201 Teams, 17 Solo Males, 4 Solo Females Equaling Approximately 1100 Racers
24 Hours of Adrenalin (Part 1)
I cannot adequately describe the 24 Hours of Adrenalin at Hurkey Creek campground near Idyllwild, California. I mean, I can tell you all about my team’s experience in the race, but there is no way one person can sum up the entire event. 24 Hours of Adrenalin races are organized by Tri-Life, a Canadian-based company that travels North America from spring to fall promoting several 24-hour mountain bike events. Throughout my life I have attended uncountable motorcycle races as a racer, spectator, journalist and even worker but none of those events (not even AMA Supercross or FIM World Superbike) come close to the organization of the 24 Hours of Adrenalin.
This year’s event was my second and I came away even more impressed than last year. There are several reasons why I think the event is so well organized compared to other events I’ve been involved with. Tri-Life takes care of the racers, spectators/support crews, sponsors, media and local businesses. If you’re not racing you can compete in musical chairs, watch movies on the drive-in like movie screen, get involved with the race theme contests or partake in a handful of other non-racing activities that take place from noon Saturday to noon Sunday.
The beauty behind it all is that you don’t have to be a bicycle racer to take part. Most of the teams are riding for the fun and experience of a 24-hour event. It’s not uncommon to see someone on a 10-man Corporate team finish his/her lap and then drink a beer and it’s not uncommon to see young kids and 50-something women out on the loop and it's not uncommon to see people hugging and crying out of joy at noon on Sunday either. Whether you compete on a Corporate team of ten, an age division team of five, a two-man team or as an honorable Solo, finishing is very satisfying.
This year Divaadrenalin was back and bidding, not for the fastest All-Female team, but to defend their Best Campsite title. And they did, kind of. Divaadrenalin decked out their campsite with teepees, hay bails, cowboy hats and all things western to tie with Team Heat, an Idyllwild/Hemet-based team of serious racers that were supported by a caterer, a live band, tons of support people and even dancers. Team Heat’s Hawaiian-themed campsite also offered up free food and drink to anyone in attendance. That is what the 24 Hours of Adrenalin is all about.
The 24 Hours of Adrenalin atmosphere is 49-percent party, 49-percent mountain bike race and 2-percent suffer fest (it’s still a bike race). Of the 201 teams entered Daart Endurance (my team) finished ninth overall, completing 27 laps in 24:38:59. In the 5-man 150-199 Age Group (of the five guys on my team, our added ages fell in between 150 and 199) we finished third out of 55. Pretty good results, but I feel I could have ridden better. My body is tired, fatigued and beat up from a long racing season and I feel like my lap times suffered due to the fact.
More later.
Sep 30, 2002
Sep 27, 2002
Bill Gates, Rosie O'Donnell & 91 Freeway - Bad
Mark McGuire & San Antonio Riverwalk - Good
O.J. - ?
Before I left for San Antonio for the Kawasaki Dealer Meeting someone sent me an email with a nasty virus attached. It disabled my computer at work but I said, "Screw it, I'm going to Texas. I'll deal with it when I get back." While I was away I totally forgot about. I had other things to worry about, like whether or not the 13 racers scheduled to do four autograph signings, over two days, were going to show up on time. For the most part they did and only twice did I have to get on my cell phone to track down missing riders. And while Eric Bostrom, Tony Miering and Destry Abbott were off in down town San Antonio bowling (four games, each at under 100 points) I was stuck on the showroom floor for two days listening to questions like, "When will we see a new ZX-7R?" or "Who's going to ride the GP bike in Europe next year?"
The last night we were in town was actually pretty fun. Destry, Tony, Jason Smigel, Tommy Hayden and I had dinner down on the Riverwalk and then went over to Sunset Station to the Kawasaki Farewell Party and watched drunken dealers and co-workers make arses of themselves on several different dance floors. Jason, Tommy and Tony turned in early so Destry and I went back down to the Riverwalk and sat outside at an Irish Pub and had peanuts and a beer - all the while watching several drunk tourists swagger down the Riverwalk (dangerously close to the river's edge) trying to make it back to their hotel.
So I returned to an ill PC at work on Thursday and that bastard Bill Gates and Microsoft charge nearly $100 just to call the Microsoft Customer Service hotline. So I said, "Screw that and screw him," and called the 800-number for the manufacturer of my computer. After two days of phone calls, we finally got everything back in line. Apparently Microsoft could have taken care of me immediately, but I'm not adding to that monopoly anymore. I already can't stand
Bill Gates for this reason: I worked with a guy, who knew a guy (these kind of stories are great) who was a caddy at a golf course in Santa Barbara. Apparently Bill Gates golfed often and never - not once - tipped a caddy for his services. Meanwhile Mark MacGuire, who has always been very generous to various charities tipped very well and even O.J. (pre-murders) was a high tipper. I call for a Bill Gates boycott.
"And the rich eat you." - Jello Biafra from the Dead Kennedy's Trust Your Mechanic
Rosie's New Do Comes Out of the Closet
Nearly a year after Rosie O'Donnell shocked housewives across the nation by announcing that she is gay (not that there's anything wrong with that), she recently held a press conference to announce that she was throwing in the towel on her self-righteous magazine, Rosie. At the press conference O'Donnell stated, "I cannot have my name on a magazine if I cannot be assured that it will represent my vision and ideas." Translation: "If I can't appear on the cover of every issue of Rosie, no one can."
I can't decide which is more hilarious - the fact that Rosie felt compelled to hold a huge press conference as if the Washington Post or L.A. Times were going out of print or her fashionable new hair-do.
THE BEST & WORST OF THE 91 (Part 1)
Best sticker of contradiction: Bite Me City Girl, on the back of a very clean white Ford Ranger, which I doubt was headed into Orange County to buy blankets and feed for the long cold winter.
Best sticker to prove that you don't ride motorcycles but you think they're real cool: Anything Fox.
Best sticker to prove that you have no motorcycle skills what so ever: Got Sand?
Best silent plead for help: Billet aluminum receiver hitch covers that read, "Remove 4 River", which really mean, "I have a drinking problem."
Most fishy license plate frame: The Cod Father
Worst sticker/license plate frame that normally accompanies a big #3: I'm not speeding, I'm qualifying.
Best sticker of faith: "Don't let the car fool you. My treasure is in heaven", displayed on a trashed early '70's model El Camino.
Worst inside joke license plate frame: Monkeys steal my underwear at night.
Best way to scare off business: Rear window of a silver Honda Civic: Extensions & Braids by Ms. Deeds, www.shirleyshair.com. License plate frame of same car: I am a bitch so get out of my way.
Best environmental sticker: Save the planet. Kill yourself.
Best way to get a ticket: Solo female driver crosses over double yellow lines into the car pool lane. Coincidentally, the license plate frame on her white Honda Civic states, Librarians do it by the book.
I'm off to the 24 Hours of Adrenaline mountain bike race in Idyllwild, CA. Details later. . .
freemanrace@aol.com
Mark McGuire & San Antonio Riverwalk - Good
O.J. - ?
Before I left for San Antonio for the Kawasaki Dealer Meeting someone sent me an email with a nasty virus attached. It disabled my computer at work but I said, "Screw it, I'm going to Texas. I'll deal with it when I get back." While I was away I totally forgot about. I had other things to worry about, like whether or not the 13 racers scheduled to do four autograph signings, over two days, were going to show up on time. For the most part they did and only twice did I have to get on my cell phone to track down missing riders. And while Eric Bostrom, Tony Miering and Destry Abbott were off in down town San Antonio bowling (four games, each at under 100 points) I was stuck on the showroom floor for two days listening to questions like, "When will we see a new ZX-7R?" or "Who's going to ride the GP bike in Europe next year?"
The last night we were in town was actually pretty fun. Destry, Tony, Jason Smigel, Tommy Hayden and I had dinner down on the Riverwalk and then went over to Sunset Station to the Kawasaki Farewell Party and watched drunken dealers and co-workers make arses of themselves on several different dance floors. Jason, Tommy and Tony turned in early so Destry and I went back down to the Riverwalk and sat outside at an Irish Pub and had peanuts and a beer - all the while watching several drunk tourists swagger down the Riverwalk (dangerously close to the river's edge) trying to make it back to their hotel.
So I returned to an ill PC at work on Thursday and that bastard Bill Gates and Microsoft charge nearly $100 just to call the Microsoft Customer Service hotline. So I said, "Screw that and screw him," and called the 800-number for the manufacturer of my computer. After two days of phone calls, we finally got everything back in line. Apparently Microsoft could have taken care of me immediately, but I'm not adding to that monopoly anymore. I already can't stand
Bill Gates for this reason: I worked with a guy, who knew a guy (these kind of stories are great) who was a caddy at a golf course in Santa Barbara. Apparently Bill Gates golfed often and never - not once - tipped a caddy for his services. Meanwhile Mark MacGuire, who has always been very generous to various charities tipped very well and even O.J. (pre-murders) was a high tipper. I call for a Bill Gates boycott.
"And the rich eat you." - Jello Biafra from the Dead Kennedy's Trust Your Mechanic
Rosie's New Do Comes Out of the Closet
Nearly a year after Rosie O'Donnell shocked housewives across the nation by announcing that she is gay (not that there's anything wrong with that), she recently held a press conference to announce that she was throwing in the towel on her self-righteous magazine, Rosie. At the press conference O'Donnell stated, "I cannot have my name on a magazine if I cannot be assured that it will represent my vision and ideas." Translation: "If I can't appear on the cover of every issue of Rosie, no one can."
I can't decide which is more hilarious - the fact that Rosie felt compelled to hold a huge press conference as if the Washington Post or L.A. Times were going out of print or her fashionable new hair-do.
THE BEST & WORST OF THE 91 (Part 1)
Best sticker of contradiction: Bite Me City Girl, on the back of a very clean white Ford Ranger, which I doubt was headed into Orange County to buy blankets and feed for the long cold winter.
Best sticker to prove that you don't ride motorcycles but you think they're real cool: Anything Fox.
Best sticker to prove that you have no motorcycle skills what so ever: Got Sand?
Best silent plead for help: Billet aluminum receiver hitch covers that read, "Remove 4 River", which really mean, "I have a drinking problem."
Most fishy license plate frame: The Cod Father
Worst sticker/license plate frame that normally accompanies a big #3: I'm not speeding, I'm qualifying.
Best sticker of faith: "Don't let the car fool you. My treasure is in heaven", displayed on a trashed early '70's model El Camino.
Worst inside joke license plate frame: Monkeys steal my underwear at night.
Best way to scare off business: Rear window of a silver Honda Civic: Extensions & Braids by Ms. Deeds, www.shirleyshair.com. License plate frame of same car: I am a bitch so get out of my way.
Best environmental sticker: Save the planet. Kill yourself.
Best way to get a ticket: Solo female driver crosses over double yellow lines into the car pool lane. Coincidentally, the license plate frame on her white Honda Civic states, Librarians do it by the book.
I'm off to the 24 Hours of Adrenaline mountain bike race in Idyllwild, CA. Details later. . .
freemanrace@aol.com
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