Footage of some awesome trails in South Carolina!

While I was down south travelling and riding my bikes, I had one epic 4 hour day of riding out in South Carolina. The day started out with what was supposed to be a 30km ride to the trail system, with the intent of meeting my friend Ben (the guy who rents the place in SC) at the trails in an hour after he drove there. Unfortunately the directions weren't quite spot on...

I spent more than an hour before I located the Lake Issaqueena State Park where the trails were, then spent another hour and a half looking for the right parking lot to find Benno. By this time it was getting late enough that I would have to leave to go to back to the lake house that we had set up basecamp (but were leaving to go back to Canada that night) or it would be dark. After finally giving up on finding Ben, I decided that there was no way that I would go to the park without getting some trail riding time in, so off I went! I quickly found myself loving my new Trek Superfly Elite, and gaining my "sea legs" so to speak pretty quickly! On my last check through the parking lots as I was about to head home I a group of university students and decided to introduce myself and see if they knew where I could find Ben.

Of course I got some funny looks because nobdoy was really expecting to find a guy from Canada with a funny accent lost in the bushes. One of them (Cliff) said he would take me to a parking lot we figured Ben would be at, and he took me the most fun way possible! Clff also happened to have a GoPro camera, which he set up on his bars and caught some great stuff of me riding the trails on my new bike!

The first 4 or so minutes is me riding a downhill track, with wall rides and everything! So awesome, though I was sure to be careful doing these things on my new carbon fiber cross country race bike! Around 5:20 we are riding up by a gully and just before 6:00 we turn into the sunset along some beautiful trails beside a lake, which is absolutely worth checking out! (12 minutes in is pretty funny too)

Thanks to Cliff for throwing the footage together, and saving the day by driving me home! Those southerners are just the greatest bunch of people, and will treat anybody like their best friend! Every person we passed we greeted, and people actually cared to hear that you were having a great time on the trails! I know I certainly want to find myself back in the city of Clemson, SC one day!

End of the year rock climbing relief!

Last weekend I happened to hear about a pretty fantastic thing that happens every semester here at the University of Guelph; the climbing competition! Fourth year is an awful time full of labwork, projects, and tests, and PROJECTS with very little time for bikes, or climbing, or other fun things that I enjoy, but I got warning on Monday that Saturday is the day of the climbing competition.Climbing competitions take place in the climbing gyms, and there are certain "routes" where you climb up the whole wall, or "boulders" where you aren't tied in and you only climb so high that are ranked based on their difficulty. The objective is to complete 5 bouldering problems and 5 routes that add up to the highest total number of points out of the other competitors.
 Having climbed a grand total of about 4 times this semester, I figured this would be a great way to relieve some school tension and make up for lost time! I entered the competition in the top-ranked division (didn't want to be a sand-bagger again, my friends still wont let it go that the last time I did that I won), showed up dressed as a dinosaur with a tye-dye shirt, and I climbed well! Though I had the T-Rex hat on, and sunglasses on top of him to intimidate the competition (I can't grow a manly beard like the rest of the climbers seem to be able to), I was nowhere near even half as good as the other guys in my category, but I am quite happy with the way that I performed and had the best time ever!
The climbing gym is full of great, supportive, and incredibly nice people! Fellow competitors cheer each other on and give beta (the climbing word for info on how to conquer a problem properly). There are no harsh people or harsh feelings at these competitions, and I totally suggest that anybody who hasn't found this gem on campus get there right away!
Check out the stop motion video here, picture taken from a GoPro camera every two seconds, starting from the setup of the gym. This is probably the coolest thing that I've seen in a while! I pop in around 3:50, climb up a spot near the camera at 4:30, 6:49 (for a little while), 7:55, and a few more spots so check it out!
 stop-motion of the climbing comp

Reading week training camp 2012

In the middle of every winter semester, a magical thing happens; reading week. This year was no exception. Being a fourth year student is tough, and it’s easy to drown in all of the work and forget to do things like have fun, live healthy, and live in the moment.

A long awaited reprieve from the drone of 4th year university

Since my first year of University, I’ve been planning and going on trips to the United States where it’s warm, sunny, the food is cheap and the people are nice. There is a beautiful “Hostel” up in the Appalachian mountains in Georgia that we like to stay at called the Hiker Hostel. The Hiker Hostel is about 10km up the mountain away from the small town of Dalhonega, which is about an hour north of Atlanta, Georgia. The mountains there are beautiful, and punchy. In this area, the only flat roads are the ones that wind along the valleys, but they never last long anyways. The Appalachian mountains are an ancient mountain range that run basically north-south along the eastern states, so once you get to the middle of the mountains (east-west middle) you’re stuck right in them! And nothing puts hair on your chest like being forced to ride mountains, right?

A view from the highest moutain in Georgia; Brasstown Bald

We had a great group of guys going this year; Andrew, Alex L, Alex S (Schmidty), and myself. After class on Friday before reading week we packed the car (7 bikes and 4 guys in one car) and drove all the way down to Georgia in one straight shot (except for a stop at Schmidter’s parents place to pick up his road bike and a bike rack). Alex L had an interesting driving shift (you’ll have to as him about it), Andrew jacked himself up on Red Bull and drove like a fiend, and I got the fortunate shift as the sun was coming up and we were hitting the mountains.

4 Guys, 7 Bikes, and some seriously good tetris

Both Alex’s were in awe at our accommodations at this hostel (which is basically a lodge), but I told them the real best part of the hostel is breakfast – the subject of conversation on many of our rides. The hostel is a fun place, designed as a refuge for hikers who are starting their hike along the Appalachian Mountain Trail, which goes from Georgia to Maine. Surprisingly, there were two more Canadians staying at the hostel while we were there; Evan Mundy (who’s kind of a big deal on the road bike in Canada) and his father. We even got a good ride in with him up Brasstown Bald, the highest (and probably steepest) mountain in Georgia – Evan champed it up to the top with his superman gearing (my knees hurt just looking at him!).

Evan front left, me front right, Andrew back left, Alex L back right, riding int he valleys  between mountains

The week was filled with tons of training, food, and good times. I even got to do my homework! We crossed the state line and got to spend our last two days in South Carolina chez Benno. Ben Dawson rents out an amazing 7 bedroom beach house near Clemson, SC every year for 9 weeks (let me know if you want to spend some time training there, I’ll hook you up with his info.).

We stayed up late that night with all of the toys, even the giant chess game!

SC may have been my favourite state; we were on the edge of the Appalachians, so still very hilly, but not mountainous. In two days in SC I got to ride up the famous mountain Caesar’s head, and ride my sweet new Trek Superfly Elite on some pretty gnarly trails! I think that bike and I will make a famous team, and am so excited to be working with Trek this year!

Schmidty and I at  the top of Caesar's Head, what a Day!

Any cyclist won't believe that this actually happened...

The winter has been treating me well, I'm getting much stronger due to my secret "mountain man" training, and following my training plan as laid out by my coach Eric Batty. Today I had the opportunity to ride with my good buddy Anton before he heads to Arizona for the rest of his winter training (lucky guy!). Winter riding is pretty great, as long as you dress appropriately (last weekend I spent 5 hours outside riding and was almost brought to tears as my poor feet thawed out!).
My winter bike is my classic Gary Fisher Ziggurat from way back! I bought this fine piece of equipment used for $600, and until today she was still kickin! That bike is my original partner, with its long top tube, tight rear triangle, and steep aggressive geometry I loved whipping around with my oldschool geometry and tight bars!
http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/2004/archive/Ziggurat

It is an entirely different beast now though. The front brake is probably the original V-Brake, while the rear is a disk brake and disk brake wheel. This was unfortunately a necessary thing to do to the bike as I actually managed to brake all the way through my rim on the way to an exam! Maximum inconvenience, right? Either way, I was only 40 minutes late for the exam, but still had enough time to finish it.

A picture of the zig zag rim, good thing it was the back one!
(strangely enough I didn't even  flat the tube)

To me, that bike represents simplicity; the fork doesn't work, and there are no gears, and you just pedal. The perfect winter bike!

Classic seat, love it so much!

On Today's ride however, something unheard of happened. As I was chugging up a hill in the snowy singletrack (which is quite a trick on its own in the winter, it's a signlespeed, so pedal slowly to keep grip, but hard to keep up with the gear), I heard a snap! and then there was no tension on my chain! Firstly I was impressed with myself (and annoyed) because I figured that I had broken the thick bmx chain that I had on the bike. Then I looked.

I managed to shear through my crankset. This is completely unheard of! There are 50+ year old bikes that are in just fine condition and I did this by riding singlespeed in a high gear?!

Happy Belated Holidays, and don't sweat the new year!

Here’s hoping that everyone had a good, productive and holiday season!  I kicked off the holiday with a trip to the big city; Toronto. This involved my first train ride, my first solo subway experience, and my first visit to the Trek Toronto Store! I had a meeting with Barry, and am now on board with them! More details on events that I will be running and putting together soon!

After the very fortunate and enjoyable visit with Barry at the Trek store I hopped on a train to go to my good friend and coach Eric Batty’s place! He lives now far from his family, who run a pretty big beef farm. I spent about 5 days there this winter break and really enjoyed having the time to catch up with Eric and his family. The entire family except Emily was there, and I enjoyed the good company and hospitality (I even spent a day on the farm working with his brother Mark!).

It was easy to keep fit over the break, the trick is really just not to stress about things. If you miss a workout – it’s really not a big deal. People seem to lose motivation or hope over the holidays and set themselves up to a very high standard with a “new year’s resolution”.  It is not hard to lose weight, and much easier than one would think to be in shape. I have an awesome coach so that I can reach my full potential on the bike, but it is amazing how simple so many of my workouts are. To keep fit over the holidays I did a lot of running, hiking, and what Eric calls “mountain man workouts” (more on these another day).  

I spend about 8 hours a week on simple endurance such as hiking, obviously 8 hours is excessive – but just going for two hikes a week for up to two hours does a lot more than one would think. Over the winter I will be doing a lot of snowshoeing and Nordic skiing as well. It is not like any of this is done at a high intensity, base level aerobic exercise can be done by anyone, it does not depend on fitness level, nor does it take working up to! Just take the dog for a big walk!

So don’t sweat a crazy new year’s resolution out, most people seem to burn out by February! Just live more actively, walk to class or the groceries, eat well, and sleep lots.

A dozen reasons that I might rather workout during the senior hours at the gym!

12 You hear all of the latest news and weather in the changeroom before/after the workout!

11 Its funny to watch a few old men shave together at the gym, though inconvenient if you need a sink.

10 Listening to their banter in the changeroom will teach you new (very old) slang

9 You always hear a good story in the sauna after a workout.

8 Working out; if they can do it then I damn well can too!

7 The flip side of 8: you are almost guaranteed to be the fittest person in the gym

6 Seniors never try to be intimidating with ripped shirts and lifting too much, they just smile.

5 They don't drop weights loudly.

4 The men don't peruse the women at the cardio machines.

3 They trudge tirelessly on a 100m track, which is quite endearing.

2 it really is motivating And I hope that I'm still working out when I retire!

1 they love the "student atmosphere" at this gym (sport and wellness center in Peterborough), and love to chat and listen to almost anything you will say.

My race bike is for sale...

Those who I am lucky enough to have had supporting me this year whether through reading my blog, asking about my races, or just saying hi at the races know that I fell in love with my bike this year. Reality hits when you break 12 teeth though, and about $4500 won’t be covered by insurance of any sort...

I am selling my the bike that I rode back into the sport with. It’s a sad thing but I’ve got to sell my one of a kind bike. We’ve had a great season, and anyone who read my blog knows that my bike never left me hanging for a race. I custom picked all of the componentry and paint, the bike was handmade in Bromont Quebec out of Columbus Zona Megatube, it is size Large.I got it at the start o this season and have taken meticulous care of it (as I am an elite xc racer and need my bike to be in perfect shape). It was only ridden either in races or pre-riding for races. Everything in excellent condition. All components are either carbon or white (component list below) and the sales guy for the company told me at a Canada Cup that I had the nicest looking bike on display at their exhibition. The steel frame is incredibly durable and the most comfortable ride you can find - my buddy on a niner wants the frame, but the bike is selling as a complete. This bike feels like a 26er because it is so light and the head tube is so steep, but still rolls as fast and flawlessly as a 29er. I've ridden everything on this bike with no problems, from Mont Saint Anne Worldcup trails to southern Ontario hardpack tight turning tracks. It is sitting in the factory right now waiting to hear what colour it will be painted, you can choose the new colour if you want to buy it! Looking for $2500, let me know if you are interested, we can talk about the price.

Components:
Fork Reba RL 29er, lockout included 
Seat clamp Fsa Seat post SL-250 SBS SB20 WHITE 
Saddle San Marco Ponza 
Headset FSA 1-1/8 orbit-MX white 
Stem Truvativ Stylo World Cup white 
Handlebar Ritchey wcs "wet white" 
Front derailleur SRAM X.9 2X10 
Rear derailleur Sram X0 10 speed 
Shifters Sram X.9 
Chain Sram PC 1071 
Crankset Sram X0 2X10
Brakes Elixir CR white 
Cassette SRAM PG 1070 
Wheels Shimano XT WH-MT75 (we can talk about my race wheels too)
Tires Hutchison Python Tubeless Light 
I love this bike and don't know what I'll do to race or ride mtb with next year but I have no choice at this point. Email or call if you want pictures! 
519 362 3421

cfruetel AT uougelph DOT ca

Most recent picture that I have of what she looks like, in action!