Before the rain–Brian Leddy, Mountain Flyer

As I have alluded previously, my race schedule is becoming less and less a relentless chase for results but rather a random “bucket list” of events I’ve never attended or have unfinished business with. My history of 24 hour solo racing is concise but fairly successful. I won the overall at 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo in 2009 then failed to finish National Championships in Moab that same year. In 2011, I won the single speed solo National title in Colorado Springs so that rekindled my desire to take one more shot at the solo title this year near Gallup, NM. Read more »

Last weekend, my teammate Ryan Eisele and I headed to the Alsea Falls switchback XC/Oregon State Championship mtb race. We both raced single speed but were also were scored in our age category as well. Ryan had ridden the course before so I took his advice on gearing for the day. The course was about eight miles long and we were to three laps. After a short warm up, we lined up buried in the back because of a mass start. After the gun fired we both put in a hard effort to try and get close to the front. I followed Ryan for as long as I could up the first three mile paved climb. He began pulling away from me pretty fast and seemed to be riding well. Once at the top we hit a fast gravel downhill with small water bars then onto the first single track where I caught and passed two SS riders. I held the two riders off for 2 miles of single track and then began a climb in the middle of the race that hadn’t been included previous years. It was about a mile long, steep and the gravel was really loose. About half way up I began wishing I had a lower gear. I came through the start/finish and started my second lap but before long the two SS riders I’d passed closed the gap and then returned the favor. I was able to pass them back, but worried I was in trouble with two more trips up the steep gravel climb remaining. I managed to hold my pace for another lap finishing in 8th in the SS and 9th in my age category. Ryan finished 5th in SS and 3rd in his age category. This was the toughest races of the year for me so far! it was a great course and Mike Ripley (Mudslinger Events) always puts on a solid event so I will be back for more next year!

JW

Fast and Grippy with burly shoulders!

Friday I picked up a pair of 29×2.0 Kenda Slant Six SCT tires. They felt a little hefty; they felt sturdy; and they looked like they had some skimpy knobs, skimpier than, say, the Specialized Renegade, or the Bontrager XR1. Those were my first impressions. Friday night I hopped in a car and drove to Bend, Oregon and was out and about until after 2AM for a bachelor party, um, session.

Saturday I was up too early, coffee in hand, sitting on a sunny porch, yanking the XR1′s that I rode many, many miles on last season off my wheels, and putting on those heavier, stiffer, and on closer inspection, more toothy Slant Sixes. I can usually get away without an air compressor and these Kenda’s mounted up nice and easy with a cocktail of sealants I had on hand, the front with a hand pump, the rear took a little coaxing because of the ding in the rim and old tape that was folded in one spot. Soon they both were seated and then with only a few hours sleep we set off on our merry way into the hot sun of Central Oregon. Read more »

Curvy Mojo SLR and Curvy Bridge!

A few weekends ago I didn’t venture south, instead I stayed up here and spent a rainy four hours scoping out some gravel roads and not really doing much more than a lengthy out-and-back ride on Saturday. Sunday, with improved weather, I headed to the Wilson River trail in Tillamook State Forest for a second exploration (I was also there two weeks ago).

I like this trail. It’s not really technical, but it’s up and down and all around, through the woods and sometimes steep and difficult to ascend but a dream to descend. After a few miles on the trail I crossed a pretty neat bridge that happens to be right above the PERFECT summer swimming hole! I felt compelled to snap a picture of the well engineered and delightfully curvy Ibis SLR next to the similarly configured wooden bridge. Read more »