As far as I know, Clark’s TT was the first perpetual time trial on the web.

From that, others such as the Crank TT and Sidewinder TT popped up.

Locally, the first and subsequently largest perpetual time trial is the Helipad TT, followed by the Sunrise TT, maintained by MTBikeAZ.com.

Recently, the Dreamy Draw TT site was launched, which features five individual time trials based in the Phoenix North Mountains, on and around Trail 100.

I’m following suit based upon one of my frequent riding spots - McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

A new page has been added to theorangedog.net - the McDowell Mountain Time Trials page.

This page adds 5 new loops to the Phoenix Time Trial circuit, all based upon the major trail loops at the park:

• Long Competitive Loop
• Sport Competitive Loop
• Tech Competitive Loop
• Sport-Tech-Long Loop
• Pemberton Loop

The page was just recently launched, and already some leads have been seized and claims staked. I will be interested to see if anyone can take down Tyler’s 37:28 Long Loop time, which is unbelievably fast!

With the page in development, expect updates and additional useful information to be posted. This will include additional specifics, such as rules, and GPS files. However, while under development, the GoogleDoc is fully functioning and not anticipated to change - so feel free to post your time!

For Haven’s Sake Charity Time Trial Race Report

Tom Ament organized a night time trial and fun ride at McDowell Mountain Regional Park to support a cause everyone can appreciate. More information on Haven is available here. The event was well organized and supported, and, from everything I’m hearing, it was a definite success!

The race started off well for me - all of my gear was cooperating. Lights were working, tires were holding air, (tested out a new pack on the market from Kole Gear - its a pressurized hydration pack - I’ll get thoughts on it up shortly), etc. About 15 minutes in, a mild, cool breeze started up, which was a nice offset to the hot, arid air typical of Arizona.

I was passed by a handful of riders somewhere around the completion of the first mile; but, I was maintaining a pretty decent pace in respect to my 1:00 goal. All in all, my riding was pretty good - I was taking a few descents with more speed and control than usual, and powered up every hill but two, both of which because I missed my line and slipped into a rut.

I have ridden the course before - its a great loop with a decent amount of variety and reasonable amount of climbing. Riding at night changed it completely. I could not see the “hairy” section coming up until I was too close for a material velocity change - so I just barreled into them by happenstance. It worked out well and I definitely felt that the 8 mile loop significantly improved my riding skills.

I came across a couple riders with flats, but being ill prepared myself, I didn’t have tubes, patch kits, or C02 to help. Then, after railing through the technical section on the south ridge, I came across a nice woman who was walking with no lights. As it turned out, her light had quit on her. I was riding with two bar lights and a helmet light, so I figured I had one to spare. I offered her a light and she followed me back to the finish coming in a minute or so behind me. The transfer of the light probably cost me a minute or two, and I ended up finishing in a time of 1:01. So, I felt good - my time was hit, I flew through the rock garden, the ride was fun, I wasn’t winded, and I was able to help someone and built up some good karma (not to brag…).

Little did I know that the good karma would pay off immediately. I stayed to enjoy a killer porter from SKA and the charity raffle. The grand prize - a Vassago frame and fork. And guess who’s name was drawn for that.

The frame is a Fisticuff - which is a cool bike. Unfortunately, the frame is a bit small for me - so Tom came through again and offered to switch it out for the correct size. I mentioned that I may want to build it up single speed, and he mentioned in passing that in addition to switching the size, it may be best to switch to a different frame. This is an offer I can’t pass up, and I’m looking forward to getting my hands on a new frame to build into a great bike with unique geometry.

The entire race was great - and for me, it was further proof that the cycling community really is a community. I’ve been asked by numbers of riders in the past if I’ve needed help - this time I returned the favor. And while winning the frame is awesome, the main point of the event was the philanthropic side - and I think everyone was glad to help.

Race Finish (Notice Only One Light)

New Kole Gear Pack - Post Race

Photos taken by Leslie Lohn.

XTERRA West Cup was a blast! Dom, the race director at Sunset Racing, did a great job of putting together a fun event and a challenging course. The course was a bit more challenging than I anticipated, in fact. The bike had a good number of sharp incline and decline sections – combined with a lot of loose sand and rock.

The swim section started out at the beach and pool area of the Loews hotel (formerly the Hyatt) at Lake Las Vegas. The pros went off first (photo below from Rich Cruse’s site) followed by my group. I’m way in the back, standing in my new Vector Pro X2 and orange cap.

Pro start. I’m in the back of the group at the beach.

My new XTERRA wetsuit was awesome. I had originally ordered the Vortex but upgraded to the Vector Pro X2 because the Vortex suits weren’t quite ready for race day. I’m glad I spent the extra bit of money. Both would have worked, but as it stands, I had my best swim yet - 1,500m in (I’m estimating) 40-45 mins. Not very good by most standards, but a good starting point that I can build from.

The transition section was relatively packed, but there was enough room to move – besides, I came out of the water last or near last, so I had the whole area to myself (photo below taken during transition set up, from Rich Cruse’s twitter page).

I’m in the white in the middle.

The bike was mean, but awesome. A lot of great views and a great section near the water. I had my Forerunner 405 on during the bike and you can see the section nearing transition that took us by the water. There were a few tricky sections in this part – like one blind turn that left about 10 inches of track between a 2 foot ledge and the water. Total elevation gain was just under 2,800′.

The bike course from XTERRA West Cup

My chain broke, my rear brake wasn’t functioning properly, and both of my derailleurs were a bit squishy on the bike course. While some of this slowed me down, it was really my fitness level that caused me to take forever. I finished the bike course about 15 minutes before the course was closing – so I was cut from doing the run. I’ll get it next year.

Prior to the race I weighed in at 268. This is down 47 lbs from my peak of 315. I’m going to lose another 40 lbs by next year, putting me in much better position to finish. Plus, I’ve been reading some of Conrad Stoltz’s posts and he has some interesting tips about endurance and strength training.