state cx and a year in review

so ive been meaning to post this for a while, but like the end of my racing seaoson i was low on motivation. as we ring in the new years i decided it was time to post this write up.

The 2012 state cx championship was two solid days of racing. i had the good fortune to demo some bikes for the weekend. Saturday found me upon foundry cycles auger cross machine. this bike is absoutley stunning, and the fit was fantastic. but at the end of the day i was just not happy with it. main complaints. the bottom bracket was too low and pedal striking was a very large concern. also the tapered fork was too stiff. the bike had no give to it, so in the technical descents i found my self absorbing the very abrupt transition, instead of the bike. over the course of a 45 min race this was highly fatiguing. raise the bottom bracket and put some flex in the fork and i think they would have a very good bike.

sunday found me upon James Buddenbaums Ti seven. this was an amazing bike. the  fit was better than the foundry, the BB was nice and high. and the fork had some give to it. over the 1hr race i was very comfortable and was able to ride much harder when i didnt have to absorb all of the impacts. it was a great bike, and may make its way into the stable in the near future. sadly i have no photos of me on the seven.

so how was the weekend other wise? great took 9th and 8th respectively over two days of  racing. it was a great end to a great season. and speaking of that here is the season:

Cirrem
BALLS Ride (not competitive but rode very hard for 2 days)
Ragnorak 105
royal 162
Buckhill mtbseries 10x
Powderhorn 24
MNMTB series 8x
MN Cyclocross 21x
bandit cross 3x
alley cats 3x

for those of you counting at home that is 51 events at race pace, or 0.98 races per week for a full year. that is a whole lot of racing.

with that ill cya in 2013

Hup, Hup, Hup!!!

Well Ive more or less lost interest in this thing, but here's and update any way!

Bandit cross:

The bike Jerk, has been a killer host this fall with bandit cross races. Two of note have been held down at Minnehana Falls, one on the bluffs, the other at night in the dog park. If you have not been to these events...get there. this is the most free fun you will have in MPLS. the turn out and community  is great, you can race it...or ride it. Point is your out there riding  your bike. Here's some Peektures from the day race.

700's!

THE MUSS LIVITH!

 

BRAAAAP!

VeloCX

This time it was Little Guys chance to be the host with the most. The course was amazing, and put on really, really well. 4 races in 2 days had this guy tuckered out. took a podium, and got my thrash on. ill be back next year for sure. for a full dose of the fun, check out these PEEKTURESSSSSS!

In the $$$

SS Midwest Champs, getting rad!

HUP, HUP, HUP!

Jingle Cross Rock.

Like the title says, this race rocked. 15th Friday night under the lights, 14th Saturday with two stupid crashes. 25th Sunday with a broken chain and a Lonnnnnnng run to the pit to finish on the SS. Full results up HERE. and Photos to come courtsey of Todd Bauer.

Sprint Finish on the SS. way too long of a straight

Destroying Mt. Krumpit

Two of rest until state, and I'm all ready focusing else where...snow conditions are good. time to SLIDE!

Cross! Cross! Cross!

Holy Cow its been a while since ive posted. Fall has been super busy. i feel like ive been racing 3 days a week and its because i have. The MTB season finished well, i skipped the last race of the season to  race the Elm Creek Cross race. In which i had my first win of  the cross season as a 4. then last week i won again at DCTC, and i decided to CAT up! yesterday i raced my first legitimate 3 race and i took 4th against a lot of guys that are really really fast. it was awesome check out this run up

this was the first lap of the 3 race Drew's up front followed by Ethan, Josh and I! The course was soo technical and fun. then was the masters/ womens/ SS race. the Heckling was soo much fun. just check out my smile

... but maybe that is because of the whiskey....

Cycling aside Ive had a lot of fun in general. Got to spend some quality time with Chicago Jon and Madison Justin. I also got to partake in the Unions of Sean and Katyln, and John and Sarah! and plain ole ride my bike for fun. any way here is a good ole podium pic for shits and giggles

Ill try to post  up some more this fall with my random shenanigans!

Glacier National Monument part 4

Day 3 of the trip started cold and windy as peter and i went to Logan pass to hike the high line trail. We did the guided hike with park ranger Becky, she was rad and was willing to throw down on a solid pace. we finished the hike an hour quicker than her usual hike. but still got to learn alot about the area. From logan pass it was 7.6 miles to the granite peak back country chalet. then an aggressive 4 mile hike down the loop to the shuttle back.

mr marmot hibernates for 8 months of the year in which he breathes once ever 4 min, and beats his heart once a min

granit peak chalet

the highline

wild strawberries

TNC and Glacier National Monument part 3

First off Tuesday Night Cross. It was hot, dusty, and I was traction and gear limited. I dropped my chain twice, and lost my front tire once. But dang did i ever have fun. I havnt had the dry heaves in an athletic event since high school. It was great being cheered on by James and Dana while i got my arse kicked. Oh and Sammy Bee of the Hub got a well deserved 3rd on his SS. Ira sure am looking foward to racing with those guys and gals.

But off to the important stuff. Glacier National Park day 2. After the butt kicking that was Monday, we took it really easy Tuesday. the majority of the day was doing an easy hike out of the Logan pass visitors center. we hiked miles up to the hidden lake over look. the actual hike to hidden lake was closed due to grizzly activity. after that we drove through the park and checked out the west end by  car and had a very relaxing day

hidden lake

the fam!

purdy eh?

ma and i

upper left is one of the 20 remaining glaciers

good eatin!

pete

logan pass 6648 ft of continental goodness

the water had such amazing colors

down by the river

Galcier National Monument part 2

After 22hrs of driving we where there and ready to hike. And so as we let the excitement completely over whelm us. We bit off more than we could chew and attempted a hike to Otokomi lake. The chosen trail gained some 2600ft over the course of 5.3miles. It proved to be just a little too much for our 60+ year old ma. After 4 odd hours of going up, up, and up we turned back. Our tails however where not between our legs, because how could you be disapointed when you had these great views the whole way!

so many water falls, the snow pack is still melting

60 plus and kicking butt!

purdy right?

peter

how did i end up schlepping everything?

big step onto a rickety bridge