Fastest XC course ever! US Cup Race #4 Santa Ynez Valley Classic

Published on April 19, 2013 by @sachoben. Tags: , , , .

Here’s a full race lap of the US Cup race #4, the Santa Ynez Valley Classic in Los Olivos, California. It was a long race, nearly 2 hours race time (2 laps). There were 1500 feet of climbing per lap, 24.6 miles total. But it felt great, I managed my pace well and the course was great for this kind of endurance race. Not technical at all, but so fast! Like out-of-the-saddle-big-chainring-pedalling-on-flying-single-track fast. Average speed 13 mph. A crash would have resulted in a bad day.

Course Map:
http://app.strava.com/segments/3841069

 

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Track side footage at the US Cup Race #3 in Fontana, CA

Published on April 8, 2013 by @sachoben. Tags: , , , , .

This was race #3 of the US Cup 2013 mountain bike race series. I retired on lap 1 with a puncture (video here). So I thought I would make the most of my walk of shame back to the pits by shooting some track side footage of these guys & gals totally killing it on this technical course.

Course Map:
http://app.strava.com/segments/3672803

Song:
http://hypem.com/track/rppc/Metric+-+Help+I’m+Alive+(The+Twelves+Remix)

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My race quickly ended in tears at US Cup Race #3 in Fontana, CA

Published on April 2, 2013 by @sachoben. Tags: , , , , .

“Race control, #286 is out, mechanical – Copy that”
I did not finish, DNF, at the US Cup race #3 in Fontana. Two punctures on lap 1. That really sucks mechanical balls. The course was so awesome, with rocky downhill sections, technical climbs – I was so pumped to race on that track. Oh well. My mistakes. When I hit that first rock I thought “oops the tire won’t like that”. It when flat a few meters later. So I put a tube in immediately. Then, further, I caught some air over a small drop and, mid-air, realized “oops the tube won’t like that”. It pinched and it was over. Turns out the tubeless tire had no damage at all. It just burped. I could have just re-inflated it with the cartridge and keep going.

Lessons learned:
- Leave a fucking gap with the guy in front so you’re not blindly riding his line.
- Inspect the fucking tire before dismounting it.
- Those fucking CO2 cartridges are too small for big 29er wheels.
- Tubes can save the day but they still fucking suck so ride them gently.

Course Map:
app.strava.com/segments/3672803

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Trying the GoPro Hero 3 Black Edition on a night ride at Marshall Canyon

Published on March 28, 2013 by @sachoben. Tags: , , .

Marshall Canyon is located in La Verne, CA in Los Angeles. I was riding with two lights on the handle bar – two NiteRider Lumina 650 – and a Petzl Myo RXP headlamp on my helmet. The footage was shot on GoPro Hero3 Black Edition in 1440p at 48 fps. No color correction was applied while editing.

Map to trail head: app.strava.com/segments/3615564
Song: Teen Daze – Wet Hair (Japandroids)

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Bonelli Park US Cup 2013 Race #2
Race footage of the entire first lap

Published on March 20, 2013 by @sachoben. Tags: , , , , .

I finished 4th again last weekend at the US Cup Race #2 at Bonelli Park. It was a big race week-end with many olympic athletes present. FEllow canadian Emily Batty finished 2nd woot! The track was at world-class level with challenging man-made obstacles. It was a rough course, loved it! I completed my 3 laps in 1:23:16. What’s weird though, is I couldn’t get my heart rate anywhere near Zone 5 (anaerobic). I spent the race almost 50-50 in Zones 3 & low-4. I don’t know why. Maybe too much snowboarding the day before killed my legs.

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