Rough but fun...

The last five days have gone pretty non-stop for me. First off was the Taco Ride last Thursday. Since the ride starts in the Omaha / Council Tuckey area, those of us who live in Lincoln have relegated ourselves to doing this ride one time a year. Usually late September, early October. This was my second foray into this fun little ride, and fun it was. Aside from getting a late start, the weather was perfect as was the company. I won't go into more detail, as I would then be breaking the cardinal rule of the taco ride, "What happens on the taco ride, stays on the taco ride." :) If you want to know, then you will have to join us next year. I'm not giving away our trademark fun secrets.

Needless to say, I didn't get to bed until midnight after the taco ride. Those who know me, know I usually go to bed early because I drive every morning into Omaha for work. To ensure I can get home at a decent time to get some riding in afterward, I'm usually up at 4:30 and heading out around 5:30. Needless to say, I was dragging major booty at work and didn't do any blogging because I was staving off serious bouts of head bobbing. After work it was time to be social, which sometimes is hard because of my claustrophobia. I met up with the Lincoln crowd, on our bikes for some drinks at Marz, then we headed over to the Bread & Cup for some dinner. Never had I eaten there before and everyone would tell me it's awesome. I must say, that I was very impressed with their fare and would have no qualms about going there again. After sating ourselves with some delicious yummies, we headed over to Ivana Cone. Simply put, the best ice cream you will ever have. They make all of the ice cream there. None of that cardboard tub stuff that's been sitting in a warehouse for weeks. Ol' Loupie had to call it a short night since he needed some sleep as he had the last mountain bike race of the season the next morning.

Saturday morning came and I felt a little more rested. Now it was time to head out to Lake Manawa with Zod for the final Psycowpath MTB race. I was ready to kick some proverbial pyge (it's greek for buttocks). As everyone knows my propensity for crashing at these races, I will give a sneak peak into the race itself before the race report. I did not crash during the race! woo-hoo!!!

I arrived with plenty of time for a pre-ride of the course. As anyone who has raced in a MTB race, you know that a pre-ride of the course is a good way to ensure you aren't thrown any surprises at the last minute. Also, it's the responsibility of the rider to know the course, just ask a couple of the guys who raced in the Beginner Men's Open at Swanson earlier in the season. The course was in prime condition for a race. Everything seemed to flow. Except on the pre-ride when I went over the rock wall and took the wrong line and endoed and sprained my wrist. Damn!!! Rest of the ride was excellent.

I lined up at the start line and had one guy in my sights. My plan was to stay with him, let him set the pace, stay on his six and ramp it up and overtake him in the second lap. Everything went off like clock work. There were 3 of us that hit the single track way ahead of everyone else Derek Yungtum, myself, and Tom Pieper. We were moving along quite nicely, then we came upon the Men's Open that went a minute ahead of us. The first couple we pass with no change in our order. Then towards the end of the first half of the loop Derek passed one guy and I didn't follow immediately. Tom passed me and took second position. I knew that it was a stupid mistake on my part and I would soon realize it. At the end of the first lap, Derek gave Tom and I the go ahead to pass him, so off we went. We came upon another rider that Tom was able to pass and I couldn't because I was now in a really tight section that doesn't have any openings. I was able to pass and worked like mad to catch back up to Tom. Then we came to another person in the last half and he was able to pass on the short open gravel area, but I didn't have enough time. I was able to pass but there wasn't enough time for me to close the gap before the end. Anywho, I ended up second which I am proud of nonetheless. My overall standing for the series is either 2nd or 3rd, which I don't think is too bad since I only did 4 races this year. All the others I ended up officiating. I am definitely going to take an upgrade to Sport (Cat 2) for next year.

I feel like I accomplished a lot this past year on the bike. It didn't seem like it at the beginning, but towards the end I was feeling stronger and more confident and I think it showed. Now I need to work on my aggression and not be such a nice guy in races anymore. Next year will definitely be fun and interesting. Now, if my cross bike ever gets completed, I will be ready for cross. I ordered some wheels 3 weeks back, and they still have not come in. I'm thinking I should have just ordered them online and gotten them a hell of a lot quicker. I am really irritated by this. Nothing will be worse than having only 1 day of riding it before the first race. Grrrrrrr!!! Okay, this has gone on long enough. Hope everyone has a great day.