Recently back from his adventure organizing PQ out west and making sure everybody else is challenged and having fun Chris was able to have a little fun of his own.

Here is his recap of his adventures in the Shenandoah mountains of Virginia in one of epic trail rides, ON A TANDEM!

ODE TO MY TEAMMATE

Behind every succesful man is a great and powerful woman -

Truer words than these have never been spoken after Kristin Eddy and I completed the Shenandoah Mountain 100 race on my Tandem.

The SM 100 is a 100 mile MTB race that is known for being one of the hardest races in the East. We did the race on my vintage 1989 Cannondale Mountain Tandem (all original except a V brake upgrade and rear wheel due to over heated and cracked rim) so yes there are 20 year old chains and bearings on this beast. We threw the timing chain several times early on and broke it eventually but a great guy gave us 6 links to make the repair.

Even though we have very different riding styles, Kristin likes20a cadence of 30 – I like 90. she likes to go slow down hills – I like to fly, she likes to power up every inch of every hill – I like to walk up some of them. So some compromises needed to be made – Did I mention I had complete control of the shifters and brakes . . .guess how the negotiations went . . . they all ended in “yes mama” as I would shift or apply the brakes.

We raced for 13 hrs, during this time you’d think we’d have time to talk about lifes big questions . . . did I mention we are polar opposite in every major topic of conversation so out go the topics of politics, religion, crime and punishment . . .

Besides I was out of breath most of the time pushing the big gears Kristin “negotiated” with me – I am still hearing her devilish voice yelling “GEAR ME NOW”.

I have raced this course a handful of times in the past and done 100s of bike races but this was certainly the best one to date. It will be a memory I will cherish for years to come.

Did I mention this was only the 2nd time we have rode the Tandem together and the very first time riding it off road.

Cheers,

Chris Caul