Unfortunate

That didn't go well.

Today was cold and crappy and raining. All day. St Marie flatted midway through and the neutral support had already used up all their wheels on the silly DI boys...ouch. Elk Killer netted a perfectly respectable 17th but I think he burned a match or three doing it...ouch.

I quit.

I suck.

I flatted too, but quickly received a new wheel. Pinned it for five miles and caught back onto the pack, but I was blown for the climb. I fell back and eventually gave up. I spent the next fifteen miles (to my chagrin) composing my litany of excuses, like any good cyclist would. Flatted. It's raining. Want to take a wicked yes (oooo Family Guy reference). Lost my glasses. Four hour race. Saving it for the crit. Suck. I do not like making excuses; they're embarrassing. But more than anything else, I remembered, for the hundredth time, that deep flaw that has marred my racing career:

I hate racing.

I love winning, and good results buoy me almost long enough to overcome the bad ones. But now that my final collegiate weekend has started with such a downer, I know I can't pursue my secret summer plans. Because I just don't love it, or enjoy it, or want it enough.

That said, I'm still looking forward to the crit. Because crits are always fun.

Wish Granted

Well, Elk Killer has the camera with all the pictures and I don't feel like retrieving them now (later, I promise) but I got my wish: the course is beautiful.

The first quarter of the 15 mile course is mostly flat/downhill with alarmingly sandy corners and small branches littering the road. Ugh! The rest of the lap is up down up down up up up up through the lush green uber-pastoral landscape. It's not as dramatic as Fort Collins was but definitely breath-taking in its own right. The lap finishes on a long semi-steep hill, and the race finishes on an even longer, much steeper hill. Fun!

How am I feeling about this? It's just like last year: even if I get blown to bits (likely) I'll still enjoy the ride because of the lovely terrain. I feel even less prepared this year and the weather is probably going to be nasssty, but I refuse to talk myself out of this pleasant sense of anticipation. It's on!!

Madison, WI

After a relatively painless 14 hour drive full of XM comedy radio (ick), we're here. I just can't believe how much of the country is ugly and boring. It makes me want to go find beauty somewhere.

Pre-riding today...I'm afraid.

Wow

Seventeen years is such...a long...time. But now I'm one quiz, one exam, one thesis introduction, and one road trip away from being completely finished with school.

In retrospect, college was pretty sweet.

This was four years ago. Yeah. Seriously.

Freshman year. This is my favorite picture in existence.

Halloween of sophomore year. The ladies dressed as the five stages of Britney Spears.

Junior year. Ugly sweater party at the Cowie/Tellman household.

The Sycamore crew mobbed the seasonal trails at midnight, 10/15/08.

I spent a lot of time in this guy's company.

Senior year. Mountain bike season would not have been the same without them.

Tale of Two Bikes

the baby dinosaur has been talking to me.
it says things like, "stop braking. i got this."
and "look how much higher i can jump!"
and "let's session that."
and "quit climbing like a pansy. put it in the middle ring."
and "wash me. make me beautiful again."
it kind of scares me with its insistence.

road conference was this weekend. on saturday i pulled a hindenburg but got some redemption on sunday. and now BC is goin' to nationals. i anticipate much pain.

apparently the crit is circling the capitol building. that's pretty durn cool.

New Bike New Bike New Bike

Ok, so, the Alabama race weekend: rode kind of slow, climbed big hill, finished nestled in the bosom of Lees-McRae's formidable machine team both days...netted a 4th and a 3rd. No big shakes. My results are so consistent. And boring.

Now the good stuff. Having taken the NEW BICYCLE on its maiden voyage, I can present to you an utterly scientific and objective review of the 2010 Era Expert. I took it on ____(can't tell because it was kind of closed as of today...) with the Saint and T. Cowie because it's a darn good test of tech climbing and Pisgah descending. After adjusting the Era within an inch of its life, I was pretty much pleased with the position and we started the dirt climb. Out of the saddle, I felt exactly like I was riding a baby dinosaur.

That comment elicited some puzzled expressions from my companions. Basically, I would imagine a baby dinosaur has big muscular legs but feels a little clumsy, being fresh from the shell, so he treads very carefully. So: delicate but muscular. Which is definitely a good thing.

Then on the descents the Era demanded I ride totally out of control. I could not acquiesce because I was riding like a newbie hack, but soon, little Era. Soon.

Now I understand all those nancy words magazines use in reviews, words like "responsive" and "balanced" and "stable". Here's another one: "perfect". The new (as of '09) suspension design is absolutely delicious. It will require that I accumulate some Tristan-like knowledge of suspension so that I don't bop around with it totally set the wrong way. While experimenting I turned the Brain off and commented to the Saint that it felt very nice, but of course he was appalled and said that defeated the purpose of owning it. I've got some learning to do.

Also: it is the first new mountain bike I've ever owned. Even better: it's sub-25 pounds. Most importantly: it is shockingly beautiful. I cannot take my eyes off it. It is my pristine little baby dinosaur that sparkles in the sunshine.

Let's go ride tomorrow afternoon. Everyone.

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

Dear Epic,


Imagine me and you
I do
I think about you day and night
It's only right
To think about the bike you love
And hold her tight
So happy together

I can't see me lovin' nobody but you
For all my life
When you're with me baby the skies'll be blue
For all my life

Me and you
And you and me
No matter how they toss the dice
It had to be
The only one for me is you
And you for me
So happy together...





Oops. I lied.

A Couple of Important Points

I forgot to mention that Dr. Crotts also had a great weekend. He's been doing a whole lotta work, including racing the A men's TTT whenever possible, and has grabbed two top fives so far. Well done, sir.

Also forgot, mad props to Furman for a really well-run race. It was a marked contrast to the usual collegiate weekend.

I finally got an article on the BC athletics page. Wow! Despite being DII conference champ for each season so far! Sour grapes...I'll waste no more time complaining.

Rich Mountain, Becky Mountain's twin brother, is totally totally awesome.

This weather is totally totally awesome.

Riding alone can actually once in a while be totally totally awesome. I saw this guy up close and personal. That was totally totally awesome.