Summer Turn Up Begins

Here we go, waiting at the start gate, the dust of the previous racer slightly fading before the final five beeps of the clock break my dwindling silence of a mental tug of war between nerves and adrenaline.  5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GO!

Stage one of the Sea Otter Classic Enduro kicked off the race season for the first time since

an almost six month hiatus of gravity events.  For myself, the downtime of winter brought a needed period for building strength and seat time after last year's injuries.  After spending some rainy days researching and learning about proper training for enduro racing, my goal was to resolve some gaps in my confidence and issues in previous circumstances.  Without a personal coach to help lay out a fixed day to day schedule, there's always that unknown in the back of your mind of "what am I not doing enough of, am I doing too much, why am I sore and slow, I'd rather take a nap after work or school instead of making time for the gym." In the end, I feel I've been able to identify weaknesses and start out the year in a better place than previously.  Ride all you want but in my opinion nothing beats racing for the true test.  I decided to hit up the popular CCCX cross country series which kicked off in February to try my luck in XC again.  It had been over a year since competing in XC and after past experiences of being a last place kook in the expert class, I was excited to see if I could improve.  Doing the first six out of seven rounds saw my race pace and endurance much higher than the past and I was finally able to run with the front pack.  After grabbing a couple wins and the rest being various spots on the podium, I was looking forward to the upcoming Enduro season.  

While XC racing is very difficult in its own way of consistent hard efforts around a 5-6 mile course that you loop for 1.5-2 hrs, Enduro is a whole different element of physical and mental stress.  Taking off on race day isn't the normal race start with all riders lined up racing at the same time, but instead un-timed "transfer" stages where you traverse to the start of the timed "downhill" stages which is where the race runs take place.  Each race stage is timed from the top to bottom of a trail, consisting of mostly high speed, technical downhill as well as a few flat/short climbs where all out sprint power is key to keeping a fast pace.  Add up the total timed stages across 3-5+ different runs and the lowest overall time gets the win.  Sounds a bit confusing at first but this ever rising discipline is quite fun and exciting.  Plus, you need to be physically fit enough to last anywhere from 3-6 hours on the bike in a day.  

So back to Sea Otter!  The Enduro race took place on a Thursday with a great day of racing in store.  We had four stages taking place on the downhill track, two flowy single track trails, and the final one being on the short dual slalom course.  In the end brought no crashes or mechanicals which is always a plus.  My time landed me 13th in the world class field of Pros.  Being a mere three seconds off the top 10 made me pretty stoked on my riding.  Next up was the Downhill event on Sunday, 2+ minutes of making yourself explode over jumps, dry/loose corners, and flat power sprints.  With how short the track is, .001 seconds can be the difference of numerous positions.  I had my personal best time with a 2:09 compared to my 2:13 last year which resulted 30th in Pro.  Placing near the top 20 along the best of the best was my goal, but that small 1-2 seconds made a big difference.  A lot was learned and I felt ready for the California Enduro Series to start up next month in May.  

New Specialized Stumpjumper! My race bike for 2018. 

Personally I feel that your mental state of mind and keeping yourself motivated with positive outlooks each day is more important than physical fitness at times.  You can have everything it takes to be well prepared but if you have any doubts or distractions, you're not going to perform at your best.  The past few weeks had me down in the dumps a bit from some personal issues and letting those negative events overrule my day to day mindset.  Everything happens for a reason and after awhile it was time to take control and focus on what makes you excited to wake up each morning.  For me, the majority of that comes from biking and enjoying the outdoors.  After spending hundreds and hundreds of $$$ on upcoming entry fees, I needed to start kicking butt and not make a fool of myself come race day. 

Memorial day weekend began with the first CA Series round down the highway in beautiful Monterey.  Toro Park has a nice variety of super loose and rowdy terrain so you better bring your A-game if you want to stay on your bike.  There were 5 stages and I was really excited for 4 of them...the final one being on "Pipeline" was going against my confidence a bit with the less than ideal handlebar width trail along the cliff side and overhanging trees that would ruin any tall rider's day.  In the end, I wanted to be on the top five podium steps. That is my goal for this year and I know I have what it takes but racing isn't certain and you have to be damn near 100% all day to make that happen.  The majority of the day was looking like I could achieve this with my first 4 times being near that mix, but like I said, I knew stage 5 wouldn't be my strong suit and maybe that hurt me in the end.  Top to bottom was a clean and smooth run feeling close to the best I could, but catching up to a slower rider in front of me and the trail leaving no room to pass, I lost some valuable time.  Being about 15-20 seconds off pace of where I needed to be dropped me back to 11th overall for Pro.  Thinking back on the day, I was very bummed on the placing but there's always a learning experience.  My riding and bike handling feels at a personal best right now and I had strong times in the majority of racing.  Moving on to the upcoming events this summer, I need to push the limits just enough to get closer to the speeds of the top guys but knowing the limit to keep my usual smooth style.  June will be getting busy soon and I'm looking forward to the action!!


Catch ya next time,

-Nicky D

Supporters:

• Specialized Bicycles   
• Scotts Valley Cyclesport
• Praxis Works
• Hammer Nutrition
• Krawl Loco Clothing
• 100%
• Bell Helmets
• Muc-Off
• Stikrd
• ODI Grips
• All Mountain Style
• Mom & Dad

New year, New bikes, What's Next?

Welcome to a new year, another time for people to make new goals, aspire to greater life outcomes, diets, and adventures...usually ending in a luckluster attempt to impress friends over social media.  What about myself?  I realized I really like bikes, trying to go fast with fellow shredders and that's about it.  2018 is just a continuation of the stoke!  Riding is fun, but racing is the true addiction, with more and more events in the Enduro discipline popping up, my mission is to get out to the most possible before the ever diminishing checking account runs dry #BrokeCollegeKidRacing.  

So far the year has been off to a solid start, adding two fresh Specialized rigs to the bedroom which is looking more like a bike shop each day, but it just wouldn't be right to leave them freezing in the outside workshop, plus air pressures would change too much right?  Anyways, the new XC set up starts off with an Epic HT frame.  Jumping to conclusion early, this bike is cross country goals.  The Spec crew cut weight on an already light bike, got the head angle a tad slacker which better fits my downhill turnbars, and overall eliminates that awkward hardtail feeling for your average full-suspension guru. 

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Keeping to my intentions of becoming a speedy enduro racer, I had to get my hands on the updated Specialized Enduro for 2018, going with 29er wheel size for optimal acceleration.  A company that always pays attention to detail, implemented a few key changes making this an even more capable machine.  Longer reach,  the little "flip-chip" between the shock mounting and the yoke adjusts head angle and bottom bracket height, immediately closing the gap between Trail vs. DH bike.  To be honest, once setting it up in the low/slacker setting, I haven't touched it...a true downhill slayer that is ready to sprint up any climb as well.  Not to mention, the local Santa Cruz weather has provided some miraculous riding conditions which has added up more hours behind bars than expected lately.  

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First off, the Epic is fast.  This thing screams speed the second you start rolling around on it, making me wish my leg power could keep up with the intentions of this bike.  Climbing sees you moving quite a bit faster than I remember on my last hardtail, which may have more to do with trying to avoid Slurpees, but I'd bet the bike is pulling the weight in this situation...no pun intended.  For the Enduro, I couldn't stop smiling with each passing lap.  From hucks, g-outs, berm smashing, and rocks, the thing reminds me of what a DH bike is like, but one that actually carries speed when you're crankin.  Like a proper trail bike, it can pedal with ease but you don't realize its true potential until you're pinning it down something super steep and rough.  After some all time group laps and a few KOM's, I think it's living up to its name.  

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What's next?  Well since the majority of race series leave you anxiously waiting until close to summer until bringing the action, I'm trying to find my cross country fitness in hopes of being as competitive as possible in the local CCCX XC events beginning in a few weeks.  Once that pain settles, it'll lead into the Sea Otter Classic, all California Enduro Series, Crankworx Whistler EWS, and hopefully a Big Mountain Enduro or two.  We'll see what's possible while trying to balance things out, that Bachelor's degree will come at some point also.  

For now, catch me on the trail or possibly the road commuting once gas money becomes extinct after race registrations open, but we'll always be sending it!

Also I am super excited about support from Bell Helmets for this season, the world renown company happens to be headquartered about 15 minutes away making for a perfect connection.  The newly released Sixer trail helmet has been a favorite with a design and comfort level that makes it feel practically weightless on your head.  Plus the new Super DH and Full 9 lids give that extra protection and confidence when railing off that next jump or cliff side.

Epic HT Build: 

S-Works Large frame, Gamut TR 760mm bars/60mm stem, ODI Elite grips, Rockshox SID 100mm fork, Roval Control SL 29 wheels, Fast Trak Grid 2.3 tires (front/rear), Shimano XT shifter, brakes, 160mm rotors (front/rear), XTR 11-40 cassette, XTR derailleur, XT pedals, Praxis Works LYFT crank/34t ring, press fit BB, Power saddle. 

Enduro 29 Build:

Large frame, Ohlins TTX coil/525 spring, FOX 36 160mm fork, Gamut TR 760mm bars/50mm stem, ODI Elite grips, SRAM Guide Ultimate brakes/200mm rotors (front/rear), Butcher Grid 2.3 tires (front/rear), Praxis Works AL32 wheels, Girder Carbon crank/32t ring, threaded BB, chainguide, Shimano XT pedals, XT shifter/derailleur, XT 11-46 cassette, Fox Transfer 150mm dropper post, Power saddle. 

Thanks for reading!

-Nicky D instagram/twitter: @nickyd358

2018 Sponsors:

Specialized Bicycles, Praxis Works, Bell Helmets, 100%, SV Cyclesport, ODI Grips, Krawl Loco Clothing, Muc-Off, Stikrd, All Mountain Style, Hammer Nutrition.