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June 2003 News Archive - Jump to: Kathleen Negraeff interview Christy Love tales from the trenches Marshall Cant interview 24 June News Test of Metal, Seymour Hill TT, Victoria Half Iron Tri, Scotia Bank 1/2 Marathon, Scotia Bank 5k, Matt Report 17 June News BC Cup RR #4, Brocton Crit, 5 Peaks Trail Run #2 10 June News Canada Cup XC #3, Masters Mile, BC XC Cup #3, Tales from the trenches 03 June News 5 Peaks Trail Run #1, Canada Cup XC, Penticton Duathlon, BC Cup RR #3, Marshall Cant Interview Club News - June 24 2003 Krebs Team Racing Results
top of page The Matt Report
Squamish Test of Metal June 21, the day I've been training for since December, finally arrives. I'm nervous, but also really excited, because I'm expecting a good race. I know the race course, which gives me confidence, and I'm also starting to feel really fit. The night before I spent 30 minutes in a hot bath tub, eyes closed visualizing the course. The road climb at the start, the sketchy fire road descent to Jack's trail, Ron's and Cliff's Corners, the climbs, and finally the Powerhouse Plunge. The bike was checked over, all bolts checked for tightness, chain cleaned and lubed, shocks and tires pumped to adequate pressure. Both man and machine are deemed ready. The Test of Metal is unique in two ways. First, it is a 67.5 km point-to-point, which means riding for over three hours without having to ride the same lap over and over. Second, most of the 800 riders are non-licensed "Citizens". Whereas the top pros with finish the race in under 3 hours, the last few Citizen riders are still finishing 6 hours after the start. At 10:50 I found my way to the front of the pack and tucked myself in with the other pros. There were lots of us this year, more than previous years, or so it seemed. This could have been due to the E2 sanctionning of the race, which means that the top 10 pros with receive a UCI point, allowing them to compete at the Grouse Mtn world cup. The national anthem begins, and the crowd gets quite, both in anticipation of the start, and to listen to Canada's song. No one signs along, but we all feel pride in both our country and our sport. The starting tape drops, the pace vehicle pulls away, and the race is on! The first 30 minutes of the race is spent on the road, jockeying for position before the big climb up Thunderbird hill. The pace is always way too fast, and there are about fifty near crashes (mountain bikers are horrible in a pack), but somehow we reach the climb in one piece, with our hearts at about 190 bpm. This is where the pack gets strung out in a hurry. Right away three groups form. One at the front, consisting of the top pros and experts, a chase group (which included me) fighting our high heartrates, and the mass of riders behind. My plan? To keep the HR down, yet not lose too much time to the top guys. The whole town of Squamish is cheering on the side of the road as we hammer up the road climb. The buzz of tires is in the air, accompanied by the frenzied sounds of shifting derailleurs. Underneath it all is the rasping and grunting of the riders, trying not to show too much pain to the spectators. At the top of the climb I slow down and swallow a Powergel, then quickly get into the line that's been eroded into the fireroad by weeks of pre-riding. Outside the line the road is covered in loose rock and gravel, and concentration is required to avoid washing out in the deep gravel. Passing is perilous, but I take the chance twice to get ahead of slower riders. THere are some really tricky corners on the fire road, and my front tire nearly washes out on one of them, forcing me to touch my foot down and lose some momentum. I enter Jack's trail at the end of a line of about 30 riders. The pace is way too slow, but there is nothing to do but ride and use the time to recover. A rider behind me tries to pass, and I yell at him "there's no point" and he yells back. FOr a moment there is tension, but he quickly realises that he's wasting energy and drops in behind me, although somewhat begrudgingly. We exit Jack's trail, finally, and zoom through the Alice Lake campground, amid cheering spectators. This is where time can be gained by joining a big group of riders and working together. I catch Chris Weech at this point, and he's already looking tired. "Come on Weech!" I yell at him, to no effect. A fellow pro (and my arch nemesis) Trevor catches me, and we start to work together, pushing a hard pace to catch a group of riders ahead of us. I take another gel just before we turn left, onto another fireroad that leads us to the Bob Macintosh trail. The ground is really wet, and a thin layer of mud is on the ground, causing me to get soaked by Trevor's s wheel, but I stay close to try and give my legs a breather. We emerge onto the clear cut powerline right-of-way and begin Rock and Roll, a twisty, slightly technical trail leading to the hike-a-bike. There is no passing at this point, just quiet determination. There are some tricky log pyramids and energy sucking logs lying across the trail which require concentration when riding fast, so there is no talking either. At the hike-a-bike I lose track of Trevor. I just put my head down, heft the bike on my shoulder, and concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other. My carbon-soled shoes make the climb difficult, and the calves burn all the way up. At the top I jump back on the bike, and it's into the Corners for some fast, fun riding. Right away I catch two riders. Both are roadies, and not strong in the corners. The first rider lets me by, and it takes only a few seconds to catch the second rider. He's not going to let me by, but he takes a really bad line into a ditch and I blow by him, with another rider on my tail. We fly out of the Corners and down the road to the short singletrack that leads to a fire road descent. The descent is muddy and fast, with large puddles and big rocks. Seconds before entering Roller Coaster I catch a Soliton rider and he lets me by. "Thanks Robin", I yell. Roller Coast is twisty and technical, with some tricky climbs, but it's worth it for the descent, a fast, technical trail that is packed on both sides with screaming spectators. I ride it well, and I'm rewarding with "nice line buddy" and "sweet ride ING" from the crowd. Then it's onto the pavement for some fast downhill. On Mamquam Road I take a third gel, and I'm joined by two other riders. I know one of them, Martin, and I jump on his wheel for some much-needed rest. The pavement ends and the fireroad climb begins. We emerge onto the Powerhouse Road, and pass through the feedzone for the first time. I'm not as far up in the placings I had hoped (64th), so I have to make up time on the climb. Martin and I quickly decide to work together to save energy on the fire road. We paceline to the beginning of the climb, then separate, as each of us finds our "happy place" in order to endure the next 40 minutes of pain. My legs feel strong as the climb begins, and I quickly catch three tired riders. As I approach Bonk Hill I stand up to relieve the lactic acid in my legs, and shift into a harder gear. I spot three riders ahead, and quickly begin to reel them in. One of them is Nikolai, from Soliton, and I pat him on the back as I ride by. "Spin those legs!" I yell at him, and I can hear him drop into his small chain ring. Near the top of Bonk Hill a sign reads "Naked Women Ahead", and a bra is hanging on a tree shortly after. Motivation for climbing to the top. This causes me to smile, as does the fact that I've already made up about ten places. I take a fourth gel at the top of Bonk Hill, and descend to the beginning of the 9 Mile climb. I find this climb to be the worst mentally, as it just seems to keep going and going. Just when you think it is over, another hill looms in the distance, always steeper than the last. I'm all alone at this point, and I'm enjoying the peacefulness of the nearby river and the forest. The weather is perfect, not too hot and not too cold, and there is a slight breeze. At the top of 9 Mile I stand up and shift into the big ring. There is only 5 more minutes of false flat fire road and then Lava Flow Climb begins. A rider passes me at the bottom of Lava Flow, and I'm determined to catch him. My legs have other plans however, and I watch him slowly pull away. Fortunately for my moral I catch another rider, who is really looking like he's hurting. Lava Flow is the sketchiest of the climbs, with energy sapping drainage dips across it about every 20 yards. It's not as steep as the previous climbs, but by now the legs are tired. At the top of Lava Flow I breath a sigh of relief. There are only three more sections to go, Ring Creek Rip, THe Powerhouse Plunge, and Crumpet Woods. I enter the Ring Creek Rip (also known as the Big Ring Rip), put it in the big ring, and let the legs go to work. Near the top of Ring Creek I pass another rider, then I'm holding on tight through some really bumpy loose rocks, trying to be as light as possible to avoid a flat tire. There are riders all along the side of the trail, fixing flats and cursing their bad luck. So far so good, I think to myself. Near the bottom of Ring Creek I catch up to the rider who passed me on the Lava Flow Climb. He's struggling through the bumpy sections, and I think "roadie". We make the sharp hairpin turn to begin the prelude to the Powerhouse Plunge, and that's when disaster strikes. I'm in my smallest cog, but my derailleur won't shift! I pull over to inspect the bike, and it's then that I discover that my rear derailleur cable has snapped. I realize all too soon that my race is over, at 2 hours, 15 minutes into the race. Better luck next year! So who won the Test? Andrew Kyle managed to stay ahead of Carter Hovey, as they battled it out through the last section of singletrack. Leslie Tomlinson managed to edge out Sarah Noble after catching Sarah in the Plunge. Alas, I had to watch the rest of the Test from the feedzone, and cheer on my fellow riders as they battled cramps, fatigue and competitors before tackling Crumpet Woods. top of page Club News - June 17 2003 Krebs Team Racing Results
Super Mom, Super Athlete
Krebs: You did really well in Big Bear XTerra in California this month (see June 1 results). What was it like racing at altitude? Was that glacier lake freezing? KN: Big Bear is situated about 7000 feet. When I first started swimming, I felt like I was pulling a barge behind me. However, by the end of the 2nd lap of the swim, I felt like I was finally getting somewhere. I didn't feel the effects of the elevation in this race as much as I did in Colorado last summer where we were racing between 9000 and 11000 feet. Something about 10000 feet makes me feel dizzy and my head ache. I was relieved not to experience those symptoms again. The "Glacier Lake" was rather like a spa. With temperatures hovering in the high 80s of late and not a great snowfall this winter, the water was a balmy 70 degrees. Krebs: You're such a strong cyclist - road and mountain. What led to the move to triathlon? KN: It was time for a change and new goals. I was turning 35 and wanted to do something different before I had a baby. While I was training for Ironman I found out about the Xterra events and I thought that was just the thing I was looking for. I have always enjoyed swimming and running and I couldn't do them as much as I wanted to when I was mountain bike racing.
KN: The challenge for me was to try to be equally good in all three sports. I had to (and I still work on this) put some time into swimming and running and less on the bike. If one wants to get better at a particular discipline it takes sacrifice, practice and patience. At first it was really hard not to cycle 3 to 4 times a week like I was used to. I had to trust in my experiences and know that I would not lose too much cycling fitness. Over the last 2 years, I have worked on my weaknesses (swimming and running) and now I am seeing improvements in both. Krebs: You did well in the 2000 Ironman Canada race. Any thoughts of tackling that race again, or are you sticking to off-road? And do you have any other race goals beyond being competative in XTerra? Adventure racing, more mtn biking, road race....? KN: One day I will do another Ironman but for now I really enjoy the off road triathalons. Mountain biking and trail running not only require fitness but total concentration because they are so technically challenging. I just love that aspect of being "off road." It is such a stress reliever because my mind is completely turned off to what else is going on in my life and I just focus on the trail. One day I am going to do the Trans Rockies Challenge and Trans Alp Challenge...but I will save that for my 40's something goals.
KN: I couldn't do any of this without Mike, my husband. Sometimes I think I am the luckiest woman in the world because he is so encouraging and supportive of my passions and pursuits. I know what my priorities are and also my limits. Knowing those things enables me to keep my life balanced 99% of the time. Organization is the other necessity to managing it all. I am constantly learning and adapting along the way. I just do the best that I can. Krebs: Your son Alexander is such a bundle of joy. How has becoming a mom changed your perspective on things? Enriched your life? Plans for a number two yet? KN: I take life a lot less seriously, I get to act silly and I laugh more. I think those things are as just as good (perhaps better) for you as being fit. My greatest accomplishment in life has been having Alexander and I certainly would welcome another one day. When my son was a newborn, I just noticed how he, being baby, just lived in the present. There are no worries about the future or past and that is how I try to live today. top of page The Matt Report
Bear Mtn BC Cup XC#3 Bear Mountain was the third BC Cup cross-country in the SISU sponsored BC Cup series. The course is infamous because of its steep first climb and technical singletrack. The weather forecast was sunny and hot, and the course was in excellent shape, and promised some great riding for the 200 or so riders. The race did not disappoint. The weather was hotter than predicted, at close to 30?C by the time the expert and elite riders staged at noon, and the course was dry and fast. I was quickly blown to the back on the steep first climb, but managed to stay in contention until the second lap, when the heat and a lack of food got to me. The heat and the difficulty of the course were taking their toll on a lot of riders, and many dropped out. On the third lap I crashed on a steep drop, but managed to get back on and keep it together. By the last lap I was dizzy, with all my muscles cramping, including my stomach. A flat tire forced me to stop for about 5 minutes, but I was back on the bike and managed to finish just before the 3:30 mark. top of page Club News - June 10 2003 Krebs Team Racing Results Send your results to info@krebscycleclub.com for posting!
Krebs Tales from the Trenches Krebs racer Christy Love sends words on her Canada Cup XC Racing eastern tour. As a newbie Elite XC racer, I shunned my work responsibilities and made my first ever tour out east for two of the illustrious Canada Cup races. The weather was eerily similar to the west coast- rainy, temperamental, not too hot, not too cold. The forecasts for both Saturday races were for rain and thundershowers. And in both cases, it rained the night before and the morning of, but not enough to do any real damage. And for the races, cool dry overcast skies. The gods had taken pitty on me and my intense dislike of wet roots. Deluxe! In the "weather" report, I do have to add brief mention of those darling creatures of the east, black flies. I come home with little souvenirs from them dotted all over my body. Most probably came from the Wednesday night race at Camp Fortune in Ottawa, where I conveniently flatted in a very muddy, bug infested area and COULD NOT fix the bloody thing! I discovered at Hardwood Hills- Canada Cup #2 in Barrie- that I had the speed to keep up with the fastest of our 40-plus field- for ONE LAP anyway. I'm still working on that second lap/mid-race mental barrier during which I become convinced that I can't possibly maintain this insane heartrate for another TWO laps! I start to lose precious minutes, and girls start picking me off by the panty-load. I think I was in about 6th place after the first lap and ended up 19th. Hey- still good for a UCI point, and a pretty good start on the CC circuit. Tremblant was a little more technical than Hardwood, but still to my liking. As it turned out, while I am only an average technical rider in BC, my skills appeared stellar when held up against some of the eastern riders who carried their bikes over the slightest obstacle but were still insanely fit enough to pull off strong results. Unfortunately, though, my skills were not great enough to manuevre around the fallen bikes and walking riders strewn along the trail in the first lap mayhem. I made my own errors at Tremblant, in that, after doing my 1-lap preride the day before the race, my curiosity and desire to get away from the throngs led me to hike up to check out the DH course. Then I noticed the XC course crossed over the DH, so I walked along that for a little while, watching riders go by and checking out lines. Before I knew it I'd hiked around the ski hill for like 2 hours! My calves were killing me for days after that and needless to say, my legs felt a little heavy come race day. I hung on for 24th out of 43 starters, but was a little disappointed that I'd sabatoged myself! When I told my dad about it, he laughed and said "Hey, Christy- you need a coach!" BC riders were a little under represented at these two races but are still ripping it up in the overall series. Sandra Walter maintains her overall lead, while my buddy Tanis Banks is making a strong showing as an unsupported rider in the top-12. Jean Ann McKirdy, Linda Robichaud and Nikola Starko are all up there too. I'm currently sitting in 24th overall myself, and will be looking to work my way up as the tour moves west. Over and out- Miss Love top of page Club News - June 3 2003 Krebs Team Racing Results
Coach Marshall is on the Move Marshall Cant has been a huge part of the Vancouver cycling scene for many years. Along with his years as a downhill mountain bike racer, he’s been a part of Rocky Mountain Bicycle as designer and Product Manager for years, and supported BC Cycling and cyclists with his enthusiasm. But, despite being surrounded by extremely talented people at Rocky and enjoying the growth of that company, he felt the need to try something else in the bicycle industry. Loosely looking for other opportunities over the past year, he came upon an excellent offer to work in the US. And with that offer, Vancouver was threatened with the loss a champion of cycling. However, in the end he couldn't make the move, largely because of his family and the close ties he has to the cycling family he has built in Vancouver. But as luck would have it, literally ten minutes after officially turning down the job in the US, John Solinsky - the GM of Syncros - called to ask if he would be interested in being the Product Manager at Syncros. He would be rebuilding the Syncros brand after its recent hiatus. And with this tempting offer, the move from Rocky was on. New Challenges Syncros now offers a new set of challenges for Marshall. As the research and development / Product Manager at Rocky, Marshall had the opportunity to dabble in designing bikes and providing insight into components. However, the component manufacturers often frustrated him. Often (and especially as freeriding developed) he was unable to spec the 'perfect' product because it didn't really exist. He could visualise what was needed but as a bike manufacturer he couldn't create it. Now he has an opportunity to look this problem from the opposite perspective. Having had the experience of building a 'whole' bicycle, he hopes to be able to help design products that are 'perfect' for the application. Marshall looks forward to the rebuilding of the Syncros name brand. "Syncros is still an awesome brand name", he says. "It has just been dormant for awhile. Syncros was synonymous with high quality, hard core bicycle products and we intend to make it that way again." When asked about where we might see Syncros parts spec’d; maybe back on Rocky Mountain bikes, he replied with "I hope we can maintain old partnerships and make new ones at the same time. I sincerely hope that in the future Rocky Mountain will be able to look at Syncros and say those are the components we want." The Future When probed about any new directions Syncros might be taking with parts and materials, Marshall noted "I am always interested in new technologies for improving the cycling experience, no matter what they are. Syncros has a great potential here. Whether using carbon, titanium, or other alloys to craft parts, I am just as interested in new WAYS of doing things as applying new materials. Here again, Syncros has a long history of doing new things well, and I want to continue that tradition." Syncros is a progressive company in that it has built an office without walls. With Marshall as product manager in Vancouver, head office in the US, and design & manufacturing halfway around the globe, the company is truly living in the virtual world. But while the personal contact is missed, Marshall realises that he may actually be able to achieve a personal dream and build his house in the Caribou. As long as he has an Internet connection he’s good to go...even on the road. top of page Got news or announcements? Photos? Send them by email to: info@krebscycleclub.com Click here for news from May 2003 |
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