Highland Fling 2009

Status: Finished

Time: 06:02:54

Position (Overall): 138

Race Category: Full/Male/Veterans

Position (Category): 44

I love this event. I loved it last year and I loved it more this year. I love the children's paintings in the woods, I love the water bottle free thing, I love the way the village really get behind it, the organisation that's just first class, the volunteers that rock (along with their beards!), and of course the track. OK so it doesn't have heaps of single track or testing technical but it still has great sections and some good long fire trails to get some rhythm time. It's no walk in the park.

Last time I was down here I saw the Bundanoon dash I though I would have some of that action, so I put my name down. To be honest I was a lot more nervous about this race than the big one the following day. I had the whole day to fettle with the bike and try to keep calm and work out some plan but how much planning can you do for a 10 minute race anyway? Eventually I found myself on the second row behind and surrounded by guns. The race was a blur from start to finish. Following the car down the road I though I would surely crash on every pedal turn, the pack at were rabid and riding bar end to bar end. At the bottom of the hill the car pulled to the side and my heart shot out of my mouth (where it stayed for the rest of the race). Amazingly I found my self in the lead pack all the way around the dirt track, this was it - I was in the tour de France and was going to take yellow, if I didn't have a heart attack first. It was great seeing and feeling how completely mental a short sprint can be at this level, I couldn't believe I was still there. Then at the bottom of the hill they all took off. I looked down to check my heart and back up to find the 9 riders where gone. Literally, I couldn't see them. So dropped the suspension, and locked it all out, dropped into the bit dog and smashed my little legs off. I vaguely remember crowds of people lining up on each side of the road closing in and cheering, clanging cow bells. I was Lance Armstrong, dancing on my pedals. I heard some support for me but have no idea who from. Please heart, keep working. I got to the top of the hill and saw the finish line but just could not stay out of the saddle, my legs were shot, all in less than 11 minutes. But wait... there's a guy ahead! I can catch him! I'm Lance Armstrong, this is the Alpe d'Huez. Get up again and PUSH... and..... argh my legs..... just.. got.. him. I came in tenth place and a big smile on my face, oh and I set a new max heart rate Flipping EPIC fun, why doesn't everyone one do this, it's insane!

So, the next day. I was in for the hundred and whatever kay race. I didn't really care where I came because I had the day before as a top trumps excuse card, which was great because it took a lot of pressure off. I started with Gazza way to close to the front and within the first 5 kays fell back to my rightful place a great many riders back. I rode side by side with many familiar faces, Linco (well done on a wicked time mate), Bryn, Gazza (who was having a shocker with his new bike but still managed to spank my arse), Rob (who spent most of the time telling me how slow I was going, thanks for the encouragement mate ), Dr Eggs on a frankly very silly quest to take his SS around 100miles, and for about 2 minutes the entire elite peloton. For once my race plan was perfect in every way. I couldn't believe it. I came in at around 6 hours with no cramps, a perfect average heart rate, and more in the tank.

Watch it all go wrong at the next one.. when is that again?

Scott 24 2009

Team: Meat and 2 veg

Status: Finished

Laps: 23

Race Category: 6s/Male 40+

Position (Category): 4

This will be short, sleep is iminent.

I'll just outline the bullet points.

I was part of a great team of riders from South Sydney who I hadn't met before.
We had 6 flat tyres and one blown shock (incluiding my UST larsen.
Without the flats we would have come first in cat (oh well).
As it was we missed third by 1:30 minutes...

Ace stuff
The event was really well organised.
The track was awesome. Hair raising fast desents with nice (yes really) climbing to pay for it. Lots of crazy air to be had and a fantastic track for the Yeti.
The team I was in was great, all top blokes who are competitive but somehow casual as well - weird Oh, they are fast too.

Grumbles
I thought the track was too crowded, everytime I got my flow I ran into another group of riders tailing each other like sheep. I think there where simply too many people there.
A bit gutted we missed the podium (even though the computers told us we had it even 1.5 hours after the race finished). How to get a teams hopes up then kick them in the nuptuals!
The laps are probably a bit too long to be honest... but they are still fun.
It was quite cold when leaving your sleeping bag at 2 in the morning and pulling on wet bike kit (I know, I should harden up).

There, that will do for now... all in all, I had a great weekend.

MWMTB / WSMTB Sydney Super XC Series Round 6 (Final series round)

Status: Finished

Laps: 3

Position (Category): 5

Man I love these short course races, it feels like ages since I have done one.
Yellomundi is such a classic XC track and today it was pretty much perfect. Conditions were pretty warm, my car said 30 so probably around 28ish. I was in group C which meant 3 laps. I started hard along with the rest of the pack and somehow found myself in fifth. I couldn't keep the pace of Pedro in forth but lucky the sixth place rider couldn't keep place with me either so I rode over the line in fifth with no real challenges. I was pretty much riding as hard as I could for the first lap, slowed the place a bit in the second and then put the hammer down on the last lap. I need to get some more short course training in after all the endurance training I was doing for the Doctor last weekend becuase I should really be faster than this but then It is a week after the doctor and I think that took more out of me than I thought it would.
Bad luck to Damien for braking a crank, and to John for his front wheel puncture which kept him out of forth place in the overall standings I think.
Oh and I hope the chap in the back of the ambulance gets better soon, that's the most blood I have seen from a MTB injury in a very long time

Mogo - Angry Doctor & Irate Intern

Status: Finished

Time: 06:31:57

Race Category: 100km/Male/Open

Position (Category): 77

"What the hell am I doing this for again?"

It all came back to me after 20 kays in... "Hang on, this is bloody terrible". There are plenty of excuses I could use for the way I was feeling, getting a flat, screwing up my food royally, running out of water, getting a virus the week before.. the bottom line is this is a mother of an event. I had just forgotten.

So in the end I pretty much got exactly the time I set myself, an hour and fifteen minutes quicker than last year. My highlight, apart from finishing alive, where riding the incredible new downhill berm section with Peter and Henry, those guys keep some serious pace!

My skins are staying on for a week.

The Rocky Trail Show Episode 2 $100 bike challenge

State Series Round 2 Ourimbah XC

Status: Finished

Laps: 3

Time: 01:32:00

Race Category: Masters 1-2

Position (Category): 6

Sixth Lord!!

For the first race in my short carer I found my self on the front on the start line, and staring at the long and rather intimidating hill. To my left and right there were obvious weekend gunners, I was out of my depth, out classed and quite nervous, surely I was in the wrong category? The metaphorical flag fell and I attacked the hill with the same insane fury as the other 10 or so madmen around me. By the top I was probably about 5th. The first lap contained at a pace I knew I couldn't maintain, and sure enough I was being passed every 15 minutes or so. If I had held any cognitive processes I would have been happy with the 29 minute lap time, instead all I could think about was what a stupid idea it was to assume I could survive on a water bottle instead of a back pack for water.

By lap two the calls of track behind be had reduced and I was left feeling that I had the track to myself, hardly the best for putting in a decent time, but dam good fun. None the less, and despite my high heart rate I was feeling strong and managed to put in a 32 min lap.

That's pretty much how it went through to the end. On lap three I sensed my legs were feeling stronger than usual so I adjusted my cadence and decided to attack the hills standing, which is something I don't usually do. It seemed to help, my legs started wearing out nicely.

I'm more than happy with my race, although I didn't had hoped to have had someone to chase on the last lap I keep pushing hard to the line and it was good to feel that the recent strength training is having a positive effect.

Thanks to Kath Bicknell for the picture, and well done for a great position as usual :)

Dirtworks Classic 100km - 2009

Status: Finished

Time: 05:28:50

Race Category: 100Km/Male/Veteran

Position (Category): 40

This will be short as I can't see the screen and my hands would be better controlled by a lorrikeet at the moment. I am really happy though, I managed to shave an hour and five from my time of last year to post a respectable (for me) 5:28. I had been doing quite a lot of shorter training rides but nothing over 70 kays so I was concerned I wouldn't go the course. Sure enough when I go to the top of the second large hill the cramps hit me and didn't leave for the rest of the ride. I just wasn't able to put the power down any more and had to limp home for the rest of the way on half power.

I got to the half way point at 2:33 so I knew I was in for a good time, depsite holding myself back for the first half. At the 50km water stop I bumped in to Critty so we rode together for a while till we go to the last third of the race and he found his second wind and took off. The piches and the sand were as bad I remember them from last year, the the crazy down hills are epic! So many punctures, quite a few crashes and lots of sand.

Nutrition was a bit off this time, I took a slight gamble which didn't quite work but I'll know next time. Water consumption was spot on, and my race plan would have been perfect if it wasn't for the cramping.

Major congrats to Supergav for posting the very silly time of 4:40, surely a NoBMoB record??

Oh, and I rode the bridge, and amazingly didn't fall in - that wrist band is staying on for a week.

And now to bed....

WSMTB XC Round 1 - C Grade

Status: Finished

Laps: 3

Time: 01:12:13

Race Category: C Grade - Men

Position (Category): 6

My first WSMTB XC race, and it won't be the last.

I wasn't really sure how to play this as I have only done team efforts in short course races before, single laps. Initially I was going to start quite a way back in the group but at the last minute made a dash for the front of the pack at the start line, I think I started in about 10th place. First half a lap was really busy with lots of bunching up on the technical stuff. Once I got past some of that stuff I went hard till the next lap. I turned it down a bit and concentrated on consuming enough water and energy. Alex had broken down(?) at the top of the second climb and told me I was in 4th place! I couldn't really see how but it felt good to know I was at the pointy end. Every time I was in the switchbacks I would look back at the yellow number plates and I knew I had riders close behind so I started putting some more effort in and was increasing the gap on the down hill sections and technical stuff. Last lap was pretty much a daze, I focused on the guy in front for most of it and I managed to take another place on the line. I was happy with the way I rode the race and was really making an effort to work on my cornering, which is starting to make sense now.

I think I got 6th in the end,\I am happy with that. There were some young guns in the race who were really quick so to me they don't count

Congrats to the other nobbers, all had a really good day. The track was awesome as usual, can't wait till the next one.

Archive - WWS 2009 Round 2 Yarramundi

Re: This ride meeting:

WWS 2009 Round 2 Yarramundi

Team:Lap Dancers

Status: Finished

Laps: 14

Time: 08:19:34

Race Category: Threes Mixed Masters

Position (Category): 2

Another great race with the Lap Dancers, this time at Yellowmundi. I was keen to have another go at the 8 hour race as at the first round I couldn't really get in the course and I felt I didn't do it justice, struggling with front end grip and the furnace like heat. This one was different and I loved it. I had swapped my igniter for a new Panaracer XC and it made all the difference, I had controllable front wheel slides and I actually didn't have a crash (who'd have thought?)

I had ridden this track once before socially but in a race it's different - fast, technical and hard. By my third lap I had learnt some of the more obvious lines and was really starting to get into it. It was a great track to work on my cornering and I was able to practice my weight distribution and force my self to stay off the brakes. I was overtaken only twice the whole time, by Craig Gordon, well he is a world champion I suppose.

When I came in to finish my third lap Steve took off and literally 4 minutes later I saw him pushing his bike back to camp nobmob. As I was still standing there in my kit I frantically went out again. I thought I would struggle as I didn't have any energy with me but John threw me a full bidon which really helped. My lap times where around 36 mins and my second lap came in at 41 complete with Steve's run across the carpark and my ride back to find the track, it could have been much worse. Our gap to the third place team had shrunk so it was up to John and Steve to hammer home some decent times, which ended up getting us the second place.

As usual, I'll bullet point memories.

What rocked
o The Great track - gets better every lap.
o Being passed my Gordo who appeared to be rocket powered.
o Coming second place for the second WWS 8 hour race in a row, a privilege to be in such a fast team.
o Vanina smashing the end of her race to come in first place again - well done!
o Rob for being heroic after quite a nasty spill - those are going to hurt tonight.
o Bruce for putting in a great effort to ride 10 laps solo.
o Darren for lending me his bottle holder.
o The overall good vibe at camp nobmob and out on the course.
o Not crashing.

What sucked
o Finding out my rear brake was on all day
o Trying to adjust said brake and loosing all of the brake shims in the long grass - dummy.

Archive - 24 hours of wet hellish fun

Jetblack twenty four hours Sydney

Team: Toasted
Status: Finished
Laps: 26
Time: 24:22:59
Race Category: Sixes/Male
Position (Category): 5

It was raining on the way down there, it was raining when we put the tent up, it was raining on every lap, and it was raining when we packed up and went home 24 hours later. Not just sissy rain, but proper hard man rain. Myself and the rest of Toasted decided that we would camp - in tents - in a field - in the rain - Oh how I envied the orgainsed bods that had pre-ordered cabins. Lightweights :)


This was always going to be an interesting race, ever since I saw who was signed up for the team. Sadly we lost Carlgroover at the last minute who selfishly went and got sponsored, but who redeemed himself by offering entertainment throughout the whole weekend, and got first place solo 24 40's to boot - awesome. Happily Tod stepped up in his place. Despite the incessant torrential downpour, moral in the team was high, and we spent most of the race switching between third to sixth position. Wayne was always on hand at the tarp to keep humour following, and reheat his never ending supply of pasta. Critty was there simply to smash out fast lap after fast lap, he didn't disappoint despite the multitude of technical aggravation's his bike was dealing him.

When darkness descended at 7:30 on Saturday night I was prepared for the eventuality of serious bone damage. Reports where coming in that the track was getting near impossible to ride, and seriously dangerous in the dark. Literally 5 minutes before I pulled on my muddy cold wet muddy soaking freezing muddy kit once again, I heard a joyous sound float over the air, braking through the roar of the rain like a little golden mocking bird of calming sleep - The race had been suspended!!! I had never felt so happy.

Critty and myself skipped across paddocks of blossoms and foot deep mud to share our happiness with the rest of the world, and in particular castle nobmob. We where greeted with equal happiness, smiles and a great bowl of pasta (thanks Blondie). Despite the torrential rain, that night we managed to sleep through and before I know what was happening I was woken from dreams of cracked shins on slippery rocks by Martin's voice over the Tanoy, race would resume at 7:30 - that was me then!

I jumped out of my warm, dry, warm, snug sleeping bag and onto the training bike and started waking up. For some reason I felt it was up to me to get our team a decent start to the day. The warm up worked well and I started passing riders immediately, even some from earlier starts... The track had improved a lot overnight and I followed whisperer for a short while before he let me pass (he was on 2 laps to my single), and I did my best to hammer the downhill single. In the dry I reckon this part of the track would be amazing, in the wet it was extremely challenging, and amazing.

The whole team went out for another lap that day, and special mention should go to Critty's amazing timing of snapping his chain at transmission, Critty for riding a whole lap with his front wheel undone, and for Damien for keeping his head on the last lap and getting us that fifth place - nice work mate.

This was my first 24 hour race, and wont be my last. Just look at the pictures Rob took of the riders, when did you ever see smiles that big at an event? Says it all really.

Quick highlights:
Knowing I was hammering every lap as hard as I could.
Passing a very happy smiling Carlgroover in the same place - twice.
Being part of Toasted, top work fellas.
That bowl of pasta.
The showers!!
The hard work everyone had put into the course and the event.
The Yeti (I know I keep talking it up but man!)
Hope brakes Smiling
Alex's lap times.
Alex's wind trainer.
Whisperer's mega tarp.
Seeing Jason English transition for the first time about 30 seconds ahead of the rest of the field.
Seeing Jason English racing the KOM 4 men's at every opportunity.
Getting home where everything is nice and dry,
and knowing that next year it will only get easier!

Archive - Random Solo ride around the area - 11/10/2008

With everyone off to the CORC24 this weekend I thought I would take myself on a solo explore around the area and check out some new (to me) tracks. This was the first proper ride I have done since I broke my ribs in the Angry Doctor so I was anxious to find out how I would go. The idea was to ride from my place to Heath Track, up Quary track, ridgetop track and over the Mona Vale road and around the back of the show ground onto the single track to the start of Wildflower garden and follow that (sort of) through Garden Gully to Ryland and then Sandy Trail. Once in Terry hills I would do the Perimeter track and perhaps long if I had enough time.

Events worth mentioning: On the way down Heath I got a snake bite in the front inner tube and whilst trying out my new CO2 canisters almost blew my head off, and managed to explode the pump. The wrong canisters were the blame. Waited for a passing biker to help.

Thought I would time myself up Quarry and posted a time just under 5 minutes which I am happy with.

There was some great single track somewhere around Ryland, although quite muddy and I did a great face/body plant OTB combo into a deep mud pit.

The hills around the pistol club coming up to Sandy trail are very step, I would say up there with the climb out of Andos, certainly going south. Some really good climbing to be had here. All ridable but loose and lots of water bars.

I managed to get myself sort of lost past the rifle club and ended up on a great bit if single track that ended up on Booralie road where it joins Joalah Rd. The track came out opposite a bus stop. I followed Booralie Rd. into Terry hills and rode Perimeter and back. Perimeter is such a great track on your own, you can get really good rhythm and just slog the few hills that there are. I think I was averaging 30kph which felt fast but good although my front was washing a bit (see below)

Then it was back home, all in all 51 kays and I felt fresh at the end. Happily my ribs didn't give me any problems, so at least I will be up for the Half Fling in a couple of weeks, better than nothing.

The Yeti just gets better and better, can't fault it. One thing I have noticed that is that the sensation of speed just isn't there like my Trek, it doesn't feel that fast, but I know it is. I put the new DX pedals on which are great, I think I have the clip in injuries problem licked finally.

I'm really going off the Ignitor tyre on the front though, and after talking to Whisperer he confirmed what I thought, the profile is far to round for the sort of riding I do. I don't have any confidence in corners, even when hanging off the side like a motorbike. I think I will search for a Panaracer Fire XC Pro and be done with it, the Kenda Nevegal look decent as well.

Archive - DirtWorks Classic - 100km - 2008

What a day eh?

Considering I was happy to finish at all I shocked myself and came in at 6:33, which I am very happy with. I had 2 breakdowns and a bad crap just after walking through the water so I reckon I could have knocked 15 minutes off that (perhaps, it was still pretty hard going). I had the pleasure of riding most of the second 50 with Rob who managed to keep my from fully doing myself in, only to go and tackle those ridiculous rock climbs he had be practising a few weekend before, great stuff.

Congratulations to Critty who came in at an amazing 5:20. Not bad for someone who has "apparently" be riding MTB for about 5 months.



I also notice that Craig Gordon's time of 4:10 from last year was beaten by his mate Hamish Elliot with an astonishing time of 4:09 - just insane. I guess I should eat humble pie as I predicted no records would be broken this year. The track was in great shape, a credit to the organisers. What wasn't so we organised was having the second round of the downhill champs at Wisemans ferry, we lined up for over 2 hours to get on

So who is up for a Andos/Oaks next weekend then? Best get in training for next year eh?

Dylan