getting there... go team!

no photos... i know it makes for a boring post but i really haven't taken the camera out since we moved... i get back at it.

i think we have finally turned the corner and are officially "moved in". so stoked. i love our new place but getting everything done has been some hard work.... especially when you mix in real work (jobs) and training. so beth and i have been burning at both ends for sure but it looks we are past that. so i am really looking forward to getting back to normal days and just being able to come home from work and relax.

i got in some good riding and running this past week. nothing really hard except the swami's ride on tuesday morning. I ran 3 times this week ( 6+, 10, 8+ miles) for a total of 25.11 miles and felt pretty good. I'll probably try to keep the mileage in the 25-30 range the next couple of weeks and see how the body responds.

i got out with beth for a long ride up to san clemente on saturday morning. we gotta a late start which was awesome... not rushing. just woke up, drank coffee, ate breakkie, and then hit the road. the weather was perfect. 65-70 and not a single cloud in the sky and light winds. we could have ridden all day. we got in 4 hours and called it a day and then headed home to finish up on the crib.

on sunday beth was up early to head down to race the mission bay tri and i headed north up to irvine to race Velocity Cross (SCPS #3). we got there with plenty of time before the 1pm start to get in a long warm up and the race was delayed because of bad crash in the race before so we had to clear the way for an ambulance.

the cat 3/4 race was gnarly and the biggest field of the day with 80 guys on the line... seriously. i was sitting in the 4th row back on the start and it was about 6 across. the course was another fun one. i think we did 5 or 6 laps during the race... i can't remember. there were a couple of run-ups, some barriers, and bunch of tight twisty, technical corners.

i had a bad start (i know... shocking) and heading into the first series of corners was probably in 30th-40th place... totally blowing it. so i began to chase... and chase... and chase. over the course of the next couple of laps i worked my way in to the top 5 and then into 3rd. 1st and 2nd were riding together and kind of playing with each other and not wanting to pull each other around. so i knew there was a pretty good chance i could catch if i continued to hammer. just before the end of the second to last lap i caught them and we rolled through the start/finish line 3 deep and out onto the final lap.

i was sitting in... in 3rd position letting them pull me up the short road section. about a 1/3 of the way through the lap i made a move and went to the front. they latched on to it. they we hit another fire road section and made another move and then totally washed out in a loose corner and went down. they went by me and i tried jump right back but my rear brake was rubbing hard. i looked down to see a rock wedged in my brake/shifter. it took me a second to get it out and gave them some time to get a gap on me. i chased for the rest of lap but couldn't get back up to them.

i finished in 3rd place, only 10 seconds back of first, and 5 or so on second... and pretty stoked with the way i rode. racing head to head on the final lap was awesome and something i have been really looking forward to. i need to start better though. i can ride with the leaders i just need to start the race with them instead of chasing them down all race.

i'll say it again... i love cross racing. i like it just as much as racing my mountain bike for sure and can't wait to race again next weekend... twice.

after the race i hauled ass home to hang out with beth (who killed it in her race) and watch a very disappointing chargers game. i don't what the hell is up with them right now.... i think the coaching is horrific! but it was ok... i had some good beers and beth owned it in the kitchen making awesome nachos and turkey chili.

so back to some light riding and running this week and then more racing next weekend. good times.