CCCX DH

Power to the GT Dirt Coalition......
Ripping through some thick brush on my way to the Hardtail division race win.......

I always try to use aerodynamic form.....

Toro Park has sweet trails......

I went as hard as possible and gave everything I had at the CCCX DH race. I set a sweet course and did lots of trail work leading up to race day. I had a small slip up-slide out - in my Pro race run, but still managed a podium spot in this division. I then followed that up by hitting all my lines in the Single Speed, Hardtail, & Chainless races, which led me to claim the wins in those divisions. Winning 3 divisions in one day is awesome and I am always stoked to race some DH. My favorite win of the bunch is the Chainless division. Many years ago I had a very big win at the Colorado Fat Tire Festival in Crested Butte Colorado. I won the State Championship in the Chainless race. This event is a true classic and the race started at 11,000 feet and descended for 5 miles into the middle of the town in Crested Butte. It was 1993 and it was amazing to win a race in Colorado with over 80 riders trying for the State Championship. That was one of my favorite wins for sure, as the finish line was the Mountain Bike Hall Of Fame building in Crested Butte. Some of my favorite wins have been in mountainous states such as Wyoming, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Oregon, and Washington, besides that great win at the Fat Tire Festival in Colorado.

For this Thanksgiving I Give A Huge Thanks To GT For Having Great Bikes And Making Me Part Of The GT Dirt Coalition Program. THANK YOU GT!

This coming weekend I am wanting to do the Saturday morning group ride, then some DH practice in the afternoon. Sunday will be the CCCX DH race. Then the thick of my Cyclocross season starts. My focus will be Cyclocross in December and January.

Did a 2 & 1/2 hour easy ride today. I went into Pebble Beach and did the A climb twice. My legs felt a lot better after being completely ripping apart my muscles over the weekend then again on Tuesday night. It was super foggy today in Pebble Beach, but in Monterey it was clear and pleasant. Tomorrow I set the DH course for Sunday's CCCX DH race. The course will use one of my favorite trails and I am excited about racing down that track.

Sore

My Next Cross race I hope will be Santa Rosa Series #2. You can see below the first race of that series my ribs were bothering me pretty bad. I had just suffered the accident 6 days before, so I was really hurting in this race....

My ribs are definitely on the mend. I am sleeping better and feeling less pain when I cough. It is a great feeling to not be in pain all the time from cracked ribs. Yet, after the last Cross race I feel really sore all over. I crashed 2 times on the day, once in warm up then another in my first race. I have a sore knee and my finger is swollen from getting smashed. But mostly it is my muscles that are most sore. I did 2 races on the day and there were some very hard hills on that course. I did around 20 laps of racing and each lap had numerous hill sections I had to hit full on. Then on Tuesday night we had a serious hill climb session workout. It was numerous attacks again and again from my Road workout group. My muscles are sore!

Hard Races

I had better feelings in my legs and body this last race. I for sure made some gains in my recovery from the broken ribs. I am just thankful to have a chance to race.

The Manzanita course is one of my favorites......

This was the first race ever at Manzanita park I was able to use the long drag strip of super smooth grass across the soccer fields....

It was a picture perfect day for a bike race....

Relax & Fight

I am still in pain from my broken ribs. I can not believe it, it has been 21 days now since my accident and it still hurts really bad. I will fight through the pain. I will continue to work hard to improve. I need to keep relaxed and always keep my focus. I have to fight the entire time on course. For me to race my best I have to go at it as if it is a fight!

Manzanita Cyclocross

I am super looking forward to racing Cyclocross now that my broken ribs are finally starting to feel better.....

The race route for the upcoming Manzanita Cyclocross race is going to be special. I was forced to make some adjustments in the course due to the need for more parking. In the end, I have been able to make some additions to the course and shape the route in a way that was not possible before. This version of the Manzanita Cyclocross race will be very special.

Focus

I have always been a big fan of Cadel Evans. I first met Cadel when he used to come race the Sea Otter Classic here in Monterey. He participated many years in my hometown event and each year I made a point to speak to him and thank him for racing in Monterey. I was very stoked to see the guy win the World Road Championship....

The most major key for my racing is to remain focused! I have to keep my mindset in proper order for the task at hand. I have to fight harder and dig deeper then I think is possible. I have to find some where within myself to get in tune with the pain of the effort and enjoy the fight.....