Day off or day on ...?

Don't get me wrong, I work in a field that I am passionate about and from this simple statement I am very content and feel lucky to be able to do this. But yesterday I had a day off and went and did a few things that I am also passionate about. I rode trails (as a bonus the July sun was shining bright), hung out with mates and then saw a great gig (Modest Mouse) with great people. So it got me thinking, well was I having a 'day off' from the shop or a 'day on' of my life... I guess it depends on how you want to be defined (if you do at all) - by what you do for a living or what you do when your not earning a living...

Trails @ Upper Beaconsfield...



No Excuses...

CAM'S  Top 5 Reasons why he hasn't updated his blog in far too long...

1. After taking out C grade crit at Sandown I have been a guest C grade rider travelling the world racing C grade crits...

2. I have been sitting around dreaming of travelling the world racing C grade crits...

3. Too busy writing my memoirs titled 30 years, so many beers...

4. Trying to think of enought strories to create the second chapter of memoirs...

5. I actually did go to Borneo to ride for a couple of weeks....

This is me parasailing in Borneo - i was so calm and ok with the experience I thought i might get some shut-eye...

This is me and my sweet rig outside in my new shop jersey (TURNING POINT CYCLES in MORDIALLIC thanks for asking ) just chilling on the final day of the Borneo MTB Trip

After this deep and emotional post I might need a good 8 months off from blogging but just in case my recovery is shorter than expected please check back soon...
As always, till next time....
Cam!

The Best I Can...

This year it has taken me a little while to warm up to the idea or racing on the dirt. Which is a little odd after hitting up the You Yangs Yowie, Dirtworks 100 and Golden Triangle 100k all at the pointy end of 2010 and loving it. Still a better late than never approach has always worked for me so why change a winny formula , sorry - a winning formula.

The first race of 2011 did just happen to be everyone's favourite lactic factory - The Otway Odyssey. And I am not too proud to say that next to my name on the results sheet is a big fat DNF. In brackets next to those 3 horrible letters it probably also should have said (WAKE UP CALL). So to go back a step in blog time, the Odyssey was held on the weekend before I raced the road crit. So when I went to Sandown I had a few days of dealing with the 3 letters and decided from then on that it was going to be a very long time before I see those letters next to my name again and to make the most of every race by riding 'the best that I can'.

This was really the wake up call. When I decided to ride 'the best that I can' it really got me thinking about why I was out there on the bike in the first place. And unfortunatly it has the been the misfortune of others that has really given me a big jolt about not only doing what I love to do but trying to do it well. So I have now made the choice to race every race and ride every ride 'as best as I can', which so far has proven to be a successful partnership.

I am not saying I am going to stretch everyday, train 35hrs a week, go to the gym 9 times a week or do  yogalates every ad break, I don't have that kind of dedication. I am going to keep it simple, I am going to enjoy my time on the bike, more-so enjoy the opportunity I have to be on my bike and when that number gets zip-tied to the bars or pinned to my back then I am going to simply 'ride the best that I can'.

And it was to Lake Mountain and the Granite Grind that I took my new attitude. 3 laps of a 10k trail what was FUN to ride. Actually it was REALLY FUN! The day was magic, the bike was spot on (who you will be introduced to soon) and before I knew it the ready was set and we were go.

I like to call him 'The Chance Man', some like to call him Scott's brother, and others like to call him 'that guy from the cover the latest Enduro Mag' (for the record his name is Sam Chancellor, he is Scott's cousin and yes he is on the cover of the latest Enduro Mag), but whatever you call him make sure you say it quickly because he is one fast rider. He showed his speed from the gun and even tho there were some brief periods where we were riding together, it was at these times where my heartrate was approximatly 300bpm and he was chatting away to me like we were sitting at a bar having a casual beer. But I spent a good chunk of the race sitting in second place, until Rohin Adams came thundering past on the long drag up to the end of the second lap and from there as hard as I chased I didn't see those boys again to the end. A third place and a big grin was the result as its been a long time since I had been on the podium of a MTB race in this country. So well done to the two in front of me, those behind me for being there and those that put the race on. A top day, a good result and another chance to exercise my new mindset which once again paid off...

Couldn't help a bit of podium posing for the camera...

Class...

Two days after taking out the win at Sandown, I had the pleasure of visiting the Spiegel Tent which is parked outside the art centre in big old Melbourne town. The tent is an amazing venue that hosts great shows and performers at many venues and festivals all over the world. The reason for my visit tho was to see Tim Roger's and band play his Salagia show. 7 sins themed into many songs and visuals with a few anecdotes in between. A top night in a class venue with a class act. If you haven't seen a Rogers show it might be time to change that, next show that I know of is in March at a venue that I haven't been to before called the Caravan Music Club in Oakleigh. Check it out!

http://www.timrogers.com.au/

   

Return to the Road...

Last week I went down to Sandown Raceway and watched 'the bro' race the Tuesday night crits they have down there. Not sure exactly what it was but sitting there in pit lane watching the race the legs started to twitch. It was at that point that I decided that the sidelines was not the spot for me and after a good few years of not racing road I decided that it was time to make a return.

So the following week I battled traffic HJ style after work but made it on time to sign up with the Carnegie club and roll a few laps warm-up on a circuit that has nice mix of fast corners and a good surface which made for a lot of fun. The following link and pic should sum up the result pretty well. (oh yeah, look for the rider wearing black...)

http://carnegiecycling.com.au/2011/02/22/sandown-twilight-crits-tuesday-february-22/

Here we go again!

Well here we go again. I am re-entering the world of blog and adding my own 2 cents worth. So what are you going to find here? I guess I see this page as my way to share what I have been up to and I am sure you will quite quickly work out that a large percentage of my life revolves around bikes. Mountain biking is something that I discovered whilst growing up in the Dandenong Ranges and for the last 15 years I have been hooked and now not only pursue it as a hobby but as a job as well. But more on that later, I think it's time we begin...