Wednesday, July 28, 2010

2010 Canadian 24hr Solo Championships

Looks like another 24 hr race has come and gone. This past weekend was the 2010 Exposure Lights 24 hour Canadian Solo Championships in Canmore Alberta. Firstly, it was another well organized event put on by Stuart and the Crew of 24 hrs of Adrenaline. Thanks to all the Crew. Canmore is such a fabulous venue and a highly recommended event to take part in. I think I may even do it again next year. From the stadium area, to the Rocky Mountains surrounding the venue, to the bears on the course, to some of the best singletrack trails in western Canada, what more could a person want?

This list of Canmore attributes seems obvious 2 days after I've dismounted my bike, but I have to say, they didn't cross my mind from noon on Saturday to noon on Sunday. This year's course was a tough one. A ton of technical singletrack, whether you were heading up (which seemed often) or rippin' it down. It was fairly unrelenting right from the start, as was the pace. There were at least ten guys out there with the hammer down including a couple of fellow Team Canada mates, Leighton and Shaun. They all had one thing on the mind I think- The jersey with the maple leaf on it. With less than 12 weeks to the World Solos, I think I gave this one a good go. I ended up a couple of places beyond were I was targeting, but at the end of the day, I came away with no injuries, no lasting aches and pains, some miles in the legs, but most importantly, some new friends- thanks Dennis, Steve, Leighton and Shaun.

It's hard writting about a 24 hr race, because what really happened? Well, I rode my bike, sometimes it was fast, sometimes it was slow, sometimes it was not at all. In the end though, 24 hour racing seems to answer the age old question about the nature of time and whether our perception of it is linear. You start, you pedal, time passes and you finish- sounds like a straight line to me. I think I'm glad about that as I sit on the couch with the PC on my lap. If it weren't true, I'd still be pedalling- ouch!

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