From “THE ANIMAL” Eric Hunner…

Race day I was up really early as usual checking the weather, light rain. Rain was a good thing, we rode MT. SAC the day before and it was dry and dusty, transitioning into cracked dirt and rock hard singletrack. Mix the two together with a little rain and we some nice dirt to race on.

I owe a Big Thanks to Ergon USA, this was my first competitive event that I used Ergon Grips. This also happens to be the first race where I did not focus on my hands going to sleep. In the past I have had to slow down after a rough downhill section due to the fact I could not feel my hands on the grips during a race.

This was not the case during my Race at MT. SAC. I had received the grips the day before the race. Installing the grips is simple and straight forward, very little tweaking needed. I put 15 miles on the new grips before the race, I was already hooked. The adjustable Bar Ends built into the end of the grips are Awesome. The Bar Ends provided multiple hand placements, which was needed for the MT. SAC race because on the course there really isn’t a place to rest.

MT. SAC has a little bit of everything dry pavement, muddy pavement, lots of hill climbs, single track, slippery grass transitions, hike a bike, tunnel crossing, gravel, and a farm crossing. Having the new Ergon grips made the difference for my race; I could concentrate on the race and not tend to my hands. At the start line I had my toughest competitor Mark Mumea next to me and he had the same Ergon grips I had. I asked Mark if he liked the grips? I believe he said, “They are great”. He kept it short as the race was about to start.

The race started and I had a nice start. I stayed on the left side of the start line so I would not get bumped by the multi-speeders running hard to the first turn. It worked No accidents at the start. I lost
sight of Mark at the first bottleneck I had another Single Speeder in my group one of Mark’s teammates Rod Leueque. Rod and I were going back and forth the first two laps. On the first mile of the last lap Rod threw his chain on some rough single track. Rod recovered and still put up a good fight, but I didn’t let him catch me this time. From that point on I was going like mad. I made it to the podium in 5th place.

I owe another Big Thank You to our Team for all the suport and the great food, Evomo, Hoss, & Ergon.

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We recieved the Selle Success RTM saddle recently. The RTM is a sweet looking red saddle with titanium rails and a carbon fiber under. It weighs in at a pretty competitive 206 grams.

Selle Success RTM Red

Saddles are a very subjective piece of equipment. My background in saddles are all WTB. I started off riding a WTB Pure V and enjoyed that immensely. I then moved onto a more slimmed down WTB Rocket. That is the current saddle that sits on my bikes now. The Rocket, in comparison to the Selle Success, is almost portly! It has quite a bit more padding and has a whale-tail design while the Selle Success is reminds me more of a Fizik Arione with the wings.

Installation onto a Thomson Masterpiece Setback seatpost was pretty easy, but I did run across one issue: the titanium rails on the saddle were a little bit wider than the rail guides on the seatpost. That was a bit weird. So I also pulled out a Ritchey Pro post and sure enough, the titanium rails on the Selle Success were a little wide compared to the rail guides on the Ritchey post as well. I was still able to easily install the Selle Success RTM seat to the Thomson post but I’ll keep this in mind if I have any failures from the seat.

Titanium rails

This past weekend I put in an 18 mile ride on the saddle and things were good. It did have significantly less padding than my WTB Rocket and that did cause my sit-bones to get a little sore, but that will just have to be something my sit-bones get used to. I do have a rather large derriere and I am solidly in the clydesdale category so I expect that if there are any issues it will be revealed during testing.

I am impressed by the red cover and the beautiful craftsmanship of the carbon fiber weave. It is really pretty. I’m looking forward to putting the saddle through its paces over the next couple of months and will bring you a full review later on.

Carbon Fiber base

The Selle Success website, www.sellesuccess.com is currently “Under Construction” and I have not been able to find any more information regarding the saddle via google search.

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To say that I was anxious about this race is an understatement. This past month since the Bonelli race has been spent trying to get over soar throats and runny noses. I have been sick for four weeks now which has left me with very little riding time and training. Lucky for me I paid for this race a month ago so as much as I wanted to back out of the race I just couldn’t stand the thought of throwing away 35 bucks!

When I woke up that Sunday morning to rain clouds and sore legs I wasn’t feeling too good about the race. Sore legs you ask? Yeah, sore legs. In an attempt to avoid burning out my legs the day before on the pre-ride, I opted to hike a bike up a few hills. Well, in an attempt to “save” my legs I made it worse because I used different muscles to hike up those hills. My legs were hurting that morning.

Anyways, we headed out early that Sunday morning because we wanted to make sure we were there to encourage Joe and Eric since they had an earlier start then the rest of us. It sure does make a difference to hear the encouragement out there during the race so we wanted to make sure the boys got some much deserved team love out there. And I was glad we were able to get there and set up. It gave me a chance to relax with the children and help with pictures.

I was also relieved when Kim shared some of her anti-lactic acid build up pills with me. Not sure what they were called but I am buying a case of them! They really helped with my legs. I also popped a couple of FRS chews. These were great. No nausea and I felt like I was able to keep up my energy during the whole race.

At some point that morning I surrendered to just having a good time out there. I didn’t feel too confident about making podium becuase of my cold but I really just wanted to have fun. I decided I would just pace myself and ride my ride.

And enjoy the ride I did! The race had a good number of participants. About 6 women in my category (34 and Under) and 7 in Kim’s category (35 and Up), amongst 100 other men. I felt like I had a strong start, the only drawback is probably our positioning in the crowd. I think starting with the head of the pack would have given us more of an advantage. There was a single track portion of the ride early in the race where everyone just bottlenecks and comes to a dead stop. So for those of us who got a later start it really cost us some time. There was a great climb though soon after that was able to give a few of us the opportunity to make up time up the hill. It was shortly after this climb that I was able to catch up the the 2nd place rider in my category and haul butt to get past her.

I really enjoyed this race. I had a good energy and a good vibe for most of the race. It was super encouraging to see the mtnbikerider crew spread out throughout the course. Sometimes I spotted Joe or Jon out there snappin away with their cameras and offering words of encouragement. RL really went out of his way to make sure we were takin care of too. He even tumbled up a hill for me to make sure I got my sugar blocks.

Kim gettin some team support from RL

I really felt like this was one of my strongest races. It felt great to catch up to one guy right after the other and pass him! Hehehe. I of course offered my words of encouragement as I rode on by. I made sure to take advantage of every portion of the trail that I could hammer it and every opportunity to rest on the fun downhills. I was hootin and hollering all the way down the hillsides! I had such a great time out there and it really seemed to go by faster then I had expected. I also want to mention a couple of us were able to throw on our new Ergon grips! Love these. If you haven’t tried these out yet - DO IT! I don’t know how I ever got by without them! I also rode with my new
pack. Great stuff.

At the last hill I actually caught up with Nehr who was nursing some bad cramps. I offered some more words of encouragement after I pulled some souvenirs out of my derailleur hanger and rode on down the hillside as fast as I could to land me a 2nd place win.

Comin in for the finish!

I was really proud of the team. Kim put some hurt on those girls with holding strong during the race. And the boys did an awesome job. Eric and Joe - those guys are animals! I don’t know how they rode 3 laps!! Crazy!!! And so proud of Moe, Nehr and Val for finishing the race! Way to go guys. I think Nehr has a promising future as a racer!

The girlz rocked it!

It was just a lot of fun hanging with the crew and the kiddos too. Good eats, good ride, good “refreshments” (thanks Eric!), and good friends! Now on to Fontucky!!! Woo hoo!

And a special thanks again to KHS (for my frame), ERGON, EVOMO, HOSS, and BikeCommuters of course!

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My day started at 5am.  Excited and couldn’t quite sleep, I tossed and turned in bed.  Around this time I received a text message from RL.  Apparently he couldn’t sleep either and was surprised when I returned his text message.  I started getting ready, getting my things together.  Approximately an hour and a half later, I received another text.  This time it was from Val and he says he’s outside my house waiting for me.  I was confused as I thought we were going to meet at 7:30am.  Then it dawned on me that Val forgot to turn his time back one hour… After clarifying the time, Val decided not to wait for me and he headed straight to Mt. SAC where we later met with everyone.  On our way to Mt. SAC it started raining.  Nothing heavy, but steady enough to wet the trails.

After I picked up my pre-registration packet I ran into a fellow clyde.  He informs me that we are now doing 3 LAPS instead of 2 (18 miles instead of 12) – Whaattt??? This was reminiscent to my race at Sea Otter earlier this year where there was a big confusion.

I was game for the 18 miles however I was a little worried that I may cramp up.  At the line up we were joined by other Sport classes and their respective age group.

When we were given the GO, we sprinted on the asphalt for at least 100 yards towards the dirt, then through a narrow right-handed pathway.  At this point is where the bottleneck starts.  Racers from other Sport class tried to maneuver through this section.  As it turned into a straight away, the first climb was upon us.  I decided to stay in the inside lane.  Sprinting from the flats into the climb, I was in a high gear.  With much traffic upon me, I couldn’t switch into a low gear fast enough while trying to avoid running into other riders.  I got off my bike… Ughhh!  As the hill flattened a bit, I mounted my bike then tried to chase the pack.  I was disappointed as I rode through this section on our Pre-Ride.

Reaching the first singletrack didn’t get any better.  Here the riders were lined up back-to-back and appeared like a centipede from a distance.  High-low, high-low (gears that is)… That’s how it felt like as we would stop and go.  The trail was slippery due to the rain earlier in the morning and light sprinkle was still upon us.  Some riders up ahead would either get stuck or hi-side the embankment.  If one person falters, the rest behind him/her will suffer.  My time in this section would seem like an eternity as I waited for riders to make it through. The rest of the race was a chase as I knew I was behind. 

Approximately 3 miles in on my 2^nd lap, I see several Clydes up ahead.  I knew they were in my class as their legs were marked with #31.  I stayed behind them for several more miles then eventually passed them by the farm.  Completing my 2^nd lap, I spotted another Clyde up ahead.  I would stay behind him until the climb after the Feed Zone.  Here I would pass him and never see him throughout the rest of the race.  Despite the slippery sections and the change of distance, I finished the race without any mishaps or cramps.  The course was exactly like last year’s, which helped tremendously.

Sometime after I finished my race, I was at the Team Tent hanging out with family and friends.  I can hear on the loud speaker saying something about a protest.  Unbeknownst to me, it was for my class the Clydes.  Apparently there was confusion with the finishing times where some guys were listed higher than others on the results board.  After seeing for myself, the results had me listed at 11^th place out of 12 racers.  Had I heard the announcement clearly, I would have protested.  As I stated above, on my 2^nd lap I passed a group of Clydes, at least four in total.  Their legs were clearly marked with our # 31.  I was disappointed with my placement but even if I protested I doubt if I would have placed. 

I was contemplating whether I should make mention of this incident however this is the second time this has happened to me.  Big or small, these events have to be better organized and refrain from making impromptu decisions that alter what the racers have signed up for.  This causes confusion amongst the racers and takes the fun out of the event.  

This was the first time I was classified as a Sport.  I had to ride more miles, but I definitely had a lot of fun!

Onto Fontana for the last leg of the Triple Crown Challenge.

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I believe it has been 4 years since I raced Mt Sac. I still remember that race, RL, Michael Kellogg and myself got our asses handed to us by the course. Being recreational Mountain Bikers, we didn’t know what we were getting into. This year, I decided to give racing another try. Last month’s race at Bonelli Park was a disaster for me, I had mechanical issues and the course simply just kicked my ass.

I was very disappointed on my performance so I decided to make a few changes. First, I had to replace the cassette and the chain on my bike. Since I upgraded the cranks to a sweet XT set, RL suggested for me to change the rest of the drive train. Lo and behold, our team manager/wrench knows what he is talking about. All my shifting woes were gone and my bike was ready to race. I also tried to ride as hard as I could every time we hit the trails, riding with the MtnBikeRiders crew on ‘non-relax vibe’ rides was challenging every single time.

I was a little concerned about the weather, as I left to go to the race it was raining hard at my house. Once I got to the race venue, everything changed and it was nice and dry. As I prepared myself mentally to race, I had two goals in mind: To finish and beat my previous time. Well, I finished alright, however, at this point, I don’t know if I beat my time since the times were not posted at the race. As I stated before, I’m not podium material, but I felt that this is a way of supporting the sport I love and really put to the test all those nice bike parts that I’ve spent more than a few bucks that my wife doesn’t want to know.

My first lap was sort of a ‘recognizance’ lap, I didn’t pre-ride the course and I know that it changed since I last rode it. I’m happy to report that I didn’t walk the bike, except in 2 sections of the course that were rather brutal. The second lap was a different story, I was pushing a little harder and right on the middle of the first hard climb I totally bonked. I quickly ingested a Gu, got some water, almost puked and walked the bike to the top. On my way down, a cool breeze re-energized me (or was it the Gu?) and I started to get on a groove again. As I went under the tunnel for the 4th time, I knew that the end was close, but also that nasty final climb.

As I arrived at the finish line, all the team was there to give me kudos for finishing. All I can say is that I’m really lucky to have such great friends and awesome riding buddies. Congratulations to Priscilla and Kim for your awesome performances and podiums, congrats to ‘The Animal’ on his 5th place on the Singlespeed category, Joe, Ner and Val, you guys did an awesome job.

So is ‘The Moe’ ready to race again? We’ll see you in Fontucky!

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Today is “The Moe’s” Birthday!

We celebrated his bday at the race yesterday with some cupcakes. We also gave him a nice present!

Happy Birthday Buddy!

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The Mt Sac Fat Tire Classic has to be one of the most fun races here in SoCal. It literally brings riders from all over the place in all riding levels the opportunity to try mountain bike racing.

The first race of the day for our riders was at 8:45 am. The next race wasn’t due to start until 11:45am. So that meant that I had to make sure that we had everything we needed such as food, canopy, gels, and family packed and ready to go just so we can be at the venue bright and early to cheer on Eric and Joe.

What made this race interesting was the rain that came down the night before. That morning Eric had called me from the venue, while I was still at home getting ready, to let me know that it was “misting hard.” When we got there, the rain was starting to come down a bit harder but it eventually cleared by the first race.

We set up our RAD Redline Bicycles Tent (thanks gOrK!) and got things ready for the day. We wanted to make sure our racers and family members were taken care of, so we had a BBQ for them. Our menu included flame broiled hamburgers and hot dogs, Salmon, and Mahi Mahi. We also had cup cakes and a pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.

Around 8:40am the racers lined up and at exactly 8:45am, they all took off. Eric had a great start and showed his strength when he started mashing up the first hill. Joe, the Ninja that he is, easily snuck by and with his cat like reflexes, clawed his way through the other riders.

Here’s Eric and Joe coming by the Feed Zone. The feed transitions were almost perfect with the guys…except one time when I handed off the bottle to Joe and it either slipped out of his hands or his cage. But luckily one of the other feeders from another team grabbed his water bottle and ran it over to Joe…nice guy eh!

Ok I’m going to move on to the next race. I’ll go back and talk about Joe and Eric’s race results along with the rest of the team.

So now we move onto the next race in which Priscilla, Kim, Moe and our friends Val and Ner participating in. The beginner’s group is a large one…the organizers said that they must have had at least 100 racers in there.

In Priscilla’s category, Beginner Women, 34 and under she had about 6 in her field. Kim also had about 6 in her field of Beginner Women, 34 and over. The girls did a phenomenal job during this race and you can see them methodically planning their attacks through out the course. In one instance, after a big climb, the girl that was currently in 2nd place (Priscilla’s group) slowed down after the descent and decided to relax, but it was at this time Priscilla took advantage of the situation and hammered it.

Here’s what I was talking about, the girl in the red took it easy as soon as she got down. Priscilla went wide and passed her.

Kim used what she knows from years of riding XC into practice on the competition. She held her position during the race and never let anyone in her group pass her.

Then there was Ner and Val. We’ve ridden with these guys so many times and we knew that Val has the ability to mash it, but what we were all blown away with was Ner’s ability to ride. In all of our group rides, Ner sand bags it…He literally is a humble rider and doesn’t let on that he can mash. At the race, he held a good position and finished strong.
Ner and Val

Then there was THE MOE. You have to understand his mentality on this race. TM had no plans on winning the Beginner 35 and up class, nope. He had a personal vendetta he had to settle. This race was to redeem himself from the Bonelli Race in which he had mechanical problems that caused him to stop. This time he took care of all the bike problems, trained hard and rode with heart.

TM wasn’t concerned about other riders, all he did was “RIDE HIS RIDE.”

TM was pretty determined and only took a shot of MotoTabs during the feed station, the first time he passed by, he simply said, “no thanks…” TM had this calm but eerie confidence during the ride. He wasn’t loud, he wasn’t screaming, he just rode…by the way, Nice Jersey!

Ok now for the results…The girls did an AWESOME Job in bringing home the goods! Kim placed 3rd and Priscilla 2nd!

Eric came in at a respectable 5th place. Good Job Animal! Is that a Coke and Rum in your hands?

For the rest of the fellas, though they didn’t place. They all had a level of satisfaction being able to finish strong and having a great time. I’d like to thank all of the racers for making it out, and a big thanks to Redline Bicycles for the tent, KHS Bicycles for the Hammer Gels and Water Bottles, to Evomo Clothing for your stylish clothes, Hoss MTB for the awesome gear you guys make, ERGON USA for the fantastic grips!

I’ve compiled a small video of the race. The other riders will be posting their own reports, but in the mean time enjoy!

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Ner and I met RL, Priscilla and Eric at the Mt. SAC parking lot just a little after 7AM this morning.  As RL stated on the previous post, many parts of the course were not marked yet.  Prior to running into the Incycle guys, we took a stab at the course and rode approx 3 miles until we were diverted back towards the parking lot. 

From the parking lot we can see the Incycle guys marking the trail.  We fiddled with our bikes for a bit and installed our new gear from Ergon.  After giving the SC Velo guys some time, we headed back to the course.  This time around they opened up a singletrack with in the 1^st three miles.  Un-groomed, it was very bumpy and a little difficult going through it.  

Making our way to the last cut-off (that diverted us back to the car) new signs were up towards another singletrack.  This led us towards the back section of “the farm” and Mt. SAC.  Reaching the tunnel towards the farm, the gate was closed so we just headed towards the end of the course via last hill, which appears to be the dreaded hill.  On the other side would be the final descent.  

Enjoy the video, it should capture majority of the course.

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This morning the MtnBikeRiders.com crew headed out to the Mt Sac trail to pre-ride the course for tomorrow’s race. When we got there the trail wasn’t marked and since this venue is actually at a college, most of the access to the rest of the trails were closed.

We eventually caught up with the SC Velo guys who were marking up the path. We followed them like a shadow to get a feel for what the racers will have to deal with tomorrow. As usual, I brought out the camera to take shots of our riders.

We also just got our gear from Ergon USA. They provided the Team a set of BD-1 Team back packs and grips. Here’s Eric (single speed phenom) and Priscilla with their new goods.

Here’s Priscilla’s new GX1 Ergon Grips.

Here’s the first climb.

It was kinda frustrating dealing with some of the ungroomed single track…

Eric, Joe and Ner.

Check out this picture that was next to the trail…

Tomorrow should be a great race, the whole team will be there. We’ll post our race reports soon enough, wish us luck!

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As I mentioned a few days ago, I had graduated from an 18t to a 17t cog on my single speed. Last night’s training ride with the MtnBikeRiders.com Race Team was my first chance to ride with it.

One thing I noticed right away was the speed I picked up on the flats. I wasn’t spinning as much as I did with the other cog. I also felt that I worked way harder on the climbs.

Last night’s training ride was set at a good pace by Priscilla and Joe. In fact they lead the ride and my only goal was to catch up to them. As I trailed behind, I felt the effects of this cog around mile 8 of the ride. My legs and upper body had been working as if I was on over drive.

As I rolled up to the parking lot, Priscilla was sitting on the curb waiting while Joe and Val were chit chatting. I swear…they are fast! What’s funny was, Kim and Tony Finch rode with me and those two didn’t even seem like they broke a sweat. I think they probably could have gone for another lap…aye….these racer people (Priscilla, Joe, Kim and Tony) are totally built differently from people like me… short, pudgy (but good looking) non-racer types.

Though the 17t cog was harder, I do look forward to progressing in my riding and eventually I’ll graduate to the next level, a 16T!

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