CORAween Night Ride and Campout

I just wanted to pass this along.

When: Friday October 30, 2009
Where: The Haunted Mitchell Memorial Forest



You are invited to CORA's second Halloween party and the first EVER night ride at Mitchell Memorial Forest. Riding will be permitted from 8-11pm and you must be 18 years or older to ride. A hold harmless agreement must be signed prior to riding. We will also camp in the Pine Meadow area (across the street and up the hill from the Tall Pines Trailhead parking lot) and have refresments and tell ghost stories around the campfire. All ages are welcome to camp, but under 18 must be accompanied by a guardian.

If the trails are too wet to ride, we will still camp unless it's a washout.

Visit the CORA Forum for the latest info.

Hope to see you there.

Air 9 Carbon Frameset Giveaway

FYI: The folks over at 918XC or KNOTB (New Kids On The Block) as they call themselves are giving away a Niner Air 9 Frameset.

Air 9 Carbon Frameset Giveaway

Since we are the New Kids and don't have near enough friends yet, we are running a little promotion to buy your love.

Every person that registers on our site will be entered in a drawing for a 2010 Niner Air9 Carbon frame set. The drawing will take place once the frames are available. Niner is giving us an ETA of March 2010.
The lucky winner will be able to choose which size/color they would like.

What do you have to do to enter? Just click "Register" in the top right of the screen and create an account. Once the winning name is drawn, we will contact you with the great news.

I have. Have you?

Here is how.

This Just In

OMBC has posted the standings going into Sunday's Series Finale. Currently I am in 17 place.



I don't know what I expected for my first season in the Sport Class. But I do feel a little disappointed. I am not sure why. Is it due to being the last name on the list or is not being in the Top 10?

Mainly reason is since last year I had a Top 5 finish and came into this season with a full charge. I had the full support of Trek Store Cincinnati behind me and I was ready to make a full charge at continuing success.

I am not a making excuses but I did only do the mandatory 5 of 12 races so that is going to hurt. I don't have the luxury of trowing away my poor races (which I did have).

I would like to say "THANK YOU" to all my sponsors and my wife for helping with this season. I am looking forward to moving a successful 2010 OMBC and faster times at Big Frog 65, Mohican 100k and maybe adding the WVMBA Ultra Endurance Series too.

"Race Across The Sky - Leadville Trail 100"

Looking for something to do now that it is dark at 8:00?

On October 22nd, experience a One Night Event in movie theatres nationwide featuring the debut of “Race Across the Sky” – a documentary covering the 2009 Leadville Trail 100 bike race, one of the most intense endurance races of all time - and candid conversations with Lance Armstrong, Chris Carmichael, Dave Wiens, and other elite and amateur cyclists who overcame extreme challenges to participate in this grueling race.

Race Across the Sky – Leadville Trail 100, featuring Lance Armstrong, Dave Wiens and other elite and amateur cyclists on October 22nd at 8:00pm ET/ 7:00pm CT/ 6:00pm MT/ with tape delay to 8:00pm PT.

What is the Leadville Trail 100?

For many, it will be the most difficult race of their lives. For some, a bragging right to say they raced alongside the best in the world. Some imagine victory. Most hope only to finish. But everyone will count.

The race that started 25 years ago as a running race to drive tourism in Leadville has now grown to a lottery cap of 1000+ competitors, many of them the world’s most elite cyclists. But the Leadville Trail 100 "Race Across the Sky" Mountain Bike Race is not just a race of man against man: it’s man vs. man, man vs. self, man vs. elements, man vs. time. A clock set for 12 grueling hour’s slugs through 100 miles, over 14,000 vertical feet of climbing, some two miles above sea level, through extreme climate changes ranging from heat to hail, from rain to snow. To the racers, the risks of injury, fatigue and mechanical failure pale next to the chance that they will fall behind the 12 hour cut off mark and be eliminated.

Rivalries include six-time defending champion Dave Wiens vs. international star / seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. Inspirational stories of human triumph include a Leadville woman rider who was critically injured by a car while training for last year’s race, another who suffers from multiple sclerosis, and 45+ rider who has raced all 15 years.

Whether they’re international stars of the sport or everyday folks with the will to finish a race whose difficulty is on par with the Ironman, the grit to push to their own physical and emotional limits strikes an elegant symmetry between racer and environment and a struggling former mining town whose very existence now relies on the tourism generated by this race.

Click here for a list of participating theatres.

12 Hours of Dino Report: Team No Name

I want to send a great big "Thank You" to my partners who competed with me and Lane the Service Manager at Trek Store Cincinnati for his great mechanical skills. With a dialed in bike and a team that was focused on success we were able to take 2nd Place in the 4 Man Relay at Saturday at the 12 Hours of Dino at Versailles State Park in Indiana.

New Gravel Grinder In Indiana: The Gravel Grovel

Looking for a way to burn off all those calories from Thanksgiving? The Gravel Grovel will be a 63 miles of what looks to me to be very hilly terrain. I have done an event called the "Brown County Breakdown" before. That was a mtb event that was on the trails of Southern Indiana. Lots of loooonnnng climbs, but with fantastic views accompanied by by sweeping downhill runs. This looks to be the perfect way to end your mtb season.

Who's in? Register at TRUESPORT.COM

At least I got a T-Shirt

So I decided on racing the DINO Series race at Versailles State Park Sunday with my friend and teammate Bridget. The trail wasn't too wet even though the race had been postponed for two weeks while DINO waited for the trail to dry out from heavy rains. Today's forecast was 95 and HUMID

We started in the shade then rode about a quarter mile foot path that was dry and fast once we entered the woods and the single track that all changed to a slick and slim covered hard pack. No sooner do I make a mental note of this then two riders go down right in front of me blocking the trail. I do my best not to run them over or crash myself.



The course was not tight nor were there any climbs and really just one difficult section where my race came to an end. There was a short section of trail that was cut into the hill with a tight switchback added in to it. Well my brain had one idea but my bike and every other body part had another. So with the hesitation I ended up endoing over my bike and down the hill. The ground didn't hurt because my handlebar cushioned the blow. This gave me two nice, perfectly shaped bruises. One round about the 1 1/8" right below my belly button and another just shy of my handlebar width across my thigh.

After I caught my breath and collected my nerves I pedaled on but I just didn't have the same fight that I started with. Each pedal stroke was a painful and difficult one. So as soon as the Pro/Cat1 riders started to lap me I knew I was done and just had to make it back.

This was my first DNF in several years and I am still disappointed. But like I said at least I got this t-shirt.

Decisions

There are two great races this weekend.



One is at one of the best local trails and it has been canceled twice already due to weather and/or wet trails.




The other is a little farther away but is part of our local advocacy group’s race series.

Pisgah Mountain Stage

This sounds like fun. I won't have to travel to Costa Rica, the Alps or even Brekenridge, Colorado to ride in an epic stage race. I will only have to travel to the town of Brevard to ride the backcountry of Western North Carolina.

Is it too soon to think 2010?

I hate this time of year. The summer heat is on, races take up most of my weekends, race finishes aren't what I trained or hoped for. Then news stories and photos of next years bike start rolling out.
For example, Velo News just posted this story about Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (JHK to his friends) and his sub 20 lbs Superfly Hardtail.
Not to mention JHK also won Bump n Grind in Alabama a few weekends back on a new Superfly Full Suspension.Vacation from work and rides is coming up...let's make the best of it and come back with an attitude adjustment. This should help me focus on a couple races and prep for a few better finishes to help me to feel like I deserve one of these and don't look like a total Fred out on it.

Midwest Women's Mountain Bike Clinic

After riding and training to complete sub 12 hour finishes at both Mohican and Cohutta this spring I am in need of a "fun" ride. So this weekend Snaps and I are going out to the Trek Midwest Women's MTB Clinic . This event is being held in Nashville Indiana at Brown County State Park and is. The clinic is going to give Snaps a chance to enhance her skills on her Cobia plus be able to meet some new friends. So tell your wives, girlfriends, mothers & sisters.

The Trek Bikes Website states:

It is an entire weekend filled with mountain biking, camping, fun and friends. Come for the day or stay overnight. We welcome anyone to attend who is interested in learning to mountain bike ~ whether you are someone who plans to race or someone who just wants to enjoy a day riding in the woods. Our clinic will teach you the skills you will need to feel safe and confident on the trail.

Amazing Race

Phil Keoghan's "Ride Across America Presented by GNC" will kick off on March 28 in Los Angeles and end on May 9 in New York City. Along the way, he'll attend meet and greets with supporters at local GNC stores, visit CBS affiliates, attend open-casting calls for the next installment of THE AMAZING RACE, sign copies of his best-selling book No Opportunity Wasted,attend Bike MS rallies hosted by the National MS Society and ride alongside ex-racers and fans of THE AMAZING RACE.

Phil is riding from coast to coast. Click here to see if he is coming to a city near you.

Neither Rain, Nor Sleet, Nor gloom of night…

Sunday’s OMBC opener at Mohican Wilderness in Loudenville, Ohio was with out a doubt the best and worse race I have ever done.

The morning started off with some light drizzle and the trails were tacky but very ride able shape. Then with less then an hour prior to the start the skies darkened and opened up with a deluge off rain, snow and ice for about 30 minutes. This cold front not only brought the precipitation but also dropped the temperature from a chilly 46 to a cold 37.

This caused many participants to pack up their cars and return home…not me. I am not sure if it was the fact the wife and I drove 3 hours to get there or that I already paid the $25 entry fee.

I have raced this 9.5 mile course several times and the longest it has ever taken to complete a lap was an hour – twenty minutes. So I assumed that the mud and rain would add 20 minutes tops. WRONG! Try over 40 additional minutes for the and an hour longer for the second when the mud turned to what could only be described as peanut butter.



I was not having any fun so when I came around for the start of the second lap Mrs. Averett brought me some dry gloves and said “…you can do it.”. There were several opportunities to quite…but I could hear my wife’s voice in my head saying “I am proud of you for finishing.” That was all it took to ride through cramps, cold, snow, rain, ice the course and mud.

So with what will be a time of over 4:40 I did not DNF. Thanks to everyone who stuck it and waited for me to finish especially my wife. See you at Vultures Knob on the April 18th.

Paragon

I received my 2009 Gary Fisher Paragon 2 weeks ago and I have been holding out on passing any judgment until I had enough saddle time to give an honest evaluation. That time is now.

First off the color…I have had a thing for white bikes I believed them to be plain and generic but wow the white has a iridescencent bass boat coating to it that when the sunlight hits it looks amazing.



After racing and ridding a Niner Air9 last season I was not expecting to notice much in the difference between the Air9 and the Paragon. Fortunately I was wrong wayyy wrong!

The 29’er platform offers many advantages with their larger wheels giving more surface contact, ease in rolling over small roots and rocks and carrying more speed and momentum. But there were always two things that I wish would go away. Those same larger wheels made it harder to maneuver around tight switchbacks and acceleration was poor.

Gary Fisher has taken care of the issue of maneuverability through employing his G2 Technology. Gary's proprietary G2 Geometry with a custom offset Fox F80RL 29 and the use of Bontrager Race Lite Big Sweep handlebars that have 12 degrees of back-sweep improve slow speed handling giving the impression that I am flicking a smaller 26 inch wheel through rock gardens and around tight single-track.

As for acceleration I am not sure how this has been accomplished. The Paragon is about pound and half heavier then my Air9 but for some reason I have noticed the ability to use less power to climb up steep climbs and more speed coming out the corners. The two frames measure up to be about the same dimensions but when I am ridding the Paragon it feels like I am ridding a 26’er. I don’t feel like I am hovering over the ground and trail.

Having never been a supporter of SRAM Components it was a hard sell for me to see the benefit of X9 versus Shimano XT while also having to relearn how to use my shifters. The X9 derailleur/shifter combination does have an almost metal/mechanical engagement that is quicker and more precise then the XT’s. I still need to remember which lever is which though. I ended up on a low gear during a few short steep climbs.

The only change I would have liked would have been to scrap the Custom Crank Brothers Candy pedals for an upgrade from the Shimano FC-M543-SK crank to a true LX or SLX level.

After several rides I am looking forward to this year on the Paragon. The bike is spec’ed well except for the crank and rides much lighter the scale would have you believe

Look GREAT for a GREAT Cause

A Little Bit About Team Fatty

Team Fat Cyclist: Fighting for Susan is a big ol’ group of cyclists (and a few runners and even one triathalete) raising money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation to fight cancer. There are now more than 360 of us. We’re the top fundraising team in all four event cities: Austin, Seattle, San Jose, and Philadelphia, so we’d darn well better have some matching outfits when we line up at the various LiveStrong Challenges.
40% of Your Fat Cyclist Gear Purchase Goes to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Yep, when you buy one of the Team Fatty jerseys, 40% of the price of that $75.00 jersey (ummm, that works out to…lessee…$30 per jersey) goes to the Lance Armstrong Foundation. And since we’ll be donating that through the Team Fatty fundraising pages, you’ll be helping us stay the top fundraising team in all four cities.

In the past I have always waited until Twin Six would release the the full order of the Fat Cyclist Jersey and every season I have been dissappointed when my size would be SOLD OUT.

So now that T6 has announced that pre-orders for the Summer 2009 jersey will start today I will have one this year. The Team Fatty jersey pre-order extravaganza is for one week only. It ends Tuesday, March 17, 5:00pm CT.

Eyewear Done RIGHT!!

Yesterday I came back from a hard day of work to find a package with familiar markings sitting on my desk. The markings were that of Ryders Eyewear. Inside I found several of the sharpest shades I have ever set on my face.



I first started wearing Ryders last season. They were a prize for winning the 4 Man at last years 12 Hours of Mohican. I wore them the next ride and then the next and the next...you get my point. They have a great fit, don't slide of my nose plus they look good on. A special thanks has to be given to the marketing dept at Ryders for first offering great swag at last years race and now for more pairs of my very own.

The last word...

Well at least he is honest...

8:50 PM Monday March 2, 2009

Registration for tonight is now suspended. The old SBO site crashed after being online for only 2 minutes. It is a site that is capable of handling 900 entries in 15 minutes so there has to be more than meets the eye going on here.

I am at a loss for words to describe my frustration for all of you who have spent hours trying to register for Iceman. I will be sending out the new plan for registration as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Steve Brown

Iceman Cometh?

First it was the the website being taken down Friday night. Then tonight I spent close to 2 hours tonight pressing F5 to register for the radio station concert ticket style on-line registration for the 2009 Iceman. Then I get the following message.

8:50 PM Monday March 2, 2009

Registration for tonight is now suspended.

Steve Brown

What does suspended mean? Is there going to be another day?

Coming soon to a race near you...

Iceman Take 2

So who else tried to register for Iceman tonight?

After much complaining about the 2008 lottery entry system the organizers of Iceman opted for the radio station concert ticket give away. Looks like someone had to be the first caller.

We are now postponing registration for the 2009 Iceman Cometh Challenge until Monday March 2, 2009 at 7:00 PM (EST). That will give us a chance to reconstruct the system after the malicious attack by somebody who created a program to automatically register himself that contacted SBO 100,000 times in one minute at approximately 6:30 PM tonight.

SBO will also be working to insure that this kind of attack does not impact their system again in the future.

I am very sorry for any inconvenience this has caused you and I know that many of you planned your day around registering for Iceman this evening. I just hope that you can have a great weekend and that we'll see you back here on Monday night.
Sincerely,
Steve Brown

100k times...I know this is a great race...but 100k times? Let's see how it goes Monday.

YEAH!!

With the recent "warm" weather plus more to come today and tomorrow the roads are clear of snow. It is time to get out spin classes and venture outside and put some rubber ont the road. Watch out here I come.

Training Week One

Well this was supposed to be the start of my Cohutta 100 training but instead it is the start of a second week with the strongest longest lasting head & chest cold of my life. Just when I think I have it beat down this thing holds on tight to my sinuses and lungs and will not give in.

Pop Up Tents 2.0

Does any one think this is over the top? After having to sleep in the car after the 12 Hours of Mohican this year this would have come in sooo handy.


This is the Sylvan Sport new GO Trailer and Camper MSRP: $8995.

The manufacture describes it more versatile then a Swiss Army knife. The entire thing weighs just 800 lbs (363 kg). Which after a quick check of the owners manual to the family truckster is well with-in it's tow capacity. The tent sets up in minutes and stows cleanly into the roof's storage box. The roof's frame is designed to connect to Yakima and Thule rack systems. It is also equipped with a weather-tight gear box that locks to keep camping equipment, extra gear and all other weekend essentials secure and ready for whenever you want to go.

"I love it when a plan comes together."

After dotting all the I's and crossing all the T's I am VERY excited to have been asked to ride for Trek Store Cincinnati. Team members will include the likes of Bridget Donovan, Jacob Stallings and Justin Ouwerkerk. I feel that this will be a tremendous opportunity for me to be part of "team" as opposed to alone. Having a group to be able to ride and train with will allow me to meet the performance goals I have set for this season. The Trek Store of Cincinnati has been a long time supporter of our local cycling community and I am proud to a member.
Next big descion is which bike. Both Gary Fisher and Trek models are available. Do I go all out for the Fisher Superfly or Trek 9.7 Elite? Stay conservitive with the Paragon or Top Fuel 8? Any ideas?

Hot News!!

Sorry for the long time between posts...lots of news to update you on coming soon!