TIME FLIES

How time does fly,

As this is a Racing blog & not much Racing has happened of late, due to an ongoing niggling Injury & prioritizing other aspects of life in the mean time.

For those of you who used to stop by on a regular basis, thanks for your support & whilst on that note, a huge thanks to all that helped to make it viable for me to belt around in the bush for so long, there's a fair list of you down the side of this page & a few unsung ones too, thanks heaps, really appreciate it.... GREAT times :-)

If you feel like taking a trip down memory lane, scroll away!

Thanks for stopping by,

Cheers,

Troy

PS: With a fresh approach to getting on top of this lingering injury & a bit of luck, this is not my swan song, just a mere pause in proceedings.
Hope to see you on the bike again soon.

I'm back

Hi folks,

Firstly like to apologise to those who dropped by in recent weeks & seen no change here!

I have just arrived back from a 3 week break in the US, spending most of the time in the land of the big trees, Oregon!......Found some really great trails, didn't do a heap a of riding as the main point of the exercise was to re-charge the batteries & get over those niggling injuries. Mission acomplished, "hopefully" on the later anyway.

Oh ye did I mention we found some really great trails!!!! more on that later, have some pretty pics for your viewing pleasure. Epix boys look no further, that's where it's at, the land of the big Redwood trees.

Prior to that was just working my fingers to the bone funding the trip.

Now it's time to get fit again & what better way to start than a roll around for 6hrs with 450 of my closest friends this Sunday at good old Lysterfield for round 2 of "Chase the Sun" see you there, if not be square. I'm lead to believe this event sold out weeks ago. So jump onto Round 3 & 4 because there will be no more, this year anyway.

Let the good times roll,

Troy

National Marathon Champs

Brutal & Beaut,

All rolled into one, Brutal climbs & Beaut descents.

Big Hill Events sure lived up to there name with this event, "Rohin, Director of Big Hill events" mentioned at the pre race dinner/riders briefing that he wanted to make this the toughest Marathon event in Oz & why wouldn't he, when they are putting on the national championship event.

For mine Rohin succeeded, It was damn tough!

I certainly didn't make things any easier for myself going in 3 & bit weeks off the bike since my injury from Terra, with 2 very short rides last week in desperation of regaining some fitness, hoping to carry my fitness over for that long was optimistic to say the least, halfway up the first climb I knew I was riding this course & not racing.

Must say I am a little disappointed on the fact of what might have been as Terra is the ideal lead up to this event, however that is racing & life as we know it sometimes.

In closing I am glad I finished & don't seemed to have aggravated the poplatius any further which was the main goal & one bonus was I did get to ride most of the day with my old mate Ash.:-)

Troy

Update

Must apologize for the lack of posts of late & the delay of Terra report!

Have no other excuse than being extremely busy with life!

Willo's Funeral on Friday was a sad day indeed, however it was a great send off to a true legend of our sport with only positive words spoken.

So in brief on the racing front,Terra again didn't fail to deliver, was right up there on the epic experience front, not going to spill too many beans here as I have been working on a story which I was asked to write about the event by Willow, will stick my neck out to say that is was nothing short of emotional & amazing.

Therefore grab yourself a copy of the next issue of Enduro mag to read all about it!

Should also mention I've been working hard to get the body ready for the Nemisis National Marathon Champs since Terra as I tore the "Popliteus", a muscle band behind the knee.
Thanks to Dom from 1st Place Osteopathy I'm a 50 50 chance of being on the start line, Dom is a true cycle injury expert, has enormous passion for fixing you up & his main focus is getting you back on the bike ASAP.

Hopefully see you on the start line as it's shaping up to be a great event, by all reports quite the challenging course too.

Troy

Passing of a Champion Friend "Willo"

James "Willow" Williamson,

Jim was a true Champion Fella on & off the Bike, a great mate, always up for a spin, chat & a laugh.

I'm going to miss you buddy as I'm sure you'll be truly missed by many & my heart really goes out to Nikki & his family & of course Lewie.


Jim & I checking out our new threads at 08 Worlds Presentation.

Hope you all have a great Easter, Get out for a spin & think of Jim.

Troy

PS. Terra report coming your way soon & Good luck to all racing the 24 Nationals.

TERRA AUSTRALIS 2010

I have just received confirmation that entries are in fact still open for TERRA AUSTRALIS, It runs from March 21st - 27th, this does fall into school & uni holidays for most & for you Elite boys out there, the pointy end of the field is looking a little light on due to Oceania's in NZ the weekend TERRA starts, with some decent cash on the line, 700km & approx 15,000m vertical of climbing all in the dirt, what more could you want!?

As mentioned in my previous post I'll be pairing up with the very much in form Phil Orr, (Ex elite XC racer & last years winner of the Vic Enduro Series), looks like We'll be going head to head with my ex BMC team mate Joel Donney(2007 U25 solo24hr Champ) who by all accounts will be riding for the TORQUE team with the very quick Steel Van Hoff, So should be game on :-)


Here I am having a laugh with one of the event organisers Iain, they are a great bunch of people who run this event & they really go the extra mile to ensure each every competitor has a great week, by the end you will feel like one of the family, don't get me wrong this is a challenging event on the bike, but rest assured plenty of laughs & good times shared off it.


So if you're up for a great week on & off the bike in the spectacular Victorian Highlands I highly recommend you check it out & get your Entry in.

Hope to see you there.

Troy

Vic Enduro Rnd 2 Mt Beauty

Any excuse is always a good excuse to head up to mt Beauty & what better one do you need than a state Rnd 6hr at the Big Hill Mtb park.


With the knowledge of super fun trails ahead makes the drive up the hume that little bit more bearable.


Personally I had a great race, feeling strong for the whole 6hrs finishing up 2nd to the very much in form Phil Orr, whom i rode the first two & a half hrs with until he turned the screws that little bit to far for me to sustain on the climbs, with young Scotty Chancellor right there ensuring I didn't slack off, taking 3rd just 40 seconds back after i launched my 6th or 7th attack on the 2nd last lap & finally make it stick.


Phil, Scotty & myself accepting the spoils,
I was happy to stick with Phil for as long as I did in the hilly Terrain as we will be riding TERRA AUSTALIS together, still have to sharpen things up in the next couple of weeks so i don't hold him up too much, Really looking forward to a great week in the Victorian Highlands, was certainly a highlight on the Calender last year.

I'm lead to believe entries are still open, so if you're up for a great week on & off the bike I highly recommend you get on board, for more details check out TERRA AUSTRAIS.

A big thanks again must go out to Andy at Kaos for helping to race prep the steed with a slight set up change, resulting in no Neck & Back pain :-) & of course to Stephen at Mtb Images for these great pics especially the one of me getting lite over the log bridge, it's a corker.

More on TERRA real soon.

Enjoy,

Troy

Vic Enduro Rnd 1 You Yangs

Game on

The first race of the season is always a bit tricky to know were your form is compared to the rest of the campaigner's even more so due to the uncharacteristically flat nature of the course.

From the gun the hammer went down & stayed down, for those of you have been to the Full gas dirt crits underneath the west gate would understand, this was a full gas crit on steroids, with a 10k lap & 6 down in just 2hrs, that's crazy fast when you're ducking & weaving through trees in the loamy hard pack conditions.



4th wheel in the prologue keeping an eye on things with Rohin from the Total Rush team driving it early.

Five of us got away in an early break, two teams & two other solo riders being Phil Orr(Eventual winner) & Brad Davies(3rd) & myself, I had a feeling due to the nature of the course this could very well be a decisive break, so was eager to do my fair share of work to consolidate the break.



On the gas grabbing a bit of air time.

This would later prove to be the case with Rohin & Steve taking out the pairs & as mentioned Phil & Brad filling 1st & 3rd on the podium & big Joel Reid sneaking through in the later stages to take 2nd.



Still having fun in the bermed creek bed.

As for me around the two & a half hour mark I was starting to feel the effect of my earlier efforts & had to leave the boys in the break to it & settle into my own tempo & try to hang on to 3rd.


Stating to pay for the earlier efforts.......Ouch.

At around three & a half hours Joel had caught me & we did a lap or so together then my neck & back started to really stiffen up causing some major grief, I was left with no option if I was to finish the race other than to pit & seek treatment.

Fortunately for me Scott "scooter" Vercoe from IMPACT MASSAGE was set up with his table next door to the KAOS camp & hooked into my back & neck which enabled me to get out for a few more to finish the job off trouble free, however the half hour off the bike saw me end up down the list on the results page.

If you're in the need of a good massage I highly recommend heading down to see Scooter , he really knows his stuff & loves to ride himself so understands our ailments.

Definitely not all was lost, coming away from the race with some great intensity in the bank & the knowledge that the core definitely needs more work.



Well done Jac for taking out the women's.

A huge thanks must go out to Andy from KAOS for building an absolute weapon of a race bike, being the CLEANSKIN Titanium hard tail all XX'd up & some very blingy super light, super fast custom built wheels with DT Ceramic 190 hubs finished off beautifully with UNION Titanium spokes.

Also a big thanks to Stephen from Mtb Images for these great images.

Catch you on the bike, heading out for a roll with the KAOS crew down the beach, 6.30pm at the shop Tuesday's if you're keen & 7.00am Saturday's.

Enjoy,

Troy

2 weeks in Adelaide for TDU & XC champs

TOUR DOWN UNDER 2010


Martin Kohler with the tour girls.(Not all about racing)


Whilst life has slowly been getting back to normal, if there is such a thing, let's just say now I'm home, I've been working hard to compute & recap the experience, as so much was condenced into the two weeks spent in Adelaide that it feels like I was away for months.

Anyway for fear of boring you with all the details I've decided to keep the text minimal by sharing my personal highlights of the tour & let my pictures with captions tell the rest of the storey.

Grab youself a cuppa, strap yourself in & enjoy the TOUR DOWN UNDER from the inside looking out on board with TEAM BMC & a bit of MTB NATIONALS just to keep it real:-)



Rolling down a pier at the beach with Cadel & the boys to check out the view after the racing was done.


Definate highlight was getting to know Cadel & a few of the boys on a personal level, mainly the Swiss lads being Martin Kohler (Swiss Junior Champ & Stage 1 Best young rider & sprinters jersey winner), Thomas Frei (Formerly of Astana), Karsten Kroon from the Netherlands(Very experienced pro,Started his Career with Rabobank then moved across to CSC which became Saxobank) & George Hincape (Needs no introduction, Tour veteran & former right hand man for Lance)

The one common thread I noticed amongst the team was a relaxed confidence without even a hint of arogance, there is such a great vibe throughout the whole team, I had a bit of a chat about this fact with Cadel, to quote him,
"I am the happiest I've been in my whole Cycling career due to the fact of being surrounded by such good people, right from the top being Andy Reis, (Co Owner & Sponsor of the team) he is such a cycling enthusiast with a huge passion for the sport which filters down right throughout the team"

It's no secret that when you're happy & motivated is when you produce your best & likewise for those around you, so keep an eye out for big things to come from the BMC PRO TEAM.

Enjoy the photos.


The boys having a laugh before final stage.


You'd be laughing too if your rig looked as good as one of these puppies.


Rolling out with the boys before final stage, the crit, even got to cut a couple of laps with them, mainly chatted to George about Mtb & how he needs to upgrade his XTR to Sram XX.


George & Thomas behind


Rolling around with the boys


Cummon George keep up :-)


Cadel chatting to the boys


Cadel Having a chat to the press.


You may recognise this guy.


Martin & I


Martin & John (Team Director)discussing tactics prior to race.


Karsten Kroon with his game face on.(Mauro Santambrogio behind)


The race is on.


City of churches.


Rabobank provokes the first break which Martin got across to.


Stay tuned more to come.

Troy

TDU & XC champs

Hi folks I'm back!

Had an Amazing couple of weeks in Adelaide for the Tour down under & National XC champs, hanging out with some very big wigs of our sport & getting to know them as people which was just fantastic.

Have a trillion images to edit & some storey's to tell believe me, keep your eye out over the next few days as I having a feeling you may enjoy!

Well I certainly did & if I can do justice to even half of what I experienced, you should too.

Troy

National XC Champs

Looks like I'll get a chance to race the National XC champs whilst down in Adelaide!

Managed to get a leave pass from the BMC camp to race in the Veteran class on Saturday morning & will also be racing the teams relay for FullGasPromtions on Thursday as my major commitments don't kick in until Sunday when the actual Tour starts.

Let the good times Roll!!!!

Troy

TOUR DOWN UNDER

Well folks,

It's official, "I'm excited" Not only am I heading down to check out the Tour Down Under, to see the likes of Lance & Cadel going at it with thousands of screaming fans.

I will actually be involved as Team assistant for BMC, what it actually involves I'm not really sure at this stage, however when I was asked, it took me all of about "3.5 seconds" to accept the job.

As I know more, so will you!

Troy

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

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

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

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 :-)

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.

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

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!

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!!!!