Brian Head Utah turned out to be a great venue. The mountains meet the desert. We camped close to the start/finish area at 9600 feet elevation. The course went up from there to at least 11000'. One big 27 mile loop. Our preride day was washed out with rain so both Kris and I race day would be our first time around.

The trail was sic. "Dark Hollow" is a one of the longest decents I've done in a race. It was so good we went back the next day to do it all over again. Hooked up with an old buddy from Ubikes that now lives in there. Steve "Bread" Faducia was our tour guide and hotel as we stayed an extra day and shuttled some sweet trail.

The Hotel Sienna just got bigger. Also works as our "factory pits jr." Our camping has become as dialed as our bikes.

Kris's races went predictably well. That's him gapping the feild at his short track.

Got some rest and home cooking, off to the next national in Brianhead, Utah. Temps are cool and the altitude is high there. Goran has been pegged to my side. He knows it's time for another road trip.

Long Road Home.

Really wasn't that bad. Sneaking Goran in and out of hotel rooms has never been so worth it. Kris and I hit the jackpot by scoring a hotel room in Provo that had OLN. We got the watch the Floyd explosion and redemption stages in the Tour de France. It puts our idea of suffering into perspective.

Russian River Rope Swings. Floated all day to beat the heat.

Goran stayed in the water most of the day. He was still paddeling in his slept that night on the hotel floor.
Picnik in the shade with some Fume' Blanc and our Maitre De' Kris w/a K.
Back home. Time for r&r and one of my favorite days on the calinder. I must be a obnoxious euro cycling fan encarnate. There is nothing I enjoy more than screaming at triathletes as they slog up the steep pitches of old stage road.

I should have taken a lesson from Landis and just kept a bottle in my hand. Riding through the California heat wave sucked. Two bottles on the front side feed and one on the back. Nine in total but i'd say I drank about six. Three more than any thing I've done in competition.

The perfect gut. A good three inches over the belt line. The avalanche of flab, seemingly about to fall on my shoulder. Is this what happens when you stop riding?

Super COMo Mom.

Ahh, the suffering didn't stop at the XC. I lasted longer that ever (16:40) at the short track, in slightly warmer weather.

Coast 2 Coast in 06'

The cold pacific waters around Montego Bay. Kris and I's NMBS tour has reached it's Zenith, but not it's conclution. It was a little symbolic touching both coast, and thinking of the lessons I've learned along the way.

All that aside, nothing could kill our buzz we had from wine tastings in the Russian River valley. Sobered up with a walk on the beach.

Getting "sideways" at some wineries.

"Generous pours, mineral finish, bitey, smokey start, summer in a bottle, bouqet, toasty, nutty, lively, floral." Words not to familiar in the Mt. Bike lexicon, except "generous pours."

06 SS National Start

Big field for the Single Speed nats.

Yeah! That's right....

Kris had a break out day in the SS Nationals. Sharing the stage with 3 time nat champ Carl Decker, 06 XC champ Ryan Trebon, Travis Brown, Mike Something SS cross champ. Good day for COMotion Sports and Lathrop.

technical nationals

Tough course, not real technical though.

On to Sonoma and the MountianBike Nationals. Met up with my folks in Santa Rosa. Buddy and Judy wanted to watch my "biggest race" this year and spend some time in Cali wine area.

The reviews of the course were a mixed bag. It was tough. My race was like a bake oven.... drank 6 bottles and four goo's and still had the "tinglies" most of the race. Not a lot of sustained climbing which made it a power course. Not much techincal. Nothing went great, but then again nothing really went wrong. I got 32nd of 66 starters. Pro pack fill.

From Park City, Ut, to Truckee, Ca. Stayed with Greg and Eli, some friends of Kris. We replenished with home brew, fly fishing, chicken tacos and some cool trails around Lake Tahoe. Check the video.

Tahoe trail riding

R&R at Tahoe. Stayed with some buddies in Trukee on our way to Sonoma.

short track Park City Pro Start

Park City, UT. Start of the Pro mens short track race. I only lasted 9:38, but of 90 I think less than 10 even finished without getting lapped.

Luggage by Target' and Rubbermaid.

Looking down the valley over Park City at the "Horizon"

For those who aren't 80's car buffs, that's a Plymoth Horizon... with the sweet flames

Da Pits

Got killed. The first lap "flat to wipe out" didn't get me off to a good start.

If you fall off the bike and burn through kits as much as I do, I've got a good tip from the road. Duct tape the inside lining of your rip. In this case, mine turned out to look like a sweet shark tooth graphic, or snowey mt. top. Your pic.

Kris continues his podium run

Next national is Park City, Ut. So starts road trip no. 2. No camping planned on this leg.

I better change the name of my weblog. I just took 5 days off the bike.
This weekend my Mtn. Bike team showed up in force at Eldora Escape regional. Handing off feeds, working on bikes, and testing different LeftHand Beers was a welcome change of pace. No racing for me this weekend, and my first rest week since late March.
Here are some of my teammates racing on home territory.

Costello showed his short track skilz

Kris had another good weekend, taking second in single speed state championship.

Meagan riding away from the other fast chics.

Home Sweet Home

My lips are dry and chapped from the lack of humidity, my breathes short and strained. Driving behind a long line of subaru's; and there they are on the roadside...... those damd wooden bears.

It feels good to be home in Colorado.
These are pics from Cottonwood pass. It's a shortcut to Crested Butte and one of the better scenic drives around. The 4 1/2 hour dirve was a milk run compared to what we did last week.
Soggy snowballs in June. I laid a big egg this weekend for the "Wild Flower Rush" regional mountain bike race. A victim of the laws of gravity. What goes up must come down. I probably could have used a rest week but raced anyway. Time to swallow my pride and take the lumps that the pro class has been dishing me. Besides finishing dead last (I did finish) a took my worst digger of the year.
Some of our COMotion Crew. We stayed an extra day to ride some trail.

Traveling across middle America.

Things do get boring on 30 hour one way trips. Some things strike me as funny, so the camera comes out.

The classic "bait and switch".... or is that what an asian salad looks like in Ohio?

I don't remember Kris asking for mayo.

We drove thirty minutes off the freeway in search of anything healthy. I thought going to a caffeteria might be a place to find a balanced meal. My Cod, broccoli and beans were cooked to a mush, devoid of any nutritional value. "Do you want cheese sauce on your broccoli?" I wish I would have taken her up on the offer. Goran thumbed his nose at his shot at the food.... so into the dumpster it went.... along with Kris's miracle whip sandwich.
I may be doomed. But I did have a good day.

Heading Home

we will have done over 5000 miles, 14 states, four races. Can't wait to get home.

Number two in the books!!!

Preride and preparation went well, but i wasn't ready enough for the Snow Mountain VT experience. I DNF'ed in the second lap of my four lap race. I had a bad wreck that shook me up. I got up and chased furiously, then boom!!, I'd hit the deck again. After about 5 subsiquent wipeouts I realized I was becoming a danger to myself. At my age I don't know how many "comeback" years I have in me. I really hate quiting.

On the brighter side, last weeks finish seeded me about 1/2 way in the pack so my number went down (61) and my starting was much better.

Kris had strong rides in both the XC and Short Track placing 4th and 6th respectively. I think he could have taken the ST had his gear selection been better on the single speed.

The next leg was DC to West Dover, VT. The drive was pretty. Parts of NY state remind me of where I grew up in Germany. Little towns and rolling green hills.

A typical Vt farm. They sell mollases and jam at about the same rate that Colorado roadsides sell those wooden bears.

Our "lean too". Deluxe accomidations in Woodford St. park. The bugs were no match for my 40% Deete (maximum allowable). In the tradition of "keeping it real", Kris and I have tried to race and tour as we always have in the past. On a budget. Snow mountain and norba made this one really tough on us. Closest allowable camping..... 30 minute drive. So over the course of 3 days of racing, we made the Woodford commute quite a few times. I met a new friend named Officer Mark on the way, who gave me a 126 dollar welcome to Wilmington. First one in over 10years. Kris has been crushing such a big gear, he ripped the sole and cleat clean off the body of his shoe. The first time was trail side so we duct tape wrapped the whole thing and it held pretty well. That night Kris superglued it back together and took off the tape. We heard the "crack" on the trail the next day.... full seperation.... no injuries..... new shoes.
A big thanks to Cashion's buds at Carolina Fatz bike shop in Asheville, NC. Just when I get down on the people I have to deal with in the bike industry, your cycling carma comes back to you. Markus at Fatz hooked Kris up with a great deal on some shoes and ripped trail with us.
Their shops website http://www.carolinafatzcyclingcenter.com/index.html