Sweet mountain view off of my new porch

CRANK THE SHIELD 2012

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SAWEEEEEET!!!!! Crank The Shield 2012 trailer:

Crank The Shield 2009 about killed me (totally my own fault). I fell head first off a small cliff and landed on a rock, knocked myself silly, then had to call it quits after just the first stage due to a concussion. Angry Johnny himself hauled me out of there back to the van, and I must say I barely even remember it. Apparently on the trip home I was talking to EJ about a magic school bus, and I scared the hell out of Chelsea when I climbed into bed at about 4a.m. without even telling her I was coming home early. 

Crank The Shield 2010 was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Hands down, just freakin' incredible. After that they switched to an every other year format, so i've been itching for Crank The Shield 2012 ever since. Not only is it three days of some of the most awesome trails ever-it's fully catered all you can eat gourmet goodness too. On top of that, you are just riding with some awesome people, run by the best, while basking in the glory of the Canadian Shield (northern Ontario). And oh yeah...they have beer! I actually started this blog just after the 2010 CTS and my first post ever was a recap of this event: Crank The Shield 2010 post. (I returned the spent XX chainring that cost me a podium in 2010 to a friend of mine at Sram, Schweinfurt, Germany when I visited my parents. It was hilarious.)  

I'm going all out---podium or bust baby!