The Race That Always Is

The Iceman Commeth.  The race of all races.  Well, at least that's what a lot of people whisper in quiet dark corners about this race.

The 2013 version of this race would finally have some Twin Six MOTOR's in it.  After much to little conversations with Jon Dub9 of T6's METAL squad, Aryn and Brian were convinced to go.  Okay, it wasn't that easy to convince them but I am going to leave out all the boring details.  What detail I will inject is some where along the way the MOTOR Club signed Mitch DeYoung to a contract . . . mostly because he is faster than every one on the team so if nothing else we would look better on paper after this was all said and done.

So on Friday morning our four MOTOR and METAL contestants made their way north to Traverse City for the 20th annual Iceman Commeth.  Hotels, people, expo, more people, food, more people....man this city gets crowded for this race.  With ~4500 racers along for a one day race, think of how that number multiplies when you start throwing in all those in tow to support riders, the event, the shops, the sponsors.  For three days a summer get away city in northern Michigan turns into a destination that rivals Moab Utah.  You look around and 8 out of 10 cars on the road have a bike on them or in them.  Crazy.

Everyone likes pictures and videos rather than long boring race reports.  So to recap the weekend:

The game plan was to race in the Pro division and look good doing it....

Okay, we didn't look that good but in our Twin Six kits we were pretty damn close.

Aryn and Brian were able to finish along side Dub9 in 2:00:38 seconds

Mitch flatted early in the race but was still able to finish in under 2:10:00.  

Hey everybody, Mitch is here!

This was enough to finish top 100 in the Pro class and that made for a god day.  

If the boys would not have raced Pro and did their age group instead, they all went fast enough to place in the top 10 of their age groups and most groups were at least 100 deep.  

And thanks to our friends over at Landshark Racing we are featured on a cool video at 1:12....of course the rest of the video is cool but if this was on VHS 1:12 to 1:15 would be worn out by now.

Lots of big names in this one.  Results can be found here: http://www.iceman.com/

Now that the formalities are out of the way:

This committee of one thinks weekend should have more side competitions.....like a post race pie eating contest.  My money is on Skylar

Then there is the thumb warming contest which we can see will require more training

A great weekend was had by all.  Now for a few thanks you's:

First, to Uncle Fred and his crew for their post race hospitality.  The camp fire and hot shower on sight after the race was a comfort not everyone had.  You now have 6 more dependents to claim on your taxes.

Next, to Dub9 for organizing the weekend for us.  Yes, we could have done it but you made the weekend much less stressful for at least two of the Motorer's.

And to all who will never read this but were part of organizing such a great event.  Dealing with ~4500 cold and narrow sighted cyclist could not have been easy.  Thank you for such a great event!!!

The End of the Beginning

The last race in the USAC Tailwind series took our band back to Stony Creek where it seems like there is some sort of race going n every other day there.  By the end of August some racers are worn down from the long training regiments and traveling for races.  Others are in break mode to recharge for CX.  Whatever the reason everyone has their story.

But the Stony XC always brings so many summer stories to a close.  For some it's the determining factor of the season series because their are still points up for grabs and positions are not final yet.  For others who may have their series locked up, it gives them a chance to CAT up and see how they measure up.  Then there are those who are just looking for a good result to justify all the work they have put in to this point.  And of course you still have those who just go to ride, I mean, race their bikes and drink beer after.  But whatever the reason, the simple fact is there is always some sort of reason to do this race.

Block was there to lock in his overall series standing. He just had to show up to collect what he needed. Diesel was looking for a podium spot to help him in the overall series.  He wouldn't finish top 3 overall but a solid finish for the day could keep him in the top 10 for the series.  Dub9 was there to battle it out for 2nd overall in his series and A-Train was just looking to have a complete race and get himself back on the podium.

Expert racers were fired off the line by class as usual and as the hours passed storied unfolded.  Diesel was the first Motor to cross the line and he managed to grab a podium finish for the day as planned.  Surprisingly, A-Train was the next Motorer to cross the line which also gave him a podium finish for the day in his class.  Dub9 came across shortly after A-Train and scooped up the last podium spot in their class making them 3 for 3 in the Expert Category.  After four laps that equaled a distance of ~28 miles, Diesel rode a 2:12:09, A-Train did a 2:15:36 and Dub9 did a 2:19:56.  (Side note:  Since Dub9's main competition was a no show, he laid back to help A-Train and Diesel with a couple strong pulls in some critical areas of the course sacrificing his own race result)

A-Train in the hunt with Diesel as his Wingman

Diesel Smelling Blood

Powder with his eyes on the big picture

Block went off with his class in the afternoon.  After two laps of pain and gain he came thru at 1:20:31 which was good enough for a podium finish making the Motor Club 4 for 4 on podiums for the day!  But before the award ceremony there was some ruckus on the crowd as a rider was complaining that his time was incorrect and that he should be ahead of Block.  Since the Big Fella was more concerned about his overall in the series which he had clinched by showing up, Block let the guy have the podium spot and didn't bother to argue the result.  He was already going to receive his award for a podium in the overall series and he had also podium-ed in every other race he did in the series so no need to be greedy.  That's class however we are still counting it as a podium finish for Block.

So the four man team team walked away from the race with three (four really) medals for the race that day and two series plaques for the summer.  Not bad for a team that is only three years old.  So ends the USAC Tailwinds series in what the team would consider their best season yet.  There is still more racing and training to do for 2013 but this chapter is in the books.

The Motor Club would also like to say congratz to:

John Osgood for taking the win in Expert 30-39 for the day.  Eye of the Tiger!

Brad Lako for his series win and Top 10 finish in first Elite race.

JTP for getting married and also for the baby that's on the way....and for making it thru the season with all the crap we've given you

And of course we have to say thank you to Twin Six for the great gear again this year.  Without you guys nothing we wear would ever match and people would point and laugh at us.  You guys make looking good in pictures a lot easier for us.  

Now if we could just find a bike shop to sponsor us . . . . . 

Going back to where it all started

Maybury always brings back the old days because it's where Diesel took A-Train out for his first real trail ride back in 2004.  Diesel had all the trimmings of a weekend warrior while A-Train sported the cotton t-shirt, board shorts and white ankle socks.  It seemed Diesel had to stop at the top of every hill to wait for AT to catch up.  The rides piled on as did the years.  Fast Forward to 2013 and it's hard to believe that at one time these guys would have to stop between 4.5 mile laps to take a break.  Now Maybury is 6.5 miles long and they have been known to go out there and do 4, 5 or even 6 consecutive laps for fun, alternating at point, trying to drop each other and sometimes having to stop and deal with crazy snapping turtles or rabid raccoons that won't move off the trail.  True stories.

Diesel had this race marked on his calendar with big stars all around it.  A-Train had been on the fence about it all season but as the race got closer and he realized he'd be in town, it was hard to say he was just going to watch.  After some solid training rides leading into the event and some texts back and forth with Dub9 to get some advise, he decided it was time to re engage and help Diesel defend home turf.  Plus, this MMBA CPS race was going to be much different this year.  Over the years it has went from an XC to a TT and there have been many different lead in's and exit chutes used to add length to the course.  But this year the promoters got together and said hey, let's do the single track backwards with a brand new lead and exit chute from a different side of the park.

Friday evening racers were allowed to come pre ride so Diesel and A-Train met up with Derrick Mattice (KLM) and Karl Emmerich (Racing Greyhounds) and did two laps to get the feel for the new lines.  There were racers and volunteers everywhere as last minute preps were going on from all angles.

Saturday morning came and it was time to race.  Registration and pre rides of the lead in went smooth.  Dub9 showed up at about 8:30 to hang out and control the media.  He had just gotten back from being north of Chicago for a week so he sat this one out but it was great to have his quick draw attitude around for some morning laughs.

It's was a time trial so riders were fired off from the line one by one every 30 seconds.  A-Train started a few minutes ahead of Diesel and the plan was for them to use each other for motivation.  Diesel wanted to catch A-Train but A-train didn't want to be a mark on the wall of all the people Diesel passed that day.  The laid out course was ~9 miles long and they would have to do two laps.  They figured about 40 minutes a lap.  A-Train, or should I say Cru Jones, took off quick but it was a long lead in to the single trail so he managed his legs as to not burn any matches to soon.  Diesel fired off from the beginning wanting to make sure he passed a couple riders before the single track got tight in the second half of the course.

Each of their two laps unfolded with surges, passes, attacks and adjustments.  It's a time trial so you just go as hard and fast as you can for the distance given.  You don't back down from your pace and you don't find places to rest spin and recover.  You are in the red the entire time and pushing yourself to your limits because it's a race against the fastest foe every rider has, the clock.

A-Train thinking to himself  "Don't crash in front of the camera, especially one that Jon is shooting.  I'll end up all over the internet"

Said Diesel, "Jon will yell at me if I smile or wave."

A-Train was successful at not letting Diesel bridge up to him and crossed the line with relief but out of gas.  He did get passed by Scott Simpson (BTT) and Stephan Zierman (Stollenwuehler) on his second lap but he knew a top three was still possible with how well he rode.  However, he was worried about Greg Giles (Racing Greyhounds) as he did some race pacing with him at the Tree Farm relay a couple weeks earlier.   Diesel came across the finish with his wheels on fire.  When A-Train rolled over to talk to him the flames were out but there was still smoke rising off of them from the heat they were letting out.  After checking the monitors at the timing tent  for Expert 30-39, A-Train learned that it wasn't Greg he should have been worrying so much about.  Gus Hemingway (Foundry Cycles) had drove across the state and stole the remaining podium spot from right underneath him.  He tracked down Gus to give him his props on a good race and walked away happy nearly edging out Greg Giles for 4th place in what was a very tough class of racers.  Plus he posted the 6th fastest time of the day in Expert in a field of 50 racers.  The timing tent also revealed the man with the Golden Hammer is still worthy of it as he bested his class by over 30 seconds taking home first place in Expert 40-49 which wasn't easy to do considering Mark Spore (Cross Country Cycle) was there chasing points in the series.

So even though the team only took home one piece of hardware instead of two it was still a very successful day of racing as the Motor Club again showed it's ability to be right there in the thick of the fight for podium spots.  Big Block size thank you's to all involved in laying out the course, prepping the course and all of the day of activities that go with running a race.  Cycle to Fit, The Racing Greyhounds, the MMMBA peeps, the farm animals for putting up with our stink and Momma Nature for giving us yet again another beautiful day to race.  The Motor Club had ZERO complaints about how the event went....ZERO.

But there isn't much time to gloat and have warm and fuzzy feelings inside because this Saturday the Motorers put up their dukes against the big boys in the Tailwind Racing Series at Stony Creek for the last stop of the season for the Tailwind Racing USAC series.  This is race #8 and their are points and final standing on the line for everyone.  So tune in next week to hear the conclusion of The MOTOR Club vs The World!

Grand Master Fast

Swinging for the Fences

Normally this is where we, meaning me the Editor, goes in and manipulates race write ups handed to me to make them more entertaining and enjoyable for me to read as sometimes I think I am the only one who reads this blog.  However, since the Big Fella did so well at his Tri yesterday and I doing an honest cut/paste so you hear it all directly from him.  (I must say he is getting better at third personing himself)

"Block showed up for the final race of the 3 race T REX Series.  The first two races didn’t go as planned.  In June, Block was on antibiotics recovering from pneumonia although he was able to pull through with a decent 1:13:22 given the situation.  However, post-race, Block had to cease serious training to let the lungs heal and he withered in the 94 degree heat trying to tackle the July race, putting down a 1:20:14.

But today he felt good and had completed 3 weeks of proper training along with a decent pre-race week.  Weather was nice, cold for August in the low 70’s and very little wind.  Upon check-in, his hope for a good transition spot was dashed as he got his number, knowing that #15 put him against the west wall again.  Still, that didn’t deter him as it only costs a handful of seconds.  Of course, when Block looked at the premium center aisle, he saw Steve setting up there.  Steve, CA president and former pro triathlete, has been unbeatable by Block over the years.  Block knew today would not be the day as Steve was in top form, fresh off a #24 age group finish at Nationals in Milwaukee on Sunday.  Block got all setup and ready with plenty of time for a pre-race warm up swim.  After the warm up, he made a last minute change with bike shoe strategies and started with them off the bike instead of on the pedals.  Block had also decided to forgo his traditional triathlete garb and instead sport the Motor Team jersey for a little good luck.

Swim start was chaotic, lots of banging, felt a little bit like rebounding in the paint at a basketball game.  But Block is big and jostling with the other triathletes was okay.  Block felt like he was making good progress, drafting when he could and just swimming hard when he was isolated.  As he hit the shallows, saw 14:26 on the clock which was good.

Transition went fast, the shoes slipped right on and Block was able to cover ground rapidly in them.  He was also able to clip right in once he mounted the P4.  Only problem was his right contact popped out and was sitting on his cheek.  Block thought about and decided to one eye it given the familiar easy bike and run courses.  Quickly spinning up to speed, Block realized that he was really moving fast.  He was passing people at a steady clip which was surprising given that his swim put him in a good position.  A glance at the Garmin showed 25 mph which explained the passing.  Block decided to leave nothing for the run and just go hard on the bike.

T2 went fine as well but as Block started the run his left calf started to cramp, just on the verge of being a problem.  As Block motored on, he glanced at the Garmin to see his pace which was zero.  Expletive Garmin!  Trying to fix it, he stepped right on the edge of the road, turning his left ankle.  Expletive Garmin!  Finally, after some futzing which probably cost some seconds, he realized the GPS had stopped working so he gave up.  It was hard to see the Garmin with one eye while running anyways.  

Just before the turnaround, Block saw Steve, and said good job as he approached.  Steve was completely startled to see Block only about 3 minutes behind him but with only a mile to go, he knew Block wouldn’t catch him.  Block tried to pick up the pace as he knew he had a chance to go under 1:10 which had been his original goal for all 3 of the races pre-season.  But it was not to be, once in view of the clock, Block either needed a Usain Bolt finish or he wasn’t going under but still finished with his best time at this venue of 1:10:08.

That time was good for 48^th overall out of 261 men and 12^th in the 45-49 age group out of 57."

So sure we have given the Big Motor a hard time all season for his jibber jabber about running, swimming and mixing apple sauce with weird powders.  But we want to give props to Block for taking all his lumps this season battling pneumonia, racing mountain bikes for the first time at the ripe old age of 45 and also putting up with us...well Jon mostly, and all our crap.  Your rookie season is almost over and by this time next year you'll probably still have the least seniority but you'll be another year older and wiser.

Great work Ken!  Keep on truckin!!!

Head North and Real Sudden Like Turn Left

That's basically what the GPS told our boys to do last weekend.  Mc24 and Dub9 made the trip with the wives on Saturday the day before the race and hoteled it close to the race location.  Pongrat1 made the trip on Saturday as well with Chicken Bone but stayed a little farther away to visit some family and catch some frogs.  Big M is 3-4 hours from the Motor Base so convoying up the day of was out of the question.

Big M is a different type of course than our riders are used to.  More elevation gains per loop than a normal XC but it did not call for technical ability as you were either going up a hill, down a hill or in a straight line thru the trees.

The Motor Mice were up and at it early to set up the camp for the day.  A-Train idled in a few minutes behind Dubs and Diesel and shortly after the camp was set up.  As the Motor boys frolicked in the woods before the race Mrs Diesel lounged in her chase and Mrs Dub9 kept warm, snug and sleepy in the comfort of her passenger Jeep seat.

The race came and Dub9 and A-Train rode in the pack off the start but that only lasted until the climbing started.  Dubs made some moves to stay with the leader while A-Train was forced into more of a cruise control pace due to the amount of climbing he would have to endure.  Like Dubs, Diesel shot off the front of his class with his leaders and hung on as long as his heart rate monitor would let him.

Dubs had a solid race fighting Roger Anthony the entire 24 miles until near the end when he overcooked a turn.  What was supposed to be a sprint finish turned into a soft pedal finish about 15 seconds behind RA for second place.

A-Train kept his pace the first two laps riding with Jim G who was setting what appeared to be a good pace he could maintain.  But after crossing GO to start lap three A decided to make a move and told Jim it was his turn to pull.  The pace had slowed and in order to meet his goals Eh had to step it up and get serious with this climbing business.  That moved him into 6th place.  He was hoping to close the gap to 5th place but even with pace setting of Pete Thompson on lap 4 his efforts were futile and he came across the finish line in 6th.

B-Mac put on a good show but was not able to conjure up anything more than a 3rd place.  The two leaders in his class were able to soak up the bumps little better than him but he was more than happy with the 3rd place finish.

Now the Club gets a weekend off to rest and prep for the upcoming Maybury TT on Aug 17th and Stony XC on Aug 24th.

2013 Tree Farm Relay - Battle of the Beards

Dozer, Diesel, Dub-9 and Pain Train.  In 2011 as The Motor Club they took 2nd with a time of 5:54:53.  In 2012 as Hellcats they tore through the course 6 minutes faster collectively taking 4th with the race clock ticking them at 5:48:59 and that was with a 5 min layover from A-Train's crash.  This year, returning as The Hellcats, the team hauled ass and knocked another 16 minutes of their time from 2012 coming in at 5:33:02.  However, the entire race field has gotten so much stronger that their time was only good enough for 5th place.  Being 22 minutes faster than two years ago and sliding three places down the podium is hard to swallow but it's great news for such an outstanding event.

But . . . there was something larger at stake this year than a podium finish.  Something that the world had never seen or heard of before....well at least not in this race.  THE GOLDEN HAMMER!

KLM/Coldstone Racing, Cycletherapy, Racing Greyhounds, Power Hounds, The Cutters, Corktown Racers, The Most Interesting Team in the World, all the other teams......they all didn't matter anymore.  The Hellcats were now racing each other for the right to lift the Golden Hammer at the end of the day.  Whoever hammered out  the fastest lap of the day earned their place in history as keeper of the Golden Hammer.  Would it Be Jeremy 'The Dozer' Daum who is always willing to put it all on the line and fight to the last drop of blood for the team?  Or how about Brian 'The Diesel' McCabe who can match laps with the best of them no matter what man, beast or alien intelligence he comes across?  Then there's the calm, quiet, tame, always keeping to himself Jon 'Dub9' Somethingorother who has been slaying the Motor Club riders at every race this year.  And last, the sealant in the team's tires that keeps this group rolling forward, the man that keeps his cool on the trail at all times, Aryn 'The Bike Whisperer' Pongratz.  Who would be the last man standing in the center of the ring?

Lap 1 of 8 . . . oh who the hell cares with race details!

After a five and a half hour long battle it came down to the last lap to determine the winner of the Golden Hammer.  The Diesel was the victor besting A-Train's fastest 10 mile lap by 59 seconds with the time of 40:01.

Now for race day pictures!!!

Nope, not post race.  This happened at 8:30am

8:45am

Jeremy talking to Jon about his posture before the race

A visit from Jay The Hammer himself!!!

Jon practicing his descents with thoughts of the Golden Hammer

The Diesel going out for his 1st lap of the day

Free in camp tattoos for Hellcat riders

A-Train new ink

Dozer catapulting into his second lap

Out of a plastic up?  Uh, okay!

Jon coming in to finish the team's 7th 10 mile lap

Who needs a plastic cup?

Noon

Hellcats good friend John Heft auditioning for the upcoming sequel to Dances With Wolves

Happy to be working on some one else's bike other than his wife's

A-Train bringing finishing the team's 8th and final lap

Post race with Jay The Hammer

(more race photos)

We have tons of other photos, some of which should not be shared publicly.  But if you have time to waste, check out Hans Nyberg's 500 pix slide show of the race.  It's worth the time spent.

http://tenmilemedia.smugmug.com/Sports/Mountain-Bike/2013-Tree-Farm-Relay/30790308_XXFN9d#!i=2662748376&k=SDrcmBs

And of course we'd like to thank Team Tree Farm, The Hella Bellas, Spoke Drunkies, The Dark Horse Ladies, MTB Patrol and all the others who made this event possible AGAIN!  We're already planning for next year!

The team is in recovery mode because in 6 days they head north to Manistee National Forest for stop number #7 of the USAC Tailwinds series at Big M.