Skyway Epic

In a lost of interest racing a few XC events thus far, I made a last minute decision to toss SERC# 5 at Conyers, Ga to the wayside in favour Skyway Epic in the beautiful Talladega National Forest in Alabama. I really hated to miss out on this race last year. I dig endurance races and really think I fair better at them than cross-country.

So the low down on Skyway... It's a 60 mile race, consisting of 5100ft of climbing. The races starts with about 9ish miles of sweet single track on the Slyaward trails. You finish on the same single track but the distance is cut in half, so there is about 15 miles of singletrack total, leaving 45 miles of double track/service roads and just pure nasty, epic, muddy goodness. This race is awesome because it can favour anyone from a roadie to the die-hard mountain biker.   

Start of the race, me getting the hole shot...

Knowingly, I was in for some good competition, my race tactic was simple. I wanted the hole shot. I wanted to drill it from the gun. And so I did! I knew there were some strong roadies in the bunch, so I worked my strengths and kept the pace high in the single track dropping all but one guy from Florida who ended up flatting 4 miles in. I had a decent gap coming out of the Slyaward trails. At this point so early on in the race, I thought to myself... "do you really want to try and solo this entire race, TT style?!" but lost all my hard work when Brent Marshall(nice dude & race director) came flying up to me in his truck to tell me I missed a turn. As it fans out, the chase group consisting of about 8 or so behind me missed the same turn, so we were all chasing new founded leaders on the trail at this point!

This was my biggest fear. In a group, on none technical terrain with Brian Toone, Jafer Beizer, Jacob Tubbs and Jamie Alexander. Those were the only guys I "knew" of that were strong guys anwwho. I don't think any of them really knew who I was or feared me as a top contender.

Before the Skyway climb came there was a few short-steep sections on the double track and I immediately attacked to dislodge the group. I did not want but a few of us at the top of the Skyway climb, if that many. Only Jamie Alexander and Brian Toone were able to react to my acceleration. We worked well together to the base of Bull Mountain. Jamie was starting to suck wheel and not pull through. I was frustrated simply because I didn't want any free rides when Brian and I were digging deep to maintain our gap over the chase group. What was surprising was Jamie, when he did pull through, was strong as shit! I was starting to fear him more than Brian. After the race I learned that Jamie had been sick all week. I can't believe he was riding as strong as he was with that being the case. Very Impressive. 

Brian and I ended up dropping Jamie. It was here I knew, baring no mechanicals, it was going to be he and I to the finish. We worked well to keep a sizable gap. Climbing up to the KOM on top of the Skyway, our pace slowed a little... I think Brian wanted the KOM as bad as I did. I have always heard stories about Brian Toone, as he is a bit of a "legend" in the area. I doubted myself in being able to take him on top of the climb. We discussed splitting the cash for the KOM  and still sprinting for it anyways. I think this showed his class. Brian is a remarkable cyclist as well as a great competitor and smart tactician-er. I'm a lot more competitive than I lead on. In all honesty, if I had thought I could have gotten the KOM, I wouldn't have agreed... but I thought he would beat me, so I agreed to the deal. There was a bit of cloud cover on the mountain and we thought the 200m to KOM sign was the top. And we were wrong! I barely had him at this point but took one last dig and ended up taking it! 

Jamie ended up catching us at the halfway point of the race. I was off my bike after a dropped chain and he flew by me. I was in awe! Although I think Brian and I could have ridden a little harder, I was underestimating the talent of the racers behind us! We could tell Jamie was hurting so we really hit the rest of the race hard. In fear of continuing to drop my chain I climbed back up the top of the Skyway all big ring, maybe that helped keep the pace high?? I don't know, Brian is a freak and climbs like a goat. 

After the big descent, I really think we were both starting to observe how we were going to drop one another. It was clear no one was going to catch us. I tried dropping him on the long downhill and never got  big enough of a gap were I felt comfortable hammering down with hopes of maintaining that gap. It was all rolling hills with gravel until the last few miles of single track. 

One of many attacks from Brian Toone...

I knew all I had to do was stay with Brian until then. It seemed like any bit of a slight grade there was, Brian was accelerating and lifting the pace. I was hurting bad! He threw in some killer attacks but I wasn't giving up so easily. Brian made me earn this victory attacking me a total of 8 times super hard. I was able to muster up enough fuel and kick up the pace entering the single track that I lost sight of Brian, taking the win! And I hard-earned one at that!

Men Overall Podium... 1-Kyle 2-Brian 3-Jamie

Comradery after a hard days work!

I never once thought I had the race in the bag. I was confident in hanging with Brian but didn't expect the win. I love epic battles like this. One on One, a chess game with mental and physical pains. I know Brian wanted the win as bad as I did and I commend him for a hell of a race!   

SERC #2 Bryson City, NC. (Humble bee tuna)

There was a time once, long long ago when I once thought I was a fast mountain biker...

Then came SERC #2, Tsali, North Carolina...

Tsali was a blast. I learned so much and made every moment count. I feel very blessed to be a part of the MTB community. It is inevitable, you will have bad races, but when you do, you can always count on your friends!

In all honesty, Tsali was not a bad race for me. Everything was spot on. I felt good, my legs were good and I cant say anything really went wrong. I got beat by 9 other racers that were better than me. I'll try and run through the race the best I can from memory even though I was cross-eyed and seeing red for 2 hours straight...

I was upset with myself at getting to the starting line late and I was forced to start 2nd row. Tsali had 24 pro riders, I knew position was key in this race but oh well what can ya do? Gun goes off and the hammer drops. The start was a 200ft gravel climb leading into a wicked fast downhill that was doubletrack leading into a 120 degree turn to even more downhill but on singletrack. My heartrate was so high from fighting for position on the climb the downhill was hardly any recovery and that's the story for the entire race. I felt like I never stopped pedaling once for the entire 2 hour race. I was top ten heading into the singletrack and had arguably the best wheel to follow on the DH in all of the PRO field, Tristan Cowie(hope I spelled his name right). I remember him from Mellow Johnnys because he whooped my ass there! Tristan can freaking fly DH and we bridged back up to the lead group in no time with his effort. I burnt all my matches trying to stay on his wheel on that stretch of DH and by the time the overlook climb came, I was spent. It was there, THAT soon in the race, I said bye bye to the elite group of guys in the front. On the last half of my 1st lap while in No Mans Land, Cory Rimmer bridged the gap up to me and it was great having some company. Turns out Tristan was never too far ahead of us and we were determined to bridge back up to him. Starting the second lap and riding up the gravel I pushed the pace with Cory in tow. I lit my last match too soon. Cory was able to come around and get on Tristans wheel and I watched them ride that same DH stretch together away from me just like in the 1st lap of the race. That pretty much sums up my race, I rode the entire last 16 miles alone until one last guy caught me in the last mile of the race(Omar Fraser). It sucks not being fast enough to hang with the top dogs but just fast enough to hold off the chase groups. Gotta start somewhere! Needless to say, I need to work on my downhill and power output.

Tsali is a powerman's course. Momentum and flow will do you best. I averaged 15mph in a 30mile XC race which is the fastest race I've ever done to date. I'll take this 10th place finish with a grain of salt. There is some killer talent in the southeast and I am just blessed to race alongside them in the PRO field!

This is a pic of Cory and I in hot pursuit.

I did manage to pull out a podium on Saturdays Time Trial Race. It was a 4.5 mile effort with little climbing and alot of flowy DH. 

Thanks for reading. Next up is SERC #3 in Winder, GA.

SERC #1 Ocala, FL.

I want to start off first by telling everyone how incredibly blown away I was by the MTB scene in FL. For a state that has zero mountains, I am beyond impressed with the community of racer's there. Ocala has 70 miles of single track leaving from 2 different trail heads all within about 1 mile of each other with Santos alone. It was cool as hell watching little kids hitting dirt jumps with moms and dads chillin', grilling food and just the whole scene was amazing, it is now NO WONDER at all that FL produces some amazing talent in cycling. These kids have an impressive exposure to the sport that I only wish my hometown or even Nashville had.

The race was on a roughly 6 mile course. The pro's did 4 laps. The course was fun with 50% of it being flat and crazy fast with bermed corners and the other half super technical with tons of ups and downs with rock traverses and 180 degree turns. 

I had a bad start, ONCE AGAIN, dammit! I had this huge bodybuilding looking dude to the right of me at the start that has a fast start and cut me off so it delayed my goal of top 5 into the woods even more so. Kudos to him, he did great! 

The start of the race was probably one of the slowest starts I've ever experienced in any race, ever. 100 milers and all. Everyone seemed content leading into the tech section with no yelling or jockeying for position. I was 8th or 9th into the woods and I was itching to make some moves forward.

Sorting through the yo-yo effect that comes with racing tight and twisty trails, I was able to place myself in the top 4 towards the end of the first lap. I was feeling good and ready to heat up the pace on the 2nd lap without all the traffic, my legs felt awesome and I knew that with a course like this I could potential negative split every lap. 

Starting the second lap, I was able to get in front of Chase Dickens(american classic/xpedo/maxxis) just as we headed into the woods from the feed zone. Hammer down! I was railing through the flat section much faster than before on the 1st lap. Leaning into some of the sandy corners, I noticed while using my rear brake (corner traction) that the lever was getting soft on me. By the time I hit the technical mix of the trail it was as if someone cut the line on my brakes. My lever was completely gone and useless! My first thoughts were about the recall Magura just had with the brake levers. My front brake was working fine. I have had my fair share of bad luck in races, flats, chain issues or whatever but...

I then made the decision to finish the race. Not only finish but still race. I took little risks. I want to podium in this series at the end of the year and I won't get very far DNF'ing. My second lap was still faster than my first. I pushed through the sections I knew I could, and hit the punchy stuff full bore. I rode more conservatively where I knew crashing would be more at risks and only managed to fall off my bike twice.

Aside from the crashes my lap times were still consistent with a 25,24,25,25. 

I was very pleased to hold down 4th place and still compete minus the setback. It was still a tight race. I finally feel like I am coming along with a better attitude towards racing, I love to ride my bike and I got to do just that. A positive attitude and determination will pay off, you just have to push through the bullshit! 

I called Magura today at work and have a new rear brake in transit. I always talk to Corey and want to make it clear, they have excellent customer service and great brakes. Shit happens and in a sport with equipment that is constantly pushed to its limits, you can't expect for everything to be perfect 100% of the time.

I had a terrific time in FL with great competition and great company. Can't wait to do it all over again in 2 weeks at Tsali!

Here was the PRO podium from the race.

Thanks for reading!

Pick Your Poison XC TBRA#1

This past weekend kicked off the Tennessee mountain bike season with Pick Your Poison XC in Chattanooga. I did this race last year and expected the same outcome in attendance but boy I was wrong! The race nearly doubled in size! The local MTB scene has little turnout compared to the SERC series but the new race director Michael Long did great job advertising and the race boosted huge talent in every respected category.

Word on the street was the race was going to be ran backwards. I have only ridden the course once and that was racing it last year. I'm getting super old and my memory was faulty on what the trail was like anyways, so I wasn't sweating the direction change like some of the locals. I knew with what little rain we've had the course would be fast, I do remember the trail had/has very little technical sections.

Onto the race...

The pro open field had 10 guys in it. Stout for a TBRA race and I was pumped to race some dudes I knew nothing about. Spring break was going on and we had a dude from Cali and two other guys from Ohio racing with us. It's pretty easy to stalk race results on USA Cycling and these dudes are pretty legit so I was stoked to race against them! Along with my teammates and friends Matt Schupp and Billy Wood, I knew this race would be killer.

The start had a pretty sweet "S" downhill curve into a grass field that led into the woods. The S turn I thought was straight ballin', I loved railing that corner every lap. I had a bobble at the start clipping in and thought I'd get a bad position on the turn however I was on the inside so I hit the accelerator and took the line sharp and help 3rd wheel into the woods.

From the gun we were haulin'! I don't know the guy that got the hole shot but he was a big dude and had good power but he faded pretty quickly. About 5 mins in we were all yelling at him to move over, which he did. I was then sitting in 2nd. Sean Leader, my buddy I traveled to Mellow Johnnys with was in the front now pushing the pace. He was riding strong, hitting the punchy uphill kickers hard but bobbled on a rooty downhill right-hander, my heart rate was kickin' and I didn't want to settle in. I took that opportunity to cut around and take charge of the lead, immediately picking up the pace a bit. I rode steady and maintained a small gap over the field on the remainder of the first lap, around 30 secs or so.

I always love the second lap. After the first lap you get a better feel for the course and know where you can push the limits and also where you can recover from hard efforts. I tried not to think about the race behind me and kept things smooth and consistent. I'm sure everyone was attacking the hell out of one another which gave the advantage to me if I could keep it smooth and hard paced for the next two laps! The course had very little climbing which does NOT suit me however, there were a few BMX style pump sections that I love racing on. I played to my childhood bike riding strengths and held on for the win!

Yeah, I'm tiny! So what!

To give you an example of how fast the course at Booker T is, I maintained an average speed of near 15mph for the race. For an XC race, and 100% single track that's rare in MTB racing to my experience. Everyone had a great race. My teammates did rad as well. Billy got 4th just missing the sprint for 3rd. And Matt rode to a strong finish for 5th.

I'm super pumped for the racing season, I cannot say it enough! My #1 goal this year is a podium position for the overall in the SERC series. This race gave me great confidence going into the first race of that series March 24th in Ocala,FL.

Congrats to everyone I know that raced! You are all AMAZING and keep the hammer down!
Holla at cha boy!  
-KAT

MJC PRO XCT #1 (Fear the Beard!)

I don't even know where to start with this one. Simply having the opportunity and chance to race in the PRO XCT field is amazing. I've never been one to live a life of "woulda coulda shoulda". If you want something to happen, you make it happen. Saturday I stood aside 61 other competitors all gunning for their best performance in what was the hardest race effort of my life.

Billy, Sean and I took Sean's sweet-ass Mercades Sprinter van to Texas for stop #1 of the Pro Cross Country Tour, the Mellow Johnnys Classic. Located west of Austin at Flat Creek Ranch, the first race of the season promises a shit ton rocks, cactus and all around fun racing bikes.

I'll keep this post short and sweet, this weeked was one I will never forget! Photos are in no particular order, I'm just lazy.

1k to go sign, lil stinger of an uphill that led into a cattle trail on the ranch that was a fast section with one uphill rock traverse before the finish line.

Shreddin' some Downtown Austin fun after the race. Downtown Austin is INSANE, plus they have an arcade with free games if you drink...

Billy soakin' in the VIP lounge area the day of preride. Incredible scene seeing how the top riders are treated. None of seem to take it for granted which is cool. But must be nice!

Little butt shot action of me preriding one of the uphill rocky sections.

No shortage of rock and dust in Dripping Springs, TX. I was beyond please with my bike setup for this race. It could not have been any better!

The race has TONS of spectators. Had a few dudes heckling me for my Aviators and beard. Needless to say I was the only pro rider wearing aviators and rocking a beard, but that's just how I roll! This was taken after the race, so much dust in the beard!

My buddy Andrew Sorey and I always do this before big races. Helps with motovation when you go to deep, dark and lonley places in races when all you wanna do is die, you're riding your lungs through your chest and you look down and dig even deeper!

Anyone who follows professtional cycling should know who this is. We ran into MTB national champ and USA Olympian Sam Schultz downtown after the race, what a great dude! With him was also his teammate and current U23 national champ Russell Fitzenwald.

Bad shot, but this is the inside of the Sprinter van. Traveling in this things was a dream! Huge thanks to Sean Leader!

I make this blog more for myself and reflection of past experiences so if anyone reading has any questions or comments you can add me on FB or message me stuff at KYLEADAMTAYLOR@GMAIL.COM

I really appreciate everyone reading. It's funny how alot of my friends asked if I won this race. HA, simply put, NO. I did not. I started in 47th position and finished 34th moving up 13 spots. I am beyond satisfied with the outcome. Of course, I'd love to do better. I will keep grinding it out and eventually I'll get a better starting position and maybe some sponsorship.

All in all, the race was a success. I'm so pumped to continue this year in high spirits and race my heart out to continue up the ladder in this sport I love so much. It will take alot of sacrifice and hardwork but I am game more than ever! I've had a piece and now I want it all!

Thanks for reading.

-KAT

Decisions, decisions...

Race Season is upon us all...

You can smell the hard work in the cool brisk winter air as cyclists of all shapes and sizes prepare for "the race season". This winter has been great and I've been fortunate and had the best base training ever. Not that my racing history is extensive but anyways, last year I thought I knew what I was doing preparing for the race season but I really feel I'm prepared now, better than ever. I have had an amazing off season full of logging base miles/hours and now it's time to go fast!

Everyone has races they want to do, love to do and so forth. One thing is for sure, I will be going after an overall podium finish in the SERC series, that being said I will def do 7-8 SERC races without a doubt. I also want to race a few PRO XCT events as well, these races are the bigs! I never would have thought I'd be fast enough to tow the line with the best in the country, but here I am and I want to test myself and all the effort I've put into my training. A few of these races cross paths with some good local races and it's tough making the call. PRO XCT races will cost me alot of money/time in travel and etc. I have no real sponsorship to speak of. I work at a bike shop and earn very little money. For every dream there is sacrifice. The first race in the PRO XCT series is just outside Austin, TX and is called Mellow Johnny's Classic. Its a UCI c1 level race and promises a huge turnout with all the best in attendance. The date for this race is less than a month away and is also the same day as Snake Creek Gap. Right now, I'm sitting second overall in the Snake TT series with a decent cushion back to 3rd place by about 20 mins or so. March is the last race and I would expect everyone's times to greatly improve, meaning if I don't race the March race, my January time of 2:47 will compete with those in March. That's a toughy! I really want to race it again, I am in better shape now and really feel I can improve and at least beat Thomas Turner's January time. I fully expect him to come out and destroy his January time as well. It's all just a gamble...

 All that said, I've decided Mellow Johnny's is more important. I need to gauge myself and see where I am at going into XC season. I will not get the push I need racing Snake Creek. I will completely get my ass handed to me in Texas and that's what I need.

I want to wish the best of luck to all of my friends going after the coveted belt buckle at Snake Creek and all those just going drop the hammer! Make me proud and kill it!

2013 Snake Creek Gap, the January Edition.

The Beautiful Pinhoti trail system.

Holla from the hills of North Georgia!

2013 Snake Creek Gap TT was this past Saturday. For those of you that don't know what Snake Creek is, I'll give you a brief run down... Its a 34 mile mountain bike race with a time trial format. Sending racers out in 20 second intervals to conquer their best result ascending over 5,000 feet of climbing and racing over the best singletrack the Pinhoti trail system has to offer! And oh yeah, it gets progressively more challenging leaving the most difficult rock gardens for the last few miles when you're at your weakest.

This was the first time I have had the chance to do this race but I'll be honest, I was well prepared having ridden the course several times prior. My friends and I frequent North Georgia to ride the Pinhoti trails all the time. I had a goal in mind for this race, there is tough competition and I signed up for Money Class hoping to make a podium spot. Typically, the Man himself Thomas Turner(Jamis Bicycles) wins this event with a low 2:40ish time. Smokin! My goal was to get in the 2:50ish range.

We arrived at the Dry Creek Trailhead at what we thought was plenty of time to get a head start from all the other racers. Everyone on our team wanted to be some of the first to go off, advantage being that you don't have all the "trail traffic" passing all the slower racers that start ahead of you. Well, no such luck for us. The line was already massive and some racers were already leaving!

We got geared up/bundled up, said our best wishes to each other and the race was on!

And as if a 30 degree start isn't cold enough..... try this...

Being this race is in January it's cold as balls. The most talked about part of this race is a creek you have to ride across 10 mins into the race. It's deep. It's cold. And it's gonna suck for a few miles after you ride through it! On the double track climb after the creek crossing, I probably passed over 50 riders. All of them very polite with my eagerness to pass with every second counting in a TT. I encountered my first and only real issue with the race on the first singletrack climb, it was bottle necked with over 30 people and everyone walking. WALKING! NO! I had no choice but to throw my bike over my shoulder and pass how I could. I've ridden this climb in training several times and I lost major time due to the pile up. I keep my nerves under control. Reached the summit and started the gravel road descent to Pine Needle Hill. The race has a "half-way" point. The first half of the course is super flowy and way faster than the last half so I rode conservatively passing as safe as I could. My mentality was to conserve energy for the last half, especially the last 8 miles, because those are the most technical and will suck the life out of anyone with weak legs and soft lungs. I reached the half way point somewhere around 1:15. YES! 5 mins under my goal time, I was stoked and keep my head down with a bright attitude for the hell that awaited!

The last half of the race starts with a 2.5 mile climb with some steep pitches. The trail basically continues to climb until you dump out into a double track/gravel road climb about 1.5 miles long that then enters the last singletrack section of the race. Get your food in here because you can barely drink in the last hour of the race if your objective is to hammer. It's rock city! This was it, I conserved all I could anticipating this section. with about 5 miles left to go there is a sections called "the wall". Fear by most and conquered by few. However short, it's steep enough it's hard to walk up without a 200+ HR. I kicked it into low gear and climbed the wall with 2:20 on my clock. Right on schedule for a 2:50!

I think it was the fact that I had most of the team just behind me, I really expected a few of them to catch me at this point in the race. It gave me extra motivation to hammer down. I felt great and cleared the last few miles with confidence.

My official time was 2:47. just under 3 mins slower than Thomas Turner. I'm ecstatic. Hard work and training really does pay off. This race was a gauge for me. A test to see how my season my go. It's early in the season to be digging so deep, but it's nice to know that without any intensity training I had this good of a result. Right now, I'm sitting 2nd in Money Class and I'll be back in February to hopefully beat my January time!

Anyone looking for a sweet ass back country MTB race. The Snake is it! Great trail, great support and great fun!

Thanks for reading!

Cheers!