Ethos Racing

CX Nats

2012-01-03T21:48:00.000-06:00

Travis, Andrew, K-Rocket and JP are headed to Madison to contend for the Stars-n-Stripes on Sat. Karen and JP are racing on Wed in the non-championship race as well. Will post up some updates here throughout the week as events unfold.

Here is JP's update for Tue: http://rocketfamilyracing.blogspot.com/2012/01/cx-nats-tue-update.html

K-Rocket 5th and JP 2nd today in Madison at the non-championship races. Double podium day for Ethos!
Day 2 update here: http://rocketfamilyracing.blogspot.com/2012/01/cx-nats-wed-update.html

KC Area racers Dean Parker (4th) and Catherine Walberg (2nd) on the podium today while Jen Harrell-Rhoades just misses with a solid 6th place.
K-Rocket races for the national title @ 10:45am tomorrow morning.
Thu update: http://rocketfamilyracing.blogspot.com/2012/01/cx-nats-thu-update.html

JP's Nats race recap: http://rocketfamilyracing.blogspot.com/2012/01/cx-nats-race-report.html

K-Rockets's recap: http://k-rocket.blogspot.com/2012/01/cyclocross-nationals.html

Ramping up to CX Nats

2011-12-30T12:07:00.000-06:00

Trav, Andrew, K-Rocket and JP are all headed up to Madison next week to rub shoulders with the fastest guys (and gals!) from around the country. Everyone is looking great and coming into peak form at the right time.

Andrew in Hawaii

Andrew has been off getting some quality time in the sun in Hawaii, getting those warm weather miles and smiles.

I have seen a study that says warm weather (or just getting your core really hot doing training) can have as much as a 10% boost to your cold weather racing performance. Seems odd, but hey if he comes back flying faster then he already was then I might just take some vacation time next year and go somewhere warm to ride as well!

The Pain Train out front @ Boxing Day CX

Travis and JP have been setting the grass on fire putting down some fast racing on the local scene. Super cool that we are lucky to have great promoters putting together not 1, not 2, but 3 races between Christmas and New Years so the KC area peeps can fine tune those motors before heading up north.

And the weather, wow, pretty insane, 60's in Dec, yup!

K-Rocket has been mixing is up the the Men's 3/4 races and starting to really get into some hard fought battles. Some guys just don't like getting beat by a girl, but they better get faster quick because next time you are racing and think, man I just got passed by a little dude you better look a little closer because it's probably K-Rocket putting you in her rear view!

Results!

Travis 2nd, JP 3rd Mon

JP 4th and Travis 5th Wed (fast freaking race!)

Karen besting 13 3/4 Men on Wed.

Here is some first lap racing from the Boxing Day CX race.

TEAMwork...

2011-12-13T11:19:00.000-06:00

JP and Karen cleaning mud off Travis' bike in the pits at the Missouri State Championship CX race. Travis went on to take a podium spot during the event. This is one of many aspects that makes racing for Ethos great; teamwork!

Missouri State Championship

2011-12-08T09:24:00.000-06:00

This past weekend was the wrap up of the Boss Cross Series and the Cyclocross Missouri State Championship. The conditions were like none other, 6 inch deep mud the consistency of peanut butter. Sounds horrible right? Actually it sounds like a recipe for Ethos to come out on top! So it was no surprise that the podiums had plenty of green and black, muddy green and black that is.

Sunday the Masters races and Women's Open kicked off early. Steve showed the mature crowd how it is done with a 3rd place finish. JP took the win in the Masters 35+ and was rewarded with one of the ugliest cycling jerseys ever designed. It should be mentioned that JP took 4th in the Open race on Saturday behind Travis in 3rd. Nice work Rocket! As the old saying goes "like father, like daughter" or something like that. Karen took the win in the CAT 1/2/3 so her and her dad having matching outfits for that "ugly jersey holiday party" that the office has every year. You kill it as always K-Rocket. Sarah celebrated her birthday on Sunday by breaking her chain and running the final 1/2 lap and STILL secured 4th. It must suck to have to line up next to those two ladies (Saturday they dominated Boss Cross 4 with a Sarah, Karen 1-2 finish).

By the time Single Speed started the mud had congealed just a slight amount for added resistance and the course conditions deteriorated. I took 3rd. JDoug conformed to peer pressure and raced SS and Cat3 back to back with good finishes in both (7th in SS, 10th in CAT 3), that hurts my legs just thinking about it. For the record, the people who showed up to race this weekend meant business, there was no fluff in the categories. Sean tested his mettle and toed the line for his first cross race ever on his fixie mountain bike, pulling a Top 10. Is he hooked? Only time will tell.

And finally the Men's Open. You race last, the course is totally destroyed and you race the longest. That's what you get for being the tough guys! Well TDonn is one tough SOB. He rolled across the line in 2nd place in a VERY stacked field. Very impressive sir! A huge shout out to the "ugly jersey" pit crew of Karen and JP. They removed untold amounts of mud allowing a clean bike each lap if needed.

K-Rocket dominates Day 2 of Jingle Cross Rock

2011-11-26T16:41:00.001-06:00

Top Step!

Karen faced 40 tough women and even tougher elements and by the end of the race left no doubt who was the fastest on the day.

Big women's CAT 2/3 field.

Way to race girl!

Fist High!

Two Smoking Fast CX racers!

2011-11-22T19:07:00.001-06:00

These two are dominating the women's racing scene and if you see them coming your way you better move!

Ruts and Guts

2011-11-21T15:14:00.000-06:00

Figured I'd cross post this vid from Andrew's blog. Sounds like he did well taking home a pair of 7's for the weekend. Not sure how JP did, but he makes a short apperance in the below vid. Enjoy!

Rut N Guts 2011 from Design Your Ideas on Vimeo.

K-Rocket's USGP Derby Cup Race

2011-11-14T18:18:00.001-06:00

USGP Derby Cup Video from Karen's races over the weekend where she took 2nd and 4th. Awesome venue, super fast racing, best CX course we have raced on to date.

It's awesome how she focuses then competes out there, she really gets after it, her ability to dig, then dig deeper, then bury herself leaving nothing, and I mean nothing is amazing to watch. This year she is developing the heart of a fierce competitor, no quit, no backing down. The way she is racing in these big events is fun to watch, she is out gunned by these women at each race being the little skinny girl and yet claws, elbows, digs and cuts her way to the podium. When her physical strength catches up to her heart it's going to be an amazing thing to watch!

She has raced USGP Fort Co and USGP Louisville this year and has a 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place finish in her 4 races.

Cross Country is finished so now she can focus on Cross the rest of the season. She will be racing the 3/4 Men locally (watch out boys!) and then 2/3 Women at the big races leading up to CX Nats in Jan where she is gunning for a top 5 finish in the 17/18 Junior's race. Next year she may just be racing with the Elite Women...

BLVD Cross...

2011-11-07T13:28:00.000-06:00

That's a wrap!

2011-11-02T23:15:00.000-05:00

Well, mountain bike racing is officially done for the season around these parts. On the other hand mountain bike riding is just reaching it's prime. The BT Epic capped it off the season with a bang. A whole mess of Ethos ladies and gents were present. Here are race reports from Sean, Garet and Jesse. Enjoy, and hope to see ya out in the woods with a big sh*t eating grin on your face.

2012 Sponsors?

2011-11-02T21:21:00.001-05:00

Yeah its late, but we are finally sitting down and starting to plan some big things.

Drop us an email if you are interested in sponsoring one of the fastest dirt racing teams around these parts. ethosracers@gmail.com

USGP New Belgium Cup

2011-10-11T09:11:00.000-05:00

K-Rocket raced in her first USGP CX race over in Fort Collins with the 2/3 women. Fast Fast Fast group of women and girls. She kicked tail Ethos style and took 3rd on Sat and 5th on Sunday. Sunday was interesting as she posted the 2nd fastest lap splits on the day but getting tangled in an early crash kept her off the podium. As they say you can't win the race in the first lap but you sure can lose it. Way to race K-Rocket!

Fast Field with some factory team racers and national top 5 ranked girls in the 2/3 race.

K-Rocket on the stage with the Big Girls, at this rate she will be racing the Elite ranks soon...

Burning Rubber...

2011-10-10T10:55:00.000-05:00

The Flaming Fast Trio of Travis, Garet and Chris Ploch took home top honors with a course record 12 laps at Burning at the Bluff this past weeked. I'm sure we can expect a write up by all three of these fellas in the next few days. Congrats!

Chigger Digger...

2011-09-26T15:58:00.000-05:00

Classic Ethos Post Race Photo...

(maybe one of these guys will enlighten us with a race report soon, other than The Kid, who always puts out a good read)

Hermann CX pics and some cool vid + this years best crash

2011-09-19T20:12:00.000-05:00

So the story goes... 5 Ethos racers go to Hermann CX... whatever, we kicked it with 5 top 5 finishes and one podium (2nd). Sat night K-Rocket took 4th in the Elite Women's race while JP took 2nd in the Masters 30+ and Coe rocketed to a 4th in the Elite men (Travis 9th, JP 18th, Cam forgot to tighten his cranks). Sun more of the same with K-Rocket in 4th again. Travis took 5th, Coe 6th and Cam 9th while JP pulled something in his ribs and left the race early.

Hermann CX is a freaking great way to start the season off. Jeff Yielding does a killer job putting the event on, it's worth the short drive (or bike ride as G-Wiz did) to the event. It's the closest little big race round these parts next to Jingle Cross Rock. Nuf typing, check the pics and the vids. Oh and one last thing, ETHOS IS GONNA KILL IT IN CX THIS YEAR!

K-Rocket whipping her new sled (15.6lbs!)

Travis with his patented mean face on

Coe and Trav playing in the sand again

Cam the Man wearing green and looking mean

Something was funny, like me leading Schottler on lap 1...

Pretty sweet video shot of the Sat night race.

Best crash of the year, so far that is!

The full results are here, out.

Ethos - the inner drive with a kick of HTFU mixed in...

2011-09-06T09:23:00.000-05:00

Garet winning, 'nuf said...

6 crashes at Slaughter Pen Jam... still took the win... way to HTFU G-Wiz!

Spoke Pony 3/6...

2011-08-16T10:20:00.000-05:00

Once again the Singlespeed brotherhood takes the podium at the Spoke Pony Showdown at Swope Park over the Weekend. Jesse and Burnsey tested their metal spinning one gear for six hours on a killer course. I can't say enough good things about Jesse's performance, but his nickname being Manimal might give you a bit of a hint. He pretty much slayed the competition. Good ol' Peat Awesome put up a good fight to come in second on some real p.o.s. 90's bike ( he could possibly be Manimal Jr.) and Burnsey...well, lets just say I had a great time and pulled off another podium spot.

Jason Douglas had to climb some stairs too, another podium for the team! Nice work and nice riding on the unfamiliar, rocky, technical and treacherous course! You made us proud.

Then there's Travis. Lets just say he was 'wearing the pant's' and put everyone else to shame with 60+ miles, and two firsts. Way to kill it (as usual bro!)

Garet showed up for a double header weekend. First was this race and then Single Speed Championships the following day (which he won). On a sad note, Garet had a few mechanicals, the final one being a broken frame (that cost more than my car). At least he still has his single speed :)

Sarah (as usual) demonstrated her mad skills with a win in the three hour. I remember her smiling that big smile as she flew by me mid lap, loving every minute in the saddle.

All in all another great day with four podium's for the crew!

Eye Candy...

2011-08-10T10:54:00.000-05:00

Until we have the time to get off our bikes and write some words about how Ethos is taking podium after podium this season, here is the first of many photo posts for your viewing pleasure.

If you want to see us in action, come on out to Swope Park and watch as the team competes at the Spoke Pony Showdown this Saturday the 13th, testing our endurance on the best trail system in Kansas City!

OMBA CARAMBA RACE REPORT...

2011-07-14T08:59:00.000-05:00

OK, so I was feeling a little down from not reaching my goal at the KS State Championships. The 3rd place finish at that race left a bad taste in my mouth, So I spent the following week pounding barley pops (as Burnsey would call them), Double cheeseburgers, and Chocolate Malts. It's amazing how much weight you can put on in a hurry when you self-destruct. On top of that I only put in around 7hrs of training for the two weeks leading up to Omba Caramba, and 6 of those hours were in the 3 days prior to the race.

I knew I needed to get back into the groove so I headed up to Springfield to compete in the OMBA CARAMBA, race #2 of the MWFTS. With my win at Neosho earlier in the season I'm leading the 35+Expert Category in the series.

So I arrive a little late for my standards and pre-ride only a couple miles of the course, man it was hot! 101 degrees to be exact. None of my team is at the race so I just plan on setting up a table with my drinks on it for self-hand ups. I fill my camel back with ice and water and line up with a total of 10 Experts, all but 2 are 35+ so we decide to combine for a better payout.

We line up on the road for a half mile lead up into another half mile of trail that runs parallel to the road, it's pretty open and spectator friendly at this section, with a couple bumps to catch a bit of air. I look around at the field, and I'm feeling a little intimidated seeing Mark Gullett, Cale Mcaninch (MO State SS Champ), and some other fit looking cats that I don't know.

3-2-1 go, and we are off, I have my fork locked for a standing launch and since I was one of the rare 26'Er's, I knew it might be tough to get the hole shot once the big wheels started turning. Mark jumps and takes off like a jet, so I do a monster attack around the entire field to sit on his wheel. We travel the 1/2 mile to the trail and I take a nervous look back to see only Cale near us, and I have a little bit of a gap on him. Going down the trail I stick to Mark like a tick, and he takes a glance back to see who is with him. I think he is surprised to see me on his butt because he beat me by 25 minutes the last time we met, back in November at my first Cat1 race.

Cale is now with us, and the three of us have already dropped the field with only a mile into the race. We hit the twisty stuff and Mark gets away from me, and shortly after that I bobble on a root that I didn't see, because I hadn't pre-rode this section. When I made my dab it was inevitable that Cale goes around me. He gets a 10 second gap on me, but I'm not fretting about it, because I'm getting better at gauging myself for the long haul. He gaped me, but he didn't look that threatening to me when he did it, a couple times I felt like I could catch him fairly easily, but just tried to maintain my core temperature. After 14 years working in a foundry, I know how important it is to keep the body temp down.

So towards the end of the first lap we come out of the woods and on a long stretch back to the start/finish I see Cale has extended the gap by probably 20-30 seconds. I pop the Big ring and closed the gap before we hit the single track, I came up on him so fast that I'm pretty sure he had a moment of panic when he seen me coming. I'm having some trouble with my handling skills in a couple sections and he advances a bit more.

I finish up my camel back and coming into the 3rd lap I toss it, but while grabbing for my bottle, some jackass had set a bottle on my table in front of my bottle. My bottle falls off the table and I wasn't about to stop at this point because Cale is just barely in front of me and I didn't want him to get away. Halfway through the 3rd lap Cale gets out of my sight, and I'm super hot and thirsty. So, once again I'm sitting in 3rd place and just like my thoughts at the KS state championships I'm not sure I will make it because I can feel some leg cramping coming on. The cramping was only momentarily when a change of events is about to occur. To my surprise Mark Gullet has blown up! I think he was just too hot, but I never got to talk to him after the race. I blow by him with my new found motivation, and I hear him say he's done. I put all caution in the wind and put the hammer down, just to be sure he was done. I come into the last lap and decide to do something I would never do, and that was to stop at my water table so that I could pick up my dropped bottles. Now I'm feeling really hot and dizzy so I decide to pour one of the two bottles on my head, which happens to be Lime accelerade. It was sticky,but I didn't care at this point because it had some cooling effect. I slammed down the other bottle as I rolled back into the single track for the last lap, this lap was definitely my downfall and I ended up giving up more time to Cale. I lost by 3 minutes to Cale but placed 2nd with a 3 minute gap on 3rd place. So with this placing I'm still leading the MWFTS, and my confidence is booming! I'm pretty pleased with my fitness considering I have had a few mental meltdowns this year and the start of grad school this summer has increased my stress load. Regardless, I'm back on my training plan and I'm setting some new goals for the remainder of the year. I'm really proud to be on this Ethos Team and I'm certain that the quality of the team members has motivated me to work extra hard. CYa all at Shawnee Mayhem.

-- GMapes --

Kansas State Championship...

2011-06-27T08:31:00.000-05:00

KC Cup Missouri State Championships...

2011-06-14T09:13:00.000-05:00

Ethos Racing had another great turn out at the KC Cup race at Landahl this past Sunday with a good amount of green on the podium. Hopefully we can get some of the crew to write up a story for you...

Results are HERE

Mark (2nd) and Jesse (3rd) on the SS podium

The Manimal with the Mo State 2nd in SS

Sarah Worthington Killed it...again!

Travis with the 5 spot after as many pit stops to keep air in his tire...

The Kid takes home the big Numro Uno with the Mo State Champ title in his class

SSUSA11 Race Report...

2011-06-10T14:30:00.000-05:00

Just like old times...Ethos Team riders Sean Burns, Jesse Gross and Cameron Chambers had a killer time at the Single Speed USA 2011 event in Boulder Colorado this past weekend.

~~Ride~~ Rad Report soon to follow.

Dirty Little Secret and Kuat Joplin Fundraiser

2011-05-24T12:38:00.000-05:00

Ethos was out in size last weekend over in Manhatten, KS for the UFD Dirty Little Secret race put on by the fine folks of Big Poppi bike shop. It was a great course, and the conditions couldn't have been better. The race was supplied with free BBQ, beer, and tons of swag! Overall it was exactly what every race should be, AWESOME!

At the end of the day we ended up with 4 podiums. Little KRocket raced the Sport Men 19-29 and took a well earned 2nd against the boys. Steve rocked the Sport Old Man class and took 3rd. Travis took 3rd overall in the Expert and 2nd in the 30-39, and I took 2nd overall and 1st in the 19-29 Expert group.

My blow by blow account is here.

Here's some action photos from our boy JP who was unfortunately sidelined with broken shifty bits.

That's JP's bike... Ya, not exactly what it's supposed to look like.

Also, I wan't everyone to go check out on of our fine sponsors and good friends KUAT. They're doing a fundraiser deal in which you buy a Unite t-shirt, and the money goes to the United Way for Joplin. They need all the help they can get, and this is a great way to do it. It's only $20. It's a sweet shirt, and it goes to a great cause. I think it would be awesome to see a huge group of us racers sporting this T-shirt at the next race.

Here's the link...

Rhetts Run and More Syllamo Reports

2011-05-18T11:27:00.001-05:00

Trav and I headed down to the great land of BoCoMo for some Rhetts run muddy action. We got what we had come for. The trail was wet, slick, and muddy. Not often do you get to race conditions like that, but we were glad we took the trip.

In the end I took 3rd overall to Aaron Elwell (1st) and Dan Miller (2nd) with Trav less than a minute behind me.

Shottler was taking some pics... I was in hot persuit at this point.

Results are here...

A couple other reports from out crew down at Syllamo.

Single Speed Pirate

Manimal

2 out of 3 (Dave's Syllamo Race Report)...

2011-05-18T10:53:00.000-05:00

I love this race. I guess it’s the mix of technical, climbing, full single track loop and an uphill start, for me this is the real deal. This was my goal race for ’11 I finished 3rd SS last year and wanted to improve on that this year. I had three personal goals for this year’s race, First SS, Top ten overall and a sub-five hour time. When the race sold out in eight hours I knew the pressure was going to be very high, and worried about it.

Katy, Claudia & I arrived late Friday, settled in to the Anglers White River Inn, waking I’m sure everyone when Claudia decided she would rather be home (she’s 2 1/2). Sorry about that other Angler guests. Morning came early about 6 and we headed for Blanchard Springs. The parking lot was buzzing with racers and there families – a great scene. I met the other Ethos guys at the start line as they all arrived from there camp site, Jesse, Kay, Sarah, Jamie and Bovine. I didn’t see Timbo but did notice he parked his car on the course so he was there somewhere; I made a mental note not to go left at the gun and get clipped by one of his Yakima bars.

The Race

I start the race about mid-pack as I don’t worry much about the front edge getting away, especially when the big climb is going sort everyone out. Plenty go hard on the pavement only to go all little ring when the climbing starts, you want to get to the single track early on this one. As we swing the right off the pavement the pack starts to climb, I quickly work through the bottlenecked traffic and find myself climbing at the tail of the lead-out group. I settle in, watch the Heart Rate and monitor the efforts around me. I see Jesse up ahead killing it thinking “man he really needs to sit down” and would have told him if I was closer, but I doubt it would have done any good, the Manimal has his ways to gut a bike field. Near me a couple guys blow up and drop off, others are out of the saddle too much and going to pay for it, several are just pinned wheezing and slobbering. I let my heart rate settle then push past a small group with Jesse before diving into the single track in the top twenty or so hoping the Manimal is on my wheel…sort of. I find myself with two others and we move at a good pace to try and gap the field. This is always an exciting moment for me, the chase is on, your one of the chased and this big pack of riders is back there hunting you down. We roll steadily together then one guy disappears off the front, the other off my back and I roll into the 1st check point alone. Katy and Claudia are there having fun, I refuel then hit the next loop which goes quickly, refuel again and off into the core of the race. Several of us leave check point 2 together and start the fire road climb out, they fall away and I notice my climbing is spot on. I top out and dive into the woods alone again.

Riding a race alone can be psychologically freaky, your either way out front, way out back or lost. I was fairly confident I wasn’t off the back but the thought I made a wrong turn and was lost did cross my mind.

Ghosts

Several times I look back and think I see riders coming then nothing – just the woods. I listen for the faint sound of derailleur’s slapping or chain chatter but silence, just the woods and a single speed. At the top of one climb I glace back and what I think I see is this dude in an orange jersey charging strong. I guess it’s similar to when combat soldiers see the enemy through the fog and smoke only to be an illusion. I take off waiting to be caught, but nothing - Weird. I roll into check point 3, Claudia is napping, Katy hands off a fresh bottle and off again on a decent gravel climb, another guy leaves at the same time and we ride parallel in sort of a drag race as he tries to overtake me. I keep the pressure steady and don’t make any effort to race him as he’s working way too hard anyway. About two thirds up the climb he pops off and falls away quickly, never to be seen again. Back across the river and onto the base of the ugly your-not-done-yet climb with multiple technical sections, then up some rock steps where Bovine had a “moment” several years ago- ask him about it. You think that’s the top but no, it then throws you onto a long fire road still going up before it relaxes. Once past this you’re close to the infamous red loop. Syllamo gets progressively faster and the red loop is the sweet spot. You don’t want to hit this loop gassed or you will get caught, you have to race it fast for its entire thirteen miles because I guarantee that someone else is. I refuel again and roll. Garret mentioned that clearing his head for Texas set him up mentally to win, since reading that I have been focusing on having fun and riding realizing that I was not clear in my head at Bone Bender and consequently landed on it. Now my head is clear and I’m having fun. I ignore the clock and just ride sending most of last section quickly, all good, let’s finish this.

Then I get caught.

Right after the last check when you go onto the last bit of single track leading up to the fire road Clayton Bell rolls up with authority and takes the pass. Snagged in the final two miles, here we go - a drag race for the line. I jump on and pace him trying to strategize how to get it back with a downhill/pavement finish when riding single speed. He’s moving fast, running for it when we reach the base of the last climb that leads up to the fire road descent. At that moment I hear the sound Single Speeders know and love the “click” as he downshifts for the climb. At that moment I attack, take the pass, and flat kill the climb up and over the top. Thinking he’s with me, I exit the single track at the top with so much speed I almost take out the ribbon stakes at the turn onto the road. Once sorted on the road I spool up to terminal, tuck and hang on for the downhill. The Garmin said I hit 37mph. I listened intensely for the sound of Clayton chasing but dared not look. Late braking for the pavement I make the turn perfect holding speed then start the classic single speed 300rpm-goofy-pump-sprint for the finish keeping it up almost to the last corner, then I look, nobody in sight - sweet. I check the clock, 4:57 and cruise to the finish. Possibly the best fifty miles I have ever raced. Soon the Ethos magic starts to trickle in. Jesse rolls in finishing an impressive 4th SS and cussing Bovine for the bad trail beta, as much as I love racing with Jesse I was worried he was going to pick me off the entire time, he’s fast and dogged in his pursuits. Sarah finished great for 3rd overall women’s - nipped at the line due to a slow leak that came about on the pavement right before the finish. Bovine, Kay and Jamie came in strong improving over last year. Finally Timbo rolls in, looking strong and fresh like he was ready for another fifty. My results, 3rd Single Speed, 9th overall and sub-five hours, two out of three aint bad. Katy and Claudia had fun, provided much needed support, Claudia getting wound up like an eight day clock in all of the excitement, she want’s to go back to Arkansas.

Syllamo Pics

2011-05-17T22:18:00.001-05:00

Jamie piercing the camera lens

Sarah the Blur

Jesse in focus

Kay lovin' it!

Sean riding Syllamo or North Shore BC?

More Podiums - Syllamo's Revenge...

2011-05-16T11:50:00.000-05:00

Sarah and Dave bring home the bacon at the Syllamo's Revenge

50. Race report to follow...

Podiums...

2011-05-09T11:35:00.000-05:00

Huge race recap of the past few weeks coming up. Thanks to everyone that came and raced bicycles with us yesterday! If you missed it, bummer! Trails and weather were perfect.

JP was out snapping pics of not only ethos racers but other racers as well, so go HERE and Check them out!

Check out JDoug's Race report HERE to see podium shots of the Ethos posse, who CRUSHED the competition at the Rubidoux Roundup...

Results are HERE.

Roubidoux Roundup...

2011-05-04T16:34:00.000-05:00

Ethos is helping to make this race happen. Get Some!

Bone Bender Tally

2011-04-21T11:43:00.000-05:00

So after all the dust settled, the Ethos crew racked up a pretty impressive tally of podium apperances at last weekends Bone Bender in Lawrence, KS.

All their winter training paid off, as we had a total of 6 podium spots accounted for.

JP Brocket and Little Karen Rocket took first in the Co-Ed Duo Class.

Kevin took first in the big boys Clydsdale 6 Hour Solo class.

Trav and Myself took down the 6 Hour Duo Open class.

Jessie took a hard earned 2nd in the 3 Hour Solo SS class.

Mark Cole put in 7 laps to capture the 6 Hour Solo SS win.

And even though I couldn't find the photographic evidence to prove it, our gal Sara W. took 2nd in the 3 Hour Solo Female category. She did however come in with less than a minute to spare and still went out for lap 4. Now that's a true Ethosian.

Results here.

My recap is here.

Seans is here.

JDougs is here.

And holy cow, Pryo updated his blog here...

The rest of the crew put in valient efforts, and I'm sure they all had a blast getting blasted by the awesome course that was laid out. Thanks to all the volunteers, and all the work done to put on such a great event. Ethos will be back next year!

Dave's Bonebender Recap...

2011-04-19T12:42:00.000-05:00

Bone Bender, Uuggg. I don’t know what it is but three years running this race has stymied me. I just can’t get a rhythm going for this thing, adding in the Clinton Lake topography just compounded things. I started out OK after the run up. Managed traffic then Phisst- a slow leak in my rear tire. Stan’s stopped it at about 15 psi so I decided to ride it out to the pits since I was in traffic anyway.

About two thirds through the lap on a mostly benign section of trail I dropped off the downhill side and launched over the bars, leading with my face. For a split second I thought I was done, I landed on my head, flipped or whatever then stood up quickly to assess damage. My helmet was OK as was my neck so I jumped on and continued, although shaken at the dynamic of the crash.

Back at the pits I added air but the leak came back so Travis plugged it then I took off on lap two. About a third in, Phisst- a slow leak in my rear tire. Same story so I decided to ride it back low and top it off at the pits. Then another crash trying to manage a rocky section, not on my head but decent enough. My race was all but ruined, I was riding way conservative, shaken from the early face plant and just couldn’t get a decent rock game going.

I limped around for another three laps then called it at 5:20 feeling like another lap would likely lead to another spectacular crash.

I will fight another day.

Bonebender Photos...

2011-04-18T13:43:00.000-05:00

Ethos Team Photos by Randy Braley Photography
Results and more images to follow. The team dominated the competition with multiple podiums! Stay tuned...

Swanson River Shootout

2011-04-05T11:47:00.000-05:00

Ethos takes 2 of the top 5 spots!

Check out G-wiz's race report HERE.

JP Shores and Mark Cole also took home wins at the Spring Fling Crit over the weekend, and our gal Kay took a hard earned 5th down at the Ouachita Challenge!

Two Timing Champ!

2010-12-06T12:29:00.000-06:00

Ethos owns the 60+ category.

Steve came through victorious this weekend, taking both Missouri and Kansas State Titles.

Great job to all the racers this weekend!

2010-12-06T12:05:00.000-06:00

Karen Brocket, Missouri State Champ!

Jingle Cross Rock...

2010-12-01T10:19:00.001-06:00

De Stad Cup Cross...

2010-11-16T09:57:00.000-06:00

(thanks for the photos Chris!)

Boss Cross Numero Tres

2010-11-02T12:02:00.000-05:00

So the boys took to the grassy knolls again last weekend, and took part of Boss Cross 3 over at some park, somewhere... From what I read, the crew at Boss once again proved their awesomeness by providing a great venue, and superb course.

Travis brought a 10th place in the open home, while Jamie pulled down a 15th in the 4s. Looks like the 4s still continue to be the largest classes, this one had 40+ in it.

Old man Winters brough in a solid 6th in the Master 4's race. I haven't been there to watch, but judging by his past few results, looks like Kev is getting stronger and stronger.

Steve took home a win! Yes sir, Steve managed to stick it to the 60+ class, and took home a much deserved win.

Last and not least, our boy Dave took home a 3rd in another heavily stacked SS class. I'm excited to get to race these guys. Seems like we have some new contendors doing it single style, and if all goes as planned, I'll be throwing my hat in the ring this weekend.

I'd love to have pics of our boys in action but after looking for longer than I'd like, I can't find any. I've seen them on everyone elses blogs, but my seach feature is down, and the only ones I've found are by Lantern Rouge, and of course those can't be saved.

Stay tuned, we have some more announcing to do in the near future. Looks like Ethos just picked up some strong talent for next year...

G

Travis throwing it down for the win at the Swayze cross race last week.

Smithville CX

2010-10-25T12:31:00.000-05:00

When posting the title to this post I accidently put XC instead of CX. My minds still stuck in mtb mode.

Yesterday was teh smithville cross race and our boys did quite well. Travis got a holeshot, settled in and took home 4th in the open.

Kevin and Steve battled it out in the 35+ 4's and Steve managed to come out on top just by a hair. Kevin did also do the 4s though so maybe that was it...

Jessie doubled up, took home a good finish in the Master 35s, and then won the Master 35+ 4s. I'm thinking it's time for our boy to move it on up. Wouldn't want him being a target for our drama filled sandbagger blog. Silly boys.

Enjoy the pics from our good friend Cross Guru. Awesome job on them...

Ethos At The Cup

2010-10-19T20:25:00.000-05:00

Last weekend was the Boulevard Cup as most of you crosser know. Apparently it was fun. I was too hungover to make an appearance. Let's just say my post season break has lasted longer than usual.

Travis is putting his new Moots to work in the Open class and is doing well for a mountain biker. Roadies seem to still rule to cross roost... He managed a well respected 6th.

Jesse is proving his might, with a nice 4th in the 4 class...

Kevin was on the verge of a top five, pulling a 6th in a nicely stacked Masters 40+ cat 4 race.

And Dave rounded out the crew with a 5th in a super stacked SS class. Over twenty racers in that one boys.

Pictures can be found here...

Couldn't save them, cause they protected.

I believe Smithville is this weekend, so all you crossers have fun.

G

24 Hours of Moab...

2010-10-11T16:56:00.000-05:00

Yep, Our man and one of the Ethos founders, Cameron Chambers is THE USA Cycling 24 hour national Solo Singlespeed Champ! Way to go bro!

Cam's Race report is HERE

A Good Ol Fashion Irish Hoedown

2010-10-06T09:54:00.000-05:00

I highly recommend not racing this weekend. There's kind of a big deal going down. It's the Weston Brewery Irish Fest, and it's going to be AWESOME! Nothing better than good Irish music, awesome Irish food, and the best part, lots of Irish BEER! (they'll have other brew there too for the less manly)

We've got a group of Ethos folks headed down Saturday night, so come join us! Here's all the info straight from the boys up at Weston.

Screaming Orphans Return to Weston Irish Fest

four sisters from County Donegal, Ireland to headline the event

Weston, Missouri - The 11th annual Weston Irish Festival opens its gates Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, October 8th, 9th & 10th, at O'Malley's Pub & Courtyard in downtown Weston. The best Irish music, piping and dancing, along with traditional Irish food and drinks, are what you'll find at the three-day event. The festival features musicians from across the U.S. and Ireland. Seventeen local, regional, and national touring acts will perform on the open-air courtyard stage as well as the two indoor pub stages. A fourth stage, adjacent to the courtyard stage, will showcase the pipers and dancers.

Headlining this year's festival are: The Screaming Orphans – from County Donegal, Ireland, The Elders, Jiggernaut, Brigid’s Cross, The Mickey Finns, and Connie Dover - Weston’s own Emmy Award winning singer and composer.

The aroma of authentic Irish dishes - corned beef, Irish stew, and Dublin coddle will fill the air along with traditional festival favorites. Featured beers are O'Malley's Cream Ale, Weston Wheat, Festival Brown Ale, and Dropkick Ale - all brewed by Weston Brewing Company.

In conjunction with the festival, the third annual Weston Wellies Race, sponsored by The Celtic Ranch, takes place on Sunday, October 10th. Participants are eligible to win a trip for two to Ireland.

Festival hours are Friday - 5pm to midnight, Saturday - 11am to midnight, and Sunday - noon to 10pm. Gate passes for Friday are $8, Saturday - $10, and Sunday - $10. Children 14 and under are admitted free.

The Weston Irish Festival is presented by Weston Brewing Company, O'Malley's Pub, and America Bowman Restaurant. Sponsors of the event are McCormick Distilling Company, Guinness Import Company, and Capital Electric.

Check the website at www.WestonIrish.com or call 816-640-5235 for more information.

Boss Cross 2...

2010-10-05T09:16:00.000-05:00

This has got be hell on your drive train... Travis putting the power down. Kinda reminds me of going to one of those mud-pulls for monster trucks or something. "Next up, Pyro pulling the 12,362 lb sled through twelve feet of snake infested sand"...

Mass Update

2010-10-04T11:43:00.000-05:00

Sorry folks... I know you've been all so patiently waiting to hear what the Ethos crazies have been up to lately. I'm just saying... Travis has taken forever getting pics sent, and a post without pics are about as pointless as a bike classified without putting the size.

Dave won SS cross style at Swope which brings us to the XC race. Rain the night before made for a super hard course. Here's action shots..

Getting the sleds ready

Shawn looks confused

So glad to be done

Travis sampling some fine brew from Weston

So weak

Jamie looks excited!

Travis on the podium

Travis going fast

Everyone had a good time given the conditions. Shawn did it fixie style, and I had a broken seatpost... Guess it's better than broken bones though.

Then it was Manions Cross where Jamie and Kev took it to the house cross style.
I couldn't find any pics, although I was for sure I found some somewhere last week. Oh well, you have the man picture of Jamie below that pretty much sums it up. Super tough course from what I've heard. Kev didn't finish last in the 4's, and Jamie mixed it up in the 3/4's.

Whilst everyone was off racing skinny knobbies, Steve and I took it to dirt for some more XC action at Knob Noster. The course was almost perfect, but a little rain the night before made for a couple of slick corners and a little overall slower speed. It was my home course and I took it to the whopping 4 total experts for the overall win, and Steve took home a 2nd, inching his way closer and closer to beating his rival, Gary Lowden in the old man Cat 2 class.

Yesterday Steve and I took it to Warsaw for some more XC fun while the other boys took it to Boss Cross. Travis and I had similar luck. I flatted twice in the first half of the first lap of three at Warsaw, but managed to still finish the race. Travis sliced his sidewall in the last lap. Kevin is working on his skillz and raced 4s, and I assume Jamie was there too. Haven't got the full recap on that one yet. Kevin took another 2nd, beating out some other competition, and yet getting even closer to Gary.

Now it's pretty much full on cross. I give it to my boy Steve, at least he came out to get in the last of the dirt action. Now I guess I'll start riding my cross bike for the first time since last year...

G

Man Style...

2010-09-28T09:55:00.000-05:00

Our team player Jamie showing us his guns at Manions CX Race this past weekend neck & neck with another KC Local, Shoffner (Shoffner has 15 or so stitches in his right arm from the KC Cup race the previous weekend!). How'd he do? Stay tuned to find out!

Dave Wins Cross!

2010-09-20T15:05:00.000-05:00

Our boy Dave took to Swope Saturday to partake in some cross goodness, as the KC scene cross opener took place.

He raced the SS class, and raced it well. Better than everyone else by the looks of things.

More to report as soon as pics get rounded up from Sunday...

Binder Tall Oaks and the Lizard

2010-09-09T12:52:00.000-05:00

Like a prego, I'm late, but what can you say, waiting for results and pictures gets to be tiring sometimes. Now two weekends ago, six dirt pounding dudes from Ethos embarqed on a journey to Binder in Jeff City for the big annual bash known as the Tall Oaks Challenge. Jamie and Steve teamed up in the duo, Kevin and Jessie also did, and Trav and I were looking for some justice to be layed upon the past two years winners, Chris Ploch and Tom Arnold. Both Trav and I had raced here before, and it's the trail I cut my teeth on just 4 short years ago on my way into this crazy sport of ours. The rest of the boys got their Binder cherries popped, and from the comments afterwards, thoughouly enjoyed it.

Jamie So Fast I'm Blurry Jeffries

Long story short, Jamie and Steve battled Jessie and Kevin with the duo of Kev and Jessie taking it to the hoop. Trav and I put lap after lap of fast furious peddling down, to claim a new duo of champions at Tall Oaks! 11 laps in 6:08. Next year we're doing 12.

Wizzing By Single Speed Style

Jessie Rolling Single Also

Travis Holding It Down Strong As Always

Steve was not found in the pictures. Probably because his blazing speed blinded the camera man everytime he came flying by.

Chris blew his rear derailuer, which was a big bummer, and the duo of Jeff Yeilding and Mark Gullet took second, with third being someone I don't remember for some reason. Maybe if they ever get results up.

Yesterday another group of 4 of us took off in a crammed Subaru to test our might against the Tour De Lizard trail system. We arrived at 7 on Saturday afternoon, mainly because I'm a loser, and took to the trail to see just what everyone was talking about. We got a proper lesson in mountain biking that evening. We finished in the dark, which is always a great way to finish a pre-lap less than 12 hours from the race. Did I mention it's technical sections would make anything we have around these parts look like a childs play set? IT WAS AWESOME!

Travis pulled out an impressive 3rd overall, and 1st in his age group. Steve took the top spot because no other 60+ man was man enough to race him. Steve is pretty intimadating. Kevin SURVIVED! With a nice tiger slash, knee slice, blown up wrist, and bruised and battered thigh. Me, well, I didn't do so well. The rigid singlespeed wouldn't be my recommendation on this course. Add to the fact I rode like a 12 year old girl, and it pretty much spelled disaster from the start.

A common sight this year. Travis with some Sunryes Ale, posted up on the podium.

Kevin after the apparant lion attack.

And it's not broke! The benefit of being a vet is you can x-ray yourself for free.

Ya, we pretty much have the most bad ass old dude around on our team. Minus Doug... Both have my respect.

Next weekend is SWOPE SON! If you miss this race then shame on offspring, because they got the genes of a Debbie Downer. This is were all the cool kids will be, and everyone's doing it, so just toss those excuses to the side and come out and pound some good ol' Swope action.

Also, put in on your calendar, September 26. Yes another weekend of dirt loving as the action takes to the trails of Knob Noster. I can personally promise you you will have a blast at this place. It's my home trail, one I ride at least twice a week, and have been for 6 months. I still love every moment of it. It's fast, fast, and more fast. Super buff, a couple of good climbs, and a couple of sections that will allow you to go far past your comfort zone of speed.

That's all for now folks. We'll see you this weekend!

G

RIM RIM RIM

2010-08-27T14:32:00.001-05:00

Not to forget about our stud Trav's success at RIM, I figured I'd let ya'll know. Travis put it down Ethos style at RIM to take 2nd in the 30-39 6 hour solo class, 2nd solo 6er overall, and only 3rd overall including the teams. That's crazy...

Kevin had wonderfull luck himself also... As seen below!

Now read Dave's recollection... !
!
V

Dave's Leadville Re-Cap

2010-08-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

Here it is boys and girls... Grab a drink, and enjoy the thoughts of our boy Davey Wilson as he recounts his Leadville experience. Dave is an endurance he-man who's shown me how to do it long on more than one occasion. Very good insight into this beast of a race...

The History

The third time’s a charm, or so they say, but for me it was the fourth. This requires a bit of history for the full effect. I took my first shot at the Leadville 100 MTB back in 1996 and at that time, it was a ridiculously stupid idea. I had no idea what the race was really about. And this is also when the nine-hour monkey jumped on and didn’t leave until August 14th, 2010. For those who do not know, Leadville has two finishing prizes: a small belt buckle for finishing under twelve hours, and then a big one for those who finish under nine hours. The nine-hour is not easy to achieve. I don’t care how fit one thinks he or she is, this is Leadville and it’s different up there.

I returned to Leadville in 2008 looking “to buckle.” I didn’t care about a big one that day, but I knew that was the real goal. I’m either blessed or cursed that I race single speed; it depends who you talk to. That year I managed to have a decent race and squeak out a 9:49—a respectable time for anyone, let alone a flatlander on a SS. In 2009 and against my better judgment, I thought I would “cheat” to my goal a bit by throwing gears on my trusty do-everything SIR 9 and try to sneak in a sub nine. This was a bad idea, at least for me. The weather was cold and rainy, which is no small deal at 10,000+ ft. I felt “off” prior to the race, nearly went hypothermic on Columbine, blah, blah, blah, and I was lucky to finish at 11:10 that day. That was a race I would rather forget, and for the most part, I have. However, with two small buckles in my hands, the monkey was keeping score.

The 2010 Season

This brings me to the 2010 race. I knew it was going to be hard. Leadville is an unrelenting race that requires endurance style fitness, but mental fitness just as well. For most people (with the exception of the pros, and even they fail to get it at times), this race does not cut you loose until you roll off the red carpet at the end of the uphill finish, and not a mile sooner. There is no “last big climb and now your home free” to this thing. And don’t forget, this all happens at or above 10,000 feet.

This year I started racing for Ethos Racing, a scrappy fast bunch that balances fun with performance, and most often results. Travis and Garret are frequent podium visitors on the XC circuit, while I have been focusing on key endurance races leading to Leadville. My family commitments and over-forty attitude mean that I have to be very diligent about using my ride time for purpose. “No junk miles” as my friend Lance, a Leadville local, told me earlier this summer prior to the Dirty Kanza. I started the season slow with The Bone Bender at Smithville and then bounced back to third place SS at Syllamo’s Revenge even though I had a frustrating race. Next up between training was The Dirty Kanza. I didn’t have much of a plan for this day except to ride all day just to see what happens. It was a big gravel grind training day. Lance came in from Leadville for the Kanza with several others and ended up riding with me SS after munching his rear derailleur at about mile 30. I managed to the 101-mile mark before feeling the onset of heat issues; he went on to the 145-mile mark. Lance had been honest to advise that day that hardly anyone from low elevation goes sub 9 SS at Leadville; in fact, very few go sub 9 SS at all.

Next entered Tom Bondurant and his “plan”. I work with Tom and many know him from his strong road performances. Last year I talked Tom into doing Leadville, and once we both made the lottery cut, he instantly started taking it seriously. He let me know last spring that he had a training plan designed for him, just for racing Leadville, so we split the cost and I gave it a try. Because of other commitments and my weak desire to ride frequent long, ugly rides, I typically don’t follow such plans. I did the best that I could by focusing on strong interval training and managing to get several 7+ hour gravel grinders in with Tom leading up to the taper for Leadville in mid-August. Once in the taper and with the dirty work behind me, I started to reflect on my training and attitude. I felt pretty good, and I was aware that this was not always the case before I race. I managed a few Wednesday Spin rides with Travis and Garret, which seemed to turn into serious climbing-hammerfests, and I still felt pretty good. I was ready for this.

I was only able to arrive in Leadville Thursday prior to the race due to a number of variables. Plus, I don’t believe in acclimatization unless I can arrive three months before, so I was fine with arriving just a day or two before the big day. I recruited my friend, Marcos, and his girlfriend, Dana, to run my race support since my wife was starting her ninth month of pregnancy while attending to our 22-month-old daughter. Plus, I also knew that this race was an outstanding spectator event, and that Marcos and Dana would have a blast, and I think they did. We arrived and set up camp (literally) in Lance & Michelle’s backyard, and settled in for the five-star hospitality they always provide. Friday was the race check-in, and then Tom and I took an easy ride out to St. Kevens and back, which was a big test to see if I felt like a bike racer, or if the altitude would kick in and hold me back. After that ride, I had never felt better.

The Race

The start of the Leadville 100 is something to behold. It’s usually about 37 degrees and dark with a gun time at 6:30 AM and with racers who show up as early as 3 AM to claim a spot in the mass start. At this time, spectators are usually starting to line the streets, too. Some racers think starting position affects their finish time prospects, but I have never been one of them. As I see it, any endurance race of this stature will not be won in the first two hours of riding, let alone at the very start. After waking at 4 AM and then having coffee and breakfast, Tom and I headed to the start at about 5:30. Lance had the luxury of leaving later because he makes the top 100 field cordoned off at the front. Despite this, I have always managed to line up with little trouble at about Harrison and 6th Street on the uphill corner. Tom seemed noticeably nervous as anyone should be and as I usually am, but for some uncanny reason this year I was dead calm while waiting for the shotgun. As the clock ticked closer, the energy escalated appropriately. The extra layers started shedding off of the edgy crowd of riders, the helicopters arrived as the pros made their last minute arrivals up to the front, and then the “BAM!” of the shotgun created a brief pause, then a slow roll out began as everyone surged forward. Leadville, with all of its uphill reputation, ironically has a downhill start. Anyone who races bikes knows that this undoubtedly means that racers will speed fast for the front, and Leadville is no exception.

Outbound

While riding single speed, there was not much for me to do except try to avoid contact, tuck, and coast the downhill pavement until I hit dirt. When the double track arrived, the course has flattened out and I was able to move up through the crowd. I worked my way through traffic by making sure not to get my heart rate too high early, and kept my eye out for riders who were possible trouble. At this point, I had lost Tom. I had heard him while on my wheel back on the pavement saying, “This is the coldest start I have ever done.” I just figured he went by me in a group, or was still there. As the course made a left turn up to St. Kevens, the first climb of the race, I noticed all the geared guys around me shifting down to their little rings still several hundred yards from the climb’s start. Wow! A bit early guys? - this caused a drop in speed and control with the entire pack, so I quickly started picking my way through to keep up momentum along with some other SS guys in the same situation. There was no way to get away from the pack, but I was able to ride through it on the climb if I paid attention. As usual, there was a bunch of bickering, wheezing, and general chaos, which I always find entertaining. Finally I hit the first dog-leg left where things open up and started to flow. The next sections were standard fare for me. I ran with the fast line, but watched my heart rate and avoided bad traffic. My race plan was to go all the way to Twin Lakes (40 miles) before refueling, so I pretty much relaxed and kept things moving all the way there. I expected to see Tom overtake me on the Fish Hatchery road, but when that didn’t happen I figured he might already be ahead of me.

Twin Lakes came up fast. I spotted my top-notch crew flying the custom “old goat” flag representing my age, and I came in for fuel. I told Marcos before the race what to expect and to not let me piddle around at the stop like I tend to do sometimes. He listened. Dana took the empties, Marcos restocked the cages and told me to roll. I caught his eye for a brief moment and he said it again, “Get rolling, the race is on.” I took off for Columbine. The crowd at Twin Lakes was incredible. I feel like I know what it’s like to race in the Tour de France because it was a packed, tunnel of people for a mile. I tried to slap hands with as many kids as I could as I flew through, and I headed for the big eight-mile climb. As I started the approach to Columbine, the first hints that this was a big day crept in. Once on the grade I felt slightly sluggish as others passed, including other SS guys. I started to think this might be the beginning of trouble for me. It was time to watch the heart rate again. The switchbacks came and went, and soon I was approaching the steep top section. This was the last grueling steep 2-mile section and it required a fair amount of hike-a-bike. Some blog chatter mid-July mentioned that this had been graded and could be ridden, but to me it looked the same as the ¬years prior. About half way through this, Lance went screaming down chasing the leaders. I made the turn around and rolled through the check not needing anything. I checked the clock for the first time: 4:47—mmm….not good. I was behind my target split of 4:36. I chose not to watch the clock on my Garmin this year and just watch my heart rate and average speed; I knew I needed to maintain roughly 11.3 mph to hit nine hours.

Inbound

I passed Tom climbing up shortly after starting the decent. He was looking strong and we exchanged “dig deeps!” as we passed. As I further bombed down what is one of the great downhills of all time, I noticed a four-wheeler on the road up ahead with a bike on it. As I got closer I thought, “GF Superfly--like Lance’s,” and then it I realized, “Oh crap, that’s Lance on the four-wheeler.” As I rolled up along side I noticed he was holding his shoulders tightly. He winced with pain as the ATV hit bumps and I asked, “Collarbone?” and he said, “Yeahowww!” I responded, “That sucks. Should I tell Michelle?” That was a dumb question.

The rest of the decent went uneventful except for watching some guy completely over-cook a corner near the bottom, go off-road through the trees and back on the road. I yelled “nice save” as I passed. He looked a bit shooken up. Twin Lakes inbound came quickly as I rolled up to my stop for more fuel. Again, Marcos and Dana were NASCAR quick. I told Marcos to hunt down Lance’s support and give them the bad news. I relayed Tom’s position to his crew and then heard the “get moving” from my crew chief, Marcos, and off I went. Inbound from Twin Lakes is rather benign as riding goes at Leadville. There were some big rollers that came and went, and soon Pipeline Aid was there. Marcos and Dana were ready with the goat flag flying proudly. I was 13 minutes behind schedule and was starting to feel it. Since I was thinking I was out of nine hour territory, I wanted to hang out a bit. Marcos wisely said, “No way. Get rolling. This party’s not over.” He’s a good listener. I told him weeks before to NOT let me mess around and lose focus at the stops no matter what, and he came through for me. Off I went.

The finish push

As I mentioned before, Leadville doesn’t cut one loose until the end. The last 20 miles are the hardest of the race. As expected, the climbs were ridiculously tough; they were loaded with false summits and mid-climb drops that robbed elevation from me when every gain was counted by the foot. And this all happened after 80 miles of solid effort. The Fish Hatchery road came with a stiff headwind and I traded pulls with several other riders as we headed for Power Line. I backed off the pace as we rolled past the Hatchery and let those riders go, knowing I didn’t want to start climbing even slightly gassed. I watched my heart rate. My average speed was still right on the bubble at 11.2-4 mph, but some serious climbing loomed ahead. It was not looking good for a sub-nine. But I stayed in it. Power Line came up slowly with a crawl, and then the grade increased to stupid and everyone dismounts and walks--unless your named Weins, JHK or Leipheimer. While walking this stretch, I tried to keep a decent stride. I walked with purpose, watched the heart rate, and kept moving strong because I knew it would be easy to give up when dismounted and just slough along, losing serious time. I noticed I was passing riders and not getting passed. This was a good sign. As I progressed from hike to bike and back again, I noticed that with each dismount to remount I anticipated the dreaded feeling that I was not going to be able to ride the next section, yet I actually still had power and my average speed didn’t drop that fast. I thought to myself, “Hmm….this was going to get interesting.”

While topping out on Sugarloaf, I relaxed briefly and then let it rip. I needed to bank some time. I popped out on Hagerman Pass pumping the bike up to speed and tucking in for every fraction of speed I could get--there was still plenty of climbing left. As I rolled out on the lake road, I checked the clock and it said something like 7:44ish. “Crap,” I thought, and said aloud, I imagine. I knew I needed to be at Carter Summit at about 8:00 to make a nine-hour finish. I was pretty confident that wasn’t going to happen. I was thinking it was over, yet my average was still telling me it was possible, I stayed in it.

As the climb up the lake road started (which is truly my only hated climb in this race), I passed a guy having a “moment” and said, “Stay in it. We’re right on the bubble for nine!” when he blurted out something about being twenty minutes off. That’s what clock watching will get you. I gave him a, “Dig deep!” and I started just that myself on this crap pavement climb. It was fourish miles long, loaded with false summits and sucks. I think I hated it most because I have bad memories of this climb from previous LV100’s. Plus, it is paved, which made me think it should be easy when it was not. It usually feels like it takes forever, but this time it did not. I hammered it steady with power, caught several riders, watched the ol’ heart rate, and then Carter Summit came up quickly for once.

I rolled in, knocked back the traditional cup of Coke, dumped a couple waters over my head, took a time check…8:12. “Holy shit. I’m still in this thing…barely,” I thought to myself. It was time to start drilling it. I was not going to watch the heart rate any longer. I took off into the woods on a mission. Normally it would be told that from Carter to the finish it takes about an hour. I was in the hole, but I knew from my ‘08 run it could be done in less. The climb up St. Kevens was good. There was one small slide crash on the off camber road by the fence, but I ran the rest and recovered on the downhill to the valley. I rolled out on the flats behind a geared guy and spun up to catch his wheel. This worked for a while, but he was rolling slightly out of my single top-end range and I let him go. Out onto the pavement a line of guys went by yelling, “Jump on!” I tried, but again they were rolling too fast. I kept them in sight, thinking I could use them on the blvd. Then a motorcycle crew with this huge camera rolled up along side and yelled, “You’re 20 minutes from the cut-off. Think you can make it?” I don’t remember exactly, but I said something like, “It’s not looking good, but we’re going for it.” Then I asked if I could draft off of them. They threw out a, “Good luck,” and sped away. Dang it. 20 minutes left. Are you kidding me?! I tried to do the time equation and came up short. I was guessing a 9:10 finish. But my Garmin still said 11.3mph. Hmm…again.

As I came up on the rocky approach to the famous blvd, the pace line group was starting up it and falling apart. Uphill was not in their tool box anymore and they would do me no good on the blvd. I topped out the rocky ramp at the bottom among the group, and then started hammering it out on the blvd. For most, the blvd is the big demon--a long relentless dirt road incline back into town. I have seen more people cry on this section than any other and I passed several this trip. My heart rate was up, but I was still making power. As I turned onto the pavement I went for a time check fully expecting to see something like 9:04 but I was staring at 8:58. This was a cruel joke. Out of the saddle (for the first time all day; remember, I was watching the heart rate) I did my best climbing sprint up the sucker hill at the west end of Sixth Street noticing a slow moving police car up ahead and thinking, “I bet he represents the cut.” The sprint pinned me for the first time all day and I had to recover on the bench before the decent and then final climb to the finish.

Somewhere in this section 9:00 hours rolled by. I was determined to finish strong, so I spun like mad down Sixth and then hammered it to the line. Everyone was screaming like crazy and my dedicated crew was yelling “Wilsoooooon” as I rolled in at 9:01:53. I didn’t care about the buckle anymore. I just had the best race of my life. Historically, I screw up endurance races by leaving the gate like a burnt cat, going hard in the middle, and then I limp it in. In case you missed the “I watched the heart rate” thread throughout this, it is that act that saved me. I had the second fastest finish split in my class and ended up top ten SS with eighth place. I would claim the flatlander crown but XXXXXX from Des Moines blazed in for third, so he gets it.

Now about that buckle I said I didn’t care about. Traditionally at Leadville, the audience votes several riders that just missed nine and twelve hours. I didn’t think I would be one of them, but five were called up and I was the fifth. That monkey is gone. It was a perfect finish to a great weekend. I can’t thank my wife, Katy, and daughter, Claudia, enough for putting up with my stupid training, but all three of us are done with the Leadville100 for a while--at least as a racer. Will I be back? Yes. I’m thinking a finish time starting with an eight would be nice. Did anyone else just see that monkey?

Oh, yeah about Lance. Broken Scapula and a bunch of ribs, he should heal. I said I would come back when he enters SS. He said “deal” And the most impressive feat of all Michelle finished the 100 run this past weekend in 26:50. How cool is that.

Croc Rock

2010-08-05T12:37:00.000-05:00

Ya, I'm late, but I was hoping for some sweet trail pics to show of us dominating the Croc Rock race. No go on that, so I guess a few podium pics and a picture of Kevin's mug is all you get.

Last weekend was a great one for the race book. Lyle put on a great race, with a super fast course considering the amount of rock thrown in.

Myself, Kev, and Steve comprised the Ethos group. Kev made a sweet 5th place podium apperance as shown here...

Steve is looking good and put his best result of the year in yet with a 4th place finish.

And me, well it was another good weekend. 1st in my 19-29 group, and 3rd overall.

Good times, great racing, and even better beer. Everyone seemed to enjoy the Sunryes Ale. It's a classic summer brew from Weston. Kev and Amy seemed to enjoy Ruddy as well.

I'm off for a couple weekends, but we should have a good size group of fellows up at RIM in a few weekends. That's going to be a sweet race, and I hate to miss it. Get off yur bum and do it...

Later

G

Sunflower State Games

2010-07-27T12:27:00.000-05:00

Last weekend Travis and I headed to Topeka to mash some pedals at the Sunflower State Games race. Well when you first pull up to see ten cars and the registration booth in the middle of a random neighborhood you start to wonder. Turns out all the action was happening up the hill, which really made no sense why they had registration at the bottom. We even had to pull off the tag team effort to ride the cooler up the hill, not knowing we could have just drove. Nothing like toting a cooler full of water bottles, beer, and a foam roller up a hill for a warm up while trying not to rip off your buddies arm because you can't ride in sync.

We droped the cooler off and started up the start, which happend to be a half mile plus flat gravel path. I figured I was doomed from the start. A singlespeed and flat gravel paths don't mix well together. Once we finally got the singletrack though it was all smiles. Fun fast flowy dirt. Great course for a singlespeed with a good mix of climbing and decending. All in all after our pre-lap, we were ready for four laps of fast racing fun.

We toed the line with another seven or eight experts. I think there were nine or ten of us total, not a big field, but fairly stacked with our big comp being mister Aaron Elwell. That dude always makes us look bad. But he's a pro you know, so we don't feel too bad.

The official said go, and I did. I spun like a mad man, and got the hole shot. Eventually got swallowed up by the field charged by Travis on a mission.

Four laps later and Mr. Elwell took first honors, I had a suprisingly good race and took 2nd, and Travis took 3rd. Nothing to crazy during the race, no mechinicals which was welcome. I did manage to stay on Aarons wheel for the first lap, and was only down a few seconds on the second. That's when he started opening the gap.

Big shout out to our newest sponsor, Weston Brewry. These guys know how to brew some good brew! We had plenty of beer on hand, but apparently not alot of people feel like drinking at 10:30 in the morning. We were though!

Catch us after most races and we'll be happy to supply you with some fine drinks from Weston. This weeks race we had some Drop Kick Ale and the new Ruddy Wheat beer, which is now my favorite! Thanks again to Mike and Corey out at Weston Brewry for making sure we all stay properly hydrated after long hard fought battles out on the dirt.

I'm heading to Perry this weekend, along with Kevin I believe, who hasn't seen dirt since St. Joe. Sad I know. Trav is heading down South for some undercover training. I think he's just mad I finally beat him and is plotting his revenge.

I told Aarron I got his number this weekend... Here's to that.

Later

G

Travis Rides Bikes Fast

2010-07-16T11:42:00.000-05:00

Last weekend Trav and Steve mounted up and headed down to Springfield for the Omba Caramba race. Reports I've heard were that the race was well put on, but the course was brutal on the rigid singlespeeders. Maybe that's why Travis crushed it, beings he's got one of those fancy plastic full sussy's. Steve too...

Travis took the Open win and 3rd overall. Mark Gullet and Cale M. took the first two spots. Reports also had it Brad Huff was out there. I see him in the bike magazines representing Jelly Belly. Roadies and mountain biking is always funny to me.

Trav and Steve should be heading down to Arkansas for the Fat Tire Festival this weekend. I had plans to go but those plans got squashed when other plans took over and got in the way. I was out last weekend floating and getting crazy down south, and unfortunately have the first of three weddings of this month this weekend. Fun fun...

Fat Tire Festival this weekend, Sunflower Games next weekend, then Perry, then I'm off to Key West and we'll be back to launch a full frontal team attack at RIM!

Get ready boys and girls, it's about to get crazy these next coming months.

Let's look at the boy's as they master the Omba Drop...

Sweet Sweet Castlewood

2010-06-15T11:52:00.000-05:00

Friday about mid-day I found myself in the parking lot of the local grocery store, with a quarter in my hand. Heads I'd go, tails I'd stay. There was a good size storm threatening St.Louis and it wasn't looking good for race day. Luckily for me, the flip came up heads. Off to the Lou it was.

Travis, Steve, and I left about 1, and by 4:30 we were engulfed in a small rain shower. Just enough to slick everything up. It stopped, and then got entirely too humid and hot. No biggie though, we had fun popping our Cwood cherries and ripping down Rollercoaster with giant grins. It was the perfect course to hold the Missouri State Mountain Bike Championships.

The opening climb was bonkers, and I ended up changing my gears based on it, and the two main hills on the course. Basically you climbed the first climb, then bombed down the backside and started what was either 3 laps for sport and SS, or 4 four experts. On the course you quickly hit the Grop hill, then railed Rollercoaster, to the bottoms, up Lonewolf, and then back down to the staging area. I really like how the course was laid out.

We got super lucky and dodged the rain bullet leaving perfect conditions for Saturday.

The results, I took 2nd of 14 in the SS class, Travis took 6th in the 30-39, and 7th overall showing how stacked his class was in the Experts, and Steve dominated two laps but decided three wasn't the best idea. It was hot, and lots of racers pulled early. It was so hot that three of us singlespeeders whooped up on a national champ Pro, Deejay Birch, who was passing through on his way to Colorado. That made my day.

Jon Schottler took the overall Expert win handidly, and Dan Miller took my class, showing us again that he's racing super strong this year.

The quarter was true, but either way I should have known. Grab a couple friends, travel across the state to go ride bikes, and your bound to find fun no matter how much mother natures wants to piss on your parade.

Here's the link to a video of the narly downhill right after we started. My back wheel fell off so you'll see DJ come through with Dan M, Dan F, and Nico right on his wheel followed by me 12 or so seconds later. That's about 1:15. Travis was before that in the Expert group, and Steve later in the video as the sport riders go by. Notice JP hit the tree about mid way down and topple over. Classic.

This weekend we'll hopefully find ourselves at Perry Lake. The forcast looks iffy, but should be good. Think dry thoughts.

Also, just a heads up, I just found out the Warsaw 3/6 Hour race for the following weekend has been postponed. It was scheduled for the 26th. Bummer but I'm sure Mac has good reasons.

More riding bikes...

G

Dirty and Down

2010-06-10T12:58:00.000-05:00

Well to say the Warsaw race was Down and Dirty would be an understatement. It was my most epic race yet, not neccassarily because of condition or length but because of what happened. This was a race where being the strongest racer didn’t mean you were going to win, you had to have luck on your side. A few of us didn’t….

First off, hats off to Mac. This guy knows how to put on a race. Not matter how low key his races are, he always goes above and beyond. Live music, great courses, food, drinks, you name it he has it. He’s really put a lot of sweat and hard work into that riding scene, and it was awesome to see so many people come out to support him and his crew. He was a proud man, because this was his biggest race yet. We had 16 expert racers! The most I’ve seen down there is 3-4. The sport and beginner crowd was stacked as well.

Here you see the few remaining seconds before the start. Trav and I
have the look of the tiger in our eyes, the breathing technique down as evident by our puckered lips, and legs ready to crush pedals. Little did I know just moments later, I would wreck harder than ever. It was not a pretty moment.

And we’re off! See that? Huh? Huh? Ya that’s right, my turbo diesel engine was able to take the holeshot with my SS again. Trav took over then Justin, then I got the short end of the stick when a racer tried a last ditch effort to pass causing me to wipe out at 20mph+ into a cedar tree. My adrenaline took over, but only after the whole sport class passed me.

It took a half lap, but I passed all the sport field. That’s never an easy task…

Sometime in the second lap I passed Travis, who suffered a flat. Up to that point Justin and him were leading the race at what he called a “comfortable” pace. That would be uncomfortable to the rest of us. That was his bad luck for the day. I keep on, and managed to pass Justin who flatted half way through the last lap. From last to second with first just outta sight and I was raging ready for the comeback of the day. Then that wonderful sound… Psssttttt…. Yup, I flatted and it wouldn’t seal.

Thanks a million to Richy Rich who threw me a big air as my canister weren’t doing it. I did a pretty slow fix as I watch 6 or 7 guys passed before I realized we were still racing and I had to pick it up. My only real break came when I passed Justin again, (the only other 19-29er and my nemisis of the last couple of races), with his second flat. He was out as he didn’t have any other tubes. Bummer.

I made a few last passes, and was finished. That was a true race, down to the wire. Travis made his way back to 2nd overall and 2nd in his age group to the winner, Rock Wamsley. I was 5th or 6th overall and first in my age group.

Podium Pics!

Steve rocked the sweet singletrack goodness too, and finished strong in his sport class. I only wish I’ll be that strong when I’m that old. I’m pretty sure he’s got double my age plus some. Badass.

On another note, Kevin rocked gravel like a pro after only starting real training this year. He managed 100 miles of the 200+ miles of the Dirty Kanza. Maybe he’ll post up his thoughts on it later, but either way that’s impressive for a new rider. He’s continually getting stronger, and as long as he still wants to ride his bike after Saturday, will be rocking strong this year. I also saw this pic of Dave rocking it SS style, and I'm pretty sure Tim tried his had at the DK too.

State's only a few days away! That’s right, Cwood goodness, and stiff competition. Be there or be a square…

Later

G

Laying Low

2010-05-26T15:52:00.000-05:00

So the Ethos crew has been laying low and putting in the hours as of late, getting ready for the next bout of racing coming up soon.

As far as XC goes, Warsaw is the next venue for some Down and Dirty Racing. The same weekend will find Kevin battling his hardest effort yet, the Dirty Kanza. Then it's off to the State Champs at Castlewood, followed by some Perry Lake action the weekend after that. Put in a nice 3/6 hour race at Warsaw the weekend after that and you've got the recipe for 4 weekends of good ol' racing fun.

Find the dirt at united here... Midwest fat tire, here...

Here's to hoping Kevin survives.... I'm putting money on yup!

G

Rounded Up

2010-05-10T12:26:00.000-05:00

For those of you lucky enough to race Krug last weekend, you were treated to wonderfully dry trails, and lots and lots of climbing. Destruction would be one way to describe this 7 mile loop, Curvacious could be another, Awesome would be my description. The crew out at St. Joe did an great job with this trail, and the trials riding was pretty freaking cool to watch too. Could that be our next venture? Ethos Trials? Kevin said he's in...

Travis man handling that last big push up to the finish...

Me manhandling it my own way. My 34x19 was easier to run than ride up that beast.

Steve with the eye of the tiger

Kevin loving one of the thirteen bridges

Yet, another bridge... We got our bridge riding skillz down.

Kevin looking like he's having way to much fun for a race.

I struggled to 2nd in the 19-29 Cat 1 class. I couldn't say I was the only SS'er in the Expert class this race, Josh, on the far left was rocking his S-works SS Stumpy too. Nice work

And lastly, we have Jeffrey, who is suspeciously looking like he's about to make a covert bike switch in a last ditch effort to crush Aaron E, the eventual overall top spot.

Good racing fellas

Lake Wilson and More

2010-05-06T09:20:00.000-05:00

Things have heated up nicely with mountain bike racing. Team Ethos like everyone else made it through the long and harsh winter, without losing too much momentum.

Racing started in Lawrence at the Rivertrails where Travis found a good spot in the Expert class, I won the SS class followed by Jessie in 3rd, and Kevin and Steve held down the sport classes in the "older" age groups respectively.

Then it was off to Smithville where some duo and solo action was had. Team Cam and Trav put down an impressive 6 hour duo for the win. I took the 3 hour Solo SS with Jessie holding down a decent spot in the 3 hour SS solo also. Sean Burns made a rare appreance and rocked the 6 hour solo SS, while Kevin just fell short of the podium in the big boy's 6 hour solo. Jamie fell victim to mechanicals, Steve held on strong in the 3 hour solo, Dave rocked the 6 hour Solo SS which happened to be a stacked class, and JP did it up duo style. Come to think of it, that's pretty much the whole team.

The Ethos/Winkler campout

I headed down to Neosho to try my hand at my first expert race of the year. Pretty awesome race, pretty stiff competition, and I landed a mid-pack finish. So by my standards, that means that half the pack experienced what I call, BUBAS. A good ol fashion beating up by a singlespeeder.

Then it was off to the far away land of Wilson Lake for Doug's fat tire fun. Cam, Trav, and I tried our hand at the hill climb, and found ourselves short of breath. Well, at least I did. Then it was off to the races Sunday. The race was a blast, it was hard, and it was filled with amazing trail. Travis held on super strong for the 27 miles to come in 2nd in his age group, and 2nd overall. I did alright, posting 2nd in the expert 19-29, and 6th overall. Kevin got lost on Saturday, and almost did a whole lap, but still rode strong Sunday. He's looking good for his big debut, the DK. Cam had a bad race, probably due to the 6 hours of riding he did Friday and Saturday. Even the best have their days.

Check out Bob Arnolds vid with a cameo from some Ethos crew, including Trav flossing the lake edge.

So that's the quick recap... We'll try keeping this thing updated from here on out.

Prepare for more Ethos pain training this weekend, at the Krug Race. We'll be there...

G

BLVD Cup Cross

2009-10-21T16:32:00.000-05:00

In Short...the Ethos brotherhood dominated the competition.

Cam on his loyal fixed gear

Travis takes the #1 spot on the podium

Garet on his single speed

More of Lyle's Photos of the event can be found HERE

Cyclofit ®

2009-10-14T14:17:00.000-05:00

Travis and Cameron have been doing alot of this Cyclofit ®. They have told me this is their propeitary workout plan for cyclocross, and that everytime you use the "word" you owe them a dollar. So Ethos racing now is indebted to them a total of $2.

Despite the sillyness of this claim, the workout plan certainly seems to be working. Team Ethos has been doing quite well at the local cross races. Check out Garet's blog for some of his latest race reports, as well as the sick photo of him boosting over the only surviving dinosaur in the Midwest. Travis has been wreaking havoc with his new Ridley, bringing home 3rd place in the Boss Cross Cat 3/4 race two weeks ago. The rest of us have been putting forth our best Ethos efforts and still having a great time.

Friday night Travis, Cameron, Kevin and myself met at All Weather Control HQ, and deployed North to the riverfront park for a brutal workout. We did four 8 minute intervals of follow the leader through the park. It was a blast, and my legs were jelly by the end. We ended by spinning back to my hood to drop me off, then everyone headed back to the rivermarket.

Tomorrow a clown car full of Ethos riders are headed out to Wyandotte County Park for the Boulevard Cup Cross Race. I both assume and hope that the entrance fee includes some free beers before, during or after the race.

Thursday Night BURP Ride...

2009-09-25T10:05:00.001-05:00

Travis & Jamie @ BURP...

Training Day

2009-07-01T13:58:00.001-05:00

Last night some Ethos folk headed out to Landahl hoping for dry trail and something different than Swope. We were not disappointed! The trails were immaculate and the 80 degree temperatures made for the an awesome ride. What made it possibly my favorite ride to date was the company. Sean Burns, Travis Donn, Garet Steinmetz and myself left the trail head just after 6:30 and proceeded to sample just about everything Landahl has to offer.

We headed straight down Tasty Goodness to the Lollipop, doing one lap of each direction. Across the creek down to the scout camp, through the 5 foot tall grass up to the 5 way. Burned down Family Trail, dropping in on Scotts Gunbarrell ( rocky, loose and fun). Crossed the creek, made the long slog up to the numbers. Rode #10 to little moab then back the last half of #11. The numbers were in excellent shape and did not hold back on the ass whooping they normally deliver. Many of climbs were conquered jogging with bike on shoulder. We blasted back down the hill across the creek and then spun across the flats trying to recharge the legs for the Climb back up Scotts.

We arrived on top with failing light and rode blindly up Family Trail, down Daves Maze and out Wills Wanderer to the double track. Got to the parking lot around 9:10, bummed that we didn't get to ride Rim Job, but thankful for such awesome trail conditions, cool temps and great riding partners. We shared some beers in the parking lot enjoying the beautiful June night before hopping in the cars.

Couldn't have asked for a better midweek ride, lets make this a weekly thing.

The First Official Race

2009-05-19T20:52:00.003-05:00

This past Weekend was the first race that "Ethos" competed in. Travis and myself drove all the way down to Oklahoma City to compete in the Sick 6 six hour race. Our friend and OKC local Andy introduced the idea to us. We were joined by Cameron Chambers, he is a local Kansas City hard hitter, who rides for 360 cycling. The event was hosted at the Clear Bay bike trails on Thunderbird Lake. It consisted of a 6.6 mile loop of hills, a few rocks and sandy corners. Travis and Cameron teamed up for the duo, and myself to duke it out solo.

The race promoter warned us of several muddy spots, several downed trees that were marked off because of lack of time to chainsaw all the recent storm damage, and several reroutes to avoid even muddier sections. I think we were all expecting 6 hours of hell trail. After a lemans start the small field of 35 riders piled into the tight single track with very loose sandy corners. The downed trees turned out to be mere twigs and the two muddy sections were pretty short and inconsequential. The loose sandy corners were the only problem, but by the 3rd lap they had been bermed up into buttery smooth tracks. Cameron burst out into an early lead, which him and Travis maintained throughout the race, adding several minutes gap to their closest competitor with each additional lap.

I started my first 2 laps fast then settled into a nice even pace, taking advantage of Cam or Trav at the transition area for water and nutrition help. Andy passed me on the second lap looking strong. Having no idea where I was in the line up, I just stuck to my goal of consistency. On the 8th lap I passed Andy and one other singlespeed rider, which boosted my spirits. Coming in for my 9th and final lap, Travis was anticipating Cameron any minute. I downed some water and hit the trail hard. Within minutes Travis caught up to me and paced me through 2 climbs, till I imploded. After that I fought off cramps for another 4 miles to cross the finish line in 2nd for the Single-Speed division.

Ethos had a great showing taking first in the Cat I 2 person, and 2nd in singlespeed. Getting jersey design finalized via local KC artist Jeremy Collins. Once they are complete, I'll post some pics.