Good luck Test of metal riders!

[LeeLau]

Just realized its this weekend. Looks like the weather will be good for racing - nice and cool! You're in for a great time! Love that race and love the atmosphere - Squamish rocks!

I would x-post to Ride Planning and Tales or Racing but this is such a cool race I thought it should get max exposure. Let me know if you want this moved and I will move it pronto.

[amg]

I have the jitters and it's only Tuesday - hope we don't have the same weather as last Saturday!:eek:

[sprinter]

Me to. I'm also second guessing what tires I should run. Right now the ones I have mounted lean towards dryer conditions.

At least it won't be as hot as last year.

[barry]

good luck to all you rockstars out there!

[Ed Anger]

Clipless pedals, single-crown fork, and single-ply Michelins = Dirtbag is now just sub 40#, and I'm ready to suffer. It's gonna be slick out there...

[sprinter]

I think the worst part is going to be the first road section and the first sketchy decent on the single track. After that people should be spread out enough that it shouldn't be to bad.

Tried my racing tires in the mud yesterday. I was amazed at how well they worked. Now hopefully they work ok on the Plunge. :grinno:

[LeeLau]

For these conditions I would highly suggest high pressure low profile tires. There will be mud.

[sprinter]

Weather in Squamish tomorrow. Showers and thundershowers likely. High 16C. Chance of rain 50%.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[amg]

Now I'm glad that I pre-rode the plunge when it was pouring on Saturday. I may not like what's coming, but at least I'm prepared.

Well, sort of prepared.

Ok, not really prepared.

But at least I know where I'm going this time. :D

[Dantes Inferno]

the key will be to get up Thunderbird as fast as you can so you can actualy ride up Jacks and not be bogged down by tons of people. And dont you dare touch that front brake going down roller coaster, i marshalled the sketchy part of roller coaster before the S turn for three years straight and there are some mean wipes because so much volume and and people panic and hit the front brake. When someone looks like there about to lose it you here "oooOOOOHHHHHH" and when the bite it everyone gos "eeeEEEwwwwOOHHHH" if and when the get up every chears and jingles there cowbells, then id have to yell at people to get of the track. I love the test of metal, good luck to the racers.

[barry]

It's gonna be a SLICK one. Good luck all you riders, especially Rich for representin the freeride bike/wannabe XC setup :D I'll try to get to the start line to see you all off, but I probably won't get a chance :(



MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU

[amg]

it was SUPER gooey in the Plunge and Crumpit woods. Lots of fun though.

The volunteers did a great job marshalling and running the feed stations - they cheered lots even in the rain and were right there with the food when you came through. Volunteers are awesome people.

Time for bed.

[scottvelez]

Jacks, Robs, Plunge, Crumpit... it was all peanut butter.
I'm just glad it's over.

[Oldfart]

I was very impressed with the grip my Tioga Red Phoenix had. Cleaned the plunge, hardly a slip and slide all ride but I was slower than ever. Most people were though.

[amg]

I was very impressed with the grip my Tioga Red Phoenix had. Cleaned the plunge, hardly a slip and slide all ride but I was slower than ever. Most people were though.

I think only the fastest people got good conditions. I was talking to a guy who came 3rd in pro, and he said Crumpit woods was perfect, nice and tacky. 600 some odd riders later (I'm really slow) when I rolled through, it was inches deep. Good for you cleaning the plunge - I rode lots of it, but there were parts where I weighed the goo, my energy level, and how far I still had to go, and walked/ran instead.

I think I might ride Gearjammer too if it isn't full. It's shorter, only 47km, but more climbing on trails than the Test.

[ChunkyMonkey]

Yeah, the middle of the pack wasn't too good either. I finished just better than the 50% mark. Crumpit was horrible. There were so many riders that we just formed a conga line and walked most of it.

Rant: people who aren't pros shouldn't ride clipless in the mud. I wasted more time waiting for people to clip in than seemed humanly possible. I wore flats on the day because I knew there would be a lot of walking up technical, sloppy hills. Perhaps a bigger frustration was watching people in front of me walk or attempt to run down the plunge while I did track stands right behind them. If you have to get off your bike, please give way to riders. Of course these are some of the same people that expected the conga line to step aside while they attempted the technical ups.

I suppose if I was a much faster rider, I woundn't have had to deal with this. Sucks just the same. I think I'll pass on next year. Too many people. The course is there any day of the week to be enjoyed with hardly a sole around.

[amg]

Perhaps a bigger frustration was watching people in front of me walk or attempt to run down the plunge while I did track stands right behind them. If you have to get off your bike, please give way to riders. Of course these are some of the same people that expected the conga line to step aside while they attempted the technical ups.

Just ask them nicely to let you by. I did that every time I got stuck behind slower people, and they generally let me by as soon as I asked.

I rode platform clipless (545's), which was a good compromise. Treat 'em like flats in the mud, and clip in for the long road climbs.

[Dantes Inferno]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^6
by the plunge, most peoples brains are mush and the cant quite understand when you ask them to please move out of the way.

[ChunkyMonkey]

Sometimes asking works, sometimes it doesn't. While following a girl attempting to run down the plunge with a flat tire (she was running with a flat tire, I was riding with two good tires), I used the good ole "on your left" and "on your right" comments, but no luck. Finally I just said "do you mind if I get past you?" She said, "yes, go ahead" and continued at the same pace without leaving me room to pass. I finally passed her at a section she had to think about how to get down.

This was an extreme case, but there were plenty more little things that just wore on me. I think there should be more emphasis on rider etiquette on the Test website, and perhaps a reminder before the race. Maybe that could alleviate some of the frustration.

[brian]

I had no problem getting by people at all. I flatted at the one place I didn't want to - before Jack's Trail. Alot of people got by and I just had to wait it out. By the end of the race I passed over 300 people.

I used Crank Brother pedals and had no issues in the mud.

[Wayne P]

How'd you do Brian?

[scottvelez]

I had no problem getting by people at all. I flatted at the one place I didn't want to - before Jack's Trail. Alot of people got by

Yep, same with me.
I was following another DH rider and we were flowing pretty fast on a short downhill section. We caught some slow moving traffic and at the last moment, he deaked left around some rocks for the pass...I was following to close, didn't see them in time and flatted both tires and put a huge dent in my rear rim. I forgot how bad v-brakes can be with dented rims. :dead:

That race totally sucked for me. Two flats in the first 30 minutes.

[brian]

How'd you do Brian?

I ended up at 4:17. 45 minutes faster than last year. I figure getting the flat and then having to weave through so many people added about 30 minutes but it's hard to say. I might not have climbed 9 mile as well if I didn't have so much rest in the first half.

[Oldfart]

It is a well run race though, but it's hard to complain about the weather as there is no control over that. My only complaint is that there are no segregated corrals at the start. It's not hard and they used to do it. I had a major issue as I came to line up in that a cleat had come loose so I had to sit down and fix it quick. Then the only place I could get in was near the back. Now I'm not very fast but I usually finish in the top 100, but riding on the road section with novices who ride dangerously, well it scares me. I passed many people on that first climb but when you get to a corner all these spodes come racing up on the inside or can't hold a proper line to save their lives. Then there was the numbskull who waved to a friend and swerved a couple feet when he did that. There are people who placed their bike upside down in the start near the front and then they just go slow. There needs to be something like running events where you get a coloured number plate which equates to the riders past performance. Licenced riders at the front segregated as to category and relative speed, followed by the citizens.