Pre-riding for the Hundred

The last 2 weekends we have been pre-riding sections of the SM100 course. Jason and I spent one Saturday chasing Paul.

And this past Sunday, Joe, David, Tom H. and Metro joined me for some more shredding in the GW.

The Gravel road leading up to the 1st climb is flowing nice after some recent re-grading.


Climbing up the Lynn trail can make you very tired and hungry! However, this years trail work on Wolf Ridge is definantly awesome.


Tom pounded out the miles all day long.


Joe and I had a blast bombing down Chesnut after the death climb.

Group RIde

What started as a simple email from Euro Dave (looking for a second ride of the day since he is a bachelor this week) quickly turned into a proliferation of DP kits on the trails.  Joe, Plassmania, Roger, Big Leeg, Kylan, Euro Dave & myself all joined in for a quick loop of the JRPS.  We met up at Tredegar with people coming from all directions.  Amy Coleman got swept up by the DP train coming in from the bark park and rode until her stop at Forest Hill.  I think that once we got into Forest Hill, the bullet train that is Plassmania took the lead and it was go time.  We ran into macaroni and his trio on the trails, but it was a quick (very quick) passing.  We regrouped at the exit of the trails and slowed Jeff down by sitting around and talking for 10 minutes...  then we let him go down the wrong trail so that Kylan could lead us back over the nickel bridge.  KYLAN GETS DEMERIT POINTS FOR NOT WEARING HIS KIT ON THE TEAM RIDE!!! At that point we dropped off Roger, Joe, Jeff & Euro D at their stop.  Big Leeg led us back to Tredegar where Kylan rode up the hill, Big Leeg rode back across the Isle towards FHP and I locked out my fork and put in a few solid intervals on my way back to Rocketts.  Great ride guys - let's do it again next week. 

Like sharks preying - I can smell singletrack...

7 car DP train rolling the Nickel

Hilbert #3... It's a HOT one!

Ahhh… Hilbert #3. It’s the point of the year where you sadly realize that mountain biking season is a little over the half way point. It’s also the point of the year where you look at the weather online and sulk at the 99 degree days forecasted with 90% humidity and heat indices of 105+ as was the case with this race.

Packing up the truck that morning didn’t seem so bad. I was actually thinking it was a pretty good day for a race. That is until I got to the race site. Driving to Hilbert, I had the AC blasting like everyone else and was pretty excited to be out there. When I arrive and open my door to get out, everything in my car almost immediately starts to build condensation. That’s when I realize it’s just going to be a miserable day on course… Riding enduro races is always a tough test. Even tougher when conditions are this extreme and it’s only your third time doing it. I was just hoping I was ready mentally for this as I was physically.

It was a pretty thin field as it is usually by this point in the year when there are multiple outdoor events going on the same day. Lining up at the start I see a lot of the usual faces and a few new, like Mason Hopkins, daughter of fearless leader Jason Hopkins and Adam Croft. A kid who at 11 years old can beat the pants off the majority off adults who enter these races, an always humbling experience.

I started the race with a pretty relaxed pace, settling in behind some of the slower riders. Once I felt more warmed up, I politely passed them and began to settle in a pretty decent grove pulling about 40 minute laps. Throughout the race I found that I had to force myself to hydrate because it was so hot and humid outside. As the race went on I began noticing more and more people begin to fizzle out, most likely from not hydrating in the extreme heat. 4 hours and 5 minutes later I finished up my 6^th lap. At that point I had to decide if I had enough for a 7^th lap. Considering that I was feeling somewhat nauseous during my 6^th lap, I decided to call it at that point. I was pretty proud of myself considering the conditions of the race.

All in all, the team did pretty well! David Reid wrapped up another enduro win, pulling 9 laps in 4 hours and 37 minutes. Big Leeg took 5^th place with 7 laps. Jeff took the overall win in Sport Men with Jim in a close 2^nd overall. Dave Ezzell took 5^th in class and Nolan Felts took 4^th in class. I took 7^th place enduro with the 6 laps that rolled out. With those results, the team racked up 510 points in the VORS points series and managed to put a little distance between us and the 3^rd place team. Not too shabby!

2011 24 Hours of Booty

I just wanted to thank everyone who supported our ride. Together, Mason and I raised $750 for charity and got to do a lot of riding. We were on pace to finish right at 200 miles when Mason started to get a headache. We still rocked out 150 miles. Mason hit the wall at midnight - so we grabbed a few slices of pizza before heading to the tent for some sleep. I had a grand plan of waking up at 4am and riding again since we knew the day was going to be 98 degrees. It worked for three laps - which mason said were the hardest of the whole event - before we headed back for some more rest. We had a leisurely morning and breakfast before getting back on the bike for a few more hours. Monica and Joni came a couple of hours later and scored some swag from Bob Roll. Rumor has it that Bob & Joni had quite the conversation. Here are a couple of shots from our 24 hours. Thanks again for your support.

Just before the start.

Easy riding.

This guy can make a mean pizza, too!

Mason always smiles after riding.

Rolling back to the car.

2011 Wilderness 101

Joe and I packed up the Mazda and made our way to Pennsylvania for an east coast classic, the Wilderness 101. Driving through Virginia, the temps were hot and bounced off an even hundred, just like the race. This year’s 101 would be a bit hot for sure.

Pre-riding the evening before the race gave me chance to revisit the final abandoned train tunnel that is about 1 mile from the finish. Years of decay have yielded a nice carpeting of rocks with a few choice chunky bits right in the middle where it’s dark and wet. A re-purposed train trestle bridge leading up to the tunnel has very narrow railings that challenged many riders.


The paced road section leading out of town is a great warm up and gets the blood flowing without too much drama. The moderate grade up the 1st climb is enjoyable and gives me a chance to find my groove. Then, pulling some trains and hopping onto others is a great way to keep your speed up during the 1st 20 miles of gravel.



The Romans created cobbled highways that today have weathered into lumpy paths that seem to swallow the wheels of lesser vehicles. The 1st section of single track is a snaking ride that seems to have more cantaloupe sized rocks than dirt. Glad to have my Wagon wheels for sure! In the middle, there is a nice little techy section with a couple of small bridges and a rock garden with cheering fans waiting for the carnage.

Long climbs are rewarded with extended sections of very straight single track chutes that you can ride with no brakes like a cruise missile! Whoooosh!!!

Frequently, I stuffed my cheeks like a chipmunk to keep the motor running. Energy drinks and a sip at the "Beer Station" kept me cool.

The climbs got bigger and the trails got certain as we ripped down some serious single-track. Old school east coast riding provides really challenging rock features and lets you know how close you are to cramping up.

The last big descent down Panther Hollow nearly rattled the teeth out of my head and I gave it a sharp cussing, Panther don't care.



A splash of Coke at the last aid station was the perfect set up for the final stab of a climb that leads up and down to the deceptively pleasant sounding "Fisherman’s Path" that makes up the last bit of single track. It's more of a rock-n-roll hike a bike. I was able to ride out the last section and put a nice gap on some fellow racers. The "path" would have the last laugh as my calf locked on the rails to trail leading to the final tunnel. A dozen awkward pedals later and my right leg was turning circles instead of squares...soon I was cooking with gas again and steamed my way to the finish.

Joe and I had some great results:

Joe - 7:47 (20th place - open men - out of 189)
Jeff - 8:48 (61st place - open men)

Joe was truly smokin and I set a new personal best, I'm really stoked on the Wilderness 101!