madera stage

another first for me on the road and i found a new weakness. TT.
the crit didn't go too well either. i flatted before completing the first lap and had to repair it before getting back in. just another learning experience, bring an extra wheel set.
the road race went much better as i held on to the lead group until the last hilly 1K.

it was a lot of fun and congrats to ed as he did very well both days.

Keyesville Classic MTB Race

Hey what's up guys, this past weekend a few of us did a mtn bike race at Keyesville and got some good results. With root injured (he pulled a muscle in his back), and his entry prepaid, I race as Jeremia Root. We got second in the cross country, fourth in the short track (dirt crit), and second in the downhill. So for the overall, "all mountain," race we took first! On the downhill team Oz got third and our buddy Mike Males took second in the pro downhill. It was an awesome weekend.

Dave intro

Hey Guys,
Just wanted to do a quick intro in case you didn't already know me. After begging for years, John finally let me on the team so I'm happy to be aboard, one life goal is finally accomplished! I mainly race mtn bike and have been doing it for a few years now. I have been steadily getting faster unfortunately so has Patrick and Matt so I'm still chasing. I love competition and would train 8 hours a day if it were economically feasible. Everyday life such as wife, two daughters and work do take up a lot of those potential training hours but it's important to be well rounded. I look forward to riding with you all. Stone, it was nice spending quality time getting to know you out at Buck Ridge on my wheel. Let's do it again soon!
Dave

MTB US Cup #1

What's up guys. Stu, Root, and I went down to San Dimas for a mtb race- the first of the US Cup- and Root represented by kicking some ass! He got third in a very strong field, the guy that won our class got the second fastest time in cat 1.  As for myself, well, I got fourth, from last, and allowed Stu to beat me by a few minutes. Suffice to say it was a hard, fast race and very warm.

MiB III

We were representing along Millerton Road today; Aaron around 1, me at 2 and Ed at 3pm. Secret training revealed.

Merco 3 - 33 und 33 - three is the magic number

So here I am, in the threes crit and the plan is to be menace and to stay out of trouble - 28miles/36laps. We had $75/50/25 prime on the 2nd/3rd and 4th lap which was sure to stir things up. I sat near the front and got into a few minor moves and nothing really stuck until about, heck I don't really know and there I was with 4 other guys. We worked well for about a lap, but one fella just insisted on sprinting through his pulls. Maybe he was super strong, but that is recipe for disaster. So about a lap and a click later we were consumed and from then on I decided to sit in and recover a bit. With maybe 15 to go I went at it again when things slowed down in the chicane. Tim Butler came up to me, but with just two guys, it wasn't going to work. After that I was starting to feel the effort and sat near the front, finishing 33rd. Crash report: we were sailing pretty smooth until about a lap and 1/2 to go, from where on I counted 3 crashes. Unfortunately, one of these ended up taking down our very own "Stone Cold". Better luck next time.

After the race, it was either pulling weeds, or sticking around for the 35+ 1/2/3; the choice was suddenly obvious.

So there I was, lining up for that race, not really sure what to expect in terms of strategy, speed, etiquette, but I was a willing student. 32 miles/40 laps. A-ha, gulp. We'll see if the legs shall carry me forth. The race was noticeably faster, not sure by how much, but Timba' (Tim B.) mentioned seeing 28/30 many time. All I saw was *RED* as I was praying the legs would not seize (Thanks Stone Cold for the IV fluids, that did the trick). Anyway, back to the novel... As I was saying, the race was noticeably faster and definitely cleaner. Compared to the 3s, the chicane was a breeze. Guys were going in no more than 2-3 deep and you always had space on either side of you. What a pleasant treat :-). However, coming out of it, a sprint ensued, and with about 15 to go the following left-hander was also followed by another 10-15 seconds of really hard efforts in order for the elastic not to pop. I found myself cruising next to our local big boy Jonathan Eropkin and have much enjoyed his draft. Boy can he move seamlessly on the sidelines... Anyway, I was watching all the action from the back row. I think there were a few breaks, but I was so far back I couldn't really tell. However, it definitely came down to a sprint and big Steve Gregarios probably ended up getting it. I was at the back of the front group (and being unsportsmanlike-like by passing guys who were sitting up); however, it must have been so, as I got 33rd in that race to. Oh, and did I mention there were no crashes?!? Me likes...

It was great hanging out with the crew and spending another great day at the races.

PS: The P/1/2 race is just fast and congrats to our boy AC for staying out trouble!