Couple of reasons (aka excuses) for this. I haven't been riding my bike in any serious fashion for a while now so my race reports, thoughts and musings have been somewhat limited. Secondly, after reviewing a number of my previous blogs I noticed that they weren't really "Bike centric" and the page title of "Adelaide Rider" seemed a little inept.
Don't get me wrong, I still LOVE my bike, riding my bike, racing my bike and everything that a being a cyclist encompasses (after forking out $5,500 on a new on this year my wife would kill me is a said anything different) but it just isn't my be all-end all anymore. I still love the social aspect of it such as riding with my bike partner in crime CW, also the training and the pushing myself. My 2015 plans still have a number of cycling events in there, I have just found new joys and outlets such as running either on the road through such events as the City to Bay, Barossa Marathon and the Adelaide Running Fesitval, or Trail/off road runs and my new found passion of Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) like True Grit, Tough Mudder etc.
I am changing the focus of my blogs. I will now be writing about not only cycling by my life as an adventure athlete! I have teamed with an OCR business as a contributor/reviewer and am waiting to hear back from another to be a guest contributor there. I'll be able to reveal more soon!
One great thing has also been connecting with like minded folk via Facebook and the pages and groups that are available on there. Most impressively for me has been the SA Obs Racers group which has been founded by the previous OCRA SA rep. She is a wealth of knowledge and has some fantastic connections and most importantly is passionate about establishing an OCR footprint here in South Australia as previously we have been (and somewhat continue to be) overlooked for the headline events such as Spartan Race. This group works hard to share knowledge, thoughts, hints and tips! I'm really looking forward to getting out there any meeting, and training with, this group.
For me I have been spending some time finalising my 2015 activity calendar which I will detail in a future post. It is looking busy already!
In BIKE related news i do have something to share! I competed in my first ever Cyclocross race this week as part of Port Adelaide Cycling Clubs Twilight schedule. Having purchased a cheaper, 2nd hand, CX Bike and only riding it once (and crashing once) I didnt hold out any hope for this as my bike handling skills have always been a little sketchy! I entered the 5 race series in C grade just to gain some experience and not cause carnage to any other riders in the larger B grade field.
Despite me telling everyone, and myself, that this was just a practice event and with Tough Mudder in 4 weeks i would be taking it VERY carefully by the first half of the lap I found myself in the top 4. What am i meant to do? Sit up? Drop back? Not F'ing likely! I moved up to 2nd wheel for the 2nd lap and the start of the 3rd then i let that baby rip! By the end of the 3rd lap and going in to the last i had a small lead but after coming out of the technical section which included some lush grass which was heavy my legs started to give out a little. Once i hit the harder stuff and gravel I moved up a couple of gears and gave it some jandel! Coming in to the "Forest of Doom" for the final time i went in a little hot and almost lost it but with a decent enough gap it didn't cause much concern. BOOM out of the forest and on to the gravel for the finishing straight for the WIN! After seeing the results last night i won by 21 secs. Fingers crossed I get to stay in this grade for a few more rounds as this wasn't an overly technical course and didn't include any barriers to dismount over. Still undefeated in my bike racing career! (3 races in) :)
Till next time, which i assure you will NOT be as long as THIS time....
T
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| Elbows out! Gotta learn that one! |
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| Preparing to enter the Forest of DOOOOM |
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| Hunting em down. Look out CWL! |
Good on you. Cycling is fantastic, but it's not everything and so many get totally all consumed by it. There are other great networks out there. For me, I threw myself in the deepend and played guitar in a band.
ReplyDeletewow that is a big change AK! You are right that there is certainly more out there and it's "not all about the bike"! Dont get me wrong i still love riding and the simple pleasure of it but i am not letting it be all consuming. Kudos to those that have fully submersed themselves in it and as long as they enjoy it it has to be better than sitting on the couch! I am just looking for something else though. Great job on getting stuck in to the guitar!
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