June & July

June & July have been heavy months as far as bike racing goes. I started with the rhayader merida 100km race (mtb-marathon.co.uk) and did ok. Quite surprising given the lack of long rides so far this year. The next aim was my first solo 24 hour race. My partner in crime was my main man Chris Marquis. In fact, he was to blame for the whole shebang. Still, we both completed with no support team, both of us on rigid singlespeeds, and both with no real breaks. The next week end saw the second merida 100km race, and given the heavy rain, it was a tough one. Little recovery after saab salomon mountain mayhem either. Nevertheless a reasonable placing yet again. So far several thousand miles of driving rack up against many hours of riding. One thing I am fairly certain of is that I will race solo 24 hours again. The 'no support' seemed to be a non-issue insofar as I don't think I would have gone further faster with support. Still, we'll see. Couple of pics included of the racing. Thanks to jo b for the special top. Next up is the third (Scottish) round of the merida 100km. Then my wife and I are off to state college PA for the SSWC05. Better get the 26" wheel s & s bike sorted then...Haven't ridden on 26" wheels for 4 months now. Should be fun...As long as we get a big pick up to roll around in.