G.R.I.T. Mountain Bike Team

~G.R.I.T. MTB Team~ presented by Domino's Pizza Girls. Race. Inspire. Toughness.

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Island Lake Recreation Area. Spring of 2004. I rode my first mountain bike. It was basically my first bike ride since childhood. I had borrowed a much-too-big-for-me Gary Fisher hard-tail, equipped with clip-less pedals and bar ends. The top tube was so tall I couldn't even really stand over the bike. I somehow managed to ride it  though. I only made it 2 miles before I had to stop to catch my breath and rest  on the bench at the top of the small, gradual climb at Spring Mill pond.  I barely managed to finish the whole Blue Trail at Island Lake. I had no clue what I was doing. I'm not even sure I knew how to UNclip my feet from the pedals when I set off that day. It was more of an epic journey than a ride. I finished exhilarated, scared, excited, empowered, banged up and exhausted. I LOVED it and hated it all at the same time. It was the most fun I'd ever had but it was HARD!  That day was a huge turning point in my life for many reasons, and now almost a decade later, I'm still riding, as well as racing. I could have never guessed what an important roll mountain biking would play in my life. I could have never imagined the amazing experiences it would give me, the beautiful sights it would take me through and all of the wonderful, colorful people and friends I would meet along the way. Island Lake was where it all began and the chance to race there had me over the moon. To say I was looking forward to this race would be a huge understatement. I was down right giddy and totally pumped! Racing there made everything feel like it kind of came full circle this past Saturday.  I lined up to start with Sue & the other Elite women around 10am. It was freezing cold and windy. We started our lap at Spring Mill pond (near the bottom of the small gradual climb I mentioned earlier). On "Go!" we shot off the line and strung out with Sue in the lead and me on her wheel. The single track came fairly quick so we made sure to hold those positions into it. Sue held a strong pace for the first 10 minutes and then I went to the front and did the same. We dropped the other riders just by keeping the hammer down and riding smooth. Sue got back in front and pulled the rest of 51 min lap. Lap 2 was more of the same but I pulled more than the first lap. I wish I could better describe the sheer joy of that whole ride but there's not really words for it. It's more of a feeling. Riding with my buddy/teamie Sue on that drag strip of a trail... nothing in the way to slow us down or mess with our flow. I found myself grinning ear to ear and high fiving the bushes. Sue was fist pumping. We were totally maxed out but having the best time ever!!! We talked a bit here and there and had a few laughs but most of our spare breaths were saved for passing "2 Elite Women coming by! On your left!".  The last couple of Expert men we passed ended up latching onto the back of our two women train for the last few miles. Sue pulled for awhile. Knowing she did a lot of work throughout the race and knowing I wanted to fairly contest for the win at the finish I said "I want to make this 'Even Stephens' !" and with that I went to the front to pull the group for the last while. We came out of the final single track and out into the open two track area close to the finish. Still on the front, I pulled our small group along closer to the line but still a ways away. The two expert men that had been drafting us for miles then jumped out in front of us like they'd been shot in the ass, surprising both Sue and I. It was a VERY early attack to sprint that long to the finish. I didn't react quick enough, nor did I even have enough left in the tank to match that sort of a jump. Sue did though and she managed to put a full 10 seconds on me in a really short distance...lol. It was a great race! One we can both be really proud of. And fun! Holy crap was it FUN! Lol! Congrats to Sue on the win! Thanks to all the Ontario ladies that came out to compete in our class! Outnumbered us Michigan girls 4 to 2! Amazing! Thank you to Jay and T.J. for your support. And last but not least a BIG thank you to Tailwind Racing, the promoters, for making a great change in the race schedule and adding Island Lake to the list of venues this year! You guys did a great job and I hope we continue to race there for years to come! Thanks for reading!

Now go ride your bike ;o). :o) Erin

p.s. I managed to photoshop 'fix' the podium pic at least but my apologies to my fellow racers...I took too long lollygagging and missed the medal presentation and podium after the race. Sorry! I'll try better next time!

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Pontiac Lake TT...Uhhhh, I mean Pontiac Lake XC was fun! It has always been a season opener and always a time trial but somehow I overlooked the race changing to a cross country format. I was riding up to the start line after warm up, questioning aloud why the Elite and Expert men were starting in big waves. Someone overheard me and informed me that's because it's a cross country race now. Alrighty then...... Lol! Same difference, i guess! Still have to ride hard and race the bike! That's exactly what I did! From the word "Go!" I shot off the start line and onto the front of our field. In the first couple of miles we had a group of 4 of us. Then it got whittled down to 3. And I think at about halfway- 3/4 through the first lap, with me still on the front, only 2 of us remained, Me and  Erin Disterheft (Wenzel Coaching). The two Erin's!!! It had been years since this scenario last happened and we even chuckled about it one point. We also decided leading the race together and having the same name is good because we get to share all the "Go Erin!" cheers! Lol! The trail was in great shape and we cruised through the woods at a pretty good clip trying to keep a gap on the competition. After coming through the lap chute and heading out onto our second and final lap, Erin D. finally moved ahead of me to pull. I don't know if she wicked up the pace or my legs just wanted to remind me of what I'd put them through the last few weeks, but after about 1 mile I fell off her pace. My second lap was rough but I managed to stay ahead of the competition to hold on for second place! Congrats to all the racers that came out and especially to the Sport and Beginner classes that raced through the rain and mud. Thanks to G.R.I.T.'s great sponsor, Cycletherapy bike shop's, for sponsoring the race and to Tailwind for making even more changes and taking steps in the right direction. They're shortening the races a bit now to try to be more in line with what's going on elsewhere for cross country races. They've also equaled the Elite Men's and Elite Women's purse payout. Good stuff! Now for some rest and relaxation! This week I will be giving the legs a break, and in full on "Rest Mode" by weeks end, laying on a beach in Cancun. Hallelujah! Thanks for reading! :o) Erin

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I realized a few weeks back that 2007 was the last time I'd raced the Yankee Springs TT.  I couldn't recall much about it so I knew I needed a preride. It was also a good excuse for a road trip with 2 of my favorite peeps! Sue, TJ & I made the 2+hr drive out there on the Sunday before the race to go check it out. 2 miles into our first lap I recognized someone running by us on the trail. It was Jessica Woodard (-Robbert). Jessica doesn't race mountain bikes anymore but was one of the fastest Elite women when I started racing. It was great to see her and catch up for a few. Part of the reason why she left mountain bike racing was because the women's fields were getting so predictable. There wasn't a whole lot of us and it seemed we'd never all show up at the same race. You'd show up to the start line and pray that there would be at least someone to race against and hopefully that someone would be good competition. In most cases though it was getting so even when a few showed we already knew how we would finish before the race even happened. Kind of like why bother?.. almost.  I was happy to tell her that the women's fields are growing and the caliber of racers toeing the line is getting better too. She said she'd toy with the idea of maybe doing a race for fun again at some point. I was glad to hear It! After that nice surprise I had a not-so-nice surprise 1 mile later in the form of a broken seat post. It snapped right in half! I told Sue and TJ to continue on and I'd either ride out the way I came in (3 miles) or try to finish the remainder of the lap (8 miles) standing up. I drove all that way to preride so I stuck my saddle and half a seat post in the rear pocket of my vest and set out to finish what I started! I did and was glad I rode the whole lap as then I accomplished what I came to do. Sue & TJ did a second lap while I hung out in the parking lot chatting to other racers out pre riding. It was a gorgeous evening so I did a short hike and took some pictures too. Yankee Springs State Recreation Area is a beautiful place. I'd love to go back and explore it more. Go check it out sometime if you've never been :o). The day of the race we were up early! Sue, Jay, TJ & I packed up and were on the road driving by 6:30 am. We arrived at 9 am. Sue & I got suited and off to warm up by 9:30 am. My start time was 10:34:20 and Sue's was like 20 or 30 seconds after. We cut it WAY too close and I got to the line 10 seconds before my start! Talk about being on time...lol. Phew! I really didn't know who all showed up to race besides the preregistered girls. Turned out there was a couple more fasties in the mix that registered that morning! I think there was 8 Elite women that started. I passed the 2 women that started right before me within the first mile or so and then I heard someone behind me. Of course it was Sue! Ha :o) ! I cheered her past and she encouraged me right back. I could tell she was on a mission to reel in the rider that started first. I was too but my legs weren't moving quite as good ;o). The first race of the year can always be a toss up. I was feeling pretty decent and having fun but my bike handling on trail was rusty. Too much braking! Anyhow, I felt good and picked my way through a bunch of the Expert men's field and then at one point on a downhill my chain fell off. I tried to get it to go back on while pedaling and then it got jammed up pretty good. I hopped off and struggled with it for what seemed like an eternity (maybe a minute...lol) while a few Expert men that I'd recently passed came sailing by. Then another rider, a woman, said "Hey! You OK Erin?" as she whizzed by. I realized then it was Erin Disterheft.  I was happy to see her out racing but she was my competition and now ahead of me. Dang It! Flustered, but fixed, I hopped back on the bike to see about chasing and I went nowhere. Another mistake... I was now in my bikes largest gear, trying to head uphill from a stand still. Not happening. I hopped back off and fixed that problem and got going again...finally. I pushed myself hard throughout the entire race but in the end what I had was only good enough for 4th place. I was happy to get that first race done and out of the way. In the end, Sue did manage to chase down Kati Krikke (Freewheeler) and her time was good enough for the WIN! Go G.R.I.T.! 

In other good news.... Over the PA during awards, they announced that the women's turnout at Yankee this year was the best in the history of the race! And I think the race has been going for 20 some years. Awesome news! I hope that's a sign that the sport is growing and that women's participation really is on the rise! On the way home we stopped in at the Walldorf Brewpub in Hastings to eat and celebrate Sue's win as well as TJ's first race. Other racers had the same idea and one very generous fellow racer, Marc, even bought us a pitcher! A good time was had by all! All I've got to say is thank gawd we're off the trainers and back on the trails! Racing season is here! Cheers!!! Thanks for reading! :o) Erin

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"It was one of those march days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade."

-Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

Geez! If only!!! It seems like winter doesn't want to give up! The sun did shine bright for Sue & I on our training ride this past Saturday which was nice, but even in that sun, it was still cold as hell! BRRR! We stopped to take this picture and in the few minutes we had our hands out of our mittens to use the camera, they totally froze! The cold temps (38º F that day) can kind of help mold the character of a rider, I think... harden them a bit. Plus being outside is just WAY better then riding the hamster wheel indoors all the time ;o). Sue and I both ride outdoors all winter long (when we can), and often times together.  Lately, we're dreaming of the day it doesn't take us a half hour to get dressed or a time soon when we don't need chemical toe warmers & shoe covers. To be able to throw on shorts, jersey, and a helmet and hit the trails would be so nice! Trails...ahhhh...dreamy. Soon though eh?! It's gotta be....!  Don't make us beg Mother Nature! C'mon Spring!

:o)

Erin

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2013 Kit Design :o)

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Hello Everyone!

It's been a bit since the last update here on the team tumblr blog. After the end of the 2012 season I took a break from the bike but I swear life got busier somehow! November and December were a whirlwind of holiday fun, getting together with friends, organizing sponsorship, cleaning house, attention to nagging neck problems, and just leading a more sedentary lifestyle in general. It feels great to back in the swing of things now though again! Lots of riding outdoors on the weekends, indoors on the spin bikes at the gym and on the trainer in my basement during the week. Pumping some iron, a bit of XC skiing, and a little running too.

Sue & I try to ride together, and/or just hang out when we can, but last week we decided it would be super fun to try and get more women involved in some of our rides. We sent out a last minute invite on our Facebook page to try and round up some ladies and put together a 3 hour group endurance ride. The response and interest was great ,and even with short notice, a few women were able to make it. Jen, Heather, Jamie, Sue & I had an awesome afternoon playing trying to stay upright riding on the snow covered trails and pump track at Lakeshore Park in Novi (pictures above). Very happy it all worked out :o)! We hope to do this semi-regularly so stay tuned to the G.R.I.T. MTB Team Facebook page for more group rides in the future.

Sue has done some updating on her personal blog and the Team Facebook page has gotten steadily updated over the winter as well. Check them out and look for more updates here as we will announce our 2013 sponsors soon & 2013 jersey design!

I hope the New Year is treating you all well & thanks for reading!

:o)

Erin

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Well, It's a bit past the point of giving a play-by-play of this race but I still wanted to post some pictures of what was another great weekend with my friends.

The 2012 edition of Peak2Peak had epically horrible weather. Soaked from the start, It was in the high 30's-low 40's combined with the buckets of cold rain pouring on us the entire race. Puddles turned into small 'ponds' & 'rivers' that splashed up cold water from below. It lasted near 2 hours, even with 1 of the laps cut. Too bad nobodies brakes lasted that long. The wet-cold combo almost broke me. I 'raced' for about 45 minutes and after that I 'survived'. I could have cared less how I finished after awhile...I just wanted to get warm & dry. I did, and so did Sue, and we both snapped back pretty quickly and were able to fully enjoy the rest of our trip :o). Poor bikes though. It was a few days later and some Cycletherapy love before my ride got roll'n again. Amazing what we can put those things through sometimes... & they still function! Amazing what we put ourselves through...& we still function! Lol! ;o)

Thanks goes out Tad Peacock for being an outstanding race promoter, saving the race by cutting it in the nick of time, and to all his volunteers for braving that insane weather too. 

Congrats to EVERYONE that raced that day, and especially to the other Expert & Elite riders that were out there in that mess. Tough stuff! We all deserve a warm, dry (n)Iceman next weekend after that! 

;o)

Erin

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 Sue has a good write up on her personal blog so I'll keep this short but the Crybaby Classic was great! Gorgeous weather, wonderful company & the toughest (IMO) mountain bike race course in the state made for a pretty sweet weekend. The trail was in rip'n good shape this year and so was Team Quiring :o). I swear I heard the Crybaby climb itself sobbing after Sue tore up the face of it each lap. We all know she's a super strong rider but she flexed her muscle pretty hard at this one...lol. She left the rest of our Elite women's field behind by a huge margin and had the boys asking what kinda dope she's been taking?! ...Because she beat most of them too!!! Ha! It was awesome :o)!

I'm really happy with my race too. I had been fighting off a cold all week but by race morning I was feeling pretty normal. Thank goodness because just riding that course is tough let alone racing it. As Sue mentioned in her race report, there was an issue with our start time so her & I started around four minutes after our field and basically had to Time Trial the entire Cross Country race. I caught everybody during the race at one point or another except Johanna Schmidt (Einstein). We had to wait for results to be posted after the finish to see who placed where. She ended up beating me by 8 seconds so I finished in 3rd again this year. I was bummed about not getting to ride the entire race with her because of the start time fiasco but happy about at least being so close in time as I think last year the gap was around 5 minutes. Maybe next year?! Or.... next weekend? Peak to Peak is almost here and always brings out some healthy competition. Should be fun!

Shout outs:

My teamie Francesca...I mean Sue ;o)... thanks for buying Amanda and I Taco Bell on the way home and for always making me laugh so hard! It's like a drug, those belly laughs, tears rolling, can't get enough!

Patty Devost... Congrats! You killed it in the women's Expert class & thank you so much for taking podium pics for us.

Paul Brown... Thank you for the $10 you loaned us for burgers. For the second year in a row :o). It will be paid back by Iceman. Again...lol.

Tom Behan Sr & Tom Behan II... You guys have created such an awesome race! Thank you so much & I hope it continues for years to come!

:o)

Erin

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Last Saturday I raced the 3rd Annual Ronde Van Stony. I did it last year & had a blast so I made sure to add it to my calendar again this season. I'm 100% mountain biker but I do a lot of riding on dirt roads so the opportunity to race on them is exciting and adds a refreshing twist. With last years RVS experience and years of racing the point-to-point races (Ore2Shore, Chequamegon, & Iceman) I've gained some knowledge of how to do a race like this but I still have a lot to learn when it comes to riding a race where road type tactics come into play. 

Our 9am start was delayed a bit due to registration which worked out because the rain had finally stopped by 9:30am. Aboard my Ti Quiring mountain bike equipped with cyclocross tires, I lined up with about 120 other racers. On "Go!" we all took off racing down the wet paved roads through Stony Creek Metro Park behind the lead moto to the double-wide dirt trails. It's a lot to take in & process when you start a race with that many people around you. You're trying to find the right wheel/group, stay safe and keep moving forward as fast as possible...but not too fast or you end up like this ---> I went out too hard & by the time I exited the trails onto the dirt road I was in no-man's land, dangling out on the road by myself. I could see the Elite men up the road disappearing and then soon one other lone rider latched onto to my wheel. Not exactly where I wanted to be. I was gassed and virtually alone. That was dumb I thought..."Lesson #1 learned today". Just then a group of riders flew past & I thought to grab on especially when I saw Amanda Ryan (Einstein Cycles) aboard the train. Instinct told me that even though my competition was flying past me, that was not a group I could hang with and to be patient because mine would come. I hoped!  Maybe a couple minutes later, a group of about 12 riders came up behind me, one of which was Bernie Wendell (Cannondale Midwest). I'm usually somewhere around Bernie's times in mountain bike races so I hopped in the pace line with this group and stayed with them the entire race. I had found my group :o)! I stayed towards the front of the group the whole time and even took some pulls when things seemed to slow. Amanda was still out ahead somewhere and I didn't mind pitching in a bit to help catch her. We had a couple guys in our group that did the majority of the work and then a few others would take a pull here and there. Eventually we scooped up Amanda who had gotten dropped from the group she started with. She latched onto us for a bit but ended up being too spent to hang on. Also within our original group was a young female rider, Danielle Mullis (Wolverine Sports Club).  I knew us two were now the lead women and if she managed to hang on with our group for the duration of the race I'd have to shake her at some point before the finish. She never took a pull so I decided I'd try to sit in as well now that we didn't have to worry about anyone else up the road. That was easier said than done though because of the mud. The dirt roads had been sprayed recently and the rain wasn't absorbing well so it made for a really messy, muddy race. Sitting on someone's wheel meant eating mud. Every once in a while there was a bit of reprieve when we'd hit some pavement and I'd get sprayed with water instead. But hey at least the sun was out! Lol! I couldn't quite recall from last year how the 40 mile course went but I did remember we hit the dirt trails inside Stony again, then a few miles of road to the finish line across a grassy field. Since I'd sat in towards the last half? of the race my legs were feeling sort of decent still so I decided when we hit the trails that I'd go to the front of our group and go for it, hoping the group might break apart and leave my competition behind. That's exactly what I did and that's exactly what happened but all of the sudden it got really quiet and I feared I had dropped the entire group! There was still a couple miles of road before the finish after the trail exited. I eventually looked backed wanting to see someone, anyone! from our group somewhere behind me and to my delight Bernie was there :o)! I was extremely happy as I knew I could take us through the trail fast but out on the road I would still need some help. Bernie sat on my wheel until we got out to the road and then he dropped the hammer and pulled until we got to grassy field before the finish. If he hadn't been there I think my race might have ended just like it started...out of breath, all alone in no man's land, out on the road...lol. It all worked out and I ended up crossing the line for my first win of the season! It felt good :o)! I couldn't stay for awards. I think that was the first time I've ever missed a podium (if I was supposed to be on it!) but I had plans to go to Indiana that evening to watch the U of M vs. Notre Dame football game. Really my race didn't end until 2:30 a.m. when I finally rolled back into town ;o). Awesome bike race! Awesome day! Thanks to Mike Franko for putting together the Ronde Van Stony! Hopefully more women come out and try it next year 'cuz it's a great day in the saddle trying to keep up with the boys! Next up: Crybaby Classic  (Dun dun DUN!!!!!)  Thanks for reading! :o) Erin

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Maybury Time Trial

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        This year, for the first time, I did the 8 hr drive solo up to Marquette. At first I was kind of dreading it, but equipped with the right attitude & a good audio book,the time flew by and the next thing I knew I was cracking an Oberon & setting up my new tent at the Marquette Tourist Park. Scott Quiring & Christina arrived after dark that same night (Thurs.). And Sue & Jay the following morning, as well as Scott's buddy Ken. We had a regular little tent village. It's a funny thing about camping, there's not a whole lot to do but everyone is always doing a little something! Cooking, fetching wood or ice, finding good tunes, fiddling w/ bikes, washing dishes, etc. And the best part... all the awesome relaxing & hilarious conversation that ensues as a result of that quality time spent together. Camping there together for Ore to Shore has been a tradition that goes back many years to the Bell's Brewery team. Traditions are good :o).     One of the traditions, and benefits of staying at the campground, is the easy Friday preride. The race course passes right next to the campground so we just hop on the bikes & do it straight from camp. No driving involved. It's great. This year the course seemed to have more sand than last year but what can you do eh?! Ore to Shore IS sand... more or less.     Race morning we were up & at 'em @ 6:30 am. All up in our PJs, boiling water on camp stoves at the picnic table in pots for coffee  & oatmeal. It was chilly in the morning but by the time we were on the start line in Negaunee (with 700 other racers) the sun was shining in a bright blue sky. I felt rested & good in my warm up with Sue & I had high hopes this year... (for the first time in many years). I was gunning for the podium. Throughout the race I pushed myself really hard and worked within a few different groups of guys but the person I spent the most time with out there, mostly the middle-later half of the race, was Rick Doornbos (Team JTree). He pulled a lot on the flatter, more open sections & I did what I could, when I could, on climbs & in the woods. My legs started giving me hints of cramping only halfway through the race, and I forgot my electrolytes. Luckily Rick happened to have an extra bottle on his seatpost filled with water &...Electrolytes!!! He offered me a drink and then I asked for another 20 mins later & eventually he just gave it to me...lol. That literally saved me as I managed to keep the leg craps at bay until the end...but not before the finish :oP. We were never alone for long as we would catch on &/or be caught by other groups of riders. At one point, "In the bush" as my Canadian teamie would say...lol, we hit a sandpit & a small gap formed between myself & Rick & I looked back & he said, "Keep going!". I did but I felt like I was leaving a fellow soldier alone on the battle field after all the suffering he'd saved me from with his help. It was a race after all though not a war & I knew he'd be fine :o). I carried on with a few new riders onto the finish. 

    Anyone that has raced Ore to Shorte knows the big (deep) sandy downhill on the way before the finish. It's kind of a signal that you're on the Home Stretch. It's on the edge of some small sand dunes. There's a short dip, so a downhill then it pops back up for a sec (momentum is key) and then continues downhill again (you want to stay to the right because there's a bit of solid ground...anyhow...). It's like surfing sand on your bike. Fun!  Well, I crashed there for the first time ever. No biggie though, it was soft, I dusted off, ran up the hill,  & I continued on. Legs were getting worse though from that incident so when I hit  the next climb (which was INCREDIBLY soft & steep) I got off halfway & ran up to save my legs from completely seizing (this particular hill & I have a history...it's never pretty). I hopped back on and kept pushing along, until I crashed again on a sharp, loose, right turn in the final bit of single track. I was tired & getting sloppy...plain & simple. I laid on the ground locked into my pedals, legs seized w/ cramps & couldn't get up for what seemed like an eternity. I eventually got out & up & I heard a woman's voice close behind yelling something like "Watch out! Coming through! Outta my way!". Uh-Oh. Up until this point I had known I was riding in 5th place. Podium. Could I hang on for a couple more miles? I gave it all I had.     Anna Ganju (Team Polska) finally caught up to me on the long wood chip covered straight away right before we hopped the curb to ride the winding roads to the finish line. With her on my wheel I wasn't quite sure what to do. I knew I didn't want to drag her up to the finish line but that's what ended up happening as she didn't try to over take me until the final corner onto the gravel stretch before the finish. Maybe I should have let her? At the time I wasn't sure because this was the first time I'd been in a situation like this. I errored on the side of staying where I was, in front. All I know is I gave it my all in the entire race, especially in the last few seconds. My heart rate hit an all-time high but my sprint still fell short. .01 seconds short to be exact. That's the way the cookie crumbled though I guess. If I hadn't made those few mistakes/crashes towards the end it would have never come down to a sprint finish but I did make those mistakes & Anna won the final podium spot fair & square. Congrats to her as she rode in 6th the ENTIRE race & pulled off a podium finish.      I was bummed afterward...really really bummed. But in my disappointment there's actually something to celebrate... I set a goal for a race for the first time in 3 years. That says a lot. I set a concrete goal...I believed in myself & my abilities and I came damn close to accomplishing it. Sue had an awesome 3rd place finish :o) and Scott & Christina got 3rd place in Co-Ed Tandem. 

    The rest of the trip was good times! Bonfires, beers, & riding the sweeeeeeeet Marquette Mtn trails Sunday & Monday. We all had to get back to reality eventually so Monday afternoon we packed up & headed home. It was the best Ore to Shore yet! :o) Erin

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July Racing..

This post is WAY overdue but my motto has always been: "Better late than never!"  {it works for me because I'm always late ;o) }

         After the Stony Marathon, I had a free weekend & then got back at it with Tailwind Racing's Bloomer Park Daze Race. It's been years since I'd ridden or raced at Bloomer and WOW! that trail's been greatly improved during that time! Amanda Ryan (Einstein Racing) & I prerode the course together the afternoon before the race & I ended up kind of freaking out about how fun it was!  I texted Sue immediately when we finished to spread the good news so she'd be pysched for race day too! Race day came & it went well. Sue Won, I was 2nd, & Amanda was 3rd :o)!  

     The other two girls that showed up to race were Melanie Bernier (Reynold Cycle) & Natalie Mousseau (Reynold Cycle)  from Ontario. At the start line we were all kinda laughing about how ridiculous it was that  the Ontario women out numbered the Michiganders @ a Michigan race! What is up with that eh?! Lol...sheesh.  

     After the race we grabbed a "recovery" drink & walked across the park to the Velodrome to watch the racing that was going on inside. That's some crazy stuff! Not sure I'm cut out for that kind of cycling but it was pretty fun to watch :o)!

Great trail! Great race! Great day!

Next Up was the TREE FARM RELAY RACE on July 28th!!!!  

This is always such a fun race and this year was just as good as always! Our team (Team Q & Brew) consisted of Sue, Myself, Joe Brzuchanski & his bro Brian.  We "raced" in the Co-Ed Advanced class & won!  After the race I think we stayed until 6:30-7pm just hanging out, drinking, listening to the band, doing cartwheels, & laughing. Then the party continued on to Casey's bar & grill in Walled Lake for Sushi! All in all it was an awesome summer day & I'm glad I got to spend it riding my bike & being outdoors with such a great group of friends. Cheers and thanks to  Darkhorse Racing & Team Tree Farm for making it all happen :o)!

Next up.... Road Trip!!! ♥MARQUETTE♥ ... here I come!!!!

WhooooHooooo!

:o)

Erin

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SUE'S A COVER GIRL!

 Windsor Life Magazine did an interview and photo spread on Sue for their Summer issue. Not only that... unbeknownst to her, they also put her on the COVER! I can't think of a better, more deserving person for the job! The title of the article (story by Dick Hildebrand) is "Sue Stephens: Driven By Passion, Dedication, and Motivation". It gives some background on her personal life, past & present, as well as info on her life as a pro mountain biker. Check it out the full online article here. And follow Sue's adventure's in life & racing here on our team blog as well as her personal blog.

Way to go Sue! So proud of you Teamie! Cheers!

:o)

Erin

[gritmtbteam-blog]

Stony Creek Mararthon This was the 4th time I've done this marathon but the first time I think I did it right :o). When you're on the start line of a 50 mile race in 90 degree heat with high humidity, it brings some comfort knowing you have a plan. My plan was to take all the lessons I had learned from making mistakes (& from from doing things right) in previous years & use that experience to my advantage. Things like wearing a bag of ice, not starting like a bat out of hell, taking Endurolytes, having a plain/dump water bottle on my bike, not sitting on the wheel of someone I catch, ride smarter/not harder, find the 'sweet spot' & stay in that zone, use a Hammer gel flask/not individual packets, drink Perpetuem, & stay positive...amongst other things... can't give away all the secrets ;o). Big thanks to our sponsor Hammer Nutrition though!!! Their products & information are the BEST! Having nutrition dialed (finally) made a really big difference & I'm very grateful for their support this season. The race went well. Not a very big field...we had 5 ladies on the line. Same old Stony Creek trail but a slightly different course this year. Sue took off at the start, got the hole shot, & never looked back. She won by a good margin! I came in second and Bonnie Karas (Team Fraser) was third. The race itself was kind of weird this year because for as many other racers as there was on course, I found I was completely alone for most of it. Regardless, the laps seem to fly by fast & it was all over before I knew it! All in all I think it was a great success for Team Quiring! Congrats to Sue on the WIN & to all of the other racers that came out & finished. Nice work!

:o)

Erin

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Wisconsin Off Road Series: Battle of CamRock

This was a whirlwind trip. In & Out. It's amazing what a good time can be squeezed into to 2 days if you try! Especially considering that 14 hours of that was spent in a van driving. I guess it all has to do with who you're with & where you're going really eh?! :o) This past weekend my friend & room mate Amanda Ryan (Einstein Racing), Sue, (& her husband) Jay & I all piled into the big white van & headed West to Cambridge, Wisconsin. We arrived Saturday at CamRock Park around 5:00pm & did a 2 lap preride of the course. We were delighted with how fun it was! I mean REALLY fun! Like grinning ear-to-ear & screaming-"WoooHooo!"-while-you're-riding kind of fun :o). Laps were around 5 miles with a fair amount of climbing per lap (aprox. 520 ft) that was broken up throughout. The trail was designed for mountain biking & it showed. There was a little bit of everything with a lot of narrow & twisty single track but plenty of open areas to pass. It was in the 90's & humid so after our preride we were hot, thirsty & sort of hungry. We went in search of a new place in town called Camrock Cafe & Sport. If you like micro brews, good food, & bikes... you would LOVE this place. It also had kayak, canoe & paddle board rentals as well as a lounging/dining area, outdoor seating, even a shop dog. I thought I died & went to heaven :o). We liked the place so much we went there twice in two days! Saturday night the 4 of us hung out in the hotel room relaxing and somehow got hooked on watching train wreck prison dramas on tv & fell asleep around 10:30-11pm. Sunday, race day, was another hot one! Every summer I try to do rides in the heat and get acclimated to it but it usually takes at least one meltdown race for my body to settle in and finally tolerate it. I did a short warm up out on the road with a couple hard hits & felt pretty good going to the line to start. The women's field was good size! We had 15 Elite women as well as 10 Open (Expert) women for our start time. Elite women were slated for four 5 mile laps and Open women for three laps. On "Goooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" we took off up the open, half mile gradual climb. I had a great start (in retrospect probably too great but I felt so good at the time...lol) and lead the group out and up the opening climb. Abby Strigel (Honey Stinger/Bontrager), the eventual winner, came around me at the top when it flattened out & got into the single track first. Sue had caught up after having a troubled start & I let her squeeze by as we entered the the woods so she could try to go chase down Abby. After a few miles of sitting in 3rd, with my hard start & the hot, HOT heat... I couldn't get my heart rate down and I had a bit of a meltdown throughout lap one. By the end of it I was sitting in 8th or 9th place. Convinced I had a flat, I came to a complete stop when getting my feed from Jay. I had hit a rock with my back tire towards the end of the lap & felt my rim as well as my 'insides' cooking. I felt so bad I was pretty sure (almost hoping...lol) I had a flat. Not even close, it was fine, I was just over heated & getting loopy so I dumped a bottle full of ice water over my head, grabbed a new cold one to take with me & I headed back out on lap 2. Lap 2 was better as I got acclimated to the heat & my heart rate got down to a sustainable level. Lap 3 was great. I felt like I was really flowing through the single track. And lap four I felt like I still had lots of power & was climbing well. Typically as the race goes on it usually gets harder but this time it felt like it almost got easier. Although I was definitely tapped when I finished..lol.  I finished a couple minutes off the podium in 7th place. I wouldn't say I had a great race by any means but I was encouraged by the way I felt out there as I felt like I'm still getting stronger :o)! Sue had a great race finishing 2nd & in her first mountain bike race of the season, Amanda had some bad luck & lost air in her front tire on the final lap & DNF'd. Jay did a fantastic job with all the feeds to the 3 of us. Especially considering I was taking an ice water dump plus a bottle feed every lap... he had his hands full...literally! Thank you Jay!!!  Afterwards we relaxed in the shade and caught up with some Wisconsin racing friends. Sue did the podium, collected her Wisco 'cheddar', and  then we made one last stop @ Camrock Cafe & Sport to enjoy a good meal before hitting the road! Awesome weekend! Go do a WORS race!!!! I promise it's a good time, the people are friendly, the courses are a blast, & it's all really well run!  Thanks to everyone there that made our little crew feel so welcomed :o)! We're so glad we went & can't wait to go back & do another! Thanks for reading & stay cool...lol. :o) Erin

[gritmtbteam-blog]

And post race interview :o) !

[gritmtbteam-blog]

Hardwood Hills Canada Cup

I arrived at Sue's home in Harrow, ON about 9am Friday morning. We hung out a bit, Jay did a bit prep on our bikes, got the big white van packed (I love that thing!), & then the crew (Sue, Jay, Clayton, Nolan, & myself) settled in for the (rainy) 6hr drive to Oro-Medonte, ON. I had been looking forward to this race since the finish line at Fort Custer a month ago. Mostly mentally preparing myself for Hardwood as Sue described it as "Yeah, it's pretty technical." which translated in my mind as "Start preparing mentally for riding some sh!t that's going to put you way out of your comfort zone Erin!". I did my best to build my confidence by thinking positively & by getting out on the more technical trails in my area as much as I could.

We finally arrived at our gorgeous little KOA cabin but it was still chilly, windy & raining pretty hard. We decided a preride wouldn't be worth it (as we still had Saturday also) so instead Sue had the bright idea of driving over to the venue to check it out & walk a bit of the course. As we walked up to the Start/Finish area my heart sank as I looked up and saw (dun-dun-DUN!) The Bone Shaker. It was a fairly steep, all rock downhill with turns, & the rocks were all wet & uneven. Looking up at it, honestly, I doubted that I would be able to ride it. We climbed it & walked it & after that I knew it was rideable but it was still quite intimidating. Little did I know come race day that The Bone Shaker would be the least of my worries when it came to the "techy" sections on course.

Later on some friend's of Sue & Jay's that were also staying @ the campground, they had a young son that came over to watch Star Wars with Sue's youngest son Nolan & out of nowhere at one point the boy just randomly yelled to us all: "Who's the Peanut Butter Sandwich?!!!!!". I barely heard it because mentally I was back at the course freaking out about how difficult it was. I snapped myself out of it, laughing at his little comment I went along with it & responded, "You are!". As insignificant & silly as this may sound, it became my mantra for the next 2 days while riding, whenever I found fear creeping in, I'd say to myself "Who's the Peanut Butter Sandwhich?!!!!!" (lmao) & I'd laugh inside, breathe, relax, & reset.

Saturday Sue & I went & signed in & did a 2 lap preride. Our course was 3.6 miles with 500 ft of climbing per lap & we were to do 5 laps come race day. We were grinning ear to ear & high-fiving as we both really enjoyed the ride. It was dry & full of techy fun singletrack & best of all I realized the Bone Shaker was completely rideable. Most of the climbs were open, with none of them going on for too long. It was all pretty broken up throughout the course. You name it as far as technical features & it was out there: rocks, roots, logs, drops, switchbacks & my favorite part was the end of the lap: a short BMX section! I went to bed that night full of confidence & excited for race day.

Sunday morning the time flew by & Sue & I were warming up in the cold rain (oxymoron) alongside all the other Pro/Elite & Junior Ex riders, all totally oblivious of exactly what the trail had in store us because of all the rain we got. We went to the line soaking wet with 5mins to stand in the rain waiting for call ups & the horn to blow. It did & we were off up the long(ish), open gradual start climb. We both started in the back of the pack. Sue immediately began picking off riders & I was content to work into the race a bit more slowly. I quickly realized after the first bit of single track that this course was not draining anymore & was now covered in thick,slick mud. It was going to take every bit of composure, concentration, balance, skill & strength I had! Me vs. the trail & nothing else mattered besides that! "Who's the Peanut Butter Sandwich?!!!!"

The race was totally insane but what i got out of it...what i learned, what i overcame, & what i went through out there....was all very VERY valuable! I rode some stuff the likes of  I've never even laid eyes on but managed to clean the whole course for 4 laps without even a dab! Although I did have to grab/pull/push/balance myself on/against trees a few times. And got some sweet bruises & scrapes on my forearms from it but it hey!... it worked! The confidence I gained from riding the course the way I did is gonna help me for a long time I think. The rain finally slowed down & then stopped for our 5th & final lap. BUT the 5th lap was also when it all started going pretty south for me. 4 out of 5 ain't bad though...lol. With somewhere around 3 miles to go I crashed rolling a downhill boulder because the backside had gotten so rutted my wheel didnt make contact with the dirt as soon as id expected & i went tumbling downhill. 1 rider passed  as i collected myself. At this point I realized I didn't have the upper body strength left to literally hang on to my bike anymore. My arms, hands & shoulders were so pumped from 1hr 45min of white knuckle riding that they were just pretty much wasted :oP. Not that I really had any other choice at that point but After that I chose to 'live to ride another day' & ran a couple of the really sloppy downhills. And another rider passed by. My drive train was so gunked up at this point... I shifted to an easier gear to make it up this steep metal bridge & my chain fell off into frame & got stuck. I stopped to yank it out & struggled for a minute. Another rider passed by. Fixed it & got going again. It was a loooong few miles. I ran a couple more sections & finally rode it in for the fun-as-hell-bmx finish stretch. Ended up 20th out 28 starters. Sue had what I thought was a good race (she begs to differ) & finished 13th. I'm happy with the race because, like I said before, I feel I got SO MUCH out of it & it was also just a great, memorable weekend :o).

Big thank you to the whole Stephens family!!! I couldn't ask for a better teammate in Sue! She's just the BEST :o)! Thanks to her husband Jay for all the help with the bike & bottles hand offs. And last but not least thanks to the boys, Clayton & Nolan, for DJ-ing our rainy Friday night in the cabin, hosing down our bikes after the race, & cheering. Go team Quiring!!!

:o)

Erin

p.s. & on top of all of that we got an awesome DOUBLE RAINBOW on the drive home Sunday!