Masons Midsummer Meltdown

It is time for the off-road event of the summer.  Time to air up those Fat Tire bikes and come on out on July 7th to enjoy a day of riding some sweet single track designed especially for you.  Yes, it is time for the Mason's Midsummer Meltdown.  Preregister today at Masons Midsummer Meltdown Registration.

1st Annual Masons Midsummer Meltdown

What: Cross Country Mountain Bike Race
When: Sunday, July 7th, 2013

Who: Trail Masons & Cow Town Cycling
Where: Wyandotte County Lake Park, KS
Why: Fundraiser to help build more sweet single track out at "Wyco"
cross country race and fundraiser

Some very cool awards are up grabs along with plenty of SWAG and prizes brought to by our fine sponsors.  Support those who support us: The Wheel Cyclery, Epic Bike and Sport, KC Mobile Bike Repair Shop, Hogans Paint, & Skin Quest Tattoo. 

Complete info can be found at http://masonsmidsummermeltdown.blogspot.com

The Dirty Kanza Report

Congratulations to all who finished the Dirty Kanza  this year -both the 100 and 200 mile options.

Complete 2013 Dirty Kanza Results 

Pictures: Roger's House of Photos,  Clay Center Sports,  Dave Leiker, MS Photos,  Adventure Monkey,

Cow Town gravel master Tim Greene recaps his adventure below as he succefully completed his 2nd DK200 in a row....

The DK 200 this year will be one for the books.  It was more like one of my Wind Howler rides with 135 miles of gravel into a 15 to 20+ mph headwind.  Add to that over 12,000 feet of climbing and you had a really physically punishing race. 

The first leg was mostly South and East with wind at your back and pretty fast.  I was riding with Jason Phillips and we made the mistake of starting too far back and had to spend the better part of the first hour picking our way through the mass of slower riders.  Our thought was the roads were going to be wet and muddy and we would let the mass of riders pack the mud to conserve energy.  Boy were we wrong.  The gravel was dry and our plan went down the tubes and forced us to work harder to get back where we needed to be.   Another mistake I made was following Jason across a river on the bike instead of carrying it like everyone else.  By the last leg my bottom bracket was creaking so bad it became annoying.  Overall first leg gave us hopes of beating the sunset.  At the first check we refueled and headed out into the wind for the remaining 3 legs. 

For leg 2 Jason was having trouble digesting his food from the first stop and fell behind.  That left me alone to deal with wind.  I jumped from group to group as the opportunities presented themselves, but I settled down and went into managing my effort and not worrying about speed.  Needless to say leg 2 took allot of effort out of me.  Hills we would roll down at high speed and roll up most of the following hill in the 2012 race were now pedal down the hill against the wind, then pedal the flat to the next hill and then pedal up again.  I ran into Craig at this stop and we took our time refueling.  I was was waiting to see how Jason was doing and Craig getting the energy up to push the single speed out again.  I would have never made it to Check 2 on a single speed, so hats off to all of those guys riding them and finsihing the race on them.  Jason rolled in just I was rolling out.  He was having enough trouble that he thought he was going to bail.

Leg 3 was me alone again.  This time the field had thinned, so really no pace lines, only individual riders.  We started east, but this was to gain elevation for the turn North.  The turn meant dealing with the wind.  By now I was getting minor cramps every hour or so.  I was following my nutrient, fluid, and salt intake plan so the cramps had to do with effort.  The good thing from this exercise was that I learned how to hammer for a bit to get them to go away.  This still ended up being a slow hard leg.  The paved road into Check 3 was fast and my legs seemed fine now and were no longer giving me cramps.

Once I got to the last checkpoint, I found out that Jason was on route and did not stop.  I also ran into Jeff helping SAG for the rest of the Lawrence crew.  He informed me of 25 more miles of wind and then fast 25 into Emporia.  My hand were raw and right foot developing a hot point so I was resolved to finish here and kick back and have a few beers with Jeff and Jason when he got in.   I refueled, changed and waited to see when Jason and Frank would come in and see if they were continuing.  Frank came in first and was going back out, then Jason came in refreshed and riding better now.  He bribed me with a beer to continue, darn peer pressure.  So after getting a new fresh kit on, lights mounted up out we went.  I do better at night and felt good even going into the last 25 miles of wind.  Felt good to be passing people again as opposed to being passed during the middle 2 legs.  Also felt good to be in an organized pace line again.  The last 25 miles as it was last year were fast and fun.  Jason and I dropped all of the group we rode with going north and let the wind push us into Emporia.  Ended the ride exhausted as opposed to how I felt last year.  I also ended up with second degree sunburn on my face and a few other spots.  This was even with sunblock on, but more due to the illnesses I had earlier this spring.  It did feel good to complete the DK 200 2 times in a row and definitely checked off one of my bucket list items...

Equipment for this race is crucial.  Rudy Project Magster sunglasses with Impactx Photochromic Multilaser Clear lense on the cloudy day kept everything sharp and clear vision wise.  Lens even took a couple of rocks thrown at me from the rear tires of other riders with no issue.  These lenses were the trick in overcast condition and into the night time ride.  I was also sporting a Rudy Windmax helmet.  Very light and comfortable for the ride.  No sore neck from wearing a heavy helmet and even with light mounted on top was still light.

On the bike I ran Ritchey Super Logic Evolution carbon handlebars, WCS Carbon Matrix 4 Axis stem and finally a Super Logic Carbon seat post.  These all took the edge off the rough roads and enabled me to endure over 14 hours on a bike.  From Crank Brothers I sported Candy 3 pedals and these worked flawlessly.

Tires are critical for the DK 200 and I ran the Kenda Kommando Pro SCT tubeless.  These tires rolled extremely well in all conditions on the day and I finished the race without having a flat.  The Kenda Iron Cloak belt really did the trick and was the primary reason I chose this tire over the Kenda Small Block Eight with the Iron Cap.  Both tires roll over gravel extremely well, but I think the Kommando will be my gravel tire with the Small Block Eight used for Cyclocross this year.

Though not a sponsor, I tried Magicshine 2200 lumen ligth on the bars for the night component.  Very inexpensive light and MTBR rated it as best dollar to lumen value.  Not having much time with this light I paired it with my Lupine Piko 600 Lumen light I used last year.  Boy is this light bright.  I put it on 2200 going down the hills at high speed and had no trouble seeing.   Then for the climbs I backed it down to low setting.  I did that to conserve battery life, since we were going to be out over 4 hours.  The Magicshine worked so well I turned off the Lupin and kept it as a backup.  If you need cheap, but good lights you can't go wrong with Magicshine.  The only downside is the battery is heavy and reminisant of older batteries from NiteRider. 

MTB News Shorts - 5/31/13

Another successful Robidoux Roundup mountain bike race is in the books.  Randy Tracy and crew always
do a great job with the event.  They get those Krug Park trails groomed up for us to enjoy.  Thank you to everyone who made this event possible. 

Cow Town's Brad Crain put in a strong ride to take top honors in the Cat 2 Men's 30-39 division.  With the hills at Krug you needed the climbing physique of Brad to be successful :-)

Results are up: Robidoux Roundup Results

Local mountain bike racing continues next weekend with the Down-N-Dirty.  If you are looking for your dirt fix head down to Warsaw, MO on 6/9/13 and enjoy a day of racing at the Truman Lake Mountain Bike Park

MTB News Shorts - 5/24/13

Spring is here and that means mountain bike racing is in full swing in Missouri and Kansas.  Some quick race recaps below from the past 2 weekends.  Then it is time to get ready for the Robiodoux Roundup this Memorial Day weekend.

Mountain Bike state championships come early around here so you best have some form early on if you want to earn a title.  Why do we have the state championships so early?  Presumably to "earn" a starting spot at the Mountain Bike Nationals.  The question is why does one have to qualify for nationals when other cycling disciplines do not?  A question for the powers to be.  On to the recaps.

The Greensfelder Challenge was Missouri's official mountain bike championship event/qualifier.  GORC have created a nice little jewel of a trail system in West St. Louis County and offered up a challenging event for all.  Complete 2013 Missouri State MTB Championship Results.

Cow Town Cycling made the trip East and was represented well at Greensfelder. 

Christopher Locke earned 2nd place on the day and a ticket on standby to Nationals.

Tige Lamb rode to a strong 4th place in the highly competitive Cat 1 Male 40 - 49 division.  Promoter Bob Arnold took the win so if you think promoting an event will slow you down think again.

Chris Locke tested the waters in the Single Speed division on the day.  Outside the top 5 on the day proves that he needs some gears for his old legs.

The Kansas State MTB Championships was last weekend. The Dirty Little Secret was again the championship event.  Aaron Apel and the Big Poppi  Bicycle Company and crew put on a very nice event for the riders who made the trip over to Fancy Creek Trail.   Complete 2013 Kansas State MTB Championship results


Cow Town Cycling was represented by Tige Lamb and John Wagner in the Cat 1 division.  Tige "redeemed" himself and took home the State Championship in the Cat 1 Male 40 - 49 division. John rounded out the podium in 3rd. 

Tige in route to yet another Kansas State Championship.

Wagner working hard chasing down the lead group. 3rd place Male Cat 1 40 - 49 on the day.

Trail Care Day - The River Trails

The 3^rd Annual Trail appreciation Day is here! 

Date: Saturday May 11^th

Time: 8:30 to Noon

Location: The Lawrence River Trail, 8th & Oak Streets in North Lawrence

***We will meet in the main parking lot at 8:30am and head for the work site at 8:45****

We will work 'til Noon.

Burgers or Dogs and other good stuff around 12:00.

Prizes Will Be Awarded at the end of the work day.

Grand Prize:

2013 Trek Mamba: $1,049.00 Value

Other fabulous prizes include:

*Cygo-light Rechargeable light x2: $130 value (each)

*Saris Bones Rack 3 bike: $145 value

*Bontrager Evoke Gloves x2 : $70 value

* 1 set of 29’r tires: $130 Value

* Bontrager Lithos helmet: $129 value

* Bontrager RL MTB Shoes: $149 value

!!!! $2,000 worth of prizes!!!!!”

Bone Bender MTB Race is ON!

Cow Town Cycling Team, Team Go Racing and The Wheel Cyclery present:

The 5th Annual Bone Bender 3/6 Hour MTB Odyssey.  Come join off-road enthusiasts from around the Midwest as they test themselves on the North Shore Trail System and enjoy some of the sweetest and challenging trails in the Midwest.  

Why we do this: Sure we love riding our bikes on sweet trail systems and having a great time, but we also hold the Bone Bender each year to raise money.  Over the last four years monies raised has gone to support organizations like the Earth Riders Trails Association (ERTA), Kansas Trails Council (KTA), Kansas Parks, Clinton Lake State park and Lawrence Mountain Bike Club.  We will continue to challenge ourselves and ask that you support us by attending this year’s event so we can continue to develop and maintain trails and produce quality events for everyone to attend.

Course: The BB36 will feature a 13.5 mile course comprised of rocky technical sections with many short power climbs and fun single track sections.  Several areas will cross rocky stream beds while other areas will have fast easy sections for passing.  All this along North shore of Clinton Lake which ranked amount the best trails systems in the Midwest

Venue: Clinton State Park is a 1500 acres park  located on the northeast shore of Clinton Reservoir just outside of Lawrence, Kansas and features  a 23 mile hike/bike trail, 5 mile cross country ski trail, 1 mile self-guided nature trail, archery range, swim beach, sand volleyball, 2 9-hole disc golf courses, 5 acre trout pond, 1 acre children’s fishing pond, accessible shoreline use trail, fish cleaning station and 2 fish feeders, 4 playgrounds and 460 camping sites are available (240 with electric and water).  

Packet picket and late registration will be available below at the following times.   Save $10.00 on Raceday registration fees and register at The Wheel Cyclery on one of the following days.

The Wheel Cyclery, 6403 N. Prospect Ave., Gladstone, MO 64118 -  Phone: 816.455.2453

· Thursday 4/11/13 from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm

· Friday 4/12/13 from 12:00 pm to 8:00 pm

· Saturday 4/13/13/ from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm

Without our volunteers and sponsors the Bone Benders would not take place.  Thank you to the Kansas Trails Council and the wonderful trail crew out at Clinton Lake State park that have given us such a great place to ride.  Please show your support to the following companies that support our event: The Wheel Cyclery, Paceline Products, Hammer Nutrition, Schnick Construction, Lantern Rouge Volunteer Group, Bart Cox Photography and Jewel Cartoons.

Bone Bender 3/6 Hour MTB Odyssey
April 14, 2013
10:00 am - Mass Start
Clinton State Park
Lawrence, Kansas
Website: http://www.bonebendermtb.com/
Blog: http://bonebender.blogspot.com/

God's Country Fat Tire Festival Report

Another successful God's Country Fat Tire Festival is in the books.  For 11 years this event has endured setbacks and all kinds of weather including snow this year.  The main reason for its success and longevity are the volunteers, support from the local cycling community and great sponsors.

There are many people and groups to thank.  Below is a list of the key groups, companies and people who make this event happen year after year. I huge THANK YOU! goes out to each and everyone one of you.

The Wheel Cyclery
Cow Town Cycling Team
Lawrence Mountain Bike Club
Lawrence Mountain Bike Trail Patrol
Midwest Mountain Bike Patrol
The Lantern Rouge 
Local Cycling
Paceline Products
Hammer Nutrition
Anderson Rentals

Special Thanks to: Carolynn & Christopher Locke, Heather and Dan Jordan, Tige Lamb, Gerard Arantowicz, Roger Harrison, Art King, Cliff Jones, Jeff & Donna Arnaud, Warren Stevens, Brad Crain, Michael Mathews, Tim Greene, Dave Wathen, Craig Myers-Areth, Bob & Michael Tarne, JP Brocket and Family, Jennifer Lowe-Brewer, Tom Hall and Mark Thomas.

A final Thank you to all the off-road enthusiast and participants who came out and supported our events.

Some local coverage:

http://www.localcycling.com/index.php/kansas-city/2107-kc-news-shorts-3-24-13
http://www.prologuecycling.com/2013/03/26/godscountry2013/
http://www2.ljworld.com/photos/galleries/2013/mar/24/snow-blankets-lawrence/

God's Country MTB Results And Pictures

Round #1 of the UFD West Series is in the books.  A fine event if I do not say so myself.  We had participants as far away as Fargo North Dakota.  The United Federation of Dirt is really growing.

A huge Thank You to all the great volunteers who came out and helped.  Without you this event could not have taken place.  Congratulations to everyone who came out and raced.  You all fought the elements and showed the true spirit of mountain biking.

Results:  2013 God's Country Mountain Bike Classic

Pictures (more to come)

Roger Harrison's House of Photos: 2013 God's Country Mountain Bike Classic Photos

Guru's Photos: 2013 God's Country Fat Tire Festival Photos

God's Country Day 1 recap

A great day for the 11th Annual God's Country Off-road Duathlon.  Everyone had a good time including those fun loving Unicyclist.

Results and pictures will be posted soon.

Day 2 of our festival continues tomorrow with the God's Country Mountain Bike Classic.  Course conditions now are snow covered so it looks like a rare snow mountain bike race.

First race begins at 10:00a.m. with the Marathon, Cat 3, First Timers, Juniors and Masters 60+

Our 12:00 Noon class will feature Cat 1, Cat 2, Single Speed and  Clydesdale.

Some pictures: God's Country Fat Tire Festival Photos by Guru

God's Country Update

Course is all set for our first event.  Current course conditions are very good and we look forward to some fun racing tomorrow morning.

Raceday registration for the 11th Annual God's Country Off-road duathlon will be available and opens tomorrow (Saturday) at 7:30 am.

Both Long and Short course events start at 9:00 am.