XSI Mountain Biker Nate Miller Finishes Another Great Season
We decided to check in with XSI Athlete and Mountain Biker, Nate Miller of Park City. Where have you been hiding Nate? Earlier this summer, we first welcomed Nate Miller as an XSI Athlete, right after his outstanding 5th place in the 2010 Laramie Enduro. This grueling race takes bikers through high grass plains, aspen and pine forests, and various cattle trails of the scenic Vedauwoo Recreation area of the Medicine Bow range in scenic Laramie, Wyoming. This is a must see for someone who has never watched an endurance race.
Nate told us that the Laramie Enduro Race Support Team was outstanding at several locations on this 75-mile course. And even better, a great feast awaited the racers after the race. Nate said this feast alone was worth the ride!
Shortly after the Laramie Enduro, Nate got a bad case of bronchitis that kept him off his bike for 6 long weeks this summer. This of course kept him from racing.
Nate did manage to get in a good fall race season though, despite his bout with Bronchitis this summer. Getting back on his bike back in the middle of September, Nate said it felt like the very start of the season all over again.
Nate’s first two races this fall were both at Sundance Resort, over two consecutive weekends. The first race was the Sundance Single Speed Challenge. The following weekend was the 2nd race, 12 hours of Sundance. Fall colors were in bloom for both of these races at Sundance. If you can ever get out to watch one of these endurance, mountain bike races next season at Sundance, you’ll enjoy some of the most beautiful fall scenery that the mountains have to offer.
The first weekend at Sundance, Nate finished 4th place. For the first time back on the bike racing, it would be hard to see what the next weekend would hold. Nate decided to enter the next race at Sundance in the solo category, with the simple goal of just finishing the 12 hour race. Working into a steady pace and watching the laps go by, Nate ended up winning the Pro Men’s Single Speed Category and the overall for solo men.
With a few mechanical problems and a major crash during the race, both of the Sundance races proved to be challenging and Nate remarked that, “pacing yourself is crucial versus trying to race.”
What next? CYCLOCROSS! This was a great way for Nathan Miller to finish up the season. Cyclocross racing extends the season for an additional 3 months. More and more cyclists are taking part in this, as it is the fastest growing segment of the sport.
Cyclocross races are typically one hour, the pace is relentless, and the laps last from 8-12 minutes with sections of the race that have stairs that the riders must run up, and barriers that riders must dismount and run with bikes in hand. Watch some video of a Cyclocross race at this link: http://www.flahute.com/2010/11/01/utcx-5-hooters/
Nate also traveled to southern Utah on November 6th and 7th for the 25 Hour Frog Hollow race on a four man team. Nate’s team, “Dolly’s/Endurance” took the victory! His teammates included: Chris Peters, Keegan Swenson, and Troy Lupcho, (photos and results can be found at another popular mountain bike race site: www.mtbracenews.com.
The following weekend, Nov 13th-14th, Nate entered the USGP New Belgium Cup in Fort Collins, Colorado. This proved to be one of the most challenging weekends of racing Nate has ever participated in. These races are stacked with professional riders, including national champions and world cup riders. Nate said it was a great experience to line up alongside some of the country’s top riders and experience this level of cyclocross.
Happy winter to all as the race season comes to a close on Dec 18th. We’ll catch up with Nate again when his race season begins again in the Spring of 2011.
Attention Riders: If you’re planning a ride out in eastern Utah this winter, talk to the boys at “Altitude Cycles” in Vernal. Take a day trip and you can discover some great trails to ride in the winter months. Between snow storms of course!
“Nate Milller and Team_Frog Hollow”
“Dolly’s/Endurance” took the victory at the 25 Hour Frog Hollow Race. The team included: Nathan Miller, Chris Peters of Endurance Cycles, Keegan Swenson, and Troy Lupcho.
This is more than a customer testimonial; it’s an injury story from a snowboarder who blogs under the name, “The Angry Snowboarder.” (Too bad the photo he posts doesn’t show his hand while it was all banged up! Ugh).
“The Angry Snowboarder” was anything but ‘angry’ with his affordable insurance from XSI. In fact, this snowboarder’s story about his injury is worth reading because it reminds all of us how easy it is to get hurt. We at XSI are glad that his injury is healed up and even more glad that he had the insurance coverage to pay for it. For $29 and change per month, this is money well spent.
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A while back I wrote a post about Accident Insurance featuring the XSI brand. For those that don’t know what XSI is, it’s a supplemental insurance to cover you in case an accident occurs. They offer a variety of packages to pick and choose from so all your needs are met. If anything having this gives you peace of mind while out on the slopes as you’re not going to have to worry so much if you decide to get a little too gnarly for your own good. It’s also a solid option for the snowboard bum types who are prone to having low income but need coverage. But like anything that sounds too good to be true there’s skeptics that consistently question how good it actually is and if they’ll process your claim in the event of an accident. Well unfortunately for me my peace of mind was shattered and I had to file one of these claims.”
“Instantly my hand was greeted with immense pain as I basically performed a hand spring and found myself sitting in enough powder to cover my body up to my neck. As I sat there with this now shooting pain in my hand Kevin was able to burrow his way up out of the snow and look at me. I looked at him he looked at me and we laughed then I said, “You know every time I follow you shit like this happens.” To which he responded, “Then don’t follow me!” So while we both pondered why we ride together and are friends I pulled the glove off my right hand to see that it no longer resembled a hand but more like a engorged meat block pulsating in pain. I looked at Kevin then back up to Jordan and said, “Well I’m pretty sure I just broke my hand I’m going home.”
“After you fill out those forms and mail it off there’s a bit of a wait for it to process. I think it was about 4 weeks before my claim processed but once again since the lady at the hospital kind of screwed things up mine is a bit off from a standard claim from what I gathered. They cut a check to the hospital for $1,200 out of my $3,200 bill. Then sent me a check for another $550 to cover expenses and pay it how I saw fit. $1,700 bucks out of $3,200 is pretty damn good compared to paying it out of pocket. Plus with the money being allocated to you directly you can pay things how you want.”
“I have the Signature Gold package from them and since my accident claim I haven’t had my rates go up or my coverage dropped. I still pay $29.50 a month and know that these guys will take care of me if I decide to continue to get too gnarly for my own good. Have my thoughts changed since this about the company? Not a chance they’ve done their job 100% to what they promised me and I’m content knowing that this is truly the most affordable option I could have covering me”
Click here to read his full review- “How good is XSI Insurance?”
Alta Ski Resort in Utah has decided to offer XSI’s affordable insurance plans to its employees. Because most seasonal employees and non-US citizens are not eligible for the insurance offered by Alta, most of them have no insurance at all. And those who qualify for the Resort insurance are still required to pay a $2,000 deductible, even if a small injury occurs.
Alta cares about its employees enough to offer them an affordable option for insurance. Although workers compensation covers Alta’s employees while they’re on the job, most injuries occur when employees are off work. This leaves injured employees out of work with no insurance assistance to help pay for medical expenses.
With its Signature Plans priced as low as $15.40 per month, even a part-time, Alta lift operator earning $10 per hour can afford to have insurance. Alta employees can play harder on their days off knowing they are covered.
