Spensor Paxson (Kona Bikes) on his burner run up the Suncoaster Trail.
Photos: Margus Riga, Dave Silver, Erik Peterson, Todd Weselake
Today is what I’ve been searching for. The trails today were why I came to BC. Techy but still a chance to get up some good speed and let it all hang out!
For me I had a good day. Still lacking the climbing legs to stay at the front, I used the back half to push on and make up a few positions. Today was the longest stage of the event and it certainly had a few riders worried before the start. We had a late start of 11am due to a big morning of transport. I had the luxury of arriving to the start by float plane thanks to Harbour Air!
I crossed the 7th, 5 and a half minutes back from the winner, my best day yet! Overall my body is holding up well and my Trek Superfly FS has been flawless!
One of the things that makes this race so easy for international riders to attend is the food situation. Let me give you the scoop. When you buy a meal package all breakfast and dinners are catered for. All the riders come together in a hall, where local caterers or chefs make delicious and nutritious meals. Plenty of carbs definitely go down. On course the aid stations are stocked full of Clif products, fruit, lollies, water, electrolyte and Red Bull. At the completion of the stage there is again a stocked aid station, as well as food vendors cooking up some tasty goods. I myself have been tucking in to a burrito: carbs, protein, salt. It’s a winner!
Jose Luis Arce of Spain might have been tempted by the water if he saw it.
High Point
The float plane! How many races do you get the opportunity to take a plane to the start!
Low Point
Seriously no real low point today. I had a small off but nothing bad to speak of.
Google Says:
The District Municipality of Sechelt is located on the lower Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. Approximately 50 km northwest of Vancouver, Sechelt is accessible to the mainland of British Columbia via a 40-minute ferry trip between Horseshoe Bay and Langdale, and a 25-minute drive from Langdale along Highway 101, also known as the Sunshine Coast Highway. The municipality takes its name from the Coast Salish Shishalh people, who first settled the area thousands of years ago, and means “land between two waters”.
Phil Johnston of Vancouver ghosting the Day 3 trails.
The official word
By Harlan Price
Caked in dust with sweat dripping down their brows, the racers of the BC Bike Race are fully engrossed in an epic odyssey. Today’s Stage 3 from Earls Cove to the seaside town of Sechelt was the longest of the week with an opening climb that challenged the rider’s belief there would be an end. The sawtooth profile of the day stair-stepped it’s way with punchy climbs and short descents before culminating in a plunge down the Feature Trail, VFR towards base camp in Sechelt.
Like needing to meet someone three times to get to know them, the riders are starting to realize they are riding daily amongst the same general group of riders. Friendships are being formed over shared vertical misery and downhill flow. Common is the unique equilibrium of the balance between the climbers who can’t descend and the descenders who don’t like climbing, this often creates mutual appreciation for each other’s ability. Two different skill-sets that create a bond of appreciation, understanding and the sharing of trails, as well as a little envy for better descending skills, or desire for cooler lycra on these hot days.
Solo Women: Katerina Nash manages a setback and Rebecca Hodgetts takes second.
Naomi Dalle, Toronto: “There are moments of pure ecstasy and moments of pure sufferfest. It goes back and forth but at the end of the day it feels awesome. We signed up because we met people who said this is the best bike race they’ve ever done.” “We’ve discovered it’s super well organized, well put- together, and logistics are amazing. We don’t have to think at all, it’s awesome!”
The Earls Cove to Sechelt day has a reputation for being hard mostly because of it’s opening climb out of the BC Ferries terminal up to the Suncoaster Trail. Katerina Nash (Luna) created her race strategy based on the desire to pull back a little from the previous two day’s opening efforts and save some energy going into the final four stages of the event.
“I wanted to stay fresh and not push it too much like the first two days. I really enjoy the singletrack and the pacing is good.” said the Czech passport holder who recently moved to the Bay Area in California after 14 years in Tahoe CA.
Despite her plans, a misstep sent her off course briefly and forced the strategy to change slightly.
“Things were going really good and unfortunately I took a wrong turn. I Started chasing because I didn’t know who was ahead you know. It was kind of interesting from that point on.”
First time BCBR participant Rebecca Hodgetts went off course just long enough for Nash to slip by which created confusion for Nash who thought she was still in second place all the way to the line. Vicki Barclay (Stans NoTubes/ Bike Flights) also made a similar error while following other riders. It was a tough day of reminders for racers to keep their heads up and stop when they don’t see the BCBR pink ribbons.
Though Nash is managing to increase her overall lead, today proved that the unknown plays a big part in the daily race. Hodgetts has an 8 minute lead on Barclay, but as the heart of the race days arrive it’s still a race for second with an eye always on first.
Udo Bolts of Germany is a former Tour De France rider (12x) and knows about looking through a corner even on the mountian bike.
Men’s Solo: Paxson takes a return on deposit for the time he lost in Powell River and closes the account in one calculated grab. Sneddon Takes overall in hometown.
Spencer Paxson (Kona Bikes) quit his job last year as an energy analyst in order to focus on racing full time. A self described nerd for numbers, Paxson calculated that a 4% effort above that of his competitors would return the eight minutes he lost the day before, the day when he missed a turn with his head down, squeezing the sweat out of his helmet. Obviously, a penchant for numbers helps, but it’s a reminder that the little unexpected pieces of dust can jam-up the most engineered craft.
“I’m pretty thrilled to have gotten back the time. I tend to nerd out on stats. I figured if I ride 4% faster on a 2:50 hour course I can get back almost all my time. It was a combination of knowing myself and being confident and feeding off the gap during the day.” Paxson epitomizes the careful balance an athlete needs to maintain between strategy informed by numbers and trusting knowledge of self. The ability to internalize how an effort feels and correlate it to a measuring system is central to his success. Many people tend to get lost in the measuring devices attached to their bikes, but Paxson maintains perspective and always throws in the joy of riding the bike as a central component to his riding. At the end of the day Paxson managed to take back all but 50 seconds of the 8 minutes he lost the day before.
The only rider to try and challenge Paxson’s initial move up the Suncoaster Trail climb was yesterday’s stage winner, Tristan Uhl (Competative Cycles). His effort was short lived and he quickly settled back into the chase group. Second through fifth place finished within the same minute giving Sechelt native Kris Sneddon (Kona Bikes) the overall by 10 seconds. He may have had an unfair advantage on the descending trail to the finish line as it was one he built as a 9 year-old boy.
Sechelt Native Sneddon Takes overall.
Kris Sneddon is one of the Golden son’s of the Sunshine Coast. His father worked in the timber industry and from an early age he was building trail for and with Kris. Despite having a small population with the greatest percentage of residents over the age of 65, Sechelt has managed to incubate mountain bikers in a small supportive environment that affects the rest of the world. From the XC trails used by the BC Bike Race, to the Coastal Gravity Park and the stomping ground of Brandon Semenuk the Sunshine Coast has influenced the rest of the world’s mountain biking evolution. Sneddon has spent his years with his feet and hands on the dirt of the region and his humility of his accomplishments doesn’t hide his passion for the trails and the community.
