Confirmation of craziness.

Heading up the Calder on Saturday saw us roll into Castlemaine around 1pm, and head out to Jubba Land to set up Felt Racing headquarters. Helping out for the afternoon setting up the course frittered away the day pretty well, with a late afternoon lap settling the legs and fine tuning the preparation. Overnight we had a large fire which kept the 20 or so people who stayed on site, nice and warm. Whilst we all sat around chatting, one couldn't help but notice the different walks of life that people come from, and how they all come together for something as masochistic as mountain biking. Confirmation of craziness...

Carbo loading?

Dawn patrol- Hotel HiAce and the HQ for the day

Awaiting the crowds - Build an event, and they will come. Also known as Heckle Alley

Come morning, we rolled out of the back of Hotel Hiace, and greeted the arriving hordes of people. In total there was well over 300 riders for the race, many coming up from Melbourne for the day. With a mass start, the race was afoot, and suprising himself, was me at the front on my Felt RXC Pro. Charging off on a mission, I set about getting as much of a lead as I could in the first two laps, as its generally the only clear course we get all day. Winning the first lap race for Felt Racing, (and a bucket of cleaning product from AstroboyRacer) and continuing on with the charge, I surrendered the race to Jack at the end of lap two, with the two specialized teams in tow.

I don't know the name of this section, but gee I make it look terrible....

For the first half of the race, that was the way it would stay. The Pink and Blue teams used their powerful strategy to perfection, rolling turns around the course, with Felt Racing able to do little but stay in contact and remain patient. Jack and I both worked hard to stay in touch with the leaders, with some testing little attacks going up the road and needing to be reeled back in.

The chase is on mid race, working hard to square away a little gap

The patience paid off about halfway though the race, when a series of tough surges shelled Ivan from the group leaving Felt and Specialized up the road. Being in a tough position, both Felt and the other team ended up allowing the 2nd specialized team back into the fold, as one team would not go up the road without the other, and we could not get a large enough gap to stick it to the pink and blue teams. Clever work by them.

The Felt Racing setup looking the most professional of anyone currently getting around.

Salt, caffeine, Endura, water- looks like summer is coming!!

The course was getting well bedded in, and the Hutchinson Pirahnas were working as well as anything I've ever ridden!! 2 wheel drifts and long nose wheelies into corners were the norm, the tyres offering gobs of grip, as well as absorbing the brutal rocks whilst we bumped around astride our hardtails, envious of the other full suspension designs, and desperately awaiting the new Equilink designs. (Coming soon!!- see Ash for more details) With no flats for the day, that's got to be a huge tick in the box for the tubeless Pirahna's!

Ash talking to a man with an axe. Whatever the nice man said, was right...! Jake (Jason) the Race Director.

With more patience in order, with the sun beating down, the 22 minute lap times, and the traffic on the course, so waiting and watching was the name of the game. Staying out of trouble, both self inflicted and otherwise was also paramount, and that became apparent when Rohin Adams from the Specialized team managed to mangle a rear hanger enough to let me into the fight, and once he got going, we rolled together for a lap or two. That meant a one of his teams team up the road again, and Rohin wasn't interested in chasing that down!! So with me subtly pushing as hard was I could, we somehow managed to get back on even terms and then the final blow came. Ivan had a front flat and had to stop to change it. The other Specialized team member made sure he was ok, then opened it right up.



Jack and I threw down all we had left in the chase to the line, but with a few minutes advantage, and some very tired riders on course, it was always going to be a big ask. So in the wash up, Felt Racing came home in a fantastic 2nd spot, happy to have more points on the board in the series, and collected the fastest first lap prize, and having totally enjoyed every part of the day. Full results can be found at the Rocky Riders site, as well as some other photos of the day.

Done, your honour...!

Jack getting a concilliatory huge from Rohin, but I don't think getting hugged by a man in Pink was what Jack had in mind...!

A huge thanks must go to the Rocky Riders for putting on a sensational days racing. The action was hot, the weather was hot, the commentary sensational and we hope to do it all again real soon!! Having just come in from cleaning a bike, you know its been good when you can clean it with compressed air and Mr Sheen :)

Thanks for stopping by- be sure to check out Ash's blog and Yeti's Chris Winn whilst you are surfing around for weekend stories, won't you?! And as usual, please feel free to add any comments you may have, down below.