Mind-altering molecules

It's been a few years between structures.  Although this one is not earth-shattering (i'm sensing a pattern here), its still nice to be back in crystal structure world.  Fun locking horns with those pesky phi/psi torsion angles again, and with a pair of cis-peptides thrown in for good measure.

peptide backbone in place

...and with side-chain decorations

Even more ob-stacles

Ahh, Dirtworks time again – love it! DW was the first MTB enduro i entered back in 07, and it’s still my favourite. The most brutal of the 100s, but also the quickest. I naively imagine it could be compared with Paris-Roubaix – lots of fast bits interspersed with lots of brutality – so many in fact that they all start to blend together. Although I know the course, it’s always a shock to the system.
Preparation was on par with last year – approx 5000 km under the belt, although to be honest the combination of new job stress and persistent wet weather had blunted some of the snap. That said, although i’m not in super shape, my condition wasn’t bad either. Additionally, Kev (Dr LandRover) had plied me with some schmancy elixir to fill the bladder. As per last year, i had a no-stop strategy – 3 L on the back, another 750 mL on the cage, and a handful of chocky cakes and gels.

Despite a week of torrential rain leading in, race day dawned clear, and we were off on what proved to be a very wet track. Lots of sucky clay to dampen speed, but at least the sand traps were more easily negotiated. I was aiming for another sub 5 hr finish, but realistically knew i might have to settle for something inside of 5:15. The first wave of 250 riders split immediately into multiple bunches. Unlike last year where i was at the pointy end early, starting middle pack meant i had to leap-frog from group to group, and probably lost a minute before the first major climb. Rumours of major grading proved unfounded, and i ended up once again pushing the middle sector of the climb, before riding the last 1/3rd. I wasn’t too concerned. Last year i burned too hot at the start and never really recovered. I figured that if I could pass the 50 in approx 2:25 (vs 2:21 last year) i’d be on par to go close to the 5. Once again, a chronically sore back accompanied me through the middle stages and rock gardens. I now believe this is a consequence of pushing the bike for ½ a km up the climb, rather than a positional issue, as the pain gradually disappears over the second half of the race. In any case, an honest pace had me pass the 50 in 2:26 – a fraction slower than i would have liked, but nothing to panic about. No sign of cramp just yet. I passed straight through transition and shoved down a few bars on the next couple of uphill kms.

My most frequent benchmark through the race proved to be Rich Napper – one of the Resmed crew and a quality rider who podium-ed on the single speed back in 07, although this time round he was equipped with gears (30 of them) and monster wheels. Although I snuck ahead at the jump, he came storming past at about the 30 km mark, baggy pants, street shoes and all. I couldn’t hold his speed, but passed him at the 50 feed. He passed me again 5 km later, then it was my turn, as he stopped to root through his pack for food. A few km later i dropped a precious food bar, and whilst picking the sand out of it, was again passed. Our last encounter was half-way down the first major descent where this time he had succumbed to a puncture. I was expecting him to storm past again, but never did, so I expect he might have had another mechanical.

After the mega descent I got spat out onto the road alone and once again had a clear run at the canoe bridge (70 km) with the clock at 3:27. Besting 5hr was going to be tight. On the other side I sat up and waited for a good crew, 6 strong, including the elite women’s leader, and helped work the flat section before it all went to hell again on the second major climb. With no more major technicalities, the last 30 is all about survival and cramp management. Cramp-wise things were more sane this year, and I enjoyed chatting with one or two others who were equally on the edge as we worked the top of the course. Eventually we hit the descent, and our group of 5 suddenly became 4, then 3, then cramp eventually dictated that I ride the last 4 by myself. Even rode the second river crossing this year (chain was well dry anyway), before limping home in 5:04. Although a little disappointed not to better my 4:57 of last year, it was still a pretty good effort given that splits were generally down; winner 3 min slower (still 4:01!), 10th also 3 min, 20th 13min, 30th 11min etc. I finished 55th out of approx 610 riders completing the course (59th last year), and 10th (again) in my second year in the Masters category (200 strong). If i can find 20 min I should be able to shave the Masters podium...maybe next year although it won’t be easy as this thing just hammers me.

Ham and GK also tackled the 100. Ham had a clear run on his new dually, bettering his time of 4 years ago with a 6:38 – a good effort considering his relatively green buildup. Great to see him back to join in the festivities. GK put in a solid ride which was not without incident. Locked cranks at the wrong time, courtesy of chain suck, had him catapulted over the bars before being pole-axed in the back by his machine. If that wasn’t enough, another chain-suck incident resulted in a snapped rear-derailleur hanger. Remarkably he carries a spare, and after performing the repair still finished in 6:10! Mikey, Felix and Jasper all put in good efforts on the 50 km course, keeping the rubber side down and contributing to that special mtb atmosphere. Great to have you there too Ben – hopefully, shoulder permitting, you’ll be spinning wheels at the next one. Chips and beer in the sun...

Most inspirational were the guys camped next to us who were the first in the 7 year history of the race to complete the course on a tandem – custom built with front and rear suspension, 48 spoke wheels and massive downhill rotors and double hydraulic callipers. I still don’t know quite how they managed it, but it involved 3 crashes, 2 broken chains, and two episodes of being airborne – a scary thought. To top it off, the stoker was blind, and the pilot bespectacled. In one of their incidents the pilot temporarily lost his glasses, which made finding the chain 100 m down the track difficult, and would have made repairing it impossible, had he not found them. “Don’t be in our way on the descents”, he assured us with a smile. Both were determined to suffer through it all again in 2012. Hopefully i’ll be there too to see it happen.

Fear not the ob-stacles!

The Mont24 has been ridden and won...by some hotshots who nearly always snag it, but we didn’t care. There is a certain buzz just being part of a full-blown 24 event. Months ago Mikey put the feelers out and entered three teams – two 4s and a 6. The 4s had a theatrical bent, inspired by the Coen’s “Oh Brother Where Art Thou”, championed by GK who then followed through and organised some pretty KA jerseys, which attracted compliments from all and sundry. The Soggy Bottom Boys comprised Mikey S, GK, the Ham, and moi, all of us with 24s under our belts. The Soggier Bottom boys comprised 24hr virgins; Chris (ex triathlete), Kev (ex roadie), Mike H (ex gravity hound) and Iain (ex climber – relatively new to the cycling caper). Another 6, including Felix and Jasper , who were also competing in their first, long awaited 24 hr event, comprised team Megasaurarse.
The course was a new 18 km circuit, custom made for the event. Slightly easier and faster than the Sparrow Hill course, IMO, but none-the-less a real hoot, with large sections requiring little pedalling and lots of ooze to negotiate countless corners quickly.

Most of us arrived on the Friday eve and set up camp in a lovely grassy field in the overflow camping area. Good access to our preferred transition area was gained by straddling a nearby quilt-clad fence. A lovely race day dawned, and in no time it was midday and the race was under way. Chris, Felix and I lined up with another 550+ riders for the Le Mans start – which was quite a bit more of a run than has been used in previous years. Chris’s Tri-experience found him more towards the pointy end – he posted a 54 min split on the modified first lap, whilst i swallowed a mountain of dust to roll in 10 min later.

Kev was next for the SierBBs, putting in a fine split close to the hour. With a smile on his face, his first comment was along the lines of, “geeze my bike handling skills are rubbish”. Don’t worry Kev, those will come. For the SBBs Mikey suffered the indignity of three punctures to limp home in approx 90 min. A tube, donated by a competitor riding in nought but speedos and already containing a dozen patches, got him home! Excellent laps by novices Mike H and Iain had the SierBBs comfortably ahead of the SBBs after the first rotation. The second rotation, however, was punctuated by Chris suffering a rear wheel ejection (literally) which resulted in a heavy crash, cracked helmet and damaged knee. He did well to complete the lap but his race was over. This was a great shame as his combination of A-grade handling skills and big engine would have resulted in some impressive splits after the traffic of the first lap. Kev was next to bite the dust on his night lap. The result; bruised ribs and, understandably, the desire for a good night’s sleep. This sentiment was mirrored by Mike H and Iain, who having done their night laps were happy to take a more festive approach to the rest of the race, and maybe do some rotations the next morning.

Despite Mikey accumulating another puncture on his second lap (and hoofing the last 2 Ks on foot), the SBBs had no genuine reason not to keep rotating, which we duly did. Having lapped in the order 1234, 1234 , which took us through till ~10 pm, we resorted to the late shift strategy of 1212 (myself and Mikey) then 3434 (Ham and GK), to take us through to the dawn lap, which i got to ride. Everyone put in even splits through the night, making the changeovers seamless. Ham, in particular, was glowing about his night lap experiences – well worth the effort of extracting himself from the warmth of the sleeping bag and donning the stripes. An exhausted GK handed off to me at about 5:30 am as I headed out into the dark, but with the faint glow of an approaching sun making itself known. About 3/4 through the lap i was able to turn my lights off, and enjoy the relatively dust-free singletrack courtesy of some light rain which had begun falling. I handed over to Mikey as the rain strengthened. Word amongst those with radar was that heavy falls were on the way. They weren’t kidding. Before Mikey’s lap was done the rain was coming down hard, with no sign of abating. Despite having been a well oiled machine – no serious mechanicals, good splits, no missed transitions, all putting out etc, the SBBs decided to call it a day. A bit of a cop-out and betrayal of the name and the jersey, but it was going to be sufficiently annoying packing up a wet camp without adding lashings of mud to the equation. Hence, we finished with 18 laps. Had we kept rolling we probably would have accumulated 22 (to the winners 29), which would have been the most i have been associated with at a 24.

The SBBs ob-stacles were fortunately limited to 4 punctures. The SierBBs had two crashed-out riders to contend with. Not to miss the party, team Megasaurarse got into the act as well. Andy actually got the ball rolling with a dislocated shoulder on his recon lap before the 24 had actually gotten under way. Luckily Ben, who himself is ironically recovering from shoulder surgery, was present to help with a trip to the hospital where a good dose of morphine was administered. Speedy recovery Andy and Chris! Meanwhile Jasper managed to have his rear derailleur completely ripped off by a passing rider. Poor form but maybe a good case for an upgrade. And Ben must have been missing the bump and grind of competition to the extent that he incapacitated his car in solidarity. We need to get that man back on a bike. Somehow we all made it home safely.

Although the end was a bit a washout, and collectively we had more than our fair-share of un-cleared ob-stacles, I think the general mood was still a good one. I know i’ve said it before, but i’m still dreaming about it and looking forward to the next 24hr adventure.

Time to break out the fatties

...tyres, that is.  Mont24 hr approaching.

Saddlebag with eyes

3peaks reloaded

Split Enz; “History, never repeats, i tell myself, before i go to sleep”

The lyrics to this song were whistling through my head as i nervously kept my place in the collective armada of cyclists filing down the Falls Creek descent with the intensity of rain getting harder and harder. Surely the horrors of last year’s weather couldn’t happen again. By the time I was ½ way up the drag to Harrietville – heavy rain above, and horizontal hosing from wheels in front – i couldn’t help but grimace at the possibility that GOD, whom i typically ignore or don’t believe in, was yet again having the final word.

This year we were an ensemble of 6 lined up in a field of approx 1200 tackling the 3peaks alpine cyclosportif-style event, held for the first time in abominable conditions in 2010. Last year I rolled around the 235 km course, with approx 4300 m of alt gain (seems to be consensus) in about 12 hours, very close to hypothermia, but nevertheless determined to do it one more time in the dry. The lead up for some of us had been ideal. For 6-8 weeks prior Ham, Anita, GK and i had managed 100 plus km rides on most weekends. Preparation for Kev and Chris, however had been punctured by a month of overseas travel, so these guys were effectively doing it “off the couch”, although being big strong lads i was sure they would get there in the end if they paced themselves and saved something for that last mo........er of a climb.

Ham, Anita and I were the last to arrive at Koki lodge, where after registering and getting bikes fitted with transponders etc we all gathered for a great lasagne extravaganza supplied by Chris and Mon. Although morning dawned without driving rain this time, fog reduced outside visibility to about 10 meters as Anita slipped down the street in the dark, lights blazing, for her 6:45 am start. The rest of us had a 7:10 start slot. Although the road was wet on the start, the lack of precipitation was a good sign – although this is how things started last year as well.

I’m a nervous descender in the wet, so was happy not to push things as the pitta-patter become patter patter. Too much coffee prompted my first stop, with Ham filing past with a “go Dave”. All around people were donning capes, but they’d be taking them off again on the approaching Tawonga Gap climb. I was now last on the road from our group, with the rain intensity oscillating as the bends and kms ticked by. At approx 8:10 i bottomed out at Mt Beaty, and was soon on the 6 km Tawonga climb, where I caught Ham, and also passed GK who was sidelined with a puncture (now if he’d opted for sensible wheels...). I like the Tawonga climb and ticked out a good rhythm where i wasn’t passed. I zipped up the gillet and slipped down the other side on drying roads, but by the time i bottomed out at Germantown the rain was in full force again. No one in the bunch i ended up in particularly wanted to work, or even rotate turns, so i resigned myself to being patient as we crawled up the valley road towards Harrietville, where i stopped to fill bottles (and have another pee). I was on the Hotham climb at 9:45 and after the steep opening ramps found my tempo for the 30 km slog, during which I was only passed by one other rider (i’m getting better at this climbing caper). I passed Kev about 1/3 of the way up, Anita about 10 km from the top, and Chris about 1 km from the top. Conditions on the climb were much more pleasant than last year as the rain had largely stopped and there was little wind. However visibility for the last half was literally only about 10 m, so if you didn’t know the climb, which is like a big horse-shoe, you’d really have no idea where you were on the mountain. The “white-out” conditions made the short stabbing descents which punctuate the top almost un-navigable. I’d forgotten how many of these there were until the tunnel materialised in front of me and I realised that i was in fact on the descent proper. Just off the back the cloud lifted and Chris picked me up as we headed for Dinner plain.

Something about my bike was feeling squishy – turned out to be the front wheel, so i stopped to change the tube and hoped i’d see Chris again at the Dinner Plain food stop. The change of tube went efficiently, aided by a guy who jumped out of a TFM van with tack pump in tow. I was off again and found Chris who was downing sandwich and pasta salad at Dinner Plain. I probably stopped at Dinner Plain for 20 min, during which time Kev rolled in, followed shortly by Anita. Kev made short work of the feed and was soon ready to roll back out on course with Chris and I. Anita was cold, wet, and making sounds of pulling out, although this would be decided post coffee, so i left the decision with her and departed. There are some great fast downhill runs between Dinner Plain and Omeo, and it was a real joy to milk them in the company of Chris and Kev, both big units who know how to ride fast. Both rain and clouds had cleared by this stage, the air was pleasantly warm, and soggy clothing had dried. Life was good. There are also some uphill drags and climbs on this stretch, which typically one ignores when looking at the profile – bigger than you might expect.

Having hit the Omeo transition I was itching to keep the momentum going, so kept my stop brief and pushed on, picking up the odd rider here and there. The long drag out of Omeo gets you to the fantastic hill-hugging flat sector which scythes its way to Anglers Rest. Once again, this was my favourite part of the course, and I was able to give it some stick, but not too much, as I knew what was ahead. Re-filled a bottle at Anglers and then headed gingerly towards the base of the 3rd, last and worst of the climbs, which one hits at exactly the 200 km mark. Comments on the Cycling Tips blog reported people using tactics of throwing up, falling over, and crying, in negotiating the unrelenting 8% drag. This climb is a beast.

As Winston says, “When you are going through hell, keep going”. Like gaining the top of Hotham in the fog, it really is hard to know when you have finished this mofo. It’s not really over till you see the lake below you which sits above Falls Creek village, in the knowledge that in about 10 clicks you’ll be home. Although the weather was coming in again, I was going to beat it. Freshly sealed just before last years event, the last 30 km delivered hundreds of punctures. A year on the surface was more settled, and I fortunately made it home without incident, having been passed by just one rider since Omeo, rolling home in 9:58, just inside the 10 hrs i’d hoped for. I was pretty exhausted, but in far better shape than last year. [I’m guessing i’m still reaping the benefits of last years mtb efforts as i was one of only 40 to go under 10 hrs. Incidentally, fastest time this year of 8’10’’!] As I enjoyed a second or third cup of hot tea in the finishers enclosure Kev walked in, only 15 min behind me. Amazing ride given his disrupted buildup. Chris was next, probably only 10 min further adrift, proclaiming it the hardest thing he’d ever done. Back at the lodge, GK was next to clip clop through the door – only 45 min behind and 3 hrs quicker than last year. By this time the rain had returned with a vengeance, and i was concerned that Anita (whom GK had seem at Dinner Plain and encouraged to continue) and Ham were both out in it. But around the 7 pm mark both of them filed in, one after the other, cheery, and relieved that it was all over (top 20 women for the Mudge!).

We had done it. A great team effort. 6 riders departed, and 6 returned safely from a gruelling course and conditions. Although not as nasty as last year (2 bad halves vs the one bad half this year), the conditions were far from trivial or safe, so well done all. The much anticipated pub dinner turned out to be a bit of a fizzer thanks to a bewildering fixed menu (no chips or steaks!?). In contrast, i thought the Swedish breakfast the next morning at Mt Beauty was A-grade (Baked beans were Fab, although perhaps they do need to work on the cooking of eggs).

Ham has already expressed ambitions for next year, so i’ll let him instigate the mustering for 3peaks 2012, which according to my long distance forecast, is sure to be a cracker

Contravening the strict Koki lodge contra-bike policy.

Old dog, new digs

Life back in the world of science, VCCRI-style, has been an interesting experience, in part due to my new commute, which daily has me travelling two of Sydney's iconic bridges -  Anzac in the AM, and the SHB in the PM.  Such a 55 km loop, albeit longer in the mornings, cunningly has all the big gradients (namely Chatswood) negotiated in the downhill direction.  Most strikingly for me, who has largely (seemingly) been on the cycling-roads less travelled, is the eye-opening revelation of just how popular ye olde treadly has become over the last few (5?) years - especially with the Darlo-hipsters.  I am now just a pea in a bike-jam of hundreds streaming off the ANZAC in a morning, and down the SHB ramp at the end of the day.  For the first time in my life i feel that the bike is truly (finally) a mainstream transport option for the clunker that is Sydney.  My new abode, the Lowy Packer building, for instance, has a basement that accommodates 25 car spaces.  Also inhabiting this dungeon, as of midday, were approx 40 bicycles.  Whilst a certain number are simply being garaged (17 upon my arrival this morning), almost as many lemmings are riding as driving.  May the trend continue:)

Bat-cave at the Chang