tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18450703376892569292024-03-05T01:31:16.422-05:00CX WifeJenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-72569963470796338772012-09-10T10:11:00.001-04:002012-09-10T10:11:50.658-04:00It's Alive! 2012 CX Season Kick-off at Tacchino<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">After a long, sticky, slog of a summer, fall finally arrived on Sunday! No, not the weather, although it was pretty much perfect, but cyclocross season with the Tacchino race in Rosaryville!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I should preface this all by saying that I haven’t quite figured out what I’m going to do with the blog this year. Steve is still dealing with some lingering health issues and will be taking the entire season off for the first time since he started racing. So that means I’ll be going to just a handful of races this year. I think I’ll still cover them on here, because I like writing, but the tone may end up being a little different since I’ll be more of the “CX friend” than the “CX wife” this year. It’s not you, cyclocross, it’s me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">This weekend was pretty great though overall, good friends staying with us for the weekend, the U.S. national champion racing at our l’il local series, and some good, fast-paced racing. I didn’t get to the race until noon, just as the women were starting, and I’ve got to confess that I spent more time socializing than watching, since I had just gotten there. But my friend Rachel had a solid top 10 finish in the B women’s race, and Allyson took 4<sup>th</sup> in the A race as she begins the defense of her 2011 MABRA champion jersey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The usual three amigos put in their usual solid race in the elite masters field, although I’m still not sure if anyone will ever be able to catch Dave Weaver. Harshman secured a top 5 result, with Jay not too far behind. The B men’s field looked crazy big, but with no teammates or friends racing, I took that time to drink a beer and eat an onion tart. Ah, nothing like a beer under the team tent in the afternoon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The highlight of the elite men’s race was obviously that Jeremy Powers, in town for a coaching clinic, decided to race. I’ve seen him race a couple times in the past, at Nats and Worlds, but it’s definitely fun to see him on our course. Of course he completely dominated the race, much to the excitement of folks who haven’t seen him race before, but more interesting locally was the resurgence of the Haymarket/SEAVS team. Nieters looked skinny and fast and would have run away with the race if Powers hadn’t been there. Wes Schempf is still crazy good as well, and now he’s on that team too. Our team finally has someone competing in the elite race, and Eric Krause had a good race with a solid mid-pack finish. My other friend Eric, also recently upgraded to a Cat 2, had a good showing as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7hjeoTpP8Zp5DEP8afMKTlgtpN0UWEcgenu004Iv5bPY7s_AsKcZyqwYV2QGncwKkS_ticXl9GR8rslzP1tO0-4XiEAPg4LmFKf4WYC3m9jQjsGw3g5LAFmXRKWIOVrMVeAKGzcxgXvjm/s1600/eric.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7hjeoTpP8Zp5DEP8afMKTlgtpN0UWEcgenu004Iv5bPY7s_AsKcZyqwYV2QGncwKkS_ticXl9GR8rslzP1tO0-4XiEAPg4LmFKf4WYC3m9jQjsGw3g5LAFmXRKWIOVrMVeAKGzcxgXvjm/s320/eric.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Yes, the weather was fall-like, but it was still hot enough that riders were allowed to feed. </span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Never seen that before! </span></o:p></span><span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Here, Lundgren takes a swig.</span></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Overall, a fun spectating start to the season for me. A little crazy to think that the season has already started and Labor Day was only last weekend, but with the weather cooperating for the first time in weeks, it really did feel like fall was finally here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-49896538128132793022012-01-26T14:15:00.000-05:002012-01-26T14:15:32.504-05:00IAD->BRU->Koksijde!<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Hey all, sorry I have been such a blog slacker lately. December was a whirlwind, to the point that I still haven't even gone through all my pictures from Nats, let alone take the time to write up the whole experience! And now I'm about to leave for Koksijde to spectate Worlds! I'm not sure how many pictures I'll be able to get, but I'm super excited for the experience. And I promise you, my loyal, blog readers, that I will make the time to write it up when I'm back!</span></span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-83695269683325138892011-12-29T16:05:00.000-05:002011-12-29T16:05:04.800-05:00Still More Cross!, Camelback Climb, and Visiting Bike Shops<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Suitably chastened by <a href="http://fatmarc.blogspot.com/2011/12/blogdom-wasteland.html">Fatmarc’s post of the other day</a>, I am going to do my best to keep this blog thing going for at least the next few weeks. And there’s actually still a lot going on!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This weekend I’ll have pictures/stories from a “top secret” pre-Nats/Masters Worlds training race, next week I’ll be live from Nats in Madison, and there’s still an off chance that we’ll be in Koksjide late next month for the big shebang.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Otherwise though, not much cx or bike-related going on right now. I haven’t been on MY bike in over a week with our vacation to sunny Phoenix for the holidays, but I’m hoping to get a few rides in before we hit the road again next week. Instead, I spent my holiday climbing Camelback Mountain for the second time:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuL5nWGInizuBvM5vvyEZuxqy50yuZzxo4ofiMm-aG-S0sNte6vmXTT6zzmCmHQkTL7ZPxkVhwifhbPafZkUKXAH9Xt8Msfuxrbrao-QtG91mXowpxp4OoTloAwpbBhDry-jlxdIz8ko3H/s1600/camelback+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuL5nWGInizuBvM5vvyEZuxqy50yuZzxo4ofiMm-aG-S0sNte6vmXTT6zzmCmHQkTL7ZPxkVhwifhbPafZkUKXAH9Xt8Msfuxrbrao-QtG91mXowpxp4OoTloAwpbBhDry-jlxdIz8ko3H/s320/camelback+2011.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This was a difficult hike/climb for me five years ago when I had two legs, and was a whole heck of a lot harder this time with the prosthesis. But I persevered, and was rewarded with a beautiful view from the top. There are higher mountains with ostensibly better views in the area, but this one is particularly sweet because the only way you can see it is by powering yourself to the top.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We also had the opportunity to stop by the Bicycle Haus in Scottsdale, a nice shop with more Rapha and Assos gear than you’ll probably ever see in one place, as well as an amazingly nice staff. During our travels this fall we’ve made it a point to stop in local bike shops, and I’ve found it to be pretty rewarding. Not only do shop socks make a great (and useful!) trip souvenir, but it’s fun to see the different gear at different shops, and talk to the people there. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">If you’re ever in these areas, please support these great shops that have provided me and Steve with friendly service over the last six months: <a href="http://www.nycvelo.com/">NYC Velo</a> (NYC), <a href="http://www.roaringmousecycles.com/">Roaring Mouse Cycles</a> (SF), <a href="http://mashsf.com/">MASH</a> (SF), <a href="http://www.mockorangebikes.com/">Mock Orange Bikes</a> (Winston-Salem, NC), and <a href="http://bicyclehaus.com/">Bicycle Haus</a> (Scottsdale, AZ).</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-81798508130511210312011-12-21T12:26:00.000-05:002011-12-21T12:26:05.564-05:00Southern Hospitality at NCCX’s Merry Crossmas<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While the local season may be over, ours is still trucking! Nearly a dozen of us made the trip down to Winston-Salem, NC this past weekend to race in/spectate a pair of NCCX races. These were the “Merry Crossmas” races sponsored by team Smart Stop/Mock Orange Bikes, a team based locally in W-S, but with a major national presence (you know Adam Myerson, right?).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Both races used an almost identical course situated in a lovely city park with a surprising amount of elevation change, tons of off-camber, etc. But the real gem was a flyover that the promoters had built earlier in the week. Emerging from the top of a hillside it was more ramp than actual flyover, but it was a very cool piece.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, Steve crashed out on the flyer during warm-ups on day one, and was only able to race for one lap of the actual race with his jammed thumb. The rest of the team had great results; Allyson took the elite women’s race, and the unholy triumvirate of Birner/Harshman/Morali took 2-3-4 in the elite master’s men race.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Day two was the North Carolina state championships, which meant a lot more people and deeper fields. The team still did great, and we all had a lot of fun. I know a lot of people are worn out by this time of year, but there’s still great, and quality, racing to be had not that far away. We are already planning to come back next year.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I also have to give a major shout-out to the Mock Orange Bikes shop in W-S. Not only did they have the most Ridleys I’ve ever seen at one time in a shop, but they were super nice folks who went out of their way to do me a favor. Please check them out if you are ever in the area!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Next week is off for family time, but I may have something fun to share on New Year’s weekend. And then after that, Nats! I am loving this never-ending season. Happy holidays to all, and thanks for reading!</span></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">(PS: I took a ton of pictures, but have not had the time to upload them yet. Check back later this week and they should be here then!)</span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-70673004221221440662011-12-12T16:02:00.000-05:002011-12-12T16:02:40.427-05:00Geler Votre Cul – It’s Not Over Yet!<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While the Sportif and Super8 series may be in the books for 2011, there’s still a ton of racing left! This weekend we headed back to Fair Hill for the second to last MAC race of the year, next weekend we’re off to North Carolina for a doubleheader, and then there’s still Madison in January!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This weekend’s MAC race Geler Votre Cul saw the return of the “classic” Fair Hill course that hadn’t been seen since 2009. Although it had enough updates and changes to make it different enough, the classic features (barns, sand pit) were still there in full force. Unfortunately, Steve wasn’t feeling well and only managed one lap, despite it being one of his favorite courses. Three other teammates made the trip up and had decent results. The fields in the races were small, but tough.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Two highlights of the day for me: One: the beer garden in the middle of the sand pit/horse ring. This was a great addition; really got you in the center of the action, and the beer and barrel fires were great for keeping warm on a brisk day. Two: the muddy “run-up”/hill before the barns. I say run-up in quotes because, while it was a run-up for the early races, the elite men quickly figured out how to ride it during their warm up laps, and many were able to ride it during their race as well. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As a spectator, I always love obstacles that force the rider to make a decision: run or ride? Especially because sometimes the choice that requires more skill/ability ends up costing more in terms of time!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Overall though, great course and race. Sad to see another local series wrap for the year, but I know I’ll still see a lot of these folks next month. And if you’re interested, you can check out my pictures from the race <a href="http://jriskus.smugmug.com/Other/Geler-Votre-Cul-CX-2011/20527134_xb7Xhw#1625792845_Wj7gsrZ">here</a>.</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-69386951599373404332011-12-06T09:11:00.000-05:002011-12-06T09:11:50.327-05:00Capital Cross Classic – Murder Was (Not) the Case<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Another race day with beautiful weather on Sunday! The last two years have really had almost perfect weather throughout the season – makes me think that next year will have to be more like 2009 with the cold, rain, and snow. I know this weekend was the last race for a lot of people, but not for us! We’ll be heading up to Fair Hill this weekend for Geler Votre Cul, North Carolina the weekend before Christmas, and Nats in January.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge9gLJFjYM65hkX3Ty2PDn9I-zrVu7KKrGF4w2ZDgw02BOiL80UQWuyFlQ8rSrG3tj8CwElGZ_N1tFD8rV26k1bBAFIP8wHIXxb0BJs93oBfxgauFWv5yopqo4aqFYRj3s4fui2XKgkx8A/s1600/IMG5139-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge9gLJFjYM65hkX3Ty2PDn9I-zrVu7KKrGF4w2ZDgw02BOiL80UQWuyFlQ8rSrG3tj8CwElGZ_N1tFD8rV26k1bBAFIP8wHIXxb0BJs93oBfxgauFWv5yopqo4aqFYRj3s4fui2XKgkx8A/s320/IMG5139-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sunday marked the return of the always awesome Capital Cross Classic race in Reston. Formerly part of the MABRA series it had been part of MAC in recent years, took a year off in 2010, and returned this year as part of the Super8. This is one of the best venues with the most interesting scenery in my opinion. Nothing beats the classic image of riders racing across the dam silhouetted against a crystalline December sky. And the steep run-ups and descents back in the woods are tough and awesome. Unfortunately I missed the violin player at the top of the run-up, but I did get to participate in a sing-along of Dr. Dre’s “Murder was the Case” next to the steep descent – thanks, rider number 187, for triggering this!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I think exciting things are in store for the local racing scene next year. This year featured the traditional races and about a half dozen new ones, some of which are well on their way to becoming classics in their own right. Combined with the nearby MAC races there were races every single weekend this fall, and most weekends had the option of racing on Saturday AND Sunday. The sport has grown rapidly over the last five-plus years and growth needs to encouraged so that there’s something for everyone. New races are a good thing, not competition to an existing product, but an enhancement. Just my two cents.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Small photoset from CCxC can be found <a href="http://jriskus.smugmug.com/Other/Capital-Cross-Classic-2011">here</a>.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thanks for reading!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-15193543136012599482011-11-29T08:32:00.000-05:002011-11-29T08:32:43.161-05:00Taneytown is Pronounced TAWNYtown*<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I must still be in a Thanksgiving-induced food coma because I could not muster the energy to write anything yesterday! It also didn’t help that just as he was finally getting his racing groove back; Steve was hit with a nasty head cold on Thanksgiving and got sicker and sicker as the weekend progressed. He rode a lap around the course to warm up but found he had no energy and bagged the race before it even started. Which is really too bad because this would have been his fifth consecutive year doing this race.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Taneytown is always an interesting course because even if there hasn’t been any rain for several days before the race, there is pretty much no drainage and it’s a mudfest. Even remembering that this was usually the case I wore sneakers with a cloth top that were quickly mud covered and left me with wet feet.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The race had a dual purpose this year: it served as the series finale for the Sportif Cross Cup as well as the annual MABRA district championships. Turnout was pretty good for the Sunday after Thanksgiving and people still seemed to be excited, albeit exhausted as the season enters its last full month. I can’t report too much on the actual races since we didn’t stick around for long (had to get Steve back home to the couch and some chicken noodle soup), but the team really continued to shine. The big surprise of the day was Jay Morali taking third in the elite masters race; Jay has been steadily pushing upwards every week and is really peaking at the right time. And apparently Allyson won her race, although unfortunately we weren’t there to see it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4zvm3oWg3ZjoF2x8lZzYvOpuUquXs9VOGSEhJpn3uDoz8tIAcTT8cVdkG4D596Gu9GYNIsiwk9xGMhfPdm9E4ahlOqMhOAknKNfpm1Wo-igNaGdENVps0D2L4HW2M2a29q6UydrVA3j1I/s1600/jay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4zvm3oWg3ZjoF2x8lZzYvOpuUquXs9VOGSEhJpn3uDoz8tIAcTT8cVdkG4D596Gu9GYNIsiwk9xGMhfPdm9E4ahlOqMhOAknKNfpm1Wo-igNaGdENVps0D2L4HW2M2a29q6UydrVA3j1I/s320/jay.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The season may feel like it’s winding down, but there’s still a lot left! Reston, Luray, Fair Hill, North Carolina, and Nats are still lurking!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* My mother was born and raised in Carroll County and quickly schooled me on the correct pronunciation – thanks, Mom!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-66040177326720525282011-11-21T16:20:00.000-05:002011-11-21T16:20:21.330-05:00Rockburn Redemption<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So this week started off kind of crappy. Had a doctor’s appointment on Tuesday and got some mixed news. Long story short is that while my disease is smaller now than it was a year ago, what’s left of it has started to grow again, and I’ll most likely require another intensive in-patient treatment in late January. But the good news is that I’m really good at scheduling major healthcare events around cyclocross season! That’s right; we’re still planning on heading out to Madison that first weekend in January.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Now, on to the week’s main event…</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We skipped Vint Hill this year because we just needed an easy day at home. I rode the trainer for 50 minutes, watched the GvA, slept some more, and raked leaves in the afternoon. Rachel and Eric got in from Pittsburgh around 9:00 and we hung out and shot the shit for a couple hours before bed. They’re only coming down for one more weekend this season which is a bummer, I’ve really gotten used to having them around on the weekend.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Steve was thinking about maybe doubling up at Rockburn, but with all the crap we were dealing with during the week, he had only ridden once, and decided to stick with the “old man” race again. He started in the very back just like last week, and almost immediately passed a ton of people. But without the training and fitness, people began passing him late in the race. I think he was pleased with his result, and perked up even further when he saw that Ben had brought him his brand new Ridley frame. Hurray for more bikes!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The “old man” race was pretty exciting overall though, at one point three people from the team were in the top five! Cory and Jon are always strong, but G has been improving steadily throughout the season; having netted his first top ten last week I thought for sure that fifth place spot was his this week. Unfortunately his string of bad bike luck continued and he rolled a tubular, falling way back and never catching back up.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I have to say that it’s been really fun and impressive watching the team over this season; a brand new team consistently filling the top spots in the Masters podiums. And you really couldn’t ask for a nicer bunch of people, seriously. Every week just reinforces what I love about the sport.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Didn’t take many pictures this weekend, but I really like this one of Eric over the barriers in the Elite race:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6GRKXZ1unWqnEkm7e6LYHSdQ-qcwmd2jQyQQMVntAvtxaLbiRxXlnTRAqwRZU2Xczkg6dVK7oEBO2gKhGMLhdZXtfPEzD-ByCpyt5-dXXI9fzTN4LkW4PnNPTcnMNI7L9PHt5hIw3kIwH/s1600/eric.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6GRKXZ1unWqnEkm7e6LYHSdQ-qcwmd2jQyQQMVntAvtxaLbiRxXlnTRAqwRZU2Xczkg6dVK7oEBO2gKhGMLhdZXtfPEzD-ByCpyt5-dXXI9fzTN4LkW4PnNPTcnMNI7L9PHt5hIw3kIwH/s320/eric.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thanks for reading.</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-64669001591555024452011-11-14T16:06:00.000-05:002011-11-14T16:06:31.530-05:00Doubling the “L” Up with Fair Hill and Schooley Mill<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Now we’re cooking, I’m really getting excited about the rest of the season, even as it’s winding down for a lot of people! Steve did his first cross race of the year this weekend, and is planning on moving full speed ahead and most likely doubling up for the rest of the race weekends of the year. There is also the potential for some big, fun late season plans, but a lot of that is contingent upon my bimonthly check-up at the doctor tomorrow. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So this weekend we headed up to the area near Steve’s old turf, Elkton, MD for the FSVS XCross at Fair Hill MAC race. This race is kind of the sleeper of the MAC, usually with smaller crowds and a more low-key atmosphere, but it’s always a super fun day. Last year the course was moved from the old location of the bleachers/barns/etc. to a new course with a lot of tape, but some serious uphill power stretches and climbs up and down through the woods. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I had fun taking pictures of the Elite Masters race and the Elite Women’s race from a couple different vantage points. For the masters I started with a failed experiment using the wide angle and basically lying on the ground in front of the covered bridge and shooting up. These turned out boring and poorly proportioned, too much sky and not enough racing action. Then I moved over to an area near the climb in the woods and got some good shots as I lurked behind a tree, followed by some shots of the fellas riding through the little creek area. For the women I mostly shot over by the up and down off camber area near the start/finish line. I honestly don’t know how people are able to ride stuff like that, it looks so crazy!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Allyson was our only teammate there and she posted a solid finish in the women’s race. Steve had planned to race, but had a serious mechanical during warm-ups – his chain ring was ripped off his bike and all bent up! Luckily Steve was able to cannibalize some parts off of other bikes at home to race on Sunday. Which brings me to…</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Steve raced at Schooley Mill on Sunday!!! He also did the “old man” race for the first time, since he’s now old enough. I’d say he had a pretty good race overall for no training and not much riding in the last 6+ months. And now he’s got the bug and wants to try to race both Saturday and Sunday for the rest of the season. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The team continued with their great results; Cory took the top spot on the Masters 3/4 podium, with Jon on the fourth step and G taking 10, his best finish yet. His results have been improving every week and he’s really peaking at the right time. Birner took fourth in the Elite Masters and Allyson took fourth of the Elite Women.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I had a really great day hanging out with people at Schooley Mill, playing with the dog, and eating some tasty food so I didn’t get many shots. But here’s my <a href="http://jriskus.smugmug.com/Other/FSVS-XCross-at-Fair-Hill-2011">photoset from Fair Hill</a> if you’re interested.</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-76593825133699140362011-11-07T11:27:00.000-05:002011-11-07T11:27:34.458-05:00Just What I Needed at Ed Sander<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We took last week off from races to relax and do stuff around the house; funny it came when it did, because that’s usually the weekend Steve takes off anyway when he’s racing. The cross season is so short that you want to suck every minute out of it, but on the other hand by the time it’s halfway done you are tired and borderline burnt out and need a break.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So Sunday was the annual Ed Sander race at the Lilypons Gardens near Frederick, MD. Moved from its traditional end of September weekend, this year we got to enjoy the gardens in full autumn splendor. In addition, this year featured an almost all-new course, which was a complete surprise to me since I hadn’t checked out any of the preview maps. But I think the changes were all really positive, and as much as I missed the fun of heckling riders on the back 9, this new set up was much more spectator friendly and the new uphill finish on the pavement was a lot of fun to watch (and looked really hard to ride!).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While our teammate Jon Hicks was tearing it up and winning his race out in Cincinnati, our other cat 3/4 masters racers were running an impressive race right here. Four members of Sportif Cpaching Group/BPB placed in the top 25, with Cory Smith on the podium in fourth place. And actually as I’m looking at the results, I see that it was a day full of fourth place finishes for the team – Allyson Tufano finished fourth in the Elite Women’s race as did Jay Morali in the Elite Master’s Men race! Overall, the team continues to improve and post impressive results. It’s really exciting to see it growing!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Overall I was really impressed with the changes to the course and the improved spectator friendliness. I know I said no pictures, I but the team tents were so well positioned to watch folks coming up that hill towards the finish line that I couldn’t help myself! Here’s a </span><a href="http://jriskus.smugmug.com/Other/Ed-Sander-CX-2011"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">small photoset</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> from the day.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I also got to meet some interesting people at the race. I had seen one guy around at a few races wearing a kit promoting the </span><a href="http://www.ulmanfund.org/"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">. As a young adult cancer survivor, I was curious what was up, and asked him about it. Apparently he is a coach who helps young adult cancer survivors getting into athletic pursuits. They are going to have a tent with more information at Rockburn in two weeks, so please stop by and check them out, I know I’m going to. I never took advantage of their services personally when I was in treatment, but I know that they do a lot of great things. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And upon overhearing my conversation, the wife of one of our team members, who also races herself, told me about the </span><a href="http://www.challengedathletes.org/"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Challenged Athletes Foundation</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">. I have heard of them in passing, but haven’t checked them out before. Apparently they help disabled athletes (such as me) get the equipment they need to compete. Since I just purchased my first cyclocross bike this weekend (!!!), this couldn’t have been better timing. I’ll definitely be checking them out and would suggest you do the same.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Really great day overall, thanks to NCVC for such a great experience, and for those AMAZING waffles!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-77735735356167898362011-10-24T10:01:00.000-04:002011-10-24T10:01:23.061-04:00Regaining Perspective at DCCX<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCRbWdZhSchrBhwWV9VSTvOZwPOzyOAG3dMWZRl0ApIYVCxNL9LPcXfRKUxK9q6eUtrFsyRH9UQ_VkTZqgRvGlcqxDZ_hAqQgJQaNhLrmBe4u9aZhBr8MewCFj3jdaJh6UDDwMzWK4EB1b/s1600/tweakin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" rda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCRbWdZhSchrBhwWV9VSTvOZwPOzyOAG3dMWZRl0ApIYVCxNL9LPcXfRKUxK9q6eUtrFsyRH9UQ_VkTZqgRvGlcqxDZ_hAqQgJQaNhLrmBe4u9aZhBr8MewCFj3jdaJh6UDDwMzWK4EB1b/s320/tweakin.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This week’s “race report” is going in a slightly more personal direction. I realized at DCCX yesterday that I’ve been burning myself out and starting not to have as much fun at races. I’ve been so busy trying to take the best pictures, write the best blog, etc. etc. that I’ve lost some of the pure enjoyment of races, and I want that back. Because let’s face it, I’m never going to be the best photographer or the best blogger. And that’s okay! That doesn’t mean I can’t try my best, but I need to put it in perspective and get back to FUN.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Needless to say, through no fault of the race, I was in a severely cranky mood most of the day at DCCX, and then dealt with that issue by getting severely shitfaced. Oops! It wasn’t all bad though, I promise! I got to spend the weekend with my two favorite cross ladies, Christine and Rachel, who are awesome and fun and kick some serious ass. Christine got second in the 3/4 race and will now be moving up to a 2 – congrats, lady! Especially well-earned since she’s a New Englander and races in the large and tough women’s fields up there.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Team-wise, Sportif had another great race; despite a poorly timed flat that lost him the win, Jon Hicks moved into first place in the series for the master’s men 3/4 35+. Allyson Tufano took third in the elite women’s race and three of the elite master’s men finished in the top 15, with Jay Morali taking 7<sup>th</sup>. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So lessons learned? Next race I’m going to return to the “old school” – walk around with the dog, cheer for my friends, ring the cowbell. Hang out in the team tent, help pin numbers, and just have fun. That’s who I am, and what races have been about for me in the past. I’m ready to get back.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But for the meantime, here’s my <a href="http://jriskus.smugmug.com/Other/DCCX-2011/19701748_3HMVwb#1546078232_nt2d6MG">photoset</a> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">from yesterday.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And finally, big, massive props are due to all the promoters of DCCX; the race is a true gem, right in the heart of DC. A wonderful race day environment, unique setting, tasty food, and a race course that gets better and better every year. Congrats on five years, can’t wait to see what it’s like in another five!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-38770104275105554302011-10-17T14:48:00.000-04:002011-10-17T14:48:08.697-04:00The Fall Masterpiece – Granogue CX 2011<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Another year of Steve not being able to race Granogue, boo! But always a worthwhile race to journey north for, in terms of the racers there, the quality of the course, and the sheer scope. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We got there right after the Women’s 3/4 race kicked off and I got to cheer for my favorite ladies, Rachel and Christine. Unfortunately Rachel had a mechanical early in the race and had to drop out, but Christine raced a smart and strong race and finished in the top ten. I only get to see Christine race once or twice a year since she lives in New England, but the girl always brings it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">After catching up with some friends Steve and I wandered back towards registration and the area further back near the cornfield to watch the Elite Masters Men’s race. After we watched them come by, we walked over to the run-up in the woods to watch them there. After waiting for far longer than it should have taken them to come around, we wandered back up to the main area and learned that there had been a serious crash on the starting line. When I saw the police helicopter land, my heart just sank. I was at Schooley Mill last year when a racer had a heart attack, but I have never seen a cross race completely stopped and someone medevac-ed out before. It really cast a pall over the race, but later in the day we heard that the two fellows involved in the crash should be okay.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The next race was the UCI Elite 17-18 Juniors, and I went back to the run-up in the woods for the duration of the race. I read somewhere last week that this is one of only five UCI 17-18 races in the US, so it’s pretty special to get to see these kids race. Apparently local favorite Sam O’Keefe of C3 has been having a great start to his season, but unfortunately on Saturday he was bested by the young men from the Clif and Bob’s Red Mill developmental squads.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The UCI Elite Women’s race was dominated by Laura Van Gilder, who I’m pretty sure has won this race every year I’ve been there. And Allyson from our team posted a solid mid-pack result. The UCI Elite Men’s race was a display of masterful technical ability and speed, as always. A lot of the elite New England racers made the trek down and they have a slick and speedy racing style that is fun to watch. I observed primarily from the two run-ups, the one in the woods and the main one below the iconic water tower. Many of the men in this race were able to ride one or both of them, some more easily than others. As in the women’s race, the eventual winner Justin Lindine ran away with the lead for most of the race.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And finally after the sun was starting to sink in the western sky, off went the Men’s 2/3/4 race. The whole JBV crew (Eric, Brett, Chris) raced well and posted good results, but the real star was Matt Bartlett. Starting in the 13<sup>th</sup> row, he methodically worked his way back up to the front, and even the lead. An unfortunately timed crash at the top of the hill near the end of the final lap ensured a third place finish, but it was a remarkable come from behind.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As our reward for a hard day of (watching) racing, we stopped for delicious homemade ice cream with Rachel and Eric at the <a href="http://www.woodsidefarmcreamery.com/">Woodside Creamery</a> on our way home. Although we weren’t able to make it up for Day 2 this year, it was still another fabulous fall day spent at Granogue.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I’ll be posting the 500+ pictures I took on SmugMug over the next few days, for now, you can check out my pictures from <a href="http://jriskus.smugmug.com/Other/Ganogue-2011-Day-1-UCI-Elite">Saturday’s UCI Elite Men’s race</a>. Thanks!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW1QQ8w_naeK7f6pTr4lZ0Uxa8VmWAsxEdsPhNO1Nfw4fI_iulQsUiBHxnnGxIYeC5WOFRt7kn4Rm6VRvV-oKryQhbQXCbdZkZKMMQBe2ps74AlK3GAGOmQ7CYpHId_nn3w1XtO2277x5d/s1600/JL+Granogue+2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW1QQ8w_naeK7f6pTr4lZ0Uxa8VmWAsxEdsPhNO1Nfw4fI_iulQsUiBHxnnGxIYeC5WOFRt7kn4Rm6VRvV-oKryQhbQXCbdZkZKMMQBe2ps74AlK3GAGOmQ7CYpHId_nn3w1XtO2277x5d/s320/JL+Granogue+2011.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-45661022733594700012011-10-10T08:50:00.001-04:002011-10-10T09:05:13.746-04:00Psycho Cross: We made a race!<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At a lot of events things looks great to the attendees, but behind the scenes there is often chaos. I’m not sure how often that happens with bike races, but it definitely works like that at other work-related events I’ve been involved in. This past Saturday was Psycho Cross in Sykesville, MD, the first race put on by the Western Howard County Cycling club (WHCC) and the new Sportif Coaching Group/BPB team. Since Steve is on the team, I’m claiming the royal “we” here and saying it’s my team too. I’ve worked at the Murad road race twice in the past, but this was my first time working a cross race, and from my point of view, it was practically perfect.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The morning dawned cool and foggy, but the sun quickly rose and the warm up began. I was working registration with Emily, G’s fiancée, and we had a steady, but manageable flow of people all day. Everyone seemed excited about the course, and the races all went off very well. No major problems with results either that I could discern.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The only bad thing about working a race is that you don’t get to WATCH the races. By the time the last race went off and registration was done, I was too exhausted to even take a walk around the course. Working registration was a lot of fun though, in addition to getting to catch up with the people I already know, I got to put a lot of names and faces together; I think I may have freaked some people out by knowing who they were before they even gave me their license!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But back to my beginning point about behind the scenes chaos – there was none. The race was remarkably well run, everything was smooth and one time, and apparently the course was a gem as well. If you didn’t go this year, you should really come check it out next year. I think this has potential to be like the Winchester race: a sleeper hit the first year, and now in its third year one of the premier events in the region.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thanks to everyone who came out, and many congratulations to the entire team, especially Mike Birner, Chris Harshman, Mike Neary, and Jon Hicks for creating and running a fabulous race. It was a pleasure to be in your employ for the day!</span></span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-43619428848847941522011-10-03T13:20:00.000-04:002011-10-03T13:20:25.823-04:00When did it get so darn cold? Or, 2011 Winchester Apple Cross<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This was a good weekend, after being away on vacation on the west coast last weekend. I finally started to feel like I was getting my photo mojo back this weekend at Winchester. I skipped BCA because Steve was still out of town and I had other plans, but we still managed to drag ourselves out of bed and into the unseasonably cool weather of the Winchester Apple Cross.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This is definitely a great course, and always seems to be a favorite of the riders. There was one big change this year though: three “steps” were added to the Belgian Wall in the back to force a run-up. Purely from the point of view of a spectator, it made that part of the race less interesting. There are never as many people over there watching as there should be because it’s just about the complete opposite end of the course from parking, registration, and the pavilion. I’d love to see it turn into something like the back nine at Ed Sander, but as Steve astutely pointed out, unlike that race there’s just not much to see from this vantage point other than the wall. Last year we got a decent crowd going during the elite races and it was really exciting to see who would be able to ride the wall, who would try and fail and lose time, and who would just start running from the bottom. It was still a great vantage point this year, but some of that excitement was gone.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So end result was that I was only over there for the elite masters men’s race, and then spent most of the rest of the time in the main area by the pavilion. Hung out in the team tent and the new team, Sportif Coaching Group/BPB, continues to post solid results in the masters races and the elite women’s race. Plus they’re a pretty good group of people to hang out with.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Here are my pictures from the race, if you’re interested in checking them out: </span><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/101198775625548183128/WinchesterAppleCross2011#"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">https://picasaweb.google.com/101198775625548183128/WinchesterAppleCross2011#</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; tab-stops: 263.25pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Next weekend I’ll be working registration at </span><a href="http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=14302"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sykesville Psycho Cross</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> so come for a great day of racing and say hi!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-56807299431273467122011-09-19T19:28:00.000-04:002011-09-19T19:28:30.500-04:00It's a Family Affair - Charm City Cross 2011<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">First weekend of cross season 2011 (for me) is in the books!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Feeling very reflective on my wonderful cycling family today. Someone told me once that after college it's pretty much impossible to make new friends. As someone who doesn't really have any college friends that they keep in touch with, I call bull on that. The people I've met through cycling, primarily cyclocross, are some of the funniest, kindest, smartest, most generous people I've ever met. These are not people that I would likely cross paths with in any other facet of my life, but there's a bond of friendship that's formed during those fall weekends that is pretty significant.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The races were interesting this year; the European pros in town to get some early UCI points really ran away with things, and it was pretty awesome to watch. Helen Wyman, the British national champion, just destroyed the women's elite field with style and skills. The European men dominated the men's elite field and had some pretty fabulously bright kits too.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Since Steve isn't racing, I didn't get there until about halfway through the day either day, which was a different experience from being there for the whole day. I think that there was also more socializing than watching on my part, with it being the first race and all. Saturday was the first time in five years of attending that I've ever seen Charm City WET. The chill in the air was refreshing, and I suppose the clouds and drizzle were appropriate for a cross race. Sunday remained cool, but the sun dried out the course enough to make it a little more "normal," except - it was run backwards! Very cool, but so different to watch.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I feel like my thoughts are a little lacking this week, maybe I'm not fully into race mode yet for the year or something, not sure. I'm still struggling a bit with the "fancy camera" and probably focusing a little more on it than on watching the races at this point. I'm ending up with a lot fewer pictures this year, and even though the ones I have are nicer quality, I feel somewhat frustrated. You can check out my C3CX galleries for <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/101674513554394599180/CharmCityCross2011Day1">Day 1</a> and <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/101674513554394599180/CharmCityCross2011Day2">Day 2</a> if you like.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">No race for us next weekend, but should be back in full force for Winchester and that epic "Belgian wall"!</span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-79622754949427731212011-09-12T23:53:00.000-04:002011-09-12T23:53:28.581-04:00While y'all were at Nittany this weekend...<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">...we were at the GP of Montreal, and I was hanging with my homeboy Johnny Hoogerland!</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcD7M2wJYHlIYxfygHVBVFTKWFW9HKdwVDH6xUSuvUSAOhV0UfuFt8pL263-UnQoxBW9cRz3B-p5pfiYX1RmGMlGbTMTtbgmZhJK2e8LXTo7_utb1YyAabzNxmX4hMWSZGHi_2tuZPFgVP/s1600/IMG_0881.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcD7M2wJYHlIYxfygHVBVFTKWFW9HKdwVDH6xUSuvUSAOhV0UfuFt8pL263-UnQoxBW9cRz3B-p5pfiYX1RmGMlGbTMTtbgmZhJK2e8LXTo7_utb1YyAabzNxmX4hMWSZGHi_2tuZPFgVP/s320/IMG_0881.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yes, that is really him and not a cardboard cutout as some have suggested! And yes, I am wearing my awesome "Welcome to Hoogerland" shirt from Stomach of Anger in the picture.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Montreal was really an amazing experience, a beautiful city with very nice people, for the most part. Seeing the pro tour teams in person was pretty awesome, the kits are ridiculously bright and colorful and the riders and insanely fit. Their riding is also, of course, unparalleled and to watch them ride is really quite beautiful.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I took more than 600 pictures and will try to cull them down and get the highlights up on Picasa later this week. We stood in a couple different places around the course so I have some climbing pictures, some sprinting pictures, group pictures, and individual pictures. I didn't make it up to the steepest part of the climb, but even the part where I was standing was pretty tough. And since the race was a circuit, they had to climb each of the hills 17 times!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But as much as I enjoyed my roadie adventures this weekend, I'm definitely looking for ward to Charm City this weekend. And it sounds like Nittany Cross started off the season with a successful bang; wish I could have been there to see J Pow racing, plus the elite British ladies.</span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-17074986187537110962011-08-30T22:49:00.000-04:002011-08-30T22:49:39.226-04:00Pump it up<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Although I wasn't popular enough to get called out <a href="http://www.gamjams.net/2011/08/coulda-shoulda-woulda-lite-08-30-11.html">here</a>, I still felt suitably chastened for not kicking this blog back into gear as I had planned to a month ago. No excuses anymore, I'm just going to get this thing rolling.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Unfortunately it looks like my season will be a little less active this year; Steve is still recovering from an injury and likely won't be racing at all. But don't worry, I'm still going to try to get to as many races as possible! I have that new camera, plus now I have a spiffy new <a href="http://www.chromebagsstore.com/bags/utility-bags/niko.html">Chrome camera bag</a> that was my pre-season present to myself, and I'm eager to get out there and use it.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">For September, it looks like the only race we will be attending is Charm City. I'm bummed to have to miss Tacchino for the first time in something like five years (I was even there when it was in Leesburg, man!), but we'll be spending a week in the city by the bay instead. And, there's always a <a href="http://www.cccxcycling.com/2011CROSSPAGE.html">race</a> out there that I may very well check out and report back on. Nittany, which I have yet to go to, is also out, as we will be checking <a href="http://gpcqm.ca/en/event-mtl/">this</a> out instead, and cheering on Gilbert, the unofficial fan favorite of 2011.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As for me, I've finally started riding! Every other day on the trainer, 20-30 minutes. Got a computer and some cycling shorts, and have my eye on a sweet little 47 Bianchi. Goal for the end of the year is to be able to ride outside, get a road bike, and obtain and learn how to use cleats and clipless pedals. Tall order, but I'm nothing if not determined.</span></span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-78303328027849971332011-07-19T23:25:00.000-04:002011-07-19T23:25:37.017-04:00Coming Attractions, and, “Real Life”<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I'd like to start by saying hi to the two whole readers I probably have left after not updating this blog for the last six months. I had every intention of posting semi-regularly during the off season, but life intervened (more on that below...). But now it's less than two months until race season, schedules are coming out every day, and it looks to be a jam-packed fall. Not sure yet of what our plans will be, there's been some talk about maybe traveling to more races outside MABRA/MAC-land this year, maybe Nats again, and maybe even Worlds, since we have unused airfare on Brussels Air that needs to be used by the end of January. </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Unfortunately, I'm not going to be racing after all this year. Which is not all bad, since I do love just going and hanging out and watching my friends race. As much fun as you racers have,I probably have even more because I don't have the stress and exhaustion of actually racing! But the reasons for me not being able to race, well, suck. This blog isn't about my personal life so I won't harp on too much, but in late 2009 I was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. Right after cross season ended I had major surgery to remove the tumor, and then underwent several months of intense chemo. I was all clear, went back to work, started this blog, went to Nats, had a blast. Then in February we found out that my cancer had returned, on the eve of our long-planned (and subsequently cancelled) trip to Europe to see Paris-Roubaix and Flanders. More chemo, didn't work, so I did a clinical trial at NIH instead. The early results are very promising, and I'm feeling really good, but needless to say, there has been no bike riding by me.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">But enough about me! I'm going to try to start ramping the ol' blog up over the next couple weeks to get back in the habit. And I'm hoping to get off my lazy butt and at least start riding my bike inside on the trainer. Thanks to everyone who is still reading after the long layoff, and more to come...soon!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-17798642203509804292010-12-15T14:27:00.000-05:002010-12-15T14:27:17.486-05:00Pictures of CX Nats Make My Life So Wonderful (with apologies to The Who)<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Here we go, you can check out all of my pictures from the 2010 Cyclocross National Championships in Bend, OR on </span><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/jriskus"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Picasa</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I've got pictures from:</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/jriskus/CXNats201012910"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">December 9</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> - Masters Men 50-54 and Single Speeders</span><br />
<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/jriskus/CXNats2010121010"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">December 10</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> - Women 30-34 and Masters Men 45-49</span><br />
<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/jriskus/CXNats2010121110"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">December 11</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> - Masters Men 40-44, Juniors 17-18, and Masters Men 30-34</span><br />
<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/jriskus/CXNats2010121210"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">December 12</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> - Elite Women and Elite Men</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Along with a smattering of other stuff: smokestacks, fluffy puppies, tiretreads in the mud, kids in the mud, oh and did I mention mud? There was a lot of mud. I really like patterns so you'll see that I took a picture of some sort of pattern in the mud pretty much every day.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This was my first time shooting with my new Canon EOS D60, as well as my first time shooting with a telephoto lens, and I know I have a long way to go. But let me know some of your favorites in the comments so that I can start to get a sense of what does and doesn't work.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And as I keep promising, a full report is still to come before the end of the week. And thanks for checking out my pictures.</span>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-79982863017639281972010-12-13T21:43:00.001-05:002010-12-14T22:30:10.275-05:00Still recovering, bear with me...<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Pics and full Bend report still coming soon, but after traveling home on a red eye and dealing with unpacking, picking up the pets from West Virginia, and getting ready to go back to work tomorrow after a week off, I haven't made nearly as much progress as I had hoped.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But to tide you over, here are my </span><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/jriskus/CXNats2010121210" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">pics from the elite men and elite women</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">. I'm brand new to Picasa so forgive the disorder, I'll try to clean things up and group the pictures better over the weekend. Was also using a brand new camera and still have a lot to learn, but if you take the time to weed through, I think you'll find some cool shots.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Thanks for checking them out!</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlkDSvRfl_J24Y5iXbUI0uSe1MUnG0sTqiG1zq8unAI_29OA2bEm4njZsurDwq-Z9QupQSt9qszaW3Ke6t72ap6AvBrNGK9i70V31RU9lfM3wfrzn2EaIWTtpGLD7BnTTHuMi15I91e2pn/s1600/IMG_0472.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlkDSvRfl_J24Y5iXbUI0uSe1MUnG0sTqiG1zq8unAI_29OA2bEm4njZsurDwq-Z9QupQSt9qszaW3Ke6t72ap6AvBrNGK9i70V31RU9lfM3wfrzn2EaIWTtpGLD7BnTTHuMi15I91e2pn/s320/IMG_0472.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-22338412834269242592010-12-12T02:45:00.000-05:002010-12-12T02:45:45.680-05:00Greetings from Bend!<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It has been an amazing last few days here, can't believe it will all be over tomorrow. I'll have a full report when I get back home on Monday and I'll also post the couple hundred pictures I've taken. MABRA, and mid-Atlantic cyclocross in general, has been well represented out here, and has had some great results. Wish you were here!</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcuMNI5bZlxkF8Xx67P9YGiZNh5_9gx6I_uZ71Lm1Av3fJD2wHdwIBEVTXLxVSGdXgXM1skb9GfR4oblu_Zziw9QYIPyaBxkH218PuDaqi3SJz00Kq9MDzLVOvoeYoD2bjJ0reFq2_hjBh/s1600/IMG_0061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcuMNI5bZlxkF8Xx67P9YGiZNh5_9gx6I_uZ71Lm1Av3fJD2wHdwIBEVTXLxVSGdXgXM1skb9GfR4oblu_Zziw9QYIPyaBxkH218PuDaqi3SJz00Kq9MDzLVOvoeYoD2bjJ0reFq2_hjBh/s320/IMG_0061.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-70538146536120994842010-12-02T20:32:00.000-05:002010-12-02T20:32:17.965-05:002010 Cross Season: A Pictorial<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I took a lot of pictures this year, and I took pictures at every race we went to (13, or 15 if you count each day of Charm City and Granogue), so I wanted to share some of my favorites with you.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Charm City</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqrorMnhDjkYIqqud9xo_fCi6uccHDumsYZn4r5DOaYtHwJZta27yHI1PiYbN_tcQ0xIUqCc06znKjBjplaP3WiFcqHJspsgupZq8rxafpRcsRmznC4ilFJX1rAWYh9ePVerk81MdTnmST/s1600/IMG_0016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqrorMnhDjkYIqqud9xo_fCi6uccHDumsYZn4r5DOaYtHwJZta27yHI1PiYbN_tcQ0xIUqCc06znKjBjplaP3WiFcqHJspsgupZq8rxafpRcsRmznC4ilFJX1rAWYh9ePVerk81MdTnmST/s320/IMG_0016.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Ed Sander</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRNtP8IcSjZU4ile7MpKS1jWa9q9kcEN0lnpElL6BBFDnKk0VanmIiACO4MA1B3bDhW7d4GAupnCGnffSKD_8gPy4ism5Lnq8hHiDGwYxu_5XU5FAb9Vqfi1ruee0HF96kejYrZu59cuQ/s1600/IMG_0045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRNtP8IcSjZU4ile7MpKS1jWa9q9kcEN0lnpElL6BBFDnKk0VanmIiACO4MA1B3bDhW7d4GAupnCGnffSKD_8gPy4ism5Lnq8hHiDGwYxu_5XU5FAb9Vqfi1ruee0HF96kejYrZu59cuQ/s320/IMG_0045.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">BCA</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVHOe9ARwKi-wCt3hg3JwBx-XplsVurVeDc1RI-PcYoIsFxy5t9y1XElas2SafxMYAaJY42tcLW289wDyZq8k-F9AL1lgRHCayKwhAeWfsic9_rkzooYkRSyPvAbM1mgFNqcgy5fPPLTV1/s1600/IMG_0071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVHOe9ARwKi-wCt3hg3JwBx-XplsVurVeDc1RI-PcYoIsFxy5t9y1XElas2SafxMYAaJY42tcLW289wDyZq8k-F9AL1lgRHCayKwhAeWfsic9_rkzooYkRSyPvAbM1mgFNqcgy5fPPLTV1/s320/IMG_0071.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Winchester</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU886PBRIc_cSRp6Df8wUts_xT2iyzoVtMi_m48aa3VjzFWogFF08nLTVBIE3CxK7c3WycrgvyOD4KFgFTa-Klqe1vBTzscFvD3_nnDjLFNvRUsAYw9eUfVFyWHEqTQFzKWiICfpGqOuaU/s1600/IMG_0129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU886PBRIc_cSRp6Df8wUts_xT2iyzoVtMi_m48aa3VjzFWogFF08nLTVBIE3CxK7c3WycrgvyOD4KFgFTa-Klqe1vBTzscFvD3_nnDjLFNvRUsAYw9eUfVFyWHEqTQFzKWiICfpGqOuaU/s320/IMG_0129.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Hyattsville</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvMI5N3cUwj2u-1U_aSRX8oQ2xVFnow3wHeu9XO8WiwNlf5owteftS-jGIPc_yStPRedvuhJJ6xip4bnKB1nHO32VqeResDWwB1j55d2FEb-YaJHtQBIcfVWKjUjLr_ixg4tKJsT91DiK/s1600/IMAG0062.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvMI5N3cUwj2u-1U_aSRX8oQ2xVFnow3wHeu9XO8WiwNlf5owteftS-jGIPc_yStPRedvuhJJ6xip4bnKB1nHO32VqeResDWwB1j55d2FEb-YaJHtQBIcfVWKjUjLr_ixg4tKJsT91DiK/s320/IMAG0062.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Granogue</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP5taw81rGLse4fGQLeFkSYPI703-US0I5hMu0hav3fkOcw2vNjikLtSQKyTNgGFmXT866MeTHE9bDPXvuF0Owhi37c-RRnJYCfsDJQUJ4zjWTrxzmvXrEPoAfVJ-oj1KWxQqs_X4ekyI3/s1600/IMG_0155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP5taw81rGLse4fGQLeFkSYPI703-US0I5hMu0hav3fkOcw2vNjikLtSQKyTNgGFmXT866MeTHE9bDPXvuF0Owhi37c-RRnJYCfsDJQUJ4zjWTrxzmvXrEPoAfVJ-oj1KWxQqs_X4ekyI3/s320/IMG_0155.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSz0TM14RVbcAxHFeIMioSImFXKq9sLGQ_IFNCY270SbuFsknH9bhMO2XOSlI5F_QYrVbCZcTnI2ev5lslHPipsN9QSuJ7Vf98x527piUI4jWXIGscWAJIoINh6_C3cKHVmcjd_PB0rpxa/s1600/IMG_0184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSz0TM14RVbcAxHFeIMioSImFXKq9sLGQ_IFNCY270SbuFsknH9bhMO2XOSlI5F_QYrVbCZcTnI2ev5lslHPipsN9QSuJ7Vf98x527piUI4jWXIGscWAJIoINh6_C3cKHVmcjd_PB0rpxa/s320/IMG_0184.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsACdGhRpb3w1ErE3QYsaCwUayn5rHkRNZUAzAGw4zpIQSrKxKmeXezbA8sgr29_-4BNR71tyDIVCKtO34ZUR29dAUzNdAT5yNAkjXaISIWVrl1UVbCEbV0-IRQsvPV5PmGhKy_8GtUhTa/s1600/IMG_0196.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsACdGhRpb3w1ErE3QYsaCwUayn5rHkRNZUAzAGw4zpIQSrKxKmeXezbA8sgr29_-4BNR71tyDIVCKtO34ZUR29dAUzNdAT5yNAkjXaISIWVrl1UVbCEbV0-IRQsvPV5PmGhKy_8GtUhTa/s320/IMG_0196.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">DCCX</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV5R_9S2iJ14LhBmEvh1JWVPul0GJVM2h6Yh6Lktgch3WhRbnSCo7sHEkxhVKg1S2afWeieuP93gIy_Eep3-SL0joqCFYD-84B5nYLUclTSk2UZPex6YPb9rWglYDH0Vss-yRPKm2bWgH5/s1600/IMG_0245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV5R_9S2iJ14LhBmEvh1JWVPul0GJVM2h6Yh6Lktgch3WhRbnSCo7sHEkxhVKg1S2afWeieuP93gIy_Eep3-SL0joqCFYD-84B5nYLUclTSk2UZPex6YPb9rWglYDH0Vss-yRPKm2bWgH5/s320/IMG_0245.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-IrDRa5BDwn7mnOPQoeoud8931VlfgTca1dcenQzy76_uFk28c8weNoL-vAAOyjbJ5Kr4G6qYYdrBblvD01Ys0a-YBJvSsEboa9VWrZB3mZjvSySjlpeXegnPmY9GMDDITMPzWxB5-axI/s1600/IMG_0283.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-IrDRa5BDwn7mnOPQoeoud8931VlfgTca1dcenQzy76_uFk28c8weNoL-vAAOyjbJ5Kr4G6qYYdrBblvD01Ys0a-YBJvSsEboa9VWrZB3mZjvSySjlpeXegnPmY9GMDDITMPzWxB5-axI/s320/IMG_0283.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Fair Hill</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTfJKcIv8MbPEIU9oXVlSItyffUqhkw8FwLdliuxRRymGSsYWH5-TjczXJfZEa-zwBair3QipTrErqffVdMhKFJ64UVllFFMaL-Iio9FiTFsYcjHXFV4ft-ZoAeAqF6WomaeQWlOAPOu-v/s1600/IMG_0332.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTfJKcIv8MbPEIU9oXVlSItyffUqhkw8FwLdliuxRRymGSsYWH5-TjczXJfZEa-zwBair3QipTrErqffVdMhKFJ64UVllFFMaL-Iio9FiTFsYcjHXFV4ft-ZoAeAqF6WomaeQWlOAPOu-v/s320/IMG_0332.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Tacchino</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJA6Pwjm1la_HLeOMZ11vfS-xJSqR8ZfEDaD1a4SYpXi-3twxTyNPqRqgmOt16mmruhzs4UgpVx76vHaKURMHpVLdcQftD_JUdj1NXhsjcFmaikjGMA_bsHBB1W1Mz_1JL9-EfmH7iF0RD/s1600/IMG_0350.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJA6Pwjm1la_HLeOMZ11vfS-xJSqR8ZfEDaD1a4SYpXi-3twxTyNPqRqgmOt16mmruhzs4UgpVx76vHaKURMHpVLdcQftD_JUdj1NXhsjcFmaikjGMA_bsHBB1W1Mz_1JL9-EfmH7iF0RD/s320/IMG_0350.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Vint Hill</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvCffVDMfA50NUk9KRT_LvNyP9LZSfFs4GV8_kOjuyENlrmPzCdVkW0NWcRx-f75hvgS4aZENY7MnzYeJj8Fy12yp_ijv0D07ftEsBrO4CiIb51zm3DTPi92sVtmzWV6TouxE6CifWklHD/s1600/IMG_0400.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvCffVDMfA50NUk9KRT_LvNyP9LZSfFs4GV8_kOjuyENlrmPzCdVkW0NWcRx-f75hvgS4aZENY7MnzYeJj8Fy12yp_ijv0D07ftEsBrO4CiIb51zm3DTPi92sVtmzWV6TouxE6CifWklHD/s320/IMG_0400.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Schooley Mill</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWfkccSjgM_ao3MeFClIkmtX35PKzUf1bqgykSAgCPl7Mh3ugVCIfSk92_ip3T8ZtnreHzbseqXe0AWnDTn4yklzDjHM18CKv9jo8qXkfX8KVhhQ2Byud9fTzekW5cF8T6zSB03ora1up/s1600/IMG_0403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWfkccSjgM_ao3MeFClIkmtX35PKzUf1bqgykSAgCPl7Mh3ugVCIfSk92_ip3T8ZtnreHzbseqXe0AWnDTn4yklzDjHM18CKv9jo8qXkfX8KVhhQ2Byud9fTzekW5cF8T6zSB03ora1up/s320/IMG_0403.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Rockburn</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVDFTDuKk-P-E6bvhQadDumTAUgG5pgTh5MU7BXChMdTGpnhfuyWJHD6WsDJUnPbETappjyEe-riJ4sECnTvGmOiXNFVbqUVCJN7ZIcXyf12hgtD5khJc-_cPTdIq3Eg1rdTxN2UhPDJTm/s1600/IMG_0444.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVDFTDuKk-P-E6bvhQadDumTAUgG5pgTh5MU7BXChMdTGpnhfuyWJHD6WsDJUnPbETappjyEe-riJ4sECnTvGmOiXNFVbqUVCJN7ZIcXyf12hgtD5khJc-_cPTdIq3Eg1rdTxN2UhPDJTm/s320/IMG_0444.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Taneytown</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdf272AmAwfaSDYCBaaGwN6IXMHxXaKdtfb92V3d9B7owSuayVKnDyInlT7p4D3RzL80i77MKC6KvmJjKRZJ7H7g4OefFek8dZIE4xgYAG2oz9dq-hEbONCYaoifHuBUkgcVSnANSqGuv9/s1600/IMG_0511.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdf272AmAwfaSDYCBaaGwN6IXMHxXaKdtfb92V3d9B7owSuayVKnDyInlT7p4D3RzL80i77MKC6KvmJjKRZJ7H7g4OefFek8dZIE4xgYAG2oz9dq-hEbONCYaoifHuBUkgcVSnANSqGuv9/s320/IMG_0511.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhusr7cj7hY7eLUCruu6-m0P-jq-CDWiCixDKAoS8chSlbb68f_0hxNyLqNMzhk_6ztxOHHNbpBa0Cjt4g4oHvMFfwWw4WQv0XgMtpAU_-lOS5NIxNG_6EB8GFjLP6UPrc5AYs9BRMb7hBs/s1600/IMG_0523.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhusr7cj7hY7eLUCruu6-m0P-jq-CDWiCixDKAoS8chSlbb68f_0hxNyLqNMzhk_6ztxOHHNbpBa0Cjt4g4oHvMFfwWw4WQv0XgMtpAU_-lOS5NIxNG_6EB8GFjLP6UPrc5AYs9BRMb7hBs/s320/IMG_0523.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-59869943234348674262010-11-28T23:02:00.000-05:002010-11-28T23:02:20.245-05:00End of the line: 2010 MABRA Cross Championships at Taneytown<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lots of thoughts running through my head with the end of the local cross season, so this might end up being my first multi-post week. Scratch that might, it definitely will be, because at the very least I'm going to put up some of my favorite pictures from the season later this week.</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Each year really builds upon the previous one, in terms of people I meet, knowledge/understanding of the sport, familiarity with the local scene, and mostly my enjoyment of it all. This was the first year that I went to every single race that Steve did, in the past I've usually skipped one or two out of exhaustion or previous plans, but this year I hit them all. And for the vast majority we stayed for the entire day, which is definitely a different experience than getting there first thing in the morning to warm up and then leaving pretty soon after Steve's race is done.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">So today, Taneytown, MABRACross championships: I'm getting repetitive here, but it was another gorgeous, bright sunny day. There were ZERO pouring rain, miserable, suffering, freezing cold races today. Even today started off chilly with me practicing wearing all the layers I'll be rocking out in Bend, by the afternoon I was down to jeans and a long sleeved shirt. This was the driest this course has been in at least the last three years (I have no recollection of this race from the first time we were here four years ago), but that charming off camber hill against the back fence remained unridable to all but a select few of the elite riders.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our friends all had strong races today, some podiums, some high series finishes, and Mike Birner won the elite Masters series, which came down to a pretty epic duel between him and Kris Auer over the last few weeks. Always awesome to see your friends have such great seasons and ultimate results. Talking to these people every week and knowing how hard they work for it makes it even better.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">And when it was all done, car was packed, dog was ready to pass out from exhaustion, and the last pumpkin muffin I had baked was eaten, there's nothing left but to feel kind of massively bummed out that it's all over for nine months. You become so close with people, you know everything about them and their lives for three months and then they vanish until next fall. But I wouldn't trade it for anything.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Some final notes- So before I get too depressed, it's not entirely over yet. Steve is going to race the final Verge race in Rhode Island next weekend, although I'm going to skip it to stay home and enjoy some “Jen time.” And then the following week we'll be at Nationals, which will be an experience unto itself, and then there's a smattering of other post-season races: Philly, NC, etc.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">- It looks like I'll be getting my very own cross bike within the next few weeks. Looks like it'll be a Redline, and I'm pretty stoked. I talked to another local racer today who is also a below-knee amputee and has been racing for nearly 30 years. It was pretty awesome.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">- Steve also surprised me this week by telling me that I'm getting a new camera, a fancy Canon EOS DSLR as an early Christmas present so that I can bring it out to Oregon. I haven't used anything other than a point and shoot since high school, but I'm super excited.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">And last, but most definitely not least, thanks to all of you readers for the support in my nascent endeavor at a blog. I had wanted to try this last year, but serious life issues intervened, and it got postponed until this year. But I've really enjoyed having the chance to write in a non-technical way (like what I do for work), and I'm glad that people have found it worth reading.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">(Also, mandatory shoutout to Jason Ludicke goes here – see, I know your name!)</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-56136079255467271272010-11-21T17:39:00.000-05:002010-11-21T17:39:05.924-05:00Life, death, and cyclocross: Schooley Mill and Rockburn CX 2010 (HoCo2x)<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A lot of highs and lows this weekend. Overall, amazing weather, great racing, and good friends. But on the other hand, a rider with a serious medical emergency during the elite race at Schooley Mill put a lot of things in sobering perspective. Hoping for the best with that racer, and hoping that he is able to make a full recovery. Also was witness to some rather poor sportsmanship, which was disappointing to see in a sport where people are competitive, no doubt, but mellow in general, and not typically prone to behavior like I witnessed.</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">In a much pettier negative this weekend, was my bonehead move on Sunday afternoon – the men's elite race is about to start, and I'm obliviously crossing the course with the dog to take a picture of a friend on the podium, when all of a sudden I hear “riders up” and look to my right and they're like 10 feet away. I managed to make it out of the way, but just felt like such a dumbass, I am usually so careful about crossing the course and have never made a mistake like this before! Nothing like having a couple dozen racers coming toward you at top speed trying to get the holeshot to get your adrenaline pumping though! Sorry dudes, I'll look where I'm going next time, promise.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">And now to the good, Saturday was another warm and sunny fall day, while the Schooley Mill course doesn't have any real central spectating area, I moved around between the bleachers on the back hill and the picnic tables next to the straightaway near registration. Attempted some heckling of <a href="http://nickversusgravity.blogspot.com/">Nick versus gravity</a> during the B race, but got heckled back to think up some better heckles. Steve is the expert in that area, not me, so I should probably give up while I'm (maybe a little) ahead.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">This course was more of a power course, and a lot of my friends had great results, with Scott Stahl winning the masters B race, a definite highlight. I met another female racer and am starting to get really excited about trying to race next year.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Rockburn on Sunday was great as always, despite the fact that I've some unfortunate incidents with the port-a-potties there in the past, Sunday I managed to control my liquid intake and had a blast. We set up at the bottom of the back hill, by registration and the start/finish, and I didn't move much from there all day. This was a more technical course and while our friends still did well, the results weren't quite as good as yesterday. But Mike Birner recaptured the MABRA leader's jersey in the master's elite race, which was awesome to see.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Steve raced on Saturday and felt okay, he even sprinted to avoid getting lapped (despite being scored on lap down in the end), but on Sunday he raced about half a lap and then called it a day. The wrist is feeling better for the most part, but now it's lack of fitness that's causing issues.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">And finally, the other big news of the week, is that we're going to Bend!!! Super stoked to get to see the best racers in the US have at it, and to go to Oregon, which I've never been to before. It's going to be a pretty intense and crazy trip, but it should be a blast.</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1845070337689256929.post-58740616220823829682010-11-15T14:26:00.000-05:002010-11-15T14:26:30.491-05:00Vint Hill Cyclocross With a Side Dish of Fuzzy Wuzzy Alpacas<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Pretty mellow weekend overall. Steve decided that the wrist was feeling better and was scheduled for a cross practice anyway, so we headed out to Warrenton and the inaugural (I think?) Vint Hill race. Nice ride out there, past some rolling hills and big, beautiful horse farms. Also, an intriguing sign for an alpaca farm (more on that later!).</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The course was fairly small and very compact, you could see more than three quarters of it from one central location. The highlight was a tricky little double turn between two trees, some folks were able to ride it when there was no one else around, but most found it more efficient to run. Turnout was fairly healthy for a non-series race, and our friends all had great races: Scott Stahl and Mike Birner both won their races (Masters B and A, respectively), and Elliott Caldwell placed third in the regular B race. It's always nice to see your friends have good results.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ended up staying most of the day just hanging out in the unseasonably warm weather. I met another awesome woman rider (I have met several this year so far) and continue to feel like I want to try to do this myself. (On a sidenote, I have a potential lead on a very inexpensive Kona cross bike, will keep you all posted...) I really hope to see Cynthia out at another race before the season is over.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">There was also some more talk about Bend, but it's still too premature to say much about that yet.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">As far as Steve, he completed the race and didn't get lapped, which I'd say is pretty successful after spraining his arm less than a month ago, and not doing much riding during the recovery. As he keeps pointing out, the good thing about this season for him is that when it's over and done with, he won't be completely burnt out like he has been for the last two years. That means he'll enter the off-season on the upswing, and should go into next season in excellent form.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The elite race was teeny tiny, just six riders, so we took off about halfway through with Dombrowski and Nieters solidly in the lead. Apparently this was Joe's last race before he heads off the training camp so I'm sure you guys will be excited to see my excessive fangirling come to an end. But I can't lie, it's really been awesome getting to see someone like that race week in and week out. </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">And back to the alpacas, on our way out we decided to follow the signs and ended up at an adorable farm that was having an alpaca open house. The proud farmer took us on a tour of the animals and one in particular kept following me and giving me butterfly kisses. We also got to pet a baby that was less than one week old. Super cute and super sweet animals. Before we left I ended up buying a soap that was wrapped in alpaca wool from a vendor that was there.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">All in all, another blissful autumn weekend spent in the company of cyclocross. See y'all net week for HoCo2x!</span></div>Jenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06713682067343736803noreply@blogger.com0