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Epilogue: Los Angeles after riding it, according to Ben, Cole and Aaron

On the deck by the pool overlooking the Hollywood hills they’re discussing the weekend over drinks. They’re in a classic post ride euphoric haze where everything is perfect and tastes the best or sounds the best it ever has. Everything is so earnest and meaningful and funny. It’s one of the reasons to crush yourself for hours or days on end. Maybe the only reason. They continue to talk for over an hour non-stop until they’re done and the table goes quiet for a few minutes.

From silence, Cole and Aaron begin to ask the same question in concert as if on cue – "What do you mean when you say you did well, maybe really well on the Mount Wilson Hill Climb?"

Ben: “The race is in two parts. I know the route well and I was feeling good so I pinned it to the top and before I knew what I’d done, I’d won it. After regrouping for the second pitch for a few miles I managed to go off the front again, this time with David Clinger. I wasn’t really putting too much into it, thinking we’d get caught by the heavies behind us like Dominguez and a few others, even if they were all just having fun. I was riding and doing my thing and then a mile or so past Red Box I realised I was alone, so I won the second half too. But it was nothing it’s really just a ride, you know what I mean? It’s for everybody, it’s just fun.”

Aaron: “That explains the big ring.”