2014 Mountain Bike Event Dates

Join us for some fat tire fun in 2014.  

God's Country Fat Tire Festival
3/23/14
Lawrence River Trails
Lawrence, KS
http://fattireduathlon.blogspot.com

Bone Bender Mountain Bike Challenge
4/13/14
Clinton Lake State Park
Lawrence, KS
http://bonebender.blogspot.com

God's Country Mountain Bike Classic/
2014 Kansas State MTB Championships
6/22/14
Lawrence River Trails
Lawrence, KS
http://fattireduathlon.blogspot.com

Masons Midsummer Meltdown
7/6/14
Wyandotte County Lake Park
Kansas City, KS
http://masonsmidsummermeltdown.blogspot.com

Wyco's Revenge
8/9/14
Wyandotte Count Lake Park
Kansas City, KS
http://wycosrevenge.blogspot.com

LMBC New Years Day Ride

The year is coming to a close, and that means that it's almost time for the annual LMBC New Years Day ride.

When: 12:00 noon, New Year's Day
Where: Meet in the parking lot just north of the levee at 2nd (Mass St) and Locust.

This ride is suitable for riders of all abilities. We'll begin by riding the levee to the Lawrence River Trail, where you're welcome to ride as much or as little of the 9-mile trail as you like. The ride will be followed by refreshments at Johnny's Tavern. We'll be riding, rain, sleet, snow, or cold, so bring appropriate clothing for the weather. Have a Merry Christmas, and I hope to see all of you there to kick off a Happy New Year!

Cow Town Cross Updates

The 2013 Cyclo-cross season is past the half-way point.  Only a few more events left on the calendar before the State Championships in December.  Luckily for some the season will continue on into January. Maybe we will even get a few snowy cross races like last year. 

A sign that cyclo-cross has moved into a different stage of its life cycle, most event turnouts are lower overall than years past especially in the Beginner categories.  USA Cycling added a Cat 5 division but it appears our area does not need to separate the Cat 4/5 division in most cases. The beginners were once the largest division.  That honor now belongs to the Masters.  Most of the local events have enjoyed strong support from the maturing cyclocross community. The passion from this group of riders have kept the two-a-week races going with many racing twice weekly.

New venues with features like the above are showing up with more regularity. Could these venues and the experience that they provide be turning away the beginners? I know my bad back can only take some many of these rough courses.

Cow Town riders have been spotted at local events.  As the MTB season ends look for a few more the second half of the season.  Or maybe not.  Gravel Grinding season is about to take off in big way....

David Wathen been our most passionate rider. Dave has recently started getting good results after a slow start to the season.  He has his stable of cross rigs all tuned up and ready for battle the remainder of the season. 

Gerard Arantowics  makes a return to racing cross after a 10 year break. A 4th place at last weekends event showed he still has a passion for racing.

Another ride who made a return to cyclocross this year was former De Stad Cyclocross Van Kansas Champion Doug Stone.  A 5 year break did not slow down Doug much as he has turned in some very good results. Constant podium finishes shows his form improving just in time for the Championships.

Damian Almanza even made an appearance at a local event. Look for the always stylish Damian to bring out his vintage cross rig at some local Shawnee events.

Once a true cross addict, even this guy made an appearance.  That Ritchey Swiss Cross sure is a sweet ride.  Someone needs to take this ride away from this throttle twister and do that bike justice.  

Philthy become an Ironman!

While the MTB season has finished up and it cyclocross season here in the Midwest, our members of the Florida division of Cow Town are still enjoying some warm weather and finishing up on their Triathlon season with the Ironman Florida. 

 2700 triathletes participated Saturday's Ironman Florida race.  Participants enjoyed a 2.4 mile swim in the emerald Gulf of Mexico waters.  Next up was a flat and fast 112 mile bike ride where the absence of hills forces a consistent pacing and offers no time to recover.   The final leg is a 26.2 mile run which included the scenic St. Andrew's State Park.

Congratulations to Cow Town own Phil (aka Philthy) Carter who overcame a tore cartilage in his knee to finish the Florida Ironman in 13:33.  This is Philthy's second Ironman distance event. .

Wyco's Revenge - Ride into the Night

The Wyco's Revenge returns for 2013.  Look for some fun new single track that has been added to this years course as well as more class options for this years event.  Also added is a Chili Cook-off contest to be held and a costume contest for the Sprint Division. 

Registration opens on 9/11/13.  Be sure to register in the first week for the discounted entry.

Official website: http://wycosrevenge.blogspot.com

MTB State Games

There are currently 31 states conducting or organizing statewide sports festivals known as State Games. Modeled after the Olympic Games, State Games provide a motivational goal for all athletes within the state in which they are organized. Recreational and competitive events alike are offered in most states, so whether participants compete for the fun of it or as the first step to their Olympic dream, there's something for everybody in the State Games.

This past weekend Kansas and Missouri each held their respective mountain bike events.  Great turnouts for both events with plenty of new participants at each event.  How popular are the State Games?  The Sunflower State Games had a record year with 9,111 participants. The Show-Me-State Games had over 30,000 participants in 40 sports. 

Results are below:

Sunflower State Games MTB Results

Show-Me-State Games MTB Results

Roger Harrison was out taking more great pictures as usual - Sunflower State MTB Pictures.

 Damian Almanza looking good on his trusty 26er - the only 26er in the Expert field.  A 3rd place and well deserved Bronze medal on the day for Mr. Almanza.

 Junior Shane Martin moved up to race with the 19-29 group. Shane had a strong ride to earn a Silver medal.

 Steve Brack showed great form taking the win in the Sport Cat 2 40-49 group. 

 The Sunflower State Games added a "Fat Tire" class to this years event.  Our own Jeff Arnaud powered that beast of a bike to earn a Gold Medal taking 1st in the class.

Masons MTB Meltdown Report

I do not think you could have asked for better conditions for the inaugural Masons Midsummer Meltdown mountain bike race.  Luckily for all the temps were low enough to prevent any real meltdowns and recent rains combined with all the trail work that was put into the park showed with trail conditions near perfect.

First time Race Director Cliff Jones  put in a lot of hard work on this event and it showed.  He surrounded himself with a great team and put on a very fine event. 

Cow Town Cycling was out in force and had strong showings in all classes.

The Marathon class get to start out first and they also get to ride for 3+ hours.  We can tell you from experience that that final hour can be trying.  Doug Stone, who by the way is looking splendid in that Cow Town kit, put in some fast lap times and earned a strong 6th place in the highly competitive Marathon class.

After a long two month hiatus James Maynard dusted off his rig and came and to race hard on Sunday.  Result was a visit to the top place on the podium - Congratulations  James on your 1st place in the Cat 3 Men 40-49 division. 

Shane Martin took a break from his job as a Life Guard to come out and play in the dirt.  Shane only got lost once but still was able to earn a 2nd place in the Junior division. 

Looks like we know where Shane gets his MTB skills from.  His father Donald had a great showing to earn 2nd place in the Cat 3 Men 50+ division.  Way to do Martins!

We do not really think you are suppose to have this much fun while racing, but Christopher Locke looks like he can in route to a win the Junior class.  Look for Locke junior to move to the Marathon division or the Single Speed division in coming events. Rumor is he want to kick his old mans butt.....

Sporting a cool set of jean shorts, Steve Brack settled into his new ride for a 5th place on the day.

Tim Greene usually races the 3 hr Marathon class decided to act his age and race in the 50+ class.  Tim had a strong ride up front early and finished off the day in 4th place

UFD Series points leader in the Cat 2 30-39 division Brad Crain made the leap forward to the Cat 1 division. Brad rode hard and earned 2nd place in his first Cat 1 race.

Jeffery Arnaud made the trip over from Lawrence payoff with a podium position.  Jeff rode well to earn 3rd place in the  Cat 2 Men 30-39 division

Jenny Clark looking good in her new Cow Town kit.  A strong showing today for Jenny with a 1st place in the Cat 2 Women Open class.

Shane Jones rode his trusty Surly SS a 4th place finish.  A flat tire on the second lap cost him a podium position for sure. 

Ron Schnick returned to racing this week and had a great time out on course.  6th place on the day for Ron.

 

Tige Lamb overcame a first corner (first 10 feet actually :-)) mechanical to charge through the field to earn a well deserved win in the  Cat 1 Men 40-49 division. 

Mr President had a good ride going in the Single Speed class - leading the first hour of the race.  Chris ended up replacing a derailed chain and dusting himself off after an encounter with a tree for a 2nd place finish in the Single Speed division.

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