Five riders from the Coomealla-Mildura Mountainless Bike Club will travel to the Adelaide Hills to compete in the Kona Dirty Weekend 24hr MTB race at Cuddlee Creek on the 8/9th May.
Once the starters gun is fired at 2pm on Saturday 8th, riders have until 2pm Sunday to complete as many laps of the rough and hilly ten kilometre track as they can. Most laps wins. Riders can compete in either solo class or in relay teams of 2,3,4 or 6, with riders staying on their bikes all through the night, battling physical and mental fatigue. With 150m of altitude gain - and descent - every 10km lap, fatigue is guaranteed.
Paul Cocks, Leon Pedersen, Jason Dawes and Phil Sullivan are competing in the extremely competitive four man relay team category for the first time. The demanding ride/rest/ride/rest/ride cycle takes it’s toll on team riders, especially when they are trying to drag their resting bodies out of a warm sleeping bag to start a lap in the wee hours of the night. The guys are confident in their preparation and looking forward to a fun event.
Anthony Connell is lining up in the solo class for his third attempt at a solo 24hr race. And while he’ll be happy to just make through the night to the finish line on Sunday, the competition will be hot - the first 50% of Dirty Weekend solo finishers win the right to line up with the worlds best at the 2010 24hr Solo World Championship in Canberra this October.
“The idea of qualifying for the Solo 24hr World Championships is enticing and I’ve trained harder because of it, but so has everyone else, so if I all I do is finish with me and my bike mainly in-tact, I’ll be stoked,” said Anthony.
The five riders will have some great stories to share about their 24hr experience with other riders and spectators at the Coomealla Mildura Mountainless Bike Club’s race the following weekend on the hilly Kerribee course – 20 minutes drive from Mildura towards Euston - on Sunday 16 May.

Coomealla Mildura Mountainless Bike Club Website: www.mountainlessbikeclub.com.au
Kona Dirty Weekend website: www.bikesa.asn.au

Have a great ride Anthony!

Coomie Club 3 Hour Enduro - Online Entries Now Open!

Coomealla-Mildura Mountainless Bike Club proudly presents The Coomie Club 3 Hour Enduro, Dareton, NSW (20 mins from Mildura), Sunday 21 September 2008. Situated next to the mighty Murray the course is 90% singletrack, fast and flowing. We put the "less" in Mountainless. Excellent warm up for the Mont and Scott. Great family friendly event. Accommodation and amenities close to course. Stay tuned for all the details and on-line entry details!!!!!

coomieclub3hourenduro.blogspot.com
mountainlessbikeclub.blogspot.com

The 2008 UK Singlespeed Championships will be held at Drumlanrig, Dumfries over the weekend of 3-5 May 2008 in what's being desribed as "a bank holiday weekend festival of riding, rivalry and ribaldry". from: bikemagic.com

More information and entry here: www.ssuk08.com

Guess what I finally picked up from Witcomb Cycles? Not got it yet? Does this help..



As you can see, the driveside dropout has been re-attached and the bike should be rideable soon, all for the bargain basement price of £60!



The story of the GT.

Supportin' the homeland..



23rd September, Mildura. Click below for the race details. $1000 prize money up for grabs!

"Sunday Sept 23 is the date for the clubs first enduro race, and with a generous donation from the Coomealla Memorial Sporting Club there's $1000 cash up for grabs!
The race will be held at the C-M Mountainless Bike Clubs home track, situated behind the Coomealla golf course on a beautiful bend of the Murray River."

mountainless.blogspot.com - birthday bash enduro

anthonymaybesilly.blogspot.com

This is what happens when you stay in Mildura too long (well, other than getting girls pregnant and drinking yourself into beergutville).

You go mental.

Anthony has entered a 24hr MTB enduro... solo... something that was a good idea in my own head for all of 10 seconds. Something I contemplated when I was fit. Something to dream about when I was motivated to punish myself during a race. Err.. well at least he has the motivation bit! The first step is the hardest.. now he just has to haul his butt out of the van and onto the trails.. lots! Dude, good luck! The offer for the Avanti (or bits of it) still stands.

Single Speed Worlds set for 2007

The Singlespeed world championships race and gathering will happen on September 1-2 in Aviemore, Scotland. Last year's worlds were in Stockholm, Sweden, in mid-August. Sveinung Bjørkøy (Norway) and Tiffany Allmandinger (USA) won the men's and women's divisions.

Aviemore is about a three hour drive from Edinburg and Glasglow airports and one hour from the Inverness airport. According to the organizers' website, you can also get there by railway, Sustrans cycle routes, and ancient hill paths.

For more information, visit www.sswc2007.com.

Update
There's also the Single Speed UK Championships taking place during 8th-10th of June at Ashton Court Estate, Bristol. It's running alongside the Bristol Bike Fest. Sign up for mailing list updates here www.ssuk07.com.

The short, but eventful, life of Jason McRoy ended tragically on August 24 1995, when his Harley Davison motorbike was in collision with a lorry at Woodhead Pass on the A628 in Derbyshire. Jason was more than a son to me, he was my best mate, he was my hero. When he died, a part of me died with him; but a part of Jason lives on in me, and is his inspirational life that has given me the strength to carry on.

This is Jason's story: www.jasonmcroy.com

"That left just two riders to go. The crowd were counting down to the time at which Sam Hill had to appear over the crest, and went nuts when they'd only got as far as "3". He crossed the line a second and a half clear of Gracia's time, a feat that last man down Greg Minnaar just couldn't match."

www.bikemagic.com - Fort William DH

Go Eurotrash!!

Check out surlyblog for more info. No idea when it's on or anything else for that matter but the Surly dudes will update as news comes to hand.

I was thinking to myself as I walked home tonight - I want to build another SS shitter, like the GT was, but shittier. Something that (almost) doesn't need locking-up in London..

Then I had a flashback of hard rubbish days in Oz and wept a little. Once the tears had dried I cursed London's inability to provide me with a salvagable trash-bike. It's punishment for the running thing isn't it?

"The Clio may not be the best car in its class, but it's well loved. The new one, it seems, is even better. But is it good enough to beat a mad mountain biker down a hill? Well, at the risk of ruining any suspense. No. But then it was driven by Captain Slow, who also seemed to have had a promotion that day to Captain Crashy. If you own a bin, wall or washing line in Lisbon, sorry if James destroyed it." from: www.bbc.co.uk

Downloaded this particular episode just so I could see the bike win. It did.

Tee Hee :D
Bikes Rule!

Where are the Single Speed World Championships going to be held next year? If you play your cards right they could be in your home town. Step right up, make your bid, the Surly boys are in control and looking for location. It's your chance to show off your trails and be a hero for a few days. What am I talking aout? Read on:

www.singlespeedoutlaw.com

Send me a serious proposal for hosting SSWC06 by October 31st, 2005 to nick@surlybikes.com. Also, sending me a random “do it in Jamaica, man” will automatically disqualify your town. Please be serious, we’re too busy to handle extra insignificant e-mails. Can’t wait to hear from you.

Originally posted on surlyblog.

Very cool, very detailed ride report with some serious "fatness"! :)

"Pat & Kathy's 160 mile bicycle beach ride from near Hope to Homer."

"We think we are the first people to bicycle the 160 mile beach from west of Hope to Homer, Alaska."



Click here for the report: www.kathysarns.com

These Amoeba JY-192's are my singlespeed bars. I've been using them for perhaps two years now.

Name: Amoeba JY-192 MTB Downhill Bar
Material: AL6061 T6
Thickness: 5.0mm
Width: 670mm
Weight: 490g
Raise: 40mm
LBS Marked Price: $42.95AUD

"Light-weight, 6061 T6 aluminium (Ed: not frickin' aluminum!) provides excellent strength-to-weight ratio while maintaining durability and stiffness. Constructed with 40mm raise at 490g, it's made for those looking for high performance handlebars for some serious downhilling action. What's more, it's totally rust-resistant."

Light-weight? 490g? HAHAHAHA! It might be aluminium, but the tubing is very thick (5mm) compared to most other bars. Care factor 0 - I'm not a weight weenie. These are still going strong but honestly don't get much of a punishing so who knows what they'd be like in the hands of a downhiller.

I bought wide bars because everyone says you need wide bars on an SS for leverage. I don't think I've ever ridden an SS with skinny bars (other than a track bike) so I don't know how much truth is in that. What I can tell you is: it's easier to pick gaps on my roadie than on the GT with these monstrous bars fitted! Great for peeling mirrors of cars though (see previous blog entry).

Position - well, that's all personal, but I like the riser bar feel and I like the extra height of these bars on the GT - makes for a more upright, cruisier ride.

hippy says: Super cool bar, especially given the price!! Weight weenies look elsewhere (try the fridge you skinny bastards!)

Before


After

I must have missed one of my CF cards when checking for photos after the SS Nats and Madison. There's some new SS Nats pics here.

(click image for more details)

I wonder how strong IsoTruss really is?

I don't see how it can be more aerodynamic - the "tubes" look larger than most xc bikes and surely the mesh disturbs the airflow more than a solid tube?

They don't specify a weight, just that it's "as light as some of the best traditional carbon-fibre mountain bikes on the market".
What happens when the "tubes" fill up with mud?! Bet it's not so light then! :)
Cleaning those "tubes" will not be fun!

Evil scumbag chainring bolts!
I just bought a big screwdriver (which still wasn't big enough so I'll take it back) to remove the last stinkin' bolt from the GT SS chainring. It was done up pretty tight and nothing I had would fit in the slot properly and allow enough resistance to undo the allen bolt on the outside..
I was at the stage where I was going to drill the little bastard out and just buy a new one but then remembered I had some multigrips. Clamped down on the female piece, crossed my eyeballs (my fingers were busy) and spun the allen key.. WOO! It worked! So now I can contine with the driveline swap.. although I'll probably need a new chainring bolt anyway.. stupid things..

No, it's not a typo, the 2004 SS Nats are being held in 2005!

Bikesoiler provides as with the following details:
2004 NATIONAL SINGLESPEED CHAMPS
5th and 6th Febuary 05
Dallas Brooks Scout Camp
Upper Beaconsfield,Vic.
Mel Ref.210 F10

Sunday 6th
9-11 rego.
12pm racing [$25.00] entry

Dirt Riders has this to say:
Hosted by the Deluxe Bicycle Club and Dirt Riders the 2004 National Single Speed Champs will be on 5&6 February 2005 at Dallas Brooks Park in Upper Beaconsfield. Melway Ref 210 F10. Camping will be available on Saturday night - gold coin donation for the Scouts.

Saturday
2 PM - social ride
6 PM - BBQ (BYO) and DJ

Sunday
9 to 11 AM - registration
12 PM - Race ($25)

More information can be found here at: www.deluxebicycleclub.com
and here at: www.dirtridersmtb.com