Picture taken by Joolze Dymond!

Enduro 6 2008 Well having never entered Enduro 6, I thought I might as well give it a go as I wasn’t racing else where and I was off on leave. Although I was familiar with the trails at Catton Park as I competed in the wettest race ever (SITS 2006!!!) This was the longest race I’ve done solo for quite sometime, so before starting I was a little apprehensive of my endurance abilities!! Especially, bearing in the predicted forecast for Sunday, and my memories of a wet Catton Park back in 2006!  Just for good measure to have a full weekend of racing, I decided to have a stab at the night time trial as well. Early Saturday we set off and about 4 hours later, having taken a few too many wrong turnings and exits we arrived at Catton Park. We set up camp and I headed out for a practice lap at 7. The time trial started at 8.30ish, when it was getting a little darker. The course was a mixture of open fields, a couple of short sharp climbs and a lot of technical singletrack through the woods. (And lots and lots of wild blue bells!!)      After my warm up I waited in the holding area to be called up to the starting line. I was fourth off and riders were set off at 30 second intervals. (more…)

With less time to ride lately due to the collection of greenbacks at work I’ve hade little to write about. This past weekend however I got the chance to ride with a group of local riders which was made up of 5 Superflys and 90%  29″ wheels! I also got a little to comfortable and managed to “slide” down a small descent earning myself a greenback from the brush!

stork

I have been riding on the road for the last month because of all the snow we had this winter.  We hitted a record this year….more than 500 cm of snow in Quebec city.  That’s why I am still waiting to hit the trails.  Anyway, next weekend, my season begins with a regional race in Bromont, located in south of the province where it is warmer and at least no more snow in the woods in that area.

I did a really big workout this weekend to prepare myself and see where my fitness is.  Not so bad finally.  So this first race will be good to see some friends, have fun and see where I am after this winter of preparation.  It was not easy as the years before with our first baby but I tried to put quality vs quantity. 

 So, I am very happy to ride this year my first 29” bike.  Next friday, I will hit the trails on my Superfly and with a big smile!!!

The bolts are torqued, saddle height set, and tyres tweaked. The maiden voyage of the super-fly single speed set out this Sunday morning as the darkness and I ramped up the hot laps at the dirt park. The main objective was to rid our plastique frames of any bugs before race day this weekend in TN. The monocoque structure of the sf leaves you breathless as flex no longer becomes an issue. Complete climbing control is enforced by the bontrager switchblade fork and the plush descent provided by 25psi of dry x tread. Good times and smiles were the only thing coming out of our shake down ride as we avoided mud holes and the occasional skunk spray. Ultimately, the wonder bike left us without excuses as we plateaued into a euphoric pedaling bliss. Happy trails…

Yes there will be a few Canadians on the 29er Crew! Races are not yet begin here because Mother Nature gave us a lot of snow this winter. There is a small possibility to ride the trails for the first time this coming week-end and get those 29″ wheels spin a bit! The first xc race in Quebec is schedule for May 3rd in Bromont. They took away the snow from the ski slopes to make it happen. The first Canada Cup in Charlevoix for May 10th has been cancel 2 weeks ago because they had over 13 feet of snow still on the ground! Now they are down to about 3-4 feet… Not too bad… That now leaves the first Canada Cup race to Bromont, May 17th. Bromont is further south in Quebec and the snow is now gone, exept for the ski slopes. They will use the same course as the World Cup in August, I’ll let you know how this goes. In the meantime I’ll wake up my legs in a road race this week-end and watch the Montreal Canadians working towards the playoffs! Go Habs Go!

OK, ski season is officially over, although by the amount of snow outside my window you would never think so, but— it time to start riding. So why not start with a great trip to Fruita. Oh and bring the new ride and a training log that has a big fat 0 in it for base miles. The trails around Fruita are very cool and put to shame the 4-wheel scene and condo scramble  that is Moab. The Marys trail area is so awesome ! Lots of cool comments on the Superfly by other riders, and a few were probably wondering about the rider ( fish belly white legs and arms, covered in winter fur and a ski season of beer belly). Zero training miles to 6 hour rides overnight, why dont I ever learn ? But the riding was to good to pass up and I just geared down and enjoyed the view. And now back in the NW and into a sensible training routine. But it is snowing outside and the trails are still under the white stuff. Break out the cross bike and stick to the road for a while. I dont need to post to this site about how nice the 29er rides, but my riding partner is not happy with it. I let him ride it a little and now he is doing the husband-wife grovel as he tries to convince her of his need for another bike. If you are a road rider, do not go to the Pyrenees to ride, if you ski, do not go heli skiing and if you mountain bike do not ride a Superfly– you will be forever doing chores and being extra nice to your partner so that when she looks in the checking account and says ” What was this for ?” you will not need to give a rational answer. 

Winter is holding on like grim death at 9000 feet. The more the sun shows the more the snow wants to fight it. 3 inches last night made for an icy ride to work. Studded tires for niners are where it’s at. Almost here. This is only two hours away. Wanna drive?