Mountain Biking

I just tried my new SIGMA PowerLED EVO on a night ride and was pretty amazed. The 900 lumens on my helmet on and my handlebar lit the way impressively. So much so that, while enjoying the night view from the 22^nd Street tower, I turned my bar light off and forgot to turn it back on until I was almost home. Even more impressive was the small and REALLY light-weight battery. On high it will burn for 3 hours but the medium and low will burn for 5 and 11 hours respectively. For all you adventure racers, the bar light is easily removed from the bike (twist lock on the battery and clip on the light) to take on the O-course for extra lumens to find all those controls.

We are planning a team event open to the public soon at Rowletts where ASR and possibly Team DP will be present to discuss personal experience with sponsor products, especially SIGMA SPORT products.

I suggest you visit the SIGMA STORE and check out the goods!

Look at SIGMA...their 900 lumen PowerLED Evo goes for well under $300 and burns on high for 3 hours! Their bike computers are extremely easy to use and read when riding. Just go by Rowlett's Bikes on Staples Mill at Broad Street and check out all the cool stuff SIGMA SPORT makes!

Congratulations to Phil and Daniel for their win at the recent Urban-O at Virginia Beach. The story from the event organizer, Mark Montague, is below:

I wanted to personally thank all of the dedicated racers for coming on out, despite the cool breezy day. Many others who registered wimped out on all of us. I have updated the SBB Website to the Archive page here. Hover over the Archive page and click over to the Results, CP Locations and Pictures pages to see all of this info. If you have any pictures or videos taken at the race, email them to me at mark@sbbracing.com and I will add them to the website. Direct your friends over to the site to show them all they missed.

 

Congratulations to Phil Dawson and Daniel Rodriguez who eeked out a slim 10 pt victory in the 6-hr race over soloist CJ Austin (3080 pts to 3070 pts). Mark Ross and Chris Stepanski finished 3rd cruising on in a few minutes over the time limit but still managing 2560  points after the small deduction for being late.

 

In the 3-hr race, Last year's winners (Todd David and Raena Weimer) prevailed again this year with a nice 1000+ point total for Victory in the 3 hr limit. Not far behind (possibly after a couple wine stops along the way) were Team Wino Buddies (Vanessa Barrera and Heather Stewart) for a solid 2nd place w/ 900 pts. Landstown JROTC was well represented at this year's race and 3rd place overall was grabbed by the team of Blake Reyna and Neil Soria, finishing with 800 pts and 18 min to spare.

 

Next year's VB Urban-O race looks to be even better with some National Sponsors coming and a parking lot party w/ music and more in the works. Tell all your friends about the event and if anyone wants a set of complete new maps and clue sheets they are available for $10 at the SBB website. If you competed here and still have your maps and want to try your Nav practice on the rest of the course, email me and I will send you a copy of the Clue/Answer sheet. If you leave from the 1st Landing State Park parking lot area near the Cape Henry Trail, there is a LOT of the course that can be found in a 3-hr block.

 

Lastly, we hope to see all of you and your friends at the Feb 25th, 2012 SBB 3, 6 and 12-hr Rogaine in Surry VA at the Pipsico Boy Scouts Reservation. An all new course will be designed for your enjoyment. If you would like to get an edge up on all your fellow cadets or friends with training in expertise Maps & Compass, sign up and come to our three hr Sat Jan 14th, 2012 Map & Compass Class at Blue Ridge Mountain Sports in VA Bch.

This is a tentative date list for Scout Camp rides leading up to the 18hr.
Any one of these ride dates may be cancelled due to various factors. Verify that the ride is still on before heading out.

Mondays: 9/19, 9/26, 10/10, 10/17, 10/31. Ride times - 5:30 to 9:00pm. Please plan on being packed up and heading out of the parking lot by 9:30pm.

Wednesday: 10/19. 5:30 to 9:00pm. Please plan on being packed up and heading out of the parking lot by 9:30pm.

Saturdays 10/8 - 4:30 to 7:30pm Please plan on being packed up and heading out of the parking lot by 8:00pm
10/22 - Pending

Sundays: 10/2, 10/9 Ride Times TBD

This list is posted here:   http://cyclingcentralva.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=20227&st=0&gopid=171259&

 

I will not be sending email notice if a ride is cancelled or added.  Always refer to the CCVA site and the master list there for any changes before you come out to the camp.

Serious climbs, tricky descents with snow... in August!  Wow!!!
Click 2011 Transrockies - Stage 5

Later -
Billy

(Our sponsor "Groundforce IT" knows networking...both residential and business - so keep them in mind when you need network support since they do a great job in supporting our sport)

Demystifying VOIP and IP Telephony 

A buyers guide for phone systems

 

If you've been approached by a phone system vendor recently, you may have found yourself lost in terms like "VOIP" and "IP Telephony" or "IP/PBX." It's easy to get caught up in the jargon, but don't. A basic understanding of how calls are routed and a focused approached to buying is the key to making the right decision. Here is a quick explanation and our guide to help you select a system. If you have additional questions, contact GroundForceIT. We're here to help!

"How Does My Phone System Make Phone Calls?"
Most local and long distance calls are routed to a major phone carrier network (i.e. Verizon, Paetec, Comcast) whose core systems have been in place for decades. Calls are guaranteed to have a certain call quality. Once the call hits the carrier's network, it's their responsibility. It's important to go with a good phone company. Calls may also be made across the Internet, as discussed below. 

An IP Telephony (IP/PBX or IP Phone) system simply uses your Local Area Network (LAN) as the transport mechanism (versus separate cabling exclusively for the phone system) for calls from the handset on your desk to the phone system in the telecom closet in your office. Once there, the call will go to the phone carrier (i.e. Verizon, Paetec, Comcast). This is especially beneficial in new office buildouts as only one data cable needs to be dropped at each employee workstation area resulting in a cost savings.

VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol or Voice Over the Public Internet) is a service that uses the public Internet for placing/routing phone calls instead of a traditional phone carrier network. As a general rule, VOIP providers are less expensive than traditional phone carriers, but customers have no control over the quality of service when the call gets routed over the Internet.

If you have an IP/PBX, it will either connect to a traditional phone company with traditional services, (you may have heard of a T1, POTS lines or PRI) or it may connect to a VOIP provider.

How to Choose a Phone System
Whether you purchase a traditional phone system or an IP-based phone system, your main focus should be how easy it is to make and receive calls. Secondly, determine what additional services you need from you system. For example, do you need voicemails to automatically route to an email account? Make sure you have the support you need from the manufacturer and installation company. Lastly, as mentioned at the top of this article, go with a good phone carrier.

Who's looking to do some mountain biking in JRP then finish up with some good conversation, food and beer? Just show up to roll at 6:00 or 6:30 from Crossroads this coming Wednesday (April 20). This is not an ASR ride but, as one of our premier sponsors, we want to support Will and Olivia (not so hard to do with such a cool location with good beer and food) by bringing together bikers for some riding and comraderie!
Rain date...NOT!! Rain plan - if you're a runner, bring your run stuff - if you're not a runner, just show up with an empty stomach and thirsty throat!

Team members Jeremy Kuhlen, Billy Moffett and Bill Swann competed at the 5^th annual BAKERS DOZEN 13 Hour (+1 Lap) Mountain Bike Race. Billy had his family there to crew the pit for him as well as Marianne Swann (my wife and ASR Trail Manager). Our thanks goes out to Billy’s wife, Erin; her sister Sarah, and their mom, Jackie and Marianne for helping us on a pretty nasty, cold and wet day!

 

Our experience was wet and cold. It rained the entire day prior which made the trail extremely muddy for the first lap. Riders, including myself were having to stop frequently to find a stick and clear mud from our shocks, front derailleurs, shocks and wheels. From then on, the biggest part of the mud was pushed out but then the trail turned from wet mud to pure glue. It was soft – very soft – and it was like semi-dried Elmers glue. On top of that, the temps stayed between 45 and 48 degrees with breezy conditions and completely overcast. On the bright side (not really bright, just optimistic) it didn’t rain anymore.

 

We all did okay; I got in 4 miles for a total of 37 hard, hard miles. Billy and Jeremy both got 7 for a total of about 63 of some very hard miles. I can see where, on a dry day, this course would be a lot of fun, but on this day – it was brutal. I’ll definitely be there next year.

 

You can see some videos at http://vimeo.com/richmondasr/videos and some race photos at our own Gallery in the “Race Photos” section at http://richmondasr.com/Gallery

There was some racing this weekend; the HR Adventures SPAR took place as did the Bakers Dozen 13 Hour +1 Lap as well.

ASR was well represented at both; I’m pretty sure Phil and Daniel were at the SPAR (if anyone else was there, I’ll pass that on) and Billy, Jeremy and myself were at the Bakers Dozen MTB race.

 

Team members Jeremy Kuhlen, Billy Moffett and Bill Swann competed at the 5^th annual BAKERS DOZEN 13 Hour (+1 Lap) Mountain Bike Race. Billy had his family there to crew the pit for him as well as Marianne Swann (my wife and ASR Trail Manager). Our thanks goes out to Billy’s wife, Erin; her sister Sarah, and their mom, Jackie and Marianne for helping us on a pretty nasty, cold and wet day!

 

Our experience was wet and cold. It rained the entire day prior which made the trail extremely muddy for the first lap. Riders, including myself were having to stop frequently to find a stick and clear mud from our shocks, front derailleurs, shocks and wheels. From then on, the biggest part of the mud was pushed out but then the trail turned from wet mud to pure glue. It was soft – very soft – and it was like semi-dried Elmers glue. On top of that, the temps stayed between 45 and 48 degrees with breezy conditions and completely overcast. On the bright side (not really bright, just optimistic) it didn’t rain anymore.

 

We all did okay; I got in 4 miles for a total of 37 hard, hard miles. Billy and Jeremy both got 7 for a total of about 63 of some very hard miles. I can see where, on a dry day, this course would be a lot of fun, but on this day – it was brutal. I’ll definitely be there next year.

 

You can see some videos at http://vimeo.com/richmondasr/videos and some race photos at our own Gallery in the “Race Photos” section at http://richmondasr.com/Gallery

I had the opportunity to be out in Roanoke this past week for work and the great fortune of having my mountain bike with me (okay, so I guess there was a little planning there).
If you are a mountain biker with a desire for awesome trail and incredible beauty, you have to hit Carvens Cove AT LEAST once a year.
My favorite ride is to head out Hotel and up Bucks Rut; this is a brutal, technical climb with beauty to distract you from the pain.
Then, ride along the ridge trail for about 2.5 miles then down Hemlock Tunnel to Comet then to the four-way to decide how toasty I am...head back to the parking lot via Four Gorges or head out to lowlands (still some respectable climbing but nothing like going up to the top of Brushy Mountain).
Another ride I did included a 25 minute fireroad climb but first I hit the Four Gorges to get to the park. Then, down Jacobs Drop, and never was a more appropriate name (actually, Jacobs and Hemlock Tunnel are both wild and wooly descents - just be sure to keep your hands away from your brake rotors once you get to the bottom) for a trail.
One of the days was a truly bear-istic day. I encountered one bear going down Hemlock...I couldn't him due to brush cover but I heard him scampering, or tromping through the woods.
Then, at the end of my ride, I turned a corner in some flat terrain and there was momma bear and her 2 cubs...pretty exciting and about 40 to 50 meters off. They didn't hear me right away but when they did, the cubs were up a tree in no time and, surprise, momma bear took off in the opposite direction. She didn't go far and was definitely keeping an eye on me so I thought a hasty exit was probably in line so I scooted on down the trail
Below is a map of my rides and some signs that, don't seem to make the approval of some of the local wildlife; you make the call!
 

 

Just some "signs" that the "locals" might not be happy with these signs.







Maps of my rides over the last 3 days.