Sunday Arvo Crew

The Sunday Morning Crew became the Sunday Arvo Crew this weekend. It had rained a lot on Saturday as well as being very windy so the decision was made to delay our ride till the afternoon in the hope of finding some more favourable conditions. It wasnt raining but it was still overcast when Tony and I hit the trails. We were joined by Ewan who had bravely decided to back up after his tough initiation at the Pinies. We thought it was best to keep it simple due to the small amount of daylight left and the wet nature of the trails. So it was agreed that we would do a run out and back on Murray's track. As expected the tracks were wet and slippery and a lot of fun. All three of us had our sideways moments but we all stayed upright.

There was mud everywhere by the time we had finished but that's what washing machines are for although the hose was good enough for these shoes.

Pinies Pudding

How do you make Pinies Pudding? Just take 120 or so MTB riders, throw in a healthy serving of rocks, roots and mud and mix it all together.The 3rd InterWinter series event was run at Castlemaine on Sunday on a challenging course full of lots of short sharp rises and descents, plenty of slippery roots and rocks and sticky mud that made it feel at times like you were pedalling through wet cement.

Brett, Roz and David made the trip south to take on the course and uphold the honour of the Sunday Morning Crew. We were joined by Ewan who has been spending more time on the Roadie than his MTB of late and thought he might take up our offer to join us on our Sunday morning rides. 

The guys entered the 3 lap event (7.5km lap) and Roz was in the 2 lap race but the pace was on early in all events with a mass sprint up the fire road until the first section of single track spread things out a bit.

There were lots of technical sections and the secret to a good time
 (having fun and on the clock) was to keep up a steady pace
 (As Steve says - momentum is your friend). Go too slow and you were in danger of slipping off the track.

Brett pumped out some consistent times over his 3 laps and Roz did well in the 2 lapper. Ewan decided that 2 laps was enough for him as well but I decided that I may as well get my monies worth and do the third lap. After the first hill section I was doubting my decision but the comradarie of mountain biking helped get me through. As I was slowly making my way up one of the fire road climbs I heard a faster rider coming up behind me. I was waiting for him to flash past me but instead I felt a hand in the middle of my back as he effortlessly pushed me up the hill. I thanked him several times as we made it to the top of the rise before he disappeared into the pine forest never to be seen again. Was it a fellow competitior or an angel on a bike? I guess I will never know but it sure helped me get around the course just in time for the presentations.

It was a tough gig but well worth it. Brett has suggested a Sunday Morning Crew trip back to the Pinies one weekend which sounds like a great idea, especially if we wait till its a little warmer.

Thanks to Stephen Rowe photos for the happy snaps.