Well the 2008 cyclocross season is officially under way, and I'm both pleased and disappointed with my results, plus a bonus surprise. Due to work schedules I never get to go on group rides, so it's pretty much impossible for me to gauge my fitness in comparison with other riders. With that in mind I was pretty nervous at the start line. Normally I would just ride as hard as I could and be happy with the result, but this year I have actually been training to get better: doing intervals, hot laps at a local park, and attending practices. The course was very fast, but was also pretty scary as about half of it was on loose gravel (which, to my surprise was not to be my undoing). By the second lap I was feeling really good, and was starting to pick off some of the mid-packers around me. However, bad luck found me about half-way through the third lap as I was unable to keep the rubber side down. I lost it on a fast off-camber right hand bend, basically I went too wide and tried to correct, only to find myself sliding on my right hip (hooray road rash!). The best part of the crash was the chain suck that took me about 90 seconds to fix, all while getting passed by at least 8 or 9 people. I did manage to pass two of them back, but my momentum was pretty much shot after that. I'm still pretty pleased with 29th out of 50, especially since I felt pretty strong. Why is that impressive you ask? Well, I had a crash and a mechanical, and as I found out with a trip to urgent care later that afternoon, strep throat. So I'm pretty optimistic going into the rest of the season that I can at least get my first ever top 20, or better! Here's a pic of the nasty little run-up right after the bridge.

I started cycling a in the spring of 2004 because I simply didn't have anything better to do. What started out as another expensive hobby for me quickly became something about which I was very passionate. In two years I've ridden several thousand miles on road bikes, mountain bikes, and cross bikes in a couple of different states, struggling against wind, heat, cold, and rain. For the last six months my bikes have been parked in a corner while Jennifer and I have battled morning sickness, ovarian cysts, 15 year old Mustangs, and midnight feedings. During that time I've managed to find the 20 pounds that I lost while riding, and my body has not reacted well at all. Two months ago I went to the emergency room experiencing chest pains, which thankfully turned out to be inflammation in my pectoral muscle. During the follow up visit with my general practitioner, I was officially diagnosed with hypertension. At 27. To say that I was depressed with that little bombshell would be an understatement. Now my bikes and I have a new battle against high blood pressure. Cycling is still something that I like to do, but now it's also something that I have to do. For myself, for Jennifer, and for Hogan.

For anyone that cares, here is little wish list I've created.

So here is the picture of my new commuter frame, prior to any upgrades. It's currently at the Addictive Cycles undergoing a makeover which inludes some sweet second hand components, and possibly a new paint job. I'll post pictues of the finished product once I get it back!

I have officially crossed the threshold from recreational cyclist to obsessed ubergeek. In case you are wondering, obsessed ubergeeks scrape together parts from many different bikes to make one "frankenbike", usually despite the fact that they have several other bikes already. Last week I purchased an older steel cyclocross frame on ebay (or stole if you consider that I only paid $40), and I'll be scraping parts to outfit this bike. My intention is to turn this bike into a bullet-proof commuter/trekking bike. What's nice is that after it's all said and done, this new bike will probably weigh at least 10 lbs more than my road bike, so it will almost be like weight training on every ride! I'll post pictures of the progress once I get the frame. Now if I could just find somebody to sandblast the frame and paint it neon orange...

I read a news headline on the internet today that made me chuckle just a bit: "Family of Reggie Bush [soon to be top 3 NFL draft pick] did not pay rent on home." I laughed because it struck me as funny that someone thought that this was news. It has become so common place for athletes and their families to receive special treatment, that I can't fathom why anyone would be shocked when news of such treatment breaks. I actually would have floored if the headline had read "Family of Reggie Bush found to have paid wads of cash for crummy apartment in crime infested neighborhood." Now that would have been news...

I finally took the plunge this past Saturday, as I participated in my first weekend group ride. With a confidence boost from my performance in the Thursday "slow ride" I decided that I could try to hang with the hammerheads for a little while on the longer and more challenging route. Saturday's ride started out under threatening skies, but we still managed to stay out of the rain until we dismounted at the finish. Overall I was very pleased with the ride, which turned out to be 28 miles at a 19.6 mph clip for me. I managed to hang with the group for everything but the one long (1.5 mile) climb on the route, where the group graciously waited at the top for me. Getting dropped on a climb is a double whammy, because not only are you suffering up a hill but you've also lost the benefit of the draft. Due solely to that one 1.5 mile stretch, the lead group managed an average pace that was about 1 mph faster than mine. I'm encouraged following this ride for a couple of reasons. First, it's genuinely refreshing to have the time and energy to go on these rides (i.e., I'm not on nightshift anymore). Second, the guys that I'm trying to keep up with are the very ones that I will be trying to beat once cross season starts. So, the fact that I'm only slightly behind these guys gives me lots of hope that I could be slightly ahead of them 6 months from now!