Sunday, December 20, 2009

Support a couple of good causes

HELP WITH TREKKY'S FIGHT AGAINST CANCER



Own a piece of Australian mountain biking history and support Trekky’s cancer treatment. Up for auction on ebay (item 150397647262) is an official Australian national team jersey signed by members of the Australian mountain bike team that raced the world championships at Mt Stromlo in September 2009. The shirt is a brand new medium sized Santini jersey with MTBA logo as worn by our national team.

Most of the team has signed the jersey including Beijing Olympian Dan McConnell, national champions Rowena Fry and Lachlan Norris and many more including Katherine O’Shea and Paul Van Der Ploeg. All proceeds from this auction will go to assist Brendan “Trekky” Johnston in his fight against cancer.

Brendan was diagnosed with cancer just before the World Championships this year; he had urgent surgery to remove the cancer and amazingly was able to get back on the bike to race the championships and finish 50th. He is now at the start of a long road of chemotherapy. You can read more on Trekky’s website. So help us help Trekky and score yourself some unique Aussie sporting memorabilia. Bid now here.


ANOTHER GREAT CAUSE & AWESOME CALENDER THROWN IN FOR GOOD MEASURE



You can read all about it here, but basically Ride Calendar is about raising money for medical research into brain and spinal cord injury. The calendar is a non-profit initiative and all money raised from the project will go to the Brain Foundation and Wings for Life.

Niki has put together some stunning illustrations, the whole calendar can be viewed online through the wesbite. You can also buy the calendar online and it’s in select newsagents across Australia.

A good cause and awesome illustrations — what more could you want!



Make a great Chrissy present.

All the best!

Troy

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Kona 24

With a big year of pretty much Racing everything this year, Kona was all about just going down to have some fun, test & show off the new 2010 model bikes & generally just do a bit of socializing, cut a few laps & enjoy a good weekend away at a great event.

Well that's what happened in a matter of speaking! Just 24 got crammed into 6.

So with TEAM KAOS entered in the 3 man category, consisting of "Captain Kaos himself Andy", Shane & myself with the emphasis on having fun! There's that word again.

Arriving in Forrest with the Knowledge that I wouldn't be joined by Andy & Shane until mid to late afternoon at best, due to work commitments, then being informed that the mixed 4 Kaos team had two members pull the pin at the last minute, throw in to the mix a good bit race atmosphere & my decision was made, Andy & Shane could join the others to make up the 4 & I would race SOLO!

Feeling good about my decision, just couldn't help myself!
Got off to a good start sitting in second place for the first few hours & loving the brand new Titanium "CLEANSKIN" hardtail all XX'd up, it's an absolute weapon exclusively distributed by KAOS.

Not far into the 5th lap on the hardtail the heavens decided to open, with the course at saturation point due to the heavy storms the night before, but holding up pretty well, this down poor tipped them over the edge causing the trails to deteriorate very quickly with some real boggy section making it heavy going on the legs & even worse the very fast, flowy & smooth descents became littered with breaking bumps like corrugation's on an ungraded Oonadatta track.

My back was starting to ache so I backed it of a little (pardon the pun) for the remainder of the lap, which in turn allowed Bellie to join me, I was looking forward to jumping onto 4 inches of comfort, being my trusty BMC FSO1, settle in for the afternoon & roll around with Bellie for a while, at this point we were sitting in 2nd & 3rd with Jase a few minutes up the road.

Only a quarter of this 6th lap down & my Forks deciding they would give up the ghost, turning my non lock out forks into you guessed it? Fully rigid lock out mode!
Managing to stay with Bellie for the remainder of the lap for moral support more than anything as 40 or so minutes of that torture & knowing the forks were terminal, I knew my race was done as I wasn't prepared to finish the next 18hrs 50mins on the hardtail, given the condition & not to mention coming off a couple of bulged discs in my lower back 3 weeks ago.

So I wished Bellie all the best as we rolled into the pits & watched in disappointment as he rode off for lap # 7.

As night fell so too did the showers, making my retirement from the race a little easier to chew on, by this time Andy & Shane had arrived to we headed on over to the cosy Forrest Guesthouse for a great home cooked meal & some sticky date pudding, helping to ease the empty feeling of abandoning the race.

It's now time to soak up some summer sun, rest the old bones, work on the core a bit before I start to focus on 2010, with the focus looking like it's going to be, TERRA AUSTRALIS & Possibly chasing another stripey jersey:-)

In Sponsorship news, most of you would have already heard DIRTWORKS are no longer the distributors of BMC, they have been picked up by ECHOLON sports from Qld & it seems they will continue with there focus on Road & Tri, therefore unfortunately the Australian BMC Mtb team will be no longer.

A big thanks go out to DIRTWORKS/BMC for all their support & looks like they have some tricky looking new products for 2010, again to Andy at KAOS for his ongoing support, NIGHT LIGHTNING LIGHTS simply the Brightest & best system going round, DEFEET socks & aparel for keeping me comfy, PORTLAND designworks for great CO2 systems & tricky grips, PLANET BIKE for keeping me safe out there, FIRST PLACE OSTEO for getting me back on the bike earlier than expected time & time again, PULSE for a great massage, RECOVERY for keeping me fueled on the bike & healthy off it & MTB IMAGES for all your great pics.

I will keep you posted on 2010 prospects as it unfolds, one thing I will say though it's looking all GOOD!

Have a great summer!

Troy

Monday, November 16, 2009

State Enduro Series Final Round


Well I did manage to get on the start line at Officer on the weekend for the 6hr held by the Fatties for the last round of the state Enduro series,
Going into it with a slim 11 point advantage over the very much in form Phil Orr.

Not one to make excuses, it was always going to be a tall ask, with the preparation going in basically consisting of me flat on my back for 9 days trying to get over a couple of bulged discs in my lower back, getting back on the bike just 2 days prior, amazingly feeling more comfortable on the bike than any where else, go figure?

We all know about the theory of tapering for an event, however that's bordering on ridiculous, but you've got to be in it to win it!

Before I get into how the day went down, A huge thanks must go out to Dominic from 1stPlaceOsteopathy for all his great advice & 1st rate treatment, without him I wouldn't have been on the start line, Simple as that.


The race started off at a fairly reasonable pace, nothing to crazy, with Adam Gibson being the only Solo rider getting away off the front, as he was not in contention for the series, I was more than happy to let him go, Phil was basically glued to my wheel for the first 4 - 5 laps, right where I wanted him as it enabled me to dictate the pace & keep an eye on him.


Due to being slightly cautious of my back I was opting for Granny gear on some of the steeper climbs, where under normal circumstances i would choose to power up in the middle chain ring, especially with someone like Phil on your wheel, so as not to show weakness,
However I chose to try & conserve, in doing so shifting into granny a smidge too early without enough tension on the chain it dropped passed onto the bottom bracket, causing me to stop to put the chain back on, giving Phil, Joel & Paul a 30 second gap.


Phil chose this to be an opportune time to attack, this being a defining moment in the race, I had no other option than to chase & try & get back on, putting in a decent effort on the next two climbs, they were within reach, then I over cooked it going into the shoot, (any of you who have ridden Officer know where I'm talking about, for those who haven't it's a steep rutted out bumpy descent that kinks left toward the bottom)Anyway I crashed quite heavily ending up with my mid rift wrapped around a fairly chunky tree.

After shaking the dust off & extracting myself from the tree, I couldn't believe I was OK apart from dirt ground grazes rite down the right side of my body, then noticing a wet sensation in my shoe, after checking my bottle for cracks, looked down to see it was indeed claret filling my shoe coming from a decent cut just bellow the knee, coating the shin & calf in a deep shade of Winns Coonawarra Shiraz Vintage 1999,
Proceeding to chase as the cut coagulated & a stoked feeling that the back had survived the impact, it became evident the rear hanger was bent as the gremlins were alive & kicking in the drive train, with a quick stop to realign in the attempt to quieten the gremlins down, I was again on my way.

Continuing to tap away as the heat of the day was kicking in, just hanging onto the slim thought that Phil too could have some bad luck,
That didn't happen, it was Mwa who had another mishap to slow progress in the shape of a flat tire whilst Phil continued to power on to a well deserved win & snatch the series in the process.

O well that's Racing & least I can go away from the experience knowing that I went down swinging.

I ended up 5th on the day & 2nd in the series, definitely no shame in coming 2nd to someone with the XC pedigree & form that Phil has, Congtrates Mate!

Again a huge thanks to Dom for getting me on the start line, Andy @ Kaos for keeping my bikes Running for what has been a long season of racing & to Dirtworks & BMC for your continued support, MTB Images for adding some colour to the report, last & so far from least to all the clubs who hosted the series, we are very lucky riders to have so many great trails all within easy reach of the Melbourne CBD.

Ride On,

Troy

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Happy days to "not" in a flash

With a fun day had by all on Cup day at Ben Randell's, blatting around in his backyard, See Pic bellow.

Very much looking forward to the Gravity 12hr this weekend,
Until yesterday that is, when I put my back out lifting some timber up onto a balcony.

Confirmed today I have a "bulged disc" in my lower spine.........Boo!!!!!!!

Hopefully with a few days flat on back & anti inflammatories, It will settle down enough to get a bit of Dom's(First place Osteo) magic touch & be on the start line for OFFICER 6hr in 10 days time.....Fingers crossed.



Thanks Bellie for the pic, Me about to take flight & Ben on the hunt :-)

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Cadel Signs with BMC

The BMC Racing Team confirmed that it has signed World Champion Cadel Evans to a three-year contract on Sunday. The Australian was released from his Silence-Lotto squad by mutual agreement with the team on Saturday.

World Champion Cadel Evans now rides BMC
Evans made it clear that he is still targetting the Tour de France as a major goal. "I look forward to working with a new team, in a new environment, towards my same goals; honouring the rainbow jersey at the highest level of the sport, and ultimately at the highest step of the Tour de France podium”.

"Obviously, I would like to do better than my two second places at the Tour de France," he said.

Winning a Grand Tour
Cadel Evans took second place in both the 2007 and 2008 Tours de France. Now Cadel Evans wants to win a Grand Tour. “Cadel Evans hear about how our team was expanding by signing big-name riders like George Hincapie, Alessandro Ballan, Marcus Burghardt, Karsten Kroon and other strong racers, and this news immediately fired him up with the idea of riding for such a flexible, engaged and passionate team” explained BMC Bicycles owner and BMC Racing Team co-owner Andy Rihs. The thirty-two year old Australian cyclist who lives in Switzerland is looking forward to building a newly fortified program with the BMC Racing Team. Cadel Evans believes the BMC Racing Team will help him accomplish his goal of winning a Grand Tour.

KaosCustomBikes, Australia’s number 1 BMC dealer, will be proudly supporting both the current World Champion and BMC Racing Team.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

SURFCOAST 6hr Mtb FESTIVAL Wrap up

This event just keeps getting better, with improved trails, climbs rewarded with fun descents linking up with fast & flowing single track, the event village again having a great vibe with the inclusions of a Hawaiian style bar, band & DJ's back again & a big crowd on hand to enjoy the festivities & show their support for the some 465 riders.

Lets not forget it's set on the cliff tops of the great ocean road looking down over Angealsea beach,
Our mate Hui turned on the weather too with an absolute perfect mid 20s day & a nice balmy night, making the ride all that more pleasurable.

Oh ye there was a race on too, with 3 & 6hr on offer to ride Solo or in a team with your mates.

Thanks to Mtb Images once again I can use their pics to help out with my race report.



Got myself off to a good start gaining around a 1 minute 30 lead on the solo field approx 3/4 into the first lap without feeling I was digging too deep.



Then before I knew it I was biting the dust just like this lass, whilst the dust was settling I realised the fourstroke had not got off as lightly as I & was not going to handle as well as usual as the Bars had stapped clean in two......Boo....



Made my way back to the event village thinking my day was done & it was time to enjoy the bar & bands, Event organizer Mick Sheean had other ideas, he graciously had his bike waiting for me to saddle up, thanks "Mick"
Whilst out circulating on Micks Bianchi Carbon Hardtail deep in the traffic, unbeknown to me the boys back in transition where hastily slapping a new set of bars back on my FS 01, thanks "Norm Douglas" for spannering & "Kaos Shane" for the bars.



With everyone else putting in so much effort to keep me out there, it was my turn to put in!
Was always going to be a tall ask giving the likes of Scotty Chancellor & co a 15-20min head start, not to mention clear track whilst I was eating dust back in the traffic.

Didn't stop me from trying though as the legs were feeling good, then when the 3hr race was done I managed to get some clear track & put some hot laps in, the chase was well & truly on, as night fell I knew this meant there was only a couple of hours to go, digging in really deep & the course hooking up well due to a bit moisture in the night air,
My lap times were dropping as the hunted were increasing along with the added encouragement from the other side of the bunting, with Norm again leading the charge with cheer squad in toe & giving me lap splits,

I hooked in harder & harder, giving it everything, I was pulling them back in 2-3minute chunks per lap only to basically be beaten by the clock.

Finishing up a mere 3mins off the podium in 5th place, Oh well you can't win em all & still not a bad result from 160 solo starters & considering the early mishaps.

A big thanks to all concerned for keeping me circulating, Norm had the Formula 1 pits going on with a full pit crew running around, good on you guys, resulting in me having a most enjoyable afternoon of racing.

Plenty coming up too so stay tuned,

- 7th Nov - Gravity 12hr

- 15th Nov - Officer 6hr Last round of State series, in the lead by a mere 11 points after 6 rounds.

- 28th Nov - Kona 24hr

Warmer weather too,

So get out & ride your bike, if don't have one, best you go & see Andy @ Kaos & get one, plenty of flavours to choose from & a great time of year to pick up a bargain on 09 stock!

Troy

Monday, October 26, 2009

SURFCOAST 6hr report

It is coming, I know so is Christmas.

Been a long day & I'm hooped,
Keep an eye out, was certainly eventful so could be worth a look!

Work smerk, wouldn't it be nice to get paid to ride our bikes!

Even better get paid to sleep/recover!!!!!!!!

Must be sleep writing, because I'm already dreaming!

Sunday, October 25, 2009

SURFCOAST 6hr Mtb FESTIVAL

Was an absolute cracker, if you didn't make it down, Highly recommend you put the weekend aside next year.

Report coming your way soon!!!!

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Been a while

Whilst there is still no shortage of racing on the calender, what with the Yowie at the You yangs last weekend & the Scott 24hr in Canberra this weekend,

I have opted to have a short break as I have only had a handful(a small one at that) of weekends off from racing since the first week of March.

With this in mind I am very much looking forward to finishing off what has been a most enjoyable & quite successful year of racing on high note.

The events of choice are all ones I have previously done & rate highly!

24th October - Surfcoast 6hr Mountain bike festival.
7th November - Gravity 12hr
15th November - Round 7(Final round)of the Vic Enduro series(Current series leader in Solo)
28-29 November - Kona 24hr

So If you're up for a bit of racing I highly recommend these events, they are all great events in there own unique special way.

See you on the startline & be sure to check back here to see how they went down.

Speaking of Events you may well of already heard, CORC has won the bid to host the WORLD SOLO 24hr CHAMPIONSHIPS next year.

In other news, have a squiz over at the Kaos web or drop in to see all the new product & crazy specials they have at the moment, to make room for the soon to land 2010 stock.

Whilst BMC is still very much the focus brand,
Kaos is now the newest Cannondale dealer in Melbourne & they also now offer Custom made TITANIUM bikes direct from the factory to you!
The quality of these frames are second to none & they are a super nice ride at a surprisingly affordable price.
Pop in & test ride one to see for yourself!

Ride on,

Troy

Monday, September 28, 2009

Aply Epix

All the lads have summed up the day well with Pics, Video, Trail tails & yarns, you'll find all the links you need right here

So not much else to say really, other than I had a great time slipping & a sliding on some fun trails that I had no idea existed around Warandyte, Smiths Gulley & ending up in a great little pub at St Andrews just in time to watch the grand final.

6.5hrs in the saddle on virgin trails(to me anyway)with a good bunch of blokes & finish up with a good feed & beer, happy days & thanks to the boys for making it happen.

Ride on,

Troy

Cadel Wins

Couldn't help myself, had to stay up & watch the road race world champs in Switzerland & was rewarded with a very exiting last 10km & Cadel riding pretty much the perfect race, making the break on the final climb & picking himself up a rainbow jersey!
The Aussies road a good team race, bridging gaps, driving when needed, getting in breaks & in the process getting Gero in the top 10 too! Just great to watch in such a European dominated sport.

With the world champs coming to Geelong next year,(starting in Melbourne) & Cadel coming down as defending champ, it'll be huge!


Cadel back in the day, Syd Olympics.

Ride on,

Troy

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

EPIX

Finally my weekend schedule allows me join the boys on an EPIX adventure,
I'm not going to disclose too much & steal their "thunder" except the fact it is in the forcast,
It's sure to be a hoot & looking forward to a blat in the bush without having a number stapped on.

Read all about it, here! as it approaches & especially after the weekend to find out where we ended up & what went down.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Monday, September 21, 2009

Australian MTBA Marathon Champs


mtb-images

Aussie marathon Champs have been won & run, Bendigo Mtb club in conjunction with MTBA put on a great event!

It was a sprint finish for the Aussie jersey with Murrey Spink grabbing the Green & Gold, Jase(team BMC) had to settle with silver & Neil VP a mere 100th of a second back to bronze, Exciting stuff!

I had a good day also picking up silver, in the Veteran class(30-40), with a very Strong Taswegian John Darcey turning up meaning business taking out the Gold with Jason Quigley coming through for bronze,
Fellow Kaos rider Leigh Barret finished with a very credable top 10 finish.



Full results can be found here

Bendigo's endless trail network blew me away & the weather was perfect, what more could you want!

Again the BMC Fourstroke 01 was the perfect waepon of choice & thanks again to Andy from Kaos for giving her the royal treatment.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Jeoff Toohey Badly Injured

Fellow Aussie 24hr Mtb Champion has been hit by a car & is in a serious yet stable condition, read report here.

Fingers crossed for a full recovery mate.

Take care out there!

Troy

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

National Marathon Champs

I'll be heading up to Bendigo this weekend for the National Marathon Champs, for those new to the scene, that's 100km point to point, flat stick on varied terrain in the scrub, ranging from single track, 4x4 trails & fire road with a big bunch Euro style start.
With National jerseys, wads of cash & prizes & of course bragging rights up for grabs. By all reports, huge entry numbers too!

So it's looking like a big one.

Check back when the dust has settled to see how the BMC boys have fared.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Monday, September 7, 2009

WORLDS

What a weekend,

Nothing short of huge was the UCI Mtb Worlds event in Canberra over the weekend,

I was lucky enough to experience it first hand,

To some it up if it's ok with our fellow neighbours to pinch a word & phrase, Wickid!!! Choice Bro!

Over the coming days, weeks, months I'm sure you'll see & hear all about it so I'll try to keep it brief with a few of my personal Highlights.

FRIDAY- Running up Cardiac climb(Brutal climb) numerous times with cow bell in hand & cheering at the top of my lungs for Lach, Paulie & Cal in the U23 XC, awesome job fellas 11th, 16th & 18th respectively.

FRIDAY NIGHT- Being track side with a good view of the big screen too, seeing Gravey & Caroline take double Gold in the 4X, the Crowd was & went nuts.

SATURDAY- Joel's local trails in the morning & Seeing Macca in the Elite XC go from 54th on the grid to off the front on the fire road before going up Cardiac & holding 4th possie to the top of the climb,Madman! The crowd again was huge with cow bells, horns, whistles & massive cheers for the riders.

SATURDAY NIGHT- Caught up with Stuart Dorland from 24hrs of Adrenaline & chewed some phat about next years 24hr Worlds(more on that later) then it was Party time with all the XC riders & crew.......Fun times!

SUNDAY- To see tens of thousands of people going ballistic at the men's DH was a sight to be seen.
Oh & Kabush just owned the short track, with Paulie, Ben Hendo & Neil(Before getting it sideways in the loose stuff) putting in strong performances.

TRIALS ran all weekend on various courses, very clever cats.

To wrap it up, great to see the worlds best strut their stuff in all discipline's, for me personally, good to catch up with various industry folk & on a whole really good to see so many people sharing the one common thread,

The love of Riding Bikes!

For results, pics, free casts etc check it out here.

I'm sure Paulie will have some fun tails to tell too.

Grover has a good take on how the womens & mens XC races went down.


Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Monday, August 24, 2009

Vic Enduro Rnd 6 Castlemaine

Rocky riders Mtb club congratulations for putting on another festival style event at the Infamous Jubber Land, which I'm lead to believe the biggest yet, with some 350 riders, DJ's, bbq, beer on tap, real coffee & lets not forget one of the best trails getting around providing plenty of smiles.


The crowd forming in anticipation.

From the gun I felt great with all the preparations during the week to man & machine seeming to come together, after the first lap i came in second solo behind Willo & about a minute up on Phil & Jarrod,

Just the way i like it, I felt I had not used too much up to put the gap in & Willo was not a threat as he had informed me he would pull the pin at about 4hrs, So was feeling great, then Boom the front tire Blew clean off the rim,

Soon it became apparent the one thing I had forgotten to pack was Lady luck! As the next couple of laps nothing seemed to go right, with one poor lady falling right in front of me, Kamikaze Style, leaving me no where to go, after rendering assistance, putting me further back in the traffic of a predominantly single track course,

Causing more frustration & more importantly big chunks of time & enjoyment due to not be able to get the course to flow.



All Smiles on lap 1.

Eventually I managed to get some clear track & find my groove pulling back some positions & starting to think maybe all was not lost then PSSS goes the front tire again,

Managed to get the STANS to seal & nursed it back for the second wheel swap of the day, whilst in the pits I was informed I was still only 5 minutes down on a podium finish, with 40 minutes to go, so it was time to put the angry pants on, pulling back 2 minutes on the last lap, not quite enough.

Oh well all things considered got to be happy with 4Th place which should give me enough points to take out the Series.

Not bad for an old bloke.

Thanks again to MTB IMAGES & ANDY from KAOS for prepping the machine.

Live to ride, ride to live.

Troy

Monday, August 17, 2009

Chase the Sun Rnd 4

What a day "Hui"(mother nature) had install for us, with 100+km winds delaying the start by an hour, with the echo of chain saws across the park, whilst the full gas crew frantically went to work to clear the felled trees & debris from the course,

We were all wishing we had our surf boards as there were descent 1 footers in the lake to be had,

With the Gale forced winds subsiding a little, it was time to shift the focus from surfing & a parma at the pub & put the game face on.

Going for the whole shot in the cattle grid mass start.


Tucking into the lead bunch to avoid getting blown off the damn wall in the prologue

As you can see no shortage of talent, with our XC Olympian D'mac just a couple of wheels up & Murrey Spinks is certainly no slouch with at least a couple of Vic.Elite XC titles to his name & Scotty L Felt Racing.

Hold that wheel.......Chew that stem......Gggrrr


Showing a clean pair of heals

Pardon the pun as they didn't stay that way for long,

It was time for Hui's next instalment to well & truly releive himself with bucketing rain, turning the trails to a similar consistency of him eating far too many prunes.

Joel putting in the yards in the worst of it,

Whilst the guns on paper fell by the way side, one by one, leaving the BMC boys to bring home the bacon.

Happy after my last lap to be informed we had won!!!!


Thank you linesmen, thank you ball boys,

The win creating another surprise at presentation with the announcement of us finishing 2nd overall for the series, Behind the Felt racing team & sneaking ahead on points of the Giant boys of Murrey Spink & James Williamson.

Thanks must go out to Joel for making the trip down from Canberra for the series, the win was especially pleasing for Joel, making the regular trips south that little bit more worth while.

A huge thanks again to MTB IMAGES for braving the condition to produce these great pics, to Andy, Captain KAOS for keeping my bikes going in these muddy winter months, to BMC/DIRTWORKS for their ongoing support & to DEFEET apparel for keeping the body at an optimum temperature during & between laps.


Hats off to this man

Kaos Dave still smiling despite the adverse conditions on his way to finishing his debut Solo 6hr, Picking up 3rd in the over 50's at just 58 years young, well done mate.

More racing news coming soon.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Surviving Winter

DEFEET technical active apparel, keeping you toastie!


A great range of super comfy & very Stylish socks & gloves, varying lengths, designs & materials catering for all conditions, my faves at the moment would have to be the high cut woollies, toastie & very breathable as the day warms up yet still nice & thin so no shoe adjustments needed.



Technical first layers, perfect for keeping your core temperature just right,
Seamless Arm & leg warmers, very comfortable, keeps the wind out & breathable when you start to heat up, great blend of materials.



Over shoe sock, for those cool winter mornings for keeping the toes toasty & as the day warms up they are breathable, so no sweaty boots, bonus! Very Bling, available in a range of colours as well as black if blings not your thing.
Shell still necessary if raining.


PLANET BIKE lights for staying alive.


Super Styley, Light & Bright & super quick mounting, great if your running out the door to meet a bunch.



Light & Bright with adjustable mounting angles & super quick as above.



Super Bright, the brightest around without hooking up the Rechargables,
great for those late night training rides, available in 1/2 & 1 Watt with amazing magnification making them seem as bright as 10 watts from a distance.


In other news I've come across some new products that really seem to be the goods,

PORTLAND Designworks


Great range of very cool & very different grips & chucks for your CO2 with a valve that actually works & has held air for 9 weeks since the seal was broken, Impressive! Keep your eye on this company, It's quality & I have a feeling there range will continue to grow!
I'll be sure to let you know how the grips feel & if the chucks all it's cracked up to be.

In racing news, plenty coming up so stay tuned.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Saturday, August 8, 2009

FTF winter series XC Chum Creek

Thanks to MTB IMAGES I'm going to let the pictures do the talking.



Launching pad to start the lap,
Note: the regeneration in the trees, Great to see.



Burnt silhouettes,



Tech section #1


#2


#3


#4

The Course:
Based on private property, this race was the only chance to cut a lap on this prestigious loop, A lot of work has been done to clear this course in readiness for this race because of the recent fires that devastated the area, So a big thankyou to the Amos family & Joel from FTF for making it happen.

A challenging yet traditional XC course of around 6km long. There is plenty of ups, downs and off camber action, "Its one of the best XC courses around"!

Great Day, even the sun was present.....Too Good!

Live to ride, ride to live.

Troy

Monday, July 27, 2009

Jason Wins

Jase in his finest moment!

Directly after taking line honors to become World Champion!

Congratulations, well done mate!........ Of course he couldn't have done it without his pair of BMC carbon Four stroke 01's.

Read all about it at http://24wsc.com

Give him a day or so & I'm sure Jase with have his take on how it all went down here.

Also well done to fellow Aussie Andy Fellows, managing to get himself on the podium taking 3rd & Jess Douglas running a commendable 4th in the Ladies.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Sunday, July 26, 2009

World 24hr

Speaking of Aussie Battlers, here's Jase 14hrs into the world 24hr Champs, currently in 2nd place, just 6 minutes down, with a 7 minute gap back to 3rd,
Knowing Jase like I do, he would be right in his element, as he likes a close race to keep his head in the game during the witching hours,
Then smack it home when the sun comes up,

So hears hoping when we, back in OZ wake in the morning, find it has all gone according to plan.

In news on the home front, I was joined by Joel to again take on the XC wippets for round 3 of Chase the sun,
Again finishing just out of the money in 4th palce by just a mear matter of minutes,
A big plus for the day was we all managed to catch the Sun, as it was an absolute ripper of a day!

Some other news which has just been announced, Australia with Officially host the World 24hr Champs in 2010,
More on this later.

Live to ride, Ride to live

Troy

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Bit of a run down

With a small gap in the Enduro race calander Since the Forrest 6hr 2 weeks ago, Ive taken the opportunity to have a bit of a break & get reaquainted with the road bike to help bring the form back up for Rnd 3
Word on the street, Entries are filling fast, so get em in.



Whilst I haven't raced for 2 weeks, there's been 2 little Aussie battlers in particular that have impressed me on the world stage.


Mark Webber getting a champers shower, fair to say he was pretty stoked after many years chasing victory.


Heinrich Haussler, Just 25 Born & bread in the little NSW country town of Inveral, Crossing the line with emotion getting the better of him, sheading a tear whilst taking Victory in the hilly 200km Stage 13 of the tour.
He managed to gap the other riders in the breakaway on a very fast tech descent in the pouring rain "RESPECT"


With the tour heading into the Alps tonight, things are about to get interesting.

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

FORREST 6hr Champs Wrap up

I'll start my wrap up of the Event with a small quote from the Forrest home page.

We had one of the best 6 hour Mens and Womens solo races in recent times. Dan McConnell, Jason English and Troy Bailey kept the crowd entertained for almost the whole 6 hours. Dan McConnell came out the victor with Jason English second and Troy Bailey finishing out a world class top 3.

Must say it was quite the privilege, to be standing on the podium along side this pair of absolute guns at opposite spectrum's of the sport,
Both heading to Canada next week, Dan for some XC world cups chasing UCI points for this years World Champs on home turf & Jase for the World 24hr Champs......... Go Gett'm Boy's!

Even though they well & truly handed it too me & daylight should've been awarded third, thanks for helping break the rest of the competition though,

As I had a fair ding dong battle with Jarrod Moroni & Phil Orr until the going got to tuff for them in the tricky conditions, both pulling the pin about 4hrs in.

With a good gap on the rest of the field it was just a matter of bringing it home to grab my spot on the box.

As you can see by the number, I was entered in a team with a last minute decision to race solo as I was feeling pretty good, glad i did.

Big Thanks to -Norm & the Forrest crew,

-BMC, couldn't think of a better suited bike than the Fourstroke 01 for these trails

-Dirtworks & Kaos for your greatly appretiated on going support.

Last & so far from least my on course Cheer squad :-}

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Monday, July 6, 2009

FORREST 6hr Champs


What a Beauty!........ Click on the logo for results & brief race report.

Mine to follow shortly,

Live to ride, ride to live,

Troy

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Pics a plenty



Thanks to mtb images once again for these great pics,


Had some fun with a few to mix it up a bit.



Sequence of a descent

"1"

"2"

"3"

The boys have been building


Lets not forget the climbing, making you see all sorts of pretty colours.

Live to ride, ride to live.

Troy