I'm planning on riding the Lutsen 99er Mt. Bike race Sat., June 23rd, sponsored by Lifetime Fitness.

This is the second year of the race. Ben J. did it last year and told me a hardtail 29er is optimal but full-suspension or cross works too.

www.lutsen99er.com/

If you will be signing up let me know!

Jay

That looks fun, Jay. Not sure if I can do 100 miles on my mtb, but maybe that would be an interesting training goal. Any idea if a CX bike would work or be allowed?

Hey, it's only 99 miles!

Yes, there were CX rides in last years race so that is an option.
Race results show there was even a class for CX.

Also, its only 1000 feet more of climbing than the Chequamegon 40 miler.

Time to get the dirt on!

That COULD be fun on a CX bike. 99 miles though. Ugh. I've been focusing on the shorter races. Like 9 miles. I'll have to float it past the wife though. See if we could make a wkd of it.

Hi I'm new here I am Dean, WoW! this race is in my front yard
(I'm up in Ely)I haven't ever heard of this race but then I'm always looking for the 24 hour races but this year I'm going to do some 12hr races and some 100 milers.

The 14 of Feb is the sign-up date for the Chequamegon 100.
the race date is the same weekend:sick: I love riding down there in Cable. but now you got me thinking!

I will have to see how much time I have to sign-up for Lutsen
and the cost.

24hdinomac wrote:


Welcome Dean!!

Hey Guys - for those of you who don't yet, Dean here is from Ely and he and his wife just became IC3 members through our spoke! He must be just a little bit talented on that MTN bike because if you google "Dean McCauley 24 hour" you can't help but find his name.
This September he competes in the World 24hr Mtn Bike Championships in Canmore, Alberta. He loves the conversations on the forum and wants God to receive the glory for the talents he has been given. Welcome Dean!

Addendum: Dean, you told me a little on the phone about your story and I'm convinced the rest of the group would like to hear it as well. Feel free to do so on this thread or on a new one, where it can be read by all. Thanks.

Ok Jeannie, I will do and I put the just of it in my story here on my profile. Thank-you.

Well good morning, I'm setting at the computer up here in Ely and thinking this is a good time to be typing. The MSN weather is saying -13 but feels like -18, I will have to get the dogs out for a run soon.

Jeannie has ask me to talk about my story here.so here goes it.

I was brought down to my knees by my own self indulgence. I brought up going to church but by the time I was 13 years old I had found Alcohol & drugs and by the time I was 15 I was an Alcoholic,but back then and so through my life I had mostly always been able to stop or cut back on drinking & drugs when I need to get something done or to get out of trouble.

So now I'm going to fast foreword to 1998, I was working in CA. that is where I am from. I had gone through a divorce a few years earlier and I had my kids in my life they would be at my house almost every weekend. but then I was still drinking but no drugs at the time. then in Nov 1998 I did use again and I was hooked like I could see my life going to hell in a hand basket and fast! but I could not stop. not for the Kids the house,not even to save my dog much less lawnmower. by 1999 I went into rehab but I was well within 30 days and I went back to work and was back to using within 4 or 5 days. This was the start of a homeless life for me and I thought I was turning my will & my life over to God every time I went into a rehab but then I would get better and then what I was doing was I would take my will back, so this went on for years and it also led into mental hospitals and jails.

By 2003 Had lost my mind but they let me out of the hospital to go live with my mom,now where everybody had long given-up on me getting sober my good ol mom hung in there and maybe she almost loved me to death; but I stopped letting her do that; I was vested and put in for my retirement and got a walmart schwinn mtb bike to ride to my 12 step meetings then later I moved out on my own and I kept on riding that bike, on the weekends I would do 100 mile rides from where I was living in Yucca Valley CA. to Big Bear CA. and was also riding it in the week doing about 200 miles a week. I later had gotten a Giant MTB bike and was up to 300 miles a week.

I had gotten a computer and found this 24hour racing thing and I saw that Tinker was still racing and he was into this endurance mtb racing thing,no big deal but it just looked fun to me, so in 2004 I was off to the races with my ego and had a little bit of God. I like to say I had the seed but I was low on water.

So I did some endurance races and some xc mtb what I call short track racing the 18 milers and I'm not any good at that!
I did do a Super D and was 1st place for the Team Big Bear championship in 2004.

Then "I" yup! you got it, I drank again! You know I used to say oh I just got around the wrong people or they did this or they did that or they didn't do! I hope by now you have noticed that I haven't talked about finding a church & bible study. but I was going to church with mom sometimes I had also gotten a bible. I have to say something else about my mom she is the lady that walked across America in the 80s.. you can read about her by Googling Route66 and look-up Margie McCauley.

It was Nov 3rd 2004 when two guys broke into my apt. and almost killed me. I don't want to go into all of what happend in that fight,but there was the two guys me and a big knife. I ended-up in ICU and within a few days I was in a hospital room and that was when I had what I thought was enough of myself and I was in alot of fear and that was when a nurse prayed with me and my life started to change and soon after I got in a relationship and mover with her to Ely,MN. Oct 2005
The relationship did not last but we where going to church but then I stoped going. I was also on the Interferon treatment for hep.C i had got done with that and within a few yrs I was back on my bikes. ( I forgot to say that in 2004 I had also got into road biking) and doing some 24hr racing here in MN.

Back in 2009 I started to seek out a more meaningfull relationship with Jesus, I had started to go to church and I love that little church, Iwas at home! I was still going to the 12 steep meetings and I was helping a guy Denny we got together alot and one day he said hay Dean I need you to come over to my Grannys to play cards we need another person, now! I'm not much of a card player. That was the night I met Dennys aunt Susie, now she is my Wife we hit it off right away she had the lord in her life and was going to another church and my church was meeting on Sunday nights and Susies church meets on Sunday mornings so we where going to both.

I was feeling that I was missing something, something that I had heard about, I have tried it, but never stuck with it.
Susies church had/has a Bible study every morning before church we started going and we have been going and I don't ever want to stop going to this Bible study. I know what happens when I don't go! and when I don't stay in Gods word.

Susie & I got Married on Valentines day last year, we have 4 dogs between us Susie had her border collie Emma and I had my australian shepherd Aussie then we inherited Susies moms dog Stormy and last year we/I got another Aussie her name is Lucy they are all rescues except Lucy &lots of work unlike the two kitties.

In 2009 I did two 24 hour races, Afton MN and Iowa. back to back weekends I said I will never do that again yeah! right!
2010 I did four 24 hour races MI 1st place Wausau WI 8th place
Afton MN. and then again I did a back to back weekender and went back to Iowas 24 hour race and finshed 3rd all of the racing I do is in the solo class.

I have always wanted to be in the 24 hour WSC but it just didn't work out and now it has and I'm not just in by age group I made it in to the mens Elite. I will type more about this later but Susie is wating to take the dogs skiing NOW!

Hi, I know it's a lot to read up there, and I wasn't finshed.

Getting into the 24 hour WSC was not my intent last year, All I was going to race in 2011 was the 24 hour Wausau WI and the Afton Alps MN. 24 hour race. I got hurt at Wausau last year and Susie and I had just gotten married and she is not into the racing scene at all! Susie is a cruser rider and just wants to go exploring & camping and so we had to talk! I was ready to give-up racing all togather. so what it came down to is that I would do a few 12hr and 100 miler races and two 24 hr races. and then the WSC came up and that is going to be one of the 24s.

I was looking for sponsorship and getting turned down and thought well I'm just going to race Wausau and Afton and not make a big deal about it, I'm 51 anyways!..

So I found out I could get into the 24 hour WSC race in the elites and so asked God is this your plan and it has been so far.. so started looking for Sponsorship again and asking Salsa cycles for help and they can't so here I am bummed out not getting any sponsors. I told Susie; you know as a Christian maybe I can ride/race for Christ maybe there is something out there that lifts up the name of Jesus Christ.

And that my brothern is how I found the Twin Cities Spoke IC3.