CX natz

well cross natz has come and gone but surely will not be forgotten anytime soon. i went to rhode island with the intention of watching the crew race and kick ass and attempting to ride a halfway respectable race myself. i have to say that my excitement grew as the races went on and the crew went out and rocked it in each event. i have to say though that my heart goes out to my buddy matt. i was certain he was going to kill it friday and when he took off like a shot at the start and just pulled away i started to see stars and stripes in my eyes, but alas, it wasn't meant to be as a mechanical crippled his chances like that. he finished 7th and well shit, i'd love to be able to say i was 7th at natz one day but i know he wanted more. next year matt, next year. finally it was the dieter's turn and with a half shitty starting spot i was not completely sure of his chances. quickly that changed as he was sitting top 5 in the matter of half a lap. before you know it, 3 are off the front, dieter being number 3. i could see that he was at the absolute limit but i guess when you are in that position at natz with a prize of stars and stripes and gold waiting at the finish miraculous things happen. all year flyin' ryan was in a rut, not one of those 1 or 2 week deals but a season long rut. everytime it seemed like he was about to get out he slid right back in and i know he was doubting himself but no one else did. we all believed... all of the MAB, who were there in good times and bad, believed the dieter had it in him. last friday he showed us all that he did. coming up the finish second wheel and closing the gap to squeak out the biggest win was something i'll never forget. i ran, we ran, everyone ran to hug, tackle and show love to the dieter as he was a champ, a NATIONAL CHAMP! i'll leave out the post congratulatory, pre-celebratory podium details but lets just say it was a something that had to be seen.



well, onward with the story.... another time

new ride

well, nationals is just around the corner and i'm feeling some highs and lows. i'm super psyched that my form is still with me and i've been able to ride strong the last couple of weeks. i'm happy that i'm getting support from my family and friends (the MAB). what is not making me happy is the lack of support from my team. it totally pisses me off that all they really seem to care about is road racing. i've basically accomplished more this cross season results wise than anyone has on the road or probably will be able to accomplish on the road. so it has forced me to start evaluating other options. i guess in the world of amateur bike racing you would say i'm searching for a new ride for next year. although i plan on racing some road and some mountain i'm gonna go all in when it comes to 'cross season next year. so if anyone knows of any teams that would be looking for a 'cross racer please let me know, cause i'm looking to race with a group of people that will really appreciate me when it comes to 'cross.

oh yeah and i totally snagged an AWESOME christmas tree tonight!!! i'll give it a 10 out of 10!

perpetual silver medalist

well i survived friday night's party. it was my first client party at C&P and i totally had to learn to shmooze the clients. i was told that shmoozing was a politically correct way of being a brown nose. i'm sure that many people wonder what it would be like to see their boss(es) suck on the beer teat and i was lucky enough to see it. although no one got smashed, some were closer to the bottom of the bag than others. i had to keep it together since i new and had to race the following morning.

Saturday morning came a little quicker than i would have appreciated but i got up and got on with the routine and prepared for the race. i always have a tendency to check out the competition when i get there to evaluate my chances, and it was definitely looking good for me. a couple of possible contenders but it appeared that i would be the man to be this day until HE showed up. good ol' ed meyer came all the way from NH and crushed any hope i had of 1st place. i attacked hard from the start with him close behind and quickly there were three of us off the front... then only two. ed and i were cruising away as i was cheered on by the predominately local crowd. "stay with him frank stay with him!" were the most common cheers i heard as many knew that ed would be a favorite to win. as we hit the flat part of the course he just motored away from me laying down power that i can only dream of. i chased hard through the ballpark as i coursed in and out until i got to the technical part of the course and then i saw it. he had f*cked up and was running up the hill. i was salivating knowing that i was flying through that part of the course! i nailed him back to about 5 secs but as soon as we hit the flat pavement part of the course he exposed my 12 year old boy power and rocketed away from me. well, i had to let him go as there was no way i was gonna get him back and i quickly turned my focus to preserving 2nd and not having a system meltdown as i was working with uncrisp legs at this point. in the end i nailed home a second place finish and another medal. once again i was the bridesmaid and not the bride. at least i'm gaining confidence in my form before nationals. this time last year i was riding like crap but i feel like im still going strong now.

i wonder how the MAB is making out right now???

Medalist

Well, I scored a silver medal at the NJ state cyclocross championships this past weekend. I know it wasn't gold but the feeling that smacked me as i crossed the finish line knowing i got some hardware was absolutely amazing. Actually, i think it ranks up there with winning the overall at tour de toona way back in '03. Its been awhile since my folks have made it to a race and actually saw me finish with a smile on my face. What made it even more incredible was seeing the smiles on their faces. Now all i have to do is survive a couple more tune up races before natz.

On a non bicycle racing note: this friday is my first client party with the C&P folks. Nothing like getting free booze and food although i'm anticipating not getting loaded to stay somewhat prepared for saturday morning's race.

a tale of two (2) totos

well the MAC season officially kicked off last weekend with the granouge and wissahickon races and a brief glimpse of what might come was had.
this is what i learned:
1) there are definitely 2 totos. saturday toto got an ass kickin' most would love to forget. i can't remember the last time i felt that horrible in a race, like nothing was going right and the body just wasn't there. i guess when you start at the back of a 90 rider field and mentally put yourself out of the game your SCREWED! however, sunday there was a totally different toto, one that started at the back AGAIN but this time had the shit together. i felt good, mentally and physically and managed to pick up 18th. granted, i felt like i was getting strong and with another lap maybe would have been top 15, but 18 was good... considering the 59th place finish from the day before.
2) 'cross racers/ races are where its at. i can honestly say that this has been the most fun i've had going away on weekends since my collegiate racing days. the events are so much more laid back and the cycling folk are some of the most intriguing people i've met.

i stayed down in wilmington with dan the man at his lovely townhouse/apartment. unfortuneately, i didn't take any pictures even though i wanted to. sometimes i'm just lazy. it was a nice place, i had an air mattress prep'd for me, towels, blankets,etc. i was lucky to have such a generous host. i spent saturday and sunday in the pits for kraus but cheered on the whole crew- ryan, dan, wes and obviously mr. kraus. again, wish i had pics here but was otherwise pre-occupied you know, starring at the extremely good looking girl that was supposed to be introduced to me but my unlucky self managed to avoid 2 weeks ago in gloucester. somethings apparently never change.

college... again?

was that college all over again? i'm not totally sure but it definitely seemed like it. well, today was my first ever seminar as a professional. the firm i work for felt it would be good for me to go and learn a whole bunch of crap that i would have learned in college had i gone to college for something other than i did. so i got a 5 hour lesson in biology today... sound bad? well not when your getting paid to sit there and do nothing, and how could i forget stuff my face as well. its taken some time but im seeing that there are some definite perks to being out in the real world. hopefully there will be many a day of no work and money going into my pocket in the not so distant future.

what has it come to?

what has society come to? why is it that we can't even enjoy our neighborhood dunkin' donuts without being harassed? so i stop to get a wonderful cup o' joe and what happens you ask? well some lady comes up to me and starts preaching about how tv and movies and video games are damaging kids, ruining the younger generations. "would you like to have a magazine that talks about entertainment and its affect on the younger generations?" hell no lady, i don't want that crap, i'd rather watch the fucking tv then read that crap. I DON'T EVEN HAVE KIDS!!! go pawn your crap off somewhere else and let me be.
but is it really that bad? has all this violence brought this upon the innocent like you and me? i'm proud to say i was brought up pretty damn good but there are a lot of parents out there that are half-assin' it and graciously pushing their kids toward a downward spiral.

a mass weekend...

well i had a vacation... finally. definitely WAY overdue but i finally had one. went up to gloucester for the first race weekend in the usgp of cross series and what a time it was. friday i was gonna head up, meet up with spanky and his buds, crash at some inn and race saturday morning, but how often do things work out the way they get planned. i ended up rotting in traffic at the toll plaza to get on the mass pike (approx 1hr lost), spank is rotting in the same traffic and an hour or so behind so he decides to get a place near boston so he isn't driving til 1am. i then find out our room is double booked and i have no place to stay. but 'crossers are cool, they treat you like family even if they don't know you. so spank's friends sneak me into the inn in the owner's private room and i get so well needed rest.

saturday comes and i suffer. i start damn near the back of field at the start, get caught in some pile-ups and end up having to fight to finish 65th. sucky. but things get good, real good, as i see the woman of my dreams. melodie. i won't say much but she is such a babe. i watch the mens race as treefarm won after sneaking away from tj. leech and kraus both had good rides and everyone is looking forward to sunday.

sunday morning greets us with some sun and the wonderful smell of the ocean at 8 in the morning. it was beautiful. sleep was much better as we actually had a room... that was warm and clean. again i suffer in the race, starting closer to the front, but still not getting a good start and having to work my way up to 48th. some more races come and go and i watch melodie, and then she's gone. my guess is she tanked it somewhere near the barriers as she was bandaged up when i saw her later on. what a babe. i watch leech and kraus again, losing my voice from all the screaming. dieter struggled and ended up not finishing and kraus was up near top 20. we packed up all our crap and got ready for the ride home. i bid farewell to gloucester and will be anticipating my return next year.