PGR Connected July 2015

PGR CONNECTED

Monthly Newsletter 2015-July

PGR CONNECTEDMonthly Newsletter 2015-July

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Newsletter Highlights

• 2015CanadianNationalDHChampionships• TrailMaintenanceNight• BacktotheBasics• CanmoreEnduro• SilverstarDHRace-DunbarSeries

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2015 Canadian National DH Championships

byVanessaMertz,XC/DHRacer,CalgaryRideCoordinator

Beingbackon aDHbike and racing for thefirst time in four yearswas a rewardingexperience.Mymentality of racinghas changed for the better in a positiveway andplacing forthwith a clean rungavemea tasteofheavenagain!Racingwithmy twoteammates,AineMcKennaandDannielleJennifer, ignitedcompleteconfidence inallofus.Havingastrongteamfoundation is thekeyforamentallysuccessfulracerun.CongratulationstoAineMcKennaforplacing2ndinMastersWomen!

gold sponsors:

A very special thank you to our 2015 GOLD Sponsors, Shoplux, Tim Frey & WSP! PGR’s success and ability to continuously support women in the race community heavily relies on our sponsors and supporters. Your contributions help us to break down barriers to encourage the participation of women in the race community.


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Trail Maintenance Night

Summerisinfullswing!Withthat,theEdmontonRiverValleyfullofitsabundantdelightfulsingletrackalsoneedsmaintenance.PGRisproudtohaveadoptedCaddyTrack,HappyEndingandAndre’sTrail.OurnexttrailnightisJuly22,2015.MeetPGRandEdmontonMountainBikeAlliance(EMBA)at6:30atthetopofCaddyTrackwithclippersandhedgecutters.Afterwards,areheadingtoDuggansforsomefrostySteamWhistle!


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Back to the basicsby Alison-Marie Bortolon, DH and BMX Racer

There comes a point in everyone’s life when you hit the wall; when all of your favorite activities turn into a chore, and you struggle to see the fun in them… it happens, to everyone. In the life of racing, it is so easy to get caught up in having the best equipment, the latest upgrades, the fastest times or the biggest crashes. Of course these things may add to the excitement of racing, but they also pull us away from what got us on our bikes in the first place. It is easy to get down on yourself when you are not performing to your best, or when you can’t afford the next upgrade. What about when you are faced with sickness or injury or have requirements to meet at work and you can no longer hang onto you top Strava title? It’s in the times like these, that we must go back to the basics. Why do we ride? We do we risk injury, or subject ourselves to immense pain and suffering, why do we do what we do? At the end of the day, aside from racing, aside from the fastest time, aside from the newest and best gear, we love to ride, its what unites us. I remember as a kid the best way to spend my time was riding my bike to the corner store to buy a coke and some beef jerky. Or goofing around in the back yard trying to build a jump so I could get that oh so sweet little bit of air. Trying to learn to wheelie or see how many people we could pile onto my beater BMX bike. See as kids, it didn’t quite matter who had the coolest bike, or who was the fastest rider, we were happy just to have that chance to ride, to feel that cool breeze as we ripped around the block, to try and experiment and push our limits on our crappy Wal-Mart bike. So that’s where I find myself today. I am unable to perform like I used to, but I can always go back to the basics. Take the stress off of winning the next title or affording the next upgrade. I just head down to my local skate park and goof around for days on end. I put the fun back in riding, no pressure, and no expectations, just for the love of being on my bike.


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Canmore enduroby Jenna Wilkie, XC/Enduro Racer

I don’t think any of us knew what we were getting ourselves into when we signed up for the KR Canmore Enduro. I was excited the trails were all at the Nordic Center and that there would be some level of familiarity there. Truthfully; however, I hadn’t ridden any of the really advanced Nordic Center trails so I could only guess as to whether or not I had the necessary skills to come out unscathed. To further add to the anticipation, the course map was released only a few days before the race. None of us knew what we were about to get ourselves into, but we were all commited to trying something new as a team.

The day before the race a couple of us set out for Canmore to meet up with our other PGR teammates to pre-ride the course. Our group was a interesting mix of downhill and XC riders. I personally love XC but, since I’m not the fastest climber, I was thrilled by the thought of not being timed on the climbs. Really, any race that offered a, “laid back atmosphere where you get to bike/hang out with your friends” sounded awesome to me. As we began working our way through the stages our anxiety quickly melted away. The trails were perfectly tacky and, although there were 800 total meters of climbing, the course was laid out in a way that it was very manageable. Stage 4, “the terminator”, had the steepest descent...one that I opted to somersault down on the pre-ride (I’m sure it was very entertaining to watch). The bruises and laughter from my teammates (all in good fun of course!) inspired me to try for a cleaner run down that stage on the actual race day. All of the descents were exciting, fast, and flowy which got us fired up for this new style of racing.

On the morning of the race day we woke up to grey clouds and wet soil. The race started off very anticlimatically with


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racers leisurely making their way up the mountain after the race preamble. The first two stages were damp (although ride-able) but as the race progressed the clouds opened their floodgates and the race course soon turned into a greasy mud-fest. Descents that we were bombing down the previous day had to be taken slower and lines picked more selectively. I guess that is all part of the fun right? You never know what is going to be thrown your way!

We were all very muddy and exhausted at the end of the 7 stages but I am certain none of us regretted signing up for our first Enduro! Also, thanks to our newest sponsor Steam Whistle, we were able to relax post-race with cold beer. I encourage anyone thinking of trying Enduro racing to give it a shot! I can’t wait to try another one:)

Check out our sponsoring shop Western Cycle for all your bike maintenance needs!


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silverstar dh race - dunbar series

SilverStarBCCupkickedoffthestartofdownhillseasonforPrairieGirlsRacing.CongratulationstoourPGRracersDannielle andDeewho took 1st and 2ndplace respectively in theMastersWomen category. ThanksStephenExleyforhostingyetanothergreatevent!

Hey ladies, grab your girlfriends and join us for PGR’s second Women’s DH Weekend for beginners and intermediates at Panorama Mountain Resort. This will include two nights on the hill, two days of riding, morning yoga, two coaching sessions, BBQ, LOTS of draw prizes and more!! Space is limited so register now!

PGR Connected July 2015

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