Summer racing photos
Hi everyone,
I apologize for my lack of commitment in keeping up with posts on Trimble Racing; however, I look forward in sharing with you photo’s from this past summer.
The fast paced movement of my summer began as soon as I marked the final question of my physics exam and bolted down the hall, out the door, and back to my house across from campus where I found my friend Ben Hulse (aka Benji) already packing up his car. Bikes, tools, clothes, and basically everything I owned was sprawled out across the lawn mingling with Benji’s belongings and awaiting to be carefully packed into his car. To the passer by it must have seemed like an impossible task, but thanks to Benji’s meticulous packing job, we somehow managed to make it work.
Team Morpheus/Vertical Earth
Morpheus Cycles, a new bicycle company based out of the New York City area, in collaboration with Vertical Earth Gravity Park in Palmerton, Pennsylvania has combined forces to form a gravity team for the 2010 season.
Iron Cross Light – Race Report – 1st Place (Cat 4)
In a rivalry that transverses multiple genres of bicycle competition I once again found myself in waning stages of a race attacked by Cooper Ray.
LMC Home Race 09
I woke up early Friday morning on April 3rd knowing that I had a big weekend ahead of me. It was the weekend of our home race which consisted of a team time trial and individual time trail on Saturday and a road race on Sunday. On Friday morning, I boarded a school van not to go to a bike race but a track meet. My plan was to go with my team and run a 5k at Duke University at 9:30 Friday night, get dropped off Saturday afternoon directly from the meet to the ITT start, and race the road race Sunday morning. As I anticipated, it was one of the hardest weekends of my life.
5th Place – Fawn Grove Roubaix – Cat 3/4
Fawn Grove Roubaix
I finished 5th.
To finish I fifth I drove forward blindly, much of the race alone, without help, chasing with all my might to catch the leader. Between the leader and the (somewhat) organized chase group I puttered and sputtered along, my energy slowly draining as the race drew to its conclusion. To say I was alone is not in actuality true. I had one companion who kept me company. I fed him and dragged him along but he hadn’t the strength to contribute. After the deal was struck that he would get a free ride in exchange for giving up his ambitions for finishing ahead of me I didn’t mind, I enjoyed the company.
NGSU Road Race: Mullets, Hypothermia, and Extreme Car Trouble in the Deep South
At 6:00 pm February 27, me and three of my friends set out for North Georgia State University on what was possibly one of the most epic race trips of my life. The race was in Lumpkin County, Georgia (aka the middle of nowhere) and our entire car route was through the Southern Appalachian Mountains. After a few hours of driving through backwoods country roads (we met this fine looking gentleman Jake is posing with somewhere the border of Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia) the trouble began. At some point, we realized that we didn’t know where we were and that none of us had cell phone service. While Ally and Kera, the two girls in the front of the car, were discussing this, Ally (the one driving) ran over a huge rock in the road which flattened her tire, and of coarse we had no spare. Since our phones were useless, Kera and Jake had to hitch a ride into town to call a tow truck from a nice young couple we flagged down.
Wolfpack Cycling Classic
My road season kicked off this year with a road race and crit hosted by North Carolina State University February 14 and 15. They hosted both collegiate and USAC races. I needed two more points to upgrade to a cat 3 on the road so I did the cat 4 race on saturday. It proved to be my last race as a cat 4 as I finished 8th, the exact place I needed to pick up two points. The course was fairly flat with a few rollers but nothing big enough to break up the field, and it ended as typical sprint finish. I made a couple of break attempts, but no one seemed interested in working with me, and I was quickly reeled in. I was riding in pretty good position towards the end until several riders decided to ignore the center line rule with about a K to go and went around me. This left me boxed in with very little racing left. I made a mad scramble to position myself better and eventually got a clear shot at the line, but my attack came too late and my legs were too slow. Despite coming around at least a dozen people, the top spots were already long gone and I had to settle with eighth. At least it was good enough to upgrade.
Nate Smokes Torture Test 2009!
James and Nate did the 2009 Torture Test (official name Excruciation Exam) on January 3, 2009. This is a mountain bike marathon race that combines approx. 30 miles of single track with 50 miles of rural country roads in a grueling test of endurance. The race starts out at Bluff Creek ranch in Warda, Texas (about 30 miles south of Austin). You do a loop of the Bluff Creek single track, then hit the back roads for a scenic 30 mile ride to Rocky Hill ranch in Smithville, Texas. Then you do two ten mile loops of the famous Rocky Hill ranch single track, then head back up a big hill for the 20+ mile return to Bluff Creek via a different route. Once back, you aren’t done! You still have to do a partial loop of Bluff Creek single track. Believe me, it’s really tough! There was a great turn-out this year, over 130 racers. Hannah came along to be our “Pit Crew” Her help was invaluable!
Dave Shatters Hermann Park TT Record!
On Christmas day, James, Matt and Dave did the 3 mile Herman Park TT in Houston’s Museum District. It’s a beautiful twisting, technical course around the Science Museum, Zoo, Golf Course and Sam Houston statue in the nicest part of Houston. Conditions were perfect, very little wind about 70 degrees and not much traffic.
Dirty Du at Rocky Hill 2008
November brings cooler days, Thanksgiving and a great tradition for Trimble Racing – the Dirty Du! We have been racing these tough, but fun events almost since we’ve moved back to Texas with the first one happening in 2001. This year Bo and I were the only ones able to make the start line at the famous Rocky Hill Ranch in Smithville Texas, just south of Austin. Out thoughts were with Dave who was in Europe and Nate and Hannah who were in North Carolina. Matt, who tried one a few years back, was in Houston but had other commitments. These days, the only Dirty Du is once a year at Rocky Hill, although in years past there was a series of races each season in some incredible venues around Austin and San Antonio. The race consists of a 5K trail run, a 12 Mile Mountain Bike, followed by a 5K trail run. All of the best multisport and mountain bike racers in Texas have done the Dirty Du at one time or another, including a certain Lance Armstrong who still holds the course record at Rocky Hill with a 1:36:05.5 clocking in 2002. I was in that race, standing on the same start line as Lance, but finishing about 50 minutes later with a 2:26:37.6. Nate finished just ahead of me with a 2:24:46.2 and Hannah came in later with a 3:09:43.9 on her old green cruiser bike!
Cyclocross!
After finishing my cross country running season, I spent three days lying on the couch then was back on the bike and ready for some serious cycling. I decided to do my first cyclocross race the following weekend in Bristol Tennessee.
Lees-McRae Cross Country 2008
Here are some photos from my cross country season at Lees-McRae. We had a great season, finishing second in our conference and fifth in our region.
Collegiate mnt bike nationals part 2
Many people tell me that I am foolish for continuing to ride after breaking my neck at the beginning of summer. Some think that I am brave and admire me for getting back on the bike. I’m not sure if I think it is courage or stupidity when I attach the race number to the handle bars of the machine. I had this intense feeling inside of me that I wasn’t meant to quit, the passion I have for the sport cannot be silenced and shouted inside my head all summer as I struggled with my handicap.
I was allowed to ride trails again on October 1. After almost three months of inactivity I was finally back on the bike. I didn’t think that my coach would allow me to ride since I would only have three weeks to train for nationals. I asked him anyways, expecting to be let down. To my surprise he told me if I qualified for downhill and dual slalom I could race. With the two races left before nationals I qualified.
2008 Collegiate Mountain Bike Nationals Part 1 (Friday and Saturday morning)
Its Friday morning! The long awaited weekend of the 2008 collegiate mountain bike nationals has finally arrived. It was a cold, rainy morning that made for brutal conditions on the XC course that only the tough, brave souls would want to endure. Part of me wished I was included in the group, and another part of me was glad to be on the side lines cheering in my big warm coat. I took photos and cheered my teammates on, while racing the downhill course over and over in my head, preparing for the afternoon qualifying.
The weather conditions intensified and I could feel the change as I felt the cold rain sting my face. I was on top of sugar and could faintly see the trail ahead of me due to the fog. I was on hoping to get some practice in before qualifying later that afternoon. Although I was curious at the absence of riders, I shrugged my shoulders and did a run. Once I finally reached the bottom, I was cold, covered in mud, and slightly frightened. At the bottom I also found out that qualifying was canceled due to the extreme weather conditions. I was happy to get a practice run in the harsh conditions because I knew that it could likely be that way during the race.
Bo roars to victory in Du the Bear!
Bo mauled the competition in the 15-19 age group at the 3rd annual Du The Bear Duathlon at Bear Creek Park West of Houston on October 19th. He finished the 2 mile run, 12.8 mile bike and 2 mile run course in 1:01:59.1 for 1st out of 9 competitors, about 2m 37sec ahead of 2nd. He was 21st overall out of about 300 racers. He had the top split in all 3 legs. His posted bike split at 21.3 was actually 22.7 mph because the course was 12.8 miles, longer than the advertised 12.0 miles. It was very windy on the bike course with strong headwinds on several of the longer legs of the 6.4 mile loop.
Bo does Tri-Andy’s
Bo had an excellent first triathlon on October 12th, 2008. it was Try Andy’s Tri in Sugarland Texas near Houston. The distances were a 300 meter swim, 10 mile bike and 3 mile run. He finished 3rd of 11 in the 15-19 age group with a 55:50.2. He was 43rd overall out of about 620 individual competitors. He had the fastest bike split in his age group at 24.1 mph. You can check the race results at http://www.eztoregister.com/results/triand08.htm#28 You can check out race photos at http://www.yoursportingimage.com/Thumbs.asp?BibNbr=728&event=1801&Locate=Locate
Trimble frame #067 with aero bar and carbon wheels. 17.8 lbs
SECCC Conference Championship
Clemson University in northwestern South Carolina hosted the 2008 SECCC Mountain Bike Conference Championship. Hannah and I both raced every event which included short track, downhill, and dual slalom on Saturday and cross country on Sunday. It was an action packed weekend full of nonstop racing.
Brevard College Mountain Bike Weekend
Adventure Village in the Appalachian Mountains of South-Western North Carolina was the backdrop for the Brevard College home race on September 13 and 14. I raced short track and cross country placing first in the men’s B short track and second in xc.
Hannah’s First Triathlon
I am on strict orders from the doctor not to ride or race trails until October 1st, so I thought…Why not try a triathlon?
My friend Sam Keesler had the same desire in his mind. We decided to race in the Watauga Lake triathlon, it would be our firsts. Sam’s dad also showed up to race for some father-son competition. The triathlon was a hair shorter than the olympic distance. It consisted of a 1000 meter swim, 25 mile bike, and a 5 mile run.
ETSU Mountain Bike Race Weekend
My first collegiate mountain bike race and my first race for Lees-McRae College kicked of September 6th and 7th hosted by Eastern Tennessee State University.
