San Dimas Stage Race

Holy s*** this is actually happening.  You know how you dream about something happening but never really believe it will and somehow everything falls into place?  That about sums it up.

March 24-28 I will be in lovely Southern California.  Yes, I realize it's "So Cal."  Think about it, I've been training and racing in the snow, sleet, ice and rain for the past few months.

Forecasts for tomorrow:
Portland:  100% chance of rain (aka, rain all day); high of 55; gusts as high as 34
San Dimas:  Mostly sunny; high of 77; calm wind

F-yeah!
A HUGE thank you goes out to Team Oregon and Lana Atchley for making all this happen.  I would not be able to do this without all of you.
More details later.

Crosswinds Blow

I pride myself in being able to ride and race in just about any condition.  Yes, part of it comes from necessity if racing in Oregon but through racing cyclocross I've realized that if you can capitalize on the conditions and psych others out you've already beat them.

Climbs, descents, gravel, mud, snow, freezing rain and excessively long races:  I'll do them all.
Cross winds:  f*** that.

Banana Belt 2 and breakthrough

After our previous attempts at a plan we went into this race without one.  No protected rider, no designated sprinter, just ride hard and make people hurt.

this picture tells the story of the day.  Drowned rats, that's all
(courtesy of Oregon Cycling Action)

To tell you the truth, the weather took care of that last part pretty well.  Cold and rain, hello Oregon road racing, about time you returned.

new kits and Banana Belt 1

Alright, Team Oregon.  I know you created a huge stir back in the winter when you presented the new kit design without even informing anyone it was in the works.  Also, I thought it was one of the ugliest designs I'd ever seen.  That said, I would like to change my opinion and state that the new design is pretty freaking sweet!  I thought I'd miss the red-orange but this new grey-scheme is pretty sharp (see below).

a teammate modeling the new kit
(courtesy of Oregon Cycling Action)

Cherry Pie race report

Yeah, I know this is late.  Get over it.

Nope, not me.  One of our teammates looking a whole
lot more badass than I ever could
(courtesy of Oregon Cycling Action)

Let's just say I put off writing this because Cherry Pie didn't quite go as planned.  We (Team O) went into this race thinking it would stay together and that we'd be able to set up a decent leadout for the uphill finish.  Heck, we had 3 guys who could contest it so we were bound to put someone in the top 5, right?

God's Country

I still can't get over just how gorgeous the Pacific Northwest is.  True, Colorado has it's domineering mountains, Nevada it's deep blood-red canyons and Louisiana it's bayous (...right).  Still, after riding yesterday I came around the bend and this was laid out before me.  How do you beat that?

I still have no clue what I'm doing with my life post-graduation but how could I possibly leave a place like this?

Update

So, it's been a while and I've neglected this again--here's the shortest, most complete update I can come up with.

Since returning from Colorado I broke the Scott yet again.  You know how something bad is going to happen even though you really don't want it to?  Yeah.  That's my relationship with that bike.  I was tired of messing around with it so I dropped it off with the guys at Veloce Bikes in Hawthorne and let them work their magic.  And magic they did work.  2 weeks and $30 later I had a bike with a replaceable hanger!!  Let's just say this has been a huge relief knowing that if/when I break that sucker again I can fix it in 15 minutes, not 15 weeks.