10th Annual Darkhorse 40 in the books!!!

so, the 10th annual Darkhorse 40 is over......

first of all thanks to everybody who signed up so early and came out to play in the wicked humidity! thanks for staying thru the monsoon! hey, at least we got the racing in before the skies opened up!!

thanks to all of our volunteers!

thanks to the EMT's who unfortunately had a very busy day... we never like to see them get any work at all. we would be happy to have them lay around with their feet up but sometimes it doesn't work out that way. a speedy recovery to all those that left a little something extra out there on the trail.

right about the time the hangover wears off from Singlespeed-apolooza, does it ever wear off.....we start prepping for the 40. lots of blood, sweat and tears go into putting out the best possible race experience we can. we hope that it shows. the 40 never goes off without a few hitches here or there. just the nature of the business i suppose... but overall we hope everybody had a good time!

a decade has passed...holy crap...since the Mayor and I cooked up a plan to throw a little race at Stewart. something a little different, something that we would want to race. we figured we would get a 100 people to show up and that would be that.....well after 10 years look at what it has become. never would we have expected our little race party to become this... THANK YOU!! who knew so many of you were just as twisted as we are!!! you are all as much to blame, i mean responsible for the growth and success of the 40! Thanks again!

what does the future hold? hard to believe that we are looking back at a decade of racing. i honestly don't know. as we do every year we will take some time off and reflect and see what we could have done differently, what we want to add, want we need to tweak.

so stay tuned!!!

again THANK YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

yours in a ugly orange shirt,
Hawaiian Mike

Darkhorse 40 update

couple things....

the BBQ is back!
we will be featuring burgers, dogs, and grilled chicken. veggie burgers will be available.
we will have a tossed salad and some sort of side salad.
fresh sliced watermelon, and the ever popular ice-pop freezer!!!!

long trail has signed on as the beer sponsor and we have ordered the kegs!!
we will have a wine bar this year as well featuring local wines from the Brotherhood winery!!

VERY IMPORTANT!!!
-in order to get a plate at the BBQ you must have a wrist band.
-all entrants will receive one in their race packet. DO NOT LOSE THIS!!!
-if you would like a wrist band for a spectator or family member etc they can be purchased in advance.
-NO BUYING WRIST BANDS DAY OF!! THE DEC DOES NOT ALLOW US TO SELL ANYTHING DAY OF!
-you must contact the shop and get a wrist band from them in advance.
--WRIST BAND PRICING--
-$10.00 for adults
-$5.00 for children under 12

-PROCEEDS FROM THE WRISTBANDS WILL BE DONATED TO THE EMT'S WHO VOLUNTEER TO HELP KEEP YOUR RACING EXPERIENCE SAFE!!

thanks again and we will keep you posted with updates!!

Darkhorse 40 updates

July is upon us! seems like we just finished up SSAP.
the waitlist has been closed now for a while. registrations are locked and loaded. numbers have been assigned and all the paperwork is in order. if you have to cancel at this point we can't do much for ya. sorry about that. again thanks for registering early and supporting our event!!

we have got a lot of cool stuff coming your way this year. same great stuff as in years past but with a little extra spin for the 10th annual! can't believe we are on number 10.

the course will most likely be the same as last year barring any kind of trail damage we need to avoid. the Darkhorse crew will be hard at work for the next month ensuring that the trails are clean and in excellent riding order come race day. if you see us out working stop and say hi.

i will post up a  map and GPS file soon.

thats all for now. more info soon!!

SSAP video evidence!

big thanks to our new pal Manny for putting this together!!!

SSAP map and gps file!

oh no! a map!! click to make big!

that's right folks. the DH crew has been sampling what the forest of stewart has to offer and come up with a course... much deliberation and beverage liberation was used to make sure that this course is sweeter than a jewel encrusted unicorn with a horn filled with PBR!

some details....
4 mile prolog.
11.75 mile laps

4 mile prolog + 11.75 mile lap + 11.75 mile lap = oh so much singlespeedy goodness!!

gps file located here....


so get out and check it!
race day is coming quick.
check back here for more details as they become available

2012!

holy crap! 2012...really...
so we have like 12 more months till the apocolypse! yikes, and bummer...i guess...
well looks like we better make some great bike race while we still can.
yeah its finally a little cold out and you probably aren't thinking about racing bikes yet but you should be. you slackers! get on the rollers and get some suffering in!
before you know it hardman season will be upon us. cobbled roads, rain, belguim, frites, and.......for those of us on this side of the pond Singlespeed-a-polooza! lose the gears, harden the F up and get ready... its coming soon.
4th annual, who would have thunk it. seemed like such a ridiculous idea and well, it still is a little ridiculous......

after that well its time to prepare for the real deal...... the 10th Annual Darkhorse 40!
holy smokes, yeah its been 10 years. we got some special stuff up our sleeve for this year. don't ask what cause we ain't telling! its gonna be super sweet uber awesomeness and all that and then some....trust me!

so check back often, call the shop and harass the boys, or search the interwebs, the answer is out there. when you find it you will know....or maybe you won't but either way it will kill some time till race season!

2011 darkhorse 40 updates!!

OH YEAH!

Some Darkhorse 40 update!!

-race sold out fast and early this year. there was a waitlist and a few people made it in off that.
-if you are still on the waitlist, sorry but you didn't get in.
-all the $5 waitlist fees will be donated to the Walden Humane Society!! yeah cats and dogs!
-there is ABSOLUTELY NO RACE DAY REGISTRATION! we are at full capacity
-remember next year to jump on this as soon as you see it on bikereg. it will sell out fast!

-for directions to the start/parking/bbq etc use:
400 Ridge rd
Montgomery NY 12549
-ridge rd is just off Rt 17k
-if you pass the Darkhorse Cycles Headquarter you have gone to far!!

-course will be marked 1 week prior to the race as per DEC regulations
-GPS link has been sent out to all registrants and can be found HERE
-course is not the same as last year. some new stuff, some old, some classic stewart!

-this is a Ladies and Gentleman's race! act accordingly! there is nothing worth getting hurt or hurting someone else over out there!
-check yourself! if you think you are being stupid chances are good that you are! and that you should check yourself so that we do not have to!
-keep it safe! keep it fun!


-famous Johnnies BBQ is back! no one will go hungry i assure you!
-the ice pop wagon will also be back!
-post race refreshments are being worked out and still top secret! you won't be disappointed!
-the "sirens" of stewart will be out on course dispensing hopped refreshment to riders!!
-YES there is a beer stop-- do not stop if you are under 21!!!
-YES there are kegs at the BBQ! do not drink if you are under 21
-do not put us in that position!!!! be responsible!

STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES!!

Darkhorse 40 updates

hello all! couple of updates...

race is full...has been for a while now.

there is a waitlist. it is on bikereg. it cost $5

all of the waitlist proceeds will be donated to the local humane society!!!

get on the list and well....wait....we'll see what happens.

other things to note..

1- Jamis has signed on as the official title sponsor!! awesome! check out some of their cool stuff in the expo area

2- same great BBQ guys as last year. working on some twists but should be awesome!

3- new course design! nothing to reveal yet but working on a new course. we have lost race access to a couple trails due to DEC regulations. shouldn't be a big issue. details will be released shortly!


that's about it for now.
check back soon for updates!!

SSAP 2011!

SSAP 2011 is in the books!!

thanks for coming out despite the less than awesome conditions! it was an epic day for sure!!

i may write a report and post it up once i can wrap my brain around it all...

Darkkhorse 2011!!!!

2011 is here!
so it's time to sign up for some awesome Darkhorse Racing events!!!
go to bikereg!

SSAP 2011

DH40 2011

event reg is live!!

remember that with the Mayan apocalypse coming in 2012 you better get your racing in now!!

check back often for updates and other shenanigans!!

8th annual Darkhorse 40 in the books!!

BEST 40 EVER!!!
so the 8th annual Darkhorse 40 is in the books and i have to say i think it may have been our best one yet. the weather was perfect, the course was awesome, the racers were awesome, the BBQ was killer.....etc

the course
we moved the start to the other side of the park this year and i think it really upped the ante. i wasn't sure at first but it really worked out well. George and I had been doing course recon ever since singlespeed-a-polooza was over. we went thru various option and finally settled on the course we ran sunday. i realized about 2 weeks ago how awesome the course was when i was out putting up arrows. i had George's daughter Sara's old school backpack filled with big yellow arrows that didn't quite fit in it, an industrial staple gun that weighed about 10 pounds, a pile of extra staples, a bow saw, spray paint and a couple pairs of clippers all bouncing around on my back. the temperature was just below 800 degrees and the fly's were apparently on a feeding frenzy. i was riding along with all the gear stopping to mark intersections and fill in were George hadn't yet put an arrow and i realized i was having a blast. ripping the singletrack. i ran out of arrows at about mile 14, ran out of water at mile 17, and still ripped the last of the course and rode back to the shop smiling!! just that awesome!

the racers
i think every year we get the best group of racers who come out for our event. we sold out early. people jumped at the chance to get in for the lower price and then even when it went up people jumped to get in before the 400 racer cap! awesome!
our philosophy has always been to give as much back as possible and i hope it came off that way. i believe it did. we want everyone to go home smiling. from the rocking fast pro's to the guys and gals finishing in the 6th hour!

we poured a lot of our blood, sweat, and souls into this years race and its nice to see all the supportive comments! thanks!!

i think i am still decompressing and haven't really let it all sink in yet.
the post event hangover.

thanks again and congrats to everyone who came out and gave it their all!!

Some things to keep in mind!

1- registration is full. THANKS!! we have started a wait list and riders will be added as room becomes available

2-the start location has changed!!!
new start area located at 400 ridge rd, Montgomery NY 12549
there will be no access from the Weed rd gate off rt 207!!!

3-course consists of 2 twenty mile laps! there will be 3 aid stations out on course and 1 of them you will see twice within 3 or so miles. there will be a neutral feed area available for you to drop bottles etc...

4-the race starts promptly at 9:00am!!!
packet pick up will close at 8:30!
plan accordingly!

5-the classes are pretty large. be considerate of your fellow racers. if you don't think you will finish in the top ten don't line up in the front row! let people pass! you will have 40 miles to race out there! be nice to one another and everyone will have a great race!

6-beer and bbq. if you are under 21 don't put us in a bad position! the rangers will be around and they can and will ask you for id! don't jeopardize everybody's good time and our future use of the park!! drink responsibly! eat like a pig! really eat up when your done! you deserve it!

7-results and awards will be posted in a timely fashion. remember there are a lot of racers out there and finish times can vary greatly. relax, chill out and have a beer and some chicken!!

8-have a fun time! that's what this is all about right! have fun out there and enjoy the day!

SSAP lends a helping hand to our furry friends!

If you signed up for SSAP not only do we thank you but lots of furry little friends say thanks too!
$5.00 from every entry plus the proceeds from the I9 hubset and the Thomson voucher went to 3 animal charities!

Mid-Hudson Animal Aid

Walden Humane Society

Hudson Valley ASPCA

so not only did you get to take part in one of the most epic singlespeed events in the history of racing bicycles with one gear, but you also helped to save a whole bunch of furry creatures who will likely be adopted and find loving homes!!

we thank you!
the doggies and cats thank you!

right about now you should feel all warm and fuzzy about yourself! the best thing to do with that feeling is go on over to bikereg and sign up for the Darkhorse 40!!

singlespeed-a-polooza 2010!

well folks SSAP 2010 is in the books!
after what seemed liked 2 straight weeks of beautiful weather mother nature decided to drop the temps and add a bit of moisture to the mix.
we spent Saturday afternoon prepping start/finish area, the beer stop, marshal locations, and putting the finishing touches on the course. it was a dust bowl!
well when we were wrapping up a little after 7 the temp started to drop and the skies looked a little ominous. i held out hope!

around 4:30 on sunday morning George turned on the basement light to let me know that it was raining and cold. we looked at weather.com just to confirm this. after a big cup of coffee it was time to get fired up! into the chilly morning rain we went.

george spent the pre-race hours shuttling racers from the upper parking area down to registration which was at the finish. logistically it seemed like a good idea but it turned out to be a bit far from the parking. sorry. lesson learned.

despite the conditions we were able to get the start off just about on time. little after 9. couple waves later and we had 250 racers in the woods! thankfully we only had one semi-serious injury for our dedicated team of emts to deal with. on weather days like this that is always a major concern!

the hotdogs went in and were being handled by our crack team of "dog boilers!!" the kegs got tapped and sampled! all was ready for when racers began to filter in. big thanks go to Koop, Joe and Richard for there work on the food!

in what seemed like the blink of an eye we had the top 2 racers come thru for their first lap! our man Monty and James Harmon were neck and neck!! it was on! not too far behind the top 2 women came thru and some awfully fast sport guys had gotten themselves into the mix.

little slower on the second lap as the condition "deteriorated". at least the rain stopped! apparently "major mike" was a "less than pleasant experience" on lap 2 for a number of riders!

1 hour fifty minutes and guess who comes across the finish line! Monty baby!! team darkhorse represent!!! awesome job. Harmon held on for second and Josh Wilcox rounded out the podium!
Nikki Theimann crushed in the open women with a time of 2:15 which would have put her solidly in the top 30 of the mens field!! awesome job!

in the sport ladies field Amanda Wisell showed that riding in the mud of Vermont can make you a fast little lady! she smoked the course despite the less the favorable conditions! Bike 29 representing on the big wheels!!

the most hotly contested battle has been the NY/NJ race for sport dominance! a little birdie told me that the NJ guys were pulling out all the stops and training like mad over the winter to keep the cup in Dirty Jersey! well they didn't disappoint! by just over a minute Ilya Cantor took the win! MTBNJ keeping the cup on Jersey soil!

also, the highly anticapated racing debut of "Thor the God of Thunder" was witnessed on sunday. some people believe his registration to be the reason that mother nature decided to provide such nasty conditions! conditions be damned thor donned cape and helmet and lined up with the elite men! apparently even the "nectar" of the gods, which was rumored to be a mixture of high grade tequila and cheap canned beer, couldn't help the "God of Thunder" in the stacked elite class! paced thru most of the race by team Darkhorse racer Sal "my sideburns beat up your honor student" Crochiola, Thor finished in a magnificent DFL in the elite open mens division. Thor could not be reached for coherent comment after the event.

all the results can be found here!!

pics can be found here

awards went off great with the pros taking home piles of cash. the custom trophies were a huge hit!! tons of schwag for the winners and non-winners alike!

SUPER SPECIAL THANK YOU SECTION!!!!!!

thanks to all our racers!!! we appreciate you guys coming out to our little race party! especially in less than stellar conditions!

THANKS TO ALL OUR VOLUNTEERS!!!!!
especially the lovely young ladies who do our scoring!!! we couldn't do it without you gals!!!!!
special thanks to the beer maven's Beth and Danelle!!!!!

THANKS TO ALL OUR SPONSERS!!!

NINER BIKES!
WTB
CANE CREEK
THOMSON
SWIFTWICK
STANS
INDUSTRY NINE
ERGON

TERREPIN BREWING!!!!!!!!!!!!

Closed!

registration for SS-apolooza is closed! we have reached the 250 field limit. if you missed it well you suck..........no ok you don't really. send us an email at darkhorsecycles@frontiernet.net or call the shop and get added to the waitlist.

see you all there!!

Tick-Tock-Tick-Tock

less than 50 spots left! get in now or be disappointed when all the cool kids are racing there singlespeeds!!

trails are shaping up and the course has been nearly finalized but is still top secret!!! some new trails will emerge as well as some re-conditioned old favorites!!

get signed up!!!!!!

FORTY FOR 10?

Its almost 2010. really? seriously? how the heck did that happen?
anyway, the Darkhorse 40 is only 8 months away! start your prep now! race registration is up and live on bikereg.

we have made a few changes this year. first of all weather permitting we are going back to two twenty mile laps. 90 percent singletrack goodness. course details will be released when the mayor see's fit. trust that it will be as sweet as ever!

we have changed the categories a bit. maybe changed isn't the right word, condensed. we have streamlined them to better align with other endurance events. we feel this will only enhance the competitive aspect of the event.

we will be paying cash to the top five in all categories! thats right, american money! we will be giving swag to placings below 5th as deep as registration in those categories permits.

more details to come as they are available!

feel free to leave comments. we welcome your feedback!

2010 Singlespeed-a-palooza!!

now with 100% more Niner Bikes sponsorship!!!
that's right people! the good folks at Niner Bikes have decided to help us throw down the 2nd annual Singlespeed-a-polooza!

date and time info up on bikereg.

more details to follow soon!

some notes.....

capped at 250 riders
pre-reg only
$5.00 from each entry goes to benefit local humane society. help the kitty's and puppies!
14 mile lap
free refreshments (beer) and hotdogs

stay tuned.......

lucky seven?

when i got home late sunday night i had that look on my face. my wife saw it. it was similar to look i had after racing the cohutta 100 and driving 2 hours back to her relatives house. the 1000 yard stare. i was a beaten man.

our day started around 4:00am. i say around because i was up most of the night or at best sleeping fitfully. we were ready as we could be. we had spent the better portion of the afternoon and early evening prepping everything we could. it was on, one way or another.

things started to turn ugly when i realized i had no cable for the microphone for the pa system. argh. we would have used it at the start to make announcements and set the starting order. we would now have to make due with a aging megaphone.

we lined up nearly 400 racers at the shale pits, made some announcements and tried to contain the chaos. 15 minutes later and everybody is off and out on the trail. controlled chaos is the only way to describe the start. it was not pretty.......

from there it starts to all blend together. running water to the aid station by truck and by bike. dealing with injuries and heat related trauma, solving little issues as they arose, etc.....

did i fail to mention that it was a trillion degrees out? yeah it got real hot real fast!! i had soaked my Hawaiian shirt by about 9:00am. i apologize if i stood up wind of you!! yikes it was gross!

riders started to drop like flies after the second lap. we usually have some attrition but never like this. it was brutal out there. the heat, the course, the pace, it was kicking people right square in the mouth!

1st place pro Jason Sager finished in a little over 3hours. the course and the heat proved to add a bIt of time to everyone's laps. riders began trickling in for the next 3 hours or so. many doing all they could just to get to the finish line. others motivated by the "sirens of stewart" offering up salvation in a ice cold can of PBR! i will admit to sampling 1, for the racers sake of course!

the BBQ was off the hook! those guys did a fantastic job and we got nothing but kudos on the chicken and pasta salad! big props to the darkhorse kitchen contingent!!

the 4 lap format proved to be good, bad and ugly........
the good......
the course was freakin awesome! it was dry, fast, and damn challenging!

the bad......
4 laps meant tighter quarters for the racers, which didn't seem to be much of an issue actually. it also meant more traffic thru the scoring transition area. this was tough. with spectators, dnf's, racers, etc.....it got a bit congested.

the ugly.....
this made the results very difficult to compose and things got a bit turned upside down for a while.
first of all our scoring VOLUNTEERS are top notch. they devote their entire day to making sure that the results go smooth and over the course of 7 years and many races beside the 40 we have had very few issues. ICANNOT THANK THEM ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
it got ugly. people got a little cranky and the results got a bit wonky.
thanks to everyone for their patience, thanks for the input on who was ahead of who and helping to sort out your categories.
this is not our standard operating procedure! we are usually very smooth with results.

this process crushed me. it took way longer than it usually does. it just drained me down below my reserves. shattered. i suffered a promoter bonk! for this i apologize.

other than that we gave away a pile of great stuff! preems, swag, etc........

i need to send a huge thank you out to all our volunteers! without them none of this would be possible.

and of course last but not least thanks to all the racers who came out in support of our crazy little event! it was great to see all your faces! new friends, old friends, etc! its a wild bunch and we are stoked that you came out to enjoy our little party with a race thrown in for good measure!!!

thanks again to all!!!!

do we have to start planning for next year already?..............

4X10 course map leaked!!

here it is kiddies! the '09 4x10 forty course! she may only be 10miles but she aint easy!