Murphy’s law definitely applies to mountain bike racing–I’ve know that since my first race now almost 21 years ago! That being said, when I set out to make my race schedule I try my best to guard again intangibles with preparation and planning. So when I rolled to the True Grit venue at just after 6 AM feeling ready for the start and relieved that all seemed to be in order maybe I shouldn’t have let that guard down!

Actually Lady Luck was already at play the day before when I pre-rode 10+ miles of the track stopping right before the most technical and navigationally challenging section. Or when I rolled into registration to a huge lineup that lasted for three hours. I may be slow early in the morning but it became apparent in the pitch darkness that there was no way the 7 AM start was going to be anything less than a debacle, though. Read more »

The 2013 race season has offically started, and I hit the ground running! On March 9, I laced up my Nike running shoes and headed up to the Buck Mountain Mudslinger for a six and a half mile trail running race put on by Run Wild Adventures. After driving up in cold foggy conditions my cousin and I arrived at the event to sunny skies and perfect trail conditions.

Last year’s race was run in about a foot of snow covering most of the race course, and were it wasn’t covered in snow it was deep mud making for very tough running conditions. The course consisted of horse trail, double track, fast downhills, and a lot of climbing. After the gun went off I was able to join a group at the front of about twenty racers in the first half mile before the first climb. Once the climb started to get really steep I was able to start making a few passes and work my way up to about tenth place. Read more »

Echo Red to Red was a good time and a great way to start the seeason. I chose to “ride” this race in an effort to jumpstart the MTB bug in me, and it worked! I have good fitness going into the season, but a laundry list of excuses kept me off the bike for the last two weeks. I wish I could say I was just really fresh, but instead I was really flat. If I was able to get the heart rate up, it took forever to come back down. So I just tried to be nicest guy you ever passed at a race!

The course ran backwards from previous year which was a great idea! The last few miles were a slight downhill where you could run out of gears to push. And what wind? Perfect conditions this time! My one-size-too-big arm warmers removed themselves after the first few bumps and I could not have been happier. Guess I have MEDIUM bike racer arms afterall!

The REALL carbon 29er hard tail made it possible to stay in my SDG saddle most of the ride allowing me to push a gear, keeping the heart rate low, and my legs burning. I did not get a chance to ride the new bike off-road or test out the Manitou Tower fork prior to the race, but EP knows how to make a machine run, and that it did. What a stellar mix of perfection! Read more »