This is not a race report ;)

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There is no doubt I am not alone here, work hard in most parts of my life but put off the small things that end up mattering.

Eg: Massage. I need one, but don’t have the time.  
Hair. OMG, it is so dry and brittle with grey hairs poking through everywhere, but hey I use the purple blonde shampoo that spruces up the highlights and a hair tie.  These things allow me to extend the hair appointment being made for up to 3 months.
Sleep.  I want to have 10 hours a day but generally am stoked to get 7.  By

24hrs at Stromlo, the most fun you can have in 24hrs!

jessandliz

Its been 2 weeks since I raced at the Australian 24hr SOLO Mountain bike championships at Mt Stromlo.
For most of us that race these events, its not just the body that needs time to recover, its our mental wellbeing, and that means the capacity to put the race into words, apologies for the suspense.

Last year in 2014 Norm and I turned up to the Scott 24hr as I was not going over to Scotland to defend my World Champion title.  

Life had been hectic and training had not been world class.

This race is where I really cut

Red Bull Bushrangers 12hr SOLO fun time at Jubberland

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Red Bull Bushrangers 12hr MTB Enduro at Jubberland, Castlemaine, September 26th 2015. 

The short notice of the 12hr race held an appeal for me in many aspects.
I had been methodically training since my return from Italy at the start of June.
With already eleven weeks of training and progression and the aim to turn up to the Aussie national 24hr solo champs on October 10th & 11th the timing of this event was almost perfect.

It was decided that a good 12hr hit out on the mountain bike would serve well as a big load training day with much to observe,

The Long Awaited Battle with Kate

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The Long Awaited Battle.

I had heard it on the grapevine, Kate Penglase was keen to race me before she went off to the WEMBO World Solo 24hr Champs in Weaverville. 
We had a 45 min tussle at the Geelong MTB Club No Frills Friday in a handicap and she came out victorious but it was hard to tell what might have happened had we been in a head to head.

Kate has been on the 24hr and Vic Enduro series scene for a few years now.  In fact I even think I was still coaching one of her support crew

Shimano XTR M9000 Di2 - The Review

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2015 - Year of the Shimano XTR Di2 upgrade.

It was a few months ago now that I was gifted with the 2015 Liv 27.5 Lust Advanced 0 from Giant.  This years colours are to my liking with aqua purple and black giving it a feminine and strong appearance.

Stoked to get the new bike, I was only a few weeks off receiving my aftermarket special delivery of XTR goodness to stick on this lovely Lust.  The conversation with Mitch at Shimano went something like this,”Jess would you like to try out the Di2 XTR gear this year on your no.1 bike?”

Back from Italy, Straight into winter, jump back into racing and a BIG goal to smash.

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I returned from Italy on the 17th June with 3000kms and 35,000 vert meters in the legs from working on bike tours with Dave and Emma of Top Bike Tours.  The weather was sunny, the roads hilly and the daylight hours long and enjoyable.

Of course my return came with the onset of winter here in Australia and the winter solstice too, the shortest day in our year.  

Norm and I returned to Melbs at 5:20am on a Wednesday morning, after losing 8hrs and basically one nights sleep I thought life would be not too bad, head out for