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Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
I went for an easy spin this morning and I decided to ride up on N. Summit Boulevard which is in the West Central neighborhood. Summit is an amazing road with fantastic old houses that overlook the Spokane River valley. The big problem (as far as I see it) is that Summit is in West Central. Not the greatest neighborhood in Spokane. At the end of Summit you are greeted by Boris Borzum. I don’t know the whole story behind Boris but I’ve always wanted to take a picture of him…so I finally did. I really like the lighting, it just seemed to fit with this cool crisp fall morning. This will probably not be the last time I take a picture of Mr. Borzum.
I slapped on a borrowed GoPro for the 2011 Stanger Farm cyclocross race down in Walla Walla, WA this past weekend. And by “slapped on” I mean I put it on my bike literally an hour before I raced it and really did not have any time to read how it works. Also, I’m not any kind of video editing wizard or someone who really understands what the hell he’s doing with a video camera. So…don’t expect much from the video. In fact, I was having issues with the camera during the race and I feel lucky that I was even able to catch any of my race. This video covers the last full lap of my race. If you watch the video you will basically see the triple flyover plus a lap. I really can’t stress how cool the triple flyover was. It was by far the coolest “feature” I’ve ever ridden in a cross race. The atmosphere at Charles Stanger’s farm is always fun and it would be well worth the drive from anywhere in the Northwest to do the race.
My race? It sucked…I flatted at some point and lost a ton of grip in my front tire. It was a slower leak and I washed out four or five times before it was completely flat. A quick run to the pit and I was back out there. But really, you don’t care about my race; you just want to see the triple flyover…
Now…call me skeptical…but I’m guessing DJ’s never really had any “Fun Food” regardless of the fact that it was in the country and had spirits. You may ask why I postulate this. Instead of answering the question let me pose a question to you; when was the last time you had culinary delights at a place that displayed its sign on a crane?
The picture above is from a year ago today. 62 days after the accident.
One year ago today I rode my bike. While that may not seem like a big deal to most of you it was a huge deal for me. I remember it like it was just yesterday….
I could go on with this story. I could give amazing descriptors of how it was a cool wet June day, how I had to ride my crappy rain bike since my nicer race bike was still in Pullman, how I used older tattered cycling shoes since my good ones were destroyed when I was hit, how I my first ride back was on a trainer in my garage since I could not clip in my left foot or clip it out or squeeze a brake lever…
I could write about a 45 minute trainer ride in a garage better than Edgar Allen Poe could write about a pit or a pendulum.
But I’m not going to bore you with that…I’m going to go ride my bike instead and appreciate it just as much as I did one year ago. And my appreciation for my ride will be more than any of you can comprehend or understand.
Thank you all
Well, if everything is going correctly for me I should be racing my bike right now at Stage 1 of The Tour of Walla Walla. Those of you who really know me know what happened to me a year ago. Many of you were there for me physically and emotionally. The amount of support I got from my family, my friends, my cyber friends, and the cycling community was simply overwhelming.
Because of you all I am racing exactly a year later. There were many dark times after the accident and every one of you helped me through it in your own little ways. I appreciated it so much. You have no idea what your contact, words, and help did for me.
I really need to thank my family for being so supportive as well as Allison’s family. The stories I could tell about what they did for me could go on for pages and pages of this blog. Most of all I need to thank Allison. What I went through was extremely difficult for myself but for her, as a caregiver, it was excruciatingly hard to deal with (I’m a pill to deal with on a good day…now imagine dealing with Broken Ted). I owe her a lot.
I owe all of you a lot.
A storybook ending would be for me to go out and do well in the race today. A really cheesy movie would have me winning today’s stage. But please, let’s be realistic…I’m not fit enough for that nor do I ever win races. In addition, this fucking stage ends on a climb. There is no way in hell I’ll even be on the first page of results. But I’ll try…I’ll to do my best…You have my word on that.
One year ago I was in hospital room all by myself. Trying to make sense of what happened but relieved that I was still alive. I posted the facebook status update below at 2:30 in the morning. I’ve copied and pasted my status update as well as the 50+ replies I received. It was amazing and I’ll never forget it.
Ted Chauvin
Thank you everyone for the kind words. I was hit by a car while riding, he was going 55mph. Broken fibula and a broken wrist…as well as very bad lacerations. KREM was wrong with their story. More later…tired and in a lot of pain. Appreciate life, people. Live it to its fullest everyday.
April 16, 2010 at 2:36am via iPhone
Yvonne Gene Chauvin Get well soon Bro!
April 16, 2010 at 3:08am
Anthony Dickson Damn son, that sucks. Hope you heal up quick. Glad you’re (msotly) OK. Take care.
April 16, 2010 at 3:33am
Sven Rasmussen Holy cow! Thank God you’re alive. Get well soon and sue the heck outta that moron.
April 16, 2010 at 4:30am •
Ellie Chauvin Get better soon. We love you and are praying for you. Anything we can do???
April 16, 2010 at 4:53am •
Kerry Hass So sorry to hear about your accident. Hope you have a speedy recovery.
April 16, 2010 at 4:59am •
Ellie Chauvin Was it reported on KREM? Deja vu, 17 years ago?Couldn’t find anything online.
April 16, 2010 at 5:08am •
Kathy Lewis- Shaw so sorry get well soon….K
April 16, 2010 at 5:19am •
Corrina Chauvin Miller Tait said the Spokesman went to print already with the wrong info. Look for a retraction tomorrow. Pop some more pain pills. Sending healing thoughts your way…
April 16, 2010 at 5:29am •
Mick Walsh Sorry to hear about your accident, Ted. Sending healing thoughts your way.
April 16, 2010 at 5:35am •
Jean English So sorry about your accident, but glad you are a survivor-get well soon!
April 16, 2010 at 5:42am •
Nanette Martarano I’m so sorry to hear that! I am really happy that you’re okay.
April 16, 2010 at 5:46am •
Dave Tex Richards I got some nice pain pills if you need it. Get well soon
April 16, 2010 at 5:58am •
Martha McKeon Lyke So sorry Ted. I remember the last time….you are a survivor! Thank you for reminding us to appreciate life, too bad you had to be reminded like that! Heal well.
April 16, 2010 at 6:00am •
Chris Mcgovern WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Ted, damn it! take it easy and damn it I am glad you are ok
April 16, 2010 at 6:27am •
Amy Grimsrud Anderson So sorry Ted! Did you get the house? Hang in there!
April 16, 2010 at 6:32am •
Ryan Baldwin Sorry dude.
April 16, 2010 at 6:35am •
Shawn Ongers Man Im really sorry. Can they just tape it up? your race starts at 4:15
April 16, 2010 at 6:40am •
Tri Duong damn, that sucks dude…hope you get better soon.
April 16, 2010 at 6:43am •
Tom Wick I’m glad you’re okay, Ted! Hang in there.
April 16, 2010 at 6:51am •
Laura Felicetti Shit, Ted. Glad you’re still with us. Get well soon.
April 16, 2010 at 6:55am •
Erika Larsen Krumpelman I’m so sorry that happened to you, Ted. It sounds like things could have been a lot worse—so scary. Heal quickly.
April 16, 2010 at 6:59am •
Jennifer Cline Kassing Wow!! Very glad you aren’t worse off. Get well my friend!!
April 16, 2010 at 7:05am •
Ben Memmott That is lame.
April 16, 2010 at 7:08am •
Jean Grammer Hope you have a quick recovery and very glad it was not worse.
April 16, 2010 at 7:16am •
Cassie Quick omg, ted, i hope you get better, that is bad, i’m sure you are in good hands. i hope you get better soon!
April 16, 2010 at 7:22am •
Krista Jones Wow! The Jones’ send their best wishes for a full recovery. From Joel - Glad you’re alive to appreciate another day! …heal up because we’ve got some racing to do in 2011 ;o)
April 16, 2010 at 7:24am •
Andrei Mylroie Horrendous news. Glad you’re OK on the big picture at least. Here’s to fast healing. Quite a shock when I opened the Spokesman.
April 16, 2010 at 7:34am •
Alex Renner Damn Ted.. what a bummer. Heal fast!
April 16, 2010 at 7:59am •
Blanca López-Biladeau Ted, I’m glad you are as OK as you can be—considering the situation. Here’s to your quick recovery!
April 16, 2010 at 8:04am •
Dana Robertson Halter Oh Ted….I’m so sorry. Take care of yourself - and feel better soon!
April 16, 2010 at 8:08am •
Krista Jones Best wishes for a speedy recovery.
April 16, 2010 at 8:15am •
Michael Costello Damn. Still no dislike button. I guess I do like that you’re going to be okay. It could have been far worse. We should be thankful it wasn’t.
April 16, 2010 at 8:25am •
Felix Espana Get better soon Ted.
April 16, 2010 at 8:46am •
Graham Christensen Hope you heal quickly and get back on the bike.
April 16, 2010 at 8:48am •
Martha Walsh Hope you have a speedy recovery plus pain meds when you need ‘em—and pet therapy too!
April 16, 2010 at 8:52am •
Terry Buchanan Sorry to hear Ted. Good luck with recovery. Glad you are OK.
April 16, 2010 at 8:57am •
Daelynn Rose Wow….glad that you are doing okay. Here is to a speedy recovery
April 16, 2010 at 9:01am •
Jerry Long Sorry Ted. Good luck. I so glad it wasn’t worse.
April 16, 2010 at 9:09am •
Amelia Karlsson Ted, please let us know if there is anything we can do. Here’s to a speedy recovery!
April 16, 2010 at 9:22am •
Aubrey Espana That’s terrible Ted, I’m so sorry. Amen on living life to the fullest everyday. Praying for a speedy, and full, recovery.
April 16, 2010 at 9:22am •
Brooke Reed holy crap buddy im sorry. take it easy k?
April 16, 2010 at 9:25am •
Leslie Mason Inghram Good grief dude, so sorry to hear this. Glad you’re semi-ok. Hoping for a speedy recovery!
April 16, 2010 at 9:58am •
Mike James What horrible news! Glad to hear you are on the mend. You are very fortunate. Here’s to a quick recovery.
April 16, 2010 at 10:21am •
Dave Lawson Glad you’re okay, Ted. Heal fast - CX season starts in 5 months.
April 16, 2010 at 10:34am •
Eric Tarasievich Jesus man. Glad to hear you’re OK. Take it easy and heal up.
April 16, 2010 at 11:07am •
Wendy Ortman Holy Crap! I am glad you are OK. Heal fast and get back out there. I hope they got the bastard.
April 16, 2010 at 12:15pm •
Rick Michel Dude! Glad you are in recovery mode and when you are done mending there is a very low impact, high quality drinking game you can join me in…
April 16, 2010 at 12:45pm •
Michael Gordon Thinking of you man, hope you recover quickly. Glad it’s not worse.
April 16, 2010 at 1:35pm •
Randy J Salamon good to here you are gonna be ok. gonna miss you though. get well homes.
April 16, 2010 at 2:15pm •
Bob Ludeman Get well soon! Walla Walla will have to wait for your to crush it until next year…
April 16, 2010 at 3:44pm •
Tammie Dowers Cabalu Feel better soon, glad you are ok!
April 16, 2010 at 3:58pm •
Louie Fountain dude, your a champ. good words of advice, thanks.
April 16, 2010 at 9:44pm •
Ronde van Palouse…an epilogue
The Ronde van Palouse ended up being a shell game for me.
I most certainly do not mean a “shell game” in the respect that I was trying to trick my fellow racers into thinking that I was not feeling well…that I was feigning weakness…
…nope I got shelled. Quickly. Abruptly. But that is not the type of shelled I’m speaking of. Yesterday I realized that I am a shell of who I used to be on the bike. What a difference a year makes. One year ago I was killed at the Ronde van Palouse but a lot of that was due to an untimely flat. Once I finished the race I drove 5+ hours spent the night in Tumwater, WA and raced over 90 miles the next day and felt really good doing it. Yesterday I was spat out the back of the peloton before the race really started and after 8 miles of a group ride today I pulled the plug and rode home. Like I said what a difference a year makes.
I can’t stress enough that the Ronde van Palouse is a brutally hard race. I thought I was ready for it, but I was not. In retrospect my poor performance is probably due to racing the Cherry Blossom Cycling Classic last weekend and a hard ride this past week. Realistically it’s hard to come back after what happened to me a year ago. I’m not going to belabor that point too much. The amount I train is not like it was a year ago. I ride less. I train less. I hate the idea of training in traffic. It freaks me out to ride in traffic. Oh well…I need to get over it and I’m hoping the passing of April 15th helps me with that. However, I’m not an idiot. I know the date means nothing and the reality is that there will be no magical “closure” that happens because a year has passed. But a Man can hope…
A brief report on the “race” and I use that term lightly. Racing occurs when you are with others and competing against them. I probably rode 65 of the 71 miles by myself…in the wind…in the hills…in the gravel…by myself…I might as well have been doing a brutal training ride. Yet, I finished which is a lot more than I can say for others who did the race. If your idea of racing is sitting in a peloton all day and “hiding” form the wind or your competitors then the RVP is not for you. The RVP is a hard race. It’s not only physically tough…but mentally tough as well. I quit it many times yesterday. In fact, I quit bike racing as a whole many times yesterday…but I still finished the race. The wind was brutal. The course, although no big climbs, has no flat spots either. You are always going up and into the headwind or a crosswind but always some type of damn wind.
I’m a big science dork. I like to analyze everything. People who really know me would say I overanalyze everything. I downloaded my data from the race and was shocked at what I saw. This was the hardest ride I had done in three years. No wonder I hurt so badly. The amount of work I did? Over 3200 kJ. Think about that for a second. When was the last time you went out on a Saturday afternoon and decided to burn 3200 calories? What. A. Fucking. Idiot. I. Am.
Normal people do yard work or go shopping on their Saturday. Me…I did the Ronde van Palouse. And even after my misery that I endured yesterday, the time I spent in the 10th circle of hell known as Rattlers Run road, and the self doubt I possessed…I know I’ll be back again. And I suggest that you come race it too.
Come race the Ronde Van Palouse!
The Ronde Van Palouse is this weekend in Spangle, Washington. If you race bicycles or pretend that you are an amateur bike racer I suggest you do the race. Spokane Rocket Velo (SRV) is promoting this race for the second year and hopefully it will start to grow. It is one of the toughest courses in the state of Washington that is currently used for bike races (Which is the toughest? I would say the Malaga course in Wenatchee.) No courses in Western Washington come close as far as difficulty and none of the Walla Walla courses stack up either.
The beauty of the RVP course is not the four mile stretch gravel/dirt road you have to ride but the unrelenting hills of the Palouse and the wind that accompanies them. It’s brutal. Absolutely brutal but fun as hell…if, and only if, you are a bike racer. Oh, the scenery is kind of nice too. In a Palouse sort of way.
There are a list of excuses local riders and racers will have for not doing the race and I highly doubt anyone from Western Washington will travel over to race on Saturday. However, I feel that I should chime in and try to convince a few of you. Hell, if I can convince one person who was on the fence about doing this race to try it I will be happy.
So just to address a few “issues” that people have brought up:
“I’d love to do the race but the Volunteer Park Criterium is happening the same day over here in Seattle…it’s a classic!”
Okay, you’re right. It’s a classic and it’s the first crit of the year. I get all that. I really do. But here are the other facts. You suck at crits and there is no way you are going to win it. There are about five people in each category who actually have a legitimate shot at winning it and you, well, you are not one of them. Don’t delude yourself. Fine, you might win a Gu prime. Big deal. You hate Gu anyways. Try something different.
“Really? You expect me to drive all the way to Spokane, get a hotel, pay for gas, etc…when there are two races in Western WA that same weekend?”
Nope, I don’t expect you to do anything. But please, don’t use the money and drive thing as an excuse. For the love of all that is holy you own a $1500 carbon fiber wheel set that you only use on race day and at STP (I won’t make fun of you for doing the corporate challenge gig thing at STP…not yet). You also own a power meter. You are a cat 4 and you spend more money on your cycling equipment than you did on your wife’s engagement ring. Get over the money thing. As far as the drive goes? You’ll spend five hours in a car to race around a tiny lake in March that you never would have known about if it was not for bike racing. Last year I did both the RVP and the Olympic View Road Race. You can do both. You can race a hard race in the Spokane area and then drive over to Olympia to race again the next day. You then can bitch all day long about you “long transfer” you had the night before. So pro…
Seriously though, I did both RVP last year and the OVRR and my ass was kicked. It was a great weekend of bike racing. I was going to fly at Walla Walla. But things changed.
“There’s gravel in the race. I’m a roadie. Not a mountain biker or a cyclocross rider. Plus, it’s not good for my bike.”
It’s freakin’ gravel. It’s not boulders and nails. It’s not like there are landmines strewn about the course. It’s not that big of a deal. And your bike? Your bike will be fine. You are probably the same type of guy/gal who worries about putting their bike on a roof rack. It’s a tool. A bike gets you from point A to point B. You can race on it too. And if you think your Dura-ace crank is going to get messed up from racing it on an unpaved road I suggest you get into therapy…or better yet…go back to racing triathlons where you obviously belong. Bunch of freakin’ pansies…
“I’m a triathleteand this type of road race intimidates me.”
First off…my condolences. I hope you can get through this time in your life and you eventually realize being “okay” at three different sports is not a good way to go through life. Second, look at who won the cat 4 race last year.
“I’m not quite in race shape yet, and it’s such a hard race I’ll just get dropped.”
Reality check. You’ve been saying that same thing for the last couple years. Are you a bike racer? Or are you a bike rider who spends $60 on your club’s jersey? (by the way, I suggest you spend $60 on a few other shirts…sheesh…have you seen your wardrobe as of late? Get some priorities!) The best way to get into shape is to race yourself into shape and this race will kick your fat/skinny ass. It will make you realize a few things too. 1) that you are in shape, 2) that you are not in shape but you are ready to actually commit to training, 3) You are a total bike race poser, it’s time to admit that you are a club rider and that centuries and STP are all you really care about.
“I can’t race, I’m volunteering”
I thank you very much kind sir/madam. Thanks for your help, it’s greatly appreciated.
“I was miserable last year”
So was I. Just like I was miserable every time I did Columbia Plateau. Yet I kept going back. An “n” of one is not a large enough sample size to let you know if you truly like something or not. Come back and try it again. I am. It will be better this time. Unless you are just a miserable person…this race can’t help you with that.
“The fields are probably going to be small.”
Nice attitude jackass. Of course they are going to be smaller if you don’t show up. Who cares about field size? What are you grubbing for upgrade points or something? Here’s the deal with upgrading…you are either good or you are not. Upgrades come when you are ready for it. Small fields? Every field has been down this year. Did you see the pathetic turnout at Mason Lake? As Shawn Howard once told me, “Racers, race.” Show up and race.
“I have family commitments that day.”
Good…go do that…we don’t want your kind around here anyways. Of course, I kid with that. That’s the most legitimate excuse there is. In fact, it’s not an excuse, its called life….I don’t fault you at all.
“I like to race Masters. I just don’t have the time or the ability to compete in categorized races anymore.”
Did you look at the race flyer dumbass? There are master fields for 40+, 50+, and 60+. I hope your name got picked for RAMROD…
“Speaking of masters…The Masters is on this weekend. I really want to watch that”
If you have a bike worth over 3K and you don’t have a DVR you are an idiot. That is all.
“I just tore by ACL.”
Another legitimate excuse, I only threw this one in because this just happened to Kris Holden. Kris towed me around for 30 miles last year in the wind at RVP. It was brutal. It’s unfortunate he can’t race it this year. Actually, he’d still crush me with a torn ACL…hopefully he does not show up.
“I’m peaking for the first Tuesday night race that happens on April 12. I want to win the first series!”
I have nothing to say to you.
“It sounds like you are going to be there and racing the race Ted. The thing is I try and avoid you because you seem like such an opinionated asshole.”
Guilty as charged…well…in the “opinionated” part. I’m really not an asshole. It’s a façade. I’m actually a nice guy who really loves bike racing and I want you to check this race out. It will be like no other race you have done. Trust me…
For more information on the race and some great quotes about it see this month’s issue of “Out There”. Specifically pages 24 and 25. (that caption on the picture lies by the way…Alan was working the race last year…he did not race it…he laughed at us the whole time…I heard him and his bawdy laugh when I flatted and he drove on by…)
Full disclaimer: I am in no way associated with SRV, I spend way more money on bike clothing than I do on regular clothing, I bitch all the time about money and the cost of racing yet I continue to drop a lot of money on my bikes, I’m a mid-pack cat 3 on a good day, and I’ll be getting my ass kicked on Saturday and I’ll have a smile on my face while it happens.
Wawawai Landing TT & Wawawai Grade Hill Climb
Sunday March 6, 2011 Location: Wawawai Landing - Near Pullman, WA (See Directions Below). Courses: 20K flat TT, hill climb up the Wawawai grade - approximately 11K with 1950+ feet of climbing Costs: $20 per race. USCF license required to race. One day license for category 5 men and 4 women is $10 and available at the race. To race in category 3 races and above you must have a USCF annual license ($60), which can be purchased at www.usacycling.org. WSBA (http://www.wsbaracing.com) numbers will be used and sold on site as well. Rental numbers will be available at the race for a $10 rental fee (of which $5 is refundable). Prizes: some cash and some merchandise.
Race Day: Registration will open at 9:30 a.m. Registration for the TT will close at 10:30. Registration for the Hill climb will reopen from 12:30-1:30. Online registration will be available at usacycling.com and is preferred (promoter will waive the online registration fees). Registration/Parking will be located at Wawawai County Park. Parking will also be available at Wawawai Landing. There is NO WATER at the staging area and there is NO Cell phone reception at the staging areas.
Race Details
Roads are chip-sealed and in fair to good condition.
The 20K TT is flat and it will be an out-and-back. First rider starts at 11:00 a.m. Cash ($260 for men 1/2 and 3 and women 1/2) and merchandise for prizes. (Categories: Men 1/2, Men 3, Men 4/5, Masters Men 50+, Women 1/2, women 3/4).
The hill climb (11K) will be a mass start race and start at 2:00 p.m. Cash ($260 for men 1/2 and 3 and women 1/2) and merchandise for prizes. (Categories: Men 1/2, Men 3, Men 4/5, Masters Men 50+, Women 1/2, women 3/4).
A $25 bonus will be given to the male or female that sets a new course record on the hill climb and/or the TT.
Course records:
Female – TT Allison Beall – (2010) – 29:45
Male – TT Steve Weiler – (2010) – 28:57
Female – Hill Climb – Jenni Gaertner (2010) – 35:29
Male – Hill Climb – JT Fountain (2010) – 28:04
DIRECTIONS
From Pullman or Spokane: 195 South. Turn West on WA-194 (west) which will turn into Wawawai-Pullman Road. Turn right on Wawawai Grade road and follow it to Wawawai County Park
ALL USCF RULES WILL BE ENFORCED!! ALL RIDERS MUST SIGN A WAIVER!! ALL RIDERS MUST WEAR A USCF APPROVED HELMET. USCF PERMIT #2011-530
Sponsoring club: Kryki Sports. Promoter is Ted Chauvin (tchauvin@wsu.edu)
Time trial Profile ________________________________________________ 0K turn-around 20K Hill climb profile 
A few notes:
1) This year we are switching to WSBA numbers for the race. Rental numbers will be available for the race at a cost of $10 to Washington residents ($5 of which is refunded upon return of the number). Non-WA residents do not have to pay the rental fee. There will be multiple races in Eastern WA this year that will be using WSBA numbers. If you have questions about the WSBA and the numbers please e-mail me. WSBA membership and numbers should be available at the race.
2) Weather. People are often concerned that this race is too early in the season and it’s too cold. The Snake River Canyon is usually 10 degrees warmer than the Spokane and Pullman areas. Last year almost all competitors were in shorts for both races
3) The Hill climb has been pushed back until 2:00 for a couple reasons. First, it will help in getting the results for the TT done in a timely manner and second we’d like to accommodate anyone who may be racing the Devil’s Slide mountain bike race that same day in Lewiston.
4) Finally, please try and use the on-line registration for the race. The promoter is paying the service fee, which means its $20 either way…you will move through registration much quicker if you pay on-line.
Pictures from last year’s TT can be found here at Cecil Williams site
Results for the 2010 TT and Hill climb.
Changes happen in life. They can be small and insignificant or the can be large and extraordinarily significant.
This week I’ve commuted via pedal-bike a few times and I’ve noticed lots of change on the little trail that I ride on. There is one picture that I snapped of two smaller rocks on the trail. They just showed up this morning. The probably rolled down the hillside and ended up on the trail. The trail changed and the hillside changed. This was a quick and easy change. Something that many of us can and do any day. This change was not a major or earth shattering. Easy changes in one’s life can be undone quickly too. Someone will come along and throw those rocks off the trail.
That change is over possibly to be revisited at some other point…or maybe not…like many things in our lives.
However, other times there are colossal major changes. On Tuesday morning this boulder was still a part of the basalt wall. A wall that was built in the mid 1800s by workers blasting away the basalt so a train could carry its cargo through the West Plaines to wherever its final destination would be.
Tuesday night I came across a huge boulder which was not there that morning. This change will not be undone and no one is going to come along and put the boulder back in place. That can’t happen. This is a major geological change. I found it analogous to many things that happen in our lives. There are certain events in one’s life that can’t be undone by simply tossing the rock away. It could be the birth of a child, finishing a degree, or even making a decision on changing something in your life and sticking to it.
I ride over 20 miles to work. It’s kind of a long commute compared to what others do. I think a lot about things that really don’t matter. Kind of like this analogy.
Three hour rides and mild winters on the Palouse make me happy. Its the little things for me…and I plan on keeping it that way.
I went for a nice ride today on a desolate gravel trail. Saw a frozen lake amongst other things. I figure I should start training. Race season is right around the corner…
Speaking of “frozen lake”…there was a song by Buffalo Tom named “Frozen Lake”. It was on Big Red Letter Day…1993…
Cyclocross Nationals
Masters B 30-39 Cyclocross Nationals race report.
I’ve never been a big race report guy, probably due to the fact that I rarely have anything to report, especially during the cyclocross season. The B race I did yesterday once again deserves no mention at all. However, I know there are a smattering of you who can’t be here in Bend (and I wish you all could be) and you want to know what is going on.
So here is the long story…
We left Pullman fairly late in the afternoon on Friday since Allison had a lab final. We hit the road around 4:30 which meant we were not going to roll into Bend until late at night. The drive was uneventful except for the numerous amounts of times we had to stop for my ever-shrinking bladder. We saw quite a few deer on the side of the road which made us both a bit nervous ever since “The great Thanksgiving day Rav4/buck massacre of 2007”…but we survived and so did the stupid deer. I did miss seeing the wonderful views that you can get on the drive to Bend…but no big deal
We woke up and went to packet pick-up around 7:30 a.m. It was cold, around 5 degrees. After registering I decided to bail on the pre-ride of the course (the course was open from 7:30 to 9:00). I did not feel like getting kitted up to ride in sub-10 degree weather when I was not going to race until later in the day. Sitting in the hotel seemed like a better idea while munching on “egg disks” for breakfast. What a gastronomic treat those are…bit I digress…
When we arrived back to the race site, I jumped on the trainer to warm up a bit while the 20-29 B race was happening. I figured I could jump on the course after that race and do one lap. Umm…nope…they would not let us. So that meant I was racing on a snowy course that was getting slick in a few areas without having a clue what it would be like. Hell, I had no idea where the barriers were! Oh yeah, the snow was not bad at all - totally rideable, especially in the places where it was not packed down yet. More like fine dirt than anything, however, where it was packed down it was starting to ice up. There was one line on the course and one part of the course was grassy since they cleared it a few days ago. Some of the pavement sections were icy and other sections were clear.
They did a random staging which worked out pretty well. I was in the third row, which I was pretty happy about. There were at least ten riders or so that I knew in the field…mostly from the NW road scene so it was good to see a few familiar faces. The gun went off and I could not clip in. What a fred. The other thing is that I’m such a pussy when it comes to starting a cross race with 89 of my closest friends. I have the roadie mentality of “I’ll get that position back later in the race”….umm…no you dumbass…you won’t. I think the problem is in the INWCX series I know where I belong and after a lap I slot in and beat myself silly with a few other guys. Basically, I need to do some larger cross races if I ever want to improve. Back to the race…
…off the pavement, up into the grass, some idiots unclip, put their feet down, and crash in front of me. At that point about 20 guys cruise past me as I have to circumvent the new “human barrier”. In retrospect, I should have run the fucker over for being a dumbass…but I’m not that kind of guy (despite what some of you may think). Every corner was new and exciting since I had yet to see the course yet. Nothing too hard but I saw guys crashing left and right. They were taking risks. I didn’t. I should have. The first “holy shit” moment came on a steep, short, bumpy, downhill/drop…not that big of a deal but it freaked me out since I did not know it was coming. Plus, there were spectators yelling “jump it” before I got to it, so I knew there was something coming. Once we got onto the grass section I could finally use what limited power I have. Hitting the stairs was fun and I was able to pass a few guys on that part of the course. More off-camber frozen grass where I really started to haul ass…I was flying now…around the beer tent at a high speed until…the second “holy shit” moment came. Barriers. Well, now I at least knew where they were…cleared them (fairly fast too). Next up was the one “run-up”. I thought “fuck that, I’m riding that shit”. I did, and as the kids back in Pullman say, “No big deal.” The second lap was faster since the field was finally stretched out and I started to pick off some guys. I was running mid-pack and that was fine with me. There was a larger group ahead of me with eight guys or so and I worked to get them and started to move up a bit more. This went on for a few laps until lap four where I made a move on the stairs to pass three guys in the group. The crowd was cool as hell, yelling, screaming and cheering. They always seem to like it when someone kills himself up a run-up or stairs. I jump back onto my bike and stop moving…rolled a tire. Half the tire was off the rear rim. Damn. There goes my race. I swear there was a collective groan by the spectators who saw it. I popped the sucker back on and kept racin’ away. I figured if I rolled it again, oh well. I caught some more guys and kept on going. There was a crash or two involved I’m sure but nothing too bad.
A lap and a half later I and saw Allison and told her “I rolled a tire.” Two seconds later I flat…”FUCK!” Off the bike and to the pits, which were about half a lap a way. I run to the pits where the Shimano guy gives me a wheel. Of course, my brakes were too tight for the wheel so he has to adjust that…then the rear wheel was not in correctly. So, three plus minutes later I’m back out there…the leaders had passed me while I was in the pit….I get to ride for one more lap…without a functioning rear brake. Fun! (It really was; no sarcasm).
I finished and let the official know that I was in the pit when the leaders passed so I was placed correctly. I’m not going to cheat someone out of a place. They deserved it. I ended up 51st out of 90 startres. I could have maybe been in the early 40s if not for the tire flat. Meh, I had fun.
I went back to the pit, grabbed my flat Grifo and walked back to the car. Ran into a few people I know, talked to them, got cold, got back to the car and preceded to get Allison’s bike ready so we could pre-ride the course again (for her race). We went back onto the course and there were over 200 people riding it. It was a cluster-fuck. There were guys who thought they were racing and they were chopping juniors. Nice guys. Some kid nearly took Allison out. What a fool. The highlight was when I did a total yard-sale in an icy spot. I’m so glamorous.
It was a fun course and a fun day in the snow. I’m sure I left a lot out. We are getting ready to go watch the Fountain brothers kick ass in the singlespeed category. Allison races this afternoon. Should be an interesting day.
I’ll try and get some pics up at some point. Internet here a t the rental house is spotty here at best.
