Upcoming races

I will be racing at the suburban rush this Saturday, in it's sixth edition, this adventure race combines running, mountain biking and some mystery events. On Sunday I will be taking part in the BMO Vancouver half marathon. Stay tuned for the results and post race commentary. Hope the east bunny was good to you all. Happy trail!

Carpe Diem

Race results, Xterra south central championship

I woke up to a nice day here in Waco, headed to transition and got marked up. The water temperature was much nicer this week and I would be in the last wave. I came out of the water unsure of my time, my watch had been knock and the time was stopped. Transition went fairly well and I was off on the single track. Had to fight my way through some slower riders but overall it went well. That said a few trees didn't want to move out of the way and they got the better of me, a few scrape later and I was in the transition and out to the run fairly quickly. The run was good but I never found my legs. I cross the line in 2:45 and that was good enough to claim first in the Clydesdale. The crowd was great and it was nice to be cheered on. I'm not too sure how I fared overall, but when I find out, I will let you know. Happy trails!

Carpe Diem

Single track, more single track!

I rode most of the course today, it was warm and it is mainly all single track. The race director has done a nice job, it reminds me a bit of some of the riding at home. Not a lot of places to pass though so that will make it interesting. Water is much warmer than Vegas this week and it is at a nice 21 degree! The only problem is that the swim will be in a river, which mean that I will have to fight the current for a portion of it. Stay tuned for a race report tomorrow. Happy trails!

Carpe Diem

The end of an era

It's with great sadness that I must announce that this weekend will be my last race as sponsored by Experience Cycling. My good friend and owner Chris Lane sold the store and a new compagny is taking over. I can't thank Chris enough for all his help and advice with my bikes. This one is for you buddy! What's going to happen with me? Stay tuned for the announcement of a new bike shop sponsor on Monday. I'm currently in Waco, TX where the weather is much nicer than back home. Mid 20's and dry, I can't complain. This is the second race in the Xterra championship serie, and again I'll be in the Clydesdale division. My race number is 136 , and I think the field is a bit smaller than Vegas. I'm off pre riding the course, as it appears to be all single track. Happy trails!

Carpe Diem

Xterra Vegas

I woke up to a nice sunny day but it was cold, really cold. I headed to transition, set my bike and my little area. I was freezing but in was hoping that the su. Would warms things up by the start of the race. I even went back to my car to warm up! I then headed out for a warmup run. I came back and put my wetsuit on and headed to the water. The start was a deep wat start with 3 different waves. First was the pro's, then men up to 39, the the rest including my division. The water was freezing, I could barely feel my face, hand and feet during my warmup swim. As the canon went off, our wave headed towards the bright yellow markers. The swim is 1.5 km and only one lap. I exited the water around the 30 min mark, not as well as I was hoping for but swimming as never been my strong suit. Transition went not too bad and I exited on my bike heading up the hill where I was cut off by a rider which cause me to fall, still clipped in. By then the weather was warmer and the sun was shining and I was trying to get my rhythm on the bike. I was following some riders in front of me which caused me to take a wrong turn and loose 5 min to get back on track. After my 2 laps I headed to transition where I headed on the run course. The bike course was 30 km and the run was 10 km. The course was hilly and at this point, I had not idea where my competition was so I forged on. I came across the finish line in 3:01. I had hoped for a sub 3 hours but I was still pleased with my time. I finished first in the clydsdale division. I'm not too sure where I finished in the overall standing but I will post it with my times tomorrow. Stay tuned as I will be heading to Texas next week for the south western Xterra championship. Happy trails!

Carpe Diem

First look at Xterra Las Vegas bike course

I got up today and book yet another race, off to Texas next weekend for the southwestern Xterra championship, but I digress. I went over to pick up my race packet this morning. I will be #146 for this race. It wasn't windy this morning and the sun was out although I was hoping for warmer temperature. The bike course opened early so I went back to my hotel, changed and headed on my trusty steed. The bike course was what a desert course is to be expected of: dry, fast, sandy, dusty and rocky. There are some harder sections but overall I think it will be a fast course. We were greeted by some rain this afternoon and I'm afraid the swim won't be very warm, even in a full wetsuit. Water temperature is around 16 degrees. I haven't ran the running section but it appears very similar to the bike with some hills. Race start at 8:30, which means I can sleep a bit and not get up before the sun is. I am dedicating this race to all the people I know that have, are affected or have lost someone to cancer. I don't know many people that have not been affected directly or indirectly by this ilness. To paraphrase famous cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong, LiveStrong!

Carpe Diem

Lake Las Vegas

I arrived at dinner time at my hotel, funny enough, this is the same place I stayed in 2003 for the Land Rover G4 challenge. After dinner I went and got some snacks, water and some things for breakfast. I came back to my room and built my bike up. I will be picking up my race packet in the morning then go ride the course to see what it looks like. It was very windy tonight and I hope that it won't be the same for the race. It's supposed to be in the 20's on Sunday, let's up so. I'll give you my impression on the cours tomorrow. Happy trails!

Carpe Diem

One week before the Xterra western championship

In a less than a week I will be back to Lake Las Vegas for the western Xterra championship. The last time I was there, it was for the G4 challenge Canadian selection, sponsored by Land Rover. Although I didn't go on the global race, Lake Las Vegas has been a good racing site for me so I hope some of that good vibe will rob off 8 years later. This race will be a 1.5 km lake swim, 30 km MTb and 10 km trail running. Desert wil be the feature and I expect a wetsuit swim. I will be competing in the clydsdale division. Clydsdale are for racers over 200 lbs for the male division. Although this division will not be at the world championship later this year in Maui, I decided to give it a go. I will still be able to compare my time with guys in my age group non the less. As usual the boys at experience have dialed up the mountain bike and they will be packing it for travel. As for my Kona lottery, well I made a mistake, April 15 is the day I will find out about it. Stay tuned as I will blog from Lake Las Vegas about the course, the field and the result. The race is April 10, 8:30 am pacific time. Happy trails!

Carpe Diem