The dirt report.

Interesting if you haven't seen it yet!

"Investing in something with integrity can have it's benefits" -JHK

Hear, hear!

HERE

Now I'm a man! Man, man, man! Man man man manmanmanmanmanmanman I'm a man......

Won the first annual Altadena Naked Crow Mountain Bike Challenge today. Won $300.00.

The race started at the JPL gate to Brown Mtn. I just sat in for the whole flat section before the fire road climb up to Brown. My team mate Alex was right behind me.
Just as we hit the dirt fire road climb, one of the other cyclists attacked and, although I didn't actually think he was a threat to stay away I figured it was as good a time as any for me to attack.
I think maybe Alex thought I was just chasing him down and would slow down when he cracked, because he let a small gap form.
I figured I'd try and stay away so I rode as hard as I could and SLOWLY widened the gap until I had a little over a minute lead.
When I went over the top I knew he would be hot on my wheels so I headed down towards El Prieto as fast as I knew how.
The course went past El P. and into Millard Cyn., and then we headed up lower Sunset to the Lowe toll road.
I knew that if he was going to catch me it would be here so I was on the rivet for the whole climb, suffering but motivated by the thought of a win.
When I crested Sunset the course went straight across Lowe and down a rutted out horse trail.
It was fast and bermed, short but fun to ride, and I knew that if I rode smooth it would be impossible for anyone to catch me since it was steep downhill the whole way to the line.

Thanks to Martin for the great pic.

There was a long paved straightaway before the line and I was puzzled to see another rider up ahead... it turned out to be one of the "amateur" riders who had done a shorter course. I caught him right before the line but then sat up so that he could get out of my victory photo.
If Chet Bearclaw caught me sharing the spotlight with inferior teams ("inferior"= any team He is not on)I would have my ass kicked.
The other rider is lucky I'm not Chet or he would've been punched off the road while the male officials looked the other way and the females lined up to give Chet backrubs.
Hopefully my six-pack will be visible in the photo but I'm assuming they will airbrush out the throngs of adoring female fans chasing me up towards the finish line and victory. They have to because they can't show nudity.
Look for it on the front page of your local paper. Or the LA or NY Times.
They made a documentary of this historic event. Enjoy.

Home again.

Brooke and I are home again... she is holding down the blogging "fort" so if you want to see what we have been up to go to her blog.

Enzo Gucci reviews Krieg Cycling bag.

So far, from what I see, I approve of the bag on your bicycle.

Now, there are some things that could be done to improve this bag.

First of all, the zipper could be made out of gold. Not the color, the metal. This would provide a nice contrast of colors.

The bag also needs some carbon fiber accents. What purpose would this serve, you ask? Weight savings? Nope. Durability? Nope. Improved storage capacity? Wrong again.

Style. 100%. Some may say there is such thing as too much carbon fiber. They are probably Nascar fans who would prefer stainless steel, fiberglass and Coors Light. For us European riders, Carbon fiber is a fashion statement.

Lastly, and most importantly, this bag is missing the true show of style. Look at the most expensive (and best looking) parts, bikes and accessories in cycling. SIDI's $450USD Ergo shoes, Colnago's $10,000+USD Extreme Power Bike, Pinarello's top of the line frames... what do all of these share? The Italian Flag.

Thats right. When you want a product to go from good to incredible (and incredibly expensive) you put an Italian flag somewhere visible.

THAT is the main thing this bag is missing.

Otherwise, it's great. I know you're married, Lyle, but have you been experiencing increased attention from the opposit sex since installing this bag to your bicycle?

I'm out.

-Enzo Gucci

Dear Enzo,

As a matter or fact, I have.

-Lyle

Papa's got a brand new bag!

Eat your heart out Boone!

Sam Krieg started out making too-cool-for-school chalk bags for climbers. Luckily for all us incredibly stylish cyclists, Krieg is now making saddle bags that you can be proud to put on your bike.
Instead of getting the smallest bag you can, and trying your best to hide it under your saddle, or stuffing your jersey pockets full of tubes, CO2, etc. you can now roll with STYLE.
On a relatively unimportant side note, it also works well. The velcro sections are pretty big and super grippy. It is pretty much the perfect size for tubes, CO2, levers, etc.
Unless you are one of those people who want a purse on their bike (42 cliff bars, cell phone, pager) this should be a good size.
It's not too wide, so you don't have to worry about it rubbing your legs.
The sides on this bag are fuzzy (adds to style), as you can see, so after a long, rainy and muddy ride I cleaned 'em off and they were good as new. The rest of the bag is some sort of ballistic nylon looking stuff that is easy to clean if you don't like dirt on your bike, but plenty durable if you are a "set it and forget it" type of rider.
After the long rainy, muddy ride I mentioned I checked inside and everything was totally dry so I guess it's pretty water resistant too.
The zipper closes in the "down" position so it shouldn't open up while you are riding, but if you are paranoid you can always sandwich it (zipper) between the velcro and it should be bomb-proof.
None of that is important though, style is the primary function of a cyclist.
Jesse, you should be writing this down... if I see you with a bag as cool as this I might just forget that you were riding with a Bento Box when I first met you.
Also, I would like you to check out the Krieg website and then post a review in the comments section, giving your professional opinion as Team Bearclaw Image/Style Manager.
Coming soon to a shop near you. Check out Krieg Cycling for more.

Comedy?

I don't know what he's saying but that only makes it even funnier.



I am inspired by this video. I no longer think that doping should carry any fine or 2 year ban or any ban or penalty.
I just think that if a rider is convicted of doping they should have to compete dressed as a mariachi. Just like the guy in the video. Forever.

Settling in...

Today, after spending the last week and a half travelling and attending family events (a wedding and a funeral, 4th of july gathering and all the accompanying "sub-events")Brooke and I are finally in VT.
I have only one plan: ride my bike (finally).
Hopefully, after spending some time getting sick, getting well, and mucho tiempo on the above mentioned family events it will not be a case of "too little, too late"!
I can count the number of good workouts I've gotten lately on one hand so the idea now is to kick-ass on training, have a decent Nat's, train more and be fitter for NC and then come home better than ever.

Guest Blogger: Jason Lowetz

This may be the best race report from Jason yet... you decide.



Hola.

I stepped outside today wearing nothing but a pair of leather gloves.

I walked over to my neighbors house and said..."do you know who I am?".

The elderly women that answered the door replied "no....."

I said....."WRONG! ""Give me 60 dollars now!"

She said.. "no".

I said "FINE, I guess I'll just go win $60 at a bike race then!"

I then leaped into the air, spread my legs, and landed on the concrete floor doing the splits.

After that I got up and went back into my home. Got my bicycle and my spandex and rode off to Costa Mesa. I picked up brother Dan along the way.

I first raced the masters 30+ 1,2,3's along with world famous Bradley Galindo.

Loads of fun. I was near the front on the last lap until I was attacked by 7 white hornets. 4 of them stung me in the left ankle and the other 3 in the right eyeball. I closed my eyes and pedaled through the last 3 corners and finished 20th er sumthin. I dunno.

I then slammed on the brakes, as did Mr. Bradley Galindo, and headed back to the start line for the 3's race.

I needed $60 so I had to finish in 2nd place. Not 1st....not 3rd.....2nd. With about 5 to go I hopped on Danny's wheel as he was going to lead me to paradise. He done a great job, but I got ass plunged between two crackers on the last lap and lost Danny's wheel. Picture the scene in Titanic where Leo De Crappio vanished into the depths of the ocean. It was sort of like that I guess. BUT this time De Crappio was about 3 feet from the ocean floor when he decided to light the short fuse on a can of $60 woop ass. De Crappio came blasting out of the water with 2 corners to go. With one corner to go he duct taped 2 sparklers to his helmet, lit them, then sailed around the corner in 1st place. Remembering he HAD to get 2nd place he waited for somebody to go by then he got on the gas again and finished 2nd.

Recap

Mens Cat 3

2nd place

$60.

Thanks to Brother Dan, Danny, Freddie, Brad, Larry, and thy 2 or 3 or 4 other PAA manchines involved for looking so damn sexy and for keeping the race together.

Jaysus

out.

New Favorite!

Maybe you've noticed the new link at the top of the "Links" section on the right side of the page, and maybe you haven't.
Well, whether you noticed it or not, I am here to tell you that it's my new favorite blog!
There is a good chance that I'm biased, being that I recieve... *ahem*...being that I recieve... from the blogs author.
But I don't think so... It's just that good.
So check out my wife Brooke's new BLOG.

PS: Scarantino's in Pasadena will be showing the Tour nightly in their bar (with various drink specials) for the whole Tour! Let's support a local eatery that has the AUDACITY to turn off baseball in favor of cycling!

TDF partay extraordinaire

Some of you may be familiar with the bunny hopping style-meister Jesse Scarantino.
Many of you may also be planning to watch the Tour de France.
I am here to alert you to the FACT (not my opinion, universally agreed upon by the scientific community!) that Jesse will be hosting the most kick-ass party ever at his "venue", Scarantino's restaurant in pasadena.
Check out the website here:
http://scarantinospasadena.com/tour.htm
It is a cyclist friendly place with tasty food and an incredible beer selection to accompany your barstool view of the tour on the flat panel tv's.
If this was a more popular blog I'd be making millions for a plug like this...
If you checked out the website though, you'd see that your second beer is free if you are in your kit.
I figure the free beer will be payment enough.
Anyway, the party will be awesome so if you are planning on watching the tour be sure and check it out!
Then come back and let me know what you thought in the comments section.

How to waste $800.00

Step 1. This is one of the funniest bicycle ads to ever grace (disgrace) the pages of ebay:



"I was a former bike courier and a former track racer so I'm very picky about what I ride. To say that this bike is the perfect street cruiser is a gross understatement. The greatest thing about single speed bikes is that they are simple, slick, and beautiful, but never in my wildest dreams did I think they had them in full-suspension. This bike is as durable as it is beautiful. You can ride it, you can jump it, and you can even swim with it. There are hardly any moving parts or wires, so there's nothing to maintain or take care of. All you need to do is use it, abuse it, and park it. This model is not new, but not available in the US or Europe either.The one shown in the picture is fully assembled, but the one you are bidding on will arrive at your door steps brand new still in it's original packaging. This item is also available in Red and Yellow with matching tires. Some "very minor" assembly is required, but nothing you need mechanics for. The bike has a universal one size that will fits all frame. Adjustments with the seat and seat pole will allow it to fit just about anyone. If you are tall like me (6 foot 2 inches), you will need to get an extended seat pole, but the frame will fit and you will have a very comfortable ride. The bike comes with a 39 x 16 gear ratio. The rear silver pegs on the bike pictured are not standard, and will cost $10.00 extra and available upon request after purchase. This is the first time I'm actually selling on Ebay, so I hope I have been through enough, but please feel free to ask me any questions. Thanks you."

You can even swim with it? I think we've all been through enough... thanks you.

Go HERE if you want to see the actual page... but come back.

Step 2. Let me know what you think of this bike in the "comments" section.

Step 3. Once you have stopped laughing it will be time to get down to business... that's right: Business Time...



I might just have to dust off the ol' guitar and learn that one... to serenade my wife with.

Oh yeah, riding: I am back to training and in the past two days I've been doing back, to back, to back, to back hard interval rides... my bike wants more... but I'm quite sleepy.

Guest Blogger: Jason Lowetz

15 minutes till race start:

Deciding whether I was going to use both legs or just one leg in todays race quickly became the least of my worries.

There is a sound that is made by the air exiting your tubular tire which is filled with tufo sealant. That sound is accompanied by a magnificent pinwheel spray effect of tufo sealant....if you are moving.

14 minutes till race start:

2 blocks away a pair of rolf wheels sat quietly at home wishing that they could be in the bicycle race going on across the way. One of them was about to get there wish. It would be the front.

I made the phone call. Brother Dan, owner of the rolf wheels, and we made our way to his home. 2 blocks away. Home of the rolf wheels. We replaced the front wheel. I was off. I could have swore I heard the rolf rear wheel mutter something like " see ya in a few minutes..... bitch"... ....but naaaa. Wheels dont talk.

10 minutes till race start:

There is a sound that is made by the air exiting your tubular tire which is filled with tufo sealant. That sound is accompanied by a magnificent pinwheel spray effect of tufo sealant....if you are moving.

Yup.....the rear just went.

Back to the house to get the rear wheel. When I got to the house the wheel was waiting by the door and it was wearing a g-string. The weirdest thing I had seen today for sure. Anyway.....Brother Dan and I raced to swap the cassette and put the wheel on.

5 minutes until race start:

Ready to go.

0 minutes to go until race start:

Race starts.

PAA riders everywhere.

The plan. Victory.

Grayson was to be my leadout man. Others were to be busy bees. I sat in and watched the bees work there bee asses off for 53 minutes. Chasing breaks, keeping the pace up, and what not.

With 3 or 4 laps to go I found Graysons wheel and watched the race play out. I briefly lost his wheel with just over 1 to go. No worries though. I simply punched a few opponents in the face and regained my position.

Just under 1 lap to go. Trouble. Grayson is out front and I am second wheel. Mucho too soon for this. Just as we are about to be swarmed by the bad guys on the backside straightaway, Claudio goes zipping by on the left. I'm pretty sure his jersey had ripped off from the acceleration. This ends up working out well as Grayson hit the gas and kept us near the front. We were top 10 coming out of corner 4. I was glued to Graysons wheel ready to hit the turbo blaster button. With about 100 yards to the finish I hit the turbo blaster button. A few seconds late. I finished 3rd. I was gaining on the 2 fellas in front of me, but not much. If I would have used both legs and If Grayson would have taken 1 more flinstone vitamin this morning we would have taken it for sure.

Nice work yall.Sorry I missed the podium. I was busy doing one armed push-ups on top of the black pearl.

-Jaysus

B. Harlan

P6230044.jpg, originally uploaded by jasonsager.

This is an excerp from Blake Harlans blog. It is definately a gem of the blogging world (in my book, anyway), and I couldn't agree more. It was one of those times when you read something and think "Holy Shit... I'm not the only one!".

Anyway, Blake's blog is pretty interesting right now so check it out. Now here is a preview:

"Yesterdays effort left me with mixed emotions. Out of the 50 or 60 guys that lined up on the start line, 28 of them finished in front of me. The race was long, dusty, hot and needless to say really really hard. I paced myself almost to perfection for the 4 lap 2 hours and 45 minute ordeal but that just wasn't really good enough, or was it? I was great that i ran my body to the max, felt good about my effort, raced smart and better yet didn't crack. However, with all that said, thinking i couldn't have gone any faster, i still finished 29th. Maybe everyone else was just having a killer day but i highly doubt it. I think this is just a wake up call that even though i wake up and train everyday, pretty much without much thought to the weather, its still going to take some time to be up there with the big boys. Weather its just more time i need, or maybe I'm just waiting for something between my bike and my body to click. While it might seem like a bad thing to feel, I have found it unusually hard to watch those around me continue to excel. Almost like I'm getting left behind. Its not that I'm really that jealous of them but more frustrated as to why i can't be doing the same. But if its one thing i have learned during this whole bike racing lifestyle, its that everyone excels at their own speed. One day I'll be in the pro ranks bump'n elbows, but I'll just have to wait a little longer."

Damn... cycling is so bittersweet sometimes.

Me, Brooke, Jesse and Bear Divide... Lazy Days.

On Fri Brooke, Jesse Scarantino (who will be hosting some incredible Tour de France parties in July. I will post the link for those who live in the LA area.) and I rode up to Bear Divide.

It was hotter than camel piss.

I can definitely say that is the hardest I've ridden since getting sick... I was worked on sat and took it easy.

Sun (today) I will see how my legs feel and maybe do a pretty hard ride again.

Alex stopped by this morning and gave a little demo on the correct posture for riding a single-speed.

On a completely unrelated note: Brooke's single-speed is almost fully operational.

B-Day!

Today was Brooke's birthday! We went for a ride and even though it was easy I got tired, ha, ha! I am going to try a harder ride tomorrow... I think.
I am also going to get some pictures up on the blog soon, I am having "technical difficulties"
Got this one up though, so this one's for you Alex:

Since I haven't been riding as much I have had time for a few other things and I can honestly say that my road bike hasn't been this clean since I first built it.
Look for a race report from guest blogger Jason Lowetz soon too.
Peace out.

A 1 month absence...

After taking a month off from pretty much the whole human race, I am now officially back (strange since I was never officially gone...).
My absence kicked off with pneumonia, and I will kick off this return to blogging with the story of my 3rd time back on the bike since I fell down under the weather.
After not having ridden for what seemed like an eternity of coughing, antibiotics and sleeping in, I was forced into action by the Park City, Utah (Deer Valley) leg of the NORBA national tour.
Brooke and I had planned a trip that included camping on Gooseberry mesa and partaking in what may be the best riding ever!
We packed our bags and our bikes and set out for UT!
When we arrived at Gooseberry we found a nice spot to camp and made a fire, roasted hot-dogs and laid our bags down under the stars to sleep.
The next day (day #1 back on the bike) we cris-crossed all over the mesa, riding: Hidden Canyon, the South Rim, the White Trail, the Yellow Trail (in both directions) the North rim and the Practice loop.
After several hours in the 100+ degree heat we were running out of time and we were wilting so we packed up the car and headed up to Park city to stay with our friend Megan and her dog Annie.
We got in later that expected because A: we underestimated the time it would take to finish the drive from Gooseberry and B: we forgot about the time change. Ooops, sorry Megan!
The next morning (day #2) we drove the 15 min. to Deer Valley and pre-rode the course, stopping in at the Fisher tent afterwards to say our hello's to the team.
After that it was back to Megan's for some grub. We had a great time grilling up salmon and making pasta and salad, watched a movie, had a bit of ice cream and went to bed.
Day #3 back on the bike was race day and after examining my performance on days 1 and 2 I was determined to at least finish all 4 laps!
The race started with about 60 riders and I went as fast as I could, mingling somewhere near the mid-back of the group.
Lap one was my best lap... I faded a lot on lap 2 and had to stop and take a break. Only one or two riders passed me while I was resting.
Lap 3 I was starting to get light headed and I was having trouble holding my lines... I was thinking about quitting... a bee flew into my jersey and started biting me multiple times...
When I entered the feed zone at the beginning of lap 4 I took a nice long break, and started feeling better. I decided that I wasn't going to quit with 1 lap to go.
Oh yeah, I had gotten a flat on lap 1 that had mostly sealed with Stan's but there was still a slow leak and it had gone flat 2 times. I had just been re-filling it with C02.
While on the last climb of the last lap of the race it REALLY went flat... the C02 and Stan's were just spittin' out and midway through the last descent I emptied a can of Seal-Flate into the tire, hoping it would gum up enough to last me the 2 min I needed to finish.
No dice though, and 2 riders passed me while I was running my bike to the finish line for 46th place.
Anyway, 4 dizzy laps, 34 miles, 3 flat tires, multiple rest breaks and bee stings later, I felt like I had accomplished something just finishing!
Since I triple flatted in AZ for NORBA #1 and had no drops I pretty much had to race in UT this week. Unfortunately for me I only got 34 points for my miserable 46th place finish so that will definately put a dent in my overall standings.
Oh well, it's better than a zero I guess, and I got to have a fun trip with my wife and ride Gooseberry Mesa.
The next day was Brookes race, she did awesome and got 3rd place in a big, competitive field.
Alex, also feeling a little under the weather, hung onto 6th place in his race. Dave Roth got a 6th place in Super D and Cheryl Roth got on the podium with a 5th place finish despite a tough battle against local high-altitude junkies!
The day after that was my Short Track race. My cousin Ann was visiting a friend in SLC and came out to the race even though I warned her that if the XC was any indication I would be getting pulled pretty damn quickly!
I warmed up and went to the line, waited, and got a nice call up in 3rd place.
The race started... I went fast (felt fast, actually slow)... I got passed by everyone... I passed a few people back...
I was saved by the bell on lap 3 when Frosty pulled me. I have never been so relieved to be done with a race in my life!
After that it was just a fun time cheering on Willow and Heather in the Pro race, more grilling with my cousin Anne, Megan, her friend Wade and a cornucopia of dogs, and then a long drive home!

Don't let it go to my head...

This is Colt.

I am a star. My blog has been "featured" on Colt's blog. Check it out HERE.

Alley Cat Relay

No pics yet... working on it.
I had a lot of fun last friday... first I set out to do my workout.
I needed to get some stuff at the bike shop so after I ran a short errand I rode over there and got some new tires and a couple other things.
While I was at the shop some friends of mine convinced me to come with them to an "outlaw" race in downtown L.A. I was told it would be some sort of relay but I had no idea what to expect and I didn't commit to actually racing but I said I would go and check it out with them.
When we got there it took quite a bit of time to navigate all the one way streets and dead ends of downtown L.A., but we finally found the "registration" area... someone just wrote "registration here" with chalk on the sidewalk!
We registered our team: Dick "Danimal" Neptune, Chegemelion(?), Doyle Diamond, Chet Bearclaw...It turns out that this was kind of a bike messanger race. You had to ride through downtown on open streets, navigate cars and stoplights (I was very conservative and safe, other riders not so much), pick up an envelope, race back (any route was OK!) to the Start/Finish area and hand off the package to your teamate who raced back to the pick up area and got a 2nd package, handed off both to the 3rd rider who got 3rd package raced back and gave all 3 to the 4th rider, who raced down, got 4th package, raced back and traded all 4 in to complete the race!
I realized that this race required lights, so I borrowed some from a friend who I met up with at the race (thanks Scott).
Our first rider, Dick "Danimal" Neptune hustled back to us in 3rd place. Our second rider, Chegemelion moved us into 1st. On my leg I dropped the guy who was right behind me in 2nd and came in with (reportedly) a minute and a half lead.
Chet Bearclaw rode a conservative leg to take us in for the win!
We won 260 bucks, which came out to be 65 each. Not bad for a night of fun, and I would even do it again but I would have to ride safely again too, which means that if someone is crazy enough to blow all the lights and they are also fast riders they would probably beat us... or get a ticket... or road rash/bruise/other.
I have been searching the web for pics but so far I haven't found any. As soon as I do I will add them to this post.
The next couple of days I'll be prepping for the race at Castaic this weekend, pre-riding, etc.
Ciao

Fontucky

I like this picture because it looks like I am a BA. You can't tell that I'm in 9th place.

The Fontana NORBA was... well, anyway, it was.
The XC on friday was tough. It was a very physical course and I had trouble keeping up the pace for the 1st two laps, I sort of yo-yoed out behind Papo for the first two laps. Near the beginning of the second lap I caught onto a train of Papo and a rider in a Bianchi kit. I'm pretty sure that Denton Bowers was right behind me in the train too. At the time I was barely hanging on, I was willing to pull but the others would've had to slow their pace for me to get in front of them!
Papo pulled away on the first climb and Denton got dropped so it was just me riding behind the Bianchi guy until the descent and a loose, sandy section that was tough to ride.
The Bianchi guy got bogged and I went around by riding in a concrete drainage ditch (you heard me), and opened up a gap on him.
For a while I thought he would catch up. He seemed pretty strong.
My goal was to catch Papo on the second climbing section, stay together 'till the flats and then work together to open up the gap to Bianchi.
When I reached Papo he said he had gone to hard at the start and was fading so I just rode ahead, trying to hold my gap on the Bianchi rider.
That's when things started to click for me.
I started feeling good on that 2nd or 3rd lap (can't remember exactly) and I just tried to pace out my "mojo" for the remaining lap and a half or two.
I didn't actually know how good I was riding until I caught Eric Salstrand and Romolo Forcino, two fast semi's.
Oh yeah, I either "burped" my tire (lost air at the bead, or where the tire meets the rim) or got a puncture that sealed up with Stan's Solution on the first lap.
I had decided to ride it as long as I could, figuring that the longer I waited the more the racers would be spread out and the less riders would pass me while I fixed it!
Anyway, as I passed Romolo towards the end of the last lap I hoped he wouldn't notice my tire, which was now bumping the rim and fishtailing a bit.
I thought that might give him the incentive he needed to suck my wheel and then outsprint me but he said later that he had nothing left by that time.
It seems like he raced well though, it certainly seems like he had a good result.
In my hurry to outrun my leaking tire I almost caught the rider in front of me.
He was last years winner at the Sonoma Nat's so it's a good improvement for me to have caught him this year.
I think I might have caught him if it weren't for my tire, but the end of the course had some twisty sections and some short descents with hard right turns at the end, and I was sliding all over the place from my tire rolling on the rim!
I tried to sprint to the line but I just fishtailed everywhere.
Of course, for all I know he had a flat too... still I had passed a lot of fast riders in the last two laps and I was very happy with my race.

On sundays short track I was caught up in the traffic at the start, rode a hard first lap and got into a better position... just in time for a huge bottleneck on the course!
Riders were actually getting off their bikes and either WAITING or running around the course through the rocks and scrub brush... I moved from mid-pack to about 25th place.
After that I just rode as hard as I figured I could without blowing up dropping back to 25th!
I never got to draft because as soon as I caught up to someone I would pass and try to catch the next person... until I got to Colt.


Here my brother Travis and Teamate Alex watch me trying to bridge up to Colt.

Colt was having an awesome race, and was way up in the pack. When I caught him he was motoring pretty good so I drafted for a sec and "caught my breath" (yeah right!).
I passed Colt where the short track went up the 4-cross course, and then... he passed me right back!
I rode behind him for a bit and then tried to pass again. This time Colt jumped on behind me we rode together for a bit until he said something like "don't wait for me to pull, I'm going as fast as I can already!"
I was going as fast as I could too, and just before the last lap I was able to pull away.
Check out Colt's blog for another race perspective.
The last lap was interesting... just after the section where we rode up the 4-cross course, we turned left onto a fire road straight before dropping down a short descent and making our way back to the finish.
I caught a group of 3 or 4 right as we turned onto that fireroad straight, and decided to use up my sprint right there since it would be virtually impossible to pass after the descent.
I accelerated down the straight and passed a few riders... suddenly the last rider ahead of me (the Bianchi rider actually!) was coming up fast and I had to chose between slamming on the brakes and getting behind him or getting in front and then braking to make the left turn into the descent.
It was a split second decision, but I thought that if I braked and took the outside line, it would leave room (barely) for him to take the inside line and I would end up in the lead.
I actually have no idea how that turned out because I didn't have time to stop and look around!
After the race I waved to him but he just frowned... don't know if he was frustrated with his race in general or with me in particular though.
I did ask another rider who I had passed on that last straight if I had messed up the Bianchi guy and he said he didn't think so but that the guy had messed up a little on the descent and lost ground.
He still finished right behind me though, and after watching video of the race and seeing him in the very front group I am guessing that he "popped" and was a little pissed at the race in general and at me too...
Anyway, I try my best to find the balance between racing respectfully and giving everything I have to get the best result I can.

Oh, and the coolest thing to happen all weekend... I stayed and watched the pro short-track (great race by the way!) and as the race was ending I cut diagonally across the course when there was a (BIG) gap between the last rider to not get pulled and the 2nd to last rider not to get pulled. As I did this one of the NMBS staff (Team Big Bear?, Southridge?), not realizing I had seen the rider (way) down the course called out this warning: "Off the course... YOU DUMB KID!". Nice. Way to grow the sport. I can only imagine what my non-riding friends would think if they were invited to watch a race and were treated like that.
Or better still, a Newbie, just starting to get excited about racing... he has finished his first race and is thinking "this is pretty cool, maybe it WAS worth SEVENTY DOLLARS!"
Getting put down like that could turn someone who loves riding but is on the fence about racing away from the sport.
Anyway, thinking that MTB needs all the racers and spectators we can get I told the "official" (politely) that I understood the warning but calling me a "dumb kid" was pretty un-cool.
Another nearby "official" wearing a red shirt, with a radio in a harness on his chest (not too tall, maybe 5' 6"; black goatee) jumps in to "defend" his colleague and tells me that "You WERE running down the course, I SAW you!"
When I told him that I understood that, and I didn't fault anyone for warning me, because they would have no way of knowing whether I had seen the last racer or not, BUT... it was not okay for him (an employee of the race, and an official who should be setting a good example) to call me a "dumb kid", he seemed to disagree and told me that I was lucky the man hadn't used profanity!?!?!?!
Needless to say, I didn't feel lucky.
I felt like I would rather spend my money on a different series.
I really respect Don Jackson, Frosty, and Tom Spiegel. Hoss is always super nice and when I was just being introduced to the sport of racing he made a big impression on me just by being friendly and hospitable.
I don't know the other staff by name but I see how hard people work to put on these events. And I see that the job of organizing sweaty, tired, masses of high strung racers is a rediculously difficult job.
I hear (a very few) people say "Well, they are making plenty of money, not doing any favors, blah, blah, blah"
Good! They deserve to make money, and I hope they all get rich (although I doubt that is their primary motivation).
I don't know what So-Cal mountain bike racing would be like without all these guys, and I think the NORBA series would be worse off without them.
BUT... a lot of people aren't immersed in the racing scene enough to know all of that so it is important that EVERYONE, but especially the representatives (staff) of the series be friendly (not "bubbly", LOL, but at least polite) to any well meaning racers or spectators at the events.
Anyway, that's my two cents.

Tons of race pics on flickr ! Colt, you are in a lot of them so check 'em out.


Scott and Marie

Thanks to my friends Max and Brian for coming, cheering and taking pics, it definately made the race much better.
Thanks also to Scott, Marie, Alex, my Mom, Dad, brother Travis, and wife Brooke, it was FUN!

NORBA #2 Firestone!

It was a pretty nice venue but it was super hot out...

Dusty too...

Here's Jason demonstrating the impossibility of keeping dirt out of your grill while on the course...

Brooke had a super solid ride to finish 2nd in her field!

Here's an "action shot" of me tossing a bottle...

The short track split into two main groups, with one rider soloing off the front to win and a bunch of stragglers falling off the back. I couldn't make it to the front group, but even the second group was so fast that by the last lap there were only four of us left.
Everyone had been attacking and counterattacking for the last 3-4 laps but the group of 4 always came back together.
There was one climb, about 1/4 of the way into the mile long course and I attacked at the base, coming around the leader to open a gap by the time I hit the flat straghtaway at the top. I was worried about being out in the wind by myself, but I guess I had opened up enough of a gap that nobody behind wanted to sacrifice their own position to chase me, and they never got organized. I rode really conservative on the loose corners and descent, "spending" my time gap just right so that they couldn't quite catch me before the line and I didn't have to sprint. I was very happy with my 7th place finish!
It was over 100 degrees while we were racing, and so dry and dusty that I could feel the dirt accumulating on the roof of my mouth during the race.
As soon as we finished I made a bee-line for water and shade, and when I worked up enough saliva to spit there was so much dirt in it that it was like thick mud!
The sun and the heat made me a little dizzy and nautious, but I ate and I drank more water than I thought would be possible... It seems like I must've drank several gallons before I finally had to pee.
I also had a ton of electrolytes and a nap, but I was still exhausted when I went to sleep that night.
It definately took something away from me the next day, but I also felt like I had made an amazing recovery and I still raced at 90-something percent and was super happy with how I did in the heat again the next day!

So that's my race report!


The XC was interesting... LOL. They had to change the length of our course right before our start because of concerns with the heat... it was over 100 degrees again.
There was some confusion among the riders over which way to go and about half went the wrong way.
I guess I just don't really care about the results because it got so messed up, I am just happy I got to ride my bike today!