Fort Flagler

Fort Flagler did not go as good as I had hoped wanted… Everybody at work has been sick, some one also came back from Hong Kong with some kind of disease…hopefully it was not a strain of bird flue, or something worse.!!..I wasn't feeling good all last week…so I took it very easy, and on Friday I could feel something in my throat…but I did an hour on the trainer, with a few 1min efforts and my legs felt great (one advantage of resting). This week has probably been the lowest training volume week, in months. Since the first race was on Saturday, for once I did not do a 60 mile ride with the team the day before the race (that should help)…

Saturday though…I just never got comfortable, I felt behind all race ,,, there was hardly any time to "rest"..lots of loose technical corners and a big sand pit, big bush stuck in my rear derailleur.. Combined with a bad start……it didn’t turn out so good.. Last ¼ of the last lap, I slowed down making sure I wouldn’t get in the way of the front runners of the Elite race, who were battling it out for the top spots. … ended up 13th, not exactly what I had hoped for… I would like to move up to around 5th or so.. I feel like I should be able to, hopefully before the end of cross season.


Sundays course was a lot more open and very windy, but had a lot of corners, a short step section that you could ride up, but if you didn't quite make it… big trouble… to be safe I decided to get of and run (even though I cleared it fine several times during pre-riding the course).…don't think I actually lost much time there at all…and it was definitely more consistent.
My legs were surprisingly tired from the previous days effort, it’s been a few months since back to back race days.. and without specific training, and the fact that I’m going 100% the entire race really is noticeable. At least most everybody else were in the same boat.
The start was on long gravel section… I actually clipped in right away…but as we near the corner…I can feel my rear fishtailing around…and I think I might have a flat…the pit is right here so I want to make sure,..my hesitation caused everyone to pass me…sweet….now I'm probably 25th..I think riding the loose gravel and the fact that we were going for it. made it seem flat, I’m still trying to figure this tire pressure thing out… it always feels different going full speed, vs. just pre-riding the course … … I managed to pass a few right away…after a lap or so I'm right on the Cal-Giant guy, when some tape blows in and wraps around my cassette… can't shift and the gears are skipping… I stop at the bottom on the tail wind hill and rip it out(luckily it comes out easy)….but after an initial surge to make up some lost ground, I never get close to the Cal-Giant guy again… a lap later as I jump of my bike for the short run up,,, I somehow knock my rear brake past the rim and into the wheel.?????.... I stop and fix this and I get passed again….I surge again , but now I'm starting to feel the efforts. and actually get caught from behind… I finally manage to catch and pass them with ¼ lap to go… and ended up a disappointed 13th again.... …well at least I didn't get lapped by Russell..

I might not be getting the results I want, but who does?… I’m having fun though… and I’m already looking forward to next year.

criss-cross

Steilacoom seams like it always has sun and blue skies… I don’t think I have raced there in bad weather since the UCI race in 2002.. (wow that was a while ago) and that was before the advent of the Knapp run-up… back, then we actually even went down it once in a while…

The Steilacoom race went ok, after a few incidents in the first corner, where Matt Hill went down and the two riders in front of leaning on each other,.. the race started for real… there is plenty time and opportunity to gain/lose spots on this course, no need to go crazy 30 sec into the first lap. I was happy to see the inclusion of the long gravel path up the hill, I just which we could have continued all the way up and not go around the ruin. and back down to the run-up. The run-up sucks… but it sucks for everyone, and it actually helped me ,as I frequently gained ground going up…
My form and technique is starting to come around, maybe one day I can hang with all these mountain bikers.


Donida Farms was another great cross day… the sun was out when I left home, but I got a bit worried as the rain was coming down pretty good in Kirkland and Bellevue. It was a good course, actually seamed like it would be harder during the warm-up, but it flowed pretty good.. Nikos and I lined up, I was lucky to be in the second start row, right behind Matt Hill.. It wasn’t the smoothest start, and once again I had a bit of trouble getting my left cleat engaged…just the panic I guess. At least I missed the crash that happened right behind me, that delayed Nikos.
I felt better then any cross race so far this season, I was moving up constantly closing gaps to the groups ahead. I had too mishaps that slowed me down. The first incident happened about halfway though and although it didn’t take more then 10-20 sec to resolve, but I instantly lost 3spots. Our bike shorts this year for some reason include a draw string…(why I don’t know)…and somehow it came “untucked” and stuck on my seat rails, “what the!!!”… I had to slow down and slightly and rip it off, I didn’t want to try and dismount to find my self stuck to the bike.. It took me an entire lap to make it back up to where I was…damm, wasted energy.. could have been worse..

Nikos looking fast

The second incident was a bit more serious. I ran pretty low pressure to try and smooth some of the bumps out, and increase traction. Early on I would feel my tire briefly kind of roll of the rim for a second, during a few sharp corners, before it popped back on.. I decided to keep going and hope for the best. .However with a bit more then 1 ½ laps to go, turning sharplyin the grass , it rolled off completely and brought me to a skidding halt. Lucky for me the pits were close, and even better I actually have a pair of wheels in there. After a bit of panic and somewhat slow wheel change I got back on…now with a mission to catch back up to all the riders who had passed me during the wheel change…
The last lap was probably one of my fastest, as I managed to claw my self back up to 10th… didn’t quit manage to catch everybody… but considering, I was pretty happy with 10th….
Could have been a lot worse… Nikos finished 15th.. we are all improving.. maybe next week…