08 Starts Tomorrow

I tried to squeeze into the 07 season kit yesterday and discovered that the past month of lethargy and sloth has taken its toll. Tomorrow begins training for the new year. There will be no public proclamation of goals besides getting back down to fighting weight, improving the skills, trying to push the fitness a bit, and having fun with my new sisters and brothers of HUP. I couldn't resist the signing bonus and substantial salary offered by the nation of Zac Daab, and so will be sporting the new kit this coming year. huphuphuphuphuphuphuphuphuphuuuuuuuuuuup!

Will be following a modified program for base training this winter before going full bore with "The Program" in the spring.


Here's hoping all enjoy health and goodness in 08.

NYC

Great day to join tourists from around the world in NYC today. Got a jump on things by hitting the road at first light, scored a sweet, free street spot on the Upper East Side just off the park (Moveitfred can parallel park a semi, he's that damn good), and got in all planned activities just before the rain started in the late afternoon.

Getting groovy in the park to start the day.


Spent some time rock scrambling in the Ramble.


Destination #1: Dinosaur bones and stuffed mammals.



Cruising south on Columbus.



This is your bike in NYC.



Spending time with all my friends in Columbus Circle.



Squab.



Moment of quiet.



Alotta freakin' coin.



There are forces beyond our control that draw all humanity to the tree/rink at R Plaza. Only way to survive is by medicating with large cookies.



Standard fat tourist crowd on Madison Ave.


My opinion: NYC is fine for the day/good to be home.

Workouts (inspired by Felt)

a.m. workout:
sleep until 10:30am. eat usual bowl of cooked oats and a tasty orange. still hungry, eat bowl of honey-nut cheerios. drink bad decaf coffee to try to take the edge off. doesn't work.

p.m. workout:
pick up leaves in the yard all afternoon until the back screams in agony. try to relax while hordes of 6-8 year olds scream through the house. wife is nowhere to be found. consider taking own life.

evening workout:
neighbor kids finally go back to their own hovels. drink alchohol.

Safetybike

Something to keep you busy through the dark, dreary winter months. My thinking: lure Zank over with a case of Belgian brew, fire up the tools, build a few of these hot rockets for next cross season.

Euro Cross

I know a little more about cross than people who don't know a damn thing. That's about where my knowledge base stands. Browsing cyclingnews.com on a daily basis (along with a few of the smart blogs) gets me up to date on the current Euro cross racing, which is building to a fever pitch.

So today I see that TheJonathanPage pulled out a big second place finish in a C2 Belgian race behind Nys. Cool to see him back up near the top spot. Wonder how Johnson will settle into the scene. Top 20 in the Worlds? And Trebon?

Question: How many of the elite cross dudes juice it up?

A) More than 90%
B) Less than 90%
C) None: clean as Gramma's countertops

I'm Wondering

Thanks to the guy who came out of this truck we now have fiberoptic connections in our house.

Why? Phone reception is still average at best. Got two new boxes plastered to the side of our house. Only difference I notice is that now I've got a new, annoying "Verizon Broadband" toolbar across the top of my screen. Wife says this whole new thing is going to be cheaper. OK, that counts.

And

Why am I drinking decaf this morning? This really sucks. I found about 5 caf beans in a jar and threw them in the grinder with the other crap. What a waste.

Retrospective

2007: Sniff
2008: Keep on

ps--the purple was making me sick

2008 UCI Cross (tentative)

Make your plans:

20.09.2008 Nittany Lion 'Cross Fogelsville, PA

20.09.2008 Kinetic Systems - Tailwind Cyclo-cross 1 Springfield Township,Michigan
21.09.2008 Kinetic Systems - Tailwind Cyclo-cross 2 Springfield Township,Michigan

20.09.2008 Star-crossed Redmond
21.09.2008 Rad Racing GP Lakewood

24.09.2008 Cross Vegas Las Vegas, Nevada

27.09.2008 Mad 'Cross 1 Sun Prairie, WI
28.09.2008 Mad 'Cross 2 Sun Prairie, WI

27.09.2008 Schoolhouse 'Cross Montpelier, VT
28.09.2008 Catamount Grand Prix Williston, Vermont

04.10.2008 Providence Cyclo-Cross Festival/World Cup Providence, RI
05.10.2008 Providence Cyclo-Cross Festival/World Cup Providence, RI

08.10.2008 Darkhorse UCI Burlington, KY

11.10.2008 Java Johnny's - LionHearts' Cross Middletown, Ohio
12.10.2008 Bio Wheels / United Dairy Farmers Cyclo-cross Cincinnati, Ohio

11.10.2008 Gran Prix of Gloucester 1 Gloucester, MA
12.10.2008 Gran Prix of Gloucester 2 Gloucester, MA

18.10.2008 Granogue Cross Wilmington
19.10.2008 Wissahickon Cross Philadelphia

25.10.2008 USGP of Cyclocross - Louisville Louisville, KY
26.10.2008 USGP of Cyclocross - Louisville Louisville, KY

01.11.2008 Boulder Cup Colorado
02.11.2008 Boulder Cup Boulder, Colorado0

1.11.2008 The Cycle-Smart International 1 Northampton, MA
02.11.2008 The Cycle-Smart International 2 Northampton, MA

08.11.2008 Beacon Cycling & Fitness Cyclo-cross Beacon, New Jersey
09.11.2008 Highland Park Cyclo-Cross Highland Park, NJ

08.11.2008 Eco-Cross Los Angeles, CA
09.11.2008 Dam 'Cross Los

15.11.2008 USGP of Cyclocross - Mercer Park West Windsor, New Jersey
16.11.2008 USGP of Cyclocross - Mercer Park West Windsor, New Jersey

22.11.2008 Whitmore's Landscaping Super Cross Cup 1 Southampton
23.11.2008 Whitmore's Landscaping Super Cross Cup 2 Southampton

22.11.2008 North Carolina Grand Prix 1 Hendersonville
23.11.2008 North Carolina Grand Prix 2 Hendersonville

29.11.2008 Baystate Cyclocross Sterling Massachusetts

29.11.2008 The Jingle Cross Rock 1 Iowa City
30.11.2008 The Jingle Cross Rock 2 Iowa City

06.12.2008 Continental Championships Boulder, Colorado

06.12.2008 USGP of Cyclocross - Portland Portland, Oregon
07.12.2008 USGP of Cyclocross - Portland Portland, Oregon

06.12.2008 Lower Allen Classic Camp Hill, PA

06.12.2008 NBX Grand Prix Warwick, Rhode Island
07.12.2008 NBX Grand Prix Warwick, Rhode Island

07.12.2008 Capital Cross Classic Reston, Virginia

13.12.2008 US Cyclo-Cross Nationals Kansas City, KS
14.12.2008 US Cyclo-Cross Nationals Kansas City, KS

New Car

I need a new car. The old, somewhat reliable Toyota Camry wagon is spraying fluid out the back like a tourist in Mexico. Mechanic says the fix involves big removal of engine parts and a big pricetag. I don't have thousands of friends like CTodd to send donations my way. Time to pass the heap onto a college student to run into the ground.

Need a sporty replacement, good gas, prefer a stick. Thinking the Matrix will do, if I can fold my lanky ass into the cockpit.

Here is your chance to suggest something better.

Things to do in December:

December 21: Scheldecross, Antwerpen Linkeroever (Bel) C2
December 22: Int. Cyclo-cross Huijbergen, Huijbergen (Ned) C1
December 22: National Cyclo-cross Cup, Podborany (Cze) C2
December 23: Cyclo-cross de Nommay, Nommay (Fra) C2
December 23: GP Montferland, Zeddam (Ned) C1
December 23: Internationales Radquer Meilen, Meilen (Swi) C2
December 26: Coupe du Monde UCI / UCI World Cup, Hofstade (Bel) CDM
December 26: G.P. Geba Sarl, Differdange (Lux) C2
December 26: Int. Radquer Dagmersellen, Dagmersellen (Swi) C2
December 27: Sylvester Cyclo-cross, Torhout (Bel) C2
December 28: Azencross / Cross des as, Loenhout / Wuustwezel (Bel) C1
December 29: Noordzeecross, Middelkerke (Bel) C2
December 30: Badiquer Schmerikon, Schmerikon (Swi) C1
December 30: Superprestige, Diegem (Bel) C1

Cool

Don't know who Larry Rosa is, but he took a very rad photo here from cross nats.

If you can't get enough cross, go here. The NE prep for Worlds. I, for one, will miss the CT event. I plan to sleep for the entire month of January.

Wow

Cripes. Much congratulations and respect to these two for putting a BIG hammer of approval on the cross season. I bow to the champs. What a thrill to read the excitement over the web on their performances today and think back to those hot days on Long Island at the start of the season.

A few months ago, hot afternoon, sitting on our respective car bumpers, Katie Compton told me there is "so much luck involved" in doing well at Worlds. Best of luck to both of them.

I'm Glad I'm Not In KC

No disrespect whatsoever, yo, I'm just glad I'm at home in my cozy environs while the storms kick up around the nation and cover things with a layer of ice.

I've been enjoying the written coverage from KC from the various official sources and bloggers. Much good cheer and respect to all those who made the journey and are thrashing it out in the mud and ice and snow. Baby Nor'easter kicking up outside my window today with some high winds and rain/slushy snow accumulating. Think I'll stick to home and keep an eye on the web for results from the elites today. Here's hoping Gould pulls off an upset and that Page puts a big stamp of approval on a difficult season.

Speaking of Gould, read her thoughts here and consider signing her petition.

Finally, either of you two pathetic souls who read this blog on a monthly basis get Velonews? Well as I understand it there is something I wrote on the back page. That's what people tell me anyway. See, in a cruel twist of irony I--for the first time ever in my long-standing subscription--did not receive my issue with my essay in it. Yes I know what the words are that I put down on the page, but I have just the mildest curiosity to see how the artist saw fit to depict me in the clever caricature they always add to the piece. They didn't ask for a picture. Am I as ugly there as in real life? Perhaps they gave me dashing leading-man good looks? I don't know.

Any y'all have a copy you're gonna throw away (check through that pile of reading next to the throne)? Help a brother out, man. Might make a nice Xmas gift if you're still wondering what to get me.

A few pics of the slushy goodness outside today. Notice the shoveling handiwork by yours truly. The technique employed here pretty much reflects my effort in life: do as little as possible to get by. Looking ahead at the weather for the week it seems we're going to have temps creeping up into the 30's during the day before dipping down into the 20's at night. That should be good for an extended bout of ice on the walkways and roads. Helloooooooo rollers.

Wish I Was In Portland

Whoops. Kids left the bikes out last night and we woke up to snow this morning. I'm working the solo parent shift at home as the wife and her sister are off spending hard-earned coin in NYC. Going to try a little sledding down the driveway, but that's about as freaky as it's going to get around these parts today, most likely.

So the early reports trickling into the East Coast seem to suggest the USGP in Portland is busting out all across the muck in a big way. Big storm, riders getting trashed all over the course, colossal efforts on day 1 by TJ and Gould (and I'm sure many others of lesser notoriety). Guess they got a party going on.

So will the kids happily occupied with various activities at the moment I'm dreaming poetic about Portland. The Portland environs have always seemed to me to be a pleasant and well-managed place to settle one's stuff. I can count on two fingers the number of times I've been to Portland, yet it's always stuck in my mind based on things I've read over the years as a place that's doing a lot of good things with urban planning and lifestyle opportunities for its citizens.

Now, I know that from a distance one can easily paint a romantic picture of a place. Things ain't always as they seems once you get down into the mire. This article, for example, suggests that perhaps Portland ain't all it's cracked up to be. Still those Portlandites got some cool things going on in and around the city:

Community Cycling Center

BTA

Bike Farm

Rwanda Bikes

and of course

Chris King and Vanilla and Showers Pass (for those occasional rainy days) and the Worst Day of the Year Ride.

As a West Coast guy at heart I'm thinking up places to settle my bones in later years. Not sure I want to be cold and wet, though.

Back here on Long Island the snow seems to have stopped outside. Leaves are still piled high all over the yard. I'm about finished with my coffee. I'm thinking it's a good time to fill a thermos with hot chocolate and go for a hike through the woods with the kids.

This morning from the front porch. That solitary Blue Spruce is getting a bit tall. Might need a cuttin' down for the holidays this year.

Today

Got about an hour to kill before heading into the office. Pouring down a totally decent pot of Trader Joe's blend coffee right now. Think I'll take the Gewilli shoot-from-the-hip approach to blog entries today and spray a few topics across the board.

I blew out of the office early yesterday to see "No Country For Old Men." I was one of those alone, creepy, big-coat-wearing guys in the theater everyone pretends to ignore. On a Monday afternoon the theater was packed with seniors and lots of other creepy solo men. Anyway, to the movie. I'm a HUGE fan of Cormac McCarthy--probably my favorite author. When it comes down to it he simply kicks ass with the setting/imagery in his books and absolutely has a pulse on the underlying violence and despair in this country, especially along those border regions of the Southwest. Tasty stuff.

This movie was excellent, blew my mind at times. It's true to the book, mostly following it scene by scene, and the tone and imagery is staggering. Definitely one to see on the big screen. The performances by the three mains were spot on, the disturbing guy was very disturbing, and props to the Coen bros for having the balls to end the movie the way the book ends.

Dopey people will not like the movie. They won't get it. I'm not dopey. There, I said it.

I think my limited cross competitions have ended for the season. Maybe, just maybe, I can sneak into New Jersey for one more race in a couple of weeks, but with some family members coming in and the holiday catastrophe in full swing it's not likely. That's cool with me. It was a fun season. Got to meet and get to know many rad individuals. I was mildly happy with how I pieced together some prep for cross. Already thinking about next year.

Good luck to all at the last couple of races and at Nats in KC. Wish I could go to that. Maybe next year in KC again, iirc. I would assume that after KC the Nationals move back to the west coast? Have plans been made that far ahead? Anyone know? Anyone read this stupid blog?

Think I'll ride my bike into work, although this is one of those days (like most for me) when I haven't thought that far ahead yet (which is, like, 15 minutes from now). The yard is absolutely covered in leaves that I should pick up, but it's really windy today so I'm hoping they just all blow into the neighbors' yards.

CX magazine: Hmmmmmmmmm. They got the right idea, I think. I like the cover. I'm confused by the layout, but there is some good content. I'm sure that those involved are still cutting their teeth on the project, and much respect to the effort they're putting into the mag. I hope that there develops a serious focus on writing in terms of depth and length and complexity. Some offerings each edition that a reader can settle in with. What strikes me as interesting about cross races is ALL the stories that exist at the venues outside the typical race reports and pics of off-camber riders. I'm looking forward to seeing the magazine grow.

Time to pack a lunch and go. Damn, this is short compared to the yarns G spins.

USGP Jersey Pics

No racing for me. Had a great weekend hanging out with my daughter at the venue and around the Princeton area (for her, besides cross, the hits of the weekend included an indoor pool at the hotel and a late dinner out at the Macaroni Grill). Excellent course at the Mercer County Park, awesome sand pit, questionable fly over (why include these contraptions other than for the novelty/circus element?), and even good food and hot bevies at the porta coach.


Scenic venue

Despite a dropped chain, Sachs scored podium finishes both days.

Dive down the fly over. I saw two masters racers eat it bad at the bottom of this thing on Day 1. I just avoided hiking out there from that point on (it was quite a distance out from the "main action"). So I wonder, why have these things? Do they serve as an obstacle to break up the field? I didn't get that impression--everyone went over about the same speed, which was gingerly. Sure, people can get hurt anywhere, but why add something to the natural features that can hurt and maime? Sure, some might say to those who couldn't do it or wouldn't do it (I saw one rider leave the course during warmup at that spot because it seemed he couldn't bring himself to dive down the hill) harden up and work on your skills. Maybe so, but still I wonder.


Amy Wallace entering the pit. Wallace was the only female rider I saw on Day 1 to ride the entire length of the pit. Very nice!





Serious display of talent and power from Georgia Gould winning both days. Here she is on Day 2 riding a tough, muddy off-camber section.

Wendy Simms was in the front groups both days.

Second for Bessette both days. Looked like she might have the legs and lungs Day 2, but Gould outpowered her in the second half of the race.

My daughter got to hang out with Gould while she warmed down after her win on Day 2. Those two had lots to talk about. Thanks go out to Georgia for making a little girl's day. Very classy thing to do.



Horner was clearly out to have fun and not get hurt. He was taking some heckling from the crowd, especialy on Day 2 when he was quite a ways off the back in the muddy conditions.



Most of the men's elite field ran this section, including winner Trebon. Clearly this was a nightmare in the mud.

Fall and Windy

Just right for a cross bike.


Looking across the harbor toward home.



Above and below: at the boat yard down the street.




The road up the hill and back home.


My daughter and I are going to the USGP first thing in the morning. I'm jazzed about spending the weekend with her. She's jazzed that our hotel has an indoor pool.

The Bicyclist

Since CTodd seems to have left the building, those of you needing an original vid content fix and not just recycled bullshit from YouTube can head over here and get caught up with the riveting soap that is:

The Bicyclist

Sunday With Son

Suited up and ready to ride.

Mildly lost, so time for a snack to recalibrate bearings.

Several choices here. We decided on the tight singletrack rather than the wider road.

There's no denying it: a pile of old garbage is very cool.