Fall Foliage Tour

As the season winds down I cant help but reflect on the year. Some of my buddies are riding Worlds today, which is super cool. Speaking of worlds....Svein Tuft...WTF. Second at the World Time Trial Championships...with a flat tire....that's crazy. Crazy.


I told myself this Spring that I would race Cross this year. As October rolls around I find myself without a Cross bike, no money and pretty out of shape. Ahh well next year. Its something I want to take up, but every year, it just doesn't seem to come together.

The wheels are turning in my head on what to do next year. I have to make some phone calls and see what people think, so that's what I'm lazily working on, along with a couple Uni courses. I wonder what the other guys are up to.....

I finally got the new camera...3 years of warranty from Future shop for $29 and I'm now on my third camera, which all got upgraded on. Pretty hard to beat considering the past cameras had more water damage(rain, sweat, being in a jersey pocket) than the remnants of Hurricane Ike.
(Met Billy on the trail, who is always a good face to see.....hmm that bike looks framilier)

"There are 2 kinds of guys. The hammer'ers and the nails. One kind dishes it out out and the others just take anything.....it makes life interesting." -Tim Johnson(Current US Cross Champ)

Up and Up....then Down!

I've been waiting for a new camera from Future Shop for about 4 weeks now. So, this explains the lack of solid photo posts. Life has been divided up between school and work. I haven't really been doing a lot of either to tell you the truth. I'm riding a bit, but not as much I would like.

Its weird when you reach the point in the off season where you don't feel like a bike racer anymore. The leg veins once a stable in the physic, only come out when I'm hung over and dehydrated from the drink. The little ponch on my gut is back and my legs now show 2 weeks of hair growth. Ahhhhhh gotta keep on top of that. The biggest part of bike racing is keeping up appearances.

I'm trying to get out to go camping but my lack of funds is preventing me from getting a decent tent. Maybe this pay cheque. I only have a few more weeks before it becomes too chilly to really be comfortable. But hey, that's probably what I need.

I had this big idea to put on a dirt road...road race as its too hard to have a long distance MTB race on the island with all the land issues, so I thought this would be a good compromise. Picture road racing in the 20's and that's what I was going for. Man, PEI has some crazy dirt road climbs. Some of the craziest I've ever seen. I did one lap of my proposed course loop and I was cooked. I need to set aside some time to organize this. CPEI is super stoked on it, so maybe we'll see a fall foliage PEI dirt race derby.

I woke up a little under the weather this morning, but I'm hoping Norm's farewell ride this afternoon will chase the demons out of my lungs.

Cross-Checked

Not many exciting things have been happening , and the blog posts reflect that. I got back from the Cape Breton ride last weekend and that was a killer experience. I suggest anyone reading this should do it next year. It really is worth it. I think I might do a training camp in that neck of the woods some time. Cape Breton has biggest mountains I've been able to find in the Maritimes.

I'm back at Smooth Cycle working. This time of the year the main goal is to try to save some money. I think I might start putting some of my pay cheque into a savings account to be used next spring/summer. I will need the bucks then more than I need them now I imagine.

I'm also taking a couple University courses. Not so much with the idea of working toward a degree but more so just get feel like someone who is 22 years old. Something as simple as going to class and learning something and being in a thinking environment is so different for me. I love it...almost too much. I Also need a dose of the student lifestyle as well. For me going out to Trivia and getting a beer is something I haven't done in.....months. Even being around people my age is a pretty big shocker...I'm use to only talking to my team-mates...and the cats.

I have some big ideas for a pretty cool race coming up. We'll see how that pans out organizational wise, but I'm going to scout out a course tomorrow. If I can get it to the level I want it to be at, It will be super cool.

I've been putting off ordering a Surly Cross Check for 2 years. All that time I've had a use for that bike, and I have always wanted it. I've even collected all the parts from years of being a bike shop lackee. Well this year I thought about it and decided....what-ever...Just order the friggin bike. So I picked up the phone and called NRG...and they don't have any Cross-Check frames available....from46cm-60cm...yeesh.