"i don't want to be a lincoln... i want to be a ford"

another one of these "make a connection with random occurances..." posts:

so we went to grandpa's house for christmas & had a merry old time. he gave my kid some mardi gras coins laying around to play with. they're bigger than a silver dollar, so not a choking hazard, but fun to clink, stack and jingle in your pocket.

amongst the greek gods, new oreleans saints players and other odd & sods, low and behold but who is depicted on one of them... Washington, Lincoln and the ex-president who just the same day had his ticket punched for the GOP convention in the sky, GERALD R. FORD!

i'll actually say "props" to the guy who holds the record for biggest friggin' mess inherited by a president. 'course, that record will be shattered when the drooling moron who currently holds the lease at 1600 pennsylvania avenue nw is deposed in 2008.

i wonder if Chevy Chase will be invided to the funeral... maybe even a pallbearer?

an ordinary average [shop sink]...

we have an ordinary average suburban house, with a regular basement laundry area with the requisite shop sink.

so, after washing out some roller covers, this appeared:

GUESS WHO!

i promise no photoshop shenanigans or anything. I SWEAR!
guess it's just something that makes us human. the search for order. it comforts us.

ceci n'est pas une pipe.

i'm gonna just go no further on this one...

there is no language in our lungs, to tell the world just how we feel...

Margo and Marlone came to cheer me on at the final 'cross race of the year at Angell Park speedway in sun prairie, wi. soooo many thanks to them for their support all season. it really means the most to me, in amongst a lot of stuff that i will remember/embellish.

first up, cat.4. this was a good race at a furious pace.

in the latter laps, i caught up with Lewis Clark (above), a rider i usually only see at the start & relaxing at the finish as i trundle on in. after a pass on the flats, he came charging past over the barriers. i chased again, which began a familiar refrain. i beefed it in the grass in the snail (a section of switchbacks). then came the re-mount, chase and prompt wipe out on the most vicious counter camber hairpin. i slid down the hill and under the tape, so i had to grab my bike and run back onto the course before i could even remount! all of this actually came across as FUN!

i then debated for the next 2 hours whether or not to do the 30+ race. i finally decided to start at least. i was actually a little scared, just 'cause the legs felt rather heavy which only added to the uncertainty i felt on the aforementioned downhill 180 degree right hander.

even though off of the start i dropped off like... (ooh got one) an oil can boyd splitter, i'm glad i toed the line. first, i guilted half-a-dozen spectators into cheering for me at the bottom of the course, which they then did during each lap.

then...

there was the beer garden... a tunnel of noise & good cheer that was really new for me... having a bunch of people just scream for you while you ride. friggin' cool.

also, props to a rider i barely know Derek Hay (least, think that's his name, above far right), who out of the goodness of his spirit kept handing me a bottle, each time by the finish straight.

yes, while trying in vein to hold off a chaser, there was a meeting of my elbow and the gravel, but that became just part of the glory.

this season will really be something i will remember and will mumble about in the nursing home in years to come.

props to John Erickson & the rest of the brazen dropouts for a friggin' hard course, even in such beautiful atmospheric conditions.

i also need to say good luck to Richard Moran & Jane as well as Barb & Gene.

can't forget all the organizers & volunteers, too! Renee Callaway, Chris Setter, Ben Milano, Paul Roltgen, Steve Roeder, Jerry Pearce & Neil Swanson.

AND the officials. much respect to the peace-keepers.

odds and sods:

1). did you notice i stopped b*tch*ng about falling off on re-mounts? ok, well you haven't, but i changed my mindset on them. after practicing every day over lunch, i finally decided three weeks ago to quit trying to get rid of my left foot stutter-step and just embrace it. while not the best form, it's still faster for me than not being able to execute a textbook mount and crashing into the bushes all the time.

2). my placings... cat 4 was 33rd of 46 and while 30+ was 15th of 16, that was still good enough to add four to my season point total. grand total: five WCA cyclocross points. maybe next year, i can score enough points that i don't have to spell the word out.

epic.

gibbs lake 'cross. mud, snow & the beach.

there was this sinister step-down running section next to the lake. the official at the start called it "the beach." friggin' BRILLIANT.

i overheard someone setting up the course say to another volunteer "i can't believe you talked him into this." so, what seemed to be a double-dog dare turned into a center piece for the course.

just a run along the beach:

me courtesy of Renee Callaway/ www.madcross.org :

exiting the beach:

a little snow:cat 3 post race poses:

and...


i GOT A POINT! ME! this is huge. this is Selle Italia-Serramenti Diquigiovanni going on the break just to get some camera time for the sponsor. me=happy.

oh no. (oh yes!)

must ... re- ... must resist buying ... disco kit. stayed off ... BANDWAGON for sev-en years. can ... not ... cave ... cave in now!



BASSSSSSOOOOOOOOO!

acting! thank you!

photo courtesy of Graham Watson & http://www.velonews.com/

ah, the life of Graham Watson. so, he writes in cycle sport that he's packed it in for the season and is on holiday until after the first of the year. but, then big tex rings up and sends him on an all expense paid shoot to where ever this is to take some baby-on-the-lawn snaps of the latest signee. guess this is how getting sunburned bouncing around europe on the back of a motorcycle year in year out pays off.

where's my csc club membership card?

please go by something from Graham Watson as a thank you for not suing me for use of these pictures.

...i think we developed a push in turn four...

estabrook park along the river in milwaukee. really feeling good. had blast last sunday at washington park and a week's worth of drills and rides have gone well.

it was a drag race of a start across the the park, two right handers, over the barriers: tout va bien,

my bike was fine, but as it bounced onto the course, the guy who hit it punctured. i felt really bad, 'cause he was done. i mean what do you say as you ride past? "sorry, one fifty (?)." "it's all right," was is gracious retort.

as the laps went by i was able to gain a few positions. then, after a footrace on the last run up, i decided to ride directly into the right side bushes on the re-mount. "hey guys, wait for me!"

wow. i was really humbled by the whole experience. i mean, feeling bad about crashing someone out, then working to get some places back, only to lose three of them on the last re-mount. oh, did i forget to mention i got lapped right next to the ruins of the tennis courts?

well enough of my pity-party. time to get over myself.

let's play WHO'S AT THE RACES!

here's Richard who rides cat. 4 with me (ok, ahead of me) and Jane. she won some stuff this day. good job Jane!

most of you know mean Gene the 'cross machine (sure he's never heard that one before) & Barb. Barb works with my wife Margo and was quite surprised to find someone who even knew what cyclo-cross was...

maybe next week will be better?

welcome to washington park. don't mind the goose poop

race #5 of the wca 'cross series at washington park in milwaukee, w'scauny. what a cool place to have a cyclo-cross race! the organizers (Velo Trocadero) really made pate de fois gras out of the space that was available.

the camera made it into the gig-bag this time, so HOORRAAYY! HOLIDAY SNAPS!

in honor of halloween, cosumes were in full swing and these tombstones lined the course:

on the pre-ride, i passed the first one, but stopped and paid respects to Tommy Simpson (whose last words grace the title of this blog), Marco Pantani & il Championissimo. well, not stopping at Jacques Anquetil's ended up being a big mistake. the spirit of the bon vivant got back at me later in the warmups, when his ghost bit my chain in half.

in direct violation of shimano rule #105.FD.9, i was able to piece it back together with a cyclo rivoli tool before the start of the cat.4 race and it lasted through those five laps at least.

the founding fathers of cyclo-cross (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Schiller) looked on rather stoically during the day's proceedings.


this is the centerpiece of this wonderful space: the amphitheater.


here's Richard with his costume (it was way better than my costume):


what's the mark of a good photographer? TIMING!


here's one of me on my way to a 34th finish (of 55) , courtesy of Renee Callaway www.madcross.org

ODDS AND SODS:

1). also, just to clear up a washington park start line controversy, according to the little arrows on the side wall of my michelin cyclocross jet tires, my rear tread was facing the right direction.

2). a picture of Jeff Kao (XXXathletico) & i (again, courtesy of Renee Callaway) from the muddy cam-rock (29th of 35)

medio tiempo... à temps partiel... a orario ridotto... at the half

well, since i didn't get express written consent of major league baseball, no pictures of cam-rock state park cyclo-cross due to the potential for copyright infringement... ok, fine i forgot the camera again. maybe some ARTIST RENDERINGS will help!

i didn't go saturday to whitewater, but sunday was muddy enough even though it had stopped raining. (throw in obtuse u2 reference for this shot:)

muddy mudskipper was right in it. note the funky carry-the-bike-on-the-drivetrain-side style. (throw in frank zappa as the pope being rescued by powdered toast man reference here:)

due to the blackout restrictions on tv coverage, a courtroom sketch artist daubed together this lovely tapestry depicting the race through the medieval city of cambridge:

ok, that's really courtesy of www.philippeseutin.be

well, cam-rock represents the half way point of the season. i had my soigneur's intern crunch some numbers for me. really puts into perspective where i stand.

this first one compares my finish with the total number of riders in each race:

this one, my average finish percentile,

so, as you can see, i'm really sucking quite handily.

here's to a great second half!

another race, another "incident"

Moe's Burrito Cyclo-Cross race sponsored by CZ Velo Club at Lapam Peak state park in delafield, wisconsin was saturday. cat4. start area was narrow & undulating. you can prolly guess what happened next. no pictures, so... LIFE-LIKE RECREATIONS!

first 50 meters... no problem. just as i was latching on to a wheel to follow through to the actual loop, another rider came up between the rows...

somehow, my front wheel turned 90 degrees, and i spun out. luckily, wasn't going fast enough yet to endo.

i tried to remout right away, but my rear wheel wouldn't turn, the reason
for which wasn't readily apparent. that's when i noticed my knee really hurt and was reminded of the advice from my friend Joe "if you go down, stay down!" of course, i went down 'cause i didn't remember the advice from my friend Hans "just keep pedaling!"

after quite a while of pain, i finally could think straight & found the problem with the rear wheel: a spring lever had spurng, sending the brake caliper into the spokes. since the team car had already passed and there was no neutral service to be found, i got the rear brake re-assembled and was off.

funny thing was that by that time, the spectators who had watched the start (and had been quite nice and offered to help me, but i was too busy swearing to accept any help) were walking the course up to the loop. so, i shouldered the bike and just trotted past through the weeds (er, "prairie restoration"). "excuse me. look out please! pardon!" sorry to the guy i whacked in the shoulder with my rear wheel on the way by.

i'm really not sure where i finished. after thinking about it, i was probably two laps down. i aksed the offical who was at the start if i took anyone else down with me, he didn't think so, so that's good.

in the parking lot, a guy asked "how'd it go?" of course i bitched about crashing during the start. he went on to tell me that he missed the race because of a mess up with when it was supposed to start. i'm told some of the flyers said 10am while others said 10:30am.

so, lesson learned. guess there's always someone a little worse off than you are. oh well. maybe i'll do better at brazen's race on sunday.

my first race. ever. of any kind.

1 october 2006. i had a blast at BADGER-CROSS cyclo-cross race in Verona, WI, the first race of the 2006 WCA cyclo-cross series. thank-you Margo & Marlone for cheering for me. I love you.
i'm in the red jersey at top of frame:

photo courtesy: Renee Callaway

also, cheapau (as well as photo courtesies) to clinic & race organizer Renee Callaway & all of her volunteers for such a cool event.

photo courtesy: Renee Callaway

thanks to the guy who helped me pin my bib number on the back of my jersey properly... WHILE WE WERE ON THE START LINE!

Mike Meccia (#155) and i duked it out for the balance of the 30 minutes:

photo courtesy: Margo Barcheski

sorry to the guy i ran into during the start (i think it was a stoton rider... well, at least i didn't knock him over, just took him off of his line a little).

note the bad form over the barrier... the seat shouldn't be under the arm, but away from the body. but, at this point, i couldn't have cared less:

photo courtesy: Margo Barcheski

as rider #101, i ran in USAC Category 4. 53rd out of 63 and surprisingly didn't get lapped.

http://www.madcross.org/badgercross06results.htm

unfortunately, i can't seem to find a photo of me crashing into the first set of barriers. (i'd actually pay good money for that).

for those of you who aren't familiar with cyclo-cross, here's a couple more of Renee's pictures that will give a feel for what goes on.

Lewis Clark, a parent of one of Margo's students (small world), portages the sand trap on his way to a 27th place finish:

get off and run some more, this time up hill over some logs...

and be careful on the exit of the chicane:

Category 3 men's race over the barriers:

bike reflectors, a little crome, the right sun angle and a dirty lens maks a pretty cool shot: for more wisconsin 'cross action:

www.madcross.org

www.wicycling.org/

www.cyclocrossworld.com