ICUP Red Rock Desert Rampage

ICUP Red Rock Desert Rampage

St. George, Utah

March 7, 2015

Steve Warner

This was my first race of the year. We have had a very mild winter in Utah, so although still not at the fitness level I would like, I have been able to put in a dozen or so rides leading up to this race. The race was in St. George, which is about 4 hours south of my home in Sandy, Utah. I went down with my wife and four kids to make a fun family weekend out of the race. We drove down on Thursday evening and stayed at a condo within riding distance of the race start site.

I pre-rode the course on Friday, a 6.4 mile loop with 900 feet of climbing split between two different climbs. However, as I headed out on the loop, I noticed a horrible noise coming from my drive train. My friend Brian was able to help me identify the issue coming from a pivot bolt in my rear suspension that had worked its way out enough that it was rubbing on the chain ring of my cranks. It was in a tough spot to tighten. We first thought we couldn’t do it without removing the entire crank for which we did not have the tool with us. We were able to remove the bolts on the small chain ring and move it out of the way just enough to fit an allen wrench in there to tighten things up. After a significant delay Brian and I were off for the pre-ride.

The race was Saturday morning and I was again in the Sport Men 35+ category, which did two laps of the race loop. The weather was perfect and the course was great. I placed 23 out of 28 riders in the category in a time of 1 hour 17 minutes. I have aspirations to continue to improve, but there are a lot of fast riders out there.

I appreciate all of the sponsors we have at K-Blue Racing that allow me to try new gear and perform at the best of my ability. Special thanks to Stan’s NoTubes for my set of ZTR Crest 29er wheels and sealant. Awesome set of wheels. Crank Brothers for my Eggbeater 3 pedals, which have never failed me. Lizard Skins for my lock-on handlebar grips and full-finger gloves that are just the right comfort for springtime riding.  ProGold chain lube and other products keep my drive train clean and quiet and my bike looking good. Thanks also to GU Energy, Polar Bottle, Geigerrig, Yakima, POC, Native Eyewear, Serfas, and everyone else behind the K-Blue team.