Shotwell Crit Tonight and Short Track Race on Friday

This is the third Thursday of the month which means it's Crit night at Shotwell Stadium. For all who would like to play along, we will meet at 6:00 at Shotwell parking lot and do a few laps for a warm-up and then gather up and turn on a little speed. This is a fun and exciting way to practice some bike handling skills and will make you a stronger and faster rider. All skill levels are welcome to come and participate.

On Friday night, the second short track style race will be held. This consists of about a 5 minute lap around a course set out at Buck Creek Trails. We ride for twenty minutes and then complete two more laps. This was tons of fun for all who showed up last time and was great to watch, even if you were not riding. Bring the kids and a bike and have a ball watching all who come out. Last time we had several children who rode and they did great! If they can do it surely you can, too! Meet at 6:00 and do a lap or two to warm up. We will start at 6:30. We will use the entrance directly to the south of the environmental lab rather than the normal gate to the north of the lab.

Of course, if you have any questions or need more specific directions, feel free to give us a call or come on in!

GHORBA Big Ring Challenge

Time for the results from the 7th race in the TMBRA Spring Series. This one took place in Coldspring (near Houston) on May 3rd. The weather was a tad bit wet, and it was muddy. Very muddy. Even so, many people showed up to race. Here are the results for the Abilene crew.

Cat 2 Men 15-18
2. Luke Allen

Cat 2 Men 45-49
1. Greg Allen

Cat 2 Men 50+
1. Gary Fraser
8. Michael Sparks

Cat 3 Men 19-29
3. Baylor Blessing

Cat 3 Women 1-10
1. Maggie Allen

Cat 3 Women 11-12
3. Claire Allen

Hope everyone got bikes and gear cleaned up from the mud. Good job, everyone!

STORM Hill Country Challenge

The 6th race in the TMBRA spring series took place in Comfort on April 19th. Here are the results for the locals:

Cat 2 Men 15-18

1. Luke Allen

Cat 2 Men 45-49

5. Greg Allen

Cat 3 Men 50+

3. Gary Fraser

4. Michael Sparks

Cat 2 Women 30-39

2. Brenda Andress

Cat 3 Men 1-10

10. Trent MacDonald

12. Troy MacDonald

Cat 3 Men 40-49

1. Jim MacDonald

Cat 3 Women 1-10

1. Maggie Allen

Enjoy some pictures from the event. First up is Greg at the start of his race.

Gary at the finish of his.

Here's Brenda beginning her race.

And Jim finishing his.

Trent (on the far left) was excited to get into the top 10 for the second time.

If you'll look on the left of the next picture, you'll see the highlight of the whole weekend for many of those in attendance. The ice cream four-wheeler. Yes, a couple of guys drove that around all weekend with those white coolers attached to the front and handed out...yep...ice cream. No charge. As much as you wanted. All the kids were really excited. The adults were, too.

Good job, everyone! Next race coming soon.

Reimer's Ranch Results

The 5th race in the spring TMBRA series was held on April 5th at Reimer's Ranch in Austin. Abilene folk had a good showing. Take a look at the results.

Cat 2 Men 15-18
3. Luke Allen

Cat 2 Men 45-49
DNF - Greg Allen (He did come home with a fractured elbow and stitches, though!)

Cat 2 Men 50+
2. Gary Fraser

Cat 2 Women 30-39
1. Brenda Andress

Cat 3 Men 1-10
16. Trent MacDonald
23. Troy MacDonald
Troy and Trent both took a wrong turn and added a mile or two to their course. Oops.

Cat 3 Men 19-29
2. Baylor Blessing

Cat 3 Men 40-49
1. Jim MacDonald

Cat 3 Women 1-10
1. Maggie Allen

Cat 3 Women 11-12
3. Claire Allen

Way to go, everyone. I'm almost caught up with posting TMBRA results - just in time for the 8th and final race of the spring series. Check back this week for the results of the next two races.

May Road Time Trial Results

Here are the results for this month's time trial:

1. Josh Brown - 24:25
2. Mark Rogers - 25:23
3. Joel Thompson - 26:07
4. Paul Patterson - 27:11
5. Mike Geranis - 27:29
6. Rob Atkinson - 27:37
7. Richard McLamore - 27:40
8. Baylor Blessing - 28:48
9. Jonathan Elswood - 28:50
10. Nick Engel - 29:09
11. Travis Crisman - 30:10
11. Craig Jones - 30:10
13. Mike Sparks - 30:29
14. J Wilson - 31:32
15. Luke Allen - 31:42
16. Robert Kasper - 32:15
17. Cameron Cope - 32:17
18. Manny Cortez - 33:44
19. Mark Spurlock - 35:06

Thanks for riding, everyone. See ya out there next month!

Time Trial Thursday

Hey, everyone - it's time for the first Thursday of the month road time trial! Meet at Mueller's on FM 18. Registration will be at 6:00 pm and the first rider will take off at 6:30. It is the same 10 mile loop as last year. Once again, there is a fee of a non-perishable food item to be donated to the Food Bank. This year, all donations will be made in the memory of Don Dunstan.

For those who have not been before, FM 18 is off of HWY 36 right before the airport. Turn left onto 18 and drive for a mile or so. Mueller's will be on your right. Just park in their parking lot and get ready to ride. This is a great way to see how well you are riding and to see how you improve over the season. Come on out and give it a try. Everyone is welcome!

Police/Fire Challenge

The police/fire challenge and race benefiting the police unity tour was held this past Sunday and, man was it fun! It started with a 10.5 mile XC race, which our own Gary Fraser won. There was also a 2 mile race which Trent MacDonald won. Good job, guys!

The riders getting lined up before the race:

Travis Crisman just made it to the line in front of his competitor for 4th place.

Following the race was the police/fire challenge. Basically, several firemen and police officers squared off against each other to see who could complete a set of fire skills, police skills, and mountain biking first.

After being briefed on how things would go, the fun began. First came the sledgehammer challenge. Each participant had to use the hammer to move a heavy metal block the length of the boards they were standing on.

Then came the body drag. Each participant had to pick up a 175 lb. "body" and drag it around some cones and back.

Then there was the fire hose challenge. Just snake the hose through the cones...

...and knock the orange cone off the barrel. Of course, all this was being timed.

As soon as the cone was knocked over and the hose turned off, it was time to run to the bikes and head out for 2 miles of trail riding.

After the nice bike ride that got the heart rate good and going (as if all the other stuff hadn't already done that), it was time to pick up the gun and calmly fire 5 shots at a target. Getting the shots on the black circle earned the participant some time taken off their final score. Likewise, missing the target got them a penalty.

When all was said and done, the winner this time was Aaron Barr, firefighter.

Enjoy the bragging rights till next time, Aaron! And thanks to all the men and women from the police and fire departments who participated!

For those who missed it this go around, the next challenge will be in November in conjunction with the Bent Wheel Bash. We'll let you know as soon as the date is set.