8hrs of Dh + WWS 1

I put 2 days, it read 2 hours:o)

See that's why you run a great website and i rake trails )

I've been picking them up from the old quarry across the road and putting them on the track.

Seriously

Na, I heard that recent rain has solidified the dust from last year and then the sun baked it 'ard

The general comment from riders there over the weekend was that the new config for the XC is a lot flowier than in previous years. It will still be tough but fun.

Just under 8km Don. I would have like to add a bit more single track but didn't get the time.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/4752956

the seemingly long bit of Fire road along the top road gets broken up by transition and some short sections of sniggle

Ummm I like to build mountain bike tracks.... Lidsdale tends to be bumpy and tight in the single track though this year has more flow and less belt down, tight corner and climb back up. The Foney Chemist may have better advice when it comes to how cycle cross friendly Lidsdale is?

thanks alchemist, i picked up my new KHS CX200 yesterday so keen to give it a go offroad, will take it up and do a lap or 2 on it

Don

Trend setters need to keep doing new silly stuff and tend followers need new bandwagons to jump on )

or

You need a bike for every occasion and an excuse for each slow laps )

You'll need better bait

to answer a few questions

Matt - i have a few different bikes so money is not a big concern, i have 2 mountian bikes, one of which i use for enduros/8hr/12kr/24hr events, the other is used to pull my kiddy trailer and a wet weather commuter.
A have a full fledged road bike which i obviously use for road riding training km's.
I had another road bike which is used as a main commuter, it was old, heavy and parts needed replacing, i didnt want to spend money on it so i looked for an alternate commuter, i wanted something fast like a road bike but not one that will buckle a wheel when it just looks at a gutter. I tried commuting on the 2nd mtb with slicks, it was ok but not as quick as i hoped, i tried commuting on the full road bike, but found it was too delicate to launch off gutters, cut through parks etc.
So i started looking at Cyclocross, and i think i made the right choice, its fast and comfortable and since designed for offroad use should be able to take the abuse of a daily urban commute. I should also note that a few days a week i take an extended "training" commute of 70-80km, so i needed something that could handle this. I changed the nobbies to 28mm slicks and seem ok so far. I commuted this morning and first impressions are good.

Rob - i had originally ordered a Kona Jake the snake, after a few weeks they call back saying that they have sold out and can no longer get one - Kona arent producing anymore as they are already manufacturing the 09 models. So i looked at alternatives. The KHS CX200 was similar in spec but with lower components (tiagra instead of 105), it was cheaper though, so i ordered this model but with upgrades to 105 all round except ultegra shifters (1 step up from 105), it came to approx the same cost as the kona with the upgrades, its a nice bike, very comfortable to ride and quick.

Don

Looks like the bait weren't so bad...

Now what you really need lexi is a solid fixie with a decent set of wheels, but then 6 bikes is just too many...

After all the rain we had a club race last night on the Short Course XC and it rocked. The track is in great condition. It drains really well and despite a puddle or two in the berms and slippery tree roots was tacky and fast.

Bring on the weekend

Hey all

Just a quick reminder about the 8hr of Down Hill at Lidsdale state
forest (Lithgow) this Saturday.

Entries are still available and we will take on the day entries if
they don't sell out before hand.

The weather is looking OK, We have missed most storms that have hit
Sydney and the Hunter. The tracks are looking great and the forecast
is for a cool but dry day. Perfect riding weather:o)

So how does it all work?

we have 3 tracks, 2 of them used at last years State race, all
starting and finishing in the same spots.
Teams of 2 or 3 riders take to the Trails, 1 rider on each track. All
the trails a about the same length so you get to race your friends to
the bottom.

Each rider will get a minimum of 2 timed runs on each track, that is 6
timed runs, and the times are added together to give a team total.

Entry costs are $135/team (That's $45 each for a team of 3) or $105
for a junior team.

For full information about the event go to
http://www.brightorangeevents.com/ and follow the link to 8hrs of
DownHIll

http://singlespeed.smugmug.com/gallery/4314716_x...

Looks like so much fun!