2012 Single Speed Intergalactic Championship--Ocala, Florida (3/25/12)

Yesterday, I got to compete in my first-ever single speed event--The 2012 Single Speed Intergalactic Championship!! It was awesome!

First of all, GoneRiding.com was holding the event only a few minutes away from my house, so I didn't have to get up super early to get there. Secondly, the temperature was perfect and the trails were in great shape. Somehow though, between the time that some people pre-rode the course that morning at about 8:30 and the time the race started (about 9:00), a big tree fell right across the trail and took everyone by surprise when it was just suddenly "there." I guess that's what people mean when they say the trail is constantly changing. I just don't think they meant that it would change THAT fast!

Jeff

Anyway, the SSIC turned out to be a fairly small race compared to the series races, but it was really fun! I raced in the Base Men category and was the youngest rider at the event.

Eli

Eli and I had a friendly rivalry going, but he was determined not to let me pass. Eventually he let me go around and I finished in first.

Regan Woodall won a close Expert race and also got the fastest lap, so he got a little extra "bling" to show off for pictures.

 Miss Terri made some awesome barbecue sandwiches, baked beans and pasta potato salad for everyone to chow down on after the race while we waited for race results.

Mr. Dave made really cool trophies for all of the winners out of old sprockets that had been on bikes he owned at one time. Plus, for winning my class, I also got a case of beer. (Which really means Mom and Dad got a case of beer--haha!)

















My dad also made the podium and took home a trophy for placing third in the 40+ class.

The SSIC was just a really fun race and I hope a lot more people will come out for it next year!!

2012 US Cup East/SERC #1--Haile's Trail in Gainesville, FL (3/18/12)

Last weekend was the start of the new US Cup East/SERC series and I was so excited!! First of all, my new Specialized Stump Jumper Comp Carbon came in on Friday afternoon, just in time for me to get it built and be able to pre-ride Haile's Trail for the race on Sunday. All I can say is I love this bike!!

On Saturday, my mom, dad and I pre-rode the course at Haile's Trail. I can only describe it as H-A-R-D!! For this race, Dave reversed the course from the last two times we raced there and added a whole new section of climbs and drops that definitely made me work harder than any course I can remember. By the time I had done a few laps though, I felt pretty good and was anxious to get racing in the morning.

Nine of us lined up for the start. There were some familiar faces, like Trent, John Michael, Ethan, and Zach, but there were several new boys that came out too. I knew John Michael would be very tough competition, but I had no idea what kind of riders the other boys were. It turns out they were very strong.

For the first time ever, when Dave blew the whistle, I got up in my pedals quick and got the hole shot. I knew the first section of the course was the hardest and if I was going to be able to win, I had to get out in front before we got there. Of course, John Michael was right behind me, just waiting for me to make a mistake.

John Michael

Unfortunately for me, John Michael didn't have to wait long. I took a bad line on one of the climbs and he got around me. I stayed right behind him for a while, but some bad luck with lap traffic slowed me down and allowed him to get a gap on me. I spent the whole first lap just trying to catch back up, and I suspect he spent the whole first lap making sure I didn't.

By the time I made it through that first new section of climbs again, I was pretty well spent. During the second lap, I saw John several times, but just didn't have enough energy left to really go after him like I wanted to.

Trent

Ethan A.

Behind me, Trent was racing hard against two of the new guys from Leroy's Bike Shop, Samuel and Ethan A. The other Ethan, who won the 9-11 year old race earlier in the morning was close behind. He had a nasty fall during the rock garden section around the first quarry, but got right up and kept on racing. You can see how tough he is in the video my dad made.

Ethan N.

My race face

At the end of the race, I was happy with how I rode and how hard I tried, but I was also disappointed that my one little mistake let John Michael get around me so early. Still, after finishing dead last at last year's race, I have to be pretty happy with second place. It's a definite improvement.

The Podium:  John Michael (1st Place), Me (2nd Place), Samuel (3rd Place), Trent (4th Place), and Ethan A. (5th Place)

This weekend, my dad and I are going to try something a little bit different--single speed racing!! I can't wait!! Look for us at Gone Riding's Single Speed Intergalactic Championship (SSIC) at the Ross Prairie Trailhead  (part of the Santos trails). It should be a blast!

2012 Mellow Johnny's Classic--Henly, TX (3/3-4/12)

Last week, my dad and I drove out to Texas to compete in the Mellow Johnny's Classic (My mom flew out on Friday). It was my first time going to a REALLY big event, where lots of pro riders were going to be racing, and I was super excited. My dad and I had raised over $1100 for the Lance Armstrong Foundation and we were the top fundraisers for the event, so we got a special parking pass and got to hang out and eat at a special VIP tent all weekend. It was really cool. We also found out that the money donated to Livestrong goes to provide support services for cancer patients and their families, something Lance felt was sorely lacking when he was battling cancer himself.

Anyway, the first day we were there, we pre-rode the course. It was rocky and had some climbs that were kind of tricky. I didn't really like it and I was worried about sliding out or getting a flat. After the second lap though, I began to feel much more comfortable with the course and started to plan my race strategy. Actually, my race strategy was pretty simple:  Get out in front. Go Very Fast. Win.

My strategy was almost blown at the line. Because there were 15 of us, we were divided into two lines. When the gun went off and we all started to go, another rider ran into me and knocked me off my pedals. It took a few seconds to get clipped in and back on track and I had to ride hard to catch up to the leaders before we got to the first single-track.

During the starting loop of the race, Mauricio and I traded places a couple of times, but once we hit the open road right before going into the single-track again, I finally got out in front and stayed there.

It was a great time and I'm glad we came all the way out to Texas to race. Hopefully next year we can come out and do the race again.

 

Check out the video my dad put together of the race. He let me ride with the rear camera on my bike and the usual camera on my helmet, so the footage is very cool.

The US Cup East/SERC Series starts again in a couple of weeks, so look for us at Haile's Trail in Gainesville, Florida on March 18th.

Playing Catch-up (Part 3: 12 Hours of Santos & Healing Up)

This is me last Tuesday, after I got my stitches out and looked more normal and felt a lot better.

Only a couple of days earlier, at the 12 Hours of Santos race, though, I looked like this (not so pretty, but still way better than before) as I walked around and tried to collect money for Livestrong.

Bryce, Trent & Nicho before the race

Obviously, since I was still recovering from the accident, I didn't get to ride with my teammates, Nicho, Trent, and Bryce for the race, but they were really cool about keeping me a part of the team. In fact, they came up with the funny team name, Mikey No Likey Not Ridey His Bikey. LOL! I guess Underage Rage: Volume 2 will have to wait until next year.

Trent took my position as the starter and led the team by doing the run up the hill and the first lap. He had a pretty good start, too. Notice who's still on his bike, and who's pushing.

Nicho did the second lap, and Bryce took the third and they alternated in that order the rest of the day. Trent made it back in time on his last lap to send Nicho out one more time, and they did a total of 14 laps that day. Awesome!

Dave gave them special recognition before the awards for being the youngest team ever to compete in the 12 Hours of Santos. I was really disappointed that I didn't get to race with them. In fact, I actually went home around 4:00 and went to bed, because I didn't feel well (and was grumpy), so I didn't get to see them at the end, but I am very proud of my friends for doing such a great job. You guys rocked!

One last thing.....

The week before the 12 Hours of Santos, my dad and I got our new FirstPlaceRacing.com/On the Fly Race Supply kits. Look for us to be sporting these and looking sharp at the Mellow Johnny's Classic next weekend in Texas. Wish us luck! And thanks to all the Florida mountain bikers who have supported us by generously donating to the Livestrong Foundation. Thanks to all of you, we didn't just meet our goal, we beat it!!

Playing Catch-up (Part 2: CC #5 and Pure Stupidity)

Finding inner peace before the CC#5 race

Lining up

Ok...now for part two. After doing well at the 6 Hours of El Lagarto with my dad, I was ready to get back to some regular cross-country racing. Lucky for me, the Coconut Cup was still going on. My dad and I drove down to Miami by ourselves Saturday afternoon for a quickie, guys only race weekend.

I love Amelia Earhart Park because it's such a fun course and I was hoping to do really well here. Unfortunately, I had a horrible start and went into the single-track in sixth place behind Francisco. Eventually, Francisco let me pass and I caught up to John Koch and passed him, putting me right behind Dustin Zimmerman.

Dustin is so silly!

I pretty much stayed in that position for the rest of the first lap, until a really big 14-year-old passed me coming into the finish at the end of the lap, moving me from fourth to fifth place.

During the second lap, I just kept riding my pace. Near the end, though, John caught up to me and made me work extremely hard to hold him off and keep him from passing me back. We had a really exciting sprint to the finish and I just barely beat him to the line to keep my 5th place podium spot.

John right on my wheel during the sprint

It was definitely a great race and I had a lot of fun, like always, at Amelia.

And now, for the pure stupidity part....

If you follow my blog, you know that I try to work a few hours a week at Brick City Bicycles. Well, my dad and I were there to do some bike maintenance on Valentine's Day. After the bikes were done and while my dad was paying (more like talking), I took one of them out for a little spin around the building, like I have done many times when test-riding different bikes.

Anyway, I rode up on this loading ramp that I like to go part-way up and then jump down from, but a car was in my way and I couldn't get off at my usual place. So I ended up going off the ramp at the high part (about 3 feet up) and flew over the handlebars, hit my jaw on a pole, and did a face-plant on the asphalt. The really stupid part was that I wasn't wearing a helmet, because I thought I was just going to do a quick lap around the building before putting the bike on the rack. After all, what could possibly happen in the parking lot? (yes, that is sarcasm) Let me just say that one of my first coherent thoughts after the accident was that I should've worn a helmet (and that was before I realized how hurt I got).

WARNING: PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT TO FOLLOW

So....after 7 hours spent in the ER, 14 stitches under my nose and over my lip, a CT scan, and a scalping, I can definitely say that I learned my lesson the hard way--If I'm on a bike, I'll be wearing a helmet and you should too (and no, my mom was not nagging me when she saw the pictures of me riding without a helmet before the accident & yes, she made me admit that).

A lot of people texted my dad or commented on Facebook to wish me well when they found out I got hurt, and I just wanted to let everyone know how much I appreciate it. Even Jeremiah Bishop commented, which is pretty cool.

Coming soon is Part 3, where I'll cover the 12 Hours of Santos.

Playing Catch-up (Part 1: Livestrong & 6 Hours of El Lagarto)

This is a picture of my dad I made on my computer.

The past few weeks have been crazy busy and now I'm going to try to catch everybody up on all the things that have been going on.

First of all, my dad and I have been working hard to raise money for the Livestrong Foundation before the March 2nd deadline. We have some really awesome supporters and so far, we have collected $946 toward our goal of $1000. If you'd like to help us reach our goal, you can click on the link at the right of this page and donate directly to Livestrong.

Then, at the end of January, my dad and I competed in the Six Hours of El Lagarto as a two man team. It was a lot of fun! My dad did the first two laps, including the sack race. Then I did a lap and he did two laps, and we kept switching that way until he got too tired to do back-to-back laps at full speed.

I was anxious to get started on my first lap, so when it was my turn, I took off. At the finish line, I almost forgot to dismount for the hand-off and ended up jumping off my bike and running to give my dad the baton. My bike did a cartwheel and my mom said she wished she had filmed it, because it was so cool. Unfortunately, when I was warming up for my 2nd lap, my bike wouldn't shift right (uh oh, bent derailleur), and I didn't have time to fix it before it was my turn again. So...I rode my second lap with only the 4 biggest gears in my biggest ring, and somehow, still made it around the course in almost the same time as my first lap.

For the third lap, I had to ride my mom's 29er while my dad got my derailleur fixed. I don't know how people can ride those things!!! My mom's bike is a full suspension 29er and that thing is a complete energy sucker. I wasn't on that bike more than a minute and already my legs were aching. Nope, I'm a 26er hard tail guy all the way!!

One of the highlights of the race for me was when pro racer Drew Edsall (the only person who passed me all day) came up behind me and told me I was riding really well. Then I let him go around me and I actually hung onto his wheel for about 30 seconds (or maybe less, but it felt like a long time). Drew won the solo men's class, so that was pretty cool too.

My dad and I had a great time and raced very hard. Out of 29 teams, we placed 4th (I just noticed we were standing on the wrong side of the podium). My mom wrote an article for Florida Cycling Magazine (starts on pg. 95) about me and other Junior racers at the event.