My Race Blog

Memorial Day Update

2011-05-31T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well as Memorial day would be I got sick again, glad I wasn't registered for the Super D this weekend because I most Definitely would not have been able to ride. If none of you remember last year during Memorial Day weekend I ended up going to urgent care and found out I had mono, well this year I went to urgent care to find out I have Tonsillitis. Neither of which are/were fun. But Tonsillitis has its benefits, I mean with my tonsils gone I will have clearer airways which means I can breathe better while riding, but still not a good time. I ordered a ton of parts and about 500 dollars stands between me and a completed Genken. Mega Stoked!

May Update

2011-05-03T11:18:00.001-07:00

Missed the April update but nothing too exciting happened, unless of course you count the acquiring of my Genken frame, some more parts and now me being single. But those aren't too exciting. Here are some photos of the parts I have gotten so far, and hopefully can have it completely built by the end of May, if not mid June should be the latest date.

Also have my chainguide but that isn't pictured.

March Update

2011-03-11T10:00:00.000-08:00

Change of plans for the race bike. Goin with the Genken for now. 83mm BB and 150x12 rear is a challenge to deal with but it means I get to run those pimp new Shimano Saint cranks which I am cool with. Going to PSU full tim this spring and working should be bringing in as much cash as possible to fund my race machine.

February update!!!!!

2011-02-11T00:30:00.000-08:00

In the past few months a few things have changed, I got a new job. But the most important to me is the addition of Gamut USA and X-Fusion Suspension bringing me in as a grassroots rider.

Gonna be running a X fusion Vengeance, Hilo, and hopefully a Vector rear shock, and from Gamut either Dual ring guide, or P30.

2011

2011-01-01T22:20:00.000-08:00

New changes in 2011,
Had a slight struggle with school in fall so I will be home for the winter and spring term. On the plus side I will be working as well and that will give me the money to build my bike. Got 2 parts for Christmas, XT dynasys chain and ODI X-treme grips.

December

2010-12-01T10:48:00.000-08:00

December update:

Semester is coming to an end, snow is on the ground and its super cold! I love it.

Cycling season will come fast and I'm stoked!

Part Collecting

2010-11-15T07:06:00.001-08:00

Got a new part for my build today, 36t Race Face Single Ring in red. Will post a pic later but this thing is damn light.

First Snow In Grand Junction

2010-11-15T07:04:00.000-08:00

Today marks the day of the first snow. A great day for the snow lover but a horrible day for the summer lover. I personally love it, it makes everything better it seems. November 15,2010. A great day for relaxing.

October Update!

2010-10-05T10:12:00.000-07:00

Gotta say its strange that its October already. A little under 3 months ago I was leaving for college. I watched Rampage on PB and it was sick this year. I loved the Contour footage of CVD almost crashing off the cliff. Makes Rampage seem so much more dangerous and I love it.

Here is a link if you hadn't seen the video yet.

http://contour.com/stories/chris-van-dine-nearly-falls-off-a-cliff--2

College Update

2010-09-28T19:04:00.000-07:00

First to start off, I hate SRAM now. Im riding my friends bike around town, I shift next thing I know the chain is off the gears with no tension. Gotta love it when the upper pulley cant hold the tension. So I owed my friend a new x9.

But other than that college is great. I play lacrosse 25 hours a week including 3 mile runs at 630 AM.

I got some new updates on build style. Which i am pretty set on.

SLX Dynasys RD, Cassette, Shifters.
Fox 36 Float
Race Face Cranks
Elka Shock
Blackx Seatpost

That's the most of it

Gonna be pretty sick I might add.

Catch you all in the coming days with another update. Might start buying parts now when i can find cheap ones.

COLORADOOO!

2010-08-21T11:29:00.000-07:00

Writing this from my dorm in Colorado. Grand Junction to be specific, and to narrow it down Mesa State College, Pinon Dorm, Room 322 bed B. This place is so sick. 10 miles from Fruita and and a few hours from Moab. The Center of heaven to me. I wish I had the longbow to ride it would be amazing but I would never go to class. When the production Longbow comes in I'm Picking one up. Most likely a Fox/Shimano/PRO build but I might go SRAM family.

Friday the 13th update!

2010-08-13T20:51:00.000-07:00

Found a funny picture today that I felt like sharing which is so totally true.

Ticket Update And College

2010-08-13T07:22:00.000-07:00

So lucky me the judge reduced my ticket from 472 to 376, and with 6 months of probation where if I don't get any tickets the first on won't go on my driving record. For College I leave in a little less than a week. 17 hour drive to Grand Junction Colorado. Super Stoked, bringing my fixie to get some good riding in before I get the Bow. Hopefully all goes well with lacrosse but if not I still have cycling. Might be my last post of the year but keep checking back!

2010 Wrap Up and 2011 Plans

2010-08-08T07:19:00.000-07:00

Monday (August 2nd) was an eye opener for me. I was driving on Hwy 35 to Parkdale and was distracted and managed to get caught going 91 in a 55. Well it was a 472 dollar ticket which put a damper on the weekend. But it made me realize how much I live on the edge, I mean any minute something could have happened and i was a split second from death the whole way. But the speed didn't phase me.

The past few years of riding my bike speed has been my main issue, along with jumping which is still something I need to get past. But I have always been uneasy at speed. This season racing Super D and Mini DH I learned to push the limits, Thanks to One Ghost Industries. I hope that I get a chance to race for them next year because I plan to take it up a notch and go big this next season. I get back from college in mid May, just enough time to start the season, I'm hoping to get to the Hood River Super D, Ashland Super D, and Crankworx Canada Enduro minimum. And podium at them all at Cat 2.

Next year should be good, and I'm keeping this blog going. Check back Tuesday for a ticket update.

BRIDGE DOWN!

2010-06-27T18:40:00.000-07:00

Thank you Hagg Lake for warning me about the downed bridge.

First post-mono ride=SUCCESS!!!

2010-06-26T18:31:00.000-07:00

First post mono ride this weekend, felt great. I rode up at Henry Hagg Lake after hearing that there was some moderate single track with not much climbing. I show up at the park with my Dad, me on the Longbow, him on a Giant Sedona (comfort bike) that's how confident I was that it would be an easy ride. Well we get riding and start with a huge hill, way more climbing than I thought. then some flowing single track that was nice but huge mud pits that if you weren't careful could stop you in your tracks. Well a moderate trail turned into a expert trail with many logs in the trail and even a downed bridge. Nothing the Longbow couldn't handle. But I felt great. 20ish mile ride in the end and I felt great. If i had that energy at the Hood River Super D I think I could have made podium. Oh well. Pictures following.

Longbow Build!!!!!!!!

2010-06-18T17:45:00.000-07:00

Plans Changed, Going with the production Longbow and a Shimano/Fox/PRO/KS/Intense build. Should be sick.

Ashland 12-mile is a no go for me

2010-06-03T18:07:00.000-07:00

So I heard bad news today, I'm not allowed to do any physical activity for the next 3-4 weeks because of my mono. I had an ultrasound to check my organs and it turns out I have an enlarged liver and spleen, and if I were to crash or even just by applying pressure to it I could rupture it and possibly die. Its unfortunate but I have to live with it now. Should be good to go for the races next month though.

Oregon Super D: Hood River Pictures

2010-05-31T20:26:00.001-07:00

The top is my favorite.

Oregon Super D: Hood River

2010-05-31T20:19:00.000-07:00

This weekend was the Hood River Super D, Friday I had a playoff lacrosse game where I bruised my quad, but after spending 65 bucks to race I wasn't about to just throw it away. In practice on Saturday I fell in the mud and happened to pull the same quad. Now with a downed quad I was unable to climb the hills. I resorted to getting off and walking the rest of the day. Sunday morning I wasn't feeling it race day. I was tired and my leg was killing me. I decided to race and ended in 8th out of 9. Not my best finish by far but respectable non the less. For the Icing on the cake I had to go to urgent care Monday because of my sore throat I have had for a week or so hadn't gotten better. Turns out I am positive for Mono, no excuse but a justification for me feeling out of shape. Pictures will be following.

Same bike, different result!

2010-05-03T14:37:00.000-07:00

So this weekend I had the opportunity to race the Fluidride Enduro at Dog River. It was a 2 day race on the same course. It consisted of a 5 mile trail with 50 vertical feet of climbing and a few really tight switchbacks. My weapon of choice was my personal favorite, the One Ghost Industries Longbow. Originally I have ridden this same platform to a 3^rd place podium finish at the Stimulus Trail in Sandy , where I posted a Mini Review. But now I am posting a full comprehensive review.

Suspension:

Handled by an Elka Stage 5 rear shock, the rear suspension performed flawlessly. Its Moto GP Linkage is a full floater which takes more pressure off the shock and allows the dampening to work better, and it is obvious it does its job. When I picked up the bike I never adjusted the shock because it has always been set up perfectly since day one, and it was still working well this weekend. The shock has no pedal platform like pro pedal so it makes the linkage control all pedal bob resistance. Pedal bob is not noticeable when riding up hill, and there is not suspension feedback when I got stuck on a quick incline in top gear and had to muscle my way over. Going down the hill I used my back brake a lot, Before the switchbacks I had to slow down and sometimes drift the corners, every time I locked up my rear tire the suspension still worked, it was amazing with zero brake jack.

Geometry:

Besides my two DH tests I have also ridden around Forest Park doing climbing and have also adjusted the front to different angles with the use of the travel adjust fork. The angles are perfect for everyday trail riding and even light DH racing. If I could only have one mountain bike I would pick the Longbow. The top tube is the perfect length for me with a 70mm stem, and its head tube and seat tube angles are very nice in providing an optimal riding position while in the saddle and when it gets fast or steep the head tube angle makes it not too twitchy in the steering and keeps it very stable at high speeds.

Overall:

I give this bike 5 out of 5 stars for all it has helped me achieve. It has never ever not done what I tried to do, and meets my semi weight weenie standards. With a 2 ring front and a standard cassette this bike can do anything, I would love to test it with the new 10 speed because I think it would make it an even more capable bike because of the added ratio. This bike fills the need of someone who needs one bike to do it all, it covers every major type of riding from XC to light FR. The only types it doesn’t cover are heavy FR, DH race, and XC race. Only because 5.75 inches is too little for DH race and heave FR, and too big for XC race.

Fluidride Enduro #1

2010-05-03T14:15:00.000-07:00

So this weekend went really well. The Bow helped me to my 1st place finish at the Fluidride Enduro #1! I should have a review up soon but before I forget I will post a Podium Pic!

Fluidride Enduro At Dog River

2010-04-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

This weekend I am taking the 'Bow out to Dog River by Hood River. Gonna do the 2 day enduro race, should have results and pics posted Sunday. Might have to wait until Monday for the good pictures.

Some Quick Updates

2010-04-19T15:13:00.000-07:00

To start this post off I finally decided where I'm going to college. I'm going to Mesa State College in Grand Junction, Colorado. It is only an hour or so away from Moab, Utah which I am super stoked on. Some other good news is that my old specialized might be selling in the next few days and i can get my Longbow ordered.

That is all for this update but expect something by the end of the week.

RESULTS!

2010-03-06T01:30:00.000-08:00

To be updated as the season continues.

Presidents Day DH: Junior Beginner, 3rd
Fluidride Enduro #1: CAT 3 15-18, 1st

Presidents Day Race Photos!

2010-03-05T19:30:00.000-08:00

Here are some pics from my first DH!

Longbow First Thoughts

2010-03-05T19:24:00.001-08:00

So I have ridden this beast of a bike twice now and everytime its harder and harder to give back. I have a picture above but I will sum up the major parts,

OG Longbow 19" PROTO

King HS

XT Wheels

Elka Stage 5

Kowa 1600SS

ITS 909 front, spike rear

SLX drivetrain

Crank Bros Joplin

To start let me tell you, if you ever get a Longbow you better know your facts about it. Because they are so new and rare I got tons of strange looks and even more questions. Now having the Longbow combined with an Elka shock and an even rarer Kowa fork, let me tell you everyone and their mother had questions. The Longbow is the best feeling full sussy I have ever ridden, for comparison i have ridden a SC Nomad, Ibis Mojo, Specialized FSRxc, Yeti something or other i cant remember the model, SC Bullit, SC Blur 4X (Syndicate team edition), and a Transition Bottle Rocket. The Longbow has a bottomless suspension feel to it, not once did I feel like I was coming close to the end of the travel and the travel is so smooth that you dont even feel it, it is that smooth!

The Elka Stage 5 does an amazing job of eating up the bumps, and paired with the Moto*GP linkage is absolutely flawless. The Kowa fork is exactly the same, unlimited travel adjust from 0mm to 160mm, and you can place it anywhere between. The CB Joplin does an amazing job at keeping the seat out of the way when you need it to, just hit the lever, put some pressure and its down. My only problem is lifting the seat with it down can burp the system, but that is a minor issue.

Overall the Longbow got me so stoked to ride and I cannot wait to build my own.

Starting 2010 fresh!

2010-03-05T19:11:00.000-08:00

2010 is going to be a great year and I could feel it from day 1. Late 2009 I joined the One Ghost Industries NW team, got to meet some great guys. I can tell this company knows what the industry has been needing and is going to give it, but they just need to get their name out more. And thats where we come in.

This year I am going to be racing with the Longbow, not the newer 5.75" one, but the burlier 6" one. I'm stoked, I plan to race Super D and maybe a little DH after my 3rd place finish in the Presidents Day DH at the Stimulus Trail in sandy.

I'm going to be using this blog to update my build log of my Longbow (when I get sufficient funds. Anyone needing a 4" travel bike? Let me know!) and also am going to use it to post pictures from races, reviews of products and of course my results.

Let's get this thing started!