Happy Birthday to Eli!

Notice: Increase in Mean Membership Age.

This just in: shop rats the world over have gathered in prayer and celebration in honor of July 19th, the very day a planetary and theological alignment brought not one, but TWO CSD members into the world as we know it. Happy birthday to our realest member, Enid, and our fear-no-flame, founding father, Jon. Eat cha cake, yo!

The Hillsborough Five

This is great week. In fact, stoke like this is akin to hauling around an IV drip of dopamine all the live long day. What could possibly have kicked it off? The Hillsborough Five endurance race in NB.
CSD showed up the night before in two ferocious car loads, one in the Tomlin Megatron (The Grallerz, TT, JB, and Downtown), and the other in the team car (myself, The Young Gun, and Marty). The Megatron crew thoroughly out-partied the other, engaging in monumental antics to the degree of starting the 5 hour race with no sleep at all. With the smell of burning Hoosiers behind us (Moncton was overrun with the obese/an antique car show), we rolled away from downtown M dot and crossed the bridge to Riverview. 30 minutes down the road we rolled into the race/golfcourse, on the lookout for the party. As the party had expired found, we took the car down a bit of the course, and did some slides on the green before busting out the tent on said green. Breakfast in the club house was especially entertaining; we requested a window seat so we could look down the hill at our drying homestead. I made sure to tip well.

When it started it was about 25 degrees, and rose steadily from there under clear skies. I decided to hold off from doing the 5 hour solo as the tendonitis in my left wrist was continuing to talk back. JB and I entered the two man team category. Martin and the Grallerz lined up for the solo 5, while TT and AB rolled into the mixed category.
The course was incredible - just scorched, fast conditions, and tons of killer new singletrack! The climbing never came all at once, and sort of fell under the radar in the face of so many fast sections over an old gypsum quarry. The lap finished with such an intense DH sections that my tendonitis arm would go numb, and I couldn't feel my fingers on my right. Shit was real indeed.
JB started first and everything came in together for the start of my first lap. L'esperance's parter wasn't really a worthy counterpart to the Young Gun, and CSD's old guard quickly built a comfortable lead that would allow lovely events like my chainring bolts falling out to occur without disaster. Martin battled with Ryan Belliveau (who won the overall solo 5 and the singlespeed category!) but was undone by only one minute by the end of the day.
Tomlin ripped off 4 hard laps as was expected, but what was spectacularly impressive was Downtown, who having never ridden anything with sustained downhills before, took to the course and made her two laps happen, no doubt doubling her skill by the end of the day! Pink Radars inspire confidence in anyone! The Grallerz decided that despite the serenade of drag-racers the night before, they themselves cannot run on alcohol. Their ratio of partying to performing is still matched by no one but TT himself, and will be underlined in the annals of CSD. Enid STILL took the solo 5 female victory!

Look forward to CSD Agent Quadz' report on the Wentworth road race. Also good luck to the Young Gun as he heads off shortly to XC Nationals in Mont Sainte Anne!

Chops is now going to watch the finish of Le Tour. Au revoir!