2011 Southern Cross

With the kids on mid winter break and family down in Georgia, no other excuse was needed to head out and participate in the 2011 edition of Southern Cross. What was supposed to be a junior race for Mason, with her grandparents, great grandparents, cousins, aunts & uncles being able to come out and support/watch her, turned out to be something different altogether. We got an email from the promoter stating that the 30 minute junior race was cancelled due to lack of participants. They were kind enough to offer Mason an upgrade to the 'Citizen Race' - a toned down version of the full 50 mile cross race. So after a few emails back and forth with the promoter, it was decided that I would chaperon Mason on the 30 mile course. So we went from a 30 minute race to a 30 mile race!

Just before heading to the start line - all Smiles!

We ended up getting a little turned around heading out to the race, but stopped in town at the local coffee shop and actually ran into a guy who worked at the winery where the race was being held.  He pointed us in the right direction and off we went.  We definitely cut it a lot closer than I normally like to, but it took us about 30 minutes longer to reach the venue than I thought.  With a quick walk through the registration line, we got ready, rode up the hill to the start and were greeted with the following.

There were a couple hundred starters

Yeah, there were a lot of starters at the race.  Mason rolled into place without me while I took a few pictures.  I then took my place next to her in order to 'chaperon' her on the ride.  She is like an old pro on the line.  As soon as the first wave (50 milers) went off, Mason eased her way right up to the front of the group.

Ready to CLIMB

We left the line along with about 50 other riders doing the Citizen's Race.  Mason jumped right in and was rolling with everyone else, making some sweet passes along the way.  There was one steep drop with a culvert at the bottom that I was praying she would not take a digger on.  She rolled it, got a little squirly coming out, but still hit it at speed and made it through.  It was off through the winery and we were somewhere around the top 20 making some sweet passes on steep little ups which were somewhat slick.  Having the mountain bikes helped through the starting sections for sure.  Then we hit the forced run up.  It was pretty damn steep.  I told Mason that I was going to ride it, she said she was going to walk.  The guy next to her chuckled at her response.  Either that or that fact that I said that I was going to ride up.  I might have been the only person in the 30 mile race to ride up the hill.   Everyone was tripping out.  I do not think anyone believed someone could ride it because no one moved out of my way as I was calling out 'on your right'.  Seriously, no one even remotely stepped out of the way.  The Stijl 29er was laying it down.  Well, being that Mason is only 11, her strength is not quite on par with adults, so she got passed by the entire field by the time she reached to top of the run up.  The only bonus was that is allowed me to be congratulated quite a few times on my accomplishment of climbing the hill.  Little to no consolation for Mason, though.

Started on the road...

We were off to the road that linked to the dirt.  We rode for a few miles before we actually hit the dirt.  We knew at this point we were trailing everyone.  It got hot quick and we took a break to peel off the warm layers.

Quickly turned to dirt - and warmed up!

Heading up the road

The climb up the road was long and it got really steep at the end.  Mason is a billy goat, though.  She only walked about 300 yards of the entire 30 miles.  I have no doubt that she did not do the most walking that day.  We had a solid hour of climbing, which was a first for Mason.  She rolled in the middle chainring for the majority of the day and only dipped into the granny for the steepest portions of the ride.  

This looks deceptively flat in the picture

Once we hit the top of the big climb, there were a series of rollers that had us smiling from ear to ear.  The climbs started to seem shorter and shorter after the 'big climb'.  Then we started to hit some big descents - again, a first for Mason.  She was rolling right on my wheel the entire way down.  We did catch on guy on the way down and made our first downhill pass!  We were about to catch a group of about 7 people when I looked back and no more Mason.  The washboard road was taking its toll and Mason had to back off.  At the end of a few descents, Mason would ride up next to me and exclaim how much fun she was having.  The last 6 miles were on the road and there were a lot of ups and downs.  We rode back into the winery and came up to one sick run up.  It was twice as long and steeper than the first one!  The Stijl did not let me down, after huffing it up the ridiculous bank, I proceeded to ride that beast.  I think it took Mason 5 minutes to climb it, pushing her bike.  She actually had to shoulder the Anthem in order to get up the first part of the 'run up'.  We made our way back through the winery on the CX course, which was reverse of when we started.  The start was a lot of fun because it was all downhill - yeah, that means all uphill on the way back!  The cool part was that Mason rode all of it minus one short steep portion - mostly because she had to pee so bad that she stopped right there and hit the woods for a quick nature break.  It was quite amusing since we were literally 3 minutes from the finish line.  Monica and Joni were waiting for us as we rode up towards the finish.  It was cool when Monica said that she had been watching everyone walk the last part of the course only to see us come up riding the entire thing!  Mason is a billy goat for sure.  It must not have been too bad, because she was all smiles at the end of the day.  When I asked her if she would do it again her response was - "not today".  If it fits our schedule, we will be back foregoing the junior race and heading straight for the real deal.

It must not have been too bad - all SMILES again!

I always say that the cycling community is great and this event proved to be no different.  Eddie & Namrita O'Dea of 55 Nine Performance were both extremely nice and accommodating in upgrading Mason to the adult race.  The event was well run and we had no issues at all.  There were a ton of people encouraging Mason along the way and some that took the time at the end of the day to find and congratulate her on a great ride.  It is that kind of support in the cycling community that helps develop future riders.  Mason was by far the youngest one out there, but everyone she ran into made her feel welcome.  She also accomplished her goal of finishing ahead of at least one person.  If it were not for the nature break, it very well could have been two.  We had a great time and I can say with confidence that Mason's perspective on riding is forever changed - for the better.

On a side note, I would like to thank Hinmaton for making my ride possible.  Since Mason has inherited my Giant and the team bikes are in the works, I am sans a ride.  I now have about 40 hours on his bike.  Thanks again Hinmaton!

BTS #19

What an awesome day for a ride!! It was nice to see so many team members make it out. It was me, Jeff, Tom H., Paul, Damon, Kylan, and of course Steve. Big thanks to Steve for hosting us and ensuring we didn't get lost. All those crazy letters...

We ended up doing a few laps of the park and never made it over to York. The new section, called the "D" loop, is the newest trail and probably the most difficult from an aerobic standpoint. Much like the rest of the park, all climbs are short. This trail has a few tight switchbacks thrown in for good measure though.

Thanks to all that showed up. Had a great time. We need to schedule another team ride at Freedom before to long.

BTS 18

Pulled into the direct buy lot at 5:31. As I was pulling in Jeffro was rolling out tryin' to snatch up some quadruple points. He pointed his finger at me and said "no! you can't ride tonight!"

Needless to say I didn't heed his command. We rolled out together in the light rain, and in spite of the weather had a good time. Jeff and I have become pretty tight riding and racing buds over the past year, so it seemed only fitting to end this cockamaimy points scoring week out together in the rain. We were the only ones dedicated(or stupid) enough to be out there on bicycles. Good riddance double points week!!!

BTS #17

Twas another chilly night at Westcreek for David Reid, Todd, and myself. But, we all noticed how much longer the days are getting and the thoughts of warmer weather and riding somewhere other than West Creek took some of the cold sting away.

All of these BTS training rides are making for some strong DP racers. We discussed how awesome it is that so many of the folks on the team are making it out to one BTS event or another.

BTS# 15

Seems as though the double points week is already bringing out a few extra riders. Good stuff for sure. Todd, Jeff, Paul and I made it out for a nice ride at Powhite. The wind was certainly blowing the cold air in, but the rain held off and it never got to cold on us.

Look at the new bling to hit the trail for the inaugural ride. Sweet bike Jeff!!

Oh, and Jeff wants to know who the heck this Euro D guy is that has incredible shot up the BTS standings??

BTS Bonus Ride #1

Went out yesterday for a ride with Craig, Nolan & Euro Dave (David R), hitting up the downtown trails.  Two hours later we picked up Tom Haines and as we headed out northbank, we ran into Jennie!  Although we had dropped off Craig & Nolan, having 6 people representing DPR on the trails together cannot go unrewarded.  So for everyone that showed up on the trails yesterday for the downtown ride, you get an extra 30 points!  I ended up riding four hours with Euro Dave - my legs were stinging by the end of the day. 

Look at next weeks updated ride list.  Being two weeks out from the first race, next weeks rides will count for double points.  There will also be a ride everyday next week.  If you show up and are the only one at the ride then you get double "double" points.  This contest is not ever yet.  Toddy G is going to have to work to maintain his lead.  100 points on the line tomorrow.  Points will be awarded on the length of time you are doing trail work and the length of time you ride.  Just figure 20 points an hour with possible bonus points for staying longer than 5 hours. 

Also remember to thank our sponsors of the first BTS Series:
Comfort for providing dinner for two.
Design Physics & Haines Construction for covering the free team jacket.

Nice Weather for BTS #13

Nice to see some new faces out tonight along with some of the regulars. Matt J., Todd, Sonya, Tom R., Jeff and me made it out tonight. We were greated with nice temperatures and very little wind. Can't ask for much more then that in February.

Overheard Todd saying that his wife has already picked out what she wants at Comfort and Jeff was mumbling something about already feeling warm from a nice new jacket.

Pantini ride

Right now the pain is still too vivid in my mind to wright anything but a negative blog. I'm hoping Foghorn will get me some pictures later this week. I'll post something then.

In short we all started and finished without getting lost. The pace was hard out of the gate. the climbs were crazy hard. Pretty much a full day in the hurt locker, but it's all good!!!

DPR Hilbert Day

February 20th @ 9am

Trail clean up and ride at Hilbert.  Bring leaf blowers if you have them.  You could also bring any normal trail maintenance tools.  It should be mostly light cleanup.  Todd will have a chainsaw just in case.  Plan on arriving at 9am in order to score maximum points.  We will clear the trail and then ride the rest of the day. 

into the rears

Here are the first of the rear triangles.

So far it is taking @ a day per frame to fit and tack the rears.

I also included a shot of the jig for mitering the stays.

Enjoy!

oh- We are looking at doing a second run of frames, so if you are interested in being a part of the "team frame" deal and you missed the first round- now is your chance.

Hh

2011 Super Bowl Ride

  

SUPER mellow pace heading out before the climb



Sunday a few of us decided to head out and participate in the 2011 Super Bowl Ride.  It was well worth the drive out.  From the team, we had myself, Todd, Dennis & Tom H.  We met at Rowletts and took the SWEET bus.  After a couple of pit stops, we pulled up right on time... for the ride to leave.  We had some fireworks planned for our arrival, but those never went off.  Once we arrived, we got changed and prepped our bikes said a few hellos and then found ourselves the last ones to leave out of the lot.  There was a nice little Richmond contingent that headed up the road together.





The climb went up the road before stopping to regroup prior to hitting the dirt - which eventually became ice and then snow.



Getting going again



We then made our way to the top where everyone took the opportunity to socialize.  the weather at the top was fantastic - actually seemed warm.



There were 80-100 people on the ride



After hanging out at the top for a while, we decided that instead of bombing straight to the bottom, we would do a little more ridge riding to the next meadow and drop down from there.  Glen Amey was our private tour guide as he had the best knowledge of the trails.  





Great views just before dropping down



Once we dropped down the mountain, Dennis showed us just how sweet his bike skills are!  Ride behind him for a while downhill and you will learn a lot about yourself.  He is the man.  Plus he took all of our great pictures for the day. 







Once we made our way back down to the fire road we regrouped again and headed back to the parking lot.  We were all goofing around when Glen rocked by us on his 29er doing Mach2.  Tom H. started the DP train and we blew back by Glen.  He jumped on and then it was on.  We proceeded to paceline our way back to the cars.  It was a strong finish to a SUPER ride.  Todd even got chastised by 'The Man' by riding two abreast on the way back 

The last time we would see everyone together...

Making some headway-

Thus far, Ed and I have been able to keep a consistent pace of one front triangle completed per day. This encompasses: from grabbing the box of tubes and blueprints to having the triangle fully coped, brazed, and trued. So that means we have 4 frames 50% completed, one frame partially coped, and one last frame to pull from the box.

Bear in mind that the front triangle is the easier half... but we are still leaps further than I had estimated had we not been fortunate in getting Ed on board.

Thanks Ed!

We are still missing the specialty stays, although I hope to have them by tomorrow.

Enjoy the photos:

BTS #7...West Creek

Awesome training ride tonight! With the great temperatures today, I hope everyone was able to get out. We had a good turnout for the ride tonight with me, Jason, Jeff, Tom R., Sonya, Jenny and honorary member Mason all making it out. Nice to see some new names putting their names in for the BTS giveaway.

We had Tom R. up front really pushing the pace for the majority of the ride with Plassman and me making a few pulls from time to time. I thought the wind was going to blow us all over several times, particularly down near the lake. Made for good resistance training. As one can expect, West Creek was very busy tonight!!

Took a group pic tonight as I was worried nobody would believe the huge turnout. Unfortunately it didn't turn out...sorry guys. Hopefully next week.

BTS #6

It's been a while since I had a nightime trail ride, and I had almost forgot just how much fun it is! I hooked up with Tom H., Todd, and David at Powhite for some HID lit goodness on BTS #6. It was pretty cool to watch the night train flow down a descent as I prepared to hitch on. These trails are pretty easy for me to remember in the daylight, but at night, I felt like the village idiot after leading us into numerous wrong turns. Lucky for me Tom H. steered me back on course. Todd, David, and Tom were nipping at my heels as we plunged back down to the bottom. Great ride and I can't wait for the next night trip to Powhite.