Cycle the Sunshine Coast, BC

Over the last several months I've been busy baking my own baby in the oven.  In the Bikecad.ca oven so to speak!  My last post explained why (http://sunshinecoastcycle.blogspot.ca/2015/03/give-me-something-simple-in-my-mid-life.html ) and since then I've reviewed countless bike geo's, reviews and test rides.  I started with a Chromag Surface design then tweaked the design based on Canfield's Nimble 9, 44 bikes and the Kona Honzo.  The final design ended up being a short chainstay, longer top tube, short stem, 140mm fork.  The sliding dropouts were added for tweaking the ride and water bottle bosses for bike packing tours.  Throughout the design phase, my good friend Rob Warren from Whishart Cycles www.whishart.com helped me developed and finalize the design.  Once we agreed to it, he was off ordering the tubes, and parts for the build.  The headtube is a 44mm CNC unit, the sliding dropout is stainless from Paragon Machine works.  The t...

So there is a new trail in Sprockids Park in Gibsons.  It was built by the Mountain Bike Program by Capilano University.  Its a great trail with lots of trail features like a pump track, ladders, table tops and drops.  One such feature is a 4 foot drop into a really nice transition.  I've ridden to the lip of the drop 6-7 times on two different occasions and it just sketches me out.  The reason being, I figure, is that I can't see the landing until the last second.  Its a confidence and trust thing that I can't seem to wrap my head around it.  I wear all the gear that should protect me if  things go wrong. But this is a real mind over matter thing.  Two  times now I've eventually taken the chicken route and I have beat myself up about it for the rest of the ride and for a good long time after the ride.  I'm literally depressed about it.  It didn't matter if the ride leading up to the drop was totally great (which it was) as I d...

I'm sitting in a chair at the hospital waiting for my x-rays to be looked at by a surgeon.  My shoulder in a sling and elbow resting on the arm of the chair.  There doesn't seem to be a comfortable position to keep my throbbing collarbone from aching.   My mom just came in to give me crap on messing up my shoulder and my wife is equally as mad.  Both of my loves are angry from worry I suspect. It's always good to look at any event in post-mortem and waiting for 3 hours can do wonders on any reflection.  Racing the Sunshinecoaster Race was a goal of mine when I first threw my leg over the my new G bike in January.  Mountain biking was just the ticket to get a early start on this spring and summer road riding.  As I started riding, my confidence grew and my fitness gained quickly.  Two months ago I registered, and last month I started pre-riding the course.  The course itself is a very hilly course with lots of steady 12% grunt...