From the 25-26th of September I will be off racing with Ronny and Holly from Odyssey Adventure Racing.  We will be completing as a 3 person, coed elite team in the Bushwack 2009 Adventure Race down in the Raleigh/Triangle area of North Carolina.  This should be a great event, Bushwack Adventures and Don Childrey have a reputation of hosting great events.  On top of that – Ronny, Holly and I managed to get a great 10 hour training day in a few weeks ago and our teamwork was excellent.  Look for us racing as Odyssey Adventure Racing.

See you outside,

Shane

Next up for the team……, Uncategorized

Teamhalfwaythere.com will be working closely with the On Point Foundation.  Check them out at: www.ImONPoint.org

Here is who they are and what they do:

Our Mission:

Helping service members regain control of their lives through education, rehabilitation, services, and equipment.

ARE YOU ON POINT?

“On Point” is a military term referring to a person who takes the lead in a patrol or tactical movement. This lead individual carries the mission of guiding the rest of the unit and assumes the responsibility of protecting all that follow. That individual is known as being ON POINT!

Service members have always worked around the clock, devoting their life to duty. The attacks of 9/11 brought forth a new era for service members, along with the high price they would pay to protect our way of life. All service members have made sacrifices while some have paid the ultimate price in defense of our county and community. With the shifting economy and the ever present strain carried by our men and women in uniform it is time for us to be “ON POINT” and take responsibility for our service members.

On Point Foundation was formed as a nonprofit in 2009 by three former soldiers. With combined military experience of over 30 years, 20 years overseas experience, and 11 operational deployments – these three service members have now focused their dedication, knowledge, and love of country to “helping those who protect us”.

When deployed overseas and engaged in combat we put our trust in other organizations to protect our family and our way of life at home. These organizations do not violate our trust! The soldiers that founded On Point wish to honor and take responsibly for many service members, not just the members of the Armed Forces. We define service members as personnel – past or present – of the Armed Forces, law enforcement officers, fire fighters, and federal agents.

On Point is dedicated to providing honest and valuable services that can truly make a difference in the lives of the people we sponsor.

Next up for the team……, Uncategorized

For Adventure Racing, I had a set of criteria I wanted to meet.  Durable, light, and comfortable.  These bikes may spend a portion of a race in the bottom of a canoe, be pushed through thick underbrush, and be ridden like an XC race machine.  After a lot of research and a few test sessions, I concluded that the Salsa Dos Niner was a perfect fit.

I have been riding, training and racing on a Salsa Dos Niner for just over seven months.  I am right at six feet tall, so already a good candidate for the 29er wheel craze.  I really like the way the bigger wheels roll over obstacles and take the edge off of small bumps, roots, washboard and trail chadder.  The Dos Niner is a softail (a shock in the back, the chainstays flex up and down, there is not an actual pivot, nor is there the associated pivot hardware).  Those big wheels coupled with the 1″ Relish shock in the back really makes for an efficient, fast and smooth ride.

Bottom line.  I like the bike so much I am seriously considering getting a Selma as my singlespeed training tool!

See you outside,

Shane

Gear Reviews

Overtrained and overraced.

So, the last two races were pretty miserable.  Thankfully I had great teammates to pull me through.  Lessons learned: don’t race at 100% plus, have completely debilitating lower body cramps (curled up on the side of the road – see the Odyssey One Day write up), throw your back out a few days later, take Percocet and Flexiril and think that is an adequate recovery and taper for a race 2 weeks after the blow up race!

Did I mention how lucky I am to have the teammates I have!

Thoughts on AR, Uncategorized