Perfected  by our own Bryan Butts

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First Cross race of the season. Started off well, little rushed to get to the race and get ready. Did one loop before the start and lined up in the second row. Pretty fast first lap and I moved up a few spots. Going into the midpoint on the second lap I was in 4th place but then took a down hill corner way to fast and went skidding out of the course and thought the tape, I managed to swing it back into the course just before the double barriers but I was in the completely the wrong gear to get back on (I tired and came to a dead stop). By the time I got my act together again at the top of the hill I was now at the back of the race. It took me about four laps to move back up again.

Each lap I kept moving up but ran out of laps and more importantly, energy. The lead group was just out of reach. I finished 5^th.

Pictures: Skinnyski.com

MN starts off on the riverbanks in St. Cloud. I always get off to a late start, and I always do poorly in this race. I dunno know why I look so forward to it.

But I got it done and thats enough.

My goal this year is to have a presence in the b races. I started fine enough, but didnt last long. I made it 30 minutes and then hit a wall. I completely collapsed and called it quits.

Lame, I know.

I went and started the 35+ race along with the 1+2’s. I got 3 or 4 more laps in and then called it quits.

Lets see what next week brings..
FPA

pics from skinnyski.com

watch?v=pA8BOiq21-Q&feature=player_embedded

The love of cross runs deep. The vibe, the experience the teamwork…every thing is beautiful. Where else can you hang, chat and approach the stars of your sport. Chat them up in the parking lot, shake hands with the best in the world and see them in action.

Day 1 I felt pretty flat. I was going as hard as I could, but was going nowhere. The ave. HR was 174, so I was going as hard as I could.

Day 2 I felt way better. I rocked the start and settled in top 20 and felt really good and got into a good rhythm. The run up of yesterday was not an off-camber double ride-up and was super painful. At about the 1/2 way mark I went through a sweeping corner too fast and lost the front wheel and went down. The bars were tweaked sideways and I straightened them out and hopped back on as 10+ guys rolled by. The rage of the crash made me get on the gas and I picked up a few riders and rolled up to my old Crossnaics’ teammate MikeyP. We hooked up with another guy and took turns with our pulls. With 2 laps to go it was time to get into old teammate mode. I waved MikeyP through to pull through the twisties as that is his specialty. We hit a straight away and I attacked. Mikey P was 2nd wheel and let the gap open as the other guy took chase…so Mikey P had a free ride for awhile. Thanks Mikey for setting me up. Yea…we were racing for mid-pack, but we were still racing. It was a great weekend and thanks to my Wife for being the best pit-crew anyone could ever have.

CJ and Nate looked really good. They will be producing great results this year…I’m hoping to find my legs soon.

‘member when I talked about getting a custom f/f done for me? Its ready for paint. Check out the pics. I’ve been talking to the builder about doing a big order for next year’s team. I dunno how many would interested-but I bet we’d get a great deal with a bigger order.

FPA

Man, check those QRs…. the sketchy one I was using on my rear wheel came loose(!) going into the last lap. In the ten seconds it took me to stop, fix it and get up and running again I went from a virtually guaranteed 6th place (with a good chance at outsprinting my on-course companion for 5th) to eeking out 8th with more than a few people breathing down my neck!

Other than that loose QR, everything is A-OK out here in the Bay Area. The speed and race fitness are coming along nicely, the weather is generally cooperating, and all my fellow racers are psyched to be back on the dirt.

And for those of you who like your racing not-so-sanctioned, the DFL Urban Outlaw Cyclocross-dress series is (dressed) up and running as well. If Barry Wicks shows up and digs it, it must be good!

- Nick in SF

while you coast-cats are actually racing, here in the land of 10k lakes, we are suffering from hotter than normal temps.

we’ve also been following superstar around the local parks. that ain’t easy, cause he’s -well, he’s superstar.

now my feet hurt. my ankles hurt. my right leg hurts and my left leg hurts. my knees hurt. my quads hurt and my groin hurts. my lower back hurtds, my middle back hurts and my upper back hurts. So does my neck and my arms and my hands.

you get the idea.

fpa

Just when you thought the XC mtb season was over and it was a tad too warm to do ‘cross, the Portland Velo team puts on their Weekend of Pain (on the Peak) & Sufferin’ (on the Summit) in the beautiful hills of Western Washington County on the very mountain Lance crushes during his annual Livestrong Ride.

Check out the very professional webpage for this race

Key sponsors included: Keen, Felt, Redline, Specialized, & Tifosi

Current nat’l champ Ryan Trebon came out and showed us how to take 2 barriers in a whopping 4 seconds: link to video

Crossniac Race Results:

• Jordan Frasier (Beg Men) - DNF due to asthma attack, raced single-speed
• Will Cortez (Men C) - 29th, raced single-speed

Sufferin’ on the Summit

• Will Cortez (Cat 2 Men 19-34) - 3rd, raced single-speed
• Brian Johnson (Cat 2 Men 35-44) - 8th

Pain on the Peak: race report

Key points:

• the recently cut straw made for super slow riding
• the loose straw combined with off-camber downhills transitioning to uphills made for amazing crashes!
• the loose top-soil made it ridiculously dusty and hard to breathe (I rocked a face-mask for the race)

Sufferin’ on the Summit: race report

• Lap 1: dusty & plugged up. The course was a real surprise with super sketchy downhills & ridiculously tight switchbacks
• Lap 2: I knew what was coming and strategically planned when to hike-a-bike so as to keep my position. Totally nailed all the downhills and my confidence soared.
• Lap 3: my cockiness gets the best of me as I forgot to lean the bike away on an off-camber descent resulting in an early lap crash. The downhill I stuck earlier comes back with a vengeance as I go in too hot and wipe out…I paid for that with some “road rash.” I go on to hold off Brian J. for a 3rd place finish in the Cat 2 Men 19-34.

-buddhabelly

This is what the CO Posse does in the “off” season.

Dirty Kanza 200 - 2009 from Garret Seacat on Vimeo.