All in a Daze Work

And now a word from the raciest guy on the team - Mr. Mike Mullen:

What a great cycling day Wednesday was!

I skipped a meeting at work this morning and took a test ride around Green Lake of a Hedrick Cycles Version4. I liked it enough that I traded in my Parlee frame  for a Version4 frame. Great day for a ride and to make a deal for a new bike.

After work I went out to CX practice at the Jerry Baker Velodrome. Fantastic as usual. While my engine still needs work, my skills set and knowledge has improved tremendously thanks to the clinic and all the hot laps of a great technical course we get to ride. If you want to get better at CX, go to these. Good to see three of our Chris's there and one of our Peters.

And then I get home and I don't think it can get any better but then I find out the first episode of Svenness has just been released: http://www.cxhairs.com/2015/11/04/svenness-4-1/

What a day! - Mike Mullen

Repair Kit Life Savers

Everyone knows that a bike repair kits needs the following:

tube
lever(s)
CO2 with valve
patch kit
multi-tool
tire boot

But as Steve B suggested to me the other day there are two more things that everyone should have tucked into their kit:

valve extender
zip ties

A few weeks ago I got my first flat on my new rims, and when I went to put in my tube I realized that my new wheels are five millimeters deeper than my old one rendering the valve too short.  Luckily Mike R had a long stem tube.  I've found this to be a fairly common occurrence on team rides and a valve extender renders the issue a non-problem.

Zip ties are like duct tape: you can do amazing things with them.  Zip ties are especially useful during the winter months when flimsy plastic fenders start to disintegrate.  Last year a zip tie bummed from Joe M saved me when I lost one of my fender attachment bolts.

Cross Shares

Well mud season is now finally upon us.  Racing in the wet gunk brings an entirely new dimension to cyclocross, and it’s a dimension that requires a few special pointers.  Here are a few mud tips that I’ve learned over the years:

Spare Shoes and Socks.  If you have a spare pair of biking shoes bring them to use during practice and warm-up laps.  Before your race switch out to dry footwear. 

Rear Fender.  I like to use one of those long plastic fenders that strap to the seat tube and extend horizontally over the rear tire during practice and warm-up laps.  While this type of fender is worthless for group rides they are super effective for keeping your ass dry.  Keep yer butt dry as long as possible.

Glasses.  Wear some kind of eye protection, preferably clear lenses.  Cross tires hold a lot of mud and when you hit pavement, gravel or packed dirt all that gunk from the rider in front of you gets flung into your face.  So unless you’re in front you’ll be needing some eye protection.

Garbage Bag.  Bring a big hefty and fill it with all of your wet, muddy gear.  Deal with the mess when you get home.

Pump sprayer.  Get one of those one or two gallon sprayers that gardeners use to spray whatever they spray on plants, fill it with water and use it to clean your brakes and drivetrain after your practice and warm-up laps.

Jacket Minder.  Wear a jacket to the starting line and have someone close by to whom you can toss it.  This is when it’s a good time to have teammates. 

(Baby got) Bac at the Tac

The Cross Revolution guys put on yet another great race down at North SeaTac Park.  The cross scene here in the Great Northwest just keeps getting better and better.

Trevor, Chris R and I joined Dave S in the wee morning hours working registration.  Working the tables is a good way to put names to faces: I know a lot of faces and I know a lot of names, yesterday was a good chance to connect the dots.  Steve B and Jim W took over the afternoon shift.  A big thank you to all of the Cucina guys who stepped up and helped make the race happen.

The Cucina squad was in full force yesterday, and we had some smok’n results:

Peter S
Darren J

Darryl

Mike M – 18 laps

Jeff G – 1^st place

Dan L – 3^rd place

Dave S – 8^th place

Terrence S

Trevor H

Peter M

Jim W

Chris R – 4^th place

Erik O

Paul D

I’d like to make a special shout out to Chris R for taking fourth in a brutal Masters 1/2 race wherein only five guys managed to finish on the lead lap. 

The course was awesome with two significant run-ups and a bunch of fast single-track.  I hit hard on the first lap – it took me about ten minutes with a finger nail brush to get all of the dirt out of the wounds – and was basically just happy to finish.  The tent was a happening scene with Terrence doing dollar bill hand-ups, Mike recovering and getting ready for some more and Peter just quietly popp’n barleys.  Hanging out underneath the tent, staying dry and yelling at the racers makes for some serious cross fun.

Pain is Temporary -MFG #4

The dirt heads made a noble showing at MFG #4 Magnuson Park on Sunday.  Highlights of the day were Mr.Hall’s third place finish, Dave S doubling up and Chris M doing the devil’s work on that sweet Raleigh single speed.  A special shout out goes to Jeff G for keeping his cool, Darryl was ready to clear the benches in defense of his teammate.

The course was fast with nary a minute for the catching of the breath.  Zac, Terry and Rich once again did a bang up job of setting the route.

It feels like cross season is finally upon us.  No more of that sissy sunshine, it’s now time to HTFU.  Even if you don’t plan to race I really encourage everyone to come out, grab some Motofish coffee and hang wit yer boyz in the tent.

Remember pain is temporary but twenty ninth place is forever.

Keep a Little Change in Your Pocket

HB 1550 was signed by the Governor in May and we’re pleased to announce that effective January 1, 2016, event promoters will no longer be required to collect sales tax for races or events in Washington state. You can see the full bill here.

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/evergreen-helps-eliminate-sales-tax-for-wa-bike-races-2015.html

Paper Numbers

After five years I finally discovered how to properly pin on a paper number.  Forego the holes.