2020-10-25
A great race & venue I arrived at late in my career
2020-10-04
Heiser Farm is the kind of race that reminds me I like racing BECAUSE I suck at it
2020-09-30
I’m (re)writing this narrative in February 2021, after receiving the disappointing news that Alpenrose is permanently closed to recreational use.
2015-11-07
I could’ve won the race Saturday. Well not Saturday Saturday but Saturday in an alternate universe where I had about 10% better bike handling skills....
2015-10-19
What was remarkable about yesterday’s race was its unremarkableness. I staged in the middle and finished in the middle. Given my track record in Cat...
2015-10-03
(Writing this report about two weeks too late.)
Weather golden, cool windy and dry after a rain. Ground tacky, not dusty, not muddy. Fast
The...
2015-09-24
I can only assume three other guys had minor mechanicals. Because I was DFL.
I don’t just mean I was DFL in my category. I...
2015-09-08
I misread the start list on Athletepath for this race and for two days thought I finished 31 of 35. Which TBH felt about right....
2014-11-24
Very quick report, I have other things on my mind. Rode to the race; weather early was warm and almost sunny. Minutes before my start...
2014-11-04
I can do about 2 laps of Category B. 69 of 116
2014-09-29
TL;DR:
First ever race in Category B. Inauspicious but not embarassing finish. 27 of 50.
Not too much to say here. Weather started cool, rain...
2013-12-16
I planned so well for this race.
I calculated that, depending on the field size, I would need only a 10th to 15th place finish...
2013-12-03
Winter Cross was muddy, chaotic, slippy, flat out climbing fun. This was classic Pacific Northwest Cyclocross, right down to the beer sponsor. Just spectating the...
2013-11-18
On Facebook, Thom remarked:
Had the legs for 60th place, but earned 6th place.
I, on the other hand, had the legs (and staging) for...
2013-11-12
I am so glad Jenny and Thom talked me into racing this. I was going to skip it: too much work, no callup, and a...
2013-11-04
Photo: tyarnellphotography
Even less to report than usual this week despite this being my third-best race ever by percentile finish. 11 of 163, and I’m...
2013-10-29
Rereading my race report from two years ago demonstrates how far my racing has come. Despite being Not My Kind of Cyclocross (too dry! Too...
2013-10-22
One of my least favorite (and favorable) courses but a great race. Finished 12 of 201; now 11th in series.
Weather promised warm (70°!) and...
2013-10-15
I was hoping one of the pro photogs would have some photos of my Best! Race! Ever! but alas. You’ll have to settle for pics...
2013-10-10
When we studied narrative structure in my Junior high English class I learned there are basically two kinds of stories: Man vs. God and Man...
2013-09-29
Photo: Matt Haughey
Short version
Remote venue, ideal conditions, my best race ever. 6th of 56
Long version
Remote venue
Prior to, eh, about a...
2013-09-22
A good day, tons of fun and not a bad race for me. You could read last year’s report to get a feel, the course...
2013-09-19
I had moment early in Lap 1 where I thought: “that’s it. I’m done with racing.” 89 entrants in my category — eighty-nine! — for...
2013-07-30
I wasn’t DFL so I’m going to declare victory.
This week’s excuses:
Haven’t raced in four weeks.
Disspiriting head injury in my last race.
Recent...
2013-06-25
OK well not “massive” but I busted my helmet and have a powerful hangover today. And, warning: I am totally gonna blame my bike for...
2013-06-18
Whoo hoo. My worst race ever barring serious crashes or repeat mechanicals. 47th of 51
This was my first race in Cat 2, which was...
2012-11-19
For later: season recap, report on my less-than-spectacular DNS yesterday, and thoughts about Cross Crusade. For now: Saturday’s non-series–but–awesome Kruger’s Crossing. This is my third...
2012-11-05
Better late than never. I was hoping for some photos — there were like five people with huge cameras on hand Saturday, and it was...
2012-10-26
Excluding races where I had a medical, a mechanical or just plain DNF, this was my worst race ever. 40 of 61. It was pouring...
2012-10-22
Photo: Amanda Erickson
On the one hand: pretty much your standard-issue cyclocross race. Mud and gravel, running and crying. Days of rain = slippery and...
2012-10-18
Not much to report. Thom rode SS, I had gears. We staged near the front but I had a sluggish start and lost a lot...
2012-10-15
A flawless race. 12th of 160. I did some things right but a lot was just plain handed to me.Did right:Condition.
Maintenance, no mechanicals.
Competent...
2012-10-08
This was my best worst race ever. With the Cross Crusade patented “Random callup” I was in the last group of 20 called up —...
2012-10-04
I am way way waaaay out of my depth in Cat B. DNF.For later: lessons learned, excuses.
2012-09-30
I remembered Barlow as one of my favorite races last year, also one of my bloodiest (two bad-ish crashes with lots of bike damage.) My...
2012-09-27
Pretty much copy-and-paste repeat of last week’s Blind Date, except:Staged back dozen
Didn’t crash, not even a little
Missed the bell lap by literally seconds...
2012-09-23
And I thought Het Meer was bad. Zaandercross was twice as bad. Even where the ground wasn’t sand, it was sand. Under the grass: sand....
2012-09-20
Overview: Fast, dry, really dusty. I was spitting brown all race. Course mostly like last year with a longer straightaway than I recall, all the...
2012-09-09
The theme for today is suffering. Even by the generous standards of cyclocross, Het Meer is about suffering. Long runups through deep beach sand, endos...
2012-09-01
Briefly: a fantastic race, easily one of my strongest ever. Conditions about like last year: dry and dusty. First ’cross race on the Gunnar, which...
2012-07-31
I started the last STMTB race of 2012 exhausted, underslept, and with legs completely tapped. I was sure I’d have one of those “in it...
2012-06-19
Not a lot to report. Pre-reg callups meant I staged near the front (second row). Finished 12th of 63. I didn’t crash. I rode very...
2012-06-06
Sorry for the delay. Been busy. Can’t waste time with pronouns.First race of the season. First race for the Gunnar.Conditions tacky and dry. Rain early...
2011-11-21
Once upon a time I made fun of people who spent their hard-earned money on boutique canti brakes with excessively wide “clearance.” The physics of...
2011-11-14
Perfect ’cross weather (spitting rain and cool, not cold), wheel-devouring mud, moderately technical, long sprints, great crowd, great venue, staged last, finished 55th of 191:...
2011-11-06
Race Report: Cross Crusade #7 (Barton Park)We’re finally getting some mud in our ’cross races. Barton was my favorite race last year. There were no...
2011-11-05
I was dubious about this race. A new venue, an unfamiliar promoter, same day as the Apple Core, poorly promoted. It seemed kinda ... slapped...
2011-10-31
Fourth consecutive week of dry racing. The fun quotient is evaporating rapidly. I wish I could say the Halloweeniness this week compensated but nah, not...
2011-10-24
This course should be a Dogawful slopfest, pancake flat and routed through stables and manure. It should be all about who can power through the...
2011-10-17
I worked insanely hard for 81st place. My hips are wrenched from all the dis/remounts. I could barely walk yesterday afternoon, let alone carry the...
2011-10-13
I had a pretty fantastic race. The conditions were nearly perfect for my strengths: chaos and ceaseless pedaling.
The week’s rain had squished the dairy...
2011-10-09
So about two minutes into the first lap my seat stay broke. Of course I didn’t bring a pit bike. (FFR: always bring a pit...
2011-09-26
Chris and I switched (downgraded?) to Master’s C. The Good: we are now racing against Guys Like Us (i.e. old men). The Bad: I don’t...
2011-09-19
At Hood River on Saturday it was spitting rain but not enough to wet the ground. So the conditions were dusty and gritty. I’m beginning...
2011-09-03
The race was a minor sideshow to my fortieth fricking birthday. Last night Jenny and Karl and my bestest friends completely surprised me.
On my...
2011-08-29
Let’s just get this out of the way: I hate excuses. I have no shortage of excuses for my performance yesterday, and I thought of...
2011-08-02
Let’s get these three important data points out of the way:I finished 35 of 90 (!) despite staging in the back third
I staged right...
2011-07-28
Yikes! I forgot Monday’s ride report! Here’s a quickie:
To a certain degree, you could copy and paste my last STMTB report and that would...
2011-06-14
Reporting on my first ever Short Track MTB race challenges me a little.About five minutes after the race I tweeted:
#STXC race report: I almost...
2011-06-07
A rather different week than previous outings. My family picked me up at the office early (before 5:00) so Orion could ride in the Kiddie...
2011-05-10
I started last night’s race in a highly unorthodox fashion. Without a watch, I had no idea when the start was coming and it snuck...
