If a blog gets posted after months of silence, does anyone read it?
So…it’s been awhile, huh? Yeah, I’m about the worst blog poster ever. I figure that I at least owe it to my mom and my uncle Mike (I think they’re the only ones who check this thing…well, maybe Kenji too, but even he’s probably given up by now) to update ya’ll on what’s been going on in my world, and there’s been a lot!
I think when I last left a note, I was putting in a week of sweet rides and big hours getting ready for whatever kind of pedal bike racing season I could salvage after traveling so much all Winter/Spring. Well, that was about the only real block of training that I was able to manage. I finished that stretch with Pickett’s Charge mtb and it went ok. Not great, but not bad either. I did feel like I was able to, “race,” not just, “ride,” the whole time, which is something I haven’t felt in a long time in a mtb race. Small victories. I also decided that my first proper road race of the year was going to be Cascade in the 2s. That was a pretty tough weekend that resulted in a DNF on the last day. Just a word of advice, if you want to race effectively in a stage race, maybe you should do a road race or 2 before hand so your body doesn’t get completely wiped out. Good times though as I was happy-ish with my tt and the crit was crash less for my friends and me.
Jimmy and I had some fans out on the last day!
I’ve also stopped working with the boys at Pedro’s. Seems like forever ago, but it was just a few months back. Not the lifestyle for me it turns out. I should have taken Darren up on the Thule job back when I was 22. That would have been a better time in my life for a job that takes away from basically everything else in your life. Lessons learned and I believe I’m a better person for it. Obviously the subject deserves more than a paragraph, so if you find yourself having beers with me one night, I can tell you all about it. Great guys at Pedro’s, and I’ll admit, as Interbike approaches, I find myself wanting to be in the loop setting up at 3am and standing on my feet all day on concrete with bad shoes. I made some great friends and contacts and my time in the industry hasn’t ended, it’s just on hold….kinda…
*Kenji, how do I make a good circle in Photoshop?????
Which brings me to the next big thing. I’ve been working at Bend’s (maybe Oregon’s) best bike shop, Sunnyside Sports. It’s about damn time! I’ve been asking them for a job for the better part of 10 years. Before I just wanted to help out for pro-deals, but they’re actually paying me! Ha! I won that battle!
I got to glue an actual rim that was used in Paris Roubaix! Pretty cool. The other pics are of Mike gluing some pretty important cross wheels and tires up. Sunnyside is where local fast guys like Adam Craig choose to bring their equipment.
Back to the pedal racing. Cross season is upon us and it pretty much snuck up on me. We’ve had 2 local CX races and a third one is tonight (written yesterday)! This weekend will be my first out of town race and while I thought it would be Star Cross, I’ll be keeping it local until a bit more fitness finds me. Working at the bike shop and running the vid store has found me riding my bike for about 6 hours a week, so I can’t expect much. Having said that, I am more fit than I thought I would be. Despite what my test said, I have a little cross fitness in me.
Lactate test at Rebound SPL. Not the results I was hoping for as I actually ?lost? fitness over the last 3 months! Woo Hoo!!!!
Brig Brandt, Jimmy Williams and Ben Thompson have been gearing up for cross.
Trebon hamming it up before the race. He’s shown up for the first 3 races. Makes the Thursday nighter a bit faster…He’s yet to win a first lap though…granted he’s been riding the single speed cross rig, but still!
Speaking of fitness, turns out a few of Bend’s best unpaid mtb racers will be making some waves at the Portland races. Expect some epic battles with Vanilla and Sunnyside this year. Silly you say? We’ll see…I mean Molly’s fast, but it’s not like she wins races…just kidding Molly! I only do 4 w/kg, so I can make fun of fast people!
Is that a new bike???? Not yet (sorry Brian!), but it looks pretty sharp. The poor Marcroft took a beating on the back of the Pedro’s Van last year, so I decided to spruce it up with some spray paint. Yup, did that with a rattle can. Totally stoked on how it turned out. I will have a new bike sometime soon, but for now I’ll just pretend. I’ll include a little teaser pic of what I’ll be rocking once the new bike shows up…I mean, once I pay for it…It’s always fun to get new goodies in the mail….
Well, that’s it for now. It’s kinda funny that as many people seem to read my blog (lack of) when I don’t post, as when I do. Now that race season has stood up and smacked me in the face, I plan on posting a bit more, but no promises…
