MO State Champs

A little late to be posting about last weeks race. But, I get to it when I get to it. Went up early on Saturday to stay with my cuz. Tim cooked us up some amazing BBQ. Morning of the race brought some rain. By the time the Experts went out the rest of the fields had packed the trails in, but the downpour had still left the rocks a little slick. I started pretty much how I had hoped. Stay towards the back and out of peoples way and try to hang on. Unfortunately they left me behind a couple of spills on the opening descent. No biggie, go around and keep on trucking. Until it was me hitting the ground. First one wasn't bad, hit a rock sliding in a corner and burped an already low rear tire. Shot it back up and it held the rest of the race. (It had been slowly leaking all week prior) Battled back and forth with some SS'ers from time to time and was feeling ok until lap 2. Got a little sloppy and hopped over the handlebars and shoulder checked a tree. I only had a mild bruise. I'm sure that tree was feeling it all week though. This one sent the bike rolling a bit though and the chain wanted to hop the rest of the day. Maybe if I knew anything about bikes I could have made the adjustment on the go. My luck, I just would have damaged things further. Which, fast forward to today and I got some major chain suck that couldn't be pulled out. I didn't touch it I swear! Better put some time on the monocog and let the Superfly get repaired. Camp Alexander trails are looking good and will be race ready come July 19th (crampalexanderrace.blogspot.com). Yes, I will plug that in every post, so get used to it. This week is Bike Week for the kiddies at camp. So maybe they'll get it nice and ridden in. That, or we'll have daily trail maintenance and they can get to trimming on some corridor. Kids + Trail Implements = trip to the hospital and a likely lawsuit. Better just round up the crew and get it knocked out. 

DK

My, my. I knew there was a reason I chose to sit out this year's Dirty Kanza. No one was expecting the all time highs in both temp and winds for this event. I had decided instead to do some filming of the race. I could spend all day watching bike videos and I thought some of you would enjoy seeing your beautiful mugs on camera. I do have to admit though, I didn't quite get the footage I was hoping for and it was no easy easy task keeping the camera still on those roads. You were riding on them, you know what I mean. Who knows when it will be done, but be on the lookout in the coming weeks. 

As for the race, A lead group of strongmen including Mike Marchand, Troy Krause, Dan Hughes, Cornbread, and Joe Fox built an early lead and ensured the top 3 would no doubt be coming from this group. Local diesel Mike Wise dangled just a minute back from this group for far too long and had to battle the wind on his own. He did make contact however, but lost the group when he got his first of two flats. More punctures splintered up the lead group has eventually it was down to Dan, Cornbread, and Troy at the halfway point. Mike Marchand, a victim of multiple punctures, eventually fought his way back to the lead coming out of Alma. When I finally made contact with him again he was coming into the Emporia city limits and had seen his last gravel for the day. He couldn't have been happier. He crossed the line in first place in about 14 and a half hours. Troy Krause came across a mere 30 minutes later and Cory followed suit making it an all Nebraska podium. Joe Fox from KC made it in just after Cory for a solid fourth. Maybe next year a Kansan or two will crack the top 3, come on fella's! Huge congrats to all the finishers. Of the 85 that started only 15 finished! It was an epic day for the DK. 

And just a reminder, mtb race in Emporia on July 19th. All the info can be found at crampalexanderrace.blogspot.com.

cRamp Alexander

Hello peeps,

It's finally time to let the word out about the first ever cRamp Alexander MTB Race. After much deliberation we folks down here in Emporia have decided to put on a race at our very own Camp Alexander trails. I'll give you some info now, but in the future you will want to visit crampalexanderrace.blogspot.com (which is linked on the right hand side of my page) to get all your race info. First and foremost, block off July 19th on your calendar's. That is when the race is going down. That's also only a couple months away, so I would greatly appreciate it if everyone would help spread the word and put a link up to the race blog. Thanks! Not all details are finalized, but here is a taste of what you can expect:

Laps will be approximately 6-7 miles. 2/3 of which will be singletrack and a couple miles of gravel for added mileage. Experts will run 4 laps, Sport/SS 3, and Beginners 2. Fast lap times will be around 30 minutes. Experts can expect some cold hard cash if they crack the top 3. Sport and SS can expect sweet prizes along the lines of Ergon grips, CO2 pumps, and saddle bags to name a few. Top Beginner finishers won't be going home empty handed either. The plan is for gift certificates to the lovely High Gear Cyclery in Emporia. I know we all love those shiny medals, but seriously, mine are in a box in storage. We want to give things that can be used towards the betterment of your cycling life! Age brackets for all classes is simply 34 and under, and 35+. (Sorry, keepin' it simple!) Entry fees will be $20 for Beg/SS/Sport and $25 for experts. Here is the trail description given by High Gear:

These trails are located within riding distance of Emporia just 3 miles East on Old Hwy. 50 to Camp Alexander. This 4 mile trail is easy to moderate in skill level from twisty single track to open double track but will challenge even the most physically fit rider. --Throw in a couple miles of wide open gravel to test the legs and you won't be disappointed!

That seems to be all I can think of. If you have questions leave me a message, post a message to the race blog, or go to ridehighgear.com. Look forward to seeing you all July 19th!

Wilson Lake

I was glad a few of the Emporia crew made it out to Wilson Lake for the Fat Tire Festival. I was a little sad that I couldn't make it for the whole weekend of events, but Sunday was well worth the one day trip. Others turned out as well, some even from Colorado, and made this year's race a lot larger then last year. Mike and myself decided if we came all that way we might as well step up to the expert plate and get a few extra miles of riding in. Garret, Bobby, and Dusty all had a go at the well stacked sport class and first timers Slayton and Brett made their racing debut. A heck of trail to do your first race on!

On the start line Mike and I decided we might have bitten off a little more then we could chew with a strong looking expert field. After the race, my body reminded me how brutal Wilson lake is. Not to mention there was a considerable amount of new trail that added to an already tough trail. I was glad to have gotten the extra riding time though. Garret and Dusty had a strong showing in the sport class. Bobby was able to escape the day with no bike part casualties. That usually makes for a better day. Slayton did great and is hooked. It only takes one race. I'm sure full results and pics will soon be up at golden belt's website. Check it out.

Bone Bender

What to even say about this. Trails were proclaimed to be dry at 7am, so the decision was made to race. Unfortunately, the rain came at about 10 and didn't let off for a little over an hour. It was almost race time so there was no looking back now. Bobby and I were geared up for the duo. Bobby suffered an unfortunate mechanical and I decided to go out for a lap even though our chances didn't look good. Came away with a new jacket out of the deal...can't argue with that. Sounds like the boys down in Neosho got a little sloppy as well. Hopefully Wilson will offer us some DIRT to ride on. 

Ouachita

Bobby displaying the look of pain after finishing the Ouchita 60 mile race. Bobby, yet again feeling brakes were not needed, decided to demolish his front brake lever on a rock. 

Randy was all smiles after finishing. He almost didn't come and I am glad he changed his mind. He ended up riding down with Bobby and myself and it was a magnificent road trip. Although, I'm still uncertain of the services offered at the many tote and pokes we saw along the way. 

This was me pre riding on Saturday. I was singing a different tune come race day. As usual I feel I didn't prepare sufficiently for this race. But, it was the first one of the year and I'm ready for Bone Bender. My esteemed business partner Bobby and myself will be teaming up to tackle the 6hr duo. And we are hungry to avenge our poor performances at Ouachita. No matter what it will be good times! And don't forget, Pillar concert this Saturday in Emporia. You better be there!

Happening's

Thought I better inform the public of what is going down these days. Firstly, High Gear is bringing another amazing concert to town. This one is featuring Pillar, Fireflight, and Me in Motion. Find the link on the right to get all the details and where you can buy tickets. Or just call down at the bike shop. Round up your friends and plan on coming. 

In the riding world, I've been battling some motivational woes. I just haven't been wanting to get on the bike, which is not cool with Ouachita less then 2 weeks away. Bobby and I are in the process of stripping the Superfly down and giving it a good tune up. Maybe that will fire me up, it was a bit dirty and making some noises.  Life is a little muddy around here anyways, so won't be doing too much dirt riding this week. Also not looking forward to the predicted snow flurries this weekend. Hope there is sun in the forecast for Arkansas next weekend!