The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Whether he knew it or not, Jan Deans has been preparing for this ride for years. The avid Flin Flon cyclist took it to the next level this summer as he competed in the 24 Hours of Adrenaline bike race with a team of three others. The race in Canmore, Alberta, started at noon on July 20 and carried through for 24 hours. The team competed in the relay-style race as one member rode at a time. Each lap was roughly 20 kilometres. Teams had 24 hours to complete as many laps as possible. Deans' team of four completed 19 laps _ five of which came from the Flin Flonner. He joined two former Flin Flonners _ Thomas Bradt and Mike Olsen _ as well as Billy Ferguson of Calgary to make up the team. Teams are given a combined age _ with this team coming in at 180 years old _ during the race. 'My guys that I rode with are in their 30s, so I'm the old man,' Deans laughed. During a mass start roughly 500 riders ran a one kilometre race to break up the pack before starting the race. In total, 1,600 riders took to a mountain over the full day of biking. This marked the 18th year for the 24 Hours of Adrenaline challenge, and Deans' first time participating. 'It was pretty exhilarating and fun,' he said. Deans joined an experienced team in the challenge as they had competed twice before. 'According to the team leader (Olsen)...this is the best they have done in the last three years for laps,' said Deans, pleased with the outcome. 'We did better than we thought we were going to,' he added. Riders cycled through the mountain as they reached points of 1,500 feet of elevation _ experiencing thinner air than most are used to. Competitors made their way along a trail, two-thirds of which was made up of switchback riding. Giving a local comparison, Deans says some switchbacks _ where a rider goes back and forth up the slope rather than straight _ were comparable to Sipple Hill on the steep slopes. Following the climb and the descent, riders were then faced with a roughly 1,000-ft. climb to get back to the lap starting point. Though Deans wasn't able to train with the elevation differences in Flin Flon, he took full advantage of the mountains while on holidays in B.C. The rider climbed a mountain in Revelstoke for part of his training. Passing through snow and a summit of roughly 5,000 feet Deans was prepared for the race _ though there was plenty of work that went into training before this month. For nearly a year Deans has trained with stationary bikes as well as his own bike _ both inside on a trainer and outside _ to prepare for the challenge. 'I just basically rode as much as I could,' he said. Though Deans said the trail wasn't 'really technical' it was hard enough that riders needed experience. 'You need to be an experienced rider to ride it. I guess the best thing is to train in single track and with places that you need to have good balance,' he said. He says leaving the paved road and climbing are the best ways to train for the challenge. See 'Solo' on pg. Continued from pg. 'If you really want to challenge yourself you can enter as different groups or challenge yourself to race more seriously and you could go as a solo rider or a double team,' said Deans. Solo riders as well as teams of two, three, four, five, and corporate teams all took to the same trail over the weekend. Riders pushed themselves to climb the mountain _ though some raced harder than others _ with satisfaction and achievement being the main prizes. While Deans' team completed 19 laps in 24 hours and were able to take breaks as the next rider took off, first place in the solo rider category went to an individual who completed 18 laps. The Flin Flon, and Former Flin Flonners, team was more interested in finishing the race than competing for a first place title. Though Deans' is an avid cyclist, he says he hasn't competed in any big races since the Canada Cup Race when he was in his 20s. 'But this race is pretty elite,'he said of the 24 Hours of Adrenaline. Deans took a 30 minute loss on one of his laps as he stopped to help an injured rider. 'She injured herself so I assisted her and helped her,' he said, giving up time off his lap as the athlete later received 17 stitches in her leg. 'There weren't a lot of people who were willing to stay to stop and stay,' said Deans, 'but I mean, you don't leave someone who's injured out in the bush like that.' Perhaps it was his northern upbringing kicking in, but Deans waited alongside the injured cyclist as help was on its way. He then continued his lap. His team ended up ranking ninth in their four-man category and hope to compete again next year. 'We had a lot of fun,' he said. Sea of tents A sea of tents filled the grounds of the race as competitors relaxed, slept, caught their breath, and ate before their next lap. Deans said riders were required to eat after every lap as they burned so many calories each time they raced. Meals of boiled pasta, oatmeal, and fruit kept cyclists going along with water. Deans' tent was in prime location as they were able to see riders passing through at the halfway mark of the lap. '...our rider would go by and...we were able to judge how we were doing for time,' he said. The elite riders of the competition were finishing laps in :56 or :58 whereas Deans' team worked on times more like 1:10 or 1:20, as he said they were not racing, but competing. Throughout the course of the race there is live music as well as documentaries about cyclists being played. Olsen and Bradt weren't the only former Flin Flonners to race in this year's challenge. Former Bomber captain Chris Hatch took to a corporate team and competed as well. Hatched started his team off as the first rider. Though he faced challenges, he says he was able to work through them. '...I had mechanical problems on my ride, but it's hard to complain when you are biking in the mountains and the weather is hot,' he said. Temperatures reached well above 25 during the afternoon before cooling off in the evening. Hatch says he hadn't rode through the mountains in roughly three years 'so it took a bit to feel comfortable about the technical portions, but it came around.' With a team of eight riders, and some more extreme than others, Hatch rode the first lap for his team. This isn't his first time in the 24-hour challenge as his team has entered since the 1990s. 'I enjoy the event,' he said, noting that it's often called the 'Woodstock of Mountain Biking.' 'They have some unreal riders compete, which is great,' he said. The challenge has come to an end for yet another year, but the event's website is already preparing for next year. A date of July 19 has been set with a countdown already on the go.
