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The 10th Annual ‘Feel My Legs I’m a Racer’ Hill Race in Los Angeles

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The 10th Annual ‘Feel My Legs I’m a Racer’ Hill Race in Los Angeles

Ten years, ten hills, ten attempts at proving yourself to your peers that you’re a fast mofo. Or just an excuse to wake up at 6:30am on a Sunday to ride bikes up the steepest hills in Los Angeles with a bunch of like-minded individuals. I’ve heard of this event before. Year after year, it’s organized by Matt Ruscigno, an ex-BMXr from the NorthEast, which is where the S&M bikes reference comes from: “Feel My Legs I’m a Racer…”

The human condition of putting oneself through excruciating pain for personal betterment is something that Matt taps into with Feel My Legs. You don’t have to win the day’s ten climbs to feel a sense of accomplishment. In fact, for many of the racers, just making it up Fargo Street (the steepest residential street in California) was enough.

My morning began with coffee and a scone. Ok, two scones. Then I hopped on my touring bike, loaded up my camera equipment and went to the start of the event. I could only tag along for the first five climbs but I pretty good grasp on the event…

Grain and Grade

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Grain and Grade

On my recent trip to California, my mornings and afternoons were spent combing the roads for ideal backdrops. Here’s a few outtakes that are free to consume. Please, don’t fret, the weekend’s coming soon.

Lord of Griffith IV Photos by Devon Tsuno

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Lord of Griffith IV Photos by Devon Tsuno

Photos by Devon Tsuno

Last weekend was Lord of Griffith in Los Angeles. Taking place in Griffith Park, one of the largest green spaces within a city in the US, racers took to the Cat 3 climb on track bikes. Some had brakes, some didn’t but everyone showed up, raced and had a blast. Devon Tsuno has the only photos I’ve found on Flickr, so head over and check them out here.

There’s been a few posts up on Facebook, where someone who doesn’t race accused some racers of “cheating”. Look people, these are unsanctioned races. Of course people are going to cheat. If they cheat, they have to live with their own guilt, so let it be. The real reason why races are important is the sense of community and competition they build. If you “cheat”, then you really didn’t give it your all. In the end, everyone came out, as a community and had fun.

I’m glad to see so many people turned out for this event. I gotta make it to it next year.

The Geekhouse Boys in Austin

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The Geekhouse Boys in Austin

It’s surprising to me how many people have the misconception that “Texas is flat”. While most of the eastern part of the state is indeed, very flat, in Austin, we’re smack dab in the middle of Texas Hill Country. Granted, the highest elevation we have is around 1,500′, there are plenty of good rides with 1:1 ratios of miles to elevation. When Brad and Marty from Geekhouse came into town a few weeks back, they said something to the extent of, “Austin’s pretty flat, right?”.

So, like any good host, I took them on a little hill loop. The weather was just right and not wanting to kill Marty, we took it easy, meandering through ranges and stopping at swimming holes. We ended up doing 40 miles and over 3,000′ before the allure of tacos took over…

Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

Road Exploring

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Road Exploring

Sometimes, you just need to go off and take those roads you ride past everyday, or jump over the fence that says “No Trespassing”. These shots were all compiled during a few days I spent out wandering the hills and forests on my road bike.

Click the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

The Dueling Banjos: Into Hell and Back – Day 02 Jamieson to Rosedale

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The Dueling Banjos: Into Hell and Back – Day 02 Jamieson to Rosedale

All Photos by Andy White

After the first day’s journey into Jamieson, Shifter Dan, Andy and I awoke with empty stomachs and loose legs. A quick breakfast and a chat with some locals, sent us on our way to Licola and then Rosedale. Compared to day 01, day 02 was hell. Each of us broke at some point in the day, which was fine. It’s when everyone breaks at once that you’re screwed.

Within the first 20 miles or so, we were climbing up the Jamieson-Licola road range. Sealed quickly turned to jeep trail and jeep trail disintegrated to seasonal fire roads. You could tell not many people ventured through these parts by bike. In the end, bad decisions on day one, brought about the inevitable. As per the last post, Andy has my photos up with his words at Fyxomatosis.

Check out more below!

Grade School

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Grade School

Grade school. It’s a place where you go for life’s lessons. No matter how strong of a rider you think you are, a few hours in grade school each day will whip your ass in shape. Granted we don’t have mountains here, but we’ve got good climbing and this Recent Roll is dedicated to the people who have put in work the past few weeks on the hills. It’s from a few different films, hence the change in grain and color.

Check out more by clicking the photo above or here to open in a new tab.

The Dueling Banjos: My Side of the Saddle – Day 01 Lilydale to Jamieson

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The Dueling Banjos: My Side of the Saddle – Day 01 Lilydale to Jamieson

All Photos by Andy White

Andy from Fyxomatosis and I did something a little different this time around. He’s posting my photos and dictating over them and I, his. We loosely are calling this the Dueling Banjos. So here’s my side of the saddle:

When I found out I would be returning to Australia, Andy asked if I wanted to go on one of he and Dan from Shifter Bike‘s “epic” rides out through Woods Point. I’ve been following Fyxomatosis, since forever, so I knew what that meant. This was a man’s ride. A no holds-barred, dirt and hurt ride. Since doing my tour, I have stayed in the saddle. I had the base miles underneath me but did I have the ability to keep up with Dan and Andy? Nervously, I accepted the invite and the day before we left, Dan took my Milwaukee Orange One into Shifter Bikes for a cleaning.

We left that morning and met Andy in Lilydale. We rode along the Warburton Rail Trail, through flea markets and eventually stopped in Warburton for breakfast. Canadian pancakes, a long black, fresh juice and some pastries. As we were leaving the cafe, I thanked Dan for cleaning my bike, to which he replied “thank me in 30 minutes”…

Shots from the Road 04.08.2012

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Shots from the Road 04.08.2012

I’ve been meaning to do a bit of exploring off the beaten paths of my typical hill loops. A few wrong turns and sneaking into gated communities proved to be a great way to spin off the day. I found a nice, 1-mile long path along mesquite trees and a few streams. What I intended to only be a 10 mile jaunt became a 38 mile, 3,200′ afternoon. What can I say? The weather is amazing in Austin right now…

Check the route on my Strava and share your Sunday rides in the comments!