Fin

Black Flies from Behind, Squeezer 2010

The Squeezer 2010

(We forgot our camera so if anyone has pics, please share them!)

We had perfect conditions yesterday for the Squeezer!  The temp was about 15 degrees and the course was dry as a bone.   It very well could have been one of the nicest cross-country courses I've ever raced on. 
We had 11 Black Fly's racing with JohnL, ChrisB and Hazer doing the event for the 1st time and all were smiling at the end.  Too bad Foxy broke his frame the day before. :(   Time for titanium, buddy!
Black Fly Racing 2 (The Rurals) came in 9th overall and had it not been for a mis-registration Black Fly Racing 1 (The Urbans) would have also top 10'd it.
Despite her last 500m to go crash, Brenda still came in 8th in her Women 30-39 category.
The worst thing about The Squeezer is we have to wait 6 months until the next race.
Maybe we can find something in October...

Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal

We have to organize a trip to this thing next year!  As cyclists and cycling fans (and sports fans in general) attending a pro bicycle race is a pretty cool thing.  You might only see them every 15 minutes or so but I can picture us all hanging out on the course, maybe sitting in our camping chairs, and cheering on the lads as they climb past us.  Then we'll head down to the finish line and watch the end drama. 

Blackfly B-Boyz

Presenting the Blackfly B-Boyz (missing Ian unfortunately).

2010 Hot August Nights was certainly hot this year....but not as hot as this crew! Unfortunately Ian had already headed home by the time we got our act together to take this photo. Next year, team phot before the race starts! 13th place in the Corporate Team category is not too shabby either. With a plate number of 169 I think it was "mathed" out for us ahead of time!

2010 Hot August Nights

The Always Smiling Drew-Man

Transition area.

Hazer after riding the plank.  Didn't go quite as planned.

Heavenly.

 Albion Hills.  Some memories from this years edition would have to be:  Releasing of the the Beast, 1980's Power Ballads, No lights for Stitt, The BlackFly Auction, me being under the weather and Hazer's muddy return from the his last lap.  

Some more pics can be found here. 

A little hot, Mr. Muller?

Black Flys - Hardwood 8hr

Hardwood Hills 8hr

Run into finish.

Tony finishing up a lap.

2010 Summer 8hrs

Hardwood Hills.  Well, it didn't rain!  I thought for sure we were gonna get dumped on but luckily it only drizzled for a few minutes.  It was hot, though.  With the humidity it was pushing 40 degrees in the first half of the day, making the many roots and rocks rather slippery.  This caused a couple of us to crash (see below photo).  For me, my crash came with less than 1km to go on my last lap and now I'm gonna be quite sore for at least a week.  Thanks Hardwood.
We also had a nice visit from Kathleen (thanks for the peaches!) who rode 118km from Toronto to visit us.
  

Here's Ian blazing to the finish.

ChrisB and Tony sandwiching the guy in the Team Viking skinsuit. 

My war wounds.  Jesus, it's looks like I was shot!!!

Tour de G20

Last weekend, Black Fly Racing (not to be confused with Black Bloc Racing) went downtown by bicycle to check out the action.  Thankfully didn't run into any riots and the empty streets made for some pretty nice riding.

Lake to Lake 2010

St. Catherines.  If you were asked what event is the hardest, what would be your answer?  It very well could be the Lake to Lake.
It's long at 50km.
Even when it's "dry", you still end up getting muddy by the end of the day.
The terrain is for mountain bikes yes, but it's not like Albion or Mansfield which have been designed as mountain bike centres.  ATV's and motor bikes use the course they make us race on.  Which means ruts.
It's almost always hot.
Throw in a crash or a mechanical and it can be very discouraging as well.  A test of your mental strength as well as physical. 

But there is a giant lake to hang out in after!

Pre Race Dinner

Six Days in the Pyrenees

In anticipation of the wildcard entry of Black Fly in Le Tour for 2011 (they can't snub us again), I recently took the Black Fly jersey to do some scouting of the decisive climbs in the Pyrenees.

It was amazing and incredibly difficult, on every climb I used a 30/25 or 30/23 ratio, and still needed to stop and take breaks. Clearly I will not be protecting our captain on the mountain stages, good luck Marty.

I rationalized my breaks as "scenic breaks" as the old french men grinded past me, but the breaks also allowed lots of pictures and I included some below.

Most climbs were about 13-18 km long and often averaged 7-8%, taking about 2 hours to climb. Descents were scary and fun, but also freezing, my toes would go numb and it was never a nice surprise to see a tour bus or RV making its way up switchbacks. Most daily rides were about 75-100 km in total, with half of the trip coasting (sometimes up to 45min chunks without pedaling).

If anyone has any questions about visiting the Pyrenees for cycling feel free to give me shout, otherwise I am hoping to make it back there next summer.

The key climbs in the trip included:

Col du Tourmalet (2115 m)
Station Luz Arididen (1725 m)
Hautacam (1700 m or about that)
Port de Boucharo (about 2200 m)

plus lots of other ones!

I will try and post the rest of the pictures on the facebook page sometime

Jody

on the the way to Port de Boucharo, the final kilometer was snowed in still (May 30! and snow!)

Switchbacks up to Station Luz Arididen
cooked on top of Hautacam
View from Hautacam

The crowds cheering on Black Fly were out in force on the Hautacam
Black Fly in small village at 1300 meters!
Just above the clouds and almost at the top of the Tourmalet

Boler Mountain

If you're ever in London, Ontario with your mountain bike, check out Boler Mountain for some riding. They don't have a lot of trails but they do have a challenging 9km loop that had everything you would want: steep hills, roots, rocks and some flow-eee sections.  For me it was quite nostalgic since the last time I rode my bike here it was an O-Cup race and I was 17 years old!

Ride For Heart 2010

The only 2 pics I was able to snap:   My two riding buddies (Cam and Hazer) and a very large display of bananas.  This morning in Toronto it was cold and raining - make that pouring.  How does one spell epic?  The Ride for Heart 2010.
As I'm writing this a couple of hours later,  I look outside and the ground is dry and let's just check the forecast.  Yup, looks like it's gonna be a pretty nice day.  Shit.