Going the Distance
This was a pretty hard race. We (experts) did 5 laps of a 4 mile course, which was rocky and had plenty of climbing. Actually, I did 5 laps, steve only did 1 because 4 inches of travel wasn't enough to keep him from double pinch-flatting. To make matters worse, he was so frantic that he was unable to patch his tube correctly, so he finally just gave up and took the DNF. Some Nevada guy named Tim Walker made me hurt alot for 3 laps. I could barely stay with him. Finally he just stopped riding fast and I took 7 minutes out of him on the last 1 1/2 laps. I was 1st vet, 3rd overall.
The race only cost $25, which was cool, and they had great raffle prizes, which was also cool. Unfortunately it took for-freakin'-ever to get around to awards, and then they were giving the same prizes to the beginners as they were to the pro-expert class, which was lame. Why encourage people to sandbag in the lower classes? On the other hand, I wrote to the organizer, expressing my concern, and he agreed it was lame and promised to have better prizes for the harder classes next year. I'll probably be back.
Steve and I (mark) went to our 3rd creampuff. I was 6th overall (2nd vet), steve was 21st overall (i think). we had fun. The race was so epic that the full write-up is under epic rides. Read all about the Cream Puff.
Team Gary Fisher is still dominating. Dan is winning the 16-28 expert class and I'm winning the 29-up expert class. The courses have been more challenging than ever lately. June 24th I rode the Assmaster (proflex dualie) to my first overall win of the season. It felt weird because i was really hammered from the cream puff. I had to walk up all the steep hills on my warm-up lap, but once the race started I just gradually felt better. The expert class gets deeper every week. Nevada City dirt classic winner Zane Peach has been showing up lately. Fortuntely he rides to the race from Auburn (25 miles or so) so we've been able to hold him in check so far. If you live somewhere near sacramento and want to come have fun with us, show up at prairie city SVRA (just south of folsom) at 5:30 or so wednesday afternoons. Email me for better directions.
Don't waste your time going to lame races. Take our word for it. Go where we send you. Obey.
A recommended race. Donner ski ranch puts on a challenging and enjoyable xc course. They have DH too, but who cares about that. The cross country is friday, july 3rd. Be prepared to climb and be prepared to ride at 7000'. Rumor has it that the course for this race will be the same as for the 24 hrs of Norden in august. Entry is usually around $25. For now, call 530-426-3635 for info. North lake tahoe (about 1/2 hr away) had a full-on bitchin' fireworks show last year, so that's probably what else we'll be doing that weekend.
These races kick ass. The knobular on saturday is on about a 7 mile loop, pretty technical, lotsa singletrack, lotsa rocks, lotsa fun. I really enjoyed this race last year, of course I had one of the best races of my life too. Hopefully it'll go as well this year.
The 50 mile race is one big circuit. Steve did it last year and hasn't stopped talking about it since. Be prepared to carry your bike for a while up a big-ass hill, like 1000's of feet and stuff. Unfortunately I'm going to miss this one again this year because I'm taking my son rafting (gotta have priorities), but next year I really want to do this race. The 50 miler is not part of the knobular series. check out the knobular website for more info.
They have a bunch of poser downhill crap and stuff. They are supposed to be putting on a cross country race, but the brochure has no details whatsoever, and besides, it's the same weekend as Eagle Mtn (above) which is definitely going to be better. Check out the fest website .
It's the same weekend as mammoth and much less of a zoo (better prizes too). 35 miles and over 6000' of elevation gain on one epic loop in the blazing sun. It's a mass start, which kicks ass. There are some incredible vistas from the course, but mostly you'll be too busy being tired to truly enjoy them. You can camp for free at the race site, get a free massage after the race, enjoy plenty of free food and drinks and listen to a live band afterwards. Plus you can get utterly schooled by guys on 1-speeds. I think this is one of the all-time best races in northern california. Call 916-842-7740 for more info.
Umm, what can I say? This whole series is pretty freakin' lame. I expect the course in Orinda to be one of the all-time most lame fire-road wastes of time ever devised. Skip this race and do a fat back-country ride instead. Hopefully the snow will be gone enough by then to do some serious mountaineering.
I don't know anything about this race, but the other Kooka Kup races are pretty good. If i can win, I'll lock up the series title, so I'm goin. I left the flyer at home, so i'll try to post the phone number in a day or 2.
The coyote totally kicks ass. You climb forever, straight freakin' up, then do an unbelievable epic downhill, with a few more climbs thrown in just for kicks. The singletrack (much of it along the famous Downieville Downhill) is beyond great. They have a big party atmosphere with beer and food and stuff in town too. There's also some kinda poser downhill race, but only dorks are doing it. Decisions, decisions. Call 530-265-6909 for more info. Or check out the Coyote website for more info.
Held at Donner Ski Ranch, which has some really excellent, difficult, technical terrain. I hope to find out more about the exact course before long. Granny-gear productions is kind of a ripoff operation, but 24 hour races are so cool it's almost worth it to put up with them. I'm thinking about doing a 2-man team with SuperDuperDan. Watch out for us! Call 530-426-3635 for more info, and don't tell them I was busting on GrannyGear.
3 ten-mile laps of twisty, killer singletrack. Sweeeeet! This event draws an incredibly tough field. My new home in Santa Rosa is only 30 mins from Angwin, site of the race, so you can bet i'll be there. I always get spanked on that course, but I still have a blast. check out the knobular website for more info.
Sandbagger Sean Doyle seems to have finally made the move to semi-pro. The expert class is safe for experts once again.
Velo-Sapien Dan Sovereign crashed at the twilight race on June 17th and tried to show everyone his tendons and bones. He ended up with a fractured elbow. Ow and stuff. Hopefully he'll be riding again before too long. Hopefully he can still paint so his family won't starve.