SCX #7/Evergreen Fairgrounds-Monroe (FINALS)

 
  Wow, what a day.  Brutal yet tough/honest weather for the finals of the S.C.X. series in Monroe at the Evergreen Fairgrounds.  It was about 35 degrees and raining.........Hell yeah!
  Holden raced a great race and finished a respectable 17th.  Nice job kid, he nearly puked at the finish he worked so hard.  We are so proud of him this year again, since he really upped his game and learned sooo much racing with the older kids.  Watch out for the future.
  I raced next, as it started to poor down rain.  I started on the back row, but quickly moved up half way through the pack by the first half of the lap.  I worked hard in this group of riders for the remainder of the race and finished in 15th.  Not the best of results, but finally a race I was proud of, and felt good racing.  It was also pretty damn cool having my Lieutenant and Truckman from work show up to cheer me on.  Thanks a bunch Fisher and Jesse.  Pretty cool having you there brothers.
  Hats off to my teammate, Corrie for taking the Cat 3 Womens's championship in commanding fashion.  She led the race from the gun, and never looked back winning with a margin to claim the SCX series title.  Unbeleivable for a second year 'crosser.  You can literally watch her "learning curve" race to race.  Nice job Corrie.  See above podium photo.
  In the Pro 1/2 field, Kristi once again took the SCX title for the 9th time!  She had a battle as she rode with her brace on her fractured hand and had to ride defensively to save her postion.  She hung on just enough to win the overall series by a mere 4 points.  See above podium photo.
  Also, a big congrats to Kristen Kelsey (Buy Local) for her first big Pro 1/2 Womens Win today.  We look forward to having Kelsey on our team next year.  Kristi and Kristen are gonna put the hurt on the rest of the field quite possibly next season.  Incredible racing today girl, nice job.
  As the season is narrowing down, we have two weeks off to train for Nationals in Bend, Oregon.  I will keep you up on the progress, and let you know how things are progressing.
  You gotta love the pic of Corrie and Kristi celebrating with a little bit of the "bubbly".

Kristi's back out on the bike!

 Today Kristi, Sue, and I went out for a mellow ride as the snow was finally melting off of the roads.  This was the first ride for Kristi outside since her hand surgery following her hand fracture nearly two weeks ago.  She has been confined to the wind trainer indoors and it was good to see her back out in the elements toughing it out 'cross style.
  The wind was strong, we got rained on, we flung cow manure, and sand from melted snow all over eachother while cruising along the farm roads.  All in all, this is exactly what 'cross is about in late November.   I loved it. 
  There is even a chance that Kristi may race this Sunday at the SCX finals in Monroe to defend the chance to win a 9th SCX Series title.  Even though she is nowhere near 100%, she might be able to ride well enough to earn some points to limit the 2nd place series rider from winning the series. 
  This could be exciting.  I would not want to go up against a tough hard core cx'er like Kristi if I was riding against her. 

  Thanks for reading.

Snow Day!

 Wednesday brought a fun day to go out on a training ride.  With around 4 inches of dry snow in the Arlington area, the airport trail was begging to be ridden on.  I went out for a few fun laps working up a good heart rate, and sweat even though it was a mere 18 degrees.  I was able to ride for about and hour and a half, then the toes and fingers got to be just a bit too uncomfortably cold.  I packed it in and headed home for a good hot cup of tea with honey.
  You gotta ride the snow when you get the chance, especially with the probability of racing on it at Nationals in Bend, Oregon. 

Washington State Championships

 
Today was the Washington State Championships in Steilacoom (Lakewood).  A classic Northwest cyclo-cross venue with great history. 
  The day was dry yet very cold.  The temperature was about 37F with winds coming from the North = damn cold.  Since I was 5th in the State last year, I got a front row call up and did my best to make the most of it.  When the whistle blew, I got in my pedal immediately and was off with the hole shot after the long pavement stretch.  Once we entered the grass chicanes and pit areas, the group started to string out with the real contenders moving up.  I settled into a rythm as best as I could but my legs felt terrible.  They felt like the Monday after a race....not good going into a "double weekend" but there was no sense in whining about it.  There was a job to do, and I had to do my best.  After the second lap, I pretty much stayed put in my position of 11th and was not able to move up and bridge up to the next rider.  Instead I worked to protect what I had and kept distance from the riders behind me.  I finished in 11th place which was far from my season goal, but hey, what do you do, this is bike racing.....push on and keep trying.
  Tomorrow is the race #7 of the Seattle Cyclo-Cross Series (SCX) at Sprinker Park in Spanaway.  Typically this is a good course for me, and I have a good time there.  Hell, maybe I tricked my legs to thinking that today was a good warm up for tomorrow's race.
  NOTE:  Holden had a fantastic ride today, and busted his butt for a 5th place at the State Championships.  He looked good, and really rode well, and worked hard.  Kristi and I were so proud, and amazed at how much he has progressed and learned this year.  Congrats Holdenator!
  Also, a great day for my teammates Corrie with a solid 2nd place in a great head to head battle, and D.P. with a spectacular 4th place and Marc "Pappi" right behind him in 5th in the Master 3's.  Our other junior, Ethan also did a great job netting a 6th place behind Holden in the 10-12 year old race.  Nice job guys and great race  Thank you Kristi for pitting for me in my race.  It was a cold day to stand in the wind with a broken hand.  I love you for it.
  I look forward to telling you how tomorrow goes.  For now.....thanks for reading!

M.F.G. #5/Woodland Park

 Woodland Park in Seattle has got to be one of the best locations, courses, and venues for a top level cyclo cross race.  This course in only 2 short years has become legendary.  It flows like an awesome carnival ride, and is just fun to pre-ride in itself.
  The day was a little crazy with Kristi fracturing her hand during her race as she clipped a corner stake while hugging the side of the course.  She went on to win by over a minute and won the M.F.G. Championship!  One tough chick.  She would spend the next 6 hours in the E.R. getting a cast.  She will receive surgery this week and more than likely be out the rest of the season.
  With having raced in Sedro Woolley the day before, I was unsure what I would have to give for this one.  The good thing was, is that neither I nor anyone of my teammates in the Masters class was up for the overall classification, so the pressure was off.  Teammate Steve Jensen and I lined up on the back row and off we went.  As always, the racing was furious, with great tight twisty turns on greasy mud, dirt, pavement, and grass as we chicaned throughout the gorgeous forests of maples and open meadows.  What a gorgeous course.  Being right in the city, seemed to draw out even more spectators than normal. and I even had a good buddy and his wife from work come to cheer on.  Thanks for coming Colby and Pam....that was cool!
  Other than a near miss with a tree after sliding it sideways with one foot out of the pedal, there wasn't much to draw on, other than I did my best, and left it all out on the course.  Unfortunatley in typical M.F.G. fashion, even 1 hour after my race, they didn't have any results posted for our class.  I'm guessing I was somewhere in the middle of the pack.  Regardless, I had a great day of racing.  Holden and I packed up and headed to U.W. hospital to pick up Kristi and get home and begin clean up.
  I'm looking forward to next Saturday....Washington State Championships in Steilacoom, and Sunday...SCX #7 in Sprinker Park.  Two great days that may go great together. 
Thanks for reading.

Woolley Cross

Today I headed up by myself to Sedro Woolley for the Woolley Cross race. This race course is one of my favorite to not only race on, but train on. It can be very tough and typically requires a fair amount of upper body strength, which is probably why its a good course for me. I like to consider it the "Paris Roubaix" of cyclocross courses in the Northwest.
Since the Belly Cross series doesn't recognize Masters until the age of 40, and I still have a few years to go, I had to race my Category 1 ranking with the Pro/Elite class. Fortunately, the fields in this series are much smaller, so anything is possible. So without much training lately with all of the time off of the bike, letting my foot heal, I was a little nervous with some tight legs warming up. Hey, at least the foot is feeling good.
I started on the second row, and had a good start making the selection group early with 7 of us. within the first half of lap, "Hot" Carl (Recycled Cycles) and a Western WA University rider, took off. The rest of us worked to maintain. At the half way point things began to split up, and I was losing some power secondary to my back getting a little sore and tired. Next thing I knew I was riding solo, and working to maintain my good placing. It worked, and I finished the day with a 6th Place in the "Elite/A" class. With a quick change of clothes and a chocolate milk down the gullet, I headed South to quickly wash the bikes/clothes and head to Holden's soccer game.
Tomorrow is the M.F.G. Series finals in Woodland Park of Seattle. Kristi has a good battle to win the series overall, and it should be exciting to watch. I will do what I can, but I may have left a bit out on the course in Sedro Woolley today. Either way, I'm looking forward to giving everything I got at Woodland Park.
Thanks for reading.

S.C.X./Maris Farms

Well even though, I was out of the racing for the weekend with tendonitis in my left foot, that wasn't gonna stop me from heading out to the races to support Holden and Kristi.
The morning started off with a bang, literally, when as we were headed South bound on I-405, after hitting a large bump, the trailer disconnected from the truck, and boy did the sparks fly. We quickly pulled over to the side and got the trailer jacked back up and remounted to the hitch. I'm still not sure how or why it became disconnected, but the rest of the trip down and back were without problems.
The racing was great with "tons" of mud on what is normally a brutal course regardless. Again, I wasn't racing, so I was able to commit 100% to Holden and then Kristi's race. Holden had a fantastic race in the deep mud (nearly knee deep in spots) and really pushed himself to his limits. He raced like a champ and really learned once again, what one can do when it comes to pushing your limits. Way to go Holden.
Kristi, was coming back from a week or so of fatigue and illness. She looked much better out on the course, with no bike troubles, only pitting once for a clean bike. She earned a strong 2nd place behind a Sunnyside Sports rider from Oregon. A good comeback race for her after last weekend.
Tomorrow will be my first day back on the bike in a week, and I'm really looking forward to getting back on. This weekend is one of my favorite courses, Sedro Woolley. Hopefully I have a chance to loosen up and get ready for another good result on one of the best courses for me.
Thanks for reading and I will keep you posted.

BAD NEWS - out with injury!

I just got home from the Doctors office with news that takes me off the bike for a week. Not good to hear, but it could always be worse.
Last week, at work, I took a ladder rung across the top of my foot with full body weith crushed onto it. It hurt a bit, but I thought it would subside in a few days, and kept it to myself.
After the double weekend, and hard days on the bike, I believe I aggrevated it even more, making it very uncomfortable at times just to stand. When I flexed my big toe downward a stretching vibration/sound emmitted from my foot. One of the creepiest things I have ever felt. The Dr. diagnosed it as Traumatic Induced Tendonitis. He requested that I take a full week off of any form of exercise to give the tendons rest and a chance to heal as well as prescribing anti-inflammatories for the time being. I guess next week at Maris Farms (SCX#5) I will just be there to assist my teammates, Kristi, and Holden! That's the good side of things I guess. I get a chance to focus on their day.
What a season so far, huh? What do you do?........Game on!

S.C.X. #4/Steliacoom

Halloween morning we pack up the True Northg O.S.V. and headed down to Steilacoom for by Northwest CX history, a classic Cyclo-cross venue. The sky's lifted and the sun shined on this Halloween day, and finally graced us with a race sans-mud!
The course was laid out in opposite fashion of the traditional course and Rad Racing Grand Prix. Very fast, twisty in the grass fields, fast pavement, and some moderate grade power climbs in wide trails to start all over again.
With a last row start due to not having much for series points, I had my work cut out for me. I made sure to race within a group the entire time, since with the speeds and openness of portions of the course, it would be suicidal to work alone. Most of the time I was in groups with the likes of great riders like Tim Ellis(Carbon Neutral Racing), and Randy Iddings (Redline), and we all worked good together. Unfortunately what felt like a good ride, only amounted to an 18th place. I was happy with the ride, but the result was again...dissapointing. Well, there is always next week.

M.F.G. #5 King County CX

Saturday brought a ton of rain to a grassy course which of course translates to a greasy, and slippery course when designed on a slope in an urban park setting. After warming up out on the course, I decided on running the Hutchinson Bulldog clinchers instead of the usuall tubulars. I wanted something with some corner bite on the off camber greasy grass and something that wouldn't pack up with thick mud on the climbs. Those tires are great for those conditions.
After a warm up and embrocation, we made our way to the start. The gun went off, and we headed out. Within the first 200 meters, approximately 8 other riders went down in front of me on an off camber grass section. I was able to clear them and the section which moved me up in the pack rather quickly. I continued to race the following hour in the 10'ish spot with nothing overly exciting and never needing to pit. I enjoyed racing on the tough course, with some climbing sections in these type of conditions. Pouring down rain the entire time. I finished in 10th place and was happy with my race.
The next day is SCX #4 at Steilacoom. Heading for home, to clean up and get the gear and bikes ready all over again.