Happy as a pig in mud...

I wish that was the case.  I had serious doubts of racing this past weekend cause I could not get over how much work was going to be required to get the bike back in sellable shape.  Either way I chose to race and opted to skip the warm up due to the sideways rain.  I actually just set in the truck till about 10 min to go and literally rolled up to the start shoot just as Don started the call ups.  I really wish I could of had a dummy stand at the line for me, cause between call up and the all to familar Don "goooooooo"  I about froze to d - death. 

When we did take off, it was interesting cause I think just about everyone around me slipped a pedal and I felt as if I had the whole left side of the course to myself.  After the start I found myself settled in the lead group and felt really comfortable.  Maybe there is something to this no warm up thing, I know there is a lot of research out there that can support that theory!

So after the sprint point and we entered the mud, I reallized that I nailed the bike set up and found myself yo-yoing with Nathan for most of the first lap.  He would hammer the flats and I would just stick in my 100 miler pace and use the extra traction of the Specialzed 29 x 1.9 ground controls to bring him back in the more tech areas.  Unfotunately, I knew it could not last since I drank more beers in the past 2 weeks than I put hours on the bike.  Yeah the hours on the bike were not even close thanks to my birthday thrown in there. I am not complaining, but everyone concreted my addictions cause all I got was beer, chocolate, and coffee for my birthday!  Mmmmmm!  Oh yeah and a hangover!

So back to racing bikes.  I just rode my pace all day, walked the hills, yup walked!  In the end it was good enough for another 8th place. 

 



 

At least we are smiling.  After this pic we learned that they shut the hoses off on us so no one could wash of.  Tools!  So off to creek we went to freeze some more while trying to get the mud off. 

 

So with with the end of the WORS scene I have officially entered into fulll on fat season.  Which means I get to eat and drink and put on a few pounds so I do not get sick over the winter.  I have an issue of getting too light when base miles hit so I need to enter that phase with a few extra pounds or I will end up around 135 pounds and sick. 

 

I also get to start when of the better parts of the season, the bike riding just for the fun of it time.  I usually grab my cross bike for this but it was in much need of an overhaul after putting it away last winter and doing nothing with it.  It was so bad that the cable caps were frozen into the frame stops.  After some TLC I was able to get it up and going and it did not even require any electronic shifting!  Adnan thinks that a cross bike cannot shift without electronics.  I call BS on that and most shifting issues are caused by improperly setting up your equipment.  Case in point this weekend, SRAM XX and full length cable runs on the Specialized Epic, the right chainlube, and Michelle and I were able to use every gear on the bike the entire race, Michelle even had the small ring when she needed it.   

 

With the cross bike built up I decided to play Green Circle Warrior yesterday and enjoy the warmer part of the day before the rains hit again.

 

 

 

 

I think there is another GC ride in the near future with the team coming into town for the WORS banquet.  We usually go to the banquet then ride from our house on Sunday, stop for coffee, and Big D and I will usually have a dozen close calls and maybe one take down do to our ADHD taking over.  Either way it is a blast and involves a coffee stop and around 4hrs on the bike. 

 

Other than that, just working to get the MTB bikes all cleaned up and readdy to sell.  I will have a medium Sworks Epic and a large Sworks Epic forsale to make room for the new bikes so let me know if you are interested. 

 

Now get back to work!