A few weeks ago, someone wrote to me in an email, "Dude, you seriously need to post on your blog. The latest entry was May I think.". Since May, I have had several items pop up on my blogger radar screen that I wanted to share. Often it is as I am doing something that I think about sharing the experience in the form of blog entry. Each time, as is evidenced by the frequency of blog entries, I end up doing something else. Choices, we all face them and in the end something has to give.
Speaking of fast, I met James Gaston electronically through Bike Nerds and then in person at Mena. We had never really ridden together before Iron Mountain. I had heard he was pretty fast and this was his first CAT 2 race. I told him to hang on to John Ashby's wheel if he wanted a chance to win. I am not sure what all went down, but James and John disappeared into the woods and I never saw them again until the finish line. James ended up with 1st place; pretty sweet for his first CAT 2 race.
My fifth place finish was a max effort for me and I was six minutes behind James. There was no way I could have bridged the gap between us. I really enjoy the mountain biking scene and the people who participate in the AMBCS. Sometimes you just have to go to an event to figure it out or in our case remember.
In the end, I am very glad we chose to go to Iron Mountain and we are both looking forward to Attila the Hun in Hot Springs. I am also glad that I have finally updated my blog. Well, at least completed this entry.
My last entry was just before the start of the 2011 AMBCS season and perhaps appropriately so, this entry comes just a week before the end of the season. The Spokes team has grown over the summer while my wife and I have been absent from the race scene. We missed most of the season due to work schedules, an injury I sustained while in Hawaii, and just spending time with family. The rest of the season we missed-well, due to choices. We were on the verge of deciding that we should skip the rest of the season, and decide what to do about racing next year. We were unsure if we would participate in mountain bike racing at all. Then we got an email...
The short version of the story is, the Spokes team has started to gain some traction and our lives are in a more race friendly stage. We jumped back in with both feet at the Iron Mountain Classic mountain bike race in Arkadelphia. Both of us had work things going on that weekend and thought there'd be no way that we could make the race. At the last minute, our travel dates changed and we were both able to compete.
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| Google Earth View of my GPS data from Iron Mountain |
Iron Mountain was a great event. It really does not get much better and it all started prior to the event. The team communicated and coordinated travel plans. Spokes loaned the shop van and several team members carpooled. I think this is important to a team (it is in essence 'being' a team) otherwise, you are simply a rider donating points.
The trails next to De Gray Lake are pretty awesome in my book. Iron Mountain is fast and flowing. Meaning the trails are "easy" enough that a new mountain biker can clear most sections, while a more experienced rider merely needs to ride a little faster to spice up the ride.
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| Elevation Profile for Iron Mountain CAT 2 MTB Race according to my GPS. |
My fifth place finish was a max effort for me and I was six minutes behind James. There was no way I could have bridged the gap between us. I really enjoy the mountain biking scene and the people who participate in the AMBCS. Sometimes you just have to go to an event to figure it out or in our case remember.
The Spokes team did well at Iron Mountain. All team members finished in fifth place or higher with several podium finishes:
Cat 1 Women 19-39, Suzanne Karlins, 1st place
Cat 1 Men 40-49, Lonnie Kinkade, 3rd place
Cat 2 Women 19-39, Melissa Shipman, 2nd place
Cat 2 Women 19-39, Randi Lynne Durham, 5th place
Cat 2 Women 19-39, Mischa Martin, 4th place
Cat 2 Men 19-29, Wes Wolfenbarger, 4th place
Cat 2 Men 19-29, Stephen Durham, 5th place
Cat 2 Men 30-39, Chris Randle, 3rd place
Cat 2 Men 30-39, Micah Patterson, 2nd place
Cat 2 Men 40-49, James Gaston, 1st place
Cat 2 Men 40-49, Bryan Shipman, 5th place
Cat 3 Junior 15-18, Phillip Gaston, 1st place
Cat 3 Men 30-39, Blake Martin, 5th place
In the end, I am very glad we chose to go to Iron Mountain and we are both looking forward to Attila the Hun in Hot Springs. I am also glad that I have finally updated my blog. Well, at least completed this entry.
Now James has another finish to his credit; it was his email that guilted me into finishing this blog entry.
