Ice Road Truckers - Mountian Bike Edition

John S & I hit the dirt (er...ice roads today) Started out fun ended up fun but the middle of the ride was tough. 28 degree departure time temp and a 20 mph wind. It did not get warmer and the sun played hide and seek behind the clouds. We both really struggled with the road conditions. John went down once early & I was down 2x before the 1/2 way point. We managed to keep it together from there. Nothing hurt to bad as we were mostly frozen. As I am starting to thaw my hip feels like it was used as a landing pad, oh wait it was. Hard to be cool when your clipped in with hands on the grips and laying in the road. The second time I went down fast. The GPS popped off and I did not realize it was missing till we were 3/4 mile down the road. Was able to return to the scene of the crime and it was still there. It spend the rest of the ride in my pocket.

Somewhere north of lake orion as we were navigating the crowned road full of Ice 2 other team riders blew by us, they had to have had studs on their tires. We kept pace on the flats but after the first corner they were gone.

Below is the GPS from our loop. It felt much more hilly than the GPS post looks like. We were in the boondocks.

dave

GPS - Link http://connect.garmin.com/activity/21112489


BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Turkey Roll 2009

Ok so I was a punk this year and at 9:30 was still in my bathrobe, I'll spare you that picture but here is a picture captured of a group of real men and their bikes.

dave

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Thanksgiving ride PLRA @ 9:30

Don't forget the annual ride Robert Herriman puts on. Who's in? 2008 Ride pic above.

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

November 14th Riding in shorts and short sleaves - Gotta Love it!

Paul, John G & I headed out to get a "easy ride" in. We always say that then hammer. Trails were a bit slick with the leaves, I went down 2x & John once. Paul was the sole survivor. Bald Mt. was surprisingly very wet in all the usual places. We finished with just under 30 miles on the day. Good times for sure.

dave

GPS Data

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Iceman Cometh

I hate it; I love it; I hate it; I love it. Alright, I am not too sure about the Iceman Cometh Challenge. I hated the idea of it at first. 4000 people on one trail left me wondering what kind of abomination we had wrought. The thought of the race when I thought it was 3000 people back at the time of signing up in February was enough to make me reluctant. NOW 4000???

Well, my theory going into the season was this: train like I'm gonna race and if I do well, great. If not, at least enjoy the fitness level. So, I figured I would apply that to Iceman.

Prior to the race I started reading about all the logjams that could occur on the trail and I figured: screw it!! Go out and race and be ready to deal with everyone else that might get in my way. If things went badly, just treat it like a 27 mile weekend ride with beer at the end. What's not to like?

The start was one of the best I experienced in terms of anxiety level. I started in the same wave as a couple of guys I ride with frequently: Jim Senska and Jeremy Hansen. This helped since familiar faces in a wave of humanity always help settle me down.

My ride was pretty uneventful-- no major crashes, no discourteous riders, just good fun.

Well, until the cramps set in about 20 miles into it. I was able to manage them so that I did not lock up the quads, so that was a blessing. This was the first race I used Hammer's Endurolytes to manage my electrolytes. I was a bit conservative in using them and I think I would have been fine if I had followed the exact directions. Hammer indicates that you should take them every 45 minutes of hard exercise. I took some right before the start, but then abstained until about 90 minutes into the race when I started to feel the cramps come on. My mistake, but I felt better about having slight cramp issues than I did about really upping my usage on this supplement.

During the race, Jeremy and I rode together. About 5 miles in, I pulled away from Jeremy and was pretty much riding by myself. Jeremy eventually caught up to me at about mile 15. He was stronger at that point and I tried to latch on to the back of his wheel. I stayed with him for about a half a mile, but no dice. He had a great tempo and I was struggling. We talked for awhile, but I eventually let him go.

One funny event: me and a number of singlespeeders were walking up a hill (don't ask me which one; I was in the pain cave and they all looked the same to me). I was walking along and a guy in my class was off his bike and running up the hill, passing me. I mocked disapproval, telling him it was cheating to pass while walking. He replied, "I'm not walking." Touche. He was running and he went right by me. Rats!! But it was worth the laugh.

Also worth a grin was the aid station dude handing out bananas dressed as a banana.

Coming to the finish was fun. I passed a guy in my class with about 500 meters to go. The crowd was HUGE.

I was dazed and confused when I got off the bike. I really felt out of it. Luckily, I ran into a teammate, Jeff Jager. He was nice enough to buy me a water (thanks, Jeff).

All in all, it was a great weekend. Seeing all the teammates and other friends and familiar riders was a blast. Jeff Carek threw a nice party afterward with good beer and awesome chili.

I like Iceman. If for no other reason, I liked it because it is a great measuring stick. Looking at the race results, one can measure oneself against some of the best racers in the country. The prospect of doing the course x minutes faster next time would place me right there in my class and only y minutes behind the pros. That'll motivate me to spend more time on the trainer this winter.

Gotta go; I gotta go train.

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Iceman Team Results - Precisionmtb.com

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Iceman Cometh 2009 Lives Up To The Hype

Iceman Cometh 2009 lived up to the hype and I lived through the challenge.

Having never raced before, I signed up early this year with the thought that I had many months to prepare. It started with a great group of guys I have had the pleasure of riding with for the last couple years… the BERC boyz. Even though I was not able to put in the training hours to get to the level most of the group was at, we still did plenty of rides together. We were now all training for the Iceman.

What really kept me going was my good friend Steve D. We rode many miles together over the summer. Steve encouraged me to get out and ride when I was less inclined to. He was willing to ride with me at night when I was more available despite his preference for day time riding. Steve didn’t much care for the Dutton hill at night, but still let me incorporate it into many of our rides. I couldn’t have prepared for the Iceman like I did without Steve.

The week prior to the race I was nervous. I felt I did not get enough long-haul rides in over the summer. Still I was excited about the challenge. I did not have to worry about mechanical issues because I was assisted with a pre-race tune-up by Steve K, John S, and Dave S. Steve graciously opened up his workshop and offered his tools while Dave and John gave of their time and expertise. John also did a last minute derailleur adjustment for me the day we were leaving. The bike performed flawlessly during the race. I was unfortunate that Steve K could not join us at the Iceman due to his injury.

The Grand Traverse Resort was a good place to stay. Close proximity to the finish and not too far from Kalkaska. It was somewhat surreal to see all the bikes going in and out of the hotel. Some even riding them in the large lobby. I roomed with Paul M and John G. The room was very comfortable and had a great view of bay. We woke up to a fabulous day on Saturday. John said I missed a beautiful sunrise… I was still sleeping. Paul and John were great roommates and kept me on schedule. They even let me have one of the two beds to myself. I wonder why?

My goal heading into the race was simply to finish and have a good experience. Being it was my first race I had little data to set a time goal. On the first few tough climbs at the Iceman I saw some riders walking them. I then set another goal… I would ride up as many hills as possible, without walking, even if it meant crawling up very slowly on the granny gear. That plan was working until someone stopped dead in front of me, without warning, without pulling over, halfway up a hill. I had no choice but to stop. After that I think I intentionally dropped to my feet only once or twice. I do remember doing so at “Anita’s Hill”. I was halfway up when I felt my quads starting to give. I decided that it is better to walk rest of this hill and be able to finish the race. I may have walked up the very last climb as well. I can’t remember as I was delirious at that point.

It was interesting to see the dynamics of the conflict between the pro/expert racers and the sport/beginner riders. Some were there to win at any cost. Others were obviously over their heads or simply in it for the experience. I did my best to look behind and move aside for those that were fast approaching. Others were oblivious to the faster riders or were not courteous enough to keep right when possible. There were a few clashes I witnessed. One resulted in a crash. An aggressive racer came upon me as I was going downhill on a narrow single track. I was behind a slower rider and could not pull aside. The one behind yelled “passing on left”. I thought “you’re kidding”, but sure enough he was pushing beside me in the leaves. He then hit a hidden tree stump and went flying, hitting the guy in front of me and sending him into the brush. Somehow I avoided the tumble fest and stopped. The biker who caused the wreck quickly got up and asked “You OK?”. Without waiting for a response he jumped back on his bike and took off. The guy face down in the brush looked to be in his 50s and was a little disoriented. I helped him get on his feet and removed the leaves tangled in his bike. Outside of this incident, the majority of the riders were great sports.

Overall the event was well organized. The start of the race was great. I liked riding to the staging area from the parking lot. It gave me a chance to test the equipment and prepare mentally. Steve arrived minutes before the start and was able to find me. We started the Iceman together. I kept pace with Steve for a few miles, but he pulled ahead and I lost him. I was pacing myself to conserve for the duration. I felt pretty good for the first 2/3rds of the race. My hamstrings were bothering me most of the race. I got a little break when I came upon the traffic jam leading up to “The Wall”. There were at least 100 riders waiting to go down the backside of the hill through a very narrow switchback!

The last third of the race was grueling. I was overheating with my jacket on, but yet I did not want to stop to take it off. In hindsight I should have. The last few miles I anxiously looked for every next mile marker. The last climbs were the most painful. The sounds of the crowds and announcer at the finish kept me going. When I entered the chute towards the finish I felt an enormous sense of accomplishment. I started to tear up out of sheer joy of finishing. The tears quickly stopped when I needed to appear manlier as I passed all the people lining the finish and cheering me on. It was a great moment. When I came to a stop I put my feet down. My legs then seized and I could not move for about 10 minutes. When I could eventually get myself off the bike and walk I felt great, and have since.

After the race we cleaned up and napped at the hotel. We then went to a party at an old school house rented by Jeff C and his family. The house was really cool and the food was great, chili and chicken noodle soup. We relaxed and told race stories. Jeff, his wife, and mother were great hosts. It was a great end to a fabulous day.
I am in for the next year’s Iceman. Now I have a personal time to beat. I will be looking forward to the next biking season. I may even get out a few times this winter. Somehow I feel like the season was incomplete without the ‘ice’ part of the Iceman.

~Pablo



BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

AndyE Garmin riding summary

Dave, good idea... as for Iceman, I was overall happy with my results; I did a longer race in a shorter time, on my single speed. My Garmin time (which accounts for pauses) was 2 h 29 min, so in a sense I accomplished my goal of less than 2.5 hours. But my official time was 2 h 34 min 50 sec. I felt pretty strong until the last 6 miles or so, then the cramps started getting to me. This year's race was a great time, great weather, really an enjoyable day. Glad to see some of the Berc guys after the race. Also ran into Kevin and Dearborn Don.

Considering the season until now, I'm not sure how many more miles I did this year (didn't keep good track last season), though considering my Iceman results, I think I need to get more high output miles.

Here is my Garmin cycling summary:

Count:	92 Activities
Distance:	2,234.49 mi
Time:	167:06:50 h:m:s
Elevation Gain:	149,839 ft
Avg Speed:	13.4 mph
Avg HR:	134 bpm
Avg Run Cadence:	--
Avg Bike Cadence:	75 rpm
Calories:	181,289 C

My Greenlight ride total mileage is 2,263, there was one ride in Marquette I didn't track with my GPS. Not sure about the total elevation gain... might be a glitch there. Cadence only applies to my Cannondale. I spread my miles across 4 bikes, with my Fisher 29er and Cannondale road rig getting most of the miles. My single speed miles is somewhere around 25% of the total, split fairly evenly between the XXIX 29er and my fixie.

A good season of riding, may have to consider doing some more races next year for the high intensity miles.

Dave 2009 YTD Riding Summary as of 11/10/09

I ran a quick report off the garmin connect website to check miles for the year. This is the first year I've had enough data to gather how many I'd logged. and this is the first time I have added them all up. Didn't realize the software had a report feature so it was quite easy. I've heard many team mates and friends quoting miles recently and had no idae what I'd actually done. So below is the report. There was one BTT ride that said 214 miles, they are long sometimes but not that long so I deleted that one and re-ran the report.

On a side note - indoor training season is started, today was day 2 of riding the rollers in the am, there is an art to it. I have a fixed gear on the tri-cross flip flop hub. I hope to get good enough by the end of the winter to ride the fixie on the rollers.

I'd love to see more than just me posting to this blog come on BERC, BTT, and PrecisionMTB guys and Gal get on the ball and post up your Iceman & 2009 riding summaries! If you do not have author rights to this blog but would like them shoot me an email, for those that already have the permissions lets get posting!!!

Progress Summary Report for dfsmith2
2009 YTD Riding Summary as of 11/10/09
Count:	121 Activities
Distance:	2,479.33 mi
Time:	205:40:01 h:m:s
Elevation Gain:	138,382 ft
Avg Speed:	12.1 mph
Avg HR:	124 bpm
Avg Run Cadence:	--
Avg Bike Cadence:	67 rpm
Calories:	177,347 C

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Iceman 2009

The Iceman 2009 Race was a blast. There were over 4,000 racers all converged on downtown Kalkaska last Saturday.

This was an interesting year for me from a training standpoint. Last year's Iceman was my first race ever. This year I had a full season of racing under my belt. I think last year I was in better shape and had trained harder for Iceman. This year my racing performance peaked in July and then life got kind of busy and riding took a second chair for the balance of the summer. It felt a bit like "show up and ride" this year.

Last year was 2:07 vs. 2:09 this year. The 2009 course was 1 mile longer than 2008 so I figure roughly the same time as last year. The course was really fast this year and I felt the 2x1 gear ratio cost me time on the flats but am not sure a taller gear would have netted a faster time as the hills would have been really tough. I think next year a carbon frame 1x3 would be the fast ticket. I was in wave 10 and had many of my single speed younger friends in wave 8 just ahead. Many friends were in various waves all over the entry field.

At around the 3 mile mark the rider immediately in front of me wiped out in a major sand pit and I promptly went over the bars on top of him. No damage and we were back on the course quickly. The rest of the way was fairly uneventful with a bit of a challange on the nutrition side. I used honey this year and the consistency made it a bit hard to get out of the flask quickly. The finish this year had many more vendors and activity than last year including local food vendors. We stayed and watched the pro's finish. The promoters had a large digital leader board and that was fun to see the names of teammates pop up.

It was a great year of racing for Team Precision MTB, thanks to Brian and Jimmy for everything this year. Jeff hosted a killer party in a one room school house just blocks from the finish with killer homemade Chili and Chicken Noodle soup, thanks Jeff & family.

I can't wait for next season and the winter rides that are soon to come.

Garmin GPS Race Data

Picasa Photo Gallery



BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Poto SSWC 2009

This years Poto SSWC (Single Speed World Championship) Group Ride (IT'S NOT A RACE REMEMBER) was a blast.

It was plenty slick and lots of fun. John G, Andy E, John S, Jim, and Jeremy were in attendance along with about 80 others from all over Michigan. There were some great costumes (see picture gallery). John G even dressed up briefly in a terry cloth towel wrap!

The loop is 18 miles, Andy & I took a wrong turn somewhere and ended up around 14 miles (GPS Post below) This is an event I look forward to every year, I hope the BERC & BTT single speed ranks continue to grow and we have more join us next year!

A big thank you to Jason Jones for making this event happen, GREAT JOB.

Link to the picture gallery from the ride and here is a link to the GPS data.

Visit Jason's ride Blog below

http://psswc.blogspot.com/


Offending pedal at right, smashed the cage near mile 1 and could not clip in the rest of the way.

dave

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Final BTT Ride of 2009 - The Windfest on the Water

2009 Was my first full season of BTT participation. Stevie D turned me on to the ride during the early part of the 2008 season and I have been hooked since. I tried to get there most weekends and if my GPS posts are correct I made it down to the D on 15 Saturday mornings @ 6:30am. It will be weird when I wake up on Saturday now with no BTT ride to head to.

I met many new friends this season and got to spend time with old ones as well, and had a blast. The beauty of the BTT experience is it matters not where you come from, what you do, or where you live, just pedal and have fun is the rule of the ride. It was great to see Bill at breakfast and know he is on the mend and back on the bike, way to go Bill. It was good to see Jay as well and I will keep your wife in my prayers as she continues to heal.

Here is a link to the photo gallery from the ride.

I'm gonna miss the breakfast for sure next week.

Good luck @ the Iceman everyone. & Thanks Andy for a great BTT season!

dave



BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Stony Night Ride GPS

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for BERC Night Ride @ Stony

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Water Crossing Bald Mt

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Massive Fall Out 2009 - Group Ride

Funn day dispite the weather. Thanks to John for getting us all off the couch this morning. We all logged on to the group page to find Mr. Schram had already been waxing poetic about the weather. Long story short we would not have gone not for his prodding. The 4 of us pictured left from my house and met up with Steve D, Paul, and Ryan at Stony. We started out at Stony and headed north to Addison, we were part of the first group to loop Addison. The single track held up very well actually. The food was fantastic, I loved the Chili with the fresh vegetables from the cooks garden. Bravo! We headed off to Bald Mt. next, it was basically under water. We wanted to exit @ Conklin road but were afraid it would be un-passable so we cut out after the lower 1/2 loop of the upper section. Andy has video of the water crossing we did at the pallet section. Andy & I put a foot down, Ryan made it earlier without getting out of the pedals. Water was 2/3's of the way to the hubs. What a fun day and a great group of friends. We should count ourselves quite fortionate. To be able to organise a group of 7 starting @ 6am is pretty fun. Single Speeds were the popular steed today with 4 out of 7.

Great times everyone. Even Steve "The Clavicle" K stopped up to say hey it's raining outside what are you so muddy?

Here is the GPS post I recorded during the ride.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/15199844


BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Leadville 100 Movie Trailer

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Recent Ride Posts - BTT & First Surly 1x1 ride

Recent ride GPS posts

BTT from 9/26/09
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/14545766

First ride on Surly 1x1 (top speed of 39MPH)
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/14545765

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at http://www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

New Bike in the Stable - Surly 1x1

Not totally sure how this happened but I bought this monster
yesterday. Took it out to Stony today with John S & did the 3 loops.
It was fun, it halls and carries great momentum. Pretty rough ride
with 40 psi in the tires. If I can figure out how to run 22-25 lbs in
the tires I think it would be perfect. I'm gonna see if Brian B can
make some recommendations on making Stan's work on this rig, if anyone
can figure it our he can. I rode up to the cider mill with Shelby and
everyone wanted to know "what your bike for" I was talking with Ryan
@ KLM and he gave me the sign they made for the bike that said "This
Bikes for Fun" everyone that came in the shop asked "what's that bike
for" so I told folks it was for fun. Supprisingly it held pretty
good in the turns, bigest issue I had was the ride being really
rough. Maxxis makes a downhill tire called the High Roller that will
be perfect for this thing and make it a killer "Snow Bike". Here is a
link to the pictures.

Any ideas on how to make stans work on this thing would be
appreciated.

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

BTT & Tour De Troit Ride

Great ride today came close to a century. Check out the GPS post below. There were literally thousands of cycisits, both rides (30 & 60 miles) crossed on Grand River at Gratiot and it was very cool.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/13605514

dave

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at http://www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Epic Labor Day Ride 2009

We did a combo fall out / iceman run hitting Balt Mt North first, then over to Addison and then down to Stony. We were on track to do the marathon loop at Stony but time was running long. Good fun had by all. In attendance John S, John G, Steve K (not pictured), Paul, and me. We had multiple commutes but millage was north of 40 miles for all with some as high as 46-47.

Here is the GPS Link -
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/12803710

dave

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

2009 First Annual Kid's Back to School BTT Ride

Something special happened on BTT today. 43 riders of all skill levels including a bunch of kid's and first time BTT riders. We had 2 groups and timing worked out perfectly as both met (unplanned) at http://www.heidelberg.org/ for the "Name Game" Click below to watch the Name Game. Can Andy remember everyone's name?

Click pictures below for link to album I took during the ride. Below is a link to the GPS of the Kid's Route.

Click Here for Andy's Name Game

Click Here for Shelby Crusing the Dequinder Cut

Click Here for a GPS map of the Kids route today

Click picture below for ride picture album

2009-09-05 BTT Kid's Ride

Enjoy

dave

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Iceman Training Run Addison & Bald Mt with Pat & Peter

Iceman Training run GPS

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/12453014

Stony XC Photos

Here are the pictures from yesterday we took. Nice job to our photographers, my daughters! Thanks to the Gonway's for feeding us so well.

dave

2009-08-30 Stony XC

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

BTT Ride 8/29/09

Good fun in the D. had to cut this one a bit short to make it back to troy by 10:30. Breakfast next time.

dave

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/12141418

Garmin Connect Activity : Iceman 2009 Training Ride #2

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Iceman 2009 Training Ride #2
Iceman 2009 Training Ride #2



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11852740

Ride Post - BTT 8/22/09

It was great to be back on the Train. We had 24 riders, rain, 5 flats (3 were mine) and good food. Saw the packard plant, hitsville USA, Boston Edison neighborhood, and all the other cool sites in the D. Not sure what's up with the flats on my specialized. I've had 4 this week? Going to get some rim strips and change the rear tire 7 see if that helps.

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: BTT 8-22-09 A bit of Rain and a bunch of flat tires
BTT 8-22-09 A bit of Rain and a bunch of flat tires

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11697193

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub
http://precisionmtb.com
http://beatthetrain.com

Ride Post - Iceman 2009 Training Ride #1

I'm going to use this loop as my iceman training loop, this was attempt #1

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Iceman 2009 Training Ride #1
Iceman 2009 Training Ride #1

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11663697

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Cool Story - Paint Creek Trail, a flat, and Paint Creek Bicycles

John S & I were taking a easy ride on PCT getting some base miles. I ended up with a flat (somethings up I got 3 more the next day) we ended up on the trail with a patch kit, tube, pump, but no 15mm wrench to get the wheel off. Were were trying the pump it up and ride as fast as you can method to get back to my house, 4 miles away. It was not working well. Keith the owner @ http://paintcreekbicycles.com/ in Lake Orion came up (on his new Black Sheep- it's sweet) and asked if we were ok. Said yes & thanks and he headed on, I called back & asked if he had a 15mm wrench, he did not and we went about patching the flat & Keith headed back toward LO. He then offered to open his shop up for us to fix the tire. His shop was 1 mile away and we accepted. Rode there on the rim & got it fixed up. A HUGE thank you to Keith & Cary @ PCB for helping us out. That's what makes biking so fun is the people rock.

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Paint Creek Trail - Keith from Paint Creek Cycles
Paint Creek Trail - Keith from Paint Creek Cycles

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11663702

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

BERC 2009 Weekend Trip Recap

This years trip was fun and challenging. We learned to appreciate our broadband internet connections for sure as we tried to load the Iceman GPS over dial-up. We got in a night ride this year as well. Thanks to Andy for the use of a very cool farm house and thanks to all for the Beef Jerky, it was pretty good. This year we had 6 riders, this is a 50% increase over the 2008 trip and we hope more join us next year. We hope to figure out a way to head west next year. Joining us of the 2009 trip were: Andy E, Steve D, Pablo, John G, Paul, and Dave.

There were a few cuts and bruises and one broken chain but no major medical or mechanical issues.

John, Paul and I started out the weekend hitting Addison Oaks before we left town. Then we hit the Cadillac Pathway for a night ride. Saturday we did the Vasa Trail and Acadia Dunes Trail. Sunday was Big M and a dip in the Manistee River then on home.

POST Up some comments fellas, use the blog comment link if you were there to add you 2 cents

Ride GPS's

Addison - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11191413
Cadillac - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11337090
Vasa - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11336431
Acadia - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11336420
Big M - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/11336416

Trip picture gallery below

2009-08-16-09 BERC Weekend

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Garmin Connect Activity : Telluride Coonskin Mountain - Pioneer Trail

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Telluride Coonskin Mountain - Pioneer Trail
Telluride Coonskin Mountain - Pioneer Trail



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/10591918

Family Ride in Telluride

Today was the day for the family ride. We headed out bravely to tackle the Mt. Shelby and I rented our bikes after a walk to Baked in Telluride where we had the 2 best breakfast burritos we've ever had. One Chorizo and Egg the other Potato and Egg. We enjoyed swapping bites and hot sauce (only me on the hot sauce) WOW were they Yummy. We waited out the sudden rain storm with the Friday paper and a Chai Tea. (Shelby needed 5 ice cubes to reach the desired drinking temperature) Christy hit the weekly Friday farmers market and then we headed for the gondola too head up the Mt. The weather was giving us a run for it but after spending about 20 minutes waiting it out in a grounded Gondola car we ventured out. I feel a bit responsible as the ride host for leading my troops into battle and not preparing them properly. What seemed like great fun and easy riding just 2 days before had a whole new feel with Christy and the Girls along. They were troopers and we altered our route and decided to not pursue the geocache. The altered route was VERY steep and we were committed by the time we figured out it was not going to level out. Basically straight down the Mt. They felt more comfortable as it was wide track and not single track that they were really uncomfortable on. We walked down the Boomerang Road Trail to the Valley Floor Trail and then rode around for awhile along the river. The ride ended up back in town for nutella and banana crepes from a very cool street vendor that is also a cyclist so we enjoyed talking rides with him. Below are some pictures we snapped today. enjoy

dave

2009-07-31 Telluride Family Bike Ride

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Ride report from Telluride, Colorado

Hey everyone - I just finished an incredible ride here in Telluride. The pictures do NOT do it justice for sure. It is so beautiful. I did just under 20 miles and took the gondola to the Mt. Top and rode around up top then down the other side of the Mt. It took a little getting used to going from the Qball to a 26" full suspension bike but I got used to it quick and was glad I had it. Single would have been one heck of a challenge. I tried to add captions to many of the pics to narate what I was seeing on the trail. It was fantastic, the only thing that would have made it better was to have my riding buddies with me. Lets plan a trip next year back here.

Enjoy the Pics

dave

2009-07-29 1st Bike Ride Telluride

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

The Second Family Night ride at Stony

Sorry I missed this one. Great photo Pablo, love the effects you used to shad the edges. Lets keep this going

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

BTT 07-11-09 ride post

A bit of rain today but not bad, logged good miles and nice pace. We got to see Hitsville with all the MJ tributes, Boston Edison, Henry Ford's house & Model T plant, The old Packard Plant, The Island, and even a few ships in the river. Breakfast rocked per usual. There were even claims of seeing "the council women" driving in a car, unsubstantiated reports that is.

www.beatthetrain.com


BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

BERC Dad's and Kid's Ride Stony "The Pines"

Here is a link to the gps data from the ride. Everyone had a BLAST. Pictures below as well

2009-07-09 Stony Family Bike Ride

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: BERC Dad's and Kids Stony Ride
BERC Dad's and Kids Stony Ride
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/8553350

BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

New Single Speeder in the Family

Shelby's new bike arrived today from our ebay purchase. It was just as expected and very well packed. The rear tire has a slice in it so I will need to replace it tomorrow but other than that better than expected. Hear is a picture of the new "Single Speeder" notice the "your bike sucks" sticker, great for a 10 year old - gotta start them out right.




BERC Riding Club
Visit our blog at www.bercridingclub.blogger.com
Join our Google Groups page for the latest ride posts
http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Stony Marathon Race Video

longer version of Matt's video from the race with podium shots and super slo-mo of Brian Brown on a rock garden at the 4:00 mark:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yD0Py75mcDc

Lake Orion Race Tuesday 6/30

Reports are in and a good time was had by all. Here is an eye witness account:

• And you should have seen how many medals we walked away with!! We hadso much bling we looked like a bunch of West Coast rappers that had the advance for their next album delivered straight to the pawn shop. Talking decadent, y'all. For real. Out. - John Gonway
• A great time was had by all at the Dragon GAP Mountain bike race at Lake Orion High school. - Stevie D

Congrats to Paul, John, Steve, Drew, Jacob, Lucas, and Allie! way to go guys.

Garmin Connect Activity : Stony - Post Marathon Ride Tuesday

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Stony - Post Marathon Ride Tuesday
Stony - Post Marathon Ride Tuesday



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7774149

Garmin Connect Activity : Stony Post Marathon ride

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Stony Post Marathon ride
Stony Post Marathon ride



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7774162

Garmin Connect Activity : John Gonway GPS Stony Marathon Race 062709

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Stony Marathon Race 062709
Stony Marathon Race 062709



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7660867

Stony Marathon Race

Fun was had by all today! It was not to fun finising the last lap, this was a test for sure!! Thanks to everyone for riding today, we had a few podiums as well. Below is a link to the GPS data from my ride & a few pictures my daughters took. It was great to have the family there today.

dave

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7638247

2009-06-27 Stoney Marathon

Kids Bike for Sale

If anyone is interested I just through my Daughters 20" Trek up on MMBA. Here is a link

http://mmba.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=91015

www.bercridingclub.blogger.com

Stony XC Race Sat the 27th

Just registered for the race, it's this Saturday 10am. Here is a link to the registration site

Who's In?

https://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=8904

** STONY CREEK MARATHON CROSS COUNTRY RACE ** 2009 USAC-MTB MICHIGAN STATE CHAMPIONSHIP XC SERIES RACE #5 of 9

Presented by

Tailwind Enterprises

Shelby Twp., MI

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Online Registration Closes

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 11:59 PM ET

Garmin Connect Activity : Fathers Day Ride

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Fathers Day Ride
Fathers Day Ride



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7405094

Garmin Connect Activity : Monday Night Ride

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Monday Night Ride
Monday Night Ride



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7194599

Garmin Connect Activity : Holly Rec Area

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Holly Rec Area
Holly Rec Area



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7148082

Garmin Connect Activity : BTT - 6-13-09

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: BTT - 6-13-09
BTT - 6-13-09



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7148084

Fwd: Early Morning Ride, Saturday, 061309

nice ride this morning with me, Paul Mann and John S-- Stevie D. took a rehab ride with us, too, sticking to the Clinton River Trail into downtown Rochester and back.  My Garmin info follows (by the way, it should pretty much be identical to John S's Garmin info for the Stony part since the SOB was right on my ass-- he was so close I think he was drinking from my Camelback; he even had enough energy to take in a 2nd lap while Paul and I went back home so I could make an 8:30 kickoff at Borden Park):

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/7107267

Fwd: Garmin Connect Activity : John G and Paul

John G and Paul

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Untitled
PLRA 2 laps



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6627278

--
Best regards,

John P. Gonway
248-844-2558 home
248-514-8382 mobile

Pics from Hanson Hills

www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com

2009-06-07 Hanson Hills MTB Race

Garmin Connect Activity : Hanson Hills MTB Race

I will post up pictures later, great day had a blast. 

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Hanson Hills MTB Race
Hanson Hills MTB Race



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6629306

Garmin Connect Activity : Friday Mystery Ride - Where's Waldo

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Friday Mystery Ride - Where's Waldo
Friday Mystery Ride - Where's Waldo



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6544303

Garmin Connect Activity : Bald Mt South and North, Addison Oaks

Today's Ride Got a bit long.  Good Stress reliever.  I'm getting lots of practice falling.  On Bald Mt North in the wet section I missed the plank and hit the deep puddle at low speed.....splat

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Bald Mt South and North, Addison Oaks
Bald Mt South and North, Addison Oaks

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6441986

Garmin Connect Activity : Bald Mt and Addison Loop

Thanks to John and John for slugging out early to make this ride a success.  Had a great ride, early morning shove off, it was a bit cold but we quickly warmed up.  John G got a special blast of warm air to assist on the inbound trail to BM N.  Pretty much turned into a hammer fest, catch me if you can.  It was a fun ride minus the low speed wipe out I had at BM S, the cut is kinda cool however.  

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: Bald Mt and Addison Loop
Bald Mt and Addison Loop

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6332625

Garmin Connect Activity : BTT 5-30-09

Check out this Garmin Connect activity: BTT 5-30-09
BTT 5-30-09



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6332634

Garmin Connect Activity : Bald Mt South and North Loop

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Bald Mt South & North Loop



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6140909

Bloomer Race - XC

If you are receiving this via email you can visit the blog at www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com

The www.precisionmtb.com team had a good showing today. Ray came in 2nd, John 4th, Dave 3rd. Not sure where Shannon finished I did not see him after the race & can not find the results online yet. We had a blast today (most of it) the course was hard. Ray rocked it in expert! Got to meet Shannon, and John & I got to ride together for most of the second half of the race. I had the pleasure of changing a flat "in race" not fun. Hello Stan's Tubeless. The course was very hilly and gave me a real run for the money. Below is the garmin data & some pictures my family took. It was fun to have my girls there (Christy too) Shelby did the kids race (her first) and came in third & had a great time.

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Bloomer XC Race
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/6112023

2009-05-24 Bloomer Race

BTT - 5/23/09 - Name Game Video and Ride Pictures

Did the BTT ride this morning, 23 riders left the fort at 6:35 and took to the streets of Detroit. We had fantastic weather and a nice pace. We did most of the usual spots and had a number of first time BTT riders. Andy, as usual, rocked the name game. Below is a link to this mornings "name game" video.... I had an opportunity to meet many of Andy's family after the ride, wish it was under better circumstances but he has a nice and far flung clan. His brother Dave could start a BTT in Utah after listening to him name off all the cool rides he could host us on their.


The Name Game



Photos from the ride

2009-05-23 BTT

Garmin Connect Activity : Holdridge Lakes - West Loop & Gruber's Grinder

This thing was a handfull!

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Holdridge Lakes - West Loop & Gruber's Grinder

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5918776

Holdridge Trail Guide

Visit the BERC Blog

Garmin Connect Activity : Tree Farm - Lakeshore Park Ride

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Tree Farm - Lakeshore Park Ride

Visit the BERC blog @ www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5821265

Garmin Connect Activity : Poto Team Group Ride

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Poto Team Group Ride



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5608802

Garmin Connect Activity : Lunch Meeting Commute

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Lunch Meeting Commute


http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5608808

Garmin Connect Activity : The Longest I have riden for a meal on a bike (it was good)

Posted to the BERC Blog www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com

Visit our Google Groups Page here http://groups.google.com/group/bercridingclub

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
The Longest I have riden for a meal on a bike (it was good)

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5229949

dave

Garmin Connect Activity : Bloomer & Stony Loops

This was posted to the berc blog.  Click here to visit the blog
http://www.bercridingclub.blogspot.com/

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Bloomer & Stony Loops


http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5216818

Single Speed Pictures

Holdridge West Loop in the soup

Grubers was closed due to rain and the Adison race was cancled as well so we rode at Holdridge.


Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
2 Loops Holdridge West Loop

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/5193526

MMBA Metro North Chapter: Upcoming Events

Howdy,

I just wanted to take a few seconds, and let everyone know about some upcoming events in the chapter and elsewhere in the MMBA.  When available, I've provided links to either a MMBA forum discussion or website with more information on the event.

May 9th and 10th.  Stony Creek trail days.  Some repairs, and some tweaks of the reroutes put in last fall.  9AM at the F (upper) trail head parking lot.

http://www.mmba.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=89717

May 16th.  Clinton River trail day.  For the trail day we will meet at the Power line access Off Clinton River Road, Just west of Schoenherr.  Rakes, Loppers, Shovels, wheelbarrows, and people power will be needed.

http://www.mmba.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=90084

These next two events are being held outside of the Metro North chapter, but both events would be highly recommended to someone who would like to work toward being a trail coordinator.

The IMBA Trail Care Crew will be coming to Lansing May 21 - 24 to conduct a Trail Building School at Anderson Park. The visit will include a day of trail assessment and layout (restricted to TCs and those starting a trail in the future), 1/2 day of classroom instruction on suistainable trail building techniques, and 1 day of trail work at Anderson Park. The visit will not be all work...there will be an evening social with beer, and a trail ride to sample your hard earned work.

http://www.mmba.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=89179

May 28th-31st, the Western Chapter of the MMBA is hosting the 9th Annual Midwest Mountain Bike Summit.  This event includes an IMBA Trail Building School, seminars, food, beer and rides.  A great way to meet some great people, learn about building trails, and having some fun.  LOTS of information on their website.  Again, anybody really wanted to learn about designing, planning and building trails should consider attending this event.

http://www.mmba.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=89694
http://www.midwestmtbsummit.com

Additional Upcoming Events

Clinton River Trail - June 13th, 2009 9:00AM - Trail Building. New construction.
Chapter Meeting - July 13th, 2009 6:30PM at the Rochester Mills Beer Company.
Pontiac Lake - August 1st, 2009 9:00AM - Summer repairs and upgrades.

Please contact us @ metronorth@mmba.org if you have any questions, and we always try to keep the chapter website (metronorth.mmba.org) up to date with the latest chapter information.

Nick Shue
Metro North Chapter President

-------------------------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe from our periodic e-mail messages, please visit the
following link:
http://membership.mmba.org/unsubscribe.php?e=dsmith%40tmsmith.com&s=f8a7
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Stony 2 Loops with Split times for each section

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
2 Loops at Stony with split times for each section

Splits for lap times - Laps 2&7 Pines, 3&8 Snake, 4&9 Roller Coaster

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/4682187

Garmin Connect Activity : 2 Loops at Stony

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
2 Loops at Stony



If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/4682199

Fort Custer Stampede

What a great Day for racing. The river was cold but fun.

I really enjoyed the course but still need to practice my race management / 'in race' nutrition. Not tool cool going over the handlebars trying to put the water bottle back in it's cage. Below is a picasa gallery of the pictures I took. If anyone wants a high resolution pictures let me know which ones you want.

Here is the GPS link:
Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
Fort Custer Stampede MMBA Race
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/4586763

Here is the picture gallery

2009-05-03 MMBA Fort Custer Stampede

BTT 05/02/09 Hitsville Stop

Had a great ride this am. Andy altered the route and we went buy the old Packard Plant and Hitsville USA. It was fun. Below is the GPS & Pics from the ride.

Check out this Garmin Connect activity:
BTT 05/02/09 Hitsville

If you are experiencing problems with the link, copy and paste the following URL directly into your Internet browser
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/4551151

2009-05-02 BTT Hitsville

View Larger Map