Calling all Girls With Bikes!!

The Alberta Bicycle Association Presents

The Alberta Youth Female

Learn To Ride, Learn To Race Program

An entry level program designed to encourage and develop youth female racing in Alberta, specifically aimed at youth individuals who have not raced before. This project will cater to the introduction, and progression of fundamental mountain biking skills and race preparation. Girls ages 12-18 will have the opportunity to improve and fine-tune their riding abilities in a fun and encouraging environment, before applying what they have learned at two Mountain Bike Racing Events in the novice category.

Program Cost: $25.00

What you get:

• Ride and Race Instruction from a qualified cycling coach.

• 15+hrs of “on the bike” skill development, and training

• Free entry and full coaching support at 2 Alberta Races

• Special Event Instruction and Activity at the Canada Cup Race Venues.

When and Where: THURSDAYS!

Starting Thursday May 21^st 2009 - Ending Thursday June 25^th 2009

6:00pm-8:30pm: Skill Development and Training

Meet Locations:

May 21^st – Terwillegar, Edmonton AB (main parking lot)

May 28^th – Terwillegar, Edmonton AB (main parking lot)

June 4^th – Terwillegar, Edmonton AB (main parking lot)

June 11^th – Argyll Velodrome, Edmonton Alberta

June 18^th – Argyll Velodrome, Edmonton Alberta

June 25^th – Wrap Up – TBA

Race #1 – Edmonton Canada Cup, Saturday June 13^th.

Location: Kinsmen Sports Center

Race #2 – Canmore Canada Cup, Saturday June 20^th

location – Canmore Nordic Center

To Register Contact the ABA @ 1-780-427-6352

For more Info: Email pepper.live2ride@gmail.com

Hooray For RACING!!

Hey Rockstars!

The latest scoop.

The sweet sweet 2009 Alberta Race calendar is underway. Thought it was about time to provide some "on the job" reading material. (   ;) you know who you are  )

I took some much needed chill time after worlds. Got back into work, coaching and super casual winter rides. Not to mention the loads of thankyou letters I had to catch up on. Yes, yours should be on its way soon if you haven't received it yet - and thanx again for the help.

The winter rides kept me on my skill game. Ice packed trails and snow drifts aren't hazards, they are trail features!! And a wired group of junior/cadet riders continuously endowing into the deep snow provides non-stop entertainment. Which was perfect. Winter rides shouldn't be workouts anyway, haha they are way too much fun.

I also had the opportunity to head out the the Okanogan for two weeks. The first week in for our annual spring road camp. I coach junior/cadet riders for Juventus, and we spend a week every spring in Penticton working the road skillz and putting on some base miles. Like always it was a BLAST. These kids are phenomenal! Were talking ages 14-17, rocking the climbs, the distance, the cold. No complaining, super-positive attitudes, full of energy and keen to learn. 

I stayed an additional week in Summerland at my Auntie and Uncles house (who rock!!). We got to come home to amazing meals, and fresh coffee all the time. It was like HOTEL AWESOME for Cyclist. Mangey and another ride bud (Mike Steneker) stayed with me and we rocked out a couple good days of distance. Had an epic 209km day that was nearly perfect in every way. haha, even showed mike that A&W is the ULTIMATE long ride food - that fast-fast man hasn't looked back since. I love the Okanagan, and really appreciated the riding that can be found both on and off road. It's also one of my only opportunities every year to spend some good quality ride time with my biggest fan (MOM aka Mangey). This year for the first time we explored the okanagan MTB haunts (on cross bikes!!) and were thrilled at style and mix of trails available. It's great to have such sweet riding reasonably close to home. 

Now it's pretty much summer... thats right, I'm calling it. Summer is here. Just finished a fantastic weekend of riding in Lethbridge. They did a combo MTB/Road race weekend which I thought was dang'fabulous. It was great seeing such a large turnout for Alberta's most southern race. I decided to bring only my cross bike for the mtb race, and road race. haha, it was SWEET. Plus Tara W. was ripping the mtb, and that was super-cool. The climbs in the mtb race were tough with the gearing, but there is nothing like railing sand dune single track with 700c wheels, and drop bars.  It really is a super-awesome feeling. 

The road race was fun too, but where are the trees? It's a sweet rolling course, but man was it open and windy. Christina S. from Bici hauled up the first KOM (king of the mountain – its a race inside of a race to the top of a climb for points, prizes or time bonus), putting some serious strain on the pack. It was only Christina, Myself, and a determined little Alison B. from that point on. We worked enough to keep the chasers off, and I think bici seen it's first organized women team lead-out in a longtime for a well deserved 1,2 finish. 

Next up was the Velocity RR - which I opted not to do. I coach the Juventus junior women, and they were up for selection spots for Canada Summer Games, and I didn't want any political conflict. On the plus side it was fun to see the event unfold as a spectator for once. 

I did race the Two-Up team time trial with my mentor coach/friend Tracy Shearer. It was a hilly course but a fun one. It suited our team dynamics. Tracy frigg'n steam trained the flats, and I paced the uphills. We hammered to a sweet two-up victory. It was such a good time. Nice venue. 

This weekend I'm Stony Plain bound with the cross bike. A double header event. Mtb cup on Saturday "THE BACON BUFFET OF PAIN AND SUFFERING", and 6hr marathon mtb event on Sunday. Should be some solid mtb hours, and a good amount of GOOD TIMES!!! I will actually get to eat bacon as I ride through the feedzone on each lap. I LOVE MTB RACING. bacon and riding my bike at the same time..... life is sweet!

 

Pretty Fantastic! Cant wait till next year

THIS JUST IN..... haha, look at these fakers!

Hey Budz.
Most of you Internet Savvy result searchers already know. 31st out of 35 finishers and 38 starters. 31st EH? Yup Eh!

I want to get some pictures up - but there is no room in the skin suit for a camera, so I have to wait till I can gank some photos off of someone else.

How it all went down.
First of all - Being a competitor at this event is like being a celebrity. People asking for autographs, and when I was riding around the venue in full team kit, the massive crowds would just part way for me like I was the Pope (haha, there was a dude dressed up as the Pope - he actually looked awesome, but this is a bad picture. You can just see the hat in this photo).

Spectators would chuck their buddy's and friend’s outta the way to make sure I had a clear path. Photographers everywhere, haha, and beer gardens already half full (at 10am - Hooray for Belgians).
Warm Up - was solid. Because there were no category races before us, the course was all ours to warm up on if we wanted to. I’m thinking PERFECT - but most of the other countries opted for the wind-trainer. I’m not completely sure why, but I bet there are a few reasons 1)less spectators 2)controlled enviro. Not me, I warmed up on course, and Im pretty sure there were only 4 or 5 of us that decided to do so. By 10:30 there were already 100s of spectators lining the course, and they didn't have anything better to do yet then play their noise makers and cheer. So when I rode by it felt like everyone was cheering for me... I was pretty much the only one on course, but there was definitely lots of "oheh CANADA Go Canada!" Who would want to miss that? For the most part I was feeling great! Riding solid lines, and finding good tempo in my legs. My only issue was the chilly air that teased my cough when I laid down some hard efforts, but no prob. Its race day and nothing is wrecking my sweet Vibe!
The Start - KRAZY! first of all - I’m pretty much the only rider that didn't get onto the World Cup circuit this year and as a result had the lowest UCI points ranking (for the learners reading this - start order is based mostly on UCI ranking – I need to hit up UCI races to get points). SO - as a result I got the 2nd LAST call up. haha, I get to start 30+riders behind, ;) save the best for last eh.
They used Traffic lights for the start. Simple - Green means go. GO!! It was an uphill pavement start that went for about 100m before taking a right-hand turn. Naturally the start was fast, and my only focus was to move up as many spots as I could before we hit the dirt section. But there was carnage on the first corner, brakes skidding, and a rider went down taking the middle of the pack down. Bikes and riders everywhere, including fellow Teammate Natasha Elliot (WHO MADE A WICKED RECOVERY BY THE FINISH!). I managed a couple quick manoeuvres (narrowly missing Natasha's head) to get me in the clear. As a result I started my first lap in or around top 20. The pace was dang fast, and the course was dang fast, making for ridiculous fastness. I was sitting in a good spot, I struggled in the straightaways (pavement sections), that’s where these crazy fast girls could really lay out the power, but then I would Yo-yo back on almost every corner because they weren’t super technically good. I was jockeying for spots among a 7 girl group of Italy, Great Britain, Germany, Austria and Japan. Most of my attempts to grab spots came in the corners, then fighting to stay on in the straightaways.
3rd Lap - CRASHED! I let one of my corners sweep a little too much and my tires broke traction. I went down in a skid in front of a massive Belgian Crowd- haha, “OoooooOOoo!” in any language means the same thing. Went to scurry back on and try and catch the group I was riding with, but my chain had fallen off, and wedged into the back of my cassette, off of my derailleur pulleys. Some brightly colored Belgian fans were yelling a mass of gibberish at me while I was trying to fix the problem as quickly as possible. haha I thought it should have been clear that I didn't understand Dutch...they knew I was from Canada but whatever. I finally got it fix’d and got rolling. The brightly colored group let out a big cheer - so I wonder what they were actually saying to me. At the same time a spectator jumped the barrier and gave me a big running push to help me get going. THANKS BELGIAN DUDE!! - I LIKE YOUR BEER HAT! I lost a lot of time and spots in that exciting little kiss with the dirt, and spent the last 3 laps trying to catch spots. By then end I closed down a gap on an Austrian and Italian rider, but didn't catch them. SO CLOSE

ITS ALL GOOD!
So yeah. My first World Championships - 31st.... Honestly I was gunn'n for inside top 30. haha, close, and certainly possible with no cough and no crash. But I’m ridiculously happy with my performance. It’s a very elite field, and these girls are very Race Fit. There is also lots of depth, with riders that have a very colourful record of successes in other disciplines like MTB, and Track.
I finally made my debut on the Euro Cross scene, and it has been a great experience. I’m overwhelmed by what I’ve learned, and I am really excited to continue building on it. I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback, and I am really looking forward to the next couple seasons. I know I need to keep hitting up bigger races, and try to put myself in a better UCI point position (maybe not 2nd last call up next time). Having witnessed firsthand the strength and ability of these riders, as well as the demand of these race courses I have a much improved idea about how I want to layout my rides, and season. I have the ability to be extremely competitive among this field of riders, and I cannot wait for the next races. For the next couple weeks I’ll be on a bit of a chill-out rampage. Then get right stoked back up again for the Road and MTB season (which now counts as prep for Cyclocross WOOP WOOP!).

Ps
After my race we went to the waffle stand. Mmmmm

BIG BIG BIG super thank-you to everyone who’s got my back. I really appreciate the support and that is the real reason why I got to come out here and give it my all. It is a dream come true to rock the Canadian Colors and race among such phenomenal riders as a representative of my home country. Thank you so much for helping me rock Europe!!!

Gonna be Wild!

I put the countdown clock on my blog for everyone back home, and all the time it's been up there I never really looked at it. In my mind I know I race on this specific day at this specific time. Today was different, when I was looking over my blog, I glanced at the countdown clock, and at that moment it said 1 day 22hrs. Then it hit me - LESS THAN 2 DAYs! I know my race is on Sunday at 11:30 - but seeing it in that format caught me by surprise. I guess in my mind, things move a lot slower. WOW!

I'm with the rest of the Team now in Hoogerheide. Small town- HUGE VENUE! There is a lot of hype surrounding this event. It starts outside Hoogerheide in every little town and village with posters and banners (mostly of Lars Boom). Then when you get to the edge of Hoogerheide, the first thing you see is this art structure set up on the center of a Roundabout. 3-sided, pretty cool (pics below). The last pic with the dude who has his winning arms in the air was shirtless the day we drove in, but someone decided to put a "jersey" on him sometime last night. Hmmmm I wonder who it could be? Orange Jersey eh... any guesses? I wonder if Rabobank is written on it somewhere. Haha, I like it... some artistic flare from a Boom supporter.

Then the town is littered with World Champ banners, and team Jerseys, Rider Posters. All the shops get on board by painting cross images on their windows or setting up a bike and jersey or rider shrine display. Saturday (tomorrow morn) the town is blocked off to public transportation, so spectators will have to park and shuttle to the race. They have re-routed traffic around the town center to allow for the venue set up. Haha, the restaurant we ate at warned us that their salads would have no cucumbers, because the Truck with the Cucumbers couldn't get into the town to deliver them. Haha, perfect! There is nothing like starving out the Hoogerhiede residents for World Champs. Fortunately Cucumbers are a B-grade vegetable (kidding – in case one of you is a cucumber crazy fan). And there is still a stockpile of stroopwaffel.

It’s really hard to describe the Big'Ness of it all. There are tonnes of snackshacks getting ready for Saturday, and volunteers in safety vest everywhere. Cords, Media Stations, Video Cameras set up on towers for TV broadcast. They even have a huge "Artificial" building that was set up especially for the Sponsors and VIP's. The course runs right by the viewing windows - where inside the 'big wigs' will dine on fancy set tables with fancy food while the race goes on in front of them.

The course is completely blocked off to non-paying spectators, and tickets for the event run at 20-25 Euros pp. Pretty Much 40bucks Canadian. And the rumours are they are expecting 20000 spectators for the men’s race alone on Sunday. I mean I heard the beer gardens are good, but they can’t be that good! haha.

Even the past two days there have been a great number of spectators out to just watch the riders (pros) pre-ride the course. We would ride by masses of kids hanging over the barriers with pens and papers cheering and begging for autographs. That was a pretty cool feeling.

THE COURSE
I love it! Finally a course that fits into my fantasy euro-cross image. The missing part - it's not muddy! It’s frozen, and the weather is forecast to be rain-free and chilly for the weekend, with potential snow on Sunday (yay me). Once the day wears on, the sun melts a bit of the top layer, things soften up and a few corners get slick - but overall we are talking frozen-hardpack-FAST! A Hurting kinda Fast. I’m figuring the men will be pulling off 6min laps. There are some bumpy sections, but my theory is it will smooth out with the junior/espior races tomorrow.

So what’s slowing people down? Well not much. Because of the conditions the course handles fast for almost everyone. The catchers are; One gooder downhill with a good hook left and 2 one-80's right after, and some downhill lollipop turns (that’s what Wendy calls them - what a positive name for these crazy little corners.). Basically 180's down and back up - so it’s about taking them fast, and not getting stuck behind a crash. The elements are fun, and the tight repetitive cornering keeps you busy. There are no barriers, but there are 5 steps, a ramp (if you go down it fast you can get air off the next dirt mound, but then it flies into a downhill lollipop... so never-mind), and a steep aggressive up that would be a run-up if it was wet, but everyone can ride it (Fun- like riding straight up a wall). Seems pretty smooth, but to be fair I didn't really rail to hard on the pre-rides, no need to push the cough hard into the lungs.

Today the three girls (Me, Wendy and Natasha) pre-rode the course at 11:00am so we could get a feel or idea of what the course will be like for our 11:30am start on Sunday. It was great! There was still a layer of frost in the shaded areas, and the ground was extra frozen feeling. As the laps went on, the more it warmed up and by the end of the ride the course had softened noticeably. Some slick corners and slippery hardpack. It was a good idea to get out when we did, cause that kind of condition change in a race changes how your ride the course later in the race, and for the super picky riders it changes tire choice for bikes in the pit. We also practice bike changes, so if I turn into a "picky need different tires" racer I can go ahead and change bikes. Wendy is really good at it; it's not Natasha's first time either. It was actually my fist time at that speed. FAST. and I’m pretty sure I almost killed Paul(pit dude #2) every time when I dismount and bulldoze (unintentionally) my bike into his open hands and body - then I’m running so fast from the dismount, that when I grab my other bike from Norm(pit man #1) and attempt to mount it's a miracle I make it on the saddle. But - they were Fast-successful changes so I’m good with that. Note below - Paul, the FANTASTIC CANADIAN PIT DUDE # 2 !.. and Wendy Simms Canadian National Champ on the side detailing some solid tire feedback. Dan (team manager) is the dude in the red jacket

This will be a favourite memory
Today while we were pre-riding I was riding the course with Wendy and on one of the lollipop downhill corners she decided to run it (because it’s a potential area for high congestion/crashes so running it may be faster/better choice in some circumstances). For those of you that are picking up on this 'cyclocross stuff' I’m talking about, when you dismount your bike to run a section - it means dismounting into a run from a moving bike position - it's all about maintaining speed and momentum - minimal time loss and sometimes competitive advantage. Anywho - her first attempt was a miss and didn't look to graceful- but no problem, it hardly goes perfect on the first attempt. That’s why we pre-ride. The best part; this Old Dutch spectator had seen the attempt, and thought it best to provide feedback. He Yelled to Wendy (with a very serious facial expression) "Not Good... Again!" as he motioned for her to go back and do it again. He said it 3 or 4 times beckoning her to go back “Not Good...Again” haha. I got a real kick outta this guys side line expertise and Drill sergeant approach. Wendy tells me they aren't scared to be critical. Haha she translated his comment into "you suck... do it again." Poor little critical Dutchman should know that Wendy Simms knows what she's doing! Still, thanx for the advice - haha cute- just wanted to pack him up and take him home.


After the ride I met up with my family and we went to check the out ‘Fa Hopmans,’ the biggest bike shop in Western Europe! This baby had 4 floors! Photos don’t do it justice, but here is the wall of BBB parts.. Just BBB parts

And in this photo - all those boxes at the back. For those of you who care, that’s all campy stuff. All of it!

Not to mention the thousands of jerseys and team kits they had in there. Hundreds of cycling shoes, tonnes of white leg/arm warmers! QUICK! TELL DAVID L. And they actually had a chain catch for me, two- free! Five bike shops later...This means no more duct tape on my bike, so I like these guys.


weeeeeeeee! When can we race these?

If you haven’t yet, send some race vibes to our Espoir boys. They race tomorrow at 2:30, so while you’re dreaming at 6:30am your time...Dream lucks for these boys.
Andrew getting pin'd by Brian. haha. GO CANADA GO!

THE SKIN SUIT FITS!

Trying on the Team Wear - Feels Good!....for a skin suit

Quick! Get me some Hot Sauce!!

Two nights ago I went to bed with a fever and a cold sweat, and spent all of yesterday fighting a fever and shivers, accompanied with a hard cough. The fever finally broke last night, and I am currently stuck with a loose cough and stuffy nose. BOOOURNS! I never get sick. I can usually account for 2 or 3 times out of a year that I might have a stuffy nose or scratchy throat. My poor dad came across the pond with a bad case of whatever I have now. He definitely got the worse deal; Sore Throat, Hard-Dry cough, fevers, and migraines – and it’s lasted 5days for him. I did my best to avoid contact, but we travelled to Zonnebeke together and it’s pretty hard to avoid one another when you’re cooped in a Minivan for 6hrs.
LESS THAN 5 DAYS TILL WORLDS! Why did my immune system decide to be such a baby a week before worlds? It’s gotta be the family bloodline, or maybe the fact that my hot sauce consumption has gone down since I’ve been here (haha I’m pretty sure hot sauce keeps you healthy...haha, seriously TRY IT. And lots of jalapenos too. Just be conscious of the fact that hot sauce usually has a high salt content. J). I did some detailing on my Sexy Louis G’s today and got out for a light spin. I wasn’t about to push my cough deeper, I need all the lung capacity I can get for Sunday. I just made sure I was going at a decent enough speed not to get passed by people on commuter bikes- cuz that’s just a hard pill to swallow.
My body is already bouncing back, and at this rate I’m confident that I’ll show up at the start feeling pretty dang good. If not, I’ll make it work even if means I have those cute little snot lines that escape your nose when you’re full of mucus and trying to race hard... Smile for the camera Pepper! Either way the excitement is building. I can’t wait to get out and pre-ride the world’s course. They have a digital version of it online, but it lacks detail. If you wanna see it here is the link – but you have to imagine more texture I think. http://www.wkhoogerheide2009.nl/en/parcours.aspx
GO CANADA GO!

FINALLY - some more high class reading material

Hey Budz! Just got my blogs up... sorry for the delay.

Back to the Netherlands

Wooah! One more week till worlds. Today we travelled back into the Netherlands, just a short while from the border of Belgium. One our way we stopped at the Canadian monument outside of Ieper, the plaque on the side commemorated the 18000 Canadian troops that stood on the British left and took the first German gas attacks. I’m not particularly in favour or against the wars of today and way back when, but it’s pretty cool for me to be able to bring my bike here as a Canadian, and compete on the same race course among multiple nationalities without being scared for my life. So it was a good stop!

I meet up with the rest of the team on the 28th, and until then will be hanging at another bungalow in a little village called Hoever. It’s pretty much smack dab in the middle of Roosendal and Breda. It’s about 30km from Hoogerheide. Other than fighting off a potential cold, I’m not sure what to expect this week, but the plan to explore some nearby little towns via bike.... and try and figure out how to appropriately place these into my pre-race meals (picture below). This was a pannekoek (pancake) and waffle shop with pretty much any topping combo you could think up; Including ice-creams and fresh berries. I had pannekoek with banana and a little bit of chocolate sauce. mmmmmm

This stick dude is by the pannekoek house.... clearly and indication that pannekoek and cyclists are a good mix!

HOOORAY FOR MUD! and Fish on a Stick

THE RACE Jan 24 2009

Today was a C2 race in the quaint little town of Zonnebeke about 2hrs from Antwerpen. The weather was nice, the sun was shining, and I got away with wearing a few less layers than normal.

The first 30min onsite is probably the most interesting. I get to try and figure out where Sign- On is, where the toilets are, where the start is, what my start-time is yadda yadda yadda.

This part of Belgium is practically kissing the border of France, and has a pretty distinct French Influence. So, the people here speak a version of both Dutch and French. Haha, but that still doesn’t help me. I wanted to be different and took Cree in my secondary education. Anyway, the people here also speak English. Or at least when you ask them if they speak English they say “Yes, a little” which I’ve discovered can mean anything. This isn’t a problem, they are such nice people who are super easy to approach and talk to. I don’t usually get a clear answer from just one person, but after 4 or 5 I’ve got a pretty good idea that I get my race number in that pub across the street. I handed my race license to the official looking guy at the laptop. I couldn’t understand a word he was saying, so he compensated with some accurate hand gestures, well shaded doodles, and clear pointing skills. Okay, my number is 3, and I’m starting with the Junior Boys at 1:30. Okay, thanx.

Pre Ride - Although still not fitting of the “fantasy euro cyclocross” image in my head, it was a pretty sweet course. I would classify it as MORE FUN when compared to Suihuirsterveen. There were snack-shacks set up around the course for spectators. Menu items included some kind of bratworst, ham-hamburger and dried fish on a stick! Not to mention the beer stands – they had line-ups at 11:30am and most of the spectators had a beer in each hand. People coming to watch the race would park their car, then go to their trunks to put on a big pair of wool socks and rubber boots, then grab a flat of Pilsner or Jupiler and make their way to the course. (see rubber boots below) haha

This course was shorter, with a lot more turns. One section had riders zigzag back and forth down and up through this sort of ditch/trench in the middle of a park. It was grass – but since I am pretty sure the water level in the ground is 245% saturation, the moment you ride on it, your tires dig into the dirt underneath and create a bogging sorta effect. No barriers, but there was one cool sketchy downhill, and then tonnes and tonnes of that incredibly tough Euro Mud. Overall I liked the course, and knew the mud sections would be the hard parts for me. Two pit areas, both probably essential for this course, but I had Mangey stationed at the muddiest one.

The pit areas are neat. It’s actually where I get the most classic euro-cross feeling. The pit guys are all older gents, with rubber boots or entire rubber suits like fishing gators, and old archaic brushes haha, probably passed down through pit-man generations. They usually have a cigarette hanging outta their mouths, and a beer posted on or beside the base of one of the bit barriers or stakes. Mangey has been the only women in the pit area in every race. She has yet to run into problems, but at every event one or more of these seasoned dutch cx pit-guys steps in to help wash the bike, or... wash the bike for her. Haha, poor guys – eventually the pits will be overrun with women techs.... won’t be long before they can only reminisce about the gold old days.

Start – Well, women race with the junior boys at this event. Check out the Vid.... haha, FAST, fun... but long. It hooked a mean right after about 500m, and then another 100m or so before crack’n a hard left into the mud. Felt like forever! I couldn’t really understand the start announcer again, so I just waited for a whistle, or gun or something. I tried to tag and memorize the other girls in the group so I knew who I was chasing, but easier said than done. Junior boys and women are not always easy to differentiate :P. Trust me. Most of us got called up behind the boys, so we got positioned at the back, and that is pretty much how I hit the dirt off the start. The other girls and I trickled in the bottom half early on. The boys hit the mud sections fast, usually too fast and a few buried their front wheels in and flipped over the handle bars; creating some fun hit’n miss group crashes. It was pretty much guaranteed that they would land face first, haha, so I couldn’t help but laugh at them (reminds me of me). There were 3 crashes in front of me that I, giving me some opportunity to move ahead a couple spots with the other girls. I was riding up with two other women, one from Japan, and the other I’m not sure. The first lap was pretty high pace (likely due to starting with the j-boys), and the two girls just ahead were riding pretty frantically through the mud. Lots of power, but they were almost crashing themselves off their bikes. One of the girls was clearly powerful, once she found her rhythm she moved through the mud sections with ease. I was straining to figure out how!!!... what tires? what gearing? what lines was she riding? But I’m pretty sure she was just super amazing through the mud.

Second Lap - She gapped us a few bike lengths in a longer mud section, and I started concentrating more on the girl from Japan. She was jockeying for the lead in front of me. We had our 2nd bikes stationed at opposite pits, so it made for some interesting racing. She would get her fresh bike first and then navigate through the mud easier. I had to work hard to stay on her wheel. Then we’d get to the second pit and I would change bikes, and pull ahead of her. Fortunately for me (I CALL THIS AN AMAZING STRATEGICAL DECISION) the second pit was right before a more technical section (steep down –the up, with mud section – followed by hardpack). With my fresh bike each lap (and mtb skillz! Woop woop) I managed to navigate the next sections faster and easier. I finally drop’d her on the 3rd lap and thought I was running a smooth 2nd among the women. Haha, however, during my little battle with the girl from

Japan, we got passed by a “junior boy” haha, or so we thought. Turns out it was a girl, and we both neglected to realize it. So, I finished 3rd, but a good 3rd. The girl that came in 1st was strong, and I’m aware that mud is my weakness among these riders. She put a good couple minutes into me by the end of the race.

MUDDY! If it weren’t for the bike changes this course would be almost impossible with only one bike. The grass acted like a binding agent and kept collecting in the stays and in between the sprockets on the cassettes. My Blue Louis G was equipped with Hutchinson Bulldogs, and My Black Louis G had the Dugast Rhinos (I am talking about Tires for those of you who are learning with me). It was a complete toss-up. The rhinos were way better for the deep mud, but most of the mud was faster to run anyway and the bulldogs were better on the hardpack. So, I guess I had a good combo, and the only saving grace was the fact I had a bike change each lap (Which went flawlessly every time). High Five to Mangey - the only Female Pit Person!

What I learned – Mud is actually pretty new to me. It’s not the same as the races back home, and this season was especially dry. I’m still trying to find some legs for that stuff – but I am impressed with how they (the other racer dudettes) can ride it here.

-never leave without duct tape! I snapped my Chain Catch on my Blue Louis on a training ride in “The Woods.” None of the shops have them, cause no one runs single ring. SO! With some help we used super glue, and duct tape and so far so good!

On Flanders Field

Okay okay okay – here’s the scoop. We are staying for a few days in a town called Ieper (7km from the race site). Not Leper, but Ieper with an “i” or traditionally spelt Ypres. Haha, does it ring a bell for anyone else? We were advised to stay in this town (only 7km from zonnebeke) because of accommodation availability. It’s has good accommodation because its very “touristic.” But I misunderstood the kind belgie woman and thought she said Futuristic (kinda the absolute opposite).

So, here is why this town should have rung a bell. This relatively ancient city used to be famous for its cloth production but eventually fell to political wars, disease and plundering. It’s more commonly known for its position in WWI as a central front line where the allies held and advanced ground against the German Amy. Ypres is situated on the traditional land of Flanders (now part of Belgium and Netherlands), and today now represents one of the standing city monuments of the war, complete with a museum “In Flanders Field” and post war reconstructed buildings that capture the original look of the city pre-war. This city had a lot to do with the outcome of the first war, and Canadian troops played a big part – which explained the abundance of Canadian flags in shop windows. I should have known better, but it’s pretty cool where the bike can take you.

Cool stuff about this place. I’m not a great shopper, I prefer riding my bike around as a souvenir, but the flavour of this little town needed some quality shop’hoping action. Lots of clothing stores, and as much as I could prob use some Euro style, I didn’t check these out. The good stuff was in all the Belgian Chocolate shops, Waffle Shops, and cute pub-style restaurants. They also make a pretty good line of local brewed Bier’s (beers). The sweetest part, is street waffle stands. The picture below is of me and a Belgie waffle dude. They are amazing! Like no waffle you’ve ever had. They have a slight chocolate/caramel taste and you get it hot off the grill. MMMM.

I've figured out the Dutch High Performance System

Okay. So, the rest of my family arrived today to prepare for their roles as team Canada's cheer squad. Or at least a part of it.

Early this morning Mangey and I went back out to "the woods" near Appelscha for a ride before we had to go to leeuwarden to pick up the boys. We managed to hit up a fantastic little trail network that... well for the first time this trip actually incorporated some actual incline. Nothing big, but at some points I think I may have been @ or just above sea level at the top of some of the "and hills". I almost fainted from the change in oxygen and atmospheric pressure. Must be all that living at -3m below sea level.... I'm thinking not a good country to invest in with Global Warming and all. But good to invest in their pastries... they are KILLER AWESOME.

I still feel great. A little more zip in the legs everyride, and it the bikes are working perfect.

After are ride we had to head into Leeuwarde to the Train-station. The boys landed in Amsterdam early that morning, and were expected at the station around 1pm. No prob. Except we didn't actually know where the station was. And, one would think that a train station would have signs leading to the train-station that say something like "Train Station.... or Train.... or Railway". I mean, how different could it be in dutch? However, we didn't find any such signs, but instead noticed a heavy prevalence of signs that said P+R and included directions arrows. Our high-tech female intuition told us to follow those signs. Sure enough - they got us to the train station - after about 6.5 right-hand turns in a row. I'm not sure what P+R means yet. It's probably really simple like "public railway" or something... railway... peekaboo railway. I dunno. But if you need me to pick you up from there I can do it now. O yeah, look at all the bikes... what a cool world!!

So then it was time to give the boys a tour of our bungalo and area. We went to go introduce them to Tim and the other Canadians, but there is a SWEET playground along the way. So Sweet, that I have figured out to detail the Dutch High performance training system. First Clue - all the bikes... everywhere. All the bike paths, and trails, and bike friendly place. All the little kids on bikes, biking from school n'such. They start them young, and then mold them into efficient little "bike everywhere" machines. How better to create the best riders, then to farm from a world of riders. Second Clue - there dang playgrounds. These things are crazy. Designed for little dutchians, but based on the German Gymnastics program. I've got a couple clips below of some favorite playground items at this particular "Training" playground. But I'm not gonna lie, most of the other equipment was too scary and gravity defying for us to try with confidence. The monkeybars were like 15feet off the ground... for a 4ft five year old that's a good 8-9ft of falling. Unless your from here, then that's fun. WEEEEEE. But seriously - AWESOME PLAYGOUND. It was a perfect alternative for some cross training. Agility, core, grip strength.

How can you not love this. I want one of these to own. I would have the coolest house on the block. A perfect way to settle disputes between roommates.

Other than eating Sugar Waffels (new found favorite) - and mini stroopwaffle (THEY COME IN MINIS!!!!) - The day is made up of good riding, some occasional sunshine, and a lot of rain. Oh, and Euro-Sport Live television. Something other than hockey. Umm Everything but hockey to be exact.

Tomorrow were gonna aim for a longer ride. Prob about the 3-4hr mark on the trails. Have some Pannakokgen, and then head to Gronnigen. It's got some buildings from the 1600s. That's what Tim says anyway. So, stay tuned!

P.S

Thanx for the emails and msgs of support. They make my day! I wish you were here too Grandpa J!!

My first low key local holland race!!

WEEEEEEEEE!

Zuidwoulde - the local race was in Zuidwoulde Ned

It's about a 50minute drive south of our bungalo. Another cute little town decorated in brick houses and hedges.

The Race was actually a MTB venue, and although the course was more suiting to cross bikes, there were more MTB racers. We all race the same race, but the results are separated by bike be it a cross bike or mtb. Still creates a fairly large starting field, and fun competition. We found our way to the site mostly with luck and a few brightly colored green signs. Being a local race, it was even more apparent that i wasn't a local. Having no real idea what the registration signs said, or what kind of sign up system to expect. Fortunately, the lovely people at the sign on desk spoke enough English to get me signed up, and the rest was up to asking random people random questions. When does course open?.... Is course open?.... ummm. Parc.... Parcours Open? haha, and with enough hand gestures, and a few lucky people picks I managed a pre-ride. At staging I didn't understand a word the official was saying. I had no idea who i was starting with or when i was going. I just did whatever the other girls were doing. I bunched on the the back of the group behind the line, and started camera conversation with Mangey. Then the whistle blew. I looked forward and the entire mass of people I was (I guess starting with) took off. "Have Fun Pep" said Mangey, as I sprinted back on to the group. Haha, I love the dutch language.

The course reminded me a lot of Stony Plains accept the challenge race, WITHOUT the steep climbs, Actually, the biggest climbs on this course were off cambre corners in the sandy dooney part of the course, and mounds of dirt, that had potential for grabbing some serious air... ahh, Why didn't i pull off a No-Footer! What was I thinking? I wondered what mountains the mountain bikers here actually ride on - cuz on this course a cross bike just seemed more suiting. The rest of the course maneuvered through single track in "The Woods". Haha, I like how riding through the trees is called the woods. It was pretty fresh cut single track, mossy, muddy, but twisty awesome. It was my favorite part. I was at no disadvantage on my sexy louis G cross bike, in fact this is the type of riding that favors both my strength and general preferred enjoyment. I got a pretty good kick outta dropping the boys who rode mtb's in the singletrack on a cross bike. WOOP WOOP!! A good portion of mud aslo made this a cross worthy course, so again, i wonder where the mountain bikers actually have mountain bike races. All in all, i was actually really impressed with the venue. Some nice variety (for the cross bike) and fun atmosphere. They had a snackstand with homemade soups and ...something on a bun it was sooo good. Hot homemade dutch soup really hits the spot on a really rainy and rather chilly north Holland Day.

My Race

I raced elite women, but most were on MTB's, and our start was combined with Junior boys/Girls, and cat 3,4,5 men. A lot of racers off the start. Having slightly missed the start whistle, I had to put on a bit of an excessive sprint to catch on and work my way through the group. It was fun. I felt great, my legs were feeling the groove. No problem. Less then half a minute in I made my way back into mid pack of women, men, mtb's and cross bikes. We hit the sand off cambre corners still fairly congested, but it made for some playful elbow rubs, and really made the talented line pickers stand our (yours truely. Wink wink). I was feeling great and just kept riding clean and fast lines, picked of riders one by one, and each lap worked up a little further. By Second lap I dropped all the female competition, and was working in on a top 10 placement among those springy leg'd junior boys. Haha, they hate getting passed by girls. So cute. I played Cat'n Mouse with rider #24 (not sure what his name was). Put pressure on in the single track, pass in the mud. He would work himself into the ground to get past me again. Haha, the died on the third lap. I finished I 7th outta the whole group. Might Have given those other gents a run for their money if I got to the front a little sooner. But, it was tonnes of fun. I liked the flow of the course, and Im feeling pretty on the mark. A local team member of Tim's gang says its muddy and rainy in Holland almost everyday. Haha GOOD! Bring it on

Here is Andrew. He seemed to have a great race. Finishing right after Tim, unofficially 2nd i think. Im gonna go out on a limp and say the course favored his mtb skills on the cross bike. He said the course was slow - then ride slow!! haha, who you fool'n

Here is Brian - Canadian from Calgary. looked like he was riding good, not sure where he finished.

Oh yeah - this tractor had to pull almost every car out of the "muddy field" parking lot. Haha, Mangey dug some pretty good trenches in the ground with our muscle ford minivan. HOOOAHH!! She did a great job as pit crew and supported again. Even though her zero body fat skeleton froze to death out there today.

My Next race is a doozie. Zonnebek, i will correct spelling later. Thats next weekend. My last hoorah before the BIG ONE. This week will be full of rides, prep, waffels and hopefully some shananigans.

Huge bike shops

So, my first official day of Tourist activity.

We ventured Into the city of leeuwarden just a short 10min drive from our bungalow. I need a 10sp spacer cuz i misplaced mine (dang). We managed to find a bike shop. Got verbal directions from Tim, but pretty much just drove around till we found it by accident. The place was called, Jan Terpstra - which is apparently a big deal, and also the Team that Tim, Andrew, and Brian have association with. BIG STORE! Wow, this place gives the new RVC in Edmonton a run for its money. Some fancy bike brands I haven't even heard of before, and styles of bikes that clearly identify the importance of cycling as form of transportation. There techs are not in the weekends, and the sales dude admitted he knew nothing, so we browsed and left without a spacer.. no big.

BTW - im supposed to bring back a cycling hat for Tracy - anyone know a good one I should keep my eyes open for?

Im getting used to the driving. Rip'n our sweet ford minivan around like it's one of these things....

After Leeuwarden we drove to Drachten, found a cool strip mall thing at ate a little deli. I had no honest idea what I ordered, but it was amazing. Mangey opted for a veggie sandwich, she felt safer that way. Again, im blown away by the number of bikes there are here. It's like they built the bike path networks, and then built the streets, and buildings around them. So Cool! It's perfect for the cycling tourist. Jump on your bike in the morning, start riding in any direction, and enjoy the scenery. There are little towns and villages every 8-15km, and lots of bakeries.

Apparently my race tomorrow is just under an hours drive from our place. We are heading over to Tim's shortly to get the logistical lowdown. I'm wondering if the local races will resemble the races in Alberta, or if they still hold that fantasy euro flare. I cant wait to rub some more elbows tomorrow, and hopefully I'll rock more pics for the blog

Hooray for waffels, fast trails, and feel good legs.

The votes are in; this weekend’s race will be a local one. Vicky T. (another cool canadian cx'r) invited me to Roubaix for the world cup, but at this point that’s 2 more days of travel, and 2 days less riding and getting a good groove in. It would have been great had the logistics gone a little more my way, but o’well. Tim and his gang are stick’n around to do the local event too. I’m still expecting to see the same Dutch flavour as the last race. Hoping for that homemade liquorice at sign on.

We seem to be getting the hang of things around here. The driving will still scare the crap out of us sometimes. It’s two-way traffic on roads that are one car wide. I’m still not sure what all the road rules are... like who yields for who? At this point I think whoever has the biggest hunk of metal on wheels gets the right away. :P but so far no crashes. The road maps aren’t the easiest to understand. I can’t pronounce 90% of the towns we drive through, so asking for directions is fun. I’m getting the hang of it. ROCKOUT!!

We spent the last two days venturing out to a national park for some riding. We could ride the road till rubber wore off, but I mean really? Who wants to ride the road... really? So me and Mangey (Tim and the gang were out later today) have been hitting up a mix of Single track/double track/ sheep track/horse track.... and wagon track? Lost? Yup, a lot. But it’s easy to get lost and not be lost if that makes any sense. We have found some really wicked trails. Not super technical, but fast and full of curves and tiny little aggressive climbs. The chip/gravel trails are actually a base of crunched sea shells. I guess most of the part at one time was sea bottom. We even rode through one area that pretty much consisted entirely of sand dunes (which has been the extent of any sort of hills in the area). Wildlife.... not really any yet. Sheep, haha I never actually heard a sheep bleat in real life, haha, they sound awesome. Lots of Ducks, and the occasional deer.

We are not sure what the two signs are actually indicating. But they look like bike wheels, so we followed them, and so far so good.

I’ve yet to be in a place that's as bike comfortable as here in the Netherlands. The bike path network seems endless, and it’s a very very common form of transportation. There are riders everywhere on old looking singlespeeds, with baskets and pedal powered handlebar lights. Haha, one older dude riding with the KOOOL wooden shoes. Everywhere you drive its “Yield to cyclist or watch out for bicycles.” It’s pretty sweet to be in an area where cars and bikes get along.

The weather is perfect for me. It will range from -6 to plus 6ish this time of year. My body is pretty comfortable in those temps so it hasn’t been hard to get out riding. It is very consistently wet around here though. Foggy mornings, rains, mists. I don’t mind, but it can be gloomy. I did a night ride a few days ago on a chip trail close to where we are staying. It was foggy, and I could barely see about 5 meters in front of me. Was eerie feeling, but AWESOME! Hard to get scared when I’m not at all sure what to be worried about. I don’t think there are killer sheep, and the lockness monster is not from here..... Maybe there are killer garden Gnomes.... where was Rumplestiltsken from again? Pffft! I could out ride him anyway.

You all thought I was joking, but chocolate covered waffles are amazing! Along with fresh Stroopwaffel and good baked things everywhere... yes imp eating in moderation, but c’mon.... chocolate covered waffles.
Tomorrow we are taking a bit of a tourist day after the ride. Time to get in some urban action, and down town city driving. Maybe pick up my own set of wooden shoes. I have been feeling great; my legs feel awesome. I laid down some huge sprints in the trails today and didn’t want to stop. After 3hrs we eventually got hungry and called’r a day. Not before I (accidently) rode Mangey off the trail and into a ditch. Hahah, she’s riding my second bike, and didn’t want to wreck it, so she pretty much launched herself off the bike into this trench thing. Haha, my bike is ok!! She’s okay too...

Haha. I vote for a change. From now on, Jet Leg'd means rockets for thigh muscles

Okay. Sorry for the late blog post.

My last post was from the Edmonton Airport, and I probably put a bad curse on the trip when I assumed the travel plans would go smoothly... I mean what could happen.

First - Plane from E-town to Chicago got delayed due to bad weather in Chicago. When we finally got on the plane, we stayed on the ground for another hour-twenty to de-ice the wings, and add fuel, drop passengers and luggage... as I watched my wheel box get tossed around from baggage cart to cart to plane back to cart and plane again, with suitcases loaded on top. grrrr. oh well. Budda would still be chill about it... I'll be chill about it.

Then - We got to Chicago, late. We were supposed to have missed our connecting flight by almost two hours, so we were standing in line at customer service to find out our options. But for some reason our plane was displayed on the departures screens as "delayed" so I went to the gate to see if it was still there and it was. Hooooray!! at least I thought. We boarded the plane thinking we were lucky, and Im sure we were. The next flight wouldn't have been till the next day - woulda put a good crunch on travel logistics. But we got on the plane to find out it was delayed due to mechanical (great! this baby is going across the Ocean ) it had a defunct fuel pressure valve gauge thingy. Prob no big. But took bout two hours on an already 2hour late plane. Still not bad - at least our luggage had time to make it on.

The worst part - We got on the plane kinda in a hurry, cause we didn't know what was going on till we got on. Our original plan was to stock up on food and calories at the Chicago airport, but due to late arrival we didn't get a chance to. So, now we are starving and we don't get our in flight meal till we are in the air. Haha, and we got seated in the middle row and I sat beside this dude from Milwaukee. From this point on I will call him "Sigh Guy" haha. He's been to Amsterdam bout 8 times. He says he goes for a good time, and was a clear expert of the area. Probably the best - even though a good 70% of the passengers on the plane were dutch... heading back to dutchland after holidays. But Sigh Guy was better. I named him (without him knowing) Sigh Guy, because in addition to holding all the knowledge of Dutchland, he sighed at every opportunity of inflection. Even when the inflection was up! how do you even do that? and upward inflection is already usually on an exhale. WHERE DO YOU FIND THE REMAINING AIR TO SIGH WITHOUT BREATHING IN? Although his up inflections were few - he had a bit of a negative demeanor about him. But because Sigh Guy is probably a nice guy - I'll attribute this to the delayed plane. Before we got on, he was already on for almost 2hrs. Anyway, he gave me and Mangey tons of advice. My favorite advice being eating. He said the best way to get to Amsterdam and adjust, is not to eat the dinner meal on the plane. It has waaaayyyyy toooo much sodium, and you'll feel like crap. He said the best thing to do is sleep and then eat at the airport.... haha, ummmmm. We both acknowledged him really without saying anything. Cause in our minds it had been 7hrs since we ate a meal (minus pretzels) and the flight was just under another 8hrs. And sleeping on a plane is not easy. If I sleep sitting up, my jaw relaxes and I sleep with my mouth gaped and drooling all over myself. No big right? Anyway, we ate our in flight meal. Pasta. In probably 4 seconds flat. I didn't look at sigh guy while i ate it - haha, didn't want to try and explain myself. mmmm but needs more salt.

In Flight Movie - haha, It was "Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants" Mangey cried like four times, and Im already exhausted from the trip, so Dangit! I almost started crying cause she was crying. I think Sigh Guys was crying too. Hey! your supposed to be sleeping.

HOOORAY. AMSTERDAM!!

We got stuck at the airport for another 2hrs waiting for a car rental. Then we got caught in Amsterdam traffic for another hour... Don't worry I'll get the map figured out. When we were finally on our way we felt like zombies. We couldn't stay awake and our Destination was a 2hr drive into the prov of Freisland. We should have been their 8hrs ago. Not too mention the time change. In Alberta everyone was getting up to start the Monday we were already well into, and there was no quality sleep to be had on the Plane. So we got a hotel halfway to our destination cause we couldn't stay awake. We both fell asleep, haha, and then got up wide awake at two in the morning. Yessssss! In a day and half I race.... Yup feeling good.



Our Bungalow is Coool. Nice - cooooozy. My gear all arrived in what seems perfect shape except for one front wheel that needs some truing attention (reflect back to the careful care the airport dudes took of my wheel box). We spent that day getting a layout of the area - getting groceries, and taking a trip up to Suirhesterveen where the race would be the next day. We went to see Tim, Brian and Andrew - and seemed to finally get settled.

RACE DAY!
A race on a Wednesday is a great idea. Its was a superprestige, which is a pretty high caliber race series. Large crowds, huge sponsors, street bands. There is no entry fee - which was cool. I was feeling good. I didn't sleep at all the night before. Jetleg. I was wide awake - But whatevs.... I don't let that really get to me, there's not alot you can do, and taking sleeping aids is not something i want to get into.

The Course
Hmmm - Honestly I wasn't super thrilled with the course. I guess I had high expectations because apparently there is no racing like euro cross racing. But the Course wasn't super full of OMG. Flat Flat Flat. REALLY MUDDY, which was cool, but most of the course relied on straight grinding power. Tim says you have to have speed. I think Tim's concept of Speed is different from mine. It wasn't fast at all. It's was all about who could push the biggest gear the best through the slowest muddiest sections. There was a Sandpit on one of the streets through the town. Im pretty sure they just unloaded a dumptruck full of it right on the side street. That was cool, but it was all ride able. IN FACT - the sand pit was one of the fastest riding sections of the course if that puts it into perspective for ya. Riding down mainstreet was pretty cool too, with all the spectators and banners and new school cobblestone. Overall the course wasn't technical at all. Just muddy and Slow. But the atmosphere was wicked. Like going to a hockey game in Alberta.

My Race
I got a front Row start which is probably the best thing anyone could ask for in CX racing. So my start was great. I was surprised at how easy it was. I was expecting some Big Sprinters for the lead, but it didn't happen. I had a perfect line into the left hand corner off the cobblestone into the mud, and a super front row sprint that sat me in the lead top 5. Still not hard. I was picking perfect lines, riding smooth, sticking with the group. It was an awesome position.

Shortly after the first lap some of the girls behind us kicked it in, and that created some attacks, and hard efforts. It was in the second lap that I recognised a particular strength in these riders from the Nederlands. They didn't seem to sprint very strongly, and their technical was a little below expectations particularly in corners. But. They could power through the deep slow mud sections like Clydesdale's on espresso. Big gears, and huge grinding pedal strokes. I could keep up at first. Bridge up before the corners, catch on. Interval the hard pack. But it wasn't enough. I didn't have the legs for that course and I felt good but my legs felt empty or sleepy. The slow power sections made up too much of the course, and i didn't have enough sections of the course to pick up speed. By the finish I dropped from 5th to 15th. I needed a couple bike changes, but I had gotten new cleats to go with my New Louis Garneau Shoes, and they worked in my XTR pedals but not my other SPD's. My old cleats worked perfect in both, so I neglected to test my cleats out on both sets of pedals until 15 minutes before the start... only to find out I only had one set of usable pedals for the race... thus only one bike. And with a course like that I really could have used the bike Change. I did lose at least 3 spots cause the pit was faster and hard packed, so girls would get a bike change just to get by the mud section faster. SMART.

Im still really happy with my result from a performance perspective. I don't feel at all out of my league, and I still finished Mid pack. Plus - I've been off racing for over a month. So it was a perfect first event to kick my jetleg'd butt into gear.

What I learned: haha, better before race gear check needed. Bike change in muddy conditions is absolutely necessary.

Other hard lesson: They have bike washes at the pit. Tim called them Jet washes, and I just thought that was a dutch to English translation mix up. But it's not. Jet is a serious description of how these generator pressure washers worked. Consider it almost blew me back onto my butt in the mud when i pulled the nozzle trigger. I started washing my bike with it, but couldn't take the thought of it pushing all that mud and water into my seals. And too paint a better pressure washer picture, I went to spray off my shoes... which were still on my feet, and I missed at first from the pressure recoil and got the skin at the bottom of my shin. I had a small scratch (3cm long cat scratch) from a bush I brushed by in the race, and the pressure stream tore it open from a small scratch to a wound. It peeled back that portion of the skin like a cheese slicer. EWWW. Fortunately I put the flap of skin back down, and it's healing surprisingly well.

So... bucket and water is still the safest for you and your bike. The laps took 10min each anyway, that's enough time to be nice to the bike. pfffft! pressure washer..... OVERRATED

BTW - Mangey did a great job as Pit Dudette. She's learning lots

My Next Race was supposed to be this weekend. But it got cancelled, so looking at options. Now that Im a little more settled, I should be able to keep yall posted better.

EUROPE IS SWEET

Peps

G'Bye E-Town... Hello Amsterdam 9:20am tomorrow morning

Hey Budz!
Here I am in the E-town airport. My flight to Chicago leaves in about an hour, then from Chicago I'm on my way with Mangey to Amsterdam. Flight will arrive in Amsterdam at 9:20am tomorrow... Just in time for a lunch time bike ride. WOOP WOOP! We have a rental car lined up from the airport, so we pretty much jump right into foreign driving excitement upon entry into Euro-land. If we survive, we'll end up at a sweet little bungalow where Tim H. has his Canada House in Belgium. I've always wanted to be Tim's neighbour.

Im stoked! I had some of the Juventus/Cycling crew over Friday night. I really appreciate the g'luck hugs, and the euro tips. Thanx again everyone for the gifts and well wishing. Louis G. pretty much saved my butt and kit'd me out with some sweet gear. Im now rocking a second Steeple X frame, along with Helmet, Shoes, Gloves and other goodies. It's a SWEEEET deal cause LG stuff is wicked awesome, and my old Louis stuff was seeing some serious wear and tear. Big shout out to J-F from Loius and Tracy Shearer for helping me out in that depo.

My First Race is Surhuisterveen Ned on Wed. Im thinking it will be a nice charlie horse kick in both jet-legs. But no big deal. CUZ IM RACING IN EUROPE. WOOP!

I'll be in touch. Thanx again dudes and dudettes for all your help.