We'v launched the new blog!

http://www.talltreecycles.ca/blog

Raffle Tickets are Available to All!

UPDATE: Due to a high volume of raffle ticket sales, I switched to drawing actual names, not numbers. Many were on hand at the BBQ to receive their prizes, and the rest have been emailed directly. If you've not received an email, and were not present, better luck next time.

M

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Raffle tickets for the Ride of the Damned can be purchased by anyone on the reg site! Alternatively, you can email me $ for tickets (msurch@gmail-dot-com). They are going for 5 for $10, 10 for $20, and 25 for $50. Winners do not have to be on site to win. The idea is to raise as much as we can for Julian, Vanessa, and Reya, so don't be shy!

The raffle will go down at 5pm on Sunday. Winning tickets held by people who are not present will be announced here and on the FaceBook page. Prizes that are not claimed within 5 days will be given away via a draw of all the event's participants. Hang onto your tickets until you hear or see the winning numbers!

Here's the list of great prizes as it stands, thanks to the generous donations from our fabulous sponsors! 

Bridgehead Gift Pack - courtesy of Bridgehead, Second Avenue - Caron Cheng; Summer Nesrellah 

Brodie Romulus frame (53cm) - courtesy of Brodie - Jenn Adams

Chris King Rasta Headset - courtesy of Tall Tree Cycles - Allan Cameron

PRO Tools - courtesy of PRO:
Chain Tool - Sean Ralph
Mini-tool - Jamie McCabe
BB Tool - Chris Mullington
Cassette Tool - Jay Heins

Kona Longboard - courtesy of Kona - Peter Plaunt

Timbuktu Tool Roll full of Filzer and Orontas - courtesy of MEC - Rob Orange

Axiom Kompressair G200A Floor Pump - courtesy Axiom - Tim Douglas 

Specialized Trail MTB Shoes (42) - courtesy of Tall Tree Cycles - WILL REDRAW

JMB Musette - courtesy of James Brooks - Rob Parniak

Bell Helmets (4) - courtesy of McCrank's Cycles
Green - Rob Orange
Silver - Jay Heins
Black/red - Louise Hine-Schmidt
Black - Sheri Jay

Pair of Dugast Pipistrello 32mm tubulars - courtesy of The Cyclery - David Wright

Pair of Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheels with tires - courtesy of Mavic/OGC/Dave Shirley - Rob Orange

Modrobes base layer - courtesy of Phat Moose Cycles - Kevin Fields

Topeak mini pump - courtesy of Phat Moose Cycles - Tim Douglas

Vega Gift Pack - courtesy of Vega and Liquid Nutrition - Rob Orange

$25 Gift Certificate for Rainbow Foods - Sean Ralph

Stand Up Paddle Lesson for 2 - courtesy of Brent Schmidt - Marc Boudreau

Stevens socks x3 - courtesy of Peter Metuzals - Rob Orange

Fox Racing Umbrella - courtesy of OGC/Dave Shirley - Jamie Hopkins

1 hr Massage Therapy - courtesy of Angus Henry - Jamie McCabe

Park Tools Sweater - courtesy of Espresso Sports - Ian Austen

Specialized Jersey - courtesy of Espresso Sports - Dawn Prichard

Stevens Socks x3 - courtesy of Peter Metuzals - Rob Orange

Stand Up Paddle lesson for 2 - courtesy of Brent Schmidt - Marc Brazeau

1 Hour Massage Therapy -courtesy of Angus Henry, RMT - Jamie McCabe

Liquid Nutrition Gift Card - Erwin Baertschi ; Andy Brown

Wheelers Jersey - courtesy of the Wheelers - Lisa MeyerPhotos are up on the FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/RIdeOfTheDamned

Mississippi Mills Grand Prix: Plan, Execute, Win?

Things are hotting up as we approach the Ride of the Damned on the 23rd, and Champlain's Folly on July 14th. For those who don't know, I am part of the organizing team for the Folly. I hope you all will join us for both events! But this post is about dorky racing. 

Have you ever seen these crazy videos? Our team emailed them around a couple years ago and agreed we never wanted to be like these dudes. Ok, sure, it would be fine to be good at bike racing, but the attitude part; no thanks. However, despite the obnoxious exterior, there are some valuable nuggets embedded in the morass of ridiculous content in this series of videos. The 'concept' we tend to return to time and again, if more than somewhat ironically, is 'Plan, Execute, Win.' To date, we've done a lot of planning and executing, but not a whole lot of winning. This should not be a surprise, as the majority of others we race agains are also planning and executing. We can't all win. Some clearly neither plan, nor execute. I'm not sure what that's all about.

For the Mississippi Mills Grand Prix, from Pakenham, Ontario, the plan was simple: attack, attack, attack, try to win. Out of a field of about 100 riders in the Open A race, we were four: Alex Michel, Iain Radford, Mike Abraham, and yours truly, Surch & Rescue/Destroy. The course was 42k, two laps. Mildly rolling, with about 5km of dirt road, it would be tricky to break up the peloton. 

Execute. The fun is in trying. That is how it went down, in machine gun format:

Big field. Men, women, boys.

"Let's attack on the gravel, force a split."

Slow.

I want to go now! No, wait.

Gravel approaches; where are my guys?

It's planned: attack.

45kph...frigg, still alone...and still...

Caught, counter.

And so on: catch counter; rinse, lather, repeat.

Carbon flying...ugh...

We're ok, rinse, lather, repeat.

Lap 2

Bagged. 

Alex: "we have to attack before the gravel, then counter. I will go first."

Matt: "Ok, I'll counter."

Execute. Fairly feeble counter.

Iain goes; perfect.

Two companions, into the gravel. 

Gap, holding; yes! 

I don't have to work.

Some guy 15 feet away: "Hey asshole!"

Who? What?

Me: "Who's the asshole? Can I be the asshole?"

Peloton: "Haha."

Alex is following attempts to bridge while I sit in.

Carbon flying, female shriek. Ugh.

Gap is 30s. Yes! 

More sitting in while Alex is vigilant.

Mike is up there, he has done as asked, chased and countered, earlier. Up front and watching.

Gap is 40s. Yes! 

No organization, they will not pull Iain back.

We will sprint for 4th place 'glory.'

Be careful, position for the sprint, like on TV/the Internet.

3k to go.

Moving up, Alex is ready. 

500m to go.

Right up, aggressive. Just like the PROs!

Time to get gnarly.

90 degree turn into the final. Totally aggro.

Can't get all the way out, have to lean hard.

Drift both wheels. Holy f#ck.

Accelerate 'hard.' Alex on the right.

Two dudes, can't pass, not enough powa!

That's it. Third in the bunch, for 6th, Alex 4th for 7th.

Did Iain win?

2nd. Nipped by a junior.

A strong one.

1) Miles Eastman 2) Iain Radford 3) Connor Byway

Ride of the Damned Registration is Live!

We're rolling, folks! One team is in already! Sign up now and spread the word for lots of FB likes! Lets get 'trending,' #rideofthedamned !!! 

Resister here: http://sportrecon.com/2013/RotD

Registration closed at midnight, Wednesday, June 19

The first 25 entries will receive free tire advice from the Bike Angel, Rodd Heino! The next 25 will receive hearty high-fives from Dave Stachon!

Ride of the Damned: Its Alive!

2013 Ride of the Damned poster, by our favourite graphic designer, Greg Cosgrove!

I'm getting close to launching registration, stay tuned!