's your daddy, Niteshift and the shortcut to the TTA.
There was some carnage on the grueling race track...a lot of people crashed or flatted and there was even a snapped chain stay...bad memories...more on that soon.
The best time for the race was an insane 8:35 posted by Jeremy Vosburgh but our own Mitch Thacker came in fourth in the expert category with a cool 9:30. Surprisingly enough I came in 4th in the intermediate which I'm pretty stoked about, but I thought my time was much worse than it actually was.
Chevy rocked in her category and came in second, say no more...
and everybody else made it down relatively unscathed, which is the ultimate goal.
To see the results look here.
There was some sweet swag given away after the race and overall the race was a huge success, even though we would have liked to see more people attend. I scored some sweet knee pads by Kali which will undoubtedly come in handy.
The Victoria Super D is here to stay as far as I'm concerned and hopefully it'll be a permanent stop on the Island Cup circuit.
Lyndon Williams took some pics at the race and they can be viewed here: http://photoshare.shaw.ca/view/14892254248-1243204677-82442/0
Thanks to him for showing up and sharing the shots.

Trial Building & Road Rides

I had an awesome time building a new trail at Hartland with the SIMBS trail building crew this morning. About 20 people showed up; which means the trail is coming together quite quickly. We were working on building a few very solid berms, armouring some turns, and there are two wall rides planned for this new trail. I find it exciting to be a part of this project. Being able to mold the trail into something we think riders will enjoy. The next SIMBS TM (Trail Maintenance) will take place May 17th. Rider's Cycles will be sponsoring this TM so expect tons of awesome swag. We will be working on the course for the up coming Island Cup Series Super-D Race on May 24th. So, please come and help us make sure the race course is in pristine condition for the all the racers; but more importantly for the Rider's Team and our star rider Mitch. Mark the date on your calendar and don't forget to RSVP Chris so that you get the sandwich you want.

After getting a flat, getting lost on the way to the trail we were working on; after all the hard work, a great lunch, and winning some sweet swag (no one went home empty handed) I headed out for a ride. I road with fellow trail builder Scott and his pal Brian. The weather was beautiful but I didn't expect that Scott had the energy for a two and a half hour ride. Needless to say I was exhausted when we finally arrived at the parking lot. However, I really enjoyed the ride. I got to see another trail I had never ridden, along with a really good workout. I also finally worked up the courage to roll down the drop on Inventive. Not a big deal for most at Rider's Cycle, but that drop had been plaguing me for months. Next on my "Just Do It List" is to drop off that rock.

Yesterday was SIMBS's Membership Drive. Here are a few excerpts of a letter from the President of SIMBS, Scott Mitchell:

"The membership drive went well on Saturday. We signed up 24 members not quite the same numbers as last year but definitely worth the time."
"Greg C and Andrew L deserve a big thank you for helping out with the table."
"Craig Gillette won the trip to Sunrise Ridge..."

Congratulations to Craig for winning the draw prize. Thank you to all those that stopped by the table get a membership, to renew their memberships, or just to say hi. I would also like to thank Tyler J. and Suzanne D. for hanging out with us.

Just a reminder to all the roadies out there; the Rider's Cycle Monday Evening Road Rides are underway. Meet us at the shop about 6pm. They usually take off when Shayne has finished closing the store; generally about 6:15pm. Tomorrow will be my first official group ride so I'll see you all then.

Life is great on two wheels.

Geoff Kabush starts off the season with a win

Geoff Kabush (Rocky Mountain-Maxxis) took the win on the season opener at USA Cycling’s Pro Cross-country tour (ProXCT), held at Southridge Park in Fontana, California. The Victoria based Kabush (he's from Courtney) therefore remains undefeated at the Fontana race wich has been on the race calendar since 2006. Velonews reported on this event:
"Both ShoAir riders came into the Fontana even with races in their legs — Australian Taberlay won the U.S. Cup opener at nearby Bonnelli Park on March 1st, and Plaxton finished tenth at last weekend’s Continental Championships in Santiago, Chile. Both took turns attacking Kabush, but the cagey Canadian said he didn’t lose his cool.

“I was dealing with a bit of team tactics from the Sho Air guys but I felt pretty in control; I just wanted to ride a smart, smooth race, which is my trademark,” Kabush said."

We as Victorians and Canadian residents (at lest if not citizens...ehemm) should all be rooting for Geoff. Not only is he a superb bike rider, but he's freaking cool too, with his signature sideburns and eccentric taste in shoe and shade color options. Kabush sometimes races in a "Cross on the rock" race or two and usually tries to go for the beer price for the fastest first lap. I had the opportunity to see him race last fall, and it was inspiring and humbling at the same time. He's a super smooth racer with mad skills and a cool attitude, in that race he would ride the "unrideable hill" every time with a smile on his face. This was not for speed, but just to please the fans, which had a blast seeing him put that hill to shame. Nobody else rode that hill, allthough some did try which is worth applauding.
Congrats Geoff and keep up the good work!