Greenbrier Challenge AMBC - MASS/MARC 2014

Date: 4/18/14

Race: Greenbrier Challenge AMBC - MASS/MARC

Location: Boonsboro, MD

Conditions: muddy and messy, deep puddles and a axle deep stream crossing from the huge amount of rain that week.
 Riders: (Dylan (5th - Pro) Mike (9th - Pro) Adam Thistle (14th Cat 1 open)

First Ride on the 2014 Scott Genius 700 -- Initial Impressions

Date: May 11th 2014
Location: fountainhead park

Jeff and I (Mike) both purchased 2014 Scott Geniuses with 27.5 wheels. We are both used to xc riding and this was our first real test pushing each other on an all-mountain/enduro/trail bike (not sure what the proper definition is).  The Genius 700s have 150mm of Fox suspension on the front and rear and are meant to ride downhill fast and still be ride-able on ascents.

I'm riding a Genius 730 with Shimano XT and SLX components and a full Aluminum frame.  The stock bike does not come with a dropper post, but I purchased a Rock Shox Reverb and installed it on the bike.  I also installed a set of Continental Trail King Protection 2.4 width tires as the stock Schwalbe Nobby Nics did not have Snakeskin sidewall protection.  Jeff is riding a Genius 710 with full Shimano XT components, a carbon main frame and Aluminum rear triangle and a Rock Shox Reverb Stealth dropper post.  Jeff is riding the stock 2.25 width Schwalbe Nobby Nic tires (the Genius 710 version came with Snakeskin sidewalls) until he gets disc rotors to fit his Stan's Flow wheels and he can get his Conti Trail Kings set up.

The Genius has a lot of on-trail adjustability to get you along the trail the best way possible.  You have three levels of adjustment on the front and rear suspension, all controllable from a single lockout lever on the bars.  A flip of the lever moves both the  rear suspension from full open to half open and leaves the fork in full open mode. Another flip of the lever locks both the front and rear suspension.

In addition to the suspension lock, you can raise the bottom bracket and steepen the head tube by flipping a chip in the rear suspension linkage.  The bike can go from a super fast and stable descender, to a more responsive singletrack bike just through the flip of the chip.

Finally, the dropper post lets you get your weight way back for stable descents, railing berms, or taking jump in the trail, but bring the seat back up to climb or ride flat terrain.

In short, the bike is extremely adjustable to fit your particular riding style of the moment and can be quickly adjusted to whatever the trail throws at you.

First impressions: The Genius is very comfortable -- it feels similar to my 29er XC bike. The angles on the Genius are a little more slack than my Spark 29, but the sharper turning, smaller 27.5 wheels make the geometry feel similar to riding my Spark 29.

The Genius lets me take lines -- through rocks, over jumps and through corners -- that I would not attempt on an XC bike.  Further, the Genius is far more forgiving of rider-errors (because of the extra suspension travel (about 50mm more travel and very knobby and wide tires). And, with the dropper post down, it's easy to lean the bike more into long sweeping corners, letting you carve through turns that you can't do quite as well on narrower tires and a fixed saddle position.

For a trail bike it is pretty light (about 29lbs) but it is still heavy compared to the Scale 920 that I rode last year for XC races.  This year I am on a Spark 730 XC bike, and the Genius is much heavier so trying to maintain an XC-training and race pace up climbs can be really tough. I also found that the Genius 730 is so confident on the descents that I found myself pedaling to go faster in areas that I would normally be coasting or braking.  All that extra pedaling made the climbs even more difficult because there was less time to rest.

We were riding at Fountainhead park in Fairfax Station, VA this past weekend.  The trail network has short and steep climbs and descents in rapid order, so there is a lot of transitioning from downhill mode (fully unlocked suspension and seat post dropped down) to uphill mode (locked out suspension and post up) and back. I'm still somewhat new to using a full-suspension bike with remote lockouts and at first it can be a bit tricky to gauge if a decent is long enough to switch modes or wait to a longer decent because switching back and forth for every little decline or incline would be overkill and mess up the flow of the ride. I ended up spending most of my time with the suspension unlocked and seat post up. I only put the seat post down for longer descents and only locked out the suspension for longer climbs. Knowing what was coming up in the trial really helps and on our second lap at Fountainhead it was much easier to know what mode I should be in.

I will write another review later in the year after putting some miles on the Genius.

If you want to demo a Genius yourself, talk to AK at Pure Energy Cycling & Java House in Lambertville, NJ (Phone - 609-397-7008 / Web - http://pureenergycycling.com/).  He can get you set up properly, like on this recent demo day at the shop over the past weekend:



Some photos from our ride...

One of the rock sections

Banked turns

Drop off

Skinny section through the trees

Considering a second lap

Though the spring growth

Leaning the bike more with dropper post down

Post up and climbing up a short, sharp climb

- Mike

Race Result Catch Up - 2014 Iron HIll & On the Rocks at French Creek Parl

Date: 3/23/14
Race:  Iron Hill Challenge
Location: Newark DE
Conditions: Extremely muddy and messy
Riders: Ross (4th - Endurance) John (8th - Endurance) Dylan (13th - Pro) Adam (18th - Pro) Mike (19th - Pro)

Full results are available here: http://www.midatlantictiming.com/resultsdetail.php?did=392

Date: 5/10/14
Race:  On the Rocks at French Creek Park
Location: Birdsboro PA
Conditions: Rocky (somehow it also stayed dry)
Riders: Jay (1st - 50+) Cam (2nd - Pro) Nate (5th - Endurance) John (15th - Pro)

Full results are available here: http://www.midatlantictiming.com/resultsdetail.php?did=394

Bike Line Spring XC @ Fair Hill - Race Report - 2014

Date: April 27, 2014
Race: Bike Line Spring XC at Fair Hill - MASS Series Opener
Location: Elkton MD
Conditions: Fast and hard packed
Riders: Open/Elite- Cam (1st), Jeff (8th), Nick (10th), Mike (22nd), Adam (38th); Masters 40+ Elite -  Nate (6th)

This was the first official team race of the year. Beautiful conditions for a race.  Cool, with trails that had seen a little rain earlier in the week, making the dirt tacky and mostly dust free.  An extremely blue sky.  Vibrant green grass.  Springtime, finally!

It was great to see Bart at the event with the Scott Sprinter van.  He had a Spark RC for folks to check out.

We lined up with 50 or more riders in the combined Elite and Elite Master's fields.  The field was so large that we extended over the road, into the field on the side, just to have enough room.

Lined up behind Cam

As usual in this race, the start was very fast from the gun.  We headed along a newly graded gravel road (it was kind of like riding on marbles), across a stream, then into singletrack.  The race is generally won or lost in the first sprint for the singletrack as the course is so fast, drafting works.  If you're not in the lead group and can catch that draft, you lose tons of time.

Sprinting from the start

Already back in 15th place, just 15 seconds off the start - I should have used a larger chainring!

Cam and Nick had a great start and got into the lead group.  Jeff was just a bit off in the next group.  Mike, Adam and Nate got hung up in the lead-in to the singletrack entrance.

Fighting it out for placing in the first singletrack section

Following the wheel into one of the few open field sections - off the the left, in the distance, is the lead pack

Trying to pass was tough. The wind was fairly strong, and heading into the new (and extremely green grass) was so slow, it was very hard to get around anyone.

Jeff got hung up in the first lap and Nick got caught up by a bobble by the other riders in the lead group of seven, kicking him out of their draft and adrift until Jeff's group of six riders caught up to him at the end of the first lap.

Cam's group was about a minute up on the Jeff/Nick group after the first lap.  Mike was riding his usual, start slow and turn in faster and faster laps, strategy.  Jeff took off after the Cam group going into lap 2 and eventually worked up to Jordan from the Giant Off-Road team (Jordan had flatted) at the end of the second lap.

It took a bit for Jeff to catch up to Jordan, but it was a good wheel to follow

In the third and final lap, Cam attacked his group and turned in the fastest lap of the day on the final lap, winning by about 30 seconds.  Behind him the lead pack exploded with the riders who had been riding with Cam lost between 30 seconds to nearly 3 minutes in the wake of his attack.

Captured the podium shot just a moment too late

Jeff couldn't quite come around Jordan in the final sprint and ended up 8th.  Nick turned in a very fast lap on his last lap to pass six riders and finish 10th in a 3-up sprint.  Mike rolled through in 22nd.

Nate missed out on 5th place by .1 second in a tight sprint for the line.

All, and all, a perfect start to the mountain bike season.  Couldn't have asked for better weather or conditions.

Most of the team made the race, but John, Ross and Zack were at other events and it will be good to see them and Dylan and Scottie at future races.

John was at the Chain Stretcher H2H series opener and riding in the top 10, until a mechanical took him out of the running.

Ross placed 37th at the Cohutta 100, the second stop on the National Ultra Endurance Series.

Zack was riding the rocky ridges and valleys in the Shenandoah Valley in the Stokesville-Douthat-Stokesville long-pull ride.

Dylan was finishing up final exams at Brevard before heading back to Virginia this week.

Full results from the Fair Hill race, including lap times, are available here.

Results

Mike riding some fun trails at White Clay Park after the race (only a few miles away from the race venue)

Next up for the team is a split between the MASS Iron Hill event, Michaux Maximus (rocks galore) and the H2H Wawayanda Spring Cleaning series event.

- Mike & Jeff

Baker's Dozen 13 Hour Relay Race - 2014 Race Report

Date: April 12, 2014
Race: 8th Annual Leesburg Baker's Dozen 13 hour relay
Location: Leesburg, VA
Conditions: Summer-like, with some slippery mud to start the day, ending in fast and packed conditions (with dust even starting up) later as the day went on
Riders: Jeff & Zack

I had been dreading going to the Baker's Dozen this year, only because I thought I'd have to race solo. My long-time teammate for this race, Terri, had broken her foot and it wasn't going to be well enough to race on our normal 2-person co-ed team.  We couldn't find a replacement rider and I'd resigned myself to riding for 13 hours on my own.  Luckily, Zack heard I was looking for a teammate and signed on with me to race a 2-man team, less than 15 hours before the race start.

The Baker's Dozen is held on private property in Leesburg, VA that overlooks the Potomac River. Normally, it's a cow farm, but the owners of the Plum Grove Bike Shop built miles of singletrack and the farm is open for mountain bikes once a year for the race.

The trail weaves through various rock-outcrops

The trail is a lot of fun.

Photo Credit - Nathan Smith - https://www.flickr.com/photos/37554200@N03/sets/72157643902124755/ 

It's almost all singletrack weaving in and out of stands of pines, over rocks, through fields, across roots and through the main camping area twice.  It makes for a fun day.  Especially when the weather is nice, like this year's edition.

We camped with the Juggernaut ESF crew, who brought their own shade-support:

Zack and I agreed to use the race for training purposes as this past winter had been bad for both of us for getting out on the trails, or outdoors for any reason.

With 278 riders on the start line (almost 600 people were racing on either solo, 2 person or 3 person teams) for the 9;00am start, it was important to get a good start so we wouldn't be caught in traffic and have to walk after trail dipped into the singletrack and passing opportunities were limited.

I got a good start and decided not to lead going into the trail, giving up the lead to two other riders.

Photo Credit - Marco DeMartin - https://www.dropbox.com/sh/lts3mj9wqks4gnt/p78wSH3RZk

Matt Lough of Juggernaut fame slotted in behind me, and the four of us started to put time on the chasing pack of 274 riders.

Post by Andrew Dunlap.

We had a good gap until a moment of inattention for me and I ended up sliding out on a slippery, off-camber turn.  I lost some time after shaking myself off and getting my foot untangled from my front wheel and by the end of the 35 minute lap, I was down about 20 seconds from first and second.  I rode out for my second lap and chased down the two leaders, finishing with them after handing off the baton for Zack to take over duties.

Zack took off on the maiden voyage of his Spark 700 RC.  It was also his first time racing on 27.5 wheels.

Photo Credit - Gary Ryan - http://toofattorace.smugmug.com/Sports/2014-Leesburg-Bakers-Dozen-Rac/ 

The non-reinforced sidewalls on the stock tires didn't fare well on the rocks and he limped back home after a lap with a slow leaking tire.

Photo Credit - Gary Ryan - http://toofattorace.smugmug.com/Sports/2014-Leesburg-Bakers-Dozen-Rac/ 

I headed back out for some more laps while Zack put on a new tire (which also developed a slow leak later in the day after a hard hit off a large rock drop).

There are some good log pile ride-overs and rock drops on the course

The race is a lot of fun early in the day when your legs are still fresh and pedaling through the singletrack feels effortless.

About 10 hours into the race and 6 hours of ride time behind me, my legs were fairly cooked and I bonked hard on the last lap before nightfall.  My heart rate, which had been around 165-170 for most of the race, barely climbed above 120.

Lots of riders all over the course all day

I finished up my lap, handed off to Zack, and proceeded to drink a lot of caffeine, eat a lot of carbs (sugar) and rest up for my last lap in the dark.

Photo Credit - Gary Ryan - http://toofattorace.smugmug.com/Sports/2014-Leesburg-Bakers-Dozen-Rac/ 

Unlike me, Zack got faster and faster as the day went on.  By the time we got to 9:00pm, with an hour left to race, we were a lap down on the leading two 2-man teams, but up 2 laps on the 4th place team.  All we needed to do was finish one last lap and we were done.

I headed out for the last lap and had some scares in the first sections of woods when my light connection refused to stay together, so I lost my light every time I went off a drop-off.  Not fun to hit the bottom of a drop and be in pitch black!  Luckily, the course went back through the camping area, so I rode back over to the camp, grabbed a new light-head and rode back to where I left the course to complete my lap, which went uneventfully (other than whacking a few trees with my arms).

Closing out the last daylight lap

Zack heading off to do 2 night laps

We ended up 3rd in the 2-man category after riding 21 laps and just shy of 100 miles each. Possibly the best part of the day was finishing up and heading to the huge bonfire with a bluegrass band and pizzas by the truck-full to close out the night.  Another successful year at the Baker's Dozen!

Results

- Jeff

Getting the season rolling

After a terrible winter of cold weather and snow here in the Washington, DC area, and being out of action for two months with pneumonia, I finally got back to bike racing in descent weather last weekend at the All American Road Race and the Sugar Hill XC, both in Maryland.

While neither event went particularly well for me (riding in the basement at an easy pace for months doesn't build much race fitness), they were good training events in generally sunny conditions.  I had a pack finish in the 80 mile road race Saturday and 9th in the mtb race Sunday.  Most importantly, it felt so good to get back out on my Spark 900 on dry and fun trails in Patapsco State Park.

All American Road Race - Photo Credit Igda Warner - http://velogirl22.smugmug.com/

Next up is the Baker's Dozen 13 hour relay event in Leesburg, VA on April 12.  While I've raced this event the past 6-7 years on a two person co-ed team with Terri Spanogle, Terri broke her foot this spring, so I'm going to attempt the event solo.  I tried to race the Baker's Dozen solo the first time I rode the event, but it came on the heels of multiple 80 hour work weeks and I spent most of the race catching up on missed sleep and only got in 3-4 hours of actual riding.  Hopefully this time around goes better for me!

- Jeff

South Eastern Regional Championship #2 In Conyers Georgia

Last weekend I went down to the 2nd race of the SERC series at the International Horse Park in Conyers Georgia. This is the same place where the Olympic mountain bike race was held in 1996. The trails are very sandy with a lot of tight turns and short steep climbs. I was happy to be running the Continental X Kings for all the cornering as the tall nobs dug into the sand and made traction very predictable.

The race started off with a long straight before you hit the trail which turned into a drag race for the single track. I entered the woods in 6th place and we started to form a lead group. I started to loose contact with the leaders but still had a very good race for 4th place which nearly came down to a sprint finish. On the last lap I exited the woods with about 10 bike lengths on 5th place and I managed to hold him off around the finishing straight. 

Dylan

4 Hours of Tuscarora

After all the hype about the toughness of this race, I can now say first hand that it lived up to all expectations. Early season races always mean mud, cold, wet, and gnarly. Tuscarora was all this plus. Three solid climbs and two super fast fire road decents all mixed up with gnarly rock gardens and multiple hike a bike sections. As for me, I rode a strong race holding the third spot for the first five laps. The course took its toll and eliminated the leader and defending champ with a double flat, launching me into second headed into the last lap. I was confident I could hold this spot but was nursing a couple cracked ribs from a fall on the second lap. The Scott Spark and trusty Continental Xkings guided me safely through the race and final lap to hold my podium spot and second place finish. Awesome race and hats off to the promoters for going above and beyond with trail prep, food and killer awards.

Ross

Southern Virginia Shootout 2014

This past Sunday I went down to Danville Virginia for the Southern Virginia Shootout. This has been the opening race of the season for me and many mid Atlantic and southeastern xc racers for a number of years now and it is always a great time with a high level of competition. This year a recent snow melt left the race course sopping wet testing racers skills and their bikes. This was also my first ride aboard my new Scott Spark 900 and this race would certainly be a test of the bike's ability.

At the start I found myself in 10th place going into the woods. I quickly picked off 5 riders in the first lap and then found myself alone for most of the race. This gave me time to really get a feel for the new bike. This year the bike came equipped with a fox 32 Float 29er fork and Float rear shock hooked up to Scott's twinloc system which provides full lockout, mid travel, and full travel settings. I already loved the twinloc and the new Fox suspension only made it better. Even in the extremely muddy conditioned the bike tracked extremely well and I felt extremely confident in downhill root sections. On climbs I easily locked out the front and rear suspension and was able to accelerate the bike like it was a hard tail.   

I had so much fun riding the new bike and trying to push it to it's limits on the muddy coarse that I almost wished we could have raced another lap. I crossed the finish line in 5th place which was a good result for such and early season race given the level of competition. As always the Southern Virginia Shootout proved to be a great season opener even in the wet.  

Scott Spark 900: http://www.scott-sports.com/us/en/products/233978008/SCOTT-Spark-900-SL-Bike/ 

Fox 32 Float 29 fork: http://www.ridefox.com/product.php?m=bike&t=forks&p=32603&ref=filter

Fox Float shock: http://www.ridefox.com/product.php?m=bike&t=shocks&p=99103&ref=filter