the bike comes first

I love to race bikes on dirt, and I post videos on YouTube. Follow my adventures here.

[thebikecomesfirst]

Recovery day at the beach in Barcelona ☺️🌴

[thebikecomesfirst]

Already time to say goodbye to the Pyrenees. It was good time up here in Andorra 🇦🇩 ❤️

[thebikecomesfirst]

That feeling when you cross the finish line of a stage race

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We got the medal!! Andorra Epic completed successfully in 18:12:09. Stage 4 was incredible with natural technical single tracks. And the slight rain we had made it slippery like I love; but that caught a few riders out who went down. The last 10km was a bike path climb back to the venue. It felt brutal. I’m glad it’s done.

[thebikecomesfirst]

Time to send it with all we have left for the final stage!! 💪💪 Should be fun.

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Stage 3 completed. The “Queen” stage. Oh man it was a tough day in the saddle. We climbed 2,330m and descended technical downhills in 6:16:27. I pushed myself to the edge of cramps, then kept going for hours 🤪. My body felt exactly like it did in training when I simulated the stages, so no surprise there. Happy I got it done. Last stage is tomorrow!

[thebikecomesfirst]

Another stage completed! Even though we climbed less than yesterday, this one felt harder. The descents were long and physical. That was rad! Now onto the big one tomorrow. It’s going to hurt!

[thebikecomesfirst]

We’re team #114 at the Andorra Epic. You can follow our live progress with the Epic Series app.

[thebikecomesfirst]

It’s always satisfying to reach the feed station

[thebikecomesfirst]

The first one is done!! It was great to finally see the type of terrain & trails we are dealing with this week. And it was awesome! Tough climbs but the descents were worth it. I thought the bikes were going to stay clean because it was dry, but right at the end we got ‘em dirty with a muddy section. In total today we climbed 1550m over 42km in just under 4h.

[thebikecomesfirst]

I arrived in Andorra 🇦🇩 and am ready to conquer the Pyrenees!! We’re going to climb 6400m and descend epic single tracks over 200km in 4 days. Can’t wait to get the bike dirty!

[thebikecomesfirst]

Getting used to riding with tired legs; doing long rides back-to-back. And it’s starting to feel like summer at the beach when the sun finally pierces through the marine layer.

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Shout out to the Cosmic Cafe at Mt Wilson Observatory for again saving my life with a chilli dog and a coke after a long ascent to the summit.

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Amazing weather today for an epic ride. Starting cool under the clouds for the tough part, then breaking through the clouds half-way up with beautiful sunshine and breathtaking views. I’m stoked to make it past the 5h mark without cramps.

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It has been a while since I’ve ridden Middle Sam Merrill. I think the heavy rain we had this winter washed away the soil and more rocks are exposed. It’s definitely more enduro; I didn’t have enough bike for this. I need to bring my Genius next time. But regardless, my Spark felt amazing today thanks to a near full-rebuild at Bike Improve. It’s like a new bike!

[thebikecomesfirst]

Climbing Mt Wilson (again) this time via Mt Lowe. It’s one of my favorite view up there, but the summit was stuck in a cloud 🤷‍♂️. Glad I brought dry extra layers for the descent.

[thebikecomesfirst]

It always feels amazing to end a long mountain biking ride on the beach at sunset.