Training Log Archive: Bash

I was getting dressed for my 2nd lap when Hingo dashed bikeless into our campsite, "We need a new rider!" I hustled to the transition area, but couldn't swipe the timing chip because poor Hingo's lap was unfinished, so my lap time got added to Hingo's partial lap time. I went down hard on one tree root and put my foot down in a number of other slippery places. But the early morning light was beautiful!

24 Hrs of Summer Solstice

This was my first lap - about half of it in the dark. It was a bit slippery from earlier rain, but nothing compared to what it was like later on.

It was the Tree Huggers' 8th year at the 24 Hrs of Summer Solstice mountain bike relay, marking the 7th anniversary of our team name, which I invented on the spur of the moment while signing up for this race. At the time, it referred primarily to our team's mountain biking abilities. We do more than enough racing, so we make a point of treating this as a social event with good company, no pressure to perform, and at least one rookie every year.

This was the first year that we asked a rookie to do the starting lap! 3PinJim stepped in after VO2Max had to drop out due to XC ski training obligations in B.C., and he volunteered to do the first lap. At the time, we didn't tell him that there would be 325 other teams in the line-up, and - well - he didn't ask. Actually, it takes a lot to faze 3PinJim, so he ended up being the perfect choice.



Our second rookie was Sean, a friend of Goose's - a triathlete who really ought to convert to mountain biking. Returning team members were 'Bent, Sid, Knobless, Hingo, Goose, Coach LD, and myself.

Weather was variable, ranging from brilliant sunshine to thunderstorms. In the middle of the night, the course became a quagmire for awhile, and the lap times went way up. It stayed slick for hours, and it was easy to slide off the occasional tree root - ouch.

This was our worst year yet for bike disasters. Knobless had two flat tires on his first lap, and Sid's main light went out early in his night lap in the heavy rain. But the award for biggest disaster goes to Hingo, whose bike stopped rolling, so he abandoned his lap and returned to the campsite.

In spite of all that, this event is incredibly well-organized and fun, and we had a great, relaxed weekend hanging out with friends. We missed VO2Max and hope he'll be able to join us another year since our ranking dipped about 15-20 positions without him! Oh, and this was also the first year that his Mom didn't make cookies for our team. :-(

Without VO2Max and his trusty sidekick Logan, our campsite wasn't as popular with cute young girls as it was last year. But there was one who hung out with us for the entire weekend - 3Pin Jr.



A few highlights... A flying Goose went past our campsite.



Coach LD slid off the Pirate's Plank and managed to fully submerge her head in the mud puddle. She looked pretty good when she was telling us the story (below), but that's only because another rider insisted on cleaning her off at the bike wash.



'Bent survived yet another deluge of questions this weekend - hey dude, can that thing do single track?!?



And Sid pulled through for the team on the Hero Lap, where he had to finish before 12 noon so that 'Bent could head out for one final lap.

Dipped below my weight target by half a pound, ever so temporarily. Didn't think I'd see *that* number on the scale ever again!

Training was set aside when I learned about the Celebration of a Life for a friend's daughter this afternoon. She was my age and had breast cancer return after two years. She was studying to be a Buddhist minister, so some aspects of the ceremony were quite interesting and different. It was all very beautiful, personal, joyous and heartbreaking at the same time. In lieu of flowers or donations, she had asked that each person do something to bring joy to a friend, neighbour or a person in need. Nice.

Met up with Slowrunner, Rocky and Hingo to run the 24 Hrs of Summer Solstice relay lap. They were planning to run the whole 17 km, but I didn't have that much time today, so I headed back to the Chalet after an hour. Fun group, good chat, great single track, perfect long distance pace - glad I went!

Wow, I guess it really is sleep deprivation that is making me feel so draggy. I slept 9.5 hrs last night because for once there was no reason to get up early, and if I hadn't been so horrified when I saw the clock, I probably could have kept on sleeping. Stressful, realistic dreams too. June has been a bad month for sleep. For a couple of days this week, I had strange lip tremors that - according to the ever-helpful Internet - could be caused by early-onset Parkinson's disease, Multiple Sclerosis or fatigue. They went away - phew - so my money is on the "fatigue". I should be able to catch up after this weekend. Yay.

'Bent and I met up with Coach LD and Goose to pre-ride the 24-hr race course loop again. It's a rare treat to do something with both of them together! Tree roots weren't as slippery as Monday night, and 'Bent had adjusted the front derailleur so that I could use the small ring, which was a nice change. Now we just have to adjust the front brake pads and oil a very squeaky bearing in the rear suspension, and I should be good to go for the weekend. After that, I'm returning the Sugar to Ming (after buying him a tune-up), and I will be bikeless once again. No time to go shopping - boo!

Guitarman appeared at a couple of points today and took photos. He claimed to be too injured to ride with us, but even though he started earlier, we never caught up.

Rodney Yee - Yoga for Flexibility. Need to do more yoga! (Please remind me.)

Woo hoo - this may be as close as I ever get to my New Year's resolution weight target!

Night pre-ride of the Summer Solstice race course with Rocky, Scooby, Goose and 3PinJim. Great news - 3Pin has joined our team! We had an opening after VO2Max's coach scheduled him for a training weekend in B.C.

There had been lots of rain, and the trails were slick, so there were a few falls and close calls in our group. My borrowed bike worked fine on Saturday, but it's not so fine now. Most times when I tried to shift into the small ring on the front derailleur, the chain refused to move. This meant that I had to stop and move the chain manually sometimes, and other times I just ran through hilly sections instead of trying to ride. Needless to say, this had a negative impact on my joie de vivre, especially since I would need to work hard to keep close to these speedsters even if my bike were working perfectly! Hopefully 'Bent can get it sorted out by the weekend.

My Niterider Storm light is still working well after a number of years. Scooby complained it was too bright, so it's going to be just fine for me!