MTB O CUP

  On the weekend I competed in the mansfield O cup number. The day of pre ride was hot and I did not feel so good. The day of the race however was rather cold with some rain. This is my favorite type of race condition. I was feeling okay going into this race hoping to get on the podium knowing some guys were missing. 

The start was kind of unfortunate as I was a bit late getting to the pen and was at the back. I slipped a pedal as the gun went off as well but was able to dance my way up to about 6th wheel by the top of the first climb. From there I just moved up slowly until I decided I need to be in the lead about halfway through first lap. I worked hard on the front of the group for a couple laps and some what of a "break away" formed. This break away contained 4 of us from trek store. It was an ideal situation. I however was not so smart and crashed myself out of the breakaway that ended up fight for the win and I had to settle for 5th. It was however a really fun day and good training. 

Next race is a road race this weekend at springbank which looks wild. 

Quite a busy last few weeks or days I am not sure which but I've been riding and racing a lot since returning from tucson. 

With my body mostly healed up from my earlier crash I decided to enter the good friday road race. I had never really done a road race before I mean I started one once but I got dropped like 30 minutes into the race so that doesn't really count. The race went well despite teammate matt mccartney making some questionable decisions the night before the race. I road at the front a lot early on and then was pretty tired near the end of the race but did my share of work. Mike Mitchnick was up the road so I just sat on for a while until I just wasn't that into it and rode the last lap real easy with another bro. I am not sure what I ended up it could have possibly been last or second last it was a tight sprint and I didn't get to see the photo. Overall it was good experience and Mike had a good result so that was a nice thing. 

On the sunday of easter weekend I decided to enter this tour or race I am not sure which it seemed almost as if everyone knew it was a race but the organizers wanted to keep it a secret and just call it a tour. Whatever you to call it, it ended being very race like. It was a really interesting idea as it was supposed to mimic the paris roubaix so it had a bunch of rough gravel and dirt sections. Within the first of these gravel sections I was able to get a substantial lead with one other bro. Even though it was only 30 k into the race we decided to try and make the break stick. It was woking out very well halfway through the race we had a minute 30 on the chasers. After the next gravel section there was a bunch fo rolling hills and I managed to get away from my breakaway companions. The pact had been broken. There were no more friends. I had no idea how far from the finish I was at this point but I decided to ride anyway and ended up staying away and taking the win which was too much crazy really. The coolest part was the trophy they gave me which was an actual cobble from the arenberg forest. It's chilling in my room now and sometimes I look at it. 

 The weather got glorious today and I did a long ride out to kettleby. While I rode I lisented to the new yeah yeah yeahs record "it's blitz" It is a stellar record and I would reccomend it anyone. 

This weekend brings another road race at calabogie on a car racing track. It will be good times. 

Show Me What I'm Looking For

  So I have arrived home after two glorious months in Tucson, Arizona and it appears nothing has changed. I awoke this morning to a snow covered lawn and wintry winds. The thermometer read - 2 and it felt a lot like the day I'd left in january. However much it seems nothing has a changed a lot has. I have spent two strong months working hard and the change comes in form of far greater fitness than when I left in january. Speaking of those two months some interesting things happened in that time period. 

First of them being a race I attended 2 weekends ago in Fontana California. The race was a part of the new US cup series which appears to be quite popular as the mens field had 120 riders. This was possibly the largest XC field I had ever ridden in so i was a bit nervous about call ups. I got an okay one like 5 or 6 row. I was able to get a decent start and stay below my limit for the first lap then maybe I pushed too hard on lasp 2 and 3 to really move up as I felt some fading near the end of 4 and for sure on the fifth. I however only last maybe one spot and ended up a very solid 25th place. Looking at time gaps and the names around me I was pretty jazzed on the result. It will give me confidence going into new races. However good my race was I still couldn't get past the high level of "goofiness" i have been noticing at US mtb races. The entire field seems inexplicably obsessed with extremely wide riser bars and socks that go far too high. 

That being the first event the second was less positive. The day after the race I decided to do a road ride with mitchnick and whilst we were cruising down kolb with a wicked tailwind I decided a sprint was in order. So i began this sprint at speeds approaching 60 km/h. As I began this sprint my chain decided it just wasn't into it and fell off. I however was still into it and threw all of my sprinting forced into hurling myself into the ground. Which I did a very good job of. I Rolled and slid quite away's until stopping, getting up and realizing i was pretty much okay just with a ridiculous amount of road rash. I had road rash all over left side of my back, both hips, both hands, right and left arm. I had also shredded my brand new trek store kit which was the biggest bummer of all. Needless to say this made the 3 day drive home from tucson rather uncomfortable ( or even wearing pants for that matter).  This kept me off the bike a bit but I am okay now and looking forward to racing this weekend.

Cameron