If I could be anywhere...

It would be right here.

That's exactly how I felt this past week preparing for and participating in the Rocky Mountain Enduro over in Victoria, British Columbia. My good friend Rob had flown out for the Canada Cup XC race and we managed to catch up over a couple of beautiful loops up on Mount Seymour earlier in the week alongside his brother Scott. Even with the heavy winter that Vancouver had (by it's standards!), the conditions for early March were nearly perfect! With a few climbs and descents we were able to bag a decent amount of elevation for a late afternoon spin. Heckling each other on the last trail of the day called "John Deer", it was nice to chase down and pass that clipped in and spandex wearing hombre. #chalkoneupforflatpedals

On Friday we took the ferry over and ripped off a few laps of the Canada Cup XC trail, and were passed by the friendly Catharine Pendrel. While I let Rob finish his course preview, I headed over to "The Chainsaw" and hit the DH jump track to give myself a head start for Sunday. While pedaling around the beautiful grounds of Bear Mountain, I was reminded to keep surrounding yourself with good people, who share common interests as you and where you can help each other achieve your goals and dreams. Everyone I ran into over the weekend happily exchanged a pleasant hello or more, which is sometimes hard to find during the daily grind back in my civilian life.

While on Saturday I was able to have some other practice on harder terrain up at Hartland Bike Park, I also was able to catch both the Elite Women and Men's XC races and see just how efficient and skilled the best athletes are. These races included Olympians and sponsored athletes, which I hope to learn from. However I did come to race on Sunday and after a good night out with the guys, was more than ready for it.

Sunday brought a rash of snow flurries, frigid winds and greasy singletrack with riders and bikes of all levels. I truly enjoyed the experience of the three stage Enduro and while I realized that clipped pedals would have reduced my time on the stages, I finished a decent time and a respectable 32nd out of 44 riders.

Finally, the best advice that I was given during the week was "Consistency", which for me will be to focus on spending more time on bikes, improving my fitness and ability to clip into pedals rather than solely using flats. I also have found that racing has brought back my competitive spirit, which seemed to have taken a dive over the last couple of years. I'm so stoked to get faster and better!

Arriving back home to North Vancouver as well as the snow today is tough, but I will be heading up Old Mountain Highway on my Transition Patrol shortly with a smile on my face.


Peace!

Geoffrey