Is This A Logo??

Is This A Logo??

Sunday 22 February 2015

Frostbike 2015 - Race??? Review

It was a dark and stormy night.  Actually, it was a bright and frigid day!!


It was the morning of the Frostbike Winter MTB race.  And I was off to partake.

The normally 40 minute drive to Port Colborne took about an hour and a half.  The cold and snow left the roads in terrible condition.  So what did this mean for the trails???  (Yeah, that there is what you call foreshadowing...)

Finally arrived, and got registered.  It was great to see familiar racing colleagues that hain't been seen since the fall races.  However, everyone was so bundled up against the frigid temps that it was difficult to recognize people.

This...



is misconceptionz



Yeah....I preferred the balaclava too...

I think this ...



may  have been a pic I have been requested to remove




was Kyle....



I know this...





Is this guy...1st overall when the race was said and done...  Ah, let's just call him John...




This...



Was JeffS....who of course also ended up on the Podium....again...





egggman is always recognizable...







This might have been Blaze...


In a pic I have been requested to remove...I think because Blaze is not so photogenic...


Although Blaze spent most of the race doing this...seriously.


I'll explain more later...For now....let's get to the race...

For those of us who showed up for the race (registration is limited to 100 racers for this race...it sold out in 24 hours...but 37 did not show up due to volume of snow that fell in the days preceding, and the frigid temps)...we may have been a little too eager.  We gathered at the start line about half an hour ahead of time....just to sit and wait in the cold.  thedumbopinion, race director extraordinaire warned us but we are stubborn like that...(yes I speak for all).

A few pre-rode the course and were returning to tell the rest of us that the course was OK for fatbikes, but anyone else would have trouble.  Great...I doesn't haz fatbike...




There, a shot of a BicycleWorks rider on a fatbike wheel....not me...in case you forgot I doesn't haz fatbike....this is TheSchnepf...posing for the media  (seriously...article in the Flamborough Review).

Anyways it was time to start.  This race is run in waves of 4 - 6 riders...who seat themselves into waves at their own discretion.  I was in the third wave along with Seth, Louda, misconceptionz, and Blaze.  And we were off.  The first 100 meters or so was great!  Nice plowed road.  Then we were into the single track...very narrow singletrack;  and in my very limited skill set I was off track, stopped.  Blaze rode past me and made it about 5 meters before falling over and making his first snow angel of the day...remember I said I would explain later....so this is it.






Damn!  He does pretty good work, eh?

Occasionally we would try to get on our bikes and get going again, but for the most part it was not doable, at least for my limited skill set.  thedumbopinion and his crew had put 100s of hours into shoveling, blowing, and attempting to groom the trails over the previous days and nights...he even took a selfie to prove it...




but in the end conditions were just too harsh.

I'm not much of a bike runner...I got passed by several people who were running faster with their bikes than I was.  And Blaze kept throwing me distractions to slow me down...




Although he might have done better with this one...





So....I just kept running and running.  And when I started to get angry...I just remembered that this was better than golfing, or couch sitting....and there was beer, chili, and friends waiting at the finish.



And while conditions were not great, it was not bullshit...and I was occasionally able to actually ride my bike....even in my limited skillset.  Here is proof...



In fact I was riding by the feedstation on course....not wanting to stop for the rare occasion I was riding...but I heard the marshall say ' There's whiskey!'  Wait....what??  Of course, had to stop....and continued on a little (OK, much) happier.  In fact, I looped back around a couple of times....I don't think they noticed....   And by now, Blaze was almost out of site ahead of me.

These guys were at the next feedstation...


But now I was good...didn't need them...and continued on...eventually making it to the finish...

And yes beer and chili was available....and good friends and good laughs now that it was over.  JeffS took my pic to prove I could still laugh...


And the awards...the winners getting swag, and these nifty puck medals...



As I already mentioned, JeffS was on the podium taking first in his cat.  John was on the podium first overall.  VVagabond also on the podium...


So was CptSydor...but he is camera shy.  In fact the Rock & Road Cycle team really steamrolled the podium this year.  Congrats!!

However, the real congrats go to thedumbopinion, his crew of volunteers, marshalls, and ShortHillsCycleClub, for making the best of very tough conditions and making this race a very fun event...again.  And kudos to all the racers who braved the temperatures and showed up!!




So whats next??

Oh, there is alot!!

Stay posted!


Monday 9 February 2015

In Search of 189

So after the holiday season I was bouncing around (or way over) 200lbs...okay something like 212!  Yup...I was a flubberin!  Although Lois insisted I still looked good, I knew I was way too hefty!!






Felt kind of like this guy...







And so I have been working since the new year to get my weight down, and it's been going!  In fact last week saw me trying to break through the 190lb barrier.  Hence, I was in search of 189!  Wanted to see that middle digit '8'!!  But stalled out at 190...and wasn't dropping.






Here is one 99...





But that's not what I was looking for.  Been there, done that...a month ago.  (Yeah....you really have to be old to get this reference!!)

Anyways, towards the end of last week...189!!  Blinking up at me in red LED lights from the scale.  I would have taken a pic to prove it, but I don't really think you would want to see what might have been lurking in the margin....

And I am actually currently at 188...looking to be 185 by weeks end!

So how am I doing it?  Well, following a structured training plan...kind of like this guy...




Actually my plan has me on the bike at least 10 hours per week.  And by on the bike, I mean either riding in the snow, or riding indoors on the trainer (usually to a Sufferfest video).  We can't all be so fortunate as to go down south to train for 6 months...like this happy couple...




You know who you are.  Farfignewton!!  (Which has nothing to do with Fig.)

Anyways, I have also broken up the bike activity with occasional cross training activity like trail running, and snowshoeing.  Especially when weather and trail conditions are not conducive to riding....and one can only ride a trainer for so long.  I also use this time of year to do core and strength work at the Jim...




And I have also significantly cut my caloric intake.  Still maintaining a balanced diet with proper macro-nutrient ratios...just cut the totals down.  So my snacks look exactly like this...





My vegan friends say I should also throw in more fungi....but I just don't know...




Yikes!!  Let's move on shall we!??

I've been trying to cut down on the cat pics...but Fig insisted one last pic of his cat...





Anyways....getting well off topic again...
So, this last weekend got strong-armed into registering for the Frostbike race this coming weekend (so far forecasted to be a cold ass day!!!)
I don't have a fatbike...so I hope to just not embarrass my self too much.  If nothing else it will be fun, and a good training opportunity.

Of course, I will let you know how it goes.

Stay posted!