2012 GMR Epic Ride

A MONTH BEFORE
T’was the year of Our Lord 2008. Evil and despair had ravaged the land. Man’s greed had wiped out all of what was pure and good from the land. Throughout the wasted country side, rotten corpses littered the desolate sands. Hungry children crying in the blackest of nights for the teats of their mothers, searching for milk to quench their dry parched bodies. Packs of hungry berserk dogs wandered from corpse to corpse looking for any morsel of meat, but none could be found as these treasures were picked clean by the vultures circling above.

Even the Gods themselves had turned their back on the human race. They had retreated to the highest GMR Mountain, unapproachable but on the steepest of slopes. The Gods had declared that Man must overcome that which is pure of evil, overcome that which is pure of greed, overcome that which is pure of corruption, and be able to save himself.

Somewhere in the distant Land of Orange County, near the vast bluish sea, a band of brothers from the tribe known as the VeloViet had stuck together. Less than a dozen strong, they too had succumbed to the evil that mixes within their tribe a few years past. Brothers had turned on brothers as their heads had rotted itself out for greed and useless power. A battle had ensued, the strong had triumphed, but they had suffered with many casualties. But this small group had now started to solve this hellish puzzle and was gaining strength.

Near the end of that year, two Nomads from the distant Land of the Inland Empire, a vast desert land, filled with sand and sweeping Santa Ana winds, came to the sea town of Orange County searching for answers. They had found the VeloViet tribe and started to be friends with them. The younger Nomad, a scholar of no textual training, began to witness and document happenings in the tribe. This is his documented prophecy...

~ The VeloViet tribe had taken us in. Their leader was a man of the name Captain Thomas. They have a plan to take on the Gods and take back from them that which are pure and innocent to restore the human race. But they are waiting for something...

~ And out of these decrepit ashes an ember bloomed. A God borne as a mortal man arrived to their doorstep in the year of Our Lord 2009. He who started out as a boy quickly grew and matured into a powerful fighter under the VeloViets. This boy/man was trained to fight for the hope of what was to come. They named this fighter... FedEx.

And for 2 years FedEx fought the Gods in the GMR Mountain for the rights of the humans. The first year he was already so powerful that he established his name as one who can deliver success. The second year he dominated the mountainous beast so forcefully that his name was known to all, not only in the VeloViet tribe, but his name had flowed throughout the neighboring lands.

But FedEx is just a mortal man, and the 2 years of extended fighting had slowly decayed his pure heart, and had slowly morphed him into a thoughtless killing machine, one that needs to feed on blood and domination. So powerful was this fighting machine that a new name was given to FexEx. He became known as the beast Kraken. Only the tribe’s leader Cap’t “Zeus” Thomas can control the beast.

~ The Kraken surged hard against the chains that are shackled to its body. The mighty effort only resulted in a tightening of the secure chain, which is made of tungsten carbide and is the strongest and heaviest metal known to mortal man. The Kraken howled its frustration loudly!

~ Locked in a dungeon deep in a cavern high in the GMR mountains, Cap’t “Zeus” Thomas had secured the Kraken Beast since releasing it on the last GMR assault. The Beast though can sense something new approaches. In the thin air high above sea level, the Beast can smell the fear on some of the approaching riders, and know that it will again feast on these weaker riders to the full.

So it was in the year of Our Lord 2011 that Man had to send new warriors to the GMR battle to tame even the Kraken. Two of their bravest warriors, as none others can withstand the force of the Kraken, stood up and accepted the challenge. This duo comprises of a man himself a beast, the powerful Luke “The Beast”, and a young Archer by the name of Kazu. These two men repeatedly attack the Kraken and gained the upper ground on GMR. An arrow had pierced the very center of the Kraken’s heart. The champion of Man, the monster that man created, and then feared, is gone suddenly in a blink of the eye. Gone too are some of the evil and despair that once dominated the lands.

But have Man learned their lessons? Time had slowly erased the pain, and peace had settled on these roads to the sky, but the evilness still lurks, waiting for an opportunity to seep itself into the tribe. The tribe leaders can see the evil, but not all can. So slowly, the leaders begin to heal the warrior that was.

~ The piercing of the arrows had transformed the Kraken. These gaping wounds that the arrows had opened in the Kraken’s body had allowed the evil that lay inside to flow out. Laid underneath the massive stones and in the darkest cave, where its body was placed by “Zeus” Thomas, the Kraken slowly transformed back into the proud and pure warrior FedEx.

It is now the year of Our Lord 2012. Like a Phoenix born, FedEx rose from the evilness that had dragged him down, and declare himself fit and ready to fight for the VeloViet tribe. Could this be the year that VeloViet’s three most powerful warriors: FedEx, The Beast, and The Archer Kazu be the champions of Man on GMR again? The fighting will be even tougher as the opposition force is even more powerful than year's past.

The VeloViets once again prepares itself for the massive GMR assault, and we will be one step closer to know who are the contenders and pretenders for the KoM/QoM titles. My VeloViet Brothers and Sisters... it is time... to the land of the rising roads we go!

A WEEK BEFORE
Axes flash, broadsword swing,
Shining armour's piercing ring
Horses run with polished shield,
Fight Those Bastards till They Yield!

Midnight mare and blood red roan,
Fight to Keep this Land Your Own
Sound the horn and call the cry,
How Many of Them Can We Make Die!

The VeloViet men and women sang loudly as they march towards the GMR slopes. The bright colors of the red, black, and white uniforms speckled the narrow roads.

At the very head of this pack, one can see the VeloViet Cap't Thomas on his magnificent Colnago steed (yes he turned Italian recently and upgraded from all that Trek stuff). His yellow shoes blazed brightly in the sunny sky. To his immediate right and left sported his most seasoned fighting veterans...

Dress in black and to Cap't immediate right, the lone figure in the lead was none other than the warrior FedEx. Focus to a single point intensity, the Kraken FedEx had been missing from the last few Sunday skimishes as he had just came of the deep caves recovering from the arrow wound. He occasionally rubbed his shoulder, the area of the wound, to remind himself of the fight that is to come. His muscles and sinews glistened tightly in the bright sunlight as he has lost pounds preparing for this magnificent war.

To FedEx's right is a contrasting sight. Of an imposing figure, The Animal Scott stood out as a pure Alpha Male. Arms and legs deep of knotted muscles, Scott is ready to unleased his animalistic fury, and ready to pounched on any creatures impeding his comrades in arm.

To Cap't left stood two advanced figures, one can clear distinguished The Archer as he is the only rider that carries a Scott's bow and with Assos arrows on his back. This warrior has been training on the majestic slopes of Muholland, and is in a high climbing spirit. The Beast is on the extreme left of this front group, and he too has the muscle to not only pounch, but to shred his victims all the way up GMR for the entire 1-1/2 hour. Archer and The Beast wailed loudly to the marching song.

And behind these five front riders swarmed a MASSIVE VeloViet Army. The Rock Racer brothers are here, out from their secret training ground and ready for an impending attack. They will sacrifice for their older brother Can at all cost. The Ton Bothers too are ready, having their long lost brother KyAnh back in their mist. The entire Postal Unit is here too, with Danny, Chi, Martin, and Buddha rocking and rolling to the boombox (yes music is great on climbs as there are no tight paceline!). The Ride-4-Beer guys Anh Minh, Chanh, and Brian are drunk again as usual, but surprisingly can climb in their drunken state. And there are so many other VeloViets here too, A2 Road Captain Toan, Hoa, John, Dave, Arnel, Karen, James, Minh, Martin, David, and so many, many more VeloViets.

Too are the riders from other cyling teams here to support their VeloViet friends, and these teams brought warriors of their own. RiverVelo Cap't Bong we know will be strong. Voz's Cat3 rider Anthony will attack as if he is racing. Barkada's Mike will bring a massive 10 riders to challenge the slopes. And so many, many more...

Dawn has broke, the time has come,
Move Your Feet to a Marching Drum
We'll win the war and pay the toll,
We'll Fight as One in Heart and Soul!

Yes it is now the year of Our Lord 2012. The VeloViet tribe again takes to this magnificent slopes.... and we will "Fight as One in Heart and Soul!"

*---- “Release the Kraken” declared Cap’t “Zeus” Thomas… ----*

THE RIDE
The battle was a great success and peace once again ruled the land! Man again defeats the evilness, and brought back the pure and good that is in all of us. The proud VeloViet Warriors fought hard and strong on these slopes of GMR.

Many many photos were taken to capture this memorable ride, and some have been uploaded to Facebook for our friends to enjoy. The video below provide a glimpse of the epic ride for those who could not attend this ride.



The VeloViet would like to thanks their friends who came out and enjoy this ride with us. Special thanks to Co, Long, Lisa, Lilliana, Nicole, Tammy, Chris, Emily, and all who help sag the ride.

See you all next year on GMR!

Out,
Phong