Cape to Cape MTB

So that Cape to Cape MTB ride has been completed for its inaugural year, and it was a good event, notwithstanding a few hiccups.

By now, our loyal readers who return on a regular basis should know that Jason and myself flew to Perth on the invitation of the team at Ascend Sport with whom we've developed a strong relationship with over the past 6 months. With a block of solid riding under our belts prior to the event, we headed over under the pretense of it being a race...

With our bikes packed, we hit the road early for our day of transit. Arriving in Perth, the rental Kluger was sadly about 2 inches to short to take our bikes and gear, and so a Prius was wrangled to transport us the 4 hours south to the Race headquarters.





Falling about 2 inches two short, we had tried every permutation and combination of the luggage required, and it was simply not going to fit, so it looked like we were going to be racking up the carbon credits in our little green machine.








4 hours or so down the road, and we arrived at Hamlin bay, accommodation for the first and second nights, and also the end of stage one/beginning of stage 2. Ripping out our gear from the GreenMachine, we set about throwing our bikes together. Jason needed to slip some wheels in and adjust his seat, and I needed to install brake calipers, seat, stem, bars, wheels, cranks, and pump everything back up to pressure. Gee, having an XL bike is great....!










Then I decided to install the correct rotors on each wheel....





After getting the bikes back in some semblance of order, and getting our kit squared away, we headed down to the beach for a swim to wash the travel off. The crystal clear water was simply amazing, and whilst standing in the water, I watched a stingray about 500mm across its back swim beside my foot. Lovely little chap he was... We were both smashed from a long trip there, and couldn't work out what day or time it was, a tradition we followed for a few days! After a great dinner at the Augusta Pub, and a long welcome dinner function, we collapsed in bed as soon as we could. I should also add that we found out that this function that the race was not a race, merely a ride, but you know that was never going to stop any of us. Strangely enough, for something not a race, they were timing it, and awarding winner of each stage..














Up at something silly Melbourne time, we had our breakfast and coffee (a treat we were to find later in the week) and rolled the 25km to the start to try and get some legs to come back to us.







With exceptional weather, we were truly getting a treat! The kit was looking great as well, although I'm not sure the locals and tourists expected to see bikes along the road as there was a few surprises.






We didn't say it was the most exciting ride, but it made up for it with beautiful surrounds.






How good is this? Just an average little beach on this side of the world...!!




The start was at Cape Leeuwin, a very exposed cape with a suitably kooky lighthouse custodian, and some very nice grounds. The weather played nice, and we all got ready to kick off. Rohin joined us here, and that made a formidable race with John Waddell and Willow also looking to play hard.



Since I've not got any race photos yet, I'll run you through the stage until then...

Ready, set,..... "weird tone from the microphone" - apparently that meant go. So away we went and Johnny set the early pace. Up a long fire road climb, Jason took control, until toward the top, I rolled to the front and shelled a large amount of remaining riders. Willow took control on the first descent, and we descended into the worst climb possibly of the week. Rohin, Willow and myself worked our way off the front, running up the kilometre sandy climb, and the others chased hard.

Descending towards the beach, literally, I was stopped by a flat tyre in over-shoe deep sand. Never mind how, the Spex tried in vain to keep me going but it was not use. The stick was rolling around in the bottom of my tyre, so it was good night Irene for a hole this large.







A tube and some gas and I was away again, lost a lot of places but with my angry pants on I made it to the beach and there it stopped.... Beaches suck. Thats it.

Rohin and willow were riding in hub beep sea water at points, the rest of us made do with run- push- ride- sink- swear- repeat. 2km along the beach was a big ask! The prize wasn't great enough to destroy our equipment on day one... And so we chased, and chased. Through the sand, the sand dunes, the sandy roads, and the assorted general type sand that we found along the way, until we hit some bitumen and a downhill attack into the Hamlin Bay carpark. After a 15km chase, I'd dragged a few back, and Jason rolled in after having just 'one of those days' that we hope we never have...



Tired from rolling in the sand all day, a few excursions, flat tyre and travel legs. After the finish, we all headed to the pressure washer (!!?) to spray the bikes down, as Jason had a tug of war with the biggest guy on site over the spray gun. We all made ourselves scarce as the little fellah took on a bloke about 3 axe handles wide! (I'm joking, sort of...)






Dinner that night saw us at the Karridale pub for the evening, another entertaining night with some general tale telling and such. Each evening there was a slide show from the day, a presentation, a speech made by the previous nights stage winner including 2 words chosen by the race director, and a heads up on the next day's stage.


Next morning saw some hurried maintenance to wheels, and we saddled up for the second installment. A 52km slog to Margret river. 7km of bitumen greeted us before a few kilometres of climbing where we shelled most of the other competitors and headed for the coast once more. Racing along the clifftops along limestone roads and through the Karri forrests, we hit the Leeuwin Estate, and apparently had a timed section there (news to all of us) before Rohin attacked on the last hill to hold us off through about 76 gates (that needed to be opened and shut) and we all burst into Margret River to catch the event organizers still setting up once again.







The mysterious elusive Coffee van. Sighted early on in the event, but then gone... Where did she go???





Rolling in to the applause of the young fans! :)




The finish straight and Ascend recovery area.





Willow and Niki speaking with the guys from Ascend, who did a stellar job all week keeping people both informed and recovered!



This is what happens when you take a bit too much air on the water bars... OUCH!



Rohin getting down some of that excellent Ascend Recovery drink, seen for the first time in the world at this event.




Now tell us we're crazy, but can you picture this face as Andy Bell in 20 years? Try the police computer aging thing, can you see the resemblance? Or were we delirious?





The face of the Cape to Cape, Niki Gudex was there at every stage, not necessarily with a glass of wine in her hand at all times.


And so that was the stage into Margaret River - not overly exciting, very tough and windy and quite long, and followed by a not terribly exceptional meal at the Margaret River hotel. On the up side, we both felt much better during this stage, and the racing was hard as hell out there, with no quarter being given, so that was heaps of fun. The Ascend Recovery bars and drinks were being sucked down in their masses, and plenty of people were going out of their way to come over and mention how much better they were feeling the next day, so there is something to it!

Stage 3 and 4 to come.

We're baaack

And with show and tell to do!

More to come when we decompress!

With the good graces of Rohin Adams, we're able to bring you the latest from the Cape to Cape Mountain bike. After a flight that seemed to never end,
and a car trip to renew our carbon credit debt (we got a Toyota Prius), we made it to Hamlin Bay.

Whilst I don't have time to get much down, what we have found is:

*The race isn't actually a race, its a ride.
*WA has a lot of sand, and a course director that really likes to send us into it. We did a 2 km section on the actual beach, and it was very, very difficult.
*The race directors have put on a really great event, with still some things to learn about the actual ride/race component, they have made all the riders more
more than comforatble and convienent.
*WA is amazingly beautiful!
*James Williamson threw down in the sand of stage one, and was the first person to pass underneath the banner at the stage end (remember, not a race.)
*Stage 2 saw Rohin Adams make the most of an opportunity on the final climb to gap the rest of the group to hold us off in a muddled finish, to take the title
of first person under that banner.
*2 Stages to go and we're off to dinner right now.

Plenty of photos to come as you'd expect, the Ascend products are just racing out the door, and we're looking for another 55km tough stage tommorrow.

Make sure you check back later in the week, and we'll hopefully be able to bring you some more stories.

Around the Bay...

A couple of weeks ago a good friend on mine held a fundraising night for the Neonatal Ward at the Royal Children’s Hospital. On the night a CSC team jersey was up for grabs which I was lucky enough to purchase. Bob Spagnolo from CSC formally known as the Gooch on channel 31 was the man behind the generous donation. CSC today played a big part in the around the bay in a day ride, having the biggest corporate team entered of around 200 riders. Unfortunately I was unable to take part in the ride due to family commitments.


I would like to thank Bob and the team at CSC for there contributions to the fundraiser night and with today’s ride. It’s great to see the big company’s putting there hand up to help out when it’s needed most.
As you can see in this pic, the Felt rxc team bike is fully pimped for this week’s race. Big thanks to BB’s Ben Randal for sorting out my front brake issue. Next time I bleed my brakes I will leave it to the experts or buy a proper bleed kit.

Well that’s it for me. Off to WA on Tuesday to race the Cape to Cape and really looking forward to it! This will be the first time I will race a four stage event so fingers crossed it may suit my riding style and with the right recovery products who knows what’s possible.

Thanks for stopping by, Jason J

The longest post we've done...

I'm calling it, this will be the longest... Grab a coffee or a brew loyal readers! This is called binge blogging...

I will however try and pretty it up with pictures for you :)


So we really can't lie, or talk it down. We've been trying. We've said it. No playing around, we've been getting out at every opportunity to scrape some form together and Jason and myself know that we couldn't have done any more. Our familys' are screaming to see us, business is stretching, sleeping is optional, and we're having a good Aussie crack. I know I've seen Em for a matter of hours this week, and without our wives and partners, we could never make this happen, so THANK YOU. I even considered putting them up as sponsors, such is their commitment to our selfish activities.


Bikes have been prepped this week, with Jason opting for his RXC Team for the Cape to Cape event in WA next week, whilst I had a good going over of the Virtue 1. With a flurry of phone calls to resolve some sticky pistons, Jason's bike is ready to race, as is mine now. A set of serviced RockShox Revelations to relieve some leaking seals and an annoying knock, and a re-co'd rear Fox RP23 shock getting rid of a Pro-Pedal squeak, combined with new sealed bearings means that my Virtue will be one plush and fast rig for the 4 day event.

GVRaceTech once again went beyond the call to get parts and to get the bike performing the way it was designed. Re-bleeding brakes, pad swaps, new cables and housings, SPEX and OzRiders.com.au High Density foam grips rounds out an already reliable package, and I'm pretty stoked. Next thing I do will be to go and get all the pressures right, and I'm done!


I'm not sure how to make sealant inspiring, but you all should have seen the video that was put up in the last post to see how this stuff really works!!!! No BS, no marketing, just well designed and executed tyre sealant made in Australia by Australians. Get on it!!



And then the packages started arriving!!


The new Ascend kit turned up in the nick of time. We think it looks great, and the cut is far better that we could have hoped for, so we should have a comfortable race over in WA!



What do you think??



Jason is happy! (so is Ash, by the way)



TaDAAAA! The new artwork has been finalized for the Ascend Proven Sport Proteins products! How about that! With 2 new ready-to-drink flavours of Blue Ice and Orange, we're sure that they'll be a hit over summer 2008/2009. These products are so fresh, you are now some of the first people in Australia to see them, and this is where you'll see all the new Ascend products first!

Let me remind you how you can get your hands on the extensive and every growing range of products that Ascend Sport offers - head straight to their website and purchase through their secure online shopping cart, and get on the best!




And finally, we also received a set of the new Felt team clothing! Looking pretty sharp I think, so you'll be seeing this kit about the place as well!!




And I did have to laugh at this...

So thats all for the day folks - I'm off to check on some shock pressures. Enjoy your day! And be sure to check back for all the latest on the Cape to Cape, as you know you'll be seeing it ASAP right here on the Felt Epix blog. Link it wherever you like, as we'd love to get the hits up and improve all we have to offer.

(so, was the post as long as you expected?)

Torture testing SPEX - Real life destruction

Check this out, this is how you test some a tyre sealant!!



OZriders.com.au going beyond the call of duty to ensure that you the public are able to get your hands on the highest quality products available. Screws, awls, and other spiky things are no match for SPEX, so get out there and get your hands on some!

A higher quality video is in the making, but I thought a short teaser would keep you happy!

So check out SPEX at a few select bike shops, and online at www.ozriders.com.au

Ascend Media release re: Cape To Cape

Media Release Ascend Sponsorship - Upload a Document to Scribd

Another one bites the dust..

With the French sneakily developing a test for Gen. 17 EPO called CERA, and finally getting permission to start using it and acting on the results, the names have slowly started to tumble.

First (well not first exactly, but we'll call it that) was Schumacher (check his Wiki, he's been naughty before) and his littly climbing buddy Pieolpoli (sp?) following on from Ricco. This little story is here, and they have been given the ass.

Next comes a climber, more precisely the KOM and 3rd place overall, Bernie Kohl. I'll ask you, is this the lean gaunt face of a 3week tour cyclist??



I'd be more expecting something like this, not that he turned out to be any more reputable...



So the names, they keep a tumbling... Who'll go next??

Ascend gets 'er done for a podium at Scott 24hour

For those with their eyes open, you would have noticed that Bellie (updates available here) was running Ascend bars as his sole food choice for this weekend's Scott 24hour. And those equally keen would have noticed that Bellie just appeared on Sports Tonight beside Jason English, to claim the 2nd spot on the box.



Looks like they go pretty well to me, eh?!

I'm sure the full story will come out during the week, but sounds like there was some carnage out there!! Felt Racings' new hired help Neil VanDerPloeg apparently had an altercation with another rider (a turn of phrase, not violence...) and ended up finishing his lap and heading straight to hospital to get a VERY deep cut attended too, leaving the boys running with 3 for the duration..

More to come as we get it...

Ascendsport pops up again.

Endurance athlete / 24hr Solo guru Andrew Bell tells all about Ascend Recovery bars and his plan to use them in the future. Check here for more info.

Happy customer!!

I just received this email and thought is was worth posting for all to read.

To Felt Epix,

I have been using the Ascend products for the past three months. I have been using the recovery bars during training and the recovery and muscle shakes post training. I have noticed gains in my training and it was now time to test it all in a race. On the 21st September Steve my race team mate and I headed to Lake Maquarie for a 24 hour adventure race. My food plan for the race was based around an Ascend Recovery bar every 2 hours. The race day was 32 deg and after 23.5 hours we crossed the line, not with the result we were after but we finished. I have never felt better at the end of a race. The biggest difference I noticed using the Ascend Recovery Bars was that I did not suffer any flat spots, which is a huge advantage in a long race. I could not have been more impressed how the Recovery Bar worked and will be using them in all my races from now on.

Thanks heaps, Matt

For more details on the Ascend products please check here.

And finally, this weekend see the biggest race of the Australian calendar and possibly in the world (participant wise) with the Scott 24hour race being held. With riders coming from all points of the compass, Ascend will have a box seat towards the front of the race with Bellie on the program and John Claxton also representing. John will have a selection of samples up there as well, I'm led to believe, so be sure to stop by his tent and ask him about the great new product range from Ascend.

Best laid plans of mice and men...

Saturday morning in my life usually revolves around the hectic side of things, down on Beach Road with about 17million of my closest friends.. Departing Black Rock at 7am, the Hell ride is gathering its usual summer crowds and getting more and more manic. The 'new black' is to hit the gas on the way down the coast, smash the hill, and just stay out of trouble as numbers swell before BlackRock. Yesterday morning was a variation on that plan, but not one I expected.



Rolling out from the clock, the line of riders was substantial, but not excessive. I rolled up beside the bunch with John Claxton (fellow Ascend/Nightlightning rider) and decided to up the pace at the front for a while to shell some of the riff raff out the back. Sadly, it seemed nobody else was interested, and I rolled off the front alone. Happily riding tempo, I rode slowly away from the bunch towards Mordy, until just before the roundabout, I was joined by 3 others and we rolled some turns. With all of us expecting to be swallowed at any moment, each time we checked the bunch, they were falling further behind, and so we just kept at it.

Frankston appeared. Still no bunch (and it was hurting...)

Mt Eliza appeared. Still no bunch (hurting lots more...)

Mordialloc appeared once again, still no bunch and we'd found some lacky's to ride the front to give us a break. One of them had been taking style and riding tips from the Wiggles (plain purple top, red arm warmers and couldn't ride straight) so he was christened Jeff the Wiggle, but he had plenty of power, so we all kept rolling turns home until the sprint where I gave the worlds best leadout (read : blew horribly a long way before the end....) and we all rolled in together, making it the first time I've stayed away from the bunch!

With some extras to run some errands about town, I was a pretty smashed unit come the end of the day, with a Tennis round robin thrown in, dinner in the city and more wedding tasks thrown in.

And now, to celebrate the onset of summer and daylight savings, it back out on the road bike to enjoy this we go! | | | |
\/ \/ \/ \ /



Sunny days are back!!

As per usual, I must preclude this post with an apologies of our lax posting... Sorry! Also, given that we both forgot to pick up our cameras as we ran out the door last night, I put that photo up as that is what we saw, at sunset, so I thought it was close... ;)

On the brighter side of that, things are going smoothly at Epix, and preparations for the the Cape To Cape are coming along well. Our Virtue 1's are getting some preparation, with attention being paid to the easily replaceable bearing pivots that keep the suspension working so well.




With the race in Western Australia being a bit of an unknown quantity, Jason and I are taking no chances and preparing for any sort of conditions to come our way. Training is coming along really well also. I've taken a leaf out of John So's book, and stepped down as the Mayor of Struggletown, now I can hold a wheel at full gas, so its all coming together.


Tour De Burbs again last night was huge, many many people making it simply an exercise in staying near the front and out of trouble! There was a huge turnout of mountain bikers, and it was good to see Felt riders mixing it up the front, given that the Scott24 hour race is next weekend (good luck to Felt Racing) Its a good hitout, tour de burbs, with some touch pinch climbs at a hefty speed making it invaluable as a quickfire training tool.

Rolling in the door after every night training, Jason and I are sure to whip up a variation of our Ascend products. I've personally got a couple of recipies, but my standard one involves a bananna, ice, milk, Muscle, colostrum and a whole lot of noise! Perfect on a summers evening, and with a splash of cointreau, HELLO! :) I know from a personal point of view (I won't speak for Jason) that I physically couldn't ramp up my training like this without this supliment. My body begins to consume itself, and I don't have enough energy to build on good work, and lose weight (muscle) like its going out of fashion. Ascend has, and continues to give me the backup that I need to build some form! Even out on the bike, Ascend are in no danger of stopping the rock, with the fantastic bars many of you have tried, and the release of the new Electrolyte drink in the coming months which we are testing with success! The Cape to Cape is to my understanding, the soft launch of these products, so you nice people should be able to get your hands on it sometime shortly following that.

Looks like a hefty weekend on the bike too, with Around the Bay upcoming (Jason might have a story to share about that...?!) and a few other things on the cards, it 10/10ths in the leadup to the Cape to Cape.