MNSCS #7

Last Sunday was a near perfect day for racing, the temperature at the start was in the low 60's and the sun was shining. Zach started two waves ahead of me and got a good start down a short section before the first long climb to the top of Buck Hill ski area. Two minutes later I was off. There were two guys ahead of me at the start of the climb, but I was able to real them in before the top. At the top most of the rest of the course was some very buff single track. That made for some very fun racing. At the top of the climb on my third lap I turned into the single track a little to fast and found myself looking up at the sky and watching the two guys I had just passed, go riding by. Nothing hurt but my pride and a little dirt rash. I jumped back up to finish 6th overall and 1st in my age class. Zach was tearing it up and finished 2nd overall and 1st in his age class 1:45 ahead of me.

24 Hours of 9 Mile

All I can say is WOW. This has got to be the toughest sport I have ever witnessed. Last Saturday Zach and I met up with Misty from Vassago cycles to pit crew for Eddy and Namrita O'dea. It was a real eye opener for me, I only wish I would have had a better idea of what I was getting into so I could have done a better job of supporting our racers. I guess it's just one of those things you have to do once to know what it's all about.
Overall it was a great experience and I came away with a huge amount of respect for Eddy and Nam for all the work and pain that must be endured to compete at this level. You guys are Awesome!

RAGBRAI !!!

Zach and I went on RAGBRAI last week and had a great time. For the most part the weather was good, the food was great, and the entertainment was non stop.
Here is a small view of the horde, 10,000 strong.


Zach was a little reluctant to get his picture taken with the nice lady with effective advertising selling watermelon. But my friends Doug and Wade were not.

MNSCS # 5

Last Sunday was another fun race at Redwing. Some tough climbing and lots of buff single track. Zach and I both took first place in our age groups and I was 3rd overall and Zach was 5th out of 63 racers. Zach piled it up in the first corner sprint, but came back to finish strong. He most likely would have beat me if not for the crash.

WORS #6

Well it was off to the races again today, but this time by myself. Zach left for a week of wrestling camp today, so half of my team was missing for the race. I decided to try a WORS ( Wisconsin off road series) race. The race was about three times as big as the MNSCS race we've been doing, 149 racers in my race.
The first mile of the race was Flat dusty double track. I was running 34-18 and I was getting smoked. I found a guy I could hang with and drafted him until the first hill and then I could start passing. It was a fun race, lots of fast single track. I took 3rd in my age group by out sprinting the the guy who took 4th just before the line.
This is the second race that I have run a WTB Vulpine as a rear tire and it is fast becoming my favorite for dry conditions.
The sprint to the line, about 160 r.p.m.

Zach wins big at MNSCS#4

Sunday was MNSCS #4 at Mt. Kato ski hill and it was a perfect day for racing. I got to go off in the first of two waves 30+ then 29-, two minutes apart. It was about a 100 yard dash to the base of the ski hill and then a long climb to the top. I passed two guys on the way up to take the lead which I held to the finish. After I crossed the line I waited to see who finished next. The next guy out of the woods was Zach, He crossed the line a little over 1 minute behind me to beat me by 41 seconds. And he had to pass the entire first wave. He was really flying on his new white Jabberwocky. He was very happy to put an end to my two race winning streak

Ben Shockey was also at Mankato racing in the comp race. He also took 1^st overall in his race. It was a very good day for Jabberwockys!

Afton Avalanche Race#2

Damp and humid conditions made for a tough day of racing at the Afton Avalanche on Sunday. The recent wet weather forced some course alterations but still provided the lung busting course riders have come to expect. While the sun rarely peaked out, the high dewpoints made it feel a lot warmer than the mid 70s temperatures. Zach and I had a good day of racing. Conditions were very wet and muddy, it was a good day to be on a single speed. Zach started in the second wave and I started in the fourth. Zach got a good start and that was the last I saw of him until the finish line. Zach was the first finisher even after starting in the second wave! Although he was not happy to see me coming over the last hill to finish next. After the times were calculated, I had beat him by 3.61 seconds to take first overall. We both got first place medals in our age groups. I can't believe that we finished so close together and never knew where the other was.
Another pleasant surprise today was running into friend and Vassago team mate Ben Shockey. Ben had a good day also taking first in comp single speed.