Happy New Year !!

"A Double Dose"

As Robert De niro says in Little Fockers "A Double Dose". From the Vancouver Province their selection of the top 30 BC athletes. Ryder Hesjedal & "Fast Legs" Frankie's sister Lauren were ranked 6th & 7th respectively!

Vancouver Province

New Year's Resolutions for cyclists

OK it is that time of year, New Year's Resolutions, you know you've got them, let's hear them.

Here are a few thought starters

I will actually learn how to do a recovery ride
I will actually do some stretching this year
I will learn how to have a conversation that doesn't eventually turn to cycling (though I'm not sure why)
I will subscribe to Cycling.TV
I will follow races more races than just "Le Tour"
I will race more
I will thank volunteers
I will volunteer myself, or provide one
I will read any post that Slayer Dan puts up
I will actually practice bike handling skills
I will pin my numbers on so they don't flap in the wind and irritate other racers
I will give myself up for a team mate, and trust he/she will do the same for me
If Trev is my coach I will do what he says, not more, not less
I will make every effort to have more women racing
I will never, ever get on Godfrey's wheel, it's pointless, no draft!

http://www.localride.ca/wp/2010/12/29/resolutions-for-cyclists/

Bikes Are Outside Toys

Ride a trainer? Hate it? Hell yeah, it's stupid.

Boxing Day. Cadence Cafe. 10 AM.

Cross bikes, money, phone and nothing to get home early for.

Book Review: Bike Snob

Christmas is almost here, and some ST members might need to drop some hints to loved ones for some last-minute stocking stuffers. May I suggest a copy of Bike Snob: Systematically and Mercilessly Realigning the World of Cycling, as an ideal choice for under the tree. In this fine volume of satire and wit, the author Eben Weiss explains to cyclist and non-cyclists where cycling and cyclists have it all together and where we have wandered off the straight path. For example:

"bicycles do not have souls. I don't care if was hand-crafted beneath the wooden boards of a velodrome by a master craftsman who was standing knee-deep in a pool of chianti while Fausto Coppi himself was doing laps overhead. That bicycle does not have a soul. Riders have souls; bicycles have wheels, and pedals, and occasionally cool paint jobs." (p. 144)

But, the most useful section of the book might be the chapter titled "A Brief Guide to Etiquette for Non-Cyclists", especially the section headed "Don't Ask Us If We're Going to Ride in the Tour de France":

Organized charity rides are a good thing. They raise money for a cause and they provide an opportunity for cyclists who might not ordinarily ride in a large group or go particularly far to do so with support and guidance. However, the negative aspect of the charity ride is that non -cyclists see them and assume that they're races~even though actual bike races involve riders in tight formation traveling at very high speeds, and charity rides are composed of people in sweatpants and pinnies scattered all over the road and barely pushing 14 mph. A charity ride has about as much in common with a bicycle race as a game of kickball has with a major league baseball game. Still, when people see lots of people on bikes they think it's a race, and no amount of arguing, insisting, or photographic evidence will convince them otherwise.

And since anybody can take part in a charity ride, and since people think charity rides are races, naturally people also think that any cyclist can take part in the most famous bike ride in the world, the Tour de France.

The Tour de France is the most elite road race in the world, and only the top professional teams are invited to attend. And even if you're on a top professional team that's been selected to ride the Tour, your director still has to select you for the Tour squad. Nonetheless, there's not a cyclist alive who hasn't been asked by a non-cyclist if they're ever going to ride the Tour de France. I was once asked by a friend if I was going to ride the Tour de France, and when I laughed and replied "No," she scolded me for my bad attitude and told to think positively or else I'd never make it.

Nobody asks their friend who plays pickup basketball if he's going to be in the NBA All-Star game. But for some reason, people don't understand that professional bike racing is like every other professional sport in that it's highly competitive and the athletes are professionals. If the person you're talking to is not highly paid to race his bike full-time he's not going to be in the Tour de France. Instead, look for him at the local criterium peeling his face off the asphalt along with the rest of us. (p. 211-212)

I actually had a conversation almost exactly like that a few weeks ago over dinner with some friends...

Fun video of the race last Sat. ... Silver Springs XC

I had the front camera in the wrong resolution and it isn't wide angle, so the flat running looks a little high, but the rear view is totally cool to watch. The start is pretty neat!

As usual the RoadRunners continue to offer this great way to stay motivated throughout the long winter.

I am race directing the Nose Hill XC on Feb. 12th. Come out for a tough workout and all the food you can eat after all for $10. Or, simply volunteer and get all the food for free! Let me know if you want to help out with marshaling.

Silver Springs XC Dec 2010 from thedoctrine.ca on Vimeo.

Silver Springs X-Country

Speed Theory was represented at the Silver Spings X-Country race today. Trev, Marilyn & Shelley (and Brad from the Crankys!)were all out braving the cold, slippery and challenging conditions.

As usual Trev crushed it, winning the mens race, Marilyn was 2nd in the women's race and Shelley had a really solid run. The footing was quite treacherous with the combination of ice underneath new snow.

Line of the day "you've only got 400 metres to make up... in 400 metres" Trev encouraging Marliyn to try to close the gap on the 1st place women's runner.

Trev went for the double Hero Cam, front and back. Hopefully he will get a chance to post the videos, assuming the batteries didn't freeze up!

Full results should be posted in the next day or so on the Calgary Roadrunners site.

The next race in the "Grand Prix" series is on January 8th at Nose Creek. Great X-training option and a chance to scratch the competition itch in the winter!

Underground Riding Championships #3

What did you do on Saturday night? Something normal like a movie or dinner? Or maybe a night out of town? While you were relaxing, a group of slightly off kilter racers filled Trev's basement with gel, sweat and massive watts... You guessed it, another night of head-to-head computrainer racing was on!

The four heats consisted of groups of six pedaling as hard as they could over the 20.12km course, with an absolutely brutal hill at the end. The first heat and second heats were won by Chris Hooper and Jill Parnell in very convincing fashion. Mark and Wayde dueled to the very end of the third heat with Wayde winning by 3 seconds. After a 'slow' start Frank gradually pulled away and demolished the field in the big boys race.

If you're not feeling enough pain on your weekends, or you're just bored, this is definitely where you should consider spending some time.

URC #4 is tentatively scheduled for Jan 15th so keep an eye on the blog in the New Year as the spots will fill up fast! Be there or be slow in the spring!

Aryeh

"UFC will be a disappointment compared to the women's match!"

Well, I am still in the test phase of the Computrainer Race Series and the action is already starting to heat up! I am excited by the contagious atmosphere it is generating. On Sat. I have 3 heats of 6 racers at a time going toe-to-toe over a 20km course! Pretty fun. The cheering is for everyone and no one doesn't get a great workout.

The quote in the title just arrived in my Inbox and refers to our all women's heat which is super great to see.

I think I have all the bugs out and the Race Series is set to go in the New Year. This is one final test so I don't start up real racing and have issues. If you are curious to see the race action and/or want to stick around for UFC after, then fire me an email and I'll send you the info.

Trev

Club AGM, May Cycling Camp, 'Beginner/Non-Racer' Spin Class up. (UPDATED WITH DATE)

Three things guys,

1.) I hope to hold the AGM on Jan 13th once everything has settled down after Christmas. Please have some ideas and suggestions on how we can evolve. I will post a rough agenda soon and if you would like something on it let me know. Right now, roughly, it will be: 2010 wrap up, solid weekly ride from one location at same time every week (where?), Prairie-Roubaix and JayLap Memorial, rider development, rider recruitment, 2011 vision.

Please sign up for the club soon as it gives us an idea of returning riders and those going pro (Lachlan). Those are the only two choices :)

2.) Ryan and I are starting to formulate May's Team Cycling Camp. I am excited since this has been evolving every year. I have had a great time with the team the last two years and look forward to this. We are thinking May 15 - 21st ISH time frame. TENTATIVE. Campers are welcome to stay for the long weekend and many do, however the hotel I hope to book at doesn't have all the rooms available at that time, so you will have to individually book after the 21st. However, we would like to get an idea of who is interested this year. Please comment if you are interested as I am looking into booking a bank of rooms for the club this year, since I think it would be WAY more fun if we are all located close to each other and hanging out during the small amount of time we are not on the bikes.

I am hoping to host a 'Doctrine' training camp the week prior to our team training camp. May 8 - 13th ISH. TENTATIVE. This will be a fully coached and supported camp that will include evening seminars and be directed at athletes that want to learn the sport in greater detail and how to train and race more effectively.

I will be attending the Team Cycling Camp as a participant who wants to ride his bike LOTS. Not as a coach.

3.) I have opened up registration for the Spin Class I am designing that will be directed toward people who may be fairly new to cycling or have signed up for a charity ride in the summer like the Ride to Conquer Cancer, MS Bike Tour or a Granfondo. If you know of anyone that fits this criteria, then please direct them to this link. The plan is to help people make the decision to actually register for one of these charity rides, and make the prep much less stressful by providing all the info and fitness that will ensure success.

Thanks guys, ensure to leave a comment on the AGM or the cycling camps.

Trev

Pictures are in and ready to pick up.

If you ordered a picture from Mark Kay, they are in and now at Speed Theory. Just ask at the front and then look through the pile. There are some great shots !

Trev

Up, up and away!

I'm super stoked to finally be able to share that I have been picked up by Team H&R BLOCK for the 2011 race year!! It's so exciting to be moving up to race at this new level, with a bunch of crazy-strong dudes. A bitter-sweet part of the deal is that I will be racing out of Montreal: awesome racing, but I'm moving away from a lot of friends.

It has been a totally amazing experience to race with Speed Theory here in Calgary. From my first bike race ever, the Crankmasters' Moment Of Truth, when I met Trev and decided to join the team, to now, has been an awesome experience, and I want to thank every one of you with whom I raced, trained, got pumped up with, and hung out with...all that has been a huge part of why it's been so fun.

So many memories from the last three seasons of racing. A few standouts:
- Definitely seeing the ST crew for the first time at that Crankmasters TT, all cheering each other on, and thinking, I want to be part of that!
- Meeting Stephen on a cool-down ride after my second race. I was nervously riding in a double-paceline and he said "Buddy, you have to get used to riding close in a group" and he put his arm around my shoulders. I freaked out! haha He and I got in a three-man breakaway in the next race.
- Learning new pain thresholds at many Tuesday night crits and cross with German, Bayly, Carson, and lots of others
- C4 Wednesday night series races with Trev, Stephen and Alex (OMG, I'm in a break with cat 2 racers!)
- Lots of KOM battles with Wooley and Welchie, and the associated trash talk
- 300km randonneuring ride/race with Stephen and Trev in Tucson, and bonking with 100km to go
- Training camps in Victoria and Penticton (IMC course followed by Apex! Mt Baldy! Wheelers ride!)
- Epic rides with Stappie, Keith and other hard men...always involving at least 6 hours in the saddle and lots of gravel
- Banff bike fest - living and racing like a pro for 4 days, every year
- Nationals! with Trev, Godfrey, et al

And so many others.

Of course a big thanks to the Speed Theory gents, Jared and Paul, for both the direct support, and indirectly by providing the foundation for the team.

Far out - can't believe I'm trading the desk for the saddle next year! A solid winter of training, then off to Montreal late winter some time. Hopefully I'll learn French before I starve to death - although regardless, without my fat IT paycheck, I foresee lots of canned beans in my future... Lots of time to see you all before I leave, but after that, hopefully I'll catch up with a bunch of you at Nationals, or any time you're out east. And I'll be sure to get in touch when I am back in town down the road.

Pedal hard, and keep the rubber side down.

Ironman Canada Ripoff

Hey guys,

Today I got the following email from Ironman Canada (I'm sure many of you got, or will get it as well).

2011 Subaru Ironman Canada HST ADJUSTMENT Dear Subaru Ironman Canada Entrant, As many of you may be aware, effective July 1, 2010 British Columbia moved to a harmonized provincial and federal sales tax at a combined rate of 12%. This has been a controversial and confusing tax change but it is the law and therefore must be collected on all sale of goods and services. Unfortunately when your entry to the 2011 Subaru Ironman Canada was processed through Active, HST was not collected on the entry fee. This has recently been brought to our attention and we are obligated to collect that tax. To that end, the credit card that you used to enter the race will be charged $69, the amount of the HST on the entry fee. We will begin processing the charges on Monday, November 29th and these will be complete by December 10th. Should you wish to have this charge applied to a different credit card or if the one you used to enter has expired, please contact our athlete services center atadmin@nasports.com or 877-377-2373. We apologize for this error and any inconvenience it may cause. Ironman Canada Triathlon

My initial reaction to this was, WTF?!?!

These guys screw up and then 3 months later inform their customers that they will be charging their credit cards for the screw up? Imagine if Walmart made the same mistake. Does anyone believe that they would be hunting down their customers and telling them, "oops we screwed up, but since we have your credit card info we're going to fix it by charging your card"? All of this is beside the fact that they've already charged GST. We paid $603.75 entry fee. That includes $575 which included GST for the actual entry fee plus a $28.75 convenience fee (don't get me started on that boondoggle). HST is a tax that combines the GST and PST. By any rights, they should only be charging PST which works out to something like $38.50ish.

I've already sent them an email complaining about this and demanding explanations on both how they justify this from a "good business" perspective, as well as how their crack team of accountants came up with the $69 figure.

I encourage everyone who gets the above email from them, or anyone else who's interested, to reply with a complaint and let them know that this terrible business decision of theirs is losing them their customers.

Rant over,

Simon.

2011 Team Membership is up!

Guys, I have opened up Team Membership for 2011. Remember that your current membership ends as of Dec. 31st 2010, and with that any ABA insurance. By registering before the new year, you ensure there are no hiccups in coverage. Also, it gives us a good indication of our team numbers for next year. We will try to get in a clothing order very early this year, as Thomas has a much more efficient way of doing it up his sleeve. I am looking forward to this!

This year we are making sure to return to our roots and focus on grass roots rider development and TEAM development. I hope to host several clinics on training/racing safety and etiquette. I would like to see the women's team evolve into a cohesive unit that can draw on each other for support and motivation. I also plan on introducing a weekly ride similar to the 'Wheelers Ride' in Victoria, that starts every week at the same place, follows the same route, and has a dedicated warm up section, fun section, then spin-it-home section. This ride would be open to all those with ABA licenses and we can use this as a launching pad for experienced racers to help up-and-comers (regardless of team). I learned to ride and race by showing up for the Wheeler's Ride in Victoria every weekend until a year later I completed it with the group !! It was a great resource and was constructive for all those involved, from experienced racer right down to novice. I would like the team to contribute to a resource like that in Calgary.

We are successful because of our unique team atmosphere, I want to continue to foster that while we adapt with the growing numbers. I am confident this can be accomplished with the amazing people we already have in our club.

We are currently applying to host the Prairie-Roubaix and the JayLap Memorial. These will be our only big races. The PR will not be sanctioned and I hope will have the same 'Pure Race' feel as last year. We will contribute to the Wednesday night race series as I see these as another super resource for all levels of cyclist.

The link to sign up for your 2011 membership is here. You do not need to be a current team member or have to get a hold of me to sign up. But you DO need to be motivated to get on your bike!

Thanks, Trev

Spin a Thon this Sat. for Janelle Morrison

There was going to be a Spin-a-Thon this Sat to help support two local athletes with their pro careers, however, one of them, Janelle Morrison, who was driving to Calgary for this event from Penticton was involved in a serious car accident. The Spin-a-Thon is now an event to help her in her recovery. Details here. Press release here.

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Spin for Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer participants, Sun Nov. 28th.

Hey guys, I would like to help out the cyclists (and non-cyclists) who are registering for the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer. I realize a lot of them are 'in the dark' as to what to do to start preparing for the ride. I hope to be putting together some articles to make the whole process much easier for them, take the stress out of it, and show them how to enjoy themselves while preparing and participating in such a great event.

The first thing I would like to do is host a spin class that I will video that will go over some of the basics but provide a solid workout at the same time.

I was hoping I could get a small group from the team together this Sunday night and we could do a solid spin session (thus benefiting you!) and I could film it. The plan will be that it will then be available on Enbridge's site (if they like the idea) for people who have registered for the Ride.

So THIS Sunday, Nov. 28th at 6pm - 7:20pm.... who's in?

Thanks,

Trev

Morning Spin Class spots starting in Jan. (UPDATE: Sold out)

I have 3 spots open for spin starting up in Jan. for the Tues/Thurs morning class. This class has proven to be very popular and is a great group of people. We start up right at 6am since most spinners need to be at work as soon as the session is over. It has been working out very well.

Visit here to have a look at the spin philosophy and time available and then email me if you are interested. I usually post it here for people reading this website first, and then will make it more public in about a week if the spots aren't taken.

UPDATE: THESE HAVE SOLD OUT, however I have made another class available on Mon and Wed mornings, please see my website.

Trev

Eworthy XC run

Here is a fun video of the race on Sat. The skyline is fantastic and the terrain is brutal, great for filming! Two different tactics in the video. Fun to watch the difference.

Video here.

Results here.

Trev

Congrats to Fast Legs !!

Frank just laid down a 1:13:49 half marathon in California today !! WOW !!

Congratulations dude, that was a consistent summer of great racing and it culminated in a super awesome time!

Race results here. Looks like Frank was the first non-seeded runner!

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Cyclocross National Championships Weekend – Toronto, ON

This past weekend around 18 Albertans flew to Toronto for back to back cyclocross races Saturday and Sunday. Saturday was the main event, Canadian National Championships. Alberta had a great showing, and had at least one racer in every single category. Not only that, but we also had at least one or two racers in the top 10 in every single category. Way to go Alberta!

Races started early on Saturday morning, with the Master Women and Master C men starting at 9am. It was cool, dark and frosty which did nothing for motivation just to do the warm up! But it was the day we had all been waiting for, so it was time to find some. By the time the race started, the ground became soupy, adding some technical factors into the race course, which makes it my kind of course! Most people had watched the You Tube video of the course, and most were disappointed with what we thought would be handed to us on race day. Much to our surprise, it was nothing like the video and ended up being better than expected. It was still not nearly as fun as the courses we are used to, but I think this goes to show why Alberta did so well out there. Ours are definitely tougher. There was one section in particular that had a ton of twists and turns that went up or down the slope. When looking at it from a distance, you could see that ZM Cycle & Fitness (the race organizers) had incorporated their logo into the course, and it was the shape of the Z and the M. They only used blue tape in this section and yellow on the rest of the course, so it was quite clear that this was what they did! People struggled in this section with all the steep ups and downs with twists and turns, which made it my favorite part of the course. There were also a couple steep hills that people either had to run or ride, depending on the time of day and if it was greasy or tacky. My race was shorter than the normal 40 minutes, and was 35 minutes which meant going even harder than normal. It was a large field of around 17 women at the start line, and not knowing who you were lining up with made it even more exciting, which made it even more important not to miss your call up. I am so glad I didn’t miss mine, as the start was fast, uphill and fairly narrow. My goal for Nationals was a Top 5 finish, and I achieved that goal with 4th place. Keith B and Charles B were in the next group at 10am and they had strong races as well in a large field of 55 racers at the start line! We were then able to enjoy the rest of the day in the sunshine watching the rest of the races, and cheering for Alberta.

Sunday was a regular Ontario race, same venue and course, called Nationals Revenge. The energy was pretty low, as everyone was coming off of a Nationals high from the day before. Alberta still managed to get revenge and saw many back in the top 10 and on the podium. The women had a smaller field of 7 racers, and I got my podium finish of 2nd place, and a really cool Silver medal. I also got my choice of a prize…a bike pump or a light fixture (??????) It was almost like they realized last minute they didn’t have enough prizes and stopped at Home Depot on their way to the race that morning. Results can be found here

Great finish to the cyclocross season! I have no actual race pictures yet, still waiting for the photographer to upload them to his website. However, we all know what it looks like for Speed Theory racers to suffer, so how about what it looks like for us to have fun after a hard season of racing!

Sunday Cyclcross Race Report from Keith Bayly

Bike Fit at Speed Theory by Speed Matrix. (UPDATE: postponed)

I figured I better educate myself on different bike fitting techniques a little more rigorously and figured the best way to start was go through one of the processes myself. SpeedMatrix follows the Retul guidelines and procedures. I will be going there at 3pm and getting an official fit on my TT bike. If anyone wants to drop by and watch or ask questions, this would be a great time. I will be there until the start of spin at 6pm.

UPDATE: I got sick last night and can't even think about doing this right now. I will post when the fitting is on again.

Trev

Cool Cyclo Cross Video

Cross Crusade #6 Astoria - Chapter 2 from Burk Webb on Vimeo.

XTERRA Canada MTB Race at COP Saturday

From the organizer: XTERRA Canada would like to invite all readers to compete in possibly the last mountain bike event of the Year. On November 13th, COP will host a race in the Eastern Lands. Cost is 25.00 and includes food after the event. Sign up is 9am at COP! The race course will likely be the classic trails but may depends on what is dry on race weekend. The course will be 15-18km in length and likely 2-3 laps. All abilities welcome. Spread the word… Link here

Cyclocross Nationals results

Just got word that Shawna raced to an amazing 4th place at the National Cyclocross Championships in the masters women division!! Way to go, Shawna!!

Podium results from Pedal magazine here

Halloween Cross

Darryl did a great job at reporting Saturday’s race, and most of Sunday’s race, so I’ll report the remainder of the day.

I have to say this was by far the best race of the season, just because of the energy and fun that was buzzing at Shaganappi Park on Halloween Day. Terrascape Racing did a fantastic job at organizing another fun race, which seems to be getting bigger each year. It was so cool to see so many costumes out, the women’s field in particular. I think it’s safe to say that if you weren’t dressed up, you felt out of place. Which is funny since I worried I would feel out of my place by dressing up. Lucky for me I didn’t worry too much, as my Strawberry Shortcake costume got me best dressed in the Women’s category, and a $25 gift card to a local shop. With 21 women at the start line, it was the largest number of women I have seen yet a cross race. Thankfully, my points in the series earned me my first ‘call up’ on both days so I didn’t have to work my way through the large field of women on either day. Marcy was dressed up as a zombie, as was Thomas. Jennifer R was Wonder Woman, and Tanya H was a Cross racer in a skin suit. Tanya earned the special 11th place jersey which had special meaning to Jeff Neilsen of Terrascape, and saw that the 11th place finishers in each category received their jersey.

Of special note, Katy Curtis schooled the boys again in Expert with a 2nd place finish, and this time showing them that a skinsuit doesn’t always make you faster, but perhaps a Tim Horton’s uniform does. Pepper Harlton held them off as well with a 4th place finish. Also in the Expert category, there was a little tomfoolery with CP Walsh and Tim Brezsnyak putting on a performance for the spectators who were enjoying beer and chili on the sidelines. In the Elite field there were a few people dressed up as well, showing everyone that even the fast guys have a less serious side to them. We had an Elf, a non-breathable 3-piece suit, and the best costume of the day, was a robot made out of a cardboard box and miscellaneous items found at Home Depot. The fact he even raced in it earned him props, and not only did he get best costume, he also got the Big Air prize in that category.

Great way to wrap up the season of ABA races, and the last ABA race is the River Bend Cross Madness in Red Deer put on by CABC. Tech guide is found here: http://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/uploads/files/Red%20Deer%20Cross%20-%20Tech%20Guide%20-%202010.pdf

Awesome photos courtesy of Bill Quinney can be found here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bquinney/sets/72157625159133389/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bquinney/sets/72157625283387718/

This weekend Keith Bayly, Charles Bougie and I are Toronto bound for Cyclocross Nationals competing in the Masters categories on Saturday as well as Sunday’s UCI race. Stay tuned for a Nationals race report!

Cross Over

The 2010 Cyclocross season in Calgary is over. It was the second season I involved myself in this particular kind of fall foolishness and finishing off with the Brian Kullman Memorial and Beans ‘n Barley races this past weekend was, like, gnarly.

The lovely and talented Pam (tlatP) came and marshalled a corner for me Saturday morning while I raced Sport. Keith’s Montgomery Jr High course packs a tonne of tough into a very confined space. There are very few flowy parts, lots of tight, technical turns, sidehills transitioning into 120° uphill corners, the requisite barriers, a 3 kilometre long set of concrete stairs and The Hill. The Hill rises about 4 metres at an angle just under vertical. There is about 60 metres of flat in front of it to build momentum. I don’t think anyone rode it successfully until the Elite race, where about ¾ of the field made it up consistently. That’s just unfair. The Sport group got to race it all with a patchy layer of frost on the ground, just to add to the challenge. Memorable bits were when I nearly bunny-hopped the dude lying clipped in in the middle of the tight uphill corner on lap umpteen, Thomas upgrading to Expert with his strong race and Darcy body slamming in the flat near the pits. (I didn’t witness Darcy’s styin’ move, but I hear it was epic.)

I got to take over tlatP’s corner for the subsequent races and learned lots by observation. Katy Curtis (3^rd) and Pepper Harlton (4^th) did serious damage to many egos in the Expert race. Shawna (6^th), Jenn (9^th) and Marcy (14^th) flew the Speed Theory colours proudly in a sizeable women’s field. At least one of the women produced an expert and graceful snot rocket just after climbing The Hill. Were I not a happily married fella I would have lost my heart to her for that single demonstration of biking prowess. I later learned that I never want to race in a field that includes Shawn Bunnin. After the first lap, he rode away from a big number of strong Elite dudes and just kept adding to the gap throughout the race. Keith manfully held him off from lapping him at the end. His reward was another lap.

Saturday was such fun that Sunday could have easily been a letdown. It wasn’t though. Terrascape put on a great race in a cool little park in Shaganappi. This course was more of a power course with lots of wiggly/flowy straightish sections, the Big Air bump and most notably, the Knobby Gobbler. The Knobby Gobbler is a segment with a steep runup through pocket gopher bumps followed by an immediate remount and descent into a short section of singletrack uphill with a fine layering of pea gravel. I think this is where I did most of the crotch damage. On the upside, my style points for remount at the hill top increased with every lap. I lost about 10 placings on the first lap by overcooking a 180° corner and getting caught up in the barriers. Over the next 5 laps I managed to claw back about 5 placings before strategically overtaking my last competitor on the low side of a climb into the volleyball court. That felt good. Sadly I didn’t finish 11^th (special prize placing), but Harley did, so that’s cool, and I did finish ahead of one of my team mates so I have minor bragging rights.

I got to see the start of the Women’s race before having to head off to a hockey game (I hope someone enjoyed my beer and chilli). It was a spectacle. 21 women started, with about 18 of them in costume. Linda Green’s horse was neighing and bucking throughout the starter’s instructions and she wasn’t even shushed. I left during the second lap without observing any of the enticing behaviour I’d witnessed the day prior, more’s the pity. Can anyone report on the remainder of Sunday’s racing?

Cyclocross Racing from Back In the Day

I hear Keith is already looking at adding a crossing of the Bow River for the Tuesday Nighters next year.

Another great one for the books. (UPDATE: with results)

Thanks to all the volunteers for making such a great event. Keith constructed an amazing course as usual and we had a great turn out for some solid racing.

Performances of note:

Shawn Bunnin destroying the field in Elite ... wow.

Katy Curtis getting 3rd in Expert Men.

A 38 racer Sport pack !

Here are the results to the race.

Trev

It's going to be awesome! Big turn out!

Here are our numbers for tomorrow.

Sport Men: 38

Expert Men (and Katy and Pepper): 23

Elite Men: 22

Women: 16

Pretty awesome! Make sure to come out and watch!

Trev

To our CX Volunteers.

First of all thank you very much for volunteering. We really appreciate the time.

If you have volunteered for or want to volunteer to help with course prep, please make your way to Montgomery school on Friday evening at 5pm and/or 8:30am on Saturday.

If you are going to be a course marshal, please be at the school by 10am Saturday and come to the registration desk and they will direct you where to go.

Thanks again,

Trev

Oct. 30th Cyclo-Cross race and Praire-Roubaix 2011

Brian Kullman Memorial CX race in a couple days !!

If you haven't registered for the CX race, sign up ! The weather looks like it is going to be perfect, Keith is designing the course, and it is the second last CX race in Calgary for 2010.

Registration is to the right of this post and the tech guide is there as well. Ensure to get there early to cheer on fellow racers and ensure you're not stressing out the volunteer signing people on. I can't wait to watch the action !

Prairie-Roubaix 2011.

Ask most racers in Alberta and a lot would say the PR2010 was one of their favourite races. The course was great, the atmosphere was contagious, and the racing was totally awesome. We hope to replicate this again in 2011.

I am in the process of doing everything correctly with RockyView asking them well in advance for permission to run this awesome race again. I think a big selling point would be if we could stage the riders and have volunteers parked on LaFarge's road (they were closed on the Sunday we held the race) on race day. The complaint we received was from a resident on Glendale Crescent. So it would be good to say we will have no activity what-so-ever on that small stretch of gravel road.

I am looking for someone to contact LaFarge and ask them if we could use their access road and maybe their parking area on Sunday April 17th. We have full insurance and they would be named on the certificate. We also wouldn't mind paying for an employee to be on site that day to ensure their interests.

A best case scenario would be if they got behind the idea of an awesome race and sponsored us somehow (maybe supplying the EMS or something) but for now let's target actually just getting permission to be on their property for a few hours.

Does anyone have any connection with this company? Or does anyone mind finding the right person to talk to and explaining our situation? The site were are concerned with is here.

Bag Left At Gold Bar Park

Howdy everyone,

Shawna did a great job summarizing the weekend's 'cross in Edmonton. I have to say I don't have much to contribute to the write-up: I was at the tail end of the sport races both days. However, I have a problem: I accidentally left my race gear backpack at Gold Bar Park. The fine folks at PRW found it, so it's accounted for in Edmonton, but I'm here in Calgary. So:

1. Are any ST folks heading to Edmonton this week? If so, could you pick it up for me?

2. Do any ST folks have friends or family coming to Calgary by the weekend, and would they be willing to act as a courier?

3. Are there any non-ST racers from Edmonton reading this blog (since the entire ABA seems to read our blog) coming down for the the Brian Kullman and Beans 'n' Barley races that could bring it with them?

If possible, I'd like to get it back for the weekend, as my race numbers (along with other needed bike stuff) are in the bag. If you're able to help out, please contact me at dgullacher[at]hotmail.com and we'll work on the logistics with Pedalhead Road Works.

Darcy Gullacher

Provincial Cyclocross Championships

This weekend Speed Theory racers flocked north for the last set of Cross races Edmonton will host for the 2010 season. Saturday was Provincials in Devon, put on by United Cycle. The course was definitely a power course, with lots of tight corners, one sand pit with a playground in the middle of it, and one climb with a super fun descent. Also included was the infamous Agitator which has riders racing into a spiral formation and then out again. When another racer was heading in or out, you couldn’t tell which direction they were going and it felt like you were going to run into them. This was definitely my favorite part of the course. At the end of the day, we had two podium finishes presented with Alberta Provincial Championship medals. Keith Bayly got 3rd in the Master B Men, and I got 3rd in the Master Women category. After the medal presentation there were some amazing draw prizes, and Darcy G scored himself a sweet New Balance watch, making the trip worthwhile.

Sunday morning we were greeted with typical Cross weather with a rain/snow mix. Pedalhead Road Works hosted the race at Goldbar Park in Edmonton – home to an excellent cross country ski trail system. By the time the course was open for preride, the precipitation was out of the air, leaving the course wet and a little mucky. This was an awesome course, with lots of flow. There was loads of climbing/descending in a section that was suited for mountain bikes – definitely my favorite part of the course. Two sand pits, and lots of fast corners. In the Women’s race, I had my first experience with staying on a wheel and using tactics, making it a really fun race. The only other Speed Theory racers besides me were Darcy G and Chris Hooper. Darcy and I both managed to take advantage of the only spot on the course that wasn’t taped in our races, and kept going straight, instead of turning left. After I went through, they realized it should be taped so I didn’t have to make that mistake twice, as I’m pretty sure I would have.

Despite the chilly temperatures, it was an awesome weekend of racing. This weekend is the last of the Calgary races, which are sure to be highly attended. Saturday is our very own Speed Theory race (Tech guide is found over to the right), and Sunday is the Beans N’ Barley Halloween race, hosted by Terrascape Racing – costumes are highly encouraged!!

http://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/uploads/files/Beans%20and%20Barley%20Technical%20Guide.pdf

Can you give a hand on Oct. 30th?

Nice, we have our first aiders secured. Thanks Rick and Tanya.

We are looking for some course setup helpers, course marshals, and ABA helpers for this race as well, so if you are coming to the race to spectate or cheer on a friend or spouse, maybe get a hold of me and we can plunk you on a corner?

So far we have

Marshals

Brad

Lockie

Darryl and co.

Rob W. (after his race)

Bob W.

Simon F.

Course set up

Shawna

Thomas

Sandra

Marcy

Course take down/clean up

Trev

Marilyn

Rob W.

Midweek Mayhem Tuesday Night Crosstasticness

It Is now over for another year, and I’ve shed my small tear of sorrow.

For those of you unaware of this series, it’s a weekly (weather-dependent) gathering of fools and friends that runs from early-September to mid-October. It’s facilitated by Keith Bayly, who organizes it all and sets interesting, unpleasant and challenging courses in parks scattered around Calgary. It has introduced me and many others to the mondo-funness of Cyclocross racing and has allowed me to dial down the suck slightly this year. The courses make good use of the topography and infrastructural features of the parks in play and are designed to award power-mad riders or exceptional bike-handlers, depending. Citizenship in the Republic of Anaerobia is assumed.

Two groups go every night, sandbaggers (B’s) at about 6:00, and masochists (A’s) at about 6:30. If you win the sandbaggers race, you have to go to the masochist’s race in following weeks. If you ride the masochist’s race you’ll typically have the pleasure of getting totally chicked by Katy Curtis.

The vibe is remarkably mellow. Most of us (sandbaggers anyway) are aware of our limitations and try to stay within them. People crash. Other people stop to offer assistance or mockery. Crotches are damaged in high-speed mounts. FUN! My average speed in these races is typically about 17 km/hr. It’s astonishing how hard it can be to ride that slowly.

Last night’s race was an unusual format, but awesome (well, not awesome literally, but awesome in a kind of Awesome Chile kind of way). Keith set out an oval about 70 metres long. We rode circles as a devil-take-the-hindmost race. The last 3 riders were pulled every 3 laps until 5 were left. Matt Joss rode off the front for the entire race and stayed away to earn his upgrade to Masochist. I managed to hang with the top 5 and got to follow wheels with Matt up ahead. I still couldn’t jump past my group in the finale, but managed to generate a fine rattling cough after I was done. I have no idea what happened behind me with Jennifer, Darcy, Shawna (and others?), but I assume that they were kicking ass until the mechanicals. Thomas, Charles, Rick and Ian contested the Masochist’s race where Thomas hung in almost right to the bitter end. The gap got him.

After the A race, Keith invited everyone left to one more go in the reverse direction, pulling one rider every lap. I didn’t hang around quite so long there, but I think I got pulled after Matt, so ha! A grand night.

Keith deserves buckets of praise (and beer) for the immense efforts he put into making this series happen. I doff my chapeau to you sir.

If you’re interested in checking out this crazy scene, I heartily recommend you attend the Speed Theory produced Brian Kullman Memorial race on October 30^th. Even better, let Keith know how much you want to help pound stakes and marshall the course. There’s no better way to figure out how the whole thing works.

Darryl Parry

Weekend Mayhem CX

Sunday Oct 17th was the Remington Development’s Cross for Kids CX race put on by our friends of Midweek Mayhem. To all you folks who were first time CX racers, this is what you can expect of a Keith Bayly course - lots of tight cornering, sketchy descents, forced dismounts, bits of sand, and technical climbs. Do not expect anything less. In my opinion, COP is definitely the best venue we have for CX racing with so many different things to do with a course. I also believe, the night before the race when temperatures were dipping to zero, Keith must have went to the section after the barriers and poured a bunch of water there to create a nice little ice patch that would force riders to think about which line to take, or be prepared to be forced ‘off’ your bike…something he strives for in any course design. It was placed perfectly in a spot that didn’t see sun for the entire day, affected almost every racer and became the viewing spot of choice for many spectators.

Huge props already went out to Thomas for his exciting sprint finish which gave him a 3rd place victory. I’m glad I got to see the start of the Sport race, because it definitely had the largest field of 50 guys. Thomas made the best move by being in the front, and staying in the front, the entire time. He even helped drag around the racer who got 2nd. Awesome job to all the Speed Theory racers!

In the Women’s field, numbers were down slightly from previous races, which would definitely have something to do with the lack of Edmonton racers as a result of the Saturday race being cancelled. The start of the race was fast, and became furious in a hurry, when there was a slight pile up at the icy off camber section that took many down throughout the day. Despite several warnings from many about which line to take, I realized too quickly that I took the wrong line when I went down, and had another racer crash into me. 2 racers, 2 bikes all tangled up, causing everyone else to put a foot down and try to get around us. I was last to get up, only to see my shifter twisted sideways, and my bike unable to roll with a messed up derailleur and chain stuck somewhere in the drivetrain. Bike over my shoulder, I started making my way in reverse of the course direction to go DNF. Andrew T with Bicisport was standing by the barriers, and he offered his help, even though my decision to DNF was already made. After messing around with it for what seemed like several minutes, despite my DNF requests, he had me back out there. Thanks again Andrew! I now had to redo the barriers, and the section that got me in this mess. At this point, I was certain I would get lapped, but somehow, I dug deep and started catching people. It caused some excitement amongst the spectators, and I had someone tell me after the race I was like Ms Pac Man out on the course. While I felt disheartened about how things unfolded, I am so glad I got to experience what it’s like to be that far behind, and see what I was capable of. Of all the races we have done so far, this was by far my favorite course.

This weekend Provincials are in Devon on Saturday, and PRW Super Prestige is at Gold Bar Park in Edmonton on Sunday. Tech Guides are available here:

Devon Provincials Tech guide

PRW Super Prestige Tech Guide

Weekend non-CX racing... hopefully to be followed by the Cross reports.

On Sat. several SpeedTheory Cyclists headed out to Banff for the Ekiden relay. This is a unique event set at the Banff Conference Center and one that I always try to attend. It is a marathon split into 5 unequal legs all starting and finishing at the center (yes, at the top of that brutal hill). Our SpeedTheory team consisted of Jeff Krar, Ken Myers, Marilyn, Trev, and Fast Legs Frank. We were completely discounted by the elite Strides and Bow Valley Harriers (BVH) teams, however, after one of them actually told us so, the fire was lit in our bellies and we all had solid legs. Jeff is on fire these days and laid down an insane first leg (7.0km) and came into the hand off area first. This set the stage for the 4 remaining runners (me included) to leave everything on the race course to preserve the lead! The nervousness set in as Ken went out for the second leg (the longest of them all at 13.8km). Ken is a pure runner with pure talent and enviable palmares. I used to race Ken in the XC winter race series and it was always awesome watching his leg turn-over as he widened the gap between him and me with relative ease. The only reason I know what his face looks like is because of the chili lunch after the events. We knew Ken would be coming into the hand off with the lead maintained. Next it was up to Marilyn to do battle with the Strides and BVH male runners (both these teams were all guys). She rose to the occasion and didn't let their runners overtake her on the 4.3km leg. However, the Strides' team was now only 20seconds back! Next it was my turn. My leg (5.4km) started (just like leg 1 and 2) with the drop down surprise corner as the first kilometer! I spun my legs as fast as I could and eventually arrived at the bike path along the river where I ran out of pure fear of hearing the breathing of another runner. Luckily I made it to the hand off area with the lead intact and we now had 55seconds on the next team! I passed off to Fast Legs and screamed encouragement through the taste of blood and coughing. The wait was excruciating. Frank's leg (11.3km), being the second longest, was estimated to take at least 40min. We had no idea of the battle that was being waged out on the road. The Strides team had saved their best for last and we could only hope our team had given Frank enough of a lead to hold off 'The Fairmont Firestorm'. As the crowd cheered like crazy, the Strides team came through the finish only 20seconds up on us in what would be a hard fought victory for them and a great race to 2nd for us! It was great being part of such a solid team.

Sunday was the Confederation park relay. This was 3 person teams with all legs running over the same 3.5km XC course. The route included two creek crossing and enough off-camber hill running to fill your seasonal quota. I was on a team with Fast Legs and an excellent XC veteran Curtis Sampson. We had a pure ladies Speed Theory Cycling team (running as 'Undercover') represented by Tanya Soloman, The Hopper, and Marilyn. For our open men's team, we had to contend with Jeff Krar's astonishing leg 1 opening time, but our consistency as a team prevailed and we took the win! Our ladies team lead from start to finish and easily secured the Women's division. Other ST Cycling members there included, Ryan Murray, Carson, Bob Woodward, Shelley, and I am sure I have forgotten several more.

So an exciting weekend of racing of the non-wheeled kind, let's hear some stories of what we're all really interested in!! Cross !! Shawna? Keith? Rob?

Trev

Cross'giving Weekend Race Report

Thanksgiving weekend, Speed Theory had good representation in each category at the Argyll Velodrome in Edmonton for the doubleheader Cyclocross races. Thanks goes out to Juventus and Red Bike for both doing an excellent job at creating a fantastic venue and a course that was loads of fun, and designed to be as much fun the 2nd day when it went in reverse direction. The course had technical sections, big ring hammer sections, short steep uphills with room to take a run at, and fun barrier sections. All of the action was located in an area for spectators to give their best cheers, shout outs, Keith Bayly heckling and loads of cowbell. I was able to provide entertainment for the crowd on Sunday by going way too fast in a downhill corner, busting through some tape, knocking out a stake, trying to overcorrect it, and hitting the ground. Thomas Y gets props for going over his bars in a technical hairpin descent, getting up and back on his back so fast it’s like it didn’t even happen.

Speed Theory racers earned some points, including a 1st place podium with a champagne pop that I clearly need to work on. Good times were had by all, and more are to be had this coming weekend with the Remington Cross for Kid’s race to be held on Sunday Oct 17 at COP. Tech guide and registration details can be found here:

http://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/uploads/files/Technical%20Guide%20_%20Cross%20For%20Kids%202010.pdf

River Park XC head cams.

Guys, I have a fun video put together of the River Park XC race last weekend. Carl's son, Matthew's view is super fun to watch since it is from his 9 year old perspective. I love how at the beginning he is moving through all these tall people and passing like crazy! The river crossing from his perspective is fun too. Way to go for him to race this race while most of the 9 year old regulars sat this one out because of the water height !

The video is located here.

Results can be linked to on the same page.

Trev

Team Photos ordered, Cross wickedness, Spin Classes and Indoor Race Series.

I processed the order for the photos! I switched some of the photos to 8 X 12 size to reduce or eliminate the cropping required. I think they are all going to look great! Once I receive the order, I will make a post on how to come pick them up.

Cross season is in full swing and is as exciting as ever. I really encourage anyone who has not come out and watched an event to make it to the Oct. 17th race here in town. I will post details as soon as they are available. Also, our club is hosting our final race of the season Oct. 30th. It would be great to have a bunch of ST Cycling jackets lining the course and cheering every competitor. Bring cowbells, triangles, and/or cymbals !

The spin classes have started up and are in full swing already. It is great to see some faces I haven't seen in awhile, listen to good music, and get in a great workout. I have been slowly and methodically collecting Computrainers for use for the club (actually Paul has been doing the collecting, I have been providing the encouragement!) and have a grand idea of hosting a super fun indoor race series from Jan - Apr. With our 6 computrainers, we can hook them all up together and race each other using multirider software. We can set handicaps of 'lots of draft', 'no draft', etc, when pitting different abilities together for an indoor road race, or we could simply have a 6 mano-a-mano ITT go off in waves if we have 18 dudes or so. Great way to keep up the motivation when the weather gets nasty. Leave a comment if you would be interested in something like this. It is a significant time commitment setting it up and running it on my part, and I would like to get a feel for if it would be used.

See you soon,

Trev

Weekend 'Cross Racing

Speed Theory had great representation at the Dark Knight and Oval 'Cross races held last weekend at COP. The CMC/Bow Cycle crew laid out some fantastic courses, and good times were had by all. Of special note is Matthew Joss' 2nd place, Darryl Parry's 7th, and Shawna Donaldson's 10th in group C at the Dark Knight. On Sunday, Thomas Yip came in 7th and Matthew Joss in 1oth in the Sport class, and all the women did awesome in their race.

Alberta Bison's 508

Looks like Dallas is in fourth place, 417 miles into the race at Time Station Kelso. He is 1:37 back from the leader, 26 minutes behind second and 3 minutes behind third. Go Alberta Bison! He should be finished around noon.

Team BBQ on Oct. 15th

Please RSVP to Tom if you plan on coming to the BBQ. Email is on the invite.

We will have a little 'awards' section, where we like to either highlight something cool someone did throughout the season, or poke fun at something someone did (like me getting dropped on the neutral lap of the Bow Crit last year!!). Please send me an email if you have a good idea, or want something highlighted that you saw a member do this year you thought was cool.

Trev

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Over the weekend events.

Mike Godfrey is heading down to the States to compete in the 'Huntsman World Senior Games'. This is a huge affair with over 10000 athletes !! The cycling component includes a Hill Climb, TT, Crit, and RR !! Pretty cool to offer all those disciplines! You can have a look at it here. Good lluck Mike !!

Dallas Morris is competing in the Furnace Creek 508. The total distance is in the name. 508miles ?!?! Here is a link to the course, and apparently there are over 75 athletes competing in this craziness. You can get updates on Twitter if you want. Also, there will be a webcast going that will apparently keep us updated as to Dallas' progress and whether he is winning or not. Good luck Dallas !!

Dark Knight Cross race at COP !! Fun to watch, fun to race, action starts at 8pm and ends around 10pm Sat. night.

River Park Classic XC. The perfect warm up to the cross race. Takes place in River Park on Sat. and is super fun running through the river and racing some fast dudes! Action starts at noon. Come watch an eclectic crowd racing on a course only nightmares could dream up!

Jason Lapierre Video and Team Spotlight

Not a moment too soon! Perhaps as we all contemplate a winter of sitting on a trainer in the basement we can watch THIS VIDEO and feel a bit more pumped about racing for the best team in the world (except Quick Step). It's not quite Steven Spielberg but I'd say it's pretty close.

Around Lake Tahoe Bike Race

I was in Lake Tahoe this past weekend competing in three days of racing. About 10 years ago the weekend event started as the Lake Tahoe Marathon. Over the years the organizers kept adding events. The combinations are now almost unlimited, you can do back to back marathons Friday, Saturday and Sunday if you wish, you can do a triple marathon straight through, a “super triple marathon” (Marathon Friday, Marathon Saturday, Ultra Marathon Sunday) if you want. For the multisport types they added swimming, kayaking and bike racing events. So you can do many combinations of events. Being the multisport type, I entered a 1 mile lake swim on Friday, the Around Lake Tahoe Bike Race Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday. A good solid training weekend I thought.

Friday’s swim was uneventful, the 14 degree C water in Lake Tahoe freaked out many of the Southern California people, having swam in Two Jack Lake 9 degree water a couple of weeks prior, it felt balmy to me.

On the menu for Saturday was the Around Lake Tahoe Bike Race. This was 73 miles, and about 400 “racers”. I would guess about 100 of those were regular road racers from elite to cat 5. The road was virtually closed and we had California Highway Patrol escort. The race started fast and stayed that way, at least at the front anyway. There was an early selection and about 50 racers established the lead pack. This pack stayed together until the first big hill where a couple of packs were formed. I managed to stay with the second pack for the entire race and finished with a decent placing. I was not sure how I would handle the elevation which ranged from 6200 feet to about 7800 feet. My lungs were burning within the first five minutes so combining the elevation and the modest 3600 feet of climbing it was a hard day. For some reason, I think the fact that I am old and had a finish time under three and a half hours (3:11) I received an award. I was decked out in 2009 vintage Speed Theory gear, including booties and arm warmers and a couple of dudes said the gear really stood out and was voted “best kit”.

The Sunday half marathon was a disaster for me. I cramped up early and spent most of the race with the walkers and “runners” with cameras posing at every view point asking their fellow “racers” to take their photo. They also stopped at every mile marker for a similar photo op.

Another highlight of the weekend was the royal straight flush I was dealt in the poker room at Harveys Casino on Sunday night which paid for the trip.

If you are looking for a getaway weekend with some racing give Lake Tahoe Marathon weekend some consideration. It was by far the nicest and most challenging bike and run event I have ever done. Check out www.laketahoemarathon.com

One more big club ride !!

Hey guys,

Group ride (no drop rule): Wednesday evening, 6:00pm, Extreme Bean.

I would love to get a ton of people out for one last massive club ride before the snow flies. We have our BBQ coming up (Oct. 15th), but it would be great to ride with some/all of you before. This would be an opportunity for me to hear your thoughts on the club and how it could get cooler.

I plan on refocusing the club next year on our riders, group rides, skills sessions, grassroots building, team building, and atmosphere. I think, even though all the races we hosted were totally great, we will host only 2 races next year; the Praire-Roubaix (which in my opinion was the best race of the season for atmosphere) and the the JayLap Omnium (hopefully as part of an Alberta super week coupled with the Tour de Bowness, and Midweek Race). This will ensure our club members have more time for what our club is great at and known for - training and learning to race as a team! This will also open up opportunities for other teams to take an active role in race hosting, which is good for the community.

Let's meet on Wed. evening at 6:00pm at the Extreme Bean. We'll do a moderate loop and will focus on keeping everyone together. I would like to film some of it for some team promo stuff and team skill building next spring, so if you can make sure to wear your Speed Theory Cycling kit, that would be great.

Any non-club members who want to join us (for the ride) are completely welcome. If you are interested in joining Speed Theory Cycling next year (and have an ABA license) then come out and meet some of our riders. If you are part of another club and want to host a race next year, come out and I will let you know how we can help you get started!

Wednesday evening, 6:00pm, Extreme Bean.

Trev

Cross of Pain!

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for!!!! Cyclocross season is kicking off this weekend, and with that yellow thing that has shocked us all by appearing in the sky, Edmonton is the place to be. How often does anyone say that? Edmonton is home to the first double header cyclocross races of the season. School of Cross brought to you by ERTC is on Saturday, and Hop n Hurl which is put on by Hardcore Bikes is on Sunday. While Edmonton seems like a long drive for cyclocross racing, one has to put into perspective the amount of fun that is going to be had, to make you forget about the mind numbing QE2. It’s not just about YOUR race it’s also loads of fun being a spectator. Besides crits, these are the most spectator friendly bike races to watch, probably more so than a crit. What other race do you get to see racers for the majority of, with loads of action taking place right before your eyes, like jumping barriers either still attached to bikes, or with bikes on their shoulders, running or riding through sand pits, and lets not forget the smiles trying to mask the pain written all over their faces.

For the remainder of the Cross season, Edmonton and Calgary will alternate weekends with doubleheader action, so next weekend Calgary is home to the best races of the season that should NOT be missed. Saturday is the Dark Knight race, which is the BEST race of the Cross season. Sunday is the Oval race, and both are held at COP. Pure Cross Bliss.

On that note, I am CROSSING my fingers that I will be able to make it to Edmonton this weekend, but a wisdom tooth extraction this afternoon is going to dictate this decision. If Dr. Torture is willing to inject a little extra freezing into my quads, this could be a very good race weekend. Although, bleeding out on an Edmonton school field after an intense section of barriers might not be a good idea either, but the stories that are generated from Cross racing is what it’s all about.

For more information, registration closes tonight at 8pm for School of Cross tomorrow, and tomorrow night registration closes for Hop n Hurl on Sunday.

School of Cross Tech Guide

Hop n' Hurl Tech Guide

Dig out your cowbells, because everyone NEEDS MORE COWBELL!!!!

Cross Country Races throughout winter.

Guys, make sure to remember about the CalgaryRoadRunners' totally awesome XC running series over the winter. These races are less about running and more about extreme bursts of pain, which makes them absolutely perfect to keep that edge over winter. Honestly, don't worry if you are not a runner for these races, sure you may be beaten by a lot of the runners, but think of it as a challenge. I always recommend doing some solid high intensity at least every two weeks throughout the deep dark winter (especially if you are a masters athlete) and these races will get you motivated to hurt. Quite a few of our members regularly come out for these so you be around some familiar faces. They are $10 and you get as much free stew and dessert you can eat at the end. Talk about a deal!

The courses are absolutely ridiculous in their terrain (thus not catering to pure runners), which makes for a perfect lesson on pain tolerance and management. Which, as you know is what cycling is all about. Bring extra clothes and race as hard as you can!

The first race is the River Park Classic XC on Oct 2nd and gives you the opportunity to race through the Elbow River !! .... twice !! When do you get that opportunity? Come join the fun, and then cheer on your team at the Dark Knight that evening.

Also, these XC races have a fun kid's race just prior to the adult race so the whole family can come and enjoy. The kids love watching their parents race through the Elbow since they don't get to see their parents doing ridiculous things like that that often!

Trev

The Dark Knight !! Oct. 2nd evening.

Calgary's only night time cross race is coming up and it is time to plan to compete or go watch! Ed puts on an exciting event and the party atmosphere is always high. On Oct. 2nd evening, plan to be watching the racing by at least 8pm at COP. The course is alway cool and if you haven't watched Cross before, then this is a great one to start. I took Jaya to this when she was only 2 and the free glowsticks and crashes kept her enthralled the entire race! If a race can keep the attention of a 2 year old for over 60min, just imagine how cool it is :) So there is no excuse not to show up, cheer for your team mates, and enjoy a truly unique sport that most of Calgary doesn't even know exists!

This event is spousal friendly since it is high action for 2 hours, and then you can take your partner out on the town after that.

More info can be found on the ABA website.

Gran Fondo

Hi all,

I want to let everyone know about registration for the Gran Fondo 2011 (Sept 10, 2011), which opens on Monday, September 20 at noon. This event was amazing this year - a spectacular 122 km ride up the Sea to Sky highway from downtown Vancouver to Whistler. The spirit at the start line (7am) was awesome! One lane was closed for the 4000 registered riders. There was a men's and women's Giro (competitive) event, which started 10 minutes ahead of the Fondo riders. There were 26 women in that, and over 100 men (good job Ian, Lockie, and Charles). First place purse was $3000. Wow! Anyone interested in the Giro can sign up closer to the time, but the Fondo sold out within days so I thought I'd let everyone know about it.

I won't miss it next year. I'll probably ride in the Fondo event, but to spice up the competitive aspect a little bit, there is a team competition within that. Teams are of 5 riders and can be single gender, or mixed. There were 11 women's teams this year, and about 60 mixed teams. I'm wondering who might be interested in riding in the team event. I admit it's not a cheap bike ride - $225 registration fee, plus whatever expenses you have getting to and from Vancouver.

If you are interested, check out the website: http://www.rbcgranfondowhistler.com/.

Oh, and if you're totally dedicated, and maybe a little bit crazy (yes, I mean you Rundle Mtn riders), you can hightail it to Revelstoke immediately after the Fondo to arrive in time for the hill climb the next day.

Laura

Road Cup Team Results

They are up on the ABA website, available here.

Lots of points in the last few races (150 points in the Provincial ITT - wow!) pushed Speed Theory to second place overall. I think we were in 5th place mid-season. Congrats to ERTC for a solid performance!

Here's the top 5 results for the Excel-challenged:

ERTC - Revolution 1074
Speed Theory 917
Juventus 871
Team H&R Block 702
Bicisport 605

Great job everyone! Participation does count!

Kootenay Krusher - 50km Mountain Bike Race

As the ABA mtn bike race season comes to a close, this past weekend I participated in a few non-ABA sanctioned races. Saturday I participated in the Corporate Challenge mtn bike race at COP, and helped two of my coworkers get a taste of what it feels like to win a Gold medal in a mtn bike race…even if the competition is not part of the ‘race’ community and you almost feel a little out of place. The people I work with would disagree. I have never done a race before and had the announcers tell me I need to ‘slow down out there’ Isn’t this supposed to be a race?

Sunday was the 1st (now annual) Kootenay Krusher – a 50km singletrack mtn bike race at Nipika Mountain Resort. If you are not familiar with Nipika, outdoor enthusiasts should be. www.nipika.com Nipika has so much to offer year round. Lyle and Dianne Wilson have created an outdoor haven on their 1500 acre piece of land with kilometers of XC ski trails and sweet singletrack mtn bike trails. Lyle, a former Olympic XC ski coach, has taken the opportunity to start up this new race, and plans to continue it for years to come. About 100 racers took to the start line under chilly conditions Sunday morning with a 10:15am start. With dark clouds looming about in the sky, racers took off for a 50km epic day. I have never seen so much carnage mtn biking as I did on Sunday thanks to slippery roots and trails. During these difficult 50km, I came upon a few crashes, one in particular I had to stop on a sketchy, steep descent and help a girl who was trapped under her bike, and I couldn’t tell which were her limbs or parts of the tree. I got her bike off of her, and luckily a marshall was set up not too far away due to the nature of the trail. He heard what was going on and came to the rescue. I was able to carry on, and she apparently was able to finish the race so her injuries weren’t too bad. At that point, a girl caught up to me and we ended up pushing the rest of the 23km we had left together. We met up at the right time, as both of us were getting mentally wounded because of how rough the course was. A lot of hike-a-bike, and not a lot of flow beat up our bodies and minds pretty good, so that 23km seemed so far away. For both of us, meeting up turned into a hammer ride, overtaking the mentality of a race. About 200m from the finish line, she asked if I was in her category, I was, so we turned it on for a sprint finish. I rarely race with camelbaks, but because I wasn’t familiar with the course setup, I figured I was better off to wear it. My reasons for disliking them have been confirmed, because while I was taking the sprint, the nozzle rubbed off on my leg, and poured cold water all over my leg and shoe causing my leg and foot to instantly freeze up. I tried fumbling with it, and she caught me, taking 4th place, leaving me in 5th, with exactly 3 seconds between us. I didn’t think a sprint finish was possible in an endurance mtn bike race, but anything is possible…including a camelbak mucking up your sprint finish.
This was a very well organized race, at a great venue with such a fantastic job at designing the course…races like these take loads of work and they appreciate every minute of your enjoyment out there. I enjoyed it a lot, and I will be back next year!! Thanks Nipika and thanks to the volunteers!

Next up is this weekend’s Bow 80, the last ABA sanctioned Mtn Bike Race, if winter doesn’t have its way and force a cancellation.

Furious3 Mountain Bike Stage Race

The Furious3 Registration will open at 12:01 am this Friday September 17, 2010. Only 200 spots are available at this time.

Furious3 is a 3 day multistage mountain bike race hosted in beautiful Fernie, British Columbia. Furious3 Fernie is a race that caters to many different types of riders. Whether you need a warm up or training race for the one of the longer races, a shorter race to have a taste of multi day competition or you just don’t have the time or the money to invest in doing one of the longer multiday races then this is the perfect option for you.

http://www.furious3.com/

Speed Theory's Excellent Revelstoke Adventure

Four Speed Theorists made the long drive to Revelstoke for the Mt. Revelstoke Steamer Hill Climb. The trip was truly epic. Here's one play by play:

Friday Night: Drive to Revelstoke, with the added bonus that we (Mike G. and me) can catch the entire Stamps-Esks game on the radio (for the under 25 crowd, "radio" is like an iPod, but someone else picks the playlist). Find the Cheeky Beaver Chalet, and most importantly, find the Village Idiot for apres-drive refreshment. Ask Mike about the dude with the drullet...

Saturday: Contrary to weather reports, Saturday is partly cloudy, warm(ish), and not windy. Do a 20 km easy spin, eat, pre-drive the course, watch Michael help a young guy install value extenders on his new 303s (the guy wound up in 3rd) and watch Napoleon Dynamite. For supper, we head down to the Woosley Creek Cafe, a really nice place that serves fantastic food. The ambiance was great, and it looks like the place for a candlelit romantic dinner. We weren't interested in a romantic dinner: Mike ate his food, I ate mine, and we made it quite clear to the waitress that we were NOT sharing a dessert under any circumstances...

Sunday (Race Day): Environment Canada nails the forecast. Rain, rain, and more rain. Drop bags at the start, head back to chalet, and ride back to start. The race is straightforward enough: ride uphill for 27 kms and hope to pass more people than pass you. After riding for ten minutes I didn't even notice the rain: I was too busy trying to breathe. The course is fantastic, with a nice, steep ramp right at the very end. Think five Norquays stacked on top of each other, with no letup at the top. Get into the chalet, find warm clothes, watch Jeff Perron from RMCC shake to death in front of the fire, and shuttle down. Clean up, back to the Idiot for awards, and then drive home.

Now for results. Remember, it's business; it's not personal:

Darcy G: 1:31.33 (25th overall, 17th in age group)
Mike G: 1:32.41 (29th overall, 20th in age group. The wrong age group... )
Carlos S: 1:37.35 (35th overall, 11th in age group)
Kailee B. 1:45.17(42nd overall, 3rd in age group. PODIUM!!!!) [Note: Kailee's the only ST who actually won money.]

Oh, and Kailee's chauffeur finished in 1:17.68 for 7th overall and 5th in group.

It was a great race. Good atmosphere, great town, and fantastic accommodations. Give this race a go next year if you fancy your racing with 1600 metres of elevation gain.