For most of the riders who compete in the Test of Metal, finishing the race will do just fine, thank you.
But for a select few, that just doesn't cut the mustard. Oh no, these guys need to turn the Test into more of an adventure than it already is, pushing themselves both mentally and physically to experience the ultimate challenge.
Take Kevin McLane, for starters. The long-time Squamish local is known as somewhat of a legend within the climbing community - an accomplished all-around climber and compiler of the area's most in-depth collection of guidebooks. He's climbed so many routes here it would make your average weekend cragger's head spin. He's also been riding a mountain bike for quite some time, and was one of the original minds behind the creation of the Test of Metal. He's ridden in the Test for several years now, but this year wanted to try something a little different. He decided to link up two of Squamish's classic single-day adventures, and turn the Test of Metal day into something truly epic.
At 4:30 Saturday morning, he hooked up with the strong and talented climber Andrew Boyd, and headed for the base of the Grand Wall. Yes, Mr. McLane was going to climb the Grand Wall and ride in the Test of Metal all in the same day.
"I decided to make it into a bigger adventure," said McLane. "I wondered what it would feel like to do them both in the same day. In the case of the Grand and the Test, it was the one day where you can combine two great icons of Squamish into a single adventure."
And an adventure it was.
McLane and Boyd started at the top of the Flake and simul-climbed to the base of the Split Pillar, then traded leads to the top of Bellygood. From there, they hiked down the back trail of the Chief.
"I knew Andrew would think it's an absolute blast to get up there for an alpine start and be on the Split Pillar at six in the morning," he said. "It was pretty important to be very fast so I would make the start of the race."
It took them a mere two hours and 59 minutes to climb the route - which left McLane plenty of time to grab some breakfast before pedalling down to Brennan Park for the mass start. With round one of the classic adventure complete, it was time for round two.
McLane rode a smooth race with no technical problems, but said he may have felt the effects of climbing the Grand later on in the race.
"The goal was simply to ride a good steady race. The ground hit me once, very hard actually, but other than that it was fine."
McLane finished 17th overall in the Citizen Men 50+ category, with a time of 4:30:28.
"Creating a link-up can be satisfying for those who mix and match," said McLane. "I guess it was extraordinary in that it turned the Grand and the Test into bigger adventures than they are."
And then there's young Kyle Quesnel. At the age of 12, Quesnel has done what no other rider of any age has ever done before during the two-wheel extravaganza that is the Squamish Mountain Bike Festival. Quesnel competed in the Teen Test of Metal, the Rockstar Invitational Freeride, and the Trials Championship - the triple threat. He successfully completed all three disciplines, finishing ninth overall in the Teen Test, 36th in the Rockstar (the youngest-ever rider in the event) and an impressive fifth in the beginners stock category in trials. What's even more impressive than that? He did all three events riding the same bike.
Riding the same bike was also in the cards for a pair of Seattle pedallers. But instead of riding in different events on the same bike, this dynamic duo decided to ride in one race and share the bike.The Test of Metal on a tandem?
"We've been plotting to ride the Test of Metal for a long time," said Dieter Eckels, who captained the tandem throughout the entire race. "We thought it would be an interesting challenge to do it on a tandem and it definitely was."
Behind Eckels was Andrew Brand, the stoker. Together, the pair put some heat on the competition right off the start, passing more than 100 riders on the pavement, and also picking up ground during the nine-mile climb. It was the singletrack that they had some difficulty with.
"We rode every inch of the course except for some of the switchbacks in the Plunge - we had to walk around some of them."
The Seattle riders rode a Vintana El Conquistador de la Montaina, with five-foot forks up front and four inches of travel at the back.
"Tandems kick butt," said Eckels. "The whole race was really fun and very well-organized. It was so nice to see the whole town come out - it felt like we were at a road race in Europe."
And last but not least, there were the Ultra riders. Thirty hard-core cross-country crazies who figured that 67 km just wasn't enough punishment, they wanted more. And they got it. This year, Test organizers offered the Ultra Test, a souped-up 105-km version of the original.
The endurance pedal-a-thon was won by Seattle's Steve Williams, who punched in at 5 hours, 38 minutes to take the inaugural title.
"I was a little skeptical about riding that far," he said.
"I thought I was going to get destroyed."
He was the one who did the destroying - but only after catching his second wind after the halfway point.
"It was awesome," he said. "I did the whole thing with a big smile on my face because the riding there is so much fun," he said. "You almost forget you're racing."
Finishing in eighth place in the Ultra, and putting in one of the most jaw-dropping performances of this year's Test, was Calgary's Pat Doyle. He rode the entire 105-km track for just under six hours - cranking through really long uphill straight-aways and down steep technical singletrack using only one gear.
