So, from piss and moan on Thursday to taking the day off Friday, I feel like a new man. Unbelievable. I have to remember to actually do that every now and again. It's like someone set the reset button to reboot me.

Today was epically gorgeous here in zee Repoobleek. Bobby and I got out for a 100% cross focused training ride this AM. We both feel air changing.

We did 20 x 20's up Poorman's today to work on maintaining porting technique while being under stress. You are climbing this slog of a dirt road suffering but the goal is to be able to maintain your composure (e.g. on/off bike technique) while suffering. In the 59th minute of a cross race, you'll be thanking me for this Bobby. You want to be able to be as smooth and efficient when the body feels like it can't. Suffering up this slog a few times a week is helpful for that late race assurance.

We moved on to Elk's and set up shop. Slow speed technique training over the PVC's. Fun. Took some pics and vids.

What did YOU do to get ready for cross today kids?!!

Mr. Boberino

The pit bike felt niiiice.

The PVC's are back from hiatus.

Wasted after the effort.

You go, Kelly:
As seen here on Velonews. Pic is from the N Boulder Crit.

3 years old and ripping it. Just like his big brother did. Seamus took flight today and isn't looking back. The Like-A-Bike yet again proved its worth for boy No. 2.

I watched him today do this and in all sincerity, and obviously not to sound cheesy but it'll sound the way it'll sound, this affirms why I ride. Just seeing his face creates that instant connection between what he just experienced today and what I have known for the last 32 years of my life since I learned to pedal Ted Stoica's bike...the one he got for his birthday..at HIS birthday party. I can only imagine those pros who take the step towards dope to get faster. This joy in Seamus which they absolutely knew is now the farthest thing from their mind. Somewhere along the way the job and livelihood and overbearing ego penetrated the goodness of it all and totally sullied the experience of what a bike does to transform a human.

So all the sappy doperssuck stuff aside, CHECK THIS OUT! MY BOY'S FREE! HE DID IT! SICK!!!

OK, possibly the single most bizarre photo sequence I've ever seen. Start by clicking HERE and then follow the sequence by hitting 'next image' at the top. It'll draw a "Huh??" (said like Scooby Doo of course) out of you for sure.

100's and 100's oof solid photos. If you raced and see you shiny mug, buy one and support my boy Joe! See them here.

Tonight was the 5th Boulder Racing STXC race and my 2nd. Fairly big pro field again and the conditions were way better than the first time. The heat and dust were way down. The light rains helped that.

Colin B did a fantastic job with this course tonight. Tight and twisty...very BMX-y. Fast where it needed to be but did not favor roadies by any means (more on that later). Tons of 180 degree turns to power out of and lots of places where you needed some serious MTB expertise to know exactly what gear to be in....especially this "V" apex that has you going big ring/12 down and a radical swing up. Gear selection was huge.

Warming up the body felt decent, the mind was into it, the vibe was great and tons of my friends were there. Golden. Then, I saw some dude in the Cat 3's wash out and face plant so violently (his head schwacked the ground and bounced) that I felt my sphincter pucker.

The pro men line up and we proceed to wait. I started on a HUGE front row line with like 20 dudes. Then about 3 rows behind me. Big field. My start was decent like top 10 and I am still trying to control myself and not blow my wad trying to take out holeshots (at least not yet until I can handle the repercussions of that exertion) and practice settling in. The usual suspects were there, Colby Pearce, Mike West, The WB looked good and the gaggle of Trek factory guys in their fairly bling white Nikes. Very PRO.

Then, the crashes started.

In lap 2 of 6, like 3 roadies wash out. I pick my way around them, literally bunny hopped one. This kid whom I've seen training on the road from San Jose. San Jose kid is strong and bridges back to me and drops me. Lap 3 or 4 my bro Troy takes a digger (Tuba I hope you are OK man! I looked for you after thee race! My heart was in my throat when you crashed else I would've shouted at you. Looked nasty). I dodge that and continue on. Bell lap. San Jose kid who crashed in front of me YET AGAIN goes down this time bad. Not moving. Face in the dirt. I stop, Colin B stops tons of spectators come in. He moves a bit so we're off. Honestly, my legs are turning again but my head was so out of the game. I hear the bell in the back and it wakes me up. I swear to you it was like that scene in Saving Private Ryan...that beach scene when Tom Hanks gets shell shocked then comes to when some kid is yelling at him. Kind of like that. The bell was the kid yelling at me.

I finished strong-ish and can't complain. The WB continues to be better than rock solid. Amazing. I thought he pulled out the W tonight but I think he podiumed. So strong. SO MANY ROCKY MOUNT'ERS out there cheering tonight. Rad. THANK YOU! Boups and Longman in particular. So rad to hear you. The spit coming out of my mouth was preventing me from saying thank you while racing.

Longman was snapping the photos tonight as was Joe Strandell of Peloton Photo. He'll have those posted tune so keep an eye out.

Some of Longman's handiwork. Thanks mate!

Local cycling legend and even more prolific photog Steve Z has done a fairly good side by side shoot out of two single speeds...similar in appointments but one on 26" and the other on 9'ers. It's Curtlo versus On One (anyone know the URL for them?) folks.

Read the entire shoot out here by visiting Steve's blog. I give the review props even though he caught me here at the USGP's last year whimpering like a worked over dog with my cracked wrist bone.

I will get to scope out my Revolver 29'er next week! Mike is going to bring it up to San Anselmo for me to scope out. Stoked. Going to dismantle the YBB and migrate the parts.

Some very very good photography from the Boulder Short Track Series and other cycling events in the area can be found here at Lori Photography.

Tuba Brown and I warming up in the dust bowl.

Kill some time meandering through these. Taken by my team mate and fellow cross geek Ryan.

Monday and I'm feeling slightly better. The house has turned back into the 'Hot Zone'. Again, the TTT effort essentially was like battery acid to my immune system. I clearly was not ready to go at that level of depth after being sick the way I was two weeks before. I've GOT to accept that being a young family with kids who are dragging things home and getting their little immunities sured up is just what it is. Or, I can order a boy in the bubble outfit from eBay and wear that around the house.

Anywhoo, Saturday was awesome! The Haystack TTT (they wrongly put in my team mate G Pent in the results in lieu of me...) was great as well as witnessing my wife in her first race in the SW4's. She rocked it. I was so proud.

We drilled it well and flowed very nicely Saturday. Early season rides out to Carter Lake were essentially like training grounds for the TTT. We go out essentially for 70 mile TTT's (sans all that time trail crap on the bikes) and beat the crap out of each other. On Saturday, Couch and I floored it extremely hard on the first 1/2 of the 13.6 mile course to shield our 3 ringers we needed to get to the line but Neal H was on fire the whole way. His strength and that of Boup's is crazy. They pulled fiercely the whole way. Boups will (no kidding) go from Cat 4 to 2 this year. His power output needed to be checked in order to not imbalance the rest of us. All that HP. Nuts.

Photo courtesy of JP of RM Sport and Spine