Bays Mountain Challenge

Had my first race of my "proper" season this past Sunday at Bays Mountain Park in Kingsport, TN. I had hit two OMBC races back in Ohio in the Spring, but had not tapered or prepared for them in any special way. This was my first target race of the year which kicked off my two months of racing nearly every weekend.

Being close to home and on a Sunday, Jess was able to sneak into the CAT 3 women's race and was on her way to winning the overall and her category when she missed a turn. 2 hours later after running out water and having to find her way back off of the mountain she rode up the gravel road to collect a nice goody bag of gear for her efforts. Hopefully the course will be a little better marked next time.

My race started off well enough with a great starting climb that pushed me into the top 8 or so. After a bit of gravel road antic we hit the single track were I began catching riders. That is until I felt my rear end begin the wander. After re-inflating my tire and sealing it I quickly caught the two racers who had passed me while I was fixing my flat, only to have the rear go out again. This time the seal seemed good, so I began hammering away and took back both positions I had lost and began catching more riders on a long gravel climb to the top of the mountain.

Slowly working my way through the field at the top of the ridge my heart sank as I heard the unmistakable hiss of air blowing out of my rear again. This time I was out of CO2 so had to turn and walk back to the finish line to pull out. Next time I will have better tires and a spare tube on me in order to finish what I had started.

This weekend brings two days of racing. On Sunday I will hit up the Knoxville SERC race. On Monday I will go back to Bays for revenge on a slightly shorter coarse.

I'll fill you all in next week.

The Fall

This coming weekend is my first race back since taking the time to make the move to Tennessee and start my new job. To say I am excited to get back to racing is a large understatement. My coach has specifically scheduled me to not stay up the entire night before the race. Like I would ever do that.....

In other news. I crashed last Sunday. Pretty hard. Slid a bit down a gravel road. Spent a good chunk of time lying in the road and on the side of it trying to get my bearings. Thankfully Paul has the presence of mind to carry a phone when he rides and Shelly has the unique ability to turn her phone on a minute after someone calls her. So Shelly and Paul hauled by sorry, skinned behind out of the woods and got me the proper materials to begin the mending process. Thank you guys so much.

I will post a detailed race recap on Sunday or Monday. Until then...

HAPPY TRAILS!

Hey all.

Just a quick update before I head to bead. Jess and I have moved to Johnson City, TN so that Jess can attend East Tennessee State University in the fall. I am working at The Bike Shop with some pretty cool people. And I am training my butt off in the mountains of Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia. I have never been in better shape in my life.

My first race back will be in a few weeks. Hopefully I will be more regular with my posting now that things are beginning to settle.

Enjoy the last few days of Spring.

Big News!

So I have a lot of big new since my last real post. I will list them in order of importance (to me at least).

I have a new bike. It is a Superfly Elite 29er hardtail that with my own personal touch weighs in just shy of 21 lbs. I will dedicate another post to breaking the build down and adding some photos to boot.

I have a coach. I have been working with a cycling coach since early December and am seeing some amazing results. It is going to be a good year on the bike.

Jess and I got a dog. Her name is Daisy-Mae. She is a 4 year old beagle/lab? mix who has enough energy to power our whole apartment (at least it feels that way when we walk her). She is an amazing trail dog that can hold 25 mph for at least 2 miles (decided to slow her down when she almost slid off the gravel road we were on). Her other favorite hobby is falling asleep with Jess.

I proposed to Jess yesterday while on a trail ride with her and the pup. She said yes (talk about butterflies in the stomach) and the ring fit, so we are now officially engaged. Let the wedding questions begin!

I will have some more big news in a couple of weeks and a first race report in 3 weeks. I hope you all have had an awesome winter and spring. Bring on 2012!

Off to Frost Bike

Hi All,

I am heading out tomorrow for Minneapolis, MN for Frost Bike. This is a 4 day long trade show put on by the largest vendor of bicycle parts and accessories in the US. So, in other words, I will be ogling all the new toys and technologies while freezing my butt off in the colder portion of the Mid-West. The night I get back to Cincinnati I will turn around and drive to Cleveland to hit up Ray's indoor park for a day. Then a day of work and Jess and I head back to Roanoke.

I will try and post some pics and some of the exciting news that I have been keeping the lid on over the past few months.

Catch you on the flip side.

Damascus, VA: Help us win Coolest Small Town!

Hi all,

Just found out that my adopted home town of Damscus, VA has been nominated for the Coolest Small Town in America award. And has made it to the final 10! Now it is up to us to raise the votes needed to win this  award. Bellow is a brief description of the town.

Damascus, VA

(Population: 1,066)

It calls itself Trail Town, USA, and the title is no hyperbole. In addition to the fact that Damascus’s main street runs on top of the Appalachian Trail, the town serves as a crossroads for a half-dozen wilderness and cultural pathways. The town commemorates its unique location with an annual Trail Days celebration in the spring that gathers hikers and other outdoorsy types for three days of free concerts, film screenings, and, of course, guided hikes. For tired travelers looking for a touch of comfort, the 12-room Damascus Old Mill overlooks Laurel Creek and is a stone’s throw from the Virginia Creeper Trail—no one rests for long around these parts! For an extra pick-me-up, there’s always Mojoe’s Trailside Coffee, whose “trail magic” drink mixes espresso, ice cream, and caramel into a sweet concoction for a burst of quick energy.

So get over the following link and vote for Damscus!

America's Coolest Small Town 2012

Happy New Years!

Just wanted to say Happy New Years and a big thank you to everyone who has supported me over the past season. Everyone who reads this blog, encourages me at work, pushes me in training, keeps me awake on the drive to races (Chris, Luke, Jess, Jacob), and supports me in any other way... Thank You!

Also if anyone is interested in a great photographer, Dave Witt, one of my coworkers took this shot at the Harbin Park UCI race.