Catching up post 5 of a lot... Bone Bender Mountain Bike Race

Thank god i attended that pirate race, one because it totally blew my mind to how much fun you can have but also because it got me a little practice for Bone Bender. I needed it.

My Mountain bike has been neglected lately.

(This all happened back on April 14, 2013)

The weather was perfect for mountain biking as i drove out to Lawrence and upon pulling into the parking lot it was de ja vu. It seemed just like last year. Which was a good thing. Got the chance to catch up with some good folks and pretty soon it was time to line up. Up to this point i had done a good amount of line rides (almost none on my mtb bike, which i would soon discover was a bad Bone Bender training plan) so i was feeling confident.

They say go and we go.

The start is fast and fun. we tool around on some pavement and in some fields to get the 200 plus people sorted out and after five to ten minutes we hit the single track. I was far enough towards the front that i ran into very little stop and go traffic. After 15 minutes of single track it was smooth sailing.

30 minutes in i was thinking "your doing great, the pace is fast but you seem to be within yourself". 10 minutes later a little voice was in the back of my head was saying "engine approaching overheating". Still, those first 45 minutes were really fun. i was riding close to Birch and Douglas so it was just like a ride in the woods with your friends.

Unfortunately the race was 3 hours, not 45 minutes, and at about minute 46 i started to go a lot slower. Now i'm going to give an excuse.

Excuse: I rode too hard for too long the day before.

There, i said it.

I'm sure riding practically zero mountain bike trails in preparation for a three hour mountain bike race on what are the hardest trails i've ever done had absolutely nothing to do with my mediocre performance and it was all do to my effort the day before.

So i struggled for the rest of the race and for the last hour (maybe the longest hour of my life) i walked numerous technical sections because i felt like i could seriously hurt myself if i didn't. The cramps were bad.

I believe i finished 15th in my age group. Cant remember how many of us there were. In the human category i totally got my a** kicked.

but it really didnt bother me much. Hanging out after the race was great. drank a couple strong beers, caught up wiht friends, ate some donuts, talked some trash.

Life is good.

(Photo courtesy of Roger.)

Catching up post 4 of a lot... Night Time Pirate Mountain Bike Race

Before i start i'd just like to mention that as i type this, on May 2nd, it's snowing.

crazy.

Anyway...

The pirate race took place back in late March, on a much nicer day than today. Some times things are just meant to be.

This is the "catching up" post i've been looking forward to the most. Some events transcend awesome and take you to a place you never knew existed, this was one of those events.

Okay, that might be a bit of exaggeration but this race was f*cking sweet!

I could easily get too wordy on this one so i'll exercise restraint and give this short re-cap before letting the pictures tell the real story:

Bicycles and the people who ride them are totally kick ass and the Pirate and his crew are leading the way.

(p.s. even through i dont have photographic evidence, i totally rode that narrow plank / bridge on 3 of the 4 laps. For someone who doesn't ride his mountain bike too much i'm pretty proud of that.)