Vermont Grass Monster Cyclocross weekend

Grass, grass and more grass.

The whole course was grass. Start finish on grass. And even the downhills required pedaling.

I'm exhausted.

It was awesome. Legs are pretty well cooked. Brain is fried. Writing isn't flowing smoothly. I would say I took a couple pictures, but I didn't. Someone else did, my brain is so fried that I don't remember who took a picture of me on the trainer under the kick ass team tent that GCDavid had set up early on course. All i remember is that Todd P came over to take a photo of GCD and then the second person (i'm being honest - i'm so fried I actually don't remember) had a camera with a much smaller lens.

HenryJ showed up on sunday with his video camera. I'm sure he got some good stuff.

Saturday's course was like sunday's last year except it was dry. Lots and LOTS of climbing. Even when going down hill you had to pedal. No rest and man. I was luggage. My back was affecting my riding and I just couldn't hang on.

Sunday I thought I felt better, and then I didn't.

results aren't anything special. and i did get lapped on sunday. but... last year I got lapped by everyone (top10?) on Day 1 (like day 2 course this year) and this year just the first couple guys. It was touch and go and I tried to hold off Roger but it was too little too late. Matt Wilson did and when I saw him heading out for that last lap, I was happy to be finished. very happy. it hurt. Saturday was too hot. sunday was just hard.

But I improved over last year. It is worth going to because it re-affirmed I need work. Bedford was a nice positive start, finished pretty well. I seem to have figured out how to drive the bike finally. I just don't have the massive Watts/KG of roger or kevin. Heck if Roger decided to skip VT this weekend I might not have been lapped. Curtis killed it and Kurt P did awesome. Those guy were on fire. GCDavid was up more where is normally and Chabot kicked my ass.

It was great racing. it was brutally hard. And I didn't have a great race. But hanging out with the Lehman's (Josh is one f'n funny dude) the ancient BOB crew, my team mates (Skinny, G-ride, SOUPS, GCD, C-Burke), the Corner Cycles Crew, and everyone else. Too many to mention? Graham and Giulia, Mike and Rebecca Z, Glowa, The Mayor, The Crazy Peter Sullivan, Adam and Janice, HenryJ, Buck and KPerham, CCR, ah hell i'm going to forget someone like the Rowells... or... yeah i've just about named all the people other than the Cambridge crew and the NYcross people on either side of team tent. Social? Yes. But there was focus and a race. I might have sucked big time but I gave it everything I had. Which was pretty pathetic... But not as demoralizing as it might have been.

Racing with Matt Wilson was the best part of Day 2's race. Well it was great until I couldn't keep up with him in one stretch and he somehow managed to ride away from me. He's going to be destroying the field in a year - or the end of this year.

The hard bike handling things aren't hard anymore. Riding the logs? Something that was impossible for me last year? Totally nailed all of them except the last one when I thought i'd try something different and that was just a small minor foot dab at the top. No problems with that stuff anymore. It is just I'm slow compared to everyone I'm racing with. But. I've got no where to go but better in this field. And that's a good thing.