CODY SHIMIZU

A look into my life, a journal to look back on, a blog for others to see.

Since I have been diagnosed with Sciatica in my lower back, training has come to a halt, and my XC season was pretty much over before it had even started. So since I always enjoy some technical descents I decided to do some Enduro races, first starting with the Crowsnest Pass Enduro of the BC Enduro series. This would be my first enduro race in two years! The only one Ive ever done was Canmore 2 years ago, which was an absolute blast, with chill vibes throughout the event.

To try and keep the costs to a minimum I decided that I would be car camping for this race. I left Edmonton friday evening for Calgary where Id be staying for the night. I found an nice and quiet corner at a Walmart parking lot and spent the night there. The next morning I left around 7 am trying to be at Crowsnest by 10 am so I would have time to pre ride the course. The drive was absolutely beautiful, the rolling hills with the Rockies in the background glistening in the morning light with nicely paved roads, with no cops in sight.

When I got to the Pass Powerkeg Lodge where the event was happening I noticed Carson`s truck (He is the Specialized Rep for nothern Alberta, also a really chill dude). He was there with a few guys from Redbike, Liam, Craig, and Brad. I was able to preride the course with them which was nice since Liam, Craig, and Brad had done the race in Crowsnest last year so they knew where to go, and gave me lots of helpful tips. Its also always nice to be following guys who are much more technically inclined then you. By following them I can really see their line choices and techniques, hopefully some of it rubs off on me. Unfortuntely when we were pre riding stage 2 (The most technical in my opinion) Brad had a bad crash with a berm giving out under him and popped his shoulder out. Get better soon Brad!!! After making sure Brad was okay to make it back to the car we pre rode the rest of the course. Later I had supper at Tim Hortons (I know, classy me).

The next morning was an early start for me with the U21 category leaving at 7:30 am. I was up by 5:30 am slowly getting ready for the big day out. After a quick breakfast I was all suited up and ready to go. On the first climb I could already feel that my legs were pretty sore from all 1400m of climbing yesterday. Once I was at the top I realized I had forgot my gloves, and one thing to know about me is that I NEVER ride gloveless. Also wearing full face helmets were mandatory for all U21 riders and I absolutely hate full face helmets, as I feel like they obstruct my view, are heavy, and sweaty to ride with.

Stage 1: The first stage of the day, although there was a 20 min climb to the top I didnt quite feel loosened up yet, but with nowhere to really warm up I got to the start. Off the line I was clipped in the top section was really open with lots of loose rocks and fairly steep. I made sure to not overcook the first left as I blew out the corner yesterday in pre ride, with both tires sliding I just barely made it and I sprinted out before I realized there was another corner right after, I came in waay too hot and blew the corner out sliding off course. I definitly lost atleast 10 sec right there. I quickly hopped back on my bike and kept riding. The mid section was a fast flowy section, as much as my hardtail was perfect for the trail, in terms of speed I am probably one of the slowest not being used to having groomed flow trails in Edmonton. The bottom section was a bit more pedaly with a few short up hills. By this point I felt pretty gassed and my hands were slipping off with the sweat.

Stage 2: It was quite a grind up to stage 2 with over 500m of climbing to be done. But the views were definitely worth it! You are literally on the very top of a mountain with 360 views of the valley. Definitely insta worthy. The very top of the stage is very open with some boulders to ride over then you come to one of the bigger features the rock roll. There are two lines to the left is the easier way where it goes around the rock face, and the right line is more direct going right over it. I took the right line since to me it was a lot more simpler, just point your rear wheel down, lean back and hope for the best. I survived. A few corners later my front wheel washed out and I went down. The rider in front of me looked like he went down in the same corner and had to fix his handle bars. The lower section is more of my style with lots of choppy roots with a little bit of flow, Hands cramping up I made it to the line in one piece.

Stage 3: After a short stop at the feed station it was a short climb up to stage three. I was looking forward to this stage as it was full of giant rocks and boulders with one huge rock face, as bad as I am riding through and over rocks they were incredibly fun, requiring razor sharp focus to navigate the right line. The lower section of the trail gets loose with a few choppy sections of roots through the woods.

Stage 4: Berms, berms, berms. Oh man they still sketch me out! The berms on this stage was one of the best Ive ever rode. Rock solid like concrete built nice and tall, one of them was even made of coal! They were super smooth and easy to ride, but I was still braking quite a bit going into them not wanting to wash out. Definitely lots to learn still but incredibly fun. In the middle of the stage you come out to an open field where you can really put the power down, but as I started pedalling my gears started jamming, after backpedalling a few times the gears untangled itself, but by then I was flying back into the woods with a tight left. After squeezing my brakes as hard as I can I just managed to make the corner. The bottom section was a healthy mix of shale and rocks, managing to avoid all of the sharp rocks, I made it down to the line.

Stage 5: By this point my legs were very tired, it was quite the grind for me to make it up the ski hill. I could feel myself starting to fade near the top. The top of stage 5 was probably my least favorite of them all. It was ridiculously loose, you could see where the riders were with all of the dust being kicked up. There were big swooping berms with jumps wayy above my skill level. The top was just about survival, I like the bottom section much more, with a bunch of super steep slow technical sections (well maybe just slow for me) with my ass hanging right over the rear tire, struggling to keep everything under control, it was amazing!

There was no way that I would be able to compete with the other kids from Canmore or BC with their Enduro fitness, and incredible finesse and technical skills on their bike, but I was actually quite happy with my times, especially on stage 2. Crowsnest is really a hidden gem still not overly crowded. As it is overshadowed by the popularity of Fernie less than an hour away. I had an absolute blast and will definitely be on my race schedule for me next year. Thanks for letting me chill with you guys at the race, Carson, Craig, Brad, Liam!

#Hardtail4Life