Tom Ament

Tour of the White Mountains

2010-10-07T06:18:00.001-07:00

Barn Burner

2010-10-07T06:17:00.002-07:00

Breck 100

2010-10-07T06:17:00.001-07:00

Prescott Ride!

2010-06-23T12:46:00.001-07:00

12 Hours of Temecula

2010-06-23T12:43:00.005-07:00

2 Wheels 4 Hope Benefit Race!

2010-06-23T12:43:00.001-07:00

2 Wheels 4 Hope Benefit Race!!

2010-05-24T15:11:00.001-07:00

Allright... time for another benefit race! Last year we put on "For havens Sake" to benefit Haven Fowler... and it was a super awesome success! This year, we are doing the same exact style of event - a MTB time trial and fun ride at night - to benefit a local cyclist that was hit by a car a few weeks ago.

Visit the website at www.2wheels4hope.com and register! All money from the event will go to benefit Heidi Clayton.

MBAA State Series Finals!!

2010-05-24T15:03:00.002-07:00

Another year of the MBAA state series and it was just as fun as the last few! I have been pretty busy this year and not riding as much in the past, but still had a blast in the state series! I managed to win the SS open points series for the state championship due to some of the key racers not completing the entire series... :)

The last race of the year was in Flagstaff last weekend. The course was changed a little due to the amount of snow on the mountain - really, snow in Arizona at the end of May, who would have thought!

Anyway, the race started out fast and I ended up getting a pretty sizeable lead on the field in the first few miles. Well, due to my own poor judgement, I ran a slightly too big of gear and ended up losing some time on the first of the climbs that were in the race. The second place guy caught up and ended up passing me. We rode together for most of the first lap... but he ended p getting a little more time on the climb the second time around so I just let him go... I had a great race and the course was super freaking fun!

After the race, we all put on our "Got Darrin" shirts (Darrin is the coach for www.synaptictraining.us) and looked like a team of sorts!! There were 10-15 or us with the shirts on, all from different teams, but looked like one group... very cool!!

Anyway, time for all the summer races to start up in the next few weeks!!

Vassago AZ Team Van

2010-03-23T10:30:00.003-07:00

Sedona Ride!

2010-03-23T10:30:00.001-07:00

24 Hours of Old Pueblo

2010-03-23T10:29:00.007-07:00

MBAA Estrella and Sierra Vista

2010-03-23T10:29:00.004-07:00

Singlespeed USA

2010-03-23T10:28:00.002-07:00

1st Race of 2010!

2010-01-12T05:59:00.002-07:00

The first race of 2010 is in the books and it was a blast! This was one of the Arizona state series races that is held at McDowell mountain park. The turnout for the event was awesome - and we ended up having a fast group of guys in the singlespeed class.

I arrived at the venue a couple of hours early to get everything set up, prepare for the race, bbut mainly just to hang out and talk to everyone! I spent the first hour and a half catching up with people that I have not seen since the end of the season - then went and rode around for a little while to warm up.

Lining up for the race is always a lot of fun because most of the guys in my class have been racing for a long time... and we all know each other pretty well. Dejay Birtch lined up next to me and we promptly started the normal pre-race banter about not getting enough sleep, lack of training, stuff wrong with bikes, and trying to confuse each other on the course route :)

When the race took off, I did my best to KILL it for the first lap... which was working great for the first 3 miles of the race - I had about a 30 second lead over the rest of the field and was feeling great! Then, out of nowhere there was a loud bang like I hit a rock with a pedal and I went flying off the trail... I gathered myself, got back on the trail and and tried to maintain my lead, however one foot would not clip into the pedal. The chase group caught me and 4 guys passed, however I was not able to clip in. I ended up riding the rest of the race with only one foot clipped into the pedal... which is challenging standing on the little spd platform with cycling shoes!

I ended up catching everyone except Dejay and finished second place, a couple of minutes behind. Even with the issue, it was super fun and I had a great time racing! It felt good to get out there and really hammer on the bike for a couple oof hours. When I inspected the pedal, there was nothing wrong with it.... the cleat on the shoe actually broke in half!! (never befor seen a shimano spd cleat do that!!)

I am looking forward to the next race in a couple of weeks and getting ready for the 24 hours of old Pueblo!!

12/24 Hours of Fury

2009-11-09T20:00:00.004-07:00

WOOO HOOOO!!!! Awesome event this last weekend! It was the second running of the Four Peaks racing 12/24 hours of Fury and this year totally blew the first year away! There were a ton of people that showed up, everyone was having a good time, and it was just fun all around!

I raced in the 12 hour solo singlespeed category. This was the first 12 hour race I have completed in a while... so I forgot how hard they are when you do not train properly... I thought I was going to die a few times!

The race started like a normal cross country race... NO RUNNING!!!! (thanks Jeremy). So when the bell went off... we all sprinted for the singletrack. I ended up getting smoked by a 13 or 14 year old that is fast as hell... Tyler Coplea. We rode together for a while, and then I ended up passing him, and we both got passed by a couple of people on teams. My race ended up being pretty non-eventful... just a lot of riding, thinking about everything, and a nice 10+ hours on the bike with a lot of suffering. While doing it I had no idea why I was doing it... but then after a while I just started to feel a lot better and get back into the groove... very cool and I can not wait for the next one.

Tyler Coplea getting the holeshot!!

I ended up with the overall solo 12 hour win... and was able to stop racing a couple of hours early and get ready for the Midnight Vassago Cycles hamburger BBQ!!! We went out and bought a bunch of burgers and invited all the 12 hour races down to hang out for a while, eat, drink beer, and share war stories... very very fun! I think this is something that should be done at all the events!

Tom Stack - What a stud. He did the 24 hour solo race and freaking rocked it. He rode the entire time without any long breaks... had tons of bike issues, rode through all kinds of stuff... and managed to crank out 19 laps for a second place!! I have never seen anyone so happy, and messed up at the same time, as Tom at the end of that race. I see a pro contract in his future.

Also, congrats to Kevin and Mimo for their Duo win. Kevin was on a new Superfly 100 (which he talked about every 3-4 seconds for the entire event) that he just picked up from the bike shop. I had to help decorate it by adding some Titus stickers to the seatstays... he was not amused :)

Anyway, a super fun event and one of my favorites of the year!! Can 't wait for the next one!

DCB Fall Race Series

2009-11-09T19:49:00.002-07:00

Well, the first couple of the DCB adventures AZ Fall race series are completed... and they have been fun. These are pretty small races that seem to always be really long for out of season events... so they make great training and tune up rides!

I decided to race the series in the SS marathon class... something new for this year. The promoter is a hardcore singlespeeder... so he is always up to challenging us.

The first race was 40+ miles at McDowell park... one of my favorite venues because there is not much climbing!! :) The race started at 7:00... and the geared and SS riders all took off together. Evan... one of my close riding partners... ended up with the holeshot and led for the first few hundred yards of the race (he totally rubbed it in later!!) I managed to pass him on the first climb... but he hung in there for the first couple of laps... just a couple hundred yards back. I was super worried the entire race because I was getting really tired... but everytime I looked back he was still there... I think he's doping :) I ended up with the win, but just by a couple of minutes. It was great race and we pushed really hard for the entire time... something tough to do out of season!

The second race was at my personal favorite course... Estrella!! It is a rocky, snady, twisty, turny nasty race course that a lot of people do not like... so attendance was a little lower. We started off and I ended up with the holeshot... and pushed as hard as I could for the first couple of miles. Then, out of no where... some gy I have never seen before on a SS blew by me like I was standing still... what that hell? Anyway, I did everything I could to keep him in sight the first lap... he was freaking flying and had great tech skills too!! Man, this was going to be a long race!

I ended up passing him on the second lap and just dug in to get as much time as possible... suffering like crazy. I looked back a couple of times and did not see him... so I thought he either had a mechanical, or had blown up finally. I ended up pushing for the rest of the race... had to fix a broken chain, and flatted about 300 yards from the finish (it was pretty cool... I crossed the line on a flat!!), but managed to pull out the win.

Super fun first couple of races in the series... we will see how the next couple go!

2009 Tour Of the White Mountains

2009-11-09T19:26:00.006-07:00

Finally!! I won one of the Epicrides races! I have been doing all of Todd's events for the past 5 years and have had many second and third place finishes... but never a win, so this years Tour of the White Mountains was awesome!

Check out the event write up in Mountain Flyer Magazine: http://www.mountainflyer.com/news.cfm?itemid=301

The race started at 7:00 in the morning and it was chilly (well, by AZ standards, it was probably 65 degrees or so!) I warmed up for a few minutes and lined up as close to the front as possible... about 5 or 6 people back. We were all standing there waiting for the start and I was talking to a guy with dreadlocks on a cannondale... and did not even realize it was Garth Prosser! I have never met him in person, but we have talked through facebook... so it was pretty cool later in the day when we figured it out!

The race started and I passed a few people to make sure I was in the front group when we hit the singletrack. The first 10 miles of the race was pretty uneventful... but with a lot of super fun flowy singletrack and a couple of short climbs. I was feeling pretty good and hanging a couple of hundred yards off the back of the first group of Pro riders on geared bikes, and I was the first singlespeeder in the race so I knew that I had to go for it.

About 15 miles into the race there is a long (12 miles long) stretch of flat forest road... a singlespeeders worse nightmare! I decided to gear a little lower than normal because I am not in the best shape and really paid for it. We had a group of about 10-12 geared guys that were hammering in their big rings in a roadie style paceline... and me hanging on the back at 25+ miles an hour doing everything possible to hang on. I knew my main competition in the race climbs a LOT better than I do... but I am a lot faster on dirt roads and downhills... so this was my chance to get a gap. Well, I managed to hang on for about 8 miles before popping... and I popped hard! After I dropped and was out of the draft... my speed dropped drastically and it was everything I could do to ride on flat roads... and there were 30 miles left!

At the end of a road there is about a mile of nasty steep hike a bike... then pretty much downhill and rolling swoopy fast mostly downhill singletrack to the finish (with a few short climbs thrown in) I was having a BLAST!! By that point in the race I was probably sitting about 30th overall... but managed to catch a bunch of the geared guys... and passed a few guys that got lost. The last 30 miles of this course is probably the most fun of any of the endurance races in AZ... just super fast, fun singletrack with a little techy stuff thrown in every now and then.

In the end I managed the SS win by about 20 minutes, and finished 12th or 13th in the overall geared class... so I was super stoked with the result... and after 4 years of 2nd or 3rd at this race it felt really good!

For Havens Sake Race

2009-08-25T06:09:00.002-07:00

The Havens Sake fun ride and time trial race was a huge success!! Everyone had a good time and we raised some money for a really good cause! I can not believe how many people showed up in the middle of August in Phoenix for a mountain bike event. Below are the highlights of the event for me...

The volunteers... wow!! Everyone really pitched in and made it all happen.

Kim did a ton of work on all of the logistics... fliers, awards, registration, timing, everything!!! Awesome
Jeremy from Four peaks racing donated his event setup, then helped us setup and tear everything down!
Darrin Austin from Jetset magazine brought out his pimp motorhome and box van for us to use for registration and setup.
Cory Stem - Probably the best announcer any event could ever have!! He kept everything interesting the entire night and we had many comments on him! Thanks Corey!
Evan Smith - Basically the do everything guy that just jumped in whenever needed!
Zach and Sarah - Helping out with registration and consuming the free beer!
Darrin Permentor - Providing the medical service for us...
Kevin Donnellen - Super duper course marshal extrodanaire!!
Raymond Papineau - Timing... and backup timing!!!
Tom Stack - Setup, tear down, timing, course marshal... and fun guy to pick on!
Steve Houk - Beer meister

We ended up with a little over 150 registered riders, probably 20+ kids, and a lot of other people that just came and hung out!

The kids race ended up being very very cool - we had 20 or so kids that showed up, and I had no idea where they came from. Well, come to find out, some of the parents were surfing the web and came across our website. They were actually parents of kids that had Neuroblastoma cancer but were currently in remission. Very cool to have a couple of kids in the race that could identify what Haven is going through.

The time trial was a big hit and all the racers seemed to have a good time. Jeff Herrera won the pro mens with a super fast time. We also had a lot of beginner and first time racers that showed up... which I consider a big success!!! We even talked a couple of the MTBR guys that ride all the time but never race into doing the time trial... super cool!!

The fun ride was equally fun. We had more people come out to ust ride at night than for the race! Everyone from regular racers to first timers out there on the course tearing it up.

I am very very happy with the result of this race... from a bunch of people that have never really put on an event before, it went very well! Not sure about a follow up event next year, but we will see!!

For Havens Sake, Do the ride thing!!!

2009-07-15T14:37:00.004-07:00

Wow, where to start.... over the past several months we have been following the story of Haven Fowler and her families struggles with her medical problems. Plesae visit Havens Blog for more details:

Havens Blog

So, riding home after a Tuesday ride a few weeks ago, someone made the suggestion of doing something for the family. They said, why don't we try to do a charity ride or something. Well, a few phone calls later... we have set up a full blown night time in Phoenix summertime mountain bike time trial and fun ride!! We have a ton of interest from everyone because the trails that we actually received permission to use... have not been open to legally night ride EVER!!!

We have also received a ton of support from different companies and local bike shops. We have items for raffles, beer from Ska Brewery, a sponsoring bike team, volunteers, the coolest awards ever, promoters helping out, a sweet website and flier set up, insurance for the event, and all the proper USCA permits/permission/etc..... holy crud a lot in a couple of weeks!!!

So, visit the event website, sign up on bikereg.org, sign up when you come out to the event, just come out and donate to a good cause!!!

For Havens Sake Website and Registration

Flagstaff Frenzy MBAA Race

2009-05-18T05:51:00.004-07:00

We drove up to Flagstaff this weekend for the 7th race of the series... the Flagstaff Frenzy. The course had some of my favorite trails in Flag, a sweet rocky singletrack section and a fun swoopy downhill.

I arrived at the race and found Sarah and Zach. Zach was off to do some volunteer work so we hung around the "campfire" ring from the night before and waited for Sarah to get ready for her race. While we were sitting there, a forest ranger pulled up and gave us a hard time about having a fire (even though it was out and there from the night before) He was going to give us tickets for "tending" a campfire... even though it was out and I had just arrived 10 minutes prior! Sarah came to the rescue and talked him out of it!

Sarah Tearing up womens PRO Class!!

The women's race took off a couple of hours before the men's race, so I took pics and handed waterbottles off. During the women's race, there were all kinds of announcements about people that were on the course rerouting it, putting up wires across the trails, and basically doing what they could to derail the race. Some of the locals in Flag do not think the trails should be used for racing... and they were doing what they could to discourage the riders. About half of the women ended up getting lost and were not able to finish... bummer

Somewhere on the course

My race went ok... I had a pretty good lead for the first lap, and flatted my front tire. I got it changed in record time and still had the lead. I am not sure what I did, however about 2 miles from the end I looked back and Scott Countryman was coming up the trail... only about 100 yards back!!! What???? He had a giant gear on his singlespeed and it was almost downhill or flat the entire way back to the finish, so I knew I was in trouble. I did what I could for the rest of the climb and went as fast as I could to the finish to keep him back... but he ended up passing me about 1/2 mile from the end. I have no idea where he came from or how he managed to push that gear for this race... but it was nothing short of spectacular! Scott is 17 years old, been racing in the mens singlespeed classes for a couple of years, and is basically a bad ass... and one of the nicest people that I race with. Man, he is not going to do anything but get faster.... SCARY!!!

Scott Countryman

After the race we hung out for a while, took some pics, and then just went home. Very fun day on the bike and I can not wait to get back up to Flagg for the next race!

Zach looks like he is FINISHED!!!

New Cross Bike!

2009-05-11T21:06:00.002-07:00

Vassago Fisticuff!!

Vassago Cycles is probably the coolest bike company with the nicest people ever! A few weeks ago Misty contacted me and asked what color cross bike I wanted... they are starting to do a custom paint program, so they started with a custom color cross bike for me... AWESOME!

After a few days of going back and forth on the color I finally just had Misty pic the color for me... well, it came out better than any color I would have selected... THANKS MISTY!!

Now, for the glamour shots...

This is a really nice frame and fork with a TON of different options! I have it set up as a "road bike" right now and will probably rid eit like this for a couple of weeks... When I was setting it up I just had to see what size tires I can fit on it... well, the front will take a WTB Vulpine 2.1" and the back took a 1.8" Mutanoraptor... SWEEEET!! It is going to be set up as a "Monstercross" bike for an upcoming 100 mile race on dirt roads... should be a fast machine!

Flagstaff/Black Canyon/New Optimus Ti!!!

2009-05-10T20:01:00.003-07:00

What a great weekend!! I decided not to drive up to CO for a 12 hour race this weekend (and solo was full so I could not register...doh!!) and just hang in AZ and ride in Flagstaff for the first time this year... WOOOO HOOO!

Flagstaff is freaking awesome! Miles of super fun singletrack, empty trails, and beautiful weather. I met up with Sarah and prerode the course for the upcoming MBAA race. The course was pretty fun, with a tough dirt road climb... not because it is steep but because it is on super loose gravel and it is almost impossible to stand on the pedals without spinning out!

After the pre-ride, I went off on my own and did a 3+ hour loop on beautiful, technical trails through the Aspens and pines... a much needed ride to just relax and enjoy being on the bike.... speaking of the bike.... I recently received a new Optimus Ti frame and this was the first weekend on it. This thing is awesome! Rides super smooth and quiet, lightweight, and looks super awesome. This will probably be my endurance bike for the rest of the season... just awesome!

Sunday I decided to ride the Black Canyone trail... just north of Phoenix. The trail is only a couple of years old but it is AMAZING! Miles of buff singletrack with tons of switchback climbs, fast downhills, and awesome views. What a nice way to spend a Sunday morning...

Next weekend is the next of the MBAA races in Flag. I do not have the race the SS class for this race because I think I have enough points to finish the series out in first... and I get a couple of throw away races, so I may just do the marathon race to get some extra miles... and spend more time on the bike in Flag!!

MBAA Payson Race

2009-05-10T19:56:00.002-07:00

The MBAA Payson race was a good one this year! There was a new course and venue that was completely different than the past courses... which was a welcome addition to the series.

I headed up to the race the morning of, so I did not have a chance to pre-ride. I spoke with several other singlespeeders and they all said the course was very flat, and I would need to a bigger gear than normal... so I changed it a few minutes before the start... good thing! The course ended up being VERY flat all on dirt roads... which made for a tough singlespeed race.

We all took off and a couple of us got a pretty big gap on the field. Travis... a very strong roadie... ended up getting away on the first lap. My head and neck was still hurting a bit from the crash the weekend before, so I just let him go. In the end, I finished second a couple of minutes behind... but I was happy I was even able to do the race!

Afterwards, we hung out with Zach and Sarah and talked a bunch of crap before heading home... ended up being a very fun day on the bike!

Whiskey Off Road

2009-04-28T05:50:00.002-07:00

The 2009 Whiskey off road was last weekend and it was another great race put on by Epic rides. The race starts in downtown Prescott AZ and is 50 miles of great singletrack, tons of climbing, and awesome views!

I went up for the race the night before and stayed with Zach and Sarah. We had a couple of beers, a great dinner, and then watched some of Zaqch's old high school movies.... something is wrong with that guy in a good way.

The next morning we got ready and headed out for the race. It is amazing how many good people I know that do these races! The entire morning was spent catching up and talking about the race season so far!

I was a few minutes late to the start and about 300 prople had already lined up! I was walking past the front of the group when Fuzzy and Dejay yelled at me to line up with them... pretty cool! They helped me get my bike over the fence and we catught up for a few minutes before the gun went off. The start of the race was not as fast as previous years, and I stayed in the front of the pack... even pulling on the paved road for a bit.

The start of the race was pretty uneventful, other than a couple of close calls with people running into each other in the group... kind of scary! Zach and Evan eventualy passed me on the climb... they were both riding awesome!

Once we hit the singletrack I just kept a normal pace and was riding fairly well... the first 10-12 miles of climbing seemed to go by prety fast. Then the trail turned downhill.... the downhill is super fun, loose, rocky singletrack with a bunch of big waterbars and fast turns.... well, I was tearing it up and came around a corner and BAM!!!! I went over a waterbar, hit a rock, and my bike stopped... I proceeded to go over the bars and land right on the top of my head on a rock! It happened so fast I really have no idea what really happened, but I was laying on the ground. I tried to stand up and fell down a couple of times and was pretty disoriented... and my vision was super blurry!

Another rider came up on me and helpoed get my bike out of a bush and told me to sit down and regroup... I kind of came around and rode the rest of the downhill to the road. Man, my neck hurt and my head was pounding! When I hit the next aid station the volunteers were yelling for me to stop and quit the race (I guess someone told them about the crash and head thing)

The rest of the race was painful... a lot of climbing, a couple flat tires, and a pounding headache! I managed to finish it and ended up catching 7 or 8 people that passed me during the crash and the flat tires, but still finished in 7h or 8th place. I caught Dejay withabout 1 mile to go and we had a pretty fun singlespeed sprint on the paved downhill into the finish.

Then rest of the day was spent trying to recover from the wreck, and catching up with friends. Overall, it was an awesome event and a lot of fun... just bad luck! Can't wait for next year to redeem myself!

24 Hours of Old Pueblo

2009-03-09T21:10:00.002-07:00

Well, the 24 Hours of old Peublo was about a month ago and I am finally getting around to posting about it!!

The race was a lot of fun! I arrived at the venue at about 6:00 friday morning and there were a ton of people already there! The city in the desert had grown at that point to about 1000 people or so... very cool and the race was still a day and a half away!

I drove around for about a half hour and finally found a sweet spot to set up right on the course. It was close to the transition tent, and right with a bunch of other solo racers that I know... Jason Ranoa, May Metcalf, Kimo Seymore, Dave Harris, Linda Wallenfalls, and a bunch of other people... very cool to say the least! I set up the EZup, a table, the Vassago banners and a few other things and waited for Zach to show up to get everything dialed and hang some banners and stuff. The rest of friday was spent hanging out, visiting everyone, and drinking a few "carb loading beverages" for the race the next day.

Saturday morning came and we spent the morning setting up our pit area, dialing bikes in and doing basic housekeeping and organizing things. Zach was cracking jokes the entire time and pulling crap out of his mustache, so that was entertaining.

At about 11:45 I made the long walk down the road to get ready for the run... I hate running. I lined up in the front next to all the bad asses and tried to look cool while talking as much crap as I could... thats how I am :) When the run started, I tried not to kill myself and was passed by about 14,546 people in the quarter mile... man I need to start running!!! But, I made it to my bike and managed to pass almost everyone back in the first couple of miles and get on the tail end of the lead group....

About halfway throuogh the first lap I managed to pass Dejay.. we chatted a little and I took off, knowing I had to get a little bit of time on him in the first lap. I think that I managed about a minute, which lasted for quite a while in the race! It was a close race for the first 12 or 13 hours... My pit was right before the transition, and Dejays was right after. So when I would stop to eat or get drinks on my laps, Dejay would roll by, finishing the lap before me. Then when I would go through, I would see him in his pits... passing him back. It was SUPER cool to have a race this close for this long...

Well, it did not last forever... at about 3:00 in the morning I EXPLODED!!!! I guess that lack of experience in 24 hours races really showed in this one. I had multiple issues including blurred vision, vomitting, shakes, all that good stuff... really things tht I do not ever want to experience again! Dejay ended up having some issues as well... the pace we were pushing was pretty fast, however he lasted a little longer than I did...

I ended up getting a couple of more laps in by the end of the race and was passed by one other person in the end... 3rd place is not too bad, however pretty dissapointing to say the least. Next race I will be using a little different strategy and listen to my body a little better at the beginning...

All in all it was a super awesome experience and I am already looking forward to next year!!

12 Hours of Temecula

2009-02-03T06:37:00.002-07:00

Last weekend Zach and I loaded up one of our identical twin Elements and headed to the 12 hours of Temecula race.... the first race in the SoCal endurance series. Driving over was a treat as always, with stuff hanging out of Zachs stache the entire time.

We arrived at the race and picked up our packets. The race promoters, Heather and Jason, were there and we hung out and talked to them for a Little while and got the scoop on the course. The course for this race had been changed, and we were told that it was a lot of fun... little did we know what we were in for!

There was no camping for us at this event... we went first class all the way and stayed at the Chateau De Motel 6, had dinner at a nice Italian place, and then a second dinner at a sandwich shop... man, Zach can really put down the food!

We arrived at the race the next morning and set up the pit (an Ez-Up, couple of coolers and a box of junk), got our bikes ready and warmed up for our customary 3.2 seconds before the race started. When we lined up, I looked around and there were a ton of people there!! This race keeps getting bigger and bigger each one!

I lined up at the front and looked around... Tinker, Dez Wilder, Matt Turgeon, Mike Hileman, and a bunch of other super fast guys... this was going to be a long day! The race started with a parade lap around the campground on a paved road, then onto the course. I managed to stay in the lead group which was key once we hit the course.

Once we hit the course it was game on! The course started with a short steep climb, then a fun downhill, then a pretty big super fun climb with a lot of switchbacks, and finished up with a very long, fast downhill. There was a little over 1350 feet of climbing for every 9 mle lap, so it was challenging, but not too horrible. This was by far the most fun course I have ever ridden in a 12 hour event!! The uphills were fun, the downhills were fun, the flats were, all the little bridges we rode across, the banked turns.... I totally looked forward to going out and doing another lap every time I came in!

It was a pretty close race, however Tnker and Dez ended up getting away and I finished 2nd in the singlespeed class (Dez won, however we would have finished 2nd and 3rd in the pro class too I think) Zach ended up winning the Solo expert category with a strong performance! After the 130+ miles and 20,000+ feet of climbing, I was trashed and ready for a couple of post race recovery drinks.

Jason and Heather put on one of the best events that I have been to, yet again, with a fantastic course, excellent support, and a really good time! I am looking forward to the next Temecula race at the Nordic center by big bear in June... should be a good time!!

2009 MBAA White Tanks Race

2009-01-18T07:58:00.002-07:00

The first race of 2009 is finished and it was a fun one! It was really nice to get to catch up with everyone that I have not seen in a while, race a little, and just relax and hang out!

Kudo's to MBAA for putting on an excellent event again this year. The MBAA race series usually includes the same courses every year, but they are really trying to mix it up a little for 2009... and this one was no exception. For this race, they decided to run the course backwards... which was really challenging. Normally, all the tech sections are downhill, but this year it was a lot of technical climbing... very fun!

I raced my Jabberwocky in the Singlespeed advanced class... a tough class that you never know who is going to show up in, and this race was no exception. At the start line we only had about 15 people, however they are all expert/pro racers that really hammer! When the race started, I took off and got the hole shot and kept the lead for about half of the first lap... but there was someone on my wheel the entire time... and I had no idea who it was! We ended up getting a fairly large lead over the rest of the field in the first lap... he had a bigger gear and would get away on the flats, and I would catch back up a little in the tech sections, but partway through the race he just rode away... very impressive!

SS Advanced Podium (Scott Countryman 5th, Tom Ament 2nd, Greg Miranda 4th)

I ended up second place at the end of the race by a couple of minutes, which I was happy with, however I wanted to find out who this mystery guy was... well, he ended up being Jason Tollus... an ex pro XC racer that has accomplished a lot in his career... very cool!

Zach Posing for a Glamour Shot

Zach and Sarah (Vassago teammates) had excellent races as well! Zach ended up second in the Cat1 race... which was a huge field!! Sarah was battling for first in the pro women's race when her chain broke and she had to DNF because she did not have a tool to fix it (she did fix it and finished the race, however she had to take outside support.... bummer)

SS Novice Podium (Guy bell on far left, and RJ McNulty Far Right)

A couple of other people that had awesome races were a couple of guys in the Singlespeed Novice class... Guy Bell, who has been racing since 1989, finished 4th place, which is his very first ever podium finish in a cross country race! Also, RJ McNulty finished in 3rd place in his first Singlespeed race aboard his brand new Jabberwocky! He just got the bike a month ago or so and has fallen in love with singlespeeding and the bike... way to go guys!

Just a great weekend, fun race and an overall good time... what a way to start the season! Next, off to Temecula for the first of the So-Cal endurance series... should be a good time!

2009 Race season Starts!!!

2009-01-14T22:33:00.002-07:00

Its been a little while since I updated my blog... I have been really busy remodeling my house, riding, and getting everything ready for the upcoming race season... but back to it now!

For 2009 I have several new sponsors and am on the Vassago Bicycles race team... very exciting! The people at Vassago have been awesome to work with and make the most fun bikes that I have ever ridden... mmmmmm Jabberwocky and Optimus Ti! I will have periodic updates on the bikes, the team and also new stuff coming out from Vassago.

Good luck to all in the upcoming season and stay posted for many race and product updates over the next year!

Last Race of the Year!! - Dawn to Dusk

2008-12-08T08:06:00.004-07:00

What a busy second half of the race season! The final race of the year, the Dawn to Dusk 10 hour race, was held last weekend on Pemberton trail in Phoenix, AZ and I am glad to be able to take a couple of months off from racing!

I arrived at the race at about 5:00 in the morning and set all my stuff up, and just talked to everyone for a while. The transition area was about a mile from the camping area, so we all rode our bikes over, warmed up, and chatted a little. When we arrived at the start line, I was in for a shock - there were a lot of people lined up for the race! This is the second year for the event, and the field probably doubled in size! There were over 100 solo riders, and I have no idea how many teams!

I lined up in the front along with the super fast pro guys that were on 4 man teams... I figured I would just spin like crazy and hope not to get bogged down when the race hit the singletrack... which worked out pretty well. I just hung on their wheels roadie style and turned a pretty fast first lap... which came into play later in the day!

Pemberton trail is pretty much the easiest, non-technical, and least amount of climbing you can do on trails in the Phoenix Area. The course was 15.4 miles of smooth fireroad and singletrack, with about a mile of pavement thrown in... and only about 800 feet of climbing - no problem! Wrong!! This was by far the hardest endurance race I have competed in this year... this ended up being more challenging than the courses with a ton of climbing and techy stuff thrown in. The trail is really not that fun to ride and actually pretty boring, which probably explains part of it... but the other part is the speed that you have to maintain!! In a little less than 10 hours, I managed 150 miles on my singlespeed... pretty much spinning like crazy the entire day! The downhill was not steep enough to coast but just steep enough to be spun out (about 4 miles long!!) and the uphill was steep enough to just almost spin out a big gear so you had to push pretty hard the entire time (about 4 miles of uphill). The rest of the course was flat - Ouch!!

Well, back to the reason the first couple of fast laps came into play.... I had a pretty big gear on for the first couple of laps and pushed pretty hard, opening up about a 10 minute gap on the second place rider before I settled down to a normal pace. That 10 minute gap in the first couple of laps lasted for the entire rest of the race!! I was pushing to maintain the lead but not blow up, and the second place guy was pushing to close the gap and not blow up. I think the top 5 singlespeeders were all within a half hour of each other... a super competitive race that strategy really came into play on!

I will have a lot of blog updates coming over the next couple of weeks... I bought a camera finally and have several new to me bike products that I have been able to put some serious race miles on the second half of the season that are working out great: WTB Vigo Saddle, Crank Brothers parts, Ergon Grips, WTB tires, and Vassago bikes. I am also going to start using an altitude tent to see if that can help with performance (Simulated Altitude Technology)... should be fun!!

12 Hours of Temecula

2008-11-18T21:32:00.003-07:00

The end of the 2009 season is proving to be very fun with a lot of racing. In the past 2 months I have done three 12 hour races and three endurance type races... and there are still a couple of 12's left for the year... the southwest is great!!

Zach and I loaded up the car on Friday morning and drove out to Temecula... basically being stupid and cracking jokes the entire way. Zach is about the best race travel partner ever... next year is going to be a blast! When we arrived in Temecula, we found the venue, set everything up and headed into town to meet Kris and Mike from Vassago cycles. We had dinner (Zach ate the biggest sandwich I have ever seen... disgusting!!!) and talked bikes for a couple of hours.

The plans for this race was actually not to race. We were going to go out, ride a couple of laps, and then hang out with the people from Vassago for the day and do demo rides/etc. on the bikes. We were just going to hang out and relax for the weekend and just kind of do nothing... good plan!!

Well, the race started at 9... I was late getting ready so I rolled to the line with no warm-up (I still lined up in the front... what was I thinking) We all took off, did a parade lap around the park to spread everyone out, and off onto the trail. The course was super fantastic!! There was a big giant nasty climb that I had to walk part of every lap... and then one of the most fun downhills that you could have in a 24 hour race. It was fast, and smooth, with lots of turns and jumps and just fun stuff to ride... it was actually a downhill that I would go and ride even if there was not a race!!

I ended up not quitting (there is no way I could bring myself to stop racing) and won the singlespeed class... was able to quit the race a little over 9 hours. I also managed to win the SoCal endurance points series, so that was an added bonus. Zach did the same and rode the entire race... and ended up with a 3rd in the Geared Expert Solo class. After the race I just hung out with the Vassago guys and Bendan from Siren bikes. We had a few beers, laughed a lot, and talked a lot about bikes and framebuilding and racing and all that stuff... very fun!

Zach Riding his little bike

Huge props to Jason Ranoa for another Fantastic race!!! This one had about 500 people, and was run very smoothly and everyone seemed to have a really really good time. I know I will be out for more of his events in the future. Also, huge thanks to his dad for handing out water bottles on the course... for the entire race!!

12/24 Hours of Fury

2008-11-10T20:46:00.006-07:00

Where do I start... I could write a book on all the cool stuff that happened, but I am just going to share some highlights... maybe like a top 10...

Adrenaline Team - There were about 10 Adrenaline racers out there... what an awesome group of people! Everyone was laughing and having a good time, but took the race super serious!! Good job to the Masters of Adrenaline team for their 2nd place finish, Chad Sheirborn for taking on the 24 hour event (2nd 24 hour solo in 2 months!!), Zach Stanford for 12 hour solo, Darrin Austin 24 hour solo and Evan Smith, 12 hour solo singlespeed!!

Jeremy, 4 Peaks Racing - This was the promoters first mtb race, and it was a 24 at that!! After many months of promotion and handing fliers out, the race ended up being a lot bigger than anyone expected! He did an excellent job and the race went very smoothly... even when the timing tent caught on fire in the middle of the night!!!

The Race - I raced in the Solo Singlespeed 12 hour category. For some reason, I put the wrong cog on my bike and rode the entire race a little undergeared... I actually noticed it about 300 yards from the start... but I just rode it for the rest of the race. I ended up winning the solo 12 hour category overall, and was able to stop a couple of hours early because of the lead I had built... which is a good thing because the course was starting to beat me up a little!!!

After the race - Evan, Zach, Jeremy (the promoter) and I sat in my car for a couple of hours after the event and told stories and cracked jokes. We were parked next to a friend of mine that was doing the solo 24 hour so we were messing with him during the race.... somehow all of the garbage from my race and a pair of my boxers ended up in his car... :)

The Raffle - What a freaking blast!!! The promoter had a bunch of stuff to raffle off, but did not have tickets... so I walked around the entire venue, went to every campsite, and wrote down the names of everyone that would be attending the raffle... well, you would not believe how many people drink at 10:00 Sunday morning after a 24 hour race and are more than willing to share... special thanks to Bitty Bitty team for that cup of whatever the heck they gave me!!! :)

Everyone at the race - What a super fun group of people!!! Everyone was super cool during the race, and at the venue. It seemed like I knew everyone on the course, which was very cool and motivating! Most of the people I would pass would say "Good Job Tom" or something like that... and I did not even recognize half of them! I think that this was one of the best races as far as
people letting you pass or passing...

WTB Seat - I received a new WTB Vigor seat... and my butt is super happy! This is the first race with the seat, however it worked awesome!!! I will complete a full review of it as soon as possible, however it worked so well it was worth mentioning!

Vassago Bicycles - Vassago donated a frame for the raffle and sent some banners out for the race. Congratulations to Vickie Nelson of Big Fish Racing for winning the Jabber frame!! There were people all weekend checking out the raffle frame and asking questions about the bikes. Misty from Vassago was checking in to make sure the race was going well and that we were all taken care of... what an excellent bike company that really supports their riders!!

OK, so the first race of my fall endurance races is complete and I get to go to Temecula for the final 12 hours of Temecula race... I also get to meet the rest of the Vassago Crew and see a lot of the people that I have not raced with in a while... should be fun!

DCB McDowell Race

2008-11-07T06:21:00.003-07:00

Last weekend was the 2nd race of the DCB fall series. I raced in the marathon class on my singlespeed and had a blast! The race was about 50 miles long on the same course as the upcoming 24 hours of fury race, so it was a good opportunity to get out and ride!

There were about 20 of us that started the race. When we lined up I looked around and noticed that I was the only singlespeeder in the race and Eric Salstrand, the top pro in the state, was in the race... so it was going to be a fast one!

When the race took off I ended up with the hole shot and made it to the top of the first big climb ahead of everyone. I managed to stay in the lead for the first few miles until the course flattened out.... then Eric big ringed it and just rode away!! Man, it was super impressive watching how fast he went on the flats! For the next few miles that continued... I would catch up to him on the climbs, and he would just power away on the flats and smooth downhills...

I ended up second place in the end and had an awesome ride! The course was perfect, the weather was a little on the hot side but still nice, and hanging after the race was a lot of fun. This is the first time I rode my new Jabber on this course and it performed flawlessly!!! Now, on to the 24 Hours of Fury!!!

24 Hours of Fury Pre-Ride

2008-10-25T14:02:00.002-07:00

A bunch of the Adrenaline team showed up at McDowell park this morning to re-ride the course for the upcoming 24 Hours of Fury race. We met with the race promoter and talked about how transition areas were going to be set up, the vendor area, and all that good stuff. This is a first year event, however it will be a lot of fun and should be a pretty good turnout!! The promoter said registration is around 300 right now with a couple of weeks left - awesome!

The McDowell course is in excellent shape thanks to the park and a bunch of people doing trail maint out there the past few weeks. The race is going to have a big movie screen, bonfire, a ton of different vendors, and a couple of kegs of carb drinks... :) I also found out there are going to be several bikes given away, including a Vassago Jabberwocky frame, and a ton of other cool swag... SWEEET!!!

The ride was a ton of fun this morning! I met one of the new Adrenaline members... Zack, a 16 year old hammerhead freak cross country racer that is super fast. He is going to be one to watch over the next few years!

I also had the pleasure of delivering a new member to the Herrera family... a 16" Bandersnatch for Jeff to race on next year and win the Pro state points series on!!! He was super stoked to get the frame and should have it built pretty soon!

It was great to get out there today and catch up with a TON of people that I have not seen in a while.... a lot of people were out pre-riding and tearing it up today. I had a great ride and had a blast on my new Jabberwocky... that thing just screams on this course and will be an awesome weapon for the 24 hour race!

BCT Trail Ride

2008-10-20T21:18:00.003-07:00

On MTBR last week there was a post about a group ride on the Black Canyon Trail system... a trail that has been built over the past couple of years. I have read a lot about it, however have never had a chance to go and ride it... was I in for a shock!!

Saturday morning I loaded everything up and took off for the 7:00 ride start. Well, I had no idea that Black Canyon was only about 20 minutes from my house so I ended up about 1/2 early to the ride... no big deal, I just kind of rode around and checked things out. Well, the 7:00 group ride turned into me and one other guy... another singlespeeder! We took off at a leisurely pace, with a very bad paper map, and no clue where we were going. We ended up getting lost a few times and doing a little scouting but ended up completing the entire loop.

There is only one thing that I can say about the BCT trails... WOW!!! They must have been built and designed by a singlespeeder! It was all uff, pristine singletrack with a ton of switchbacks, long, gradual climbs, awesome views, river crossings, technical sections, and super fun twisty downhills... easily one of the best trails I have ridden in the state... and it is only 20 minutes from my house (closer than almost every other trail in Phoenix) Huge props to all that worked on the trail and the trail designer... I will be spending a lot of time up there the next few months!!

Tuesday Night Ride

2008-10-14T21:01:00.003-07:00

Ok, so I have written about the Tuesday night ride several times... however it is one of my favorite rides of the week, even if it is a roadie ride!

Tonight there were about 30 people in the group... about an average size ride. Well, there is a father and son that show up every week on their mountain bikes with slick tires and tear it up! Tonight, we did our normal warm up laps, and Brandon, a 10 year old mtn biker, was pretty close to the front of the group.

After the warm up laps, the pace really picks up and normally the group splits into a faster and a slower group... well, the same happened tonight, however Brandon hung in the group for a long time!!! I was totally drafting off a 10 year old on a mountain bike in a fast road bike group ride!!! How cool is that? He was totally putting a hurt on his father, which was pretty cool to see also. He has been winning all of the local races and is probably bumping up to race with the 12-13 year olds the rest of the year... it is going to be exciting to watch!!

Keep it up Brandon!!

New Jabberwockies!!!

2008-10-13T17:58:00.003-07:00

This week a couple of new bikes were delivered to my house... a new Black Vassago Jabberwocky for me, and a white one for Evan. Well, I took a couple of hours and built Evan's up for him and it looked pretty cool. He took it out for his maiden voyage and could not believe how awesome it handled and how much better the bike fit him than his last singlespeed (it was a little big) Anyway, a pic of Evan's new bike... the Jabber Junior... :)

I also had a chance to build my new Jabberwocky... and it turned out sweet! There are a couple of changes to the frames, most notably the new headtube gusset. It looks really clean and the paint is super shiny!!! I took mine out for a spin tonight and it rode excellent! Nothing like the feel of a good steel frame!

This bike is probably going to end up being my race bike for the rest of the year. I just can not believe how well these things climb, descend, and handle techy rock gardens in AZ. Just a blast to ride and they are pretty too!!! (also, all built up with pedals my Jabber came in at 22.01 lbs with a suspension fork and normal parts! Very nice!)

DCB Estrella Race

2008-10-13T06:24:00.002-07:00

It was great to see everyone at the race this weekend! All of the people that only attend the cross country races show up so it is a different crowd then the past several endurance races, so it was really nice to catch up.

I arrived at the race at 7:30 set to register for the cross country race. Well, Zach pulled up, we talked for a few minutes, and then registered for the marathon... which started at 8:00. So, we both did our best superman impressions to get into our supersuits and get ready in about 20 minutes for a 40 mile marathon race! I set everything up, filled a bunch of water bottles, and took off for a one minute spin around the parking lot... and then heard my name over the loudspeaker. The race promoter was getting everyone lined up and he started calling my name... it was pretty funny actually.

Well, the start of the race freaking hurt!!! I took off and got a pretty good lead on the first lap. I kept looking back, and Zach was right there, maybe 30 seconds back... man he is riding strong! On the second lap, I went a little harder because I was warmed up and was feeling really really good!

Thats when all hell stated breaking loose. I was cruising along in the middle of the lap and my chain broke! No big deal, I had a couple of powerlinks and a chain too with. So I jumped off, fixed it in less than a minute and jumped back on. I then came through the transition area, grabbed a bottle and took off on my third lap when.... my chain broke again!! This time, I was trying to fix it and really struggling. There was a lady that was timing how long I was spending and where second place was. After 4:20, Zach rolled by and smacked me on the ass when I was bent over trying to fix it. I struggled for a couple more minutes and broke my chain tool... DAMMIT!!!

Well, I was only about a hundred yards from the parking lot, so I coasted back down the hill and to my car. At that point I knew I was still in the race if I could get the thing fixed. I dumped all my tools out and did not have anything to fix the chain... so I noticed Darrin had his bike in the truck next to me... so I jumped in the back, stole the chain, and tried to put it on my bike... well, it was not the right length and I could not get it to work.

At this point at least 20 minutes had gone by and I came to realization I was not going ot be able to finish... so I went to go find the promoter and bag the race. I found Dave, and he said... "Just take my bke out"!!! He is a super strong singlespeeder and we have been pretty good friends for a few years, so I grabbed his bike and went to get it ready.... Well, he rides a 17" Gunnar with a rigid fork and different pedals, so I moved the seat up as high as it would go, put my pedals on and took off hell bent for leather to catch anyone I could in the race. That 25+ minutes in the parking lot put me down a LOT!!!

Changing bikes to something that does not fit and something you have never ridden before in the middle of a marathon race is tough.... I just did the best I could and hammered out a couple of pretty fast laps.... one other thing.... rigid forks are not meant for riding Estrella... trust me on this one.

Well, in the end I ended up making up all the time and caught up to second place. Zach ended up with the win, and was almost exactly 11 minutes ahead... bummer. It was a pretty hard effort and just to get that close after almost a half hour of the bike was a very very successful race in my books!!!

After the race, I took the promoter his bike back and he was shocked that I had come back from all the issues to even finish the race and was congratulating me on the second place. I talked to him for a few minutes, and then asked if this was a NORBA sanctioned race with NORBA rules and he said it was. Well... I ended up withdrawing from the results because it is against the rules to switch bikes mid way throug an event. I was thinking about this the entire time I was racing on his bike but I wanted to make sure I was not cheating. He said it would not be a problem and he was OK with me staying in the standings but I withdrew anyway... oh well...

In the end it was super fun and a totally different experience for a race!!! I was happy with my ride, overcoming all the crap, and not quitting even though I almost did not have a choice. That would have been my first DNF in several years and I would have lost sleep over it.... :)

Anyway, great ride, awesome to see everyone at the event, and just a good time!!! Congrats to Zach on his win.. he really tore it up and is a total force to watch in all the upcoming races.... I think maybe I will carry an extra stick to throw in his wheel when he is passing me from now on!!

Tour of the White Mountains Race

2008-10-05T08:18:00.006-07:00

This is one of my favorite races every year. The trails in Show Low, AZ are very fun, scenery is awesome, and there is just a good vibe at the race. This year was no exception!

I arrived at the race on Friday night to get camp set up with Zach and some guys from Prescott. Zach is off his freaking rocker. We laughed all night like elementary school kids having a sleepover... I am still amazed that he is a school teacher!!! It was also great to meet Tim, one of Zachs long time friends from Tucson and a really cool guy as well.

After getting camp setup, we went and mingled with all the racers. There were so many people at the race!! I think there were well over 1000 people that registered this year (thats what the promoter said), making it one of the biggest races in the southwest! We in a group talking when Dejay Birtch came walking over... with a couple beers in hand. I have not seen him in months, since he has been travelling the country going to all the big races, so it was nice to catch up and talk some crap and stuff. He also said Fuzzy was racing this weekend, so it should be a lot of fun!! (the #1 and #2 singlespeed endurance racing champs...)

The start of the race was super cool. There were 350 people lined up for the 60 mile event (actually 67 miles, but the promoter likes the sound of 60!!!) and I lined up about 4 rows from the front, right behind Dejay. While waiting for the start, the guy standing next to me asked if I was Tom that used to ride the orange singlespeed... we talked for a minute, and found out that we had done a smaller endurance race last summer together, and the guy next to him had done it, and three other guys right behind him.... the entire group of guys that did the marathon in that race was all lined up together... pretty cool! Also lined up next to me were several of the fast Sho-Air guys from the Payson race and some of the people that I had met the previous weekend... very fun!!

The race took off and the start was a blast!!! We were almost immediately on singletrack, and fast fun fireroads that climbed to the top of hills with nice views... riding through open fields, through trees, over logs, and screaming downhills. The next 15-20 miles of the course was gradual, easy climbing up wide service roads... not technical and really not a lot of fun, however it was a good way to get the climbing out of the way. I totally under-geared for the event not knowing how my legs were going to feel, so I paid for it in this section. I spun as fast as I possibly could to not lose ground on the other guys... and it worked! I ended up catching Dejay and riding and talking with him for a while, and then I basically sold out.... all I could do and as fast as I could go on the singlespeed on that fireroad. I am normally a little better at stuff like that then he is, and he is a better climber and tech rider, so I figured I better get as much time as I could in that section... Zach passed me on the road section as well.. he was drafting a super fast pro-guy and they were just flying!!!! He came by and waved and gave me a goofy ass smile...

After that section ended it was back to super fun trails again!! There was a really really steep hike-a -bike... yuck, and then a ton of rocky, rough, techy singletrack to fly down. I was going as hard as I could go in all these sections and having major cramping problems in my legs. I tried to suck it up and just hammer through the cramps, but it was painful. I also knew that Dejay was behind me so there was not way I was going to let up just because of cramps... Also, I broke my freaking chain in one of the rocky sections... I have no idea why it broke, however I fixed it real quick and got back going.

The rest of the course was amazing... pretty much the best and one of the technically hardest endurance courses I have ever ridden. There was fast downhill twisty singletrack, and about 5 miles of nasty rocky technical singletrack... the kind that you would get a downhill bike and ride, or a trail that you would actually make a trip to ride... it was that fun. I rode it WAYYYY over my head, blasting all of the sections as hard and as fast as possible... I dinged my rims probably 100 times, however my WTB tires heald up without a flat... which is simply amazing!! The last 12 miles of the course was pretty sweet singletrack that twisted through the trees, however it was rough and punishing!!! There were horses on the trail right after it rained a couple of weeks ago and they totally tore it up. There were big horse foot post-holes that were hard dried up bumps for the entire rest of the ride. It was freaking torture that late in the race but my Optimus Ti and White Brothers fork did an awesome job smoothing them out and I was able to maintain a lot of speed through those sections. I really felt sorry for the guys on the Scndim bikes or the 26ers while I was riding that part... OUCH!!!

I ended up second place in the SS event (Fuzzy was first by a couple of minutes and Dejay was a couple minutes in third) which I was super happy about considering the way that I have been feeling and also the level of competition at the race!!! I was also happy that I was only a couple minutes behind Fuzzy... who is probably the fastest singlespeeder in the country at this time!!!

After we finished the race it started raining (there were several hundred people caught on the course in the rain!!!) so we hung out under the Fat Tire tent and drank a bunch of beers and told war stories about the race. Man, it is only 1 year away, but I am totally looking forward to tour of the White mountains again... I hope all of the rest of the races this year are as much fun as thid one was!!!

Stampede Support

2008-09-24T06:31:00.003-07:00

OK, I am starting to recover and remembering all the cool stuff from the race this past weekend. There is one last thing that really stood out at this event.... the support!

Sarah Stanford (Zachs bestest half) and Misty (Vassago team manager) took really really good care of Zach and I throughout the entire race. They were there with filled water bottles, food, and encouraging jokes on every lap... they even made fun of me and gagged a little when I ate the sandwich that fell in the cooler water :)

Team Adrenaline was also set up to support the racers and that really made a difference. We were set up close to the transition area so doing the transitions was a no brainer and we could totally watch how the race unfolded. Everyone on Adrenaline really pitched in and helped everywhere they could... what an excellent team!!

Best support that I have had to date at an endurance event... Thanks everyone!

Thoughts on New Ergon Grips

2008-09-23T21:28:00.002-07:00

I am the type of person that buys parts and then uses them for years and years, or until they break. If they are good parts, then I use them and buy them over and over... things like Chris King, Thompson, etc. Well, over the past few months I have had an opportunity to try a couple of new products... boy have I been in for a shock!!!

First off, I have been running the same grips for about 15 years... and they seem to work fine! After a race a couple of fingers on each hand would go numb, but I thought that was just part of racing... Anyway, I decided to give some of the Ergon grips a try... DAMN they are freaking fantastic!!! My hands did not hurt, I am able to use all of my fingers on BOTH hands a day after the race, and they just seem to do what they are suppose to... what an improvement over my old grips. I can not believe that I have been missing out on these things for so long... I totally understand why all the top endurance racers run the Ergon grips...

Another thing that I tried was bar ends. Remember waaay back in the day before riser bars?? All bikes had bar ends on them... remember those really cool Onza ones that looked like cow horns?? Well, the Ergon grips that I put on my bike had bar ends. I did not figure I would use them, however they were part of the grips so I gave them a shot... DAMN!!! Another revelation! Bar ends work fantastic on a singlespeed. Climbing was easier, they gave me more hand positions, and they even looked cool.

Anyway, to make a long story short... I need to get out a little more often and try new and different products. If there are other products out there that add to the experience as much as these Ergon grips... I am totally going to be all over them!!!

Payson Stampede 12 Hour

2008-09-23T06:14:00.005-07:00

What a tough weekend and a super hard course! The Payson 12 hour race is the second to last race in the National Endurance Series, and it was one of the hardest courses for a 12 hour race that I have ever ridden! I am still trying to recover from the effort and it was 3 days ago!

The race started at noon on Saturday and went until midnight. When the race started, it was probably over 90 degrees, and there was a really long run. I lined up next to Nat Ross, Rebecca Rusch, Zach Stanford and several other Adrenaline team members. I think that I ran the first half and then walked/jogged the second half of the start!

The Lemans style start... I am in third at this point...

The first few laps were really rough because of the heat and I was just not feeling very good. The course started with a gradual climb, then down a super rocky trail for about a mile, it then flattened out for a couple of miles, and then was a series of steep climbs for a couple of miles, and then ended on a paved road that was about 2 miles long. There was 1366 feet of climbing in about 9.5 miles (most of that came in about 2 miles of the course in the middle). After the race we were talking to Nat Ross, and he said that this is going to be the hardest National Championship race that has ever been held next year, and a lot of people will be in for a shock after racing the 9 mile course the past few years....

This was also not a singlespeed friendly course. I normally think a singlespeed is not at a disadvantage for most courses, however this one was the exception. The trail was either really flat, or went uphill really steep, so there was no way to gear for it... and the 2 miles of flat pavement were torture on every lap!!!

I was sitting in about 6th place overall for the first 4 or 5 hours... with Zach ahead of me by a few minutes on his geared bike. We were not racing in the same category, however I always try to race everyone that is doing solo and not just in the SS category to make it a little more interesting for me in these events (there were only 5 SSers signed up and about 20 geared solo's).

Transition and support area

After the first 5 or 6 laps, something happened and I started feeling a LOT better!! I was able to ride more of the hills, and felt like I was turning faster laps (they were by a couple of minutes each lap). When I came through the pits I was able to crack jokes and have a good time, even though I was behind a few minutes. It was really encouraging going around the loops and being able to ride most of the hills that late in the race... and seeing a lot of people that were turning superhard fast laps earlier in the race walking the hills... welcome to my world!!! :)

Flying downhill!!

I ended up catching and passing Zach, who was the solo leader, at about the 8 hour mark. We rode together on the pavement while he ate a McDonalds burger. His strategy was to eat a burger every lap... seemed to work pretty good for him! My strategy was one that I have used for a while... basically have a bunch of food in the transition and just stuff my face every time I came through, and eat a hammer gel in the middle of each lap.

Zach Climbing a hill

At that point, it was night so we mounted our lights and took off. As soon as it started to get cooler, I started to feel better and better!!! It was awesome and riding the trail at night was a lot of fun! This is the first race I used my home made lighting system and it performed flawlessly! The system weighs about 220 grams and burns for a little over 6 hours.... plenty of time to just leave the light on for the entire race and not have to change batteries and have enough light to ride just as fast at night as during the day... very awesome setup!!

In the end I ended up putting a little over 30 minutes on the next closest 12 hour solo geared guy and won the race. I was also leading the 24 hour solo racers except for Nat Ross, and a couple of the Uber pro riders (I would have caught Ernesto in the next couple of laps if I was doing the 24) I ended up stopping the race a little early even though I could have gotten two more laps in because it would not have made a difference in the standings.

Overall, this was a very fun even, however a very very difficult course. Everyone at the race seemed to have a really good time and everyone was super friendly on the trails. Looking back, it is definitely one I will remember for a very long time!!!

Next race is the Tour of the White mountains... 66 miles of singletrack Bliss... WOOO HOOO!!!!

Payson Stampede Preride

2008-09-14T22:58:00.003-07:00

Zach and I headed up to Payson, AZ to pre-ride the course for the upcoming 24 hour race. I have raced in the event the past 3 years, however the course was changed from the previous years... man was I in for a shock! The course has pretty much completely changed except for the first few miles and it has become very tough.

Zach on one of the rocky downhills

The first few miles are very very rocky and hard to ride. There were loose babyheads on the downhills that made it tough to get going very fast. The rocky section is an old doubletrack, however there was no line at all, and it was just a mess... but super fun! This is going to be a very tough downhill a few laps into the race. The rest of the course is pretty smooth, and all fireroads. There really is not any singletrack at all which is kind of a bummer. The last mile or so is even a paved road that goes through the middle of town. There are a few pretty spectaculr views on the course, and I am glad that I was able to pre-ride and enjoy them.

Switchback on the course... and tough steep climb coming out

I rode one lap by myself and then waited for Zach to show up. We rode another lap and I realized how tough this was going to be on a singlespeed. There are not many courses that I think a single is a disadvantage, however this is one of them. There is a lot of flat areas where you are spun out, and 5 or 6 super steep loose climbs that are tough to even walk up. I downloaded the data from my GPS and the grade hits 20% in several different areas... OUCH!!

He still has that freaky mustache!!!

Anyway, we had a freaking blast and laughed a lot. I rode 3.25 loops and fealt totally dead at the end. This is going to be a painful 12 hour race (or 24, still have not decided) however is should be a lot of fun! Misty from Vassago is coming out and we are going to show her a good time in the big town of Payson. Ben, one of the Vassago riders is also coming out and doing the 12 hour on a Rigid Singlespeed Jabberwocky.

Fall Race Schedule

2008-09-04T21:55:00.003-07:00

The fall race season is fast approaching, and I am nowhere close to being in the shape I need to be, but what the heck... I will just race myself into shape. So, I thought I had a pretty good schedule going and then I received a couple of emails from different race promoters, so it looks like it might be a rough fall season... AWESOME!! So, it looks something like this:

Sept 20 - Payson Stampede 12 Hour
Oct 5 - Tour of the White Mountains 66
Oct 11 - DCB Estrella Cross Country
Nov 1 - DCB McDowell Cross Country
Nov 8 - 24 Hours of fury
Nov 15 - 12 Hours of Temecula
Dec 6 - Dawn to Dusk 12 Hour
Dec 25 - DCB McDowell Cross Country

Ummmm.... might be a little too much to do in 3 months but it us worth a shot!

Tuesday night with a tandem

2008-09-03T06:27:00.002-07:00

The Tuesday night roadie ride was a little different this week. Robert Ball (Cat 2 Roadie, overall bad ass) and Chrissu Sarecini (Pro Roadie, bad ass also) teamed up to do the state time trial on a Tandem... holy crap! Put two super stong roadies on a bike together and it is something really cool to watch.

The ride is pretty much a flat 3 mile loop... perfect for the Tandem. The ride started like it always does, a couple of warm up laps then all hell breaks loose. Well, a few of us were battling for the first lap at the front of the group, and then the tandem just kind of rode right by us like we were standing still (we were already going 28 mph) I worked my butt off and got on their wheel, and just kind of motorpaced for a couple of laps. It was awesome!!! We were running 32-33mph for about 40 minutes or so. Super painful, but a ton of fun!!

Good luck to both of them in the state time trial this weekend! They should do really well and hopefully take a state chmpionship!

Random Babble

2008-08-30T18:28:00.002-07:00

OK, bunch of random stuff...

First off, went for a 50 mile ride with Darrin and Evan today. It rained last night, so there was a little bit of mud on the trail, but not much so we went for it!! Took off at like 5:30 and rode until it was to hot. Damn it is hot in Phoenix!!! The humidity was really high, and it was just nasty. Only a few more weeks and we will be back to some version of normal weather.

I rode the Optimus today, man I love that bike more and more everytime I ride it. I am getting close to saying that it is the best bike I have ever owned (my 1993 Jamis Dragon still holds that spot, mostly for sentimental reasons). I also built up the Jabber and am going to start riding that one again... it is going to be the bling machine!!! All of the parts are different colors; Mango king hubs, Red nipples, Gold King Headset, some undetermined skewer color (I let Misty at Vassago be creative so I have not seen what they are going to be), A blue or purple seat collar, Easton EC90 stem and handlebar, Thompson post, Race face cranks.... should be a pretty sweet build!!

One of the team Vassago riders is completing his first solo singlespeed race as I write this, and he is leading, so I wish him well as he goes into the night laps! Good luck Ben and remember not to stop for any reason, well, maybe for nature calls....

I went to the Swiss shop to pick up a few parts and got to see a bunch of riding buddies. I found out one of the guys has been stalking me on the internet, and that was kind of Creepy... So Tom Stack... I am sure you are going to be reading this a few minutes after it is posted, please keep the stalking to the internet and not in real life. Your cool and stuff, but we have to draw the line somewhere!!! LOL!!!! Actually, I found out that Stacky is going to be getting a Vassago 29er and he is stoked about that, so it should be fun to build that one up!

Ok, more randomness.... the Tahoe 100 is next weekend and I am pondering the drive up there. This is starting to sound a lot like the weekend before the breck 100. I am in no shape whatsoever to be really competitive at the race, however it would be nice to get up there and "Pre-ride" it before next year... and it would be nice to be able to race with Dejay again...

Also, Misty from Vassago has posted some stuff on her blog about my pink fairy wings... it is not true at all!!! I never wear them around the house, just mostly out to dinner and stuff. I have to look pretty

Flagstaff Mountain Festival

2008-08-24T10:13:00.004-07:00

This is the third year I have raced in the Flagstaff mountain bike festival... one of my favorite short races of the year. The course is awesome, with some really nice, rocky singlestrack and a really long, fun, downhill at the end of each lap.

This is one of the races that is not part of any series, for any points, and just kind of in the middle of the season, however more of the pros show up for this one than any of the other races in the state. A lot of the full time pros ive in Flagstaff, so they use it as a tune up for the fall season. This year was no exception!! The promoter grouped all the pros, experts, and singlespeeders and sent us at the start together. Very cool to get to start with a group of 50-60 riders that are all hammerheads!!

Start of the Race

The start of the race is on a 4-5 mile dirt road that gradually climbs so it spread out the pack. I tried my best to stay in contact with the lead group on my singlespeed... not an easy task when you are spinning your legs off!! I lost contact with them a couple of miles in, however Darrin was still with the group I was in!! He has been training super hard and is riding really really strong right now and will just get stronger for next race season... should be interesting!!

Darrin at the start with his "Game Face" on

I ended up getting a 1 or two minute gap on the rest of the singlespeeders the first lap, and then extended the lead over the next two laps, however I worked so hard at the start of the race I had really bad cramps the last lap... and my speed dropped considerably. I kept pushing as hard as I could, looking back for Darrin or anyone else to catch me, and did what I could to keep the lead.

In the end, I managed to win the race by about 5 minutes or so, however this will be one I will not soon forget!! For this race I tried a different training and eating strategy the few days before and it did not work out at all... lesson learned!! Also, I really need to remember to take my sport legs or endrolytes before the race. I was not sure if those things actually did anything at all, however I am not a firm believer. this is the first time I have had cramps in the past couple of years, and the first race where I did not take something prior... awesome learning experience!!

Darrin and Tom on the podium

At the end of the race I cooled down with one of the up and coming pro racers in the state... 21 year old Chris Suter. He is a real bad ass... and is FAST!!! He ended up second in his class and fourth pro overall at the race. We traded bikes, he rode my optimus around for a while (which he loved!!!) and we talked about the upcoming season. He is not on a team, so we ended up recruiting him for Adrenaline!!! WOOO HOOO!!! Now we have a couple really strong pros to content in the NORBA points series for next year.

All of the people from Adrenaline went into Flagstaff and we hung out at the Pay and Take, where the awards ceremony was... and had too many post recovery drinks and just hung out and talked... very fun!! These are the kind of races that are my favorite. They really do not mean anything as far as series points or anything, and they are just super fun events with everyone having a good time and not being all serious... Very awesome weekend!!!

Evan and Zach

1:59:34

2008-08-12T12:22:00.002-07:00

OK, personal best on the roadbike last night.... did 50 solo road bike miles in 1:59:34, up Cave Creek road, to the towers, and back home... Average speed 25.01 mph (previous personal best was 22.1 mph last year about this same time, can not remember the time though...)

Another reason I ride my bike...

2008-08-05T20:37:00.003-07:00

Every year about this time I get hooked on the roadie thing for a few months... I hate myself for it, however it is super fun and amazing training for the mountain bike. When you live in Phoenix, there really is no way to ride a mountain bike in the heat so we are pretty much forced onto the road for a few months...Well, this year is no exception!! Since last Thursday, I have a little over 300 road miles in and am just itching to get out and ride some more.

Tonight was the weekly Tuesday night ride and it was the normal crew of people out to tear it up for a couple of hours. What a blast!! We were all going at our limit, making super-hero efforts to break away from the group, and generaly pushing ourselves beyond our normal limits just for fun in the middle of the week on a 3 mile paved loop... It is pretty cool that a group of people of all ages just get together, without knowing each other that well, just to play... Man I love cycling!!!

BOS Roadie Ride

2008-08-04T21:53:00.002-07:00

Last week I sent an email to the Adrenaline team to see if anyone wanted to do the BOS ride... the fastest road group ride in the valley. Well, Darrin, Robert, and Jay were all up for it so we had a group of Adrenaline folks all lined up.

Now, the fun part of the story... Darrin and Robert have not really been on a lot of group rides, so they were not exactly sure what to expect. I let Darrin know this one will be pretty big, super fast, and we might all get dropped. Well, he didn't believe me... :)

I live about 13 miles from the start of the ride, so I planned on riding my bike over for a warmup and to get a few extra miles in. Well, I overslept so I did not leave my house until 5:25 (ride starts at 6:00). I thought no way I was ever going to make it to the start, and I would have to meet the group along the way. Well, it seemed like everything went my way, there was a slight tailwind, and I hit all lights green, so I made it with a few minutes to spare. I was a little tired considering I just did a solo 25+mph time trial to make it, however I made it!!

I met Darrin and Robert and they seemed a little stressed about the start... there were already about 60 roadies all ready to go. All their little outfits were all matching, their bikes all pretty, and all the normal roadie stuff... When we took off I rode with Darrin for a while, and provided some advice... I pointed out who the strong guys in the group were, and what wheels to beon at certain times of the ride not to get dropped... there are certain points the pace picks up and it is important to be in the right place so you do not get dropped...

Well, the plans really did not work out so well. I ended up having a great ride and managed to hang with the Cat1 and 2 roadies on the climbs, but Darrin, Robert, and Jay ended up in the second group somehow... but they are itching to go back and try it again this weekend.

In the end it was really fun and it was really cool to introduce a few of the guys to the dark side... Group road riding!!!

Crazy 88 Race

2008-07-25T08:12:00.004-07:00

Do you like Ninjas?

Do you like long, epic mountain bike rides?

If you answered yes to at least one of the above questions, then this race is for you!!!

My little buddy Zack (Hi Zack!!!) sent an email yesterday with some info about a race in Flagstaff coming up in a couple of weeks. It is an 88 mile, "Underground" race on 8/9 on some of the most fun singletrack trails in Flagstaff!! Check out the website for all the details on the race:

http://www.handlebarsandwich.com/crazy-88

Breckenridge 100 Race Report

2008-07-25T06:03:00.004-07:00

Have you ever had one of those races that was doomed from the start?? Well, the Breck 100 turned into one of those for me. Everything you can possibly do wrong pre-race and during race I did... however I had a great ride because of it!

First off, I decided to go to the race just a couple of days before the start. So, two nights before the race I drove all night, drank several cups of coffee, and forgot to eat. I have found from past experiece it is super imortant to take it easy and fuel up a couple nights before, which I did not do this time. I did get a really good night sleep before the race, and had a great dinner, however the damage had already been done.

So, on to the morning and start of the race. I arrived at the race pretty early and had everything ready. Instead of warming up, I took a nap in the car... not good. I figured, it is a 100 mile race and we have a neutral start through town, no big deal! I was wrong!! This basically ended the race for me. The neutral start was about 1/4 mile of downhill pavement, and we turned right onto the trail.

The race started up a 6+ mile climb from the town of Breckenridge to the top of the highest peak... straight up the service road that goes up the ski area. So, I had no warm-up and was climbing a freaking huge hill at 9,000-12,000 ft elevation. I thought I was going to die the entire climb. I ended up getting passed by a ton of people and was last singlespeed by the top. I ended up walking a lot and pretty much just fealing misearable the entire time. That was really the low point of the race for me and I almost turned around and went back to the car...

After that first climb I was feeling pretty bad, however I figured that I would just finish the race, I did just drive 12 hours. I pretty much just treated it like a long ride and had a really good time the rest of the day. The scenery and views in Breckenridge are about the best you can imagine! I ended up stopping a few times just to take it all in and enjoy a cliff bar or whatever I had.

The course consisted of 3-35 mile loops. The first loop had that horrible climb, a paved bike path, and then some killer singletrack. The second loop ended up being the hardest of the three, with a lot of climbing and a lot of walking... for everyone. The third loop had a lot of climbing, however they were long gradual climbs so it was not bad.

Well, among the many mistakes that I made during the race (Including forgetting my water bottles at the start of loop 3, and having to ride about a mile back to the venue... DOH!!!), I still had an awesome ride and the event was top notch! I ended up in second place in the singlespeed category and about 20th place overall. There were many people that did not finish in the cut off times... the course was really that hard. Next year I plan on doing this again, however I will be prepared and know the course a lot better, and will actually treat it like a race... you know, all the important things like warming up, eating right, remembering water bottles, not taking breaks, not walking every little hill, etc!!

Optimus Ti Report

2008-07-21T12:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, the last week has been freaking crazy... probably the busiest 7 days I have had in a very long time! In the past week, all of the following happened:

New bike came in (build it, ride it, rebuild it...)
House was robbed and work laptop was stolen (not good)
Went to the Breck 100 race (lots of driving/camping/riding)
Rode in Moab, Grand Junction, Fruita and Phoenix
Preparing for an 8/1 deadline for a big project at work

So, the most important part of the last week was the new bike!! I have wanted a Ti bike for a long time, so it was very exciting when it finally came in. I took it to Swiss American and everyone was super impressed with the quality of the frame. The frame ended up weighing just under 3.5lbs on the shop scale... and 21.69 lbs fully built with pedals and suspension fork... SWEET!!!

I really only had time for a quick shakedown ride in Phoenix before I took off for the Breck 100 race. Over the past week I have really put the bike through the ringer, or as much as you can in 6 days. The bike has been ridden in the desert, on slickrock, in snow, through root infested singletrack, super fast downhills, lung busting 10 mile climbs, pavement, dirt roads, swampy trails, dry loose rocky terrain, on top of mountains, actually almost every type of riding you could think of... All in 157 miles...

The bike performed flawlessly!! It rides very much like the Jabberwocky, however it really smooths out the little stuff on the trail. It is very noticable, however the bottom bracket still feels super stiff... a hard thing to find in a bike. I totally forgot I was on a new bike within a couple of minutes and was just railing corners, decending without fear and having a blast!

One thing that really stands out about the bike was going downhill... the thing flies! It handles fast, however it is super stable cruising down singletrack. The Breck 100 race had a couple of 7-10 mile downhills that were 6" wide singletrack and I was catching people and passing them like they were standing still... it just felt really good at speed

A really nice, light, stiff bike that I am really going to enjoy racing this next year... it also looks sexy too!!

3 Days, 1580 miles, 1 shower

2008-07-20T22:02:00.001-07:00

A couple days before the Breckenridge 100 I was talked into going so I left Phoenix at about 8:00 Thursday night before the race... talk about a late minute decision!! The drive is about 12 hours, so my plan was to drive to Moab, stay the night, ride a little on Friday and drive the rest of the way.

Well, I arrived in Moab at about 3:00 Friday morning, unloaded all the stuff out of the car, and got a couple hours of sleep... much needed after the all night drive (surprised I made it without falling asleep and dying!!) When I woke the next morning I had to decide where to ride... not an easy task when you are in Moab!! I actually decided to skip riding in Moab and drove to Fruita to do one of my favorite, low impact rides so I was not too fried for the race on Saturday.

The ride in Fruita was Fantastic!! I was all alone on the trails and the weather was perfect!! This was also my first real ride on my new Optimus Ti so that made it even better. I ended up doing Marys and horsethief bench... two classic, super fun Fruita loops. Man, the bike was freaking awesome!! I kept forgetting I was riding a new bike and was just railing the corners, rocking the tech sections and mashing up the climbs... the bike performed great!

Optimus in Grand Junction

After the ride I headed to Breckenridge. I was a few hours early for the race check-in and registration (I had not even registered before leaving!) so I found a nice stream, took a few pics of the new bike for Misty, and took a much needed nap. Going from Phoenix heat to 75 degree Colorado mountain temps was awesome and I did not want to get back in the car and find the registration hotel.

When I was signing up for the race I ran into a lot of people I knew... very surprising considering I had not heard anyone talk about the race. It was also nice to catch up with all the Colorado racers that I have not seen in a while. One person I ran into was Kimo Seymore... a Phoenix bad ass racer that I have never actually met... just seen his name in the top of a lot of major races (Leadville, 24 Hours ITOP, Soul ride, etc) What a nice guy!! I actually ended up riding with him for a while during the race.

After registration I found a nice place to have dinner (some kind of pasta thing with a pork chop on top) and found a place to camp. Breckenridge is fantastic... 12,000+ foot mountain surrounding it, a nice vibe to the town, and endless trails to ride. My campsite was a couple miles out of town in the forest next to a nice stream... a perfect place for a good nights sleep!

Campsite in Breckenridge

I woke up the next morning, loaded everything up again, and headed to the race. I will write a separate post about the race... that was an experience I will never forget!! After the race, I took a shower and waited for the awards ceremony. I ended up leaving Breckenridge about 8:00 that night and drove to Grand Junction and stayed the night. Even though I was totally fried from the race on Saturday, I managed to get a couple hour super technical fun ride in Junction... how could I not!! The weather was great, and Grand Junction has fanstastic trails!!

The drive home was pretty uneventful, however I did have to pull over and take a nap for a couple hours.. I was super tired from the weekend! So many things happened over the three days, it is hard to remember them all or even write about all of them!! Below are some of my highlights...

Driving all night...
Riding in Grand Junction... Twice
One Shower in three days
Riding my bike at 12,900 feet
Climbing 3500 feet in 6 miles
Being above 11,500 feet 5 times... in the same race
Riding my new Optimus Ti!!!!
Taking a nap next to a stream... twice
Driving 1580.7 miles in Three days
Riding 157 miles in three days...
Being one of only 5 people to ever finish the Breck 100 Singlespeed (so I was told)
Walking at least 10 miles uphill
Walking through Fields of snow
Hitting 48 mph on a downhill singletrack
Riding actual 6" wide singletrack... for miles and miles and miles :)
Club sandwhich at the 76 mile mark of the race (best food I have ever tasted!!!)
Sitting on the top of an 11,500 foot mountain enjoying the scenery (yes, it was during the race)
Climbing and climbing and climbing and climbing, and climbing... about 20,000 feet over the three days
Finding a new favorite biking destination... damn the trails are fantastic in Breck!!

The race went up and over the highest peak in the pic...

Wet Ride!

2008-07-11T06:11:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of months it has been very hot in Phoenix and riding has been pretty tough... not last night! Our monsoon season started finally and it actually cooled off below 100 for a couple of hours.

I went out for a roadie ride and ended up getting caught in a storm... a pretty bad one. It was dark, the rain was coming down in sheets and the wind was blowing very hard. It was a great ride! I did not want to come back to the house and ended up staying out for an extra couple of hours, completly soaked, riding in the rain!

Sounds kind of dumb, which it is... getting spashed by cars, running through waste deep washes (when it rains in Phoenix, it floods pretty bad, the ground does not soak up the water), and navigating traffic in low visibility... but it sure was a lot of fun! It is nice to have a change of pace once in a while and have a ride that is totally different that normal!!

I think this is the first real rain or storm since December or January... hopefully I will not have to wait until then for the next one!!

Adrenaline Flagstaff Ride

2008-07-06T09:10:00.000-07:00

Saturday a bunch of us from the Adrenaline team headed up to Flagstaff for a long mountain training ride. It was pretty cool because I finally was able to ride with the new Pro rider that just joined the team... Jeff Herrera (aka Climbing Machine!!). I have met and talked to him at many racers, but never really had a chance to ride with him, so I was pretty excited to get to ride with one of the fastest guys in the state.

I ended up getting to the trail about an hour and a half before everyone else, so I did one of my favorite fast, twisty singletrack loops. It had rained the night before and the ground trail was absolutely perfect!!

I then met up with Darrin, Art, Jeff, Dan, Jose, Kevin, Raymond and Nancy at the parking lot. There were actually a of of people from Phoenix to take advantage of the nice temps, so it was nice to see everyone that I normally race with out on a normal ride!

I have ridden in Flagstaff a lot and know the trails pretty well, so I was designated ride leader. We wanted about a four hour loop, so we picked some of most fun, technical trails and linked them all together. Just a ton of climbing, super fun fast downhills, and slow, pick your line technical riding. I think we were on double tracks or roads for maybe 1/2 mile the entire time. The weather was perfect, the trails were tacky, and all the planets aligned for a very nice day in the saddle..

This is my first ride on these trails on the Jabberwocky, and I set it up rigid, so I was curious to see how the thing performed... it was awesome! There is on trail that climbs steadily, and pretty steep for about 3 1/2 miles (about 2000 ft elevation gain) that I have never made singlespeed on my old bikes. I actually cleaned the entire thing for the first time on the Jabber... super cool!! Going downhill was equally rewarding. Even with the rigid fork, that thing rides awesome!! I took a few drops and lines that I would normally not attempt on anything but a full suspension bike and only had a couple "oh crap, I'm going to die" moments... Man I am stoked about this bike!!

So, we are checking into the Breckenridge 100 coming up in a couple of weeks. Maybe a coule of us will be able to head up there and take on that brutal climb fest... :)

Optimus Ti

2008-06-22T07:12:00.000-07:00

We finally get pictures of the new US made Vassago Optimus Ti frame, and it looks sweet! There were a couple of things I saw in the pics of the old frame that I thought would be nice if they were changed up a bit, and they are on the new frames... exactly like I would have a custom builder make! I have one coming and should have it in the next couple of weeks... after seeing the pics I don't think I am going to be able to wait that long!!!

12 Hours of Temecula Race

2008-06-15T22:22:00.000-07:00

Wow, another great weekend for Team Adrenaline... what a fun group of people to race with! We all loaded up the team "bus" on Friday afternoon and took the trip to Temecula, CA for the second race of the CA endurance series. The weekend adventure starts with the drive!! I had no idea that a motorhome that size would go 100+ mph the entire way to CA, but Darrin proved to us that it will!! We were all watching Austin Powers (including Darrin, who was driving) and passing 18 wheelers like they were standing still... I don't think Art will ever be the same!!

We arrived at the venue at about 10:00 at night, got set up, and went to sleep. When we woke up the next morning and saw everything in the daylight, it was awesome! The venue was in the middle of vail lake resort, right next to a big grassy area and the pool. Very nice!! We picked up our packets and I visited with the race promoters for a while (they are pretty good friends of mine, I was on their 24 hours of old pueblo team thins year) and a bunch of people from CA that I have raced with over the past couple of years. It was great catching up with them!

The race started at 9:00 with a "parade" loop around the resort. There were actually a lot more people at the race then we were all expecting. They had over 100 solo riders and a lot of different teams. In all there were over 350 participants... and about 200 people lined up at the start... very cool!! The promoter noticed I was lined up in the front, called out my name on the loudspeaker, and made a few singlespeeder jokes... one of these days I will pay him back for that!!

The race started and we were all off!!! I did not have a chance to preride the course, so i figured I would just hang with the front group as long as possible. Man, was I in for a shock!! The first lap was pretty rough... a lot of climbing that was just steep enough that I had a hard time pushing my gear... not a good sign on the first lap. The course was really tough!! It started with a couple of miles of easy dirt road, and then the dam climb (thats what they call it!!). It is basically a double track that climbs without letting up for about 2 miles, with some really steep parts. After that, it was pretty much super fast downhills with a few rollers and gradual climbs thrown in... overall a really fun course, but one of the toughest that I have ever raced in a 12 hour event. I am not a climber, and those long steep grinders like the dam climb kill me....

After the first lap I stopped and changed my gear because I knew I would not be able to push it for the entire time. I have no idea what I was doing, but everything seemed to go wrong when I was working on my bike. Something that should have taken me 3 minutes, took about 15!!! At that point I was pretty much in last place and everyone in my class had a good lead on me. Bummer. After I changed the gear, I took off and did my best to catch up with everyone else. I managed to make it back into first place by the end of the second lap so I was super relieved that someone did not take off and put a bunch of time into me.

The first 3 laps were not that bad... but then it started getting hot. This was the hottest race I think I have ever done. The temps were over 100 for most of the day, and it really took its toll on everyone. The air was stagnant on the big climb, and there were no trees or shade at all... not fun. A lot of people ended up quitting the race or sitting next to the trail with cramps. I managed to stay well hydrated and did not have any cramping issues throughout the entire race. I think my endurance diet of pringles, cheetos, ham sandwhiches, gatoraide, water, and whatever sports drink is on sale works pretty well, even though everyone pokes fun of me for it!

This was a tough race, and the heat was horrible. I was in first place and just kept pushing until I knew that my lead was enough that I could hang it up. I ended up being able to stop a couple of hours short of the end of the race because second place could not possibly catch up... I was so happy. There was no way I wanted to ride anymore even though it was starting to cool off and I could have gotten a couple more laps in...

In the end, I won the singlespeed class and finished second overall for all the solo racers (I should have done the extra lap... oh well) Darrin and Christina from team Adrenaline ended up third in Co-ed duo and Art ended up 5th in 45+ solo... not a bad showing for Adrenaline!! My new Jabberwocky performed awesome and I was super happy with the way that it rode and handled for the entire race... an awesome endurance machine!

So, another great weekend of racing!! I am not sure what is on the calendar next, but I know I am going to be looking for a race in the mountains or someplace cooler!!!

I'm still alive!!! Whew!

2008-06-08T11:33:00.000-07:00

Holy crap!!! All the planets alligned in my favor this morning! I decided to take a couple hour spin on the road bike, just a normal medium paced ride on a route I ride all the time. Well, about 10 miles from home there was a branch in the road. Not a big deal, I am a mountain biker, so I decided to bunny hop it (like I do all the time). Mind you, this is not a log or anything, just a stick about a half inch around.

So, I do the little roadie bunny hop at about 25 miles an hour (I was going downhill on Cave Creek rd). Cleared the branch, but when I landed my handlebar snapped at the stem!! Panic set in as the front of my bike felt like Jello and the high speed wobble started... Somehow, after a lot of swerving, body english, handlebar piece and hand rubbing the front tire, and sheer dumb luck I managed not to crash and get the bike stopped!!! Whew!!

I stood by the side of the road for a while, cleaned out my shorts, hyper-ventilated, cried a little, and then got a huge rush of adrenaline because I managed to survive something that has made me hit the pavement or ground pretty hard in the past (I have broken steerer tubes, mtb hbars, and stems in the past... not pretty)

The next 10 miles were pretty interesting. I took the extra tube out of my pack, strapped the handlebar to the other side, and rode home... Riding pretty much no handed or one handed the entire time. I just thought the entire way home... if this sucker would have broke in one of our hammerhead group rides or during an all out sprint in traffic, it would have hurt really bad!!

So, morale to the story... wait, there is no moral!!!

Adrenaline Cool People Ride

2008-06-07T13:06:00.000-07:00

So, several of the cool people from the Adrenaline team decided to do a long ride this morning. Darrin sent an email to the team with the ride and stated that you were not cool if you did not show up... Well, there were 5 of us that did the ride; Darrin, Art, Evan, Christina, and myself... I guess the rest of the team was not cool enough to hang... :)

Well, the ride started a little rough for me... I woke up way late and just jumped into my super-suit and me the rest of the cool people a couple of miles into the ride. We ended up riding a super tough 30 mile loop with a ton of climbing... 4000+ feet.

The trails we rode are very rocky, lots of loose stuff, and just a freaking blast!! I now remember why I am not man enough to race a rigid fork... I do not think I will be able to grab a hold of anything for a couple of weeks after the pounding!! The ride ended up being super awesome, however will probably be one of the last ones of the year in Phoenix... it really started to get hot at the end of it.

Everyone had a good time, we made fun of each other a lot, and basically talked about bikes and stuff for a few hours... great start to the weekend!! I think its time for a nap....

Preparing for Temecula!!

2008-06-06T16:01:00.000-07:00

So, I have spent the last couple of days getting stuff ready for the Temecula 12 hour race. The promoter is a pretty good friend of mine, and is doing a lot of cool stuff for the Adrenaline team at the race, should be a lot of fun!!

Everything is coming together pretty well for the race except for all of the bike stuff!! I have items coming from all around the country, new parts, tires, forks, frames, shoes, lights, basically everything! It seems like everything has been on order or shipping for a couple months now... AARGH!!

One good thing is that I had a nice 4 hour ride after work last night... that Jabberwocky really is a blast to ride! Riding rigid singlespeed on rocky, technical trail is just a freaking blast... Well, back to work!!!

Riding my bike is fun!!!

2008-05-27T20:48:00.000-07:00

So, do you ever have those rides that are just so great that you never want to stop?? Well, the past couple of days have been like that. First off, I have had a slight lower back pain that has been haunting me for about a month now. It just will not go away!! I have been taking it easy, not riding much, doing stretches, I even bailed on a race to try to get better, but it is still there.

Anyway, I took pretty much the entire weekend off... 3 consecutive days without riding to see if that would help, and it did not. It almost killed me!! I have a new bike that I have been itching to get out and take for a real ride, however I let Darrin borrow it for a few days to see how he liked it (he loved the bike!!!) So, I picked the bike up from Darrin, and went for a ride on a trail I have not been on in 5 or 6 years because it was a brutal, nasty rock infested non-rideable 6 mile loop. Darrin insisted the trail had been cleaned up and was ok to ride.

I went to the trailhead and sure enough... from the parking lot you could see new switchbacks cut into the hillside, and everything looked good. The trail started with about a mile climb, mostly standing on the SS... man that Jabberwocky climbs freaking awesome!! I can not believe how much better it climbs than my old bike. After the climb there is a fast, smooth twisty downhill, and then about 3 miles of technical stuff. The trail is only about a 5 mile loop, however it is one of the most fun loops in the Phoenix area!!! Sweeeet!!! I rode it 5 times and just fell in love with the new bike, the trail, and just being out there riding my bike and everything flowing perfectly. I kept thinking the entire time... this is why I ride my bike!!

So, fast forward to tonight. We have a standing Tuesday night group road ride. Between 20 and 50 people show up for the ride, from Cat 1 Roadies to beginners. The ride is a 3 mile loop that we go around a bunch of times. It is pretty much the Tuesday night world campionships... just a freaking hammer fest on a flat road with a bunch of strong roadies. The main goal is to go as hard as you can, don't get dropped, and survival of the fittest. None of the normal roadie smooth tempo riding.... there are attacks, surges, changes in speed, superhero efforts, and people getting dropped the entire night... pretty much the most fun you can have on a road bike!! Well, tonight the ride was fantastic!! Everything fealt right, and even though it was a super hard effort, it really got the adrenaline going... I kept thinking the entire time... this is why I own a road bike!!

So, I can not wait until my ride on the Jabberwocky tomorrow night!! Now, I just need to figure out how to fix the back issue and how to get out of work early (might have to fake sick!!!)

New Vassago Jabberwocky

2008-05-25T07:55:00.001-07:00

The Adrenaline team hooked up with a new bike company, Vassago cycles, and the first of the new bikes arrived this week. I ordered a couple of new bikes to replace my other worn out machines, so I was very excited to get the call from Darrin letting me know that my bike was in.

Darrin called and it was like christmas for both of us. He said the bike was in and he was trying to make it to his house as fast as possible, but in his haste, forgot to put gas in his truck so I may have to come and get him if he runs out. A few minutes later I received a text message that said he coasted in to the gas station and he would see me in a few minutes.

When I arrived at his house he had the bike out of the box and was weighing it in his garage. We both agreed that the frame looked very nice and had very nice, clean lines. The white color is not bad, and looks pretty classy with the black rigid fork... Very cool Jabberwocky frame. Darrins next question was... "When is it going to be built so I can ride it??" So, I pulled the bucket of parts out of my car, and my Sir9, and we started building it up right there!!!

So, we put the headset in, the cranks, brakes, fork, and almost all of the parts when we ran into a snog. We could not get the seatpost out of the Sir9 frame!!! Nothing would work! I guess after having the post in the frame for 2 years without moving it caused it to weld into the frame... I had another seatpost with, however it did us no good because I did not have another seat collar... bummer. So, we had to wait to finish the build until the next day.

We were both pretty bummed out because we really wanted to see how the Wet Cat geometry works and check the sizing on the frame... it will have to wait until later...

Arizona State Finals Race

2008-05-19T06:04:00.000-07:00

The last race of the Arizona state series is finally over, and it was a good one! The race was in Flagstaff on an unbelieveable course. I went into the race with a pretty good lead in the state points series, however I still needed a fourth place or higher finish in the state final for the series win... the competition in the singlespeed advanced category has been top notch all year and there was a group of us that were really close all year!

The race started in a big open field with about a 1/4 straight dirt road before descending into some technical singletrack. The race director did something a little different for the start of the race... they started the singlespeed group with the expert riders!! They actually started us at the same time, but about 50 yeards behind the experts, so we really had to work to make sure we were first to the singletrack. When the race started, the top 5 guys in the SS class took off, and we all made it to the front of the expert crew in no time at all (our legs must have looked like eggbeaters spinning on that flat road!!!)

We all hit the singletrack together and then it was game on!! There was a gradual three mile climb, and all 4 of us were racing as hard as we could to make it to the first technical decent first. I was leading the group, and when I looked back it was just Chris Latham and I. Chris just beat me a couple of weeks before at the Whiskey race, so I knew this was going to be a long day!!! After that, I just dug in, buried my head, and pushed a little harder. He ended up backing off a little and allowed a gap... whew!

The rest of the race was spent pushing as hard as I could and trying to make as few mistakes as possible. I actually ended up riding with a couple of guys that are really good friends in the expert/pro class for most of the race, and we did a really good job of working together... they would pull me up the hills, and then they would follow me through the tech sections (I have ridden this course a few times and know the lines pretty well!!)

In the end I ended up with the win and won the state points series!! This was one of my goals at the beginning of the season, however it is really tough in a 7 race series with the level of competition in the Singlespeed advanced class (we had 2 world champions racing in the class, a couple of pro mtb racers, a Cat1 road guy, and several guys who can podium at any national event!!!).

Left to Right: Chris Grove, Doug Kennedy, Tom Ament, Chris Latham, Scott Countryman

An excellent way to cap the first 3rd of my race season!! Now, on to the summer endurace events...

Flagstaff Pre-Ride

2008-05-11T07:14:00.000-07:00

OK so the past couple of weeks have been rough... I tweaked my back in the Whiskey race, and it does not seem to be healing fast enough. So, whats the best thing to do... get out and ride to make it all better!

Several of us went to pre-ride the race course for the AZ state finals race. The race is going to be in Flagstaff on some of the best trails I have ever ridden! How the MBAA managed to get a race approved on these trails is amazing, and hats off tho all of hours they have spent getting this course open.

Well, the course is about a 30 mile loop with most of the climbing on fireroads or smooth singletrance, and most of the downhilling on super fun singletrack technical trails... and I mean really technical. I have never seen anything like it in a NORBA style race, and it is going to be a freaking blast!

We started at about 8:30 an were expecting about a 3 hour ride or so, scouting out the course. Well, it was not marked yet, so we were kind of winging it with written directions from the website. This very well for most of the course, except the parts of the directions that said to go left when we should ahve turned right... no matter, we ended up riding an extra hour of super fun singletrack!!!

I was super stoked about the course when I read the description on the website, now after riding it... I am even more excited! This is going to be a brutal, technical, pounding race that will really test everyone... a perfect state series finale!

After the 5+ hour preride for one 30 mile loop, we were all trashed and went into Flag for some Thai food and beer... a great end to a super fun day of riding!!

Whiskey Team Adrenaline Results

2008-04-27T09:42:00.000-07:00

Wow!!! Team Adrenaline tore it up at the Whiskey off road race this year. People from all over the country come to this race because it is one of the toughest, and most fun races of the year! Everyone from Arenaline had an awesome time and really showed what the team in made of. Below are some of the results:

Tom Ament 3rd Singlespeed 50 miler 4:01

Christina Betz 4th Womens open 50 miler (Awesome Job!!!) 4:56

Sara Stanford 5th Womens open 50 miler 4:59

Darrin Austin 7th Singlespeed 50 miler 4:27

Don Blattert 9th Singlespeed 50 miler 4:32

Zack Stanford 16th mens open 50 miler 4:08

Darrin Permineter 17th mens open 50 miler 4:08

Evan Smith 27th mens open 50 miler 4:39

Chad Sheiborn mens open 25 miler (Name not on results, sorry Chad!!)

Evan gets the award for the most wiped out after the race!!!

2008 Whiskey Off Road 50 Miler

2008-04-27T06:58:00.000-07:00

The Whiskey off road was this weekend, and what an event!! This is one of the most fun, grassroots type races of the year. It really does have a grassroots feel, however it is one of those races that all the "big guns" show up for! This year was no exception! Many people from around the country came and a lot of big name pros were there this weekend. Lining up for the event with 700 other participants was pretty intimidating to say the least!

I have to start with a disclaimer... this is one of the events that I have really struggled with in the past. The course is only 50 miles, however there is a ton of climbing (7000+ per my gps). It starts off in downtown Prescott and climbs on a steep pavement road for about 5 miles. It then hits singletrack for 5 or 6 more miles. The singletrack is a series of steep, rocky switchbacks with big waterbar logs in them. After that, it is a 12 mile descent down a dirt road, and then you turn around at the bottom and ride back up... 15 miles, up a steep climb, back to the top... ouch!!! After that it is a fast singletrack descent back into town to the finish line (notice that does not add up to 50, but you get the point)

So, at the start of the race I lined up in the front of the group. I look around and standing a couple people away is Floyd Landis... WHAT!!!! Floyd Landis... how cool is that (I said there were some big guns at this event!!!) So the race started and we all took off. I was on my singlespeed, however it started on a climb so I manged to stay in the top 10 people up the paved climb, even pulling with Floyd on my wheel a couple of times... I fealt like I was in the tour (well, as close as you can on a singlespeed steel mountain bike with big knobby tires)

By the time we hit the first descent, I was sitting in 3rd place, behind a pro guy from CA and one of the monsters I ride with all the time. I could not believe that I was still up there (Like I said, this is one of the events I really struggle with) One of the cool parts of this event is that the descent is on a long dirt road, and you turn around at the bottom, and ride back up it. That gives you a chance to count how many people are ahead of you in the race and when you turn around you can see everyone behind you as well. So, as I was going down, I only counted 12 people ahead... that was including Floyd, all the uber pros on geared bikes and the two SS's in front of me. Wow, I could not believe it!! When I turned and came back up the road, I could see the next place was several minutes behind. It is also super cool because everyone is coming down the hill cheering you on!! There were countless people yelling "Go Tom" or good job!! I could not believe how many people I knew or knew me in the race... it was super motivating and very very cool to say the least!!

So, the monster climb started... I was not even sure if I could ride the entire thing, let alone push a fast enough pace up it to maintain my spot. Well, I figured just do my best, everyone else is suffering, and finish the race (I am not an good climber!!) After about 1.5 hours of suffering like crazy, grinding at 10 rpms seated, and standing over half of the time cranking on the pedals, I made it to the top of the climb and held onto third place. At the end, the times were very close, about 2 minutes separated the top 3 in the singlespeed class (man, I wish I would have known I was making time up on the first couple of guys :). The cool part is that we were 10th, 11th, and 12th overall in the race!

Receiving my award!!

After the race, we hung out in downtown Prescott and partook in a few "recovery drinks" and told stories about the race. What a way to spend a weekend!

12 Hours of Bootleg Canyon

2008-04-17T21:44:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I received an email from a friend of mine regarding a 12 hour race in Bootleg canyon, in Boulder City, NV. Over the last several years I have wanted to go up there and check out the riding, but it seems like something always comes up. So, I forwarded the email to the Adrenaline racing team to see if anyone was interested... It turns out that several people wanted to go!!

So, 5 of us loaded up the team Bus with all of our bikes, energy food (cheetos, pop tarts, mountain dew, pringles, etc.) and took off for Boulder City. We arrived very late the night before the race so we did not have a chance to pre-ride. We figured we would be riding the course for 12 hours, so no big deal.

Team "Bus" and Aid station

The race started at 8:00 the next morning. We had 5 riders in the race... 2 solo singlespeed, one solo woman, and a Duo team. When the race started, I tried to hang in the front group, not knowing the trail. Remember, we did not pre-ride this course, so I was in for a shock!! Most 12 hour courses are pretty mild with minimal technical sections... not this one... The race started out with a huge, rocky switchback climb, and then some rollers, and then the rest was a mix of off-camber riding along cliffs, technical rocky parts, and super fast downhills!! The course ended up being one of the best courses that I have ever ridden, however it just beat the tar out of us! It was a little more than 10 miles long, with over 1500 feet of climbing per lap.

I ended the first lap as the second rider through... the first was a local on a Duo team. As I was riding my second lap I came across one of my teammates, with a broken chain... bummer. For the rest of the day it was just push as hard as I could and try to stay ahead of the other solo guys. In the end I ended up with the overall solo win (on a singlespeed) and 2nd place overall in the team categories. The Adrenaline team also did well at the race... The Duo team ended up second, the other solo singlespeed rider took second, and our female solo rider ended up third... what an awesome showing!!!

I would totally recommend this event to anyone. A world class trail, super cool promoters and people putting on the race, and a very cool vibe. We will be back next year!!

2008 MBAA Race Series

2008-04-17T21:35:00.000-07:00

The 2008 race series is shaping up to be a fun one! I joined a new team this year, Adrenaline Racing, and have been having a good time. These guys are really into racing and having fun while doing it! The team is made up of some of the strongest Sport, Expert, and Singlespeed NORBA style racers in the state, so I was really excited when they asked if I wanted to join.

The first several races of the season have been super fun! I have been racing the Singlespeed advanced category and the competition has been excellent! Deejay Bitch and I have really been duking it out in the first few races which has made it exciting. We have been racing wheel to wheel, exchanging the lead many times...

Left to Right: Chris Latham, Tom Ament, Deejay Birtch and Darrin Austin

So with only a couple of races to go, the points series for the state championship is close. The next couple of races are going to be tough... but I am looking forward to them!

12 Hour Dawn to Dusk Race

2008-04-17T21:07:00.000-07:00

Wow, what an awesome event! DCB Adventures put on the first annual Dawn to Dusk 12 hour race in December in Phoenix and everyone was expecting the usual dry, dusty conditions.... well, it ended up raining for the entire 12 hours!! This really made this a very hard, yet memorable event.

The race started at Sun-up on a road leading out of the venue. About 200 people were lined up and ready to go. I lined up next to Deejay Burtch, who was the singlespeed favorite to win the race. When we took off, I just hung on his wheel until we hit the trail... a 4 mile gradual climb up a sandy fireroad. We traded spots for a little while, and then I took off, trying to get some time on him in the first few laps. Riding in wet sand up-hill on a singlespeed is not fun!!

I ended up getting a small gap on him that held for the first 4 16 mile laps. When I came through on my fifth lap, I noticed Deejay was standing in the transition tent drinking a beer... he gave up chase and just hung out for the rest of the day!!! At that point I had a pretty sizeable lead on the rest of the solo riders so I just kept going.

During the race I had a lot of experiences I will never forget! When it rains for a couple of days in the desert, a lot of things happen... I witnessed a flashflood in one of the washes in the trail. It was super loud and the water was moving very fast!! A little later, I tried to ride through another wash that was flowing, and was swept off my bike... crazy!!! I also saw a very nice rainbow... rode uphill through a flowing river, and saw many people with mechanicals. The funny thing is, one lap a wash would be waist deep, the next it would be almost dry!!

At the end of the race I ended up 1st overall Solo rider (on my singlespeed) and 4th or 5th place overall in the team categries... not a bad day in the rain! Most of the singlespeed field hung out after the race in the transition tent and told war stories from the race and shared some "recovery drinks" for the rest of the evening. What a great event!!!