Living the dream???
Well, sort of…Half ass'n it anyways! After last weekends UCI butt kickings in Boulder, CO, I filled my time with various short rides and spreading the Pedro’s word. Ft. Collins, Golden, Glenwood Springs and Aspen were all part of my travels as I tried to spread out the work as an excuse to stay in Colorado for another UCI weekend down south. Some people think this job is the perfect job if you want to race bikes fast(ish)…well, I’m here to tell ya, that it’s hard. Driving around all the time, trying to ride in unfamiliar places, take care of the dog, eat well enough not to feel like a stone, rest etc. Not as easy as I thought it would be. The upside is that each trip gets better, especially as I make friends and return trips to areas.
The highlights of the week would be getting to know Joachim Parbo, the Danish National Champion of cyclocross and riding bikes w/the Spot employees. Joachim has been in the states for a few months now seeking out UCI points to improve his starting spots in future Euro races later this year. He’s a good fiend of Molly’s and I was happy that we got to meet and hang out a bit this week. He can get pretty silly and has opinions on most everything American. He’s had to make his way in cross this year by promoting himself like crazy. After the Bjarn Riis confession, he said that sponsors ran for the hills. He wrote an article on doping in his homeland and was able to garner a lot of positive attention for himself. From there he got invited by the Boulder promoters to come back to the states to race again, and he’s made a 2 month trip out of it. Nice guy for sure and probably one of the only guys with hairy legs that can beat Tonkin.
Riding the new Spot belt drive single speed mtb was a hoot. I headed out on a 2 hour ride, right out of the Spot parking lot. Colorado mtb’n is a bit different than Bend. It’s pretty much straight up the hill, a little rolling, then down. Being my first real single speed mtb ride, it was a challenge for sure. Oh well, I was supposed to do power work anyway, so it was perfect. The weather was great, though a bit windy and the trails were sweet and rocky. Props to Jen Gersbach for pretty much dominating the technical sections as I kinda flailed around on the 29er. I pretty much want one now. Spot’s evil plan to get me to buy another bike worked!
Now I’m hanging out in a café in Durango getting ready to visit some more shops before I start the trek home. Living the dream? Well, ask me on Sunday after I drive 20+hours to make it home, not to mention work stops, for the Cross Crusade state championships….hope I have some legs! See you Sunday!
The highlights of the week would be getting to know Joachim Parbo, the Danish National Champion of cyclocross and riding bikes w/the Spot employees. Joachim has been in the states for a few months now seeking out UCI points to improve his starting spots in future Euro races later this year. He’s a good fiend of Molly’s and I was happy that we got to meet and hang out a bit this week. He can get pretty silly and has opinions on most everything American. He’s had to make his way in cross this year by promoting himself like crazy. After the Bjarn Riis confession, he said that sponsors ran for the hills. He wrote an article on doping in his homeland and was able to garner a lot of positive attention for himself. From there he got invited by the Boulder promoters to come back to the states to race again, and he’s made a 2 month trip out of it. Nice guy for sure and probably one of the only guys with hairy legs that can beat Tonkin.
Riding the new Spot belt drive single speed mtb was a hoot. I headed out on a 2 hour ride, right out of the Spot parking lot. Colorado mtb’n is a bit different than Bend. It’s pretty much straight up the hill, a little rolling, then down. Being my first real single speed mtb ride, it was a challenge for sure. Oh well, I was supposed to do power work anyway, so it was perfect. The weather was great, though a bit windy and the trails were sweet and rocky. Props to Jen Gersbach for pretty much dominating the technical sections as I kinda flailed around on the 29er. I pretty much want one now. Spot’s evil plan to get me to buy another bike worked!
Now I’m hanging out in a café in Durango getting ready to visit some more shops before I start the trek home. Living the dream? Well, ask me on Sunday after I drive 20+hours to make it home, not to mention work stops, for the Cross Crusade state championships….hope I have some legs! See you Sunday!
Brian (Comment this)