Cross Up

Capping off an amazing week in Portland was the Cross Up at the soon to open Lumberyard. This event put on by Backyard Blam with Amanda Sundvor at the Helm delighted the hipster hordes with the spectacle that is indoor cyclosupercross!

Cyclocross Nationals

Headed to Madison a few weekends ago to watch the National Cyclocross Championship Elite races. Wow! Those guys are fast.

It's not often in the midwest you get to see world class athletes, let alone bike racers, so you can't let an opportunity like this slip by, especially when they all pose so well for the camera!

It's not often that I have 100 women who are in love with bikes and could kick my ass sprinting at me.

20-year-old Kaitlin Antonneau chasing her coach, KFC onto the U23 victory!

U23 champion Zach Mcdonald finding the little sun there is on a January afternoon in Wisco.

Tim Johnson leading the charge up the hill on an early lap.

Jeremy Power's first breath as Champion.

New Year's Resolution

It was a muddy New Years.

Very muddy

Ryan Trebon and Jeremy Powers decided it was a great day for a race.

Snow doesn't come to Chicago before the new year anymore.

But the cyclocross seems more of a suffer-fest without the pretty background.

Watching two world class athletes duke it out in your own backyard is pretty cool. Even if it is freezing and windy. These guys make riding look effortless regardless the story on their speckled faces.

These are the days...

Looking for a hill. Again. Still. Preferably warm. And green. Apply within.

Chicago's bike season is officially in hibernation with the occasional wayward soul seeking warmth or a balaclava. Days are spent moving merchandise from here to there, the quick chat with brown santa, and wading through bicycle blogs and velo news. The same stories and photos exist now that were present in summer. But it's harder now, you have to use more imagination. Effort to forget that the one thing that lies outside the door is a frozen tundra; flat, tundra.

Hills work both ways. It's an amazing ride down, but you have to get to the top. 'Earn the downs'. Yeah the work to the top is a bitch, but what a bitch it can be. You get to the top and realize the effort that got you this far. Maybe stop enjoy the scenery, catch your breath. Maybe keep going, over the next ridge. Or maybe it's just another sharp climb after another false flat. Whatever, the other side waits.

I'm not one to pass up the joy from a shuttled run. Reserved energy ready to spring on the mountain. But maybe the climb is there to tame us, the mountain beating respect into us with every crank. Keeping us honest on the way down.

However it works, the joy is ever present. The wheels turning forward, up or down. The heart, in and out. The corners of the mouth, turned up.

Not so typical

It's not every December that you can ride dirt jumps in the Midwest, but today the Garden was rolling. The entire pump track was dry and aside from the occasional fallen branch across the line in great shape.

More interestingly, this was my first time back on the jumps after breaking my collarbone. The last time I was here was the day I left for Interbike. It felt good to get another shot at the Garden before winter settles in.

press pause.

The moments we are still morph the the motions into magic.

A day at Ray's is a good middle to a weekend. A chance to ride when the winds are cutting. A chance to gain some confidence going into the brutal Chicago winter. It felt good to get some pumps back into my shoulder. Having an actual pump track reminds you how fun riding can be, just rolling around, keeping the rhythm.

It doesn't all stay...

Another year, another Interbike. The bike geekfest I attend each year disguised as work. Outdoor Demo has always been the highlite of the trip and finding all the new goodies at the show is a close second.

Last year I used the demo to figure out which bike I wanted for the next year.

I ended up with this, an AnthemX29.

This year, I just rode, the shuttle, as much as I could. The gravity fed XC trails at Bootleg make for a more enjoyable time than the lake loops. I did climb the fireroad the first time so as to at least earn my first run.

As always there is fun to be had on the lower end of the mountain. North shore drops, teeter totters, table tops, and kickers. The first day I shot some video of a few features and enjoyed a kicker that launched you out to a flat.

This leads to beers, and the end of the first night.

The second day of demo led to further adventures which led to further thrills. A little higher, even farther, and a lot faster.

Which led to this.

A trip to the Boulder City ER and the LasVegas Strip Walgreens pharmacy led to some drugs and an interesting first day of the Indoor show. Walking around with a sling all day severly dampers the schwag access.

I left the show early, and came back to Chicago to get this.

It is now four weeks since the injury, and I'm feeling back to normal. I believe I will recover 100%, it will just take strengthening at this point. Can't wait to get the pedals turning again just in time for winter.