Utah Cross:

Bart in Emv colored footie pajamas!

pics by MTBracenews.com

Portland Cross:

Sue in the marching band?

Durango Night Cross:

Mrs Sontagg where is your bike?

All the fun and games of Halloween will be put aside as the team embarkes on some serious racing.  Sue heads to France for 3rd round Cyclocross World Cup while Bart, Alex, Ben, Tinker, Jeremiah, and Matt travel to Costa Rica for the Hardest Mountain Bike Race in the World, La Ruta de los Conquistadors.  Check back for updates…

Different Worlds of Brazil:

Traveling to different countries and experiencing new cultures is often an education in contrast. As Team Monavie-Cannondale traveled from  the “new world” in Sao Paulo to the “old world” in Ouro Preto that contrast was front and center.

Lodging in Sao Paulo:  High Rise!

Lodging in Ouro Preto:  18th Century!

Roads in Sao Paulo:  Busy!

Roads in Ouro Preto:   Cobbles!

Media in Sao Paulo:  ESPN Brazil!

Media in Ouro Preto:  Local tv and radio!

Food in Sao Paulo:  Rodizio!

Food in Ouro Preto:  Wood Fired!

Buildings in Sao Paulo:  New!

Buildings  in Ouro Preto:  Classic!

Worlds may be different but two things always remain the same.  Racing is hard and the people define the experience!

The Racing:

In it’s 17th year Iron Biker Brasil is the largest and most competitive mountain bike race in Brazil and likely all of South America. Like the Leadville 100 in the United States, Iron Biker Brasil not only draws top competition but also has developed a cult like following among the thousands of  amateur cyclists that compete year after year.

Stage 1 consisted of an 80k loop starting and finishing in Ouro Preto with over 8000 feet of elevation gain. The race started in the town square and immediately ascended the side of a steep mountain, in a different direction than we pre rode! Gotta love the language barrier. The race was also reported to have a “neutral” start out of town, which if you have done The Leadville 100 or other big US races you understand to mean a safe pace on pavement and a chance to get warmed up. Not so in South America, “neutral” just means you can’t pass the lead moto which in this case happens to be a 450cc KTM throttled wide open up a 20% grade, not very neutral and no chance to warm up!

This is exactly what Team Monavie-Cannondale loves about racing in foreign territory, uncontrolled variables!

Once underway the race was a blast, alternating between steep climbs and twisty descents. The views were incredible and the heavy rains from the day before left some slick mud and picturesque fog.

Team Monavie-Cannondale put in there best effort after some challenging travel days, but as expected were not able to topple the top Brazilians in there home race. Tinker and Alex chased the front group all day and finished a strong 5th and 6th.  Bart found himself in no mans land riding solo through the field up into 8th until coming unglued with dehydration and cramps 4km from the finish where he rolled in 10th. Matt had challenging day that included a near deadly encounter with a swarm of black Brazilian wasps and a healthy sized bonk of his own.

Day 2 started in the neighbooringtown of Mariana and was only 50km. What it lacked in length it made up for in speed! Again we got to experience the South American “neutral” start as 1000 racers jetted through the cobbled streets of downtown Mariana towards the first big climb. Again the Monavie-Cannondale boys were caught out at the start not knowing the sprint to the singletrack. They chased hard all day through sloppy jungle singletrack, lava field power climbs, high speed rail trail, cobbled village roads, to a mud bog finish. Tinker, Alex, and Bart would all unknowingly ride the entire route with about 1 minute between them, great team work huh! Matt was on fire on day 2, and with now major bug encounters was able to finish strong in the tough Elite field.

Racers gather at the square…

Nervous on the start line…

Steep climbs…

More steep climbs…

The Brazilians put on a clinic on there home turf taking the top 5 spots overall.

The People:

“Epic Racing Around The World” is as much about making friends as it is about challenging events.  At Iron Biker Brasil we made a ton of friends!

A huge thanks to Marucio, Eduardo, and Douglas from Monavie Brazil Corporate, these guys are friends for life.

Pedro and R3Global put together the nuts and bolts of our operation in Ouro Preto and Mirinas including the man power to set up the Emv compound,

the Jujitsu specialists for security,

the bike washers,

the enthusiasm,

and the public relation specialists.

We also got to know Gil and the Iron Biker Crew, Fred and the Movida rental car crew, fellow competitors, and hundreds of very friendly Brazilian cycling enthusiasts!

Friendships and memories that will last forever, or at least until we come back next year for more…

I wasn’t sure what promoter Todd Branham meant when under the logo for the Pisgah Mountain Bike Stage Race it says ” The Lion has Risen”??

But now I know, and have to say that the Pisgah Mountain Bike stage race was the most challenging courses and race of the year! Man that was FUN! My legs feel like I lost a mixed martial arts battle.

Despite what looked like a large time gap to second place the racing was in fact very close and exciting. Even after Sam lost time due to a broken chain near 5,000ft on top of Laurel Mountain; I felt as if anything could happen. A couple minute lead here is like 2 seconds in a normal race!

Sure enough I had to fight to keep my lead on the last day when it was my turn for chain problems. After a brutal pace on the opening 30 min climb thanks to (Evan Plews and Colby Peirce) a lead group formed.

Sam, Christian Tanguy, Colby, Evan and myself.

The stages highest point was removed due to a snow and ice situation. This also was good for me because I was less stressed about holding my lead since we where skipping a very gnarly slick trail. We hit some snow cover on the leaves at only 3,500ft at the top of the first climb and I felt in control of the leaders jersey.

After just a half hour of dirt roads I realized I could only use the big ring due to a worn 2nd ring and grimy conditions. Uh oh! After some massive chain suck I realized it was just best to keep it in the big ring. Lets just say the granny gear climbs I knew where coming brought a feeling of dread!

Talk about a workout! I made sure to put it to max pace on the low grade 20 minute climbs to make Sam work but also to reduce the impact of any time gap that may arise. The run ups hurt but I kept it together and Sam got his much deserved stage win! The second to last trail of the day was stupid gnarly but I could see the tire tracks. As I scampered down the wet rock staircase I knew that Sam had today locked up but I also knew I was just 8 miles from bringing home the overall and was now in no hurry.
 
The Lion has Risen!

Jeremiah

Iron Biker Brasil update coming soon…

Ouro Preto is a historical mining town known for it’s colonial architecture and steep cobbled city streets. This place is amazing and only pictures will do it justice, unfortunately we are having difficulty with the Internet and uploading pictures is impossible.

Last night the 1st ever Emv prologue short track on the rain slick cobbled streets was a huge success with possibly the best race production and vibe we have ever seen.  Alex turned himself inside out up the 27% cobbled climb to finish 3rd while Bart rolled in 5th.

Today was the 1st stage of the Iron Biker and with nearly 1000 competitors on the line it lived up to it’s billing as the Brazilian World Championships! Again, words can’t explain the production of this event and a full update with tons pictures and video will follow once we get back to Sao Paulo. The Monavie gringos’s did pretty good today with Tinker battling for 5th, Alex 6th, and Bart possibly squeaking in the top 10.

A huge thanks has to go out to the entire Monavie Brazil crew including Mauricio, Douglas, and Eduardo. Pedro and the entire R3Global crew have also gone completely out of there way to make our stay and experience unforgettable. There passion and enthusiasm are contagious!

Tomorrow surely will include more adventure, stay tuned for pictures, video, and play by play of all the action!