We got to Albion Hills yesterday with little to no issues. We even managed to miss/beat the infamous 401 traffic craziness… Just been hanging out having a pretty relaxing time here. The campground is still pretty quiet with most racers arriving on Friday. The Chico Racing tent is set up and the course is marked.

Last night Skip and I went for an “easy” ride on our mountain bikes. No intentions of hitting up any singletrack so we didn’t put on our helmets (I know bad) and wore flip-flops/Crocs… Well of course we ended up on singletrack… Slippery, muddy singletrack and it was kind of dark… Ya, it was not the smartest thing. But it was fun. Lesson learned – greasy mud and Crocs don’t work together – traction is basically zero!

Just about to have some lunch and then we’re off to check out some trails and shake out our legs. It is wickedly humid here and the sun is burning quite hot. Hopefully the water will get sucked out of the ground by race time. Looking forward to racing in my first 24 hour event. Can’t imagine what this place will be like with 3,000 racers here.

I’m over in site 189A – so swing by and say hi! Safe travels if you’re on your way up tonight and tomorrow.

Just getting the last of the packing and bike cleaning done before hitting the road to Albion Hills. Yep, racing in the 24 Hours of Summer Solstice Mountain Bike Race this weekend. Cool. This will be my first 24 hour event and my first mountain bike race in a long time. Should be a fun time.

I’m racing with the KingsBridge corporate team – a solid group of guys who I’m sure will keep the weekend very festive and interesting. Ya, we’re not there to break any “speed” records though, I’m sure there might be a few battles to see who on the team can lay down the fastest lap time….

Of course I leave the bike cleaning as the last thing to do on my list. Hence my early morning of 5 a.m. so I have time to squeeze in some writing, blog reading, emailing, and bike cleaning…. Nothing like leaving the most important to the last minute (guess some things never change…).

Looking forward to seeing a bunch of my Toronto-area friends and just hanging out with a bunch of like-minded people. I’m sort of assuming the atmosphere will be very similar to that of a cyclo-cross race – a group of people who like bikes, fresh air, hanging out, going fast, and just having a good time.

I’m on a recovery week right now so not much to tell you about in the training department. Just some easy and smooth 90 minute rides to keep the legs loose and give them a chance to recovery. My wrist is slowly getting better. Problem is that it is hard to rest my wrist – especially when I spend a lot of time on the keyboard….

So in an effort to naturally help me get out of this ulcerative colitis flare and to stay in remission, I’ve ordered two books: Breaking the Vicious Cycle and the Paleo Diet for Athletes. The first book is about the Specific Carbohydrate Diet – a diet that has helped many people suffering from Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis get healthy. This diet eliminates all starches and grains from the diet – so really reducing the carbohydrate intake – not the best for an athlete. Hence the Paleo Diet for Athletes – this diet has some similar elements to the SCD diet and has recipes and advice that help athletes to get adequate nutrition. Many thanks to Kat for the tip!

Massive thanks to Ken H. for the donation to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada! We’ve now surpassed the $1,000 mark and have raised $1, 135! This is incredible. Thanks so much for your generous support.

Alright, time to go clean my bike…. Unfortunately it won’t clean itself. Have a great week/weekend. I’m hoping to have Internet access so I can post about the riding and racing. If not – hold tight until Monday when I’ll hit you with an update of the weekend action.

I’m selling my cyclo-cross bikes. I’ve got two bikes to sell – I’m selling one now and the other when my new bikes are ready.

Stevens Super Prestige
– 52 cm
– used for one season
– Dura Ace brakes/shifters, front and rear derailleur
– 105 cranks
– FSA chain rings
– 4ZA brakes
– well-maintained
– ready to ride/race
– no wheels
– no pedals

$1,000.00

Email me to arrange a ride on one of the most popular cyclo-cross frames available. You know you want it – don’t miss out – September will be here fast.

Wow seems like everyone has got cyclo-cross on the brain right now. There has been a lot of recent discussion, writing, ranting, and raving about the recent UCI rules. I can’t really add anything new to the numerous discussions except to say that I find the feeding rule a bit odd. The rule states that feeding can’t be done during the first two laps and last two laps… Women’s races are 40 minutes long – we typically race for 4 – 6 laps… So depending on the length of the course and course conditions, we may not be able to have a feed – if the race is only four laps long. Some would say that in 40 minutes you don’t need a drink – well at the World Cup in Treviso, Ital it was 36 celsius – I definitely could have used a drink… As for the rest of the rules – whatever. Most importantly is to get out there and race our bikes – have fun, inspire others and keep this sport growing.

My wrist is coming along (I think)… I got in some good rides on the weekend. 2.5 hours on Saturday and 3.5 hours on Sunday. Admittedly my wrist is a bit sore today – probably from doing a lot yesterday. I’ve taken the splint off so I could get some faster typing done….

The week ahead is looking mixed. Supposed to leave on Wednesday for Albion Hills – location of the 24 Hours of Summer Solstice mountain bike race this weekend. I’ve been looking forward to racing this event with the smooth KingsBridge guys. But unfortunately my ulcerative colitis is being a real hassle right now… In an uncharacteristic move – I’m going to see my gi doctor today in hope that I can some kind of new medicine to allow me to still race and camp this week. Frustrating. But such is life. My wrist will be fine – now I just need my guts to settle. Ah well, there is always a bright side to everything – sometimes it just takes a while for the bright side to shine through…

I have decide to give the Specific Carbohydrate Diet a shot. This is a diet that many people with Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis follow. It is restrictive at the beginning but after the initial phase it opens up to some really good and manageable food options. The limitations (no grains, starches, store-bought yogurt) are a small trade-off to get relief from the ulcerative colitis symptoms. Anyway, I’m going to try it and commit to it – hopefully this will help. Last week to donate to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada – we’ve raised $935 so far!

Just getting the Ottawa Cross clothing design finalized for the upcoming season. So this means that there is still time for us to work out a sponsorship relationship… Download my sponsorship proposal, drop me an email and we can get the details sorted. You’ve seen the Ottawa Cross kit – is an eye-catching red, white and black design and your logo would look pretty darn fine on it!

Alright, off to do some more stuff… I’m on a rest week right now – four days of easy riding and just letting the body recharge after four weeks of good hard training. Testing day next week – nothing like seeing the hardwork pay off with some new numbers and amazing sensations of confidence and growth.

I’ll cut to the chase here since typing is a hassle with my left hand… I fell off my bike yesterday while training in the woods. I put my hand out to brace myself and now I’ve got a fiberglass splint on my arm up to my elbow. Good news is my wrist is not broken – just a bad sprain. Ten days to heal up.

So racing this weekend is doubtful and same goes foe next weekend. Real bummer on the timing because I was really looking forward to these races. I’ll know on Saturday for sure about Preston St.

In the meantime I’ll have to adjust my typing style…

Still collecting pledges for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of Canada.

Alright time to work on my hunt and peck typing skills. Oh and I’ll go make some lemonade – looking on the bright side.