Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Auckland Grammar Winter Series Race 1: Riverhead
The Auckland Grammar Winter Series has been around for a few years now, and race one this year was held at Riverhead Forest. This course was a typical Riverhead race; Climbs, technical descents, bigger climbs, and mud. Lots of mud.
Riverhead is notorious for being very, very slippery when so much as drop of water touches it's surface, and until Saturday we had not had a drop of rain; the surface was bone dry and rolling fast. It was looking like low tread tyres and high pressures would be in order. Then, it rained. Climbs became treacherously slippery and descents sketchy, with the odd off camber rooted corner waiting for fatigued riders to make a mistake. A gravel road climb in the middle of the course was the break between sections where riders could eat, drink or get dropped by their mates.
Some intense competition was witnessed today, with riders cranking like their was no tomorrow, with some pretty impressive times posted despite all the mud.
To be honest, I think Pre-race preparation would have made a lot of difference with this race; my strategy of a late night before, 80km ride the day before and early morning (happy birthday to meeeeee! Thank you family) weren't the best of ideas, but lining up for today's race, it was nice knowing that in a hotly contested field with some pretty strong riders, I wasn't going to win and that it was OK. Sometimes I think we as riders lose sight of racing being a fun activity, and it becomes an obsession trying to win. When racing stops being fun, why race? That's how I saw today. Fun. And with 3 more races in the series, let the fun continue...
Riverhead is notorious for being very, very slippery when so much as drop of water touches it's surface, and until Saturday we had not had a drop of rain; the surface was bone dry and rolling fast. It was looking like low tread tyres and high pressures would be in order. Then, it rained. Climbs became treacherously slippery and descents sketchy, with the odd off camber rooted corner waiting for fatigued riders to make a mistake. A gravel road climb in the middle of the course was the break between sections where riders could eat, drink or get dropped by their mates.
Some intense competition was witnessed today, with riders cranking like their was no tomorrow, with some pretty impressive times posted despite all the mud.
To be honest, I think Pre-race preparation would have made a lot of difference with this race; my strategy of a late night before, 80km ride the day before and early morning (happy birthday to meeeeee! Thank you family) weren't the best of ideas, but lining up for today's race, it was nice knowing that in a hotly contested field with some pretty strong riders, I wasn't going to win and that it was OK. Sometimes I think we as riders lose sight of racing being a fun activity, and it becomes an obsession trying to win. When racing stops being fun, why race? That's how I saw today. Fun. And with 3 more races in the series, let the fun continue...
Friday, April 27, 2012
Review: Merida One-twenty 1500D
Alongside race reports, I have decided to start posting reviews of the equipment I use/have used to help readers with some real life experience.
So, first off, My Bike: a Merida 1-20 1500D full sus bike with 120mm (surprise?) of Fox powered air suspension on tap. First off, the Merida Comes spec'd with some pretty good components for the coin, with a Shimano XT 30 speed drivetrain, M-575 (deore) brakes, Fox RP2 rear shock with boost valve, Fox 32 F-series fork, Rocket Ron tyres in 2.25 width and performance compound, and a cockpit filled out by FSA with 680mm wide bars, and a Prologo saddle. The wheels are Alexrims XD lights on Shimano XT hubs, that I've converted to tubeless, with a swap out to the EVO compound of the Rocket Ron's.
I have ridden this bike at Secondary Schools MTB Nationals, Oceanias, Whaka 50, the entire NDuro series, and as a fun trail bike. Along my typical trails (Woodhill, Riverhead and Rotorua) I have found that the Merida is a surprisingly sprightly bike despite the total weight of approx 13kg, although this is after adding a cycle computer and bottle cage (12.7kg factory spec for a medium). The XT drivetrain has given me faithful service with a solid performance in all conditions, although I do occasionally have problems with the alignment of the front dérailleur, leading to dropped chains. The rear, however, has been pretty much flawless, and I spend a lot of the time using my big ring and just shifting the rear. The brakes are the let down component of this bike; not incredibly powerful, weird lever shape, and have had to be bled twice to stop a squishy lever feel. However, they have proven to be near indestructible.
The other thing worth noting is the Fox suspension needs A LOT of maintenance. My forks have suffered damage on the inside of the stanchions, not from crashes, but simply from water and sand that has been caught in the seals and scraped away at the stanchions... A service every few months will prevent this, but I have not heard of many cases of this happening to RockShox forks, so keep this in mind if you maintain your bike once a decade. This has also happened to my dad's bike, so it is not a one off occurrence.
The Ride: In the climbs there is some pedal induced bob in the rear suspension but this can be easily remedied with the pro-pedal function on the RP2. The Merida hold's it's line well although some hardtails would probably have a snappier feel, as pro-pedal only resists the first couple of mm of travel before behaving like normal. This also means it accelerates a little slower than a shorter travel bike or a Hardtail, but the added comfort makes it a good choice over longer rides. On the descents I regularly use the entire travel, but bottoming out never feels harsh. It takes large hits quite well, but is sharper handling than some other 120mm full sus's I have ridden (e.g giant trance) lending to a slightly racy feel. This trail bike bike feels like it could don a mask, like a costumed vigilante, and defeat shorter travel bikes around your local racecourse. Make no allusions, this is not a race bike, the travel numbers and weight testify this, but for a bike that can be fun to ride, fly off the odd jump yet tear apart a racecourse and leave you in one piece at the end of your ride, it comes highly recommended.
So, first off, My Bike: a Merida 1-20 1500D full sus bike with 120mm (surprise?) of Fox powered air suspension on tap. First off, the Merida Comes spec'd with some pretty good components for the coin, with a Shimano XT 30 speed drivetrain, M-575 (deore) brakes, Fox RP2 rear shock with boost valve, Fox 32 F-series fork, Rocket Ron tyres in 2.25 width and performance compound, and a cockpit filled out by FSA with 680mm wide bars, and a Prologo saddle. The wheels are Alexrims XD lights on Shimano XT hubs, that I've converted to tubeless, with a swap out to the EVO compound of the Rocket Ron's.
I have ridden this bike at Secondary Schools MTB Nationals, Oceanias, Whaka 50, the entire NDuro series, and as a fun trail bike. Along my typical trails (Woodhill, Riverhead and Rotorua) I have found that the Merida is a surprisingly sprightly bike despite the total weight of approx 13kg, although this is after adding a cycle computer and bottle cage (12.7kg factory spec for a medium). The XT drivetrain has given me faithful service with a solid performance in all conditions, although I do occasionally have problems with the alignment of the front dérailleur, leading to dropped chains. The rear, however, has been pretty much flawless, and I spend a lot of the time using my big ring and just shifting the rear. The brakes are the let down component of this bike; not incredibly powerful, weird lever shape, and have had to be bled twice to stop a squishy lever feel. However, they have proven to be near indestructible.
The other thing worth noting is the Fox suspension needs A LOT of maintenance. My forks have suffered damage on the inside of the stanchions, not from crashes, but simply from water and sand that has been caught in the seals and scraped away at the stanchions... A service every few months will prevent this, but I have not heard of many cases of this happening to RockShox forks, so keep this in mind if you maintain your bike once a decade. This has also happened to my dad's bike, so it is not a one off occurrence.
The Ride: In the climbs there is some pedal induced bob in the rear suspension but this can be easily remedied with the pro-pedal function on the RP2. The Merida hold's it's line well although some hardtails would probably have a snappier feel, as pro-pedal only resists the first couple of mm of travel before behaving like normal. This also means it accelerates a little slower than a shorter travel bike or a Hardtail, but the added comfort makes it a good choice over longer rides. On the descents I regularly use the entire travel, but bottoming out never feels harsh. It takes large hits quite well, but is sharper handling than some other 120mm full sus's I have ridden (e.g giant trance) lending to a slightly racy feel. This trail bike bike feels like it could don a mask, like a costumed vigilante, and defeat shorter travel bikes around your local racecourse. Make no allusions, this is not a race bike, the travel numbers and weight testify this, but for a bike that can be fun to ride, fly off the odd jump yet tear apart a racecourse and leave you in one piece at the end of your ride, it comes highly recommended.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
ABD/Kenda super D Riverhead
Organised as a fundraiser for the West coast riders club (WCRC), this was a super casual, purely for fun event organised on a new trail in Riverhead forest. In a pleasant turn of events Riverhead was quite dry, and lacking it's signature abrasive mud. Time for some fast flowing riding. The track, yet to be given a name, was based around bumps that became jumps, wide, downward facing, fast flowing berms and the odd steep climb and rooty section to keep you honest. A unimog truck acted as shuttle for riders and bikes, whilst the pump track served as entertainment for this waiting for their next shuttle.Spot prizes were surprisingly generous, with no prizes for placings. The top prize was an ABD dirt jump frame along with a hoodie, set of flat pedals and a voucher for the local bike shop. This eclipses spot prizes I have seen at much larger events, and it is good to see people getting involved with small events like this.
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Woodhill open day 2012
I know this isn't a race, but I thought it was worth mentioning. The concept is based around a kind of trade show for mountain bikes, designed to showcase the Woodhill mtb park, the local riders and the local retailers. Making a presence at the event were representatives from most of the major brands in New Zealand, with Scott, Specialised, GT, Giant, Cannondale and locally based brand Avanti, all with demo bikes ranging from racing hard tails to all mountain machines, in alloy or Carbon, all available for the general public to try. These weren't their entry level models either, they were $5000-$6000 or more in many cases. It was a great chance for people to try their dream bikes and compare them to other offerings on their local trails. Also available was a giant air bag that the jumpers amongst us could launch onto to practise their skills without risk of injury, with a wide variety of tricks being pulled. As the day drew on a pump track race was held at Woodhill's 'Airfield' jump park, with aim to complete the fastest lap time around the pump track without pedalling. Prizes ranging from free magazines to $1000 raffled goods were given out throughout the day, and I believe a good time was had by all who attended.
http://www.bikeparks.co.nz/big-bike-day-out
http://www.bikeparks.co.nz/big-bike-day-out
Monday, April 2, 2012
National Secondary School Champs.
First of all I would like it clear that I have never raced at the Levin Nationals before, and so have no experience other than horror stories told by other mountain bikers of muddy Hills that kill drive trains and spirits...... I was pleasantly surprised.
The weather was kind enough to hold out for the duration of the event asides from a light shower on Saturday evening. The first thing I noticed lining up on the start line was the volume of riders. Oceanias was big but number wise this was bigger. Launching off from a snappy start we were faced with plenty of climbing to keep even the hardest riders honest, and technical, steep downhill to push bikes and bodies to the limit. Broken chains and burst tyres were common as grass, with Hardtail 29'rs the order of the day. Despite my trusty old full sus I came a very convincing 4th place.
Sunday was hill climb territory, dominated by Riders who could push through pain barriers, I still put in a convincing 8th over the 2.5 km climb, again on my full sus.
Downhill should have been my event but a dropped chain wrapping itself around my rear dérailleur (not sure how) put an end to that... Overall though, some great racing was pulled off, although unfortunately there is talk of nationals being held elsewhere.... a shame as this was a great event that I will surely return to.
The weather was kind enough to hold out for the duration of the event asides from a light shower on Saturday evening. The first thing I noticed lining up on the start line was the volume of riders. Oceanias was big but number wise this was bigger. Launching off from a snappy start we were faced with plenty of climbing to keep even the hardest riders honest, and technical, steep downhill to push bikes and bodies to the limit. Broken chains and burst tyres were common as grass, with Hardtail 29'rs the order of the day. Despite my trusty old full sus I came a very convincing 4th place.
Sunday was hill climb territory, dominated by Riders who could push through pain barriers, I still put in a convincing 8th over the 2.5 km climb, again on my full sus.
Downhill should have been my event but a dropped chain wrapping itself around my rear dérailleur (not sure how) put an end to that... Overall though, some great racing was pulled off, although unfortunately there is talk of nationals being held elsewhere.... a shame as this was a great event that I will surely return to.
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