James Pearl Thinks Blogging is Dead
- Thread starter Norm
- Start date
kindergartner proud
I would add Musashi to the list. just finished. long but worth the read. interesting podcast to supplement the reading (if you can stomach tim ferriss) but be warned that is will spoil the book if you listen before you read: http://jockopodcast.com/2017/11/15/100-with-tim-ferriss-musashi-and-how-warrior-way-relates-to-life/
I've pooped in a box. I've also pooped in a bucket, on a piece of sheetrock, in a bag, and in the woods.
@JimN gets today's gold star for using a Trading Places quote in another thread.
Things are good right now. I feel good. Life is good. Just want to say that. I think people often fail to take notice when things are good.
The coffee I'm currently drinking, which is still the first half of package #1 from @taylor185 (the Ethiopian. Ah, the coffee is Ethiopian, not Justin. Actually I don't know his heritage. Maybe him too), made with this Aeropress, is nothing short of amazing. If you're fully boiling the water with this, you're doing coffee farmers around the world a disservice. Do yourself a favor and steep it before it gets to a boil. On top of this, it's just damn beautiful outside these days. Maybe the temperatures aren't quite warm enough to need to worry about staying on top of your Brazilian wax. But hot damn, it's just gorgeous out there. The fall chill is nice, I'm enjoying it. I've started tuning into the upstate NY/Vermont station of 102.7 again this week, and I've been enjoying that as well. I think it resonates with me more as the weather gets colder because I was introduced to it last winter by @graveyardman67 when we took the ski trip up to his cabin. I then listened to it a lot on the trainer after that. I see from the other thread that Killington is opening up this coming weekend, which is crazy since I just saw some guys from NYC posting pics on IG of their trip to KT last weekend. It's a little sad to see KT go under for the season, but I'm looking forward to this winter. I really expect the winter to be a good one, and hopefully will include another trip (or 2) up to Bill's cabin.
Like I said at the start of this post, things are just good right now.
The day in a nutshell goes like this. Hit up Costco this morning because doing this at 10:00am makes the trip about 1/3 of the total time it would normally take. Because of this, our cheese drawer is JJ Walker Dynomite right now. Was asked to go back down to Durham in November which I may or may not agree to. I guess I've been taken off the shelf and I'm in play for travel again. If the Delaware project wraps up this year that would also mean a trip down there, but those are mostly ok because I can roll it into a stop at White Clay. On the topic of work I need to log 5.5 more hours tomorrow then I'm free until about 7:00, when we go to dinner with @UtahJoe and Miss Utar. Last thing we did today was Julia and I went to Wharton (north, not south) to watch Zac's first round playoff game. They lost 3-0, so they are 1-and-done. Sadness.
Despite it being the end of October I am staring down the barrel of 6 more potential trips this year:
* Duke
* Pittsburgh
* Delaware
* Seattle
* Louisville
* Canada
Things are good right now. I feel good. Life is good. Just want to say that. I think people often fail to take notice when things are good.
The coffee I'm currently drinking, which is still the first half of package #1 from @taylor185 (the Ethiopian. Ah, the coffee is Ethiopian, not Justin. Actually I don't know his heritage. Maybe him too), made with this Aeropress, is nothing short of amazing. If you're fully boiling the water with this, you're doing coffee farmers around the world a disservice. Do yourself a favor and steep it before it gets to a boil. On top of this, it's just damn beautiful outside these days. Maybe the temperatures aren't quite warm enough to need to worry about staying on top of your Brazilian wax. But hot damn, it's just gorgeous out there. The fall chill is nice, I'm enjoying it. I've started tuning into the upstate NY/Vermont station of 102.7 again this week, and I've been enjoying that as well. I think it resonates with me more as the weather gets colder because I was introduced to it last winter by @graveyardman67 when we took the ski trip up to his cabin. I then listened to it a lot on the trainer after that. I see from the other thread that Killington is opening up this coming weekend, which is crazy since I just saw some guys from NYC posting pics on IG of their trip to KT last weekend. It's a little sad to see KT go under for the season, but I'm looking forward to this winter. I really expect the winter to be a good one, and hopefully will include another trip (or 2) up to Bill's cabin.
Like I said at the start of this post, things are just good right now.
The day in a nutshell goes like this. Hit up Costco this morning because doing this at 10:00am makes the trip about 1/3 of the total time it would normally take. Because of this, our cheese drawer is JJ Walker Dynomite right now. Was asked to go back down to Durham in November which I may or may not agree to. I guess I've been taken off the shelf and I'm in play for travel again. If the Delaware project wraps up this year that would also mean a trip down there, but those are mostly ok because I can roll it into a stop at White Clay. On the topic of work I need to log 5.5 more hours tomorrow then I'm free until about 7:00, when we go to dinner with @UtahJoe and Miss Utar. Last thing we did today was Julia and I went to Wharton (north, not south) to watch Zac's first round playoff game. They lost 3-0, so they are 1-and-done. Sadness.
Despite it being the end of October I am staring down the barrel of 6 more potential trips this year:
* Duke
* Pittsburgh
* Delaware
* Seattle
* Louisville
* Canada
Did an easy ride in NYC again today, where I scoped out the skyways above Central Park. Just got to the hour and called it a day. Here's something funny. I read on Zwift Insider (ok ok that's funny enough but the punchline is later) that some people are hacking the NYC world to replace the glass skyways with solid material because the glass is making them queasy. Ok that was the punch line.
I gave up on Batman vs. Superman because it was lousy, and picked up Black Mirror again. Shut Up and Dance. Less awful than previous ones. I'll watch out the season but I need to find something better than this next.
Today and tomorrow will be nothing more than easy rides to get ready for this weekend's double.
I gave up on Batman vs. Superman because it was lousy, and picked up Black Mirror again. Shut Up and Dance. Less awful than previous ones. I'll watch out the season but I need to find something better than this next.
Today and tomorrow will be nothing more than easy rides to get ready for this weekend's double.
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I think @Santapez gets the gold star for referencing Trading Places in that thread, unless he actually trades in commodities like pork bellies and orange juice. Which he might.
Not any more, lost a fortune in it. Now I'm just waiting around for an African king to toss me some money to get back into the game.
There is a very fine line between love and nausea.
Vader could have done better, but maybe Arsenio's best movie.
your a pisser....
God its amazing outside right now...........
LET ME SIT HERE AND RIDE FAKE NYC AND STARE AT THE WALL.
Then spend a fortune to ride my trainer outside under a tent in noreaster for 2 days, followed by riding around in muck.
Monday it will be nice outside again and ill head back to basement NYC.
See you at dinner, should I book an outside table? I see its going to be in the 40s.
God its amazing outside right now...........
LET ME SIT HERE AND RIDE FAKE NYC AND STARE AT THE WALL.
Then spend a fortune to ride my trainer outside under a tent in noreaster for 2 days, followed by riding around in muck.
Monday it will be nice outside again and ill head back to basement NYC.
See you at dinner, should I book an outside table? I see its going to be in the 40s.
Or the bathroom. That's fairly commodious.
ChrisG
Unapologetic Lifer for Rock and Roll
This will always be a good reference.
Ok, starting late today. It's now 10:40. I'm going to make this a 20 minute blog. So let's slam this thing right into 5th gear and REM this to the end.
I only had to work 4 hours in the end today because I worked last night while D worked a little. So I was done by 12 which is when I rode which I will describe below but then when I was done riding I had to get on a call with Seattle to clear up some things. I am still not sure if the Seattle trip is going to happen this year but if it does, it will be the week before Kentucky which sucks because D reminded me that we have tickets to go see Neal DeGrasse Tyson which will suck if I have to miss it. I also found out that Duke is real and that I'm flying to North Carolina on 11/13 for a...wait for it...THREE hour meeting, 1.5 hours of which will be over lunch. So I will wake up and go to sleep in my own bed but in between I will get on a plane then another plans and maybe make the company buy me dinner as a bonus.
Today I was not cresting the Happy Wave as I was yesterday as I seemed to wake up with a decided lack of desire to do much of anything. I forced myself to pack the truck so I don't have to do it at 7am tomorrow. I also put tubulars on the backup cross bike so if by some chance bike #1 gets struck by lightning and yet misses me, I'll have a spare. After I did that I planted the remainder of the mums sporadically around the yard and along the sidewalk. When this was all done I sat down to edit chapter 25, and I am about the head into the meat of the start of the resolution of the story. After just 2 days of putting more time into editing this, I feel better about things and that this is the right track.
Race predictor has me coming in like DFL+2 or something the next 2 days so frankly I can't be bothered to care that much. @jShort is supposed to come in 1 place ahead of me but this is because there is like an 80 point gap in people who have registered for this race. What often happens with this sort of weather is that you see the fast guys still show up and the slobs stay home. So I will be among the ~2/3 slobs that show, assuming that I wake up and see 39-and-pissing-rain and still get out of bed. No promises but I feel like I would be leaving @seanrunnette high & dry so I will likely slog down there either way.
I finished the amazing coffee and opened another bag, the 2nd part of the shipment. First cup was not as good, second cup I tried something different and it was better, Will report back after I have figured this one out but there is much sadness in this house as the USS Excellence sails away and my flavor orgasm via coffee cup has temporarily been put on hold.
Dinner with the @UtahJoe adults tonight in Morristown which is always a nice gathering. Ok it's 10:50 so suffice it to say that we ate food and had good conversation.
Ok 10:58 now. Let's reread as much as we can. Ok time's up.
I only had to work 4 hours in the end today because I worked last night while D worked a little. So I was done by 12 which is when I rode which I will describe below but then when I was done riding I had to get on a call with Seattle to clear up some things. I am still not sure if the Seattle trip is going to happen this year but if it does, it will be the week before Kentucky which sucks because D reminded me that we have tickets to go see Neal DeGrasse Tyson which will suck if I have to miss it. I also found out that Duke is real and that I'm flying to North Carolina on 11/13 for a...wait for it...THREE hour meeting, 1.5 hours of which will be over lunch. So I will wake up and go to sleep in my own bed but in between I will get on a plane then another plans and maybe make the company buy me dinner as a bonus.
Today I was not cresting the Happy Wave as I was yesterday as I seemed to wake up with a decided lack of desire to do much of anything. I forced myself to pack the truck so I don't have to do it at 7am tomorrow. I also put tubulars on the backup cross bike so if by some chance bike #1 gets struck by lightning and yet misses me, I'll have a spare. After I did that I planted the remainder of the mums sporadically around the yard and along the sidewalk. When this was all done I sat down to edit chapter 25, and I am about the head into the meat of the start of the resolution of the story. After just 2 days of putting more time into editing this, I feel better about things and that this is the right track.
Race predictor has me coming in like DFL+2 or something the next 2 days so frankly I can't be bothered to care that much. @jShort is supposed to come in 1 place ahead of me but this is because there is like an 80 point gap in people who have registered for this race. What often happens with this sort of weather is that you see the fast guys still show up and the slobs stay home. So I will be among the ~2/3 slobs that show, assuming that I wake up and see 39-and-pissing-rain and still get out of bed. No promises but I feel like I would be leaving @seanrunnette high & dry so I will likely slog down there either way.
I finished the amazing coffee and opened another bag, the 2nd part of the shipment. First cup was not as good, second cup I tried something different and it was better, Will report back after I have figured this one out but there is much sadness in this house as the USS Excellence sails away and my flavor orgasm via coffee cup has temporarily been put on hold.
Dinner with the @UtahJoe adults tonight in Morristown which is always a nice gathering. Ok it's 10:50 so suffice it to say that we ate food and had good conversation.
Zwift today because this is what the plan is and yes, I know you may be looking at this thinking "why do you drive on the parkway and park on the driveway" but are actually saying "why do you ride inside when it's nice and outside when it sucks" and I will say because I have a plan and I am sticking with the plan and if you are paying any attention to this blog you will see that I am losing weight and getting stronger and have more dedication and am enjoying this and goddamn it as I said yesterday I am happy so while I understand the irony of it what you should remember is that maybe I'm actually dedicated to what I'm doing and even though this is a big run-on sentence you should just look at the overall picture and say that "ok, I get it a little bit why maybe you're driving on this particular parkway" at least a little.
Or not. It's up to you.
Watched Black Mirror again and I have stopped bringing this up but today I will because against all odds this episode was actually not a deeply depressing view about the nature of human beings in the future and was actually a nice touch on what is otherwise a show dedicated to making sure you do not reproduce because you will be partly linked to the nefarious and evil future that is mankind, or at least the creators of this show would have you believe. I should also note that lesbians were added to this episode which is also set in a virtual world and I am sure this was written by a man. So in a nutshell, you can probably summarize this by saying that a man created a fantasy about lesbians and it was a happy show. Go figure.
I reached level 25 in Zwift today. This is the top of the ladder.
Or not. It's up to you.
Watched Black Mirror again and I have stopped bringing this up but today I will because against all odds this episode was actually not a deeply depressing view about the nature of human beings in the future and was actually a nice touch on what is otherwise a show dedicated to making sure you do not reproduce because you will be partly linked to the nefarious and evil future that is mankind, or at least the creators of this show would have you believe. I should also note that lesbians were added to this episode which is also set in a virtual world and I am sure this was written by a man. So in a nutshell, you can probably summarize this by saying that a man created a fantasy about lesbians and it was a happy show. Go figure.
I reached level 25 in Zwift today. This is the top of the ladder.
Ok 10:58 now. Let's reread as much as we can. Ok time's up.
I'm going to start this post with 2 interesting, 100% accurate, yet contradictory facts:
1. I came in DFL today
2. This is the best I have ever done at a MAC race since my cat 4 days
I'm also going to be honest in saying that I don't have much more of this left in me. This is, on absolutely no level, fun at all. Between this race and Hippo, I'm not sure why I'm doing this. It's not so much about the results, though I would be lying if I said that it doesn't kinda blow to come in last. Sure, if I'd been 14 of 80 it would be a lot easier to stomach as I sit here and wonder what the rest of this season holds. But the reality is that at no point in this race was I having fun. From the starting whistle to the moment the official told me I should remove myself from the course for the benefit of both myself and society at large, there was nothing in this race that I enjoyed.
The day was cold, it was wet, it was windy. The day was all the things you knew it was going to be if you woke up and looked out the window. Nothing crazy to note. We did our best to set the tent up and we nailed it and did our thing, and lots of people used it for shelter because, as you saw if you looked outside, it was not a nice day out today. For the most part the day went as expected save for some delays in the morning which they addressed by merging the 10:30 races into the 11:30 slot. Also, I had grabbed the wrong helmet which has no clip to secure it, so D had to pin it on to make sure it didn't fall off during the race. Otherwise, nothing of note.
I did 1 lap of a pre-ride and determined that pre-riding was a bad idea. This was going to be Hippo-level in terms of how bad it was going to be.
We line up, and thankfully we are first because some of these 40+ guys are the fastest in the 11:30 slot. This class used to be massive, something like 80 or more in some races. Today we are a measly 14, and I probably represent the single guy who really doesn't belong here. This would be evidenced by the fact that I would be the only one to get pulled, the other 13 finishing on the lead lap. In reality, I didn't get lapped. But they yanked me anyway. I was maybe the 2nd or 3rd to get pulled. So I just missed the cutoff but honestly, I was happy to call it a day.
The whistle blows and I do my thing. Like Hippo, it makes no sense for me to blast into total madness and it's also the case that I have no business being in this class. The first lap is a total and complete disaster, as I knew it would be based on my pre-ride. In looking back, there are no fewer than 7 dismounts per lap, which is stupid. I'm not sure why these course designers feel the need to make every race course a kick in the balls. But I do remember this phenomenon from 2015 when I finished my fade from the scene. I think this has a big role in why the class numbers are sinking. These races are just too hard for the average guy. Looking around me today, I'm lining up with guys that are absolute assassins on a bike. I don't get why every race feels the need to make it overly hard.
I understand that the weather had a lot to do with this, but it's my belief that when your course is literally 6 inches under water in spots, you should cut some of the superfluous parts out of it. How about instead of 7 dismounts, make it 5? Just a thought. There are a few other points I need to head off before people say them. I know the first thing people will say is that "this is cyclocross" but in my years of racing it has never been like this, and several other cross veterans said the same today. These last 2 races have been absolutely disastrous weather conditions, which the promoter has no control over. But you do control the course. And when your course is so brutal that Roger Aspholm only does 4 laps, it's too much. I know the other thing that people will say is that everyone had to do the same course. Yes, this is true. But if everyone had to fight an MMA match in the middle of the race, it doesn't mean it belongs there.
Yeah, I'm in a bad mood because of today, but I think the brutal races are what make too many people quit. Why does NIttany get a million people every year? Because it's accessible to pretty much anyone.
The second lap I more or less wondered why I was doing this at all and why I'm bothering to go to Kentucky. I will need to think long and hard about the rest of this season and the time & effort I seem to be pissing away on it. Sean passed me in there somewhere too.
Third lap I started on Sean's wheel as I has slowly started to reel him in, then we hit the mud-gravel-steps-pavement-walk double cock-punch to get up the hill. At that point I had to throw in the towel because it was too much for me to maintain. At the end of the lap they pulled me because I was sagging too much. And it was fine because I didn't want to be out there anyway.
My HR was 180 for the race so it's not as if I'm out there half-assing it. I'm giving it 100% and I just suck at this style of cyclocross racing as it seems to have evolved in the local scene now. I can't dismount 7 times per lap, run this much, and enjoy myself at any level. To me, I'm not racing my bike. This is some sort of circus performance that I'm not really any good at doing. Running up muddy hills then sliding down them isn't racing for me. Most importantly, it's just not fun, not enjoyable at all.
So we paid for tomorrow and I will go and I will race, I guess. But after that, I'm not sure what I'll do for the rest of the year. I feel like at my weight, with these courses, I have no chance to do much, and I'm just setting myself up to come in last week after week. In the end, I have to look at today and just maybe admit that this sport is not what it used to be for me, and I just don't like what it's become anymore. I also need to be ready to embrace the reality that I'm no good at this anymore, and it may be time to hang it up. If those 2 points are the case, it is what it is. I'm old enough now to deal with reality and maybe that's just what reality is.
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. But if this race is available to bet on in the Vegas books, I would not put too much money on #347. Yes I know my number already because $132 buys you a SINGLE number plate for 2 days. Hard to believe, I know. But there it is.
1. I came in DFL today
2. This is the best I have ever done at a MAC race since my cat 4 days
I'm also going to be honest in saying that I don't have much more of this left in me. This is, on absolutely no level, fun at all. Between this race and Hippo, I'm not sure why I'm doing this. It's not so much about the results, though I would be lying if I said that it doesn't kinda blow to come in last. Sure, if I'd been 14 of 80 it would be a lot easier to stomach as I sit here and wonder what the rest of this season holds. But the reality is that at no point in this race was I having fun. From the starting whistle to the moment the official told me I should remove myself from the course for the benefit of both myself and society at large, there was nothing in this race that I enjoyed.
The day was cold, it was wet, it was windy. The day was all the things you knew it was going to be if you woke up and looked out the window. Nothing crazy to note. We did our best to set the tent up and we nailed it and did our thing, and lots of people used it for shelter because, as you saw if you looked outside, it was not a nice day out today. For the most part the day went as expected save for some delays in the morning which they addressed by merging the 10:30 races into the 11:30 slot. Also, I had grabbed the wrong helmet which has no clip to secure it, so D had to pin it on to make sure it didn't fall off during the race. Otherwise, nothing of note.
I did 1 lap of a pre-ride and determined that pre-riding was a bad idea. This was going to be Hippo-level in terms of how bad it was going to be.
We line up, and thankfully we are first because some of these 40+ guys are the fastest in the 11:30 slot. This class used to be massive, something like 80 or more in some races. Today we are a measly 14, and I probably represent the single guy who really doesn't belong here. This would be evidenced by the fact that I would be the only one to get pulled, the other 13 finishing on the lead lap. In reality, I didn't get lapped. But they yanked me anyway. I was maybe the 2nd or 3rd to get pulled. So I just missed the cutoff but honestly, I was happy to call it a day.
The whistle blows and I do my thing. Like Hippo, it makes no sense for me to blast into total madness and it's also the case that I have no business being in this class. The first lap is a total and complete disaster, as I knew it would be based on my pre-ride. In looking back, there are no fewer than 7 dismounts per lap, which is stupid. I'm not sure why these course designers feel the need to make every race course a kick in the balls. But I do remember this phenomenon from 2015 when I finished my fade from the scene. I think this has a big role in why the class numbers are sinking. These races are just too hard for the average guy. Looking around me today, I'm lining up with guys that are absolute assassins on a bike. I don't get why every race feels the need to make it overly hard.
I understand that the weather had a lot to do with this, but it's my belief that when your course is literally 6 inches under water in spots, you should cut some of the superfluous parts out of it. How about instead of 7 dismounts, make it 5? Just a thought. There are a few other points I need to head off before people say them. I know the first thing people will say is that "this is cyclocross" but in my years of racing it has never been like this, and several other cross veterans said the same today. These last 2 races have been absolutely disastrous weather conditions, which the promoter has no control over. But you do control the course. And when your course is so brutal that Roger Aspholm only does 4 laps, it's too much. I know the other thing that people will say is that everyone had to do the same course. Yes, this is true. But if everyone had to fight an MMA match in the middle of the race, it doesn't mean it belongs there.
Yeah, I'm in a bad mood because of today, but I think the brutal races are what make too many people quit. Why does NIttany get a million people every year? Because it's accessible to pretty much anyone.
The second lap I more or less wondered why I was doing this at all and why I'm bothering to go to Kentucky. I will need to think long and hard about the rest of this season and the time & effort I seem to be pissing away on it. Sean passed me in there somewhere too.
Third lap I started on Sean's wheel as I has slowly started to reel him in, then we hit the mud-gravel-steps-pavement-walk double cock-punch to get up the hill. At that point I had to throw in the towel because it was too much for me to maintain. At the end of the lap they pulled me because I was sagging too much. And it was fine because I didn't want to be out there anyway.
My HR was 180 for the race so it's not as if I'm out there half-assing it. I'm giving it 100% and I just suck at this style of cyclocross racing as it seems to have evolved in the local scene now. I can't dismount 7 times per lap, run this much, and enjoy myself at any level. To me, I'm not racing my bike. This is some sort of circus performance that I'm not really any good at doing. Running up muddy hills then sliding down them isn't racing for me. Most importantly, it's just not fun, not enjoyable at all.
So we paid for tomorrow and I will go and I will race, I guess. But after that, I'm not sure what I'll do for the rest of the year. I feel like at my weight, with these courses, I have no chance to do much, and I'm just setting myself up to come in last week after week. In the end, I have to look at today and just maybe admit that this sport is not what it used to be for me, and I just don't like what it's become anymore. I also need to be ready to embrace the reality that I'm no good at this anymore, and it may be time to hang it up. If those 2 points are the case, it is what it is. I'm old enough now to deal with reality and maybe that's just what reality is.
Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. But if this race is available to bet on in the Vegas books, I would not put too much money on #347. Yes I know my number already because $132 buys you a SINGLE number plate for 2 days. Hard to believe, I know. But there it is.
Good news.... there’s sand tomorrow.
Twice per lap.
Good luck. Wish I could have made it out there today so you weren’t DFL.
eliasbull
Active Member
Thanks for coming out today @Norm. Conditions were horrible, and we trimmed some course sections mid-day, but it wasn't enough. If we had known the mud was going to be like that we would have set things up differently yesterday. We've had muddy years, and this was next level.
Tomorrow does have the sand, but also less elevation and a shorter lap. I hope it's more enjoyable.
Tomorrow does have the sand, but also less elevation and a shorter lap. I hope it's more enjoyable.
vanseggern1
Active Member
Sorry you had a bad day, but I think you might be going a little hard on yourself. Isn’t this only like your second or third cx race not only this season, but in a couple of years? That makes a huge difference regardless of what your fitness is. I seem to remember you giving me similar counsel a few years back.
I’m not saying that you have to go to Nationals or anything if you’re not up to it when the time comes, but I think you’d be selling yourself short if you hang up the bike altogether. Hopefully this isn’t too much unsolicited advice from a forever Cat 4
I’m not saying that you have to go to Nationals or anything if you’re not up to it when the time comes, but I think you’d be selling yourself short if you hang up the bike altogether. Hopefully this isn’t too much unsolicited advice from a forever Cat 4
I decided to skip the cross race today. In order to have any chance to make it to the end of this cross season, I need to limit the number of dumb things I do. In a sense, racing today would have been throwing good effort after bad. I proved my point yesterday. There was no reason for me to return and try to avenge myself only to wind up doubly-frustrated. So we drove down, hung out with @Magic and @seanrunnette and @pooriggy, and then @Dominique won her race and almost covered both of our expenses for the weekend. Thankfully someone in this household can bring home the bacon.
Before I dive into any sort of self-flagellation, I do want to mention @eliasbull and that I appreciate you coming in and responding with something other than, "Stop being a baby," last night. I thought long & hard about posting at all, because I knew you would read it. I can appreciate the difficult position you guys were in with this one. And I don't envy you this burden. I've enjoyed HPCX in years past. I will also say kudos to you for realizing after the first race today that it was too much, and literally changing a huge part of the course in 30 minutes. Again, I don't envy the hand you were dealt and I appreciate what you put into it.
@vanseggern1 - I think you misunderstand my point. I'm not going to hang up biking. I still contend that I'm happy, yesterday's debacle excluded. I'm really saying that if cross has turned into a sport where everyone should be on the verge of death-by-mud-run every week, I don't think this is for me. As you might expect, this was a topic of conversation on & off at the race today. I spent some time talking to someone else very involved in the race scene and he agreed that the sport is not accessible for the average rider anymore.
It may also have simply been the wrong year for me to return to cross racing. It's correct that I haven't done any races of any sort since 2015. But consider this. With no formal training at all, I jumped into 2 endurance mountain bike races in the 45+ class and did just fine. Average, but fine. I then bust my ass for 6 months in an effort to get ready for the parallel class in cross racing, and I lose 2 of 3 races. What does that say? To me, there are just no average guys racing this sport anymore outside of the 4/5 class. If I have nobody to race, it begs the question. Why race?
I've also considered the fact that I may just be out of my league. As a cat 2, should I downgrade? To what? The class I'm in is 1/2/3/4. I can downgrade twice and still be in the "right" class. The cat 2/3 race today had 28 people registered and if I apply my crossresults number to that predictor, I'm just battling for the bottom 5 of that class as well. I don't think that's the answer.
I can only come to one conclusion at this point. In order to maximize my enjoyment of this fall, I need to minimize the number of mud slog races I attend, which may be easier said than done this year. It may also be time to scrap these small local races and focus more on the bigger race venues. On that note, against some bit of common sense, the Northampton Weekend is not totally off the table. That may allow us to race with more people across the spectrum, which would allow us to actually race. Caveat fully stated: Execution of that idea is very far off. Also, if there's any chance we end up driving into a mudslide weekend, it's not going to happen. So it would have to be a decision made the week of the race. Possibly days before.
In any event, I'm not giving up yet Steve. Just like Hippo, I need to use this to learn more about my current constraints, and how best to maximize what I get out of the season as a whole. I'm still committed to that (possibly idiotic) trip to Kentucky. And if it turns out that we get there and it's a mud slog, well that's just a shitty luck and I'll have to deal with it.
Thanks for enduring my mid-cross crisis this weekend.
Before I dive into any sort of self-flagellation, I do want to mention @eliasbull and that I appreciate you coming in and responding with something other than, "Stop being a baby," last night. I thought long & hard about posting at all, because I knew you would read it. I can appreciate the difficult position you guys were in with this one. And I don't envy you this burden. I've enjoyed HPCX in years past. I will also say kudos to you for realizing after the first race today that it was too much, and literally changing a huge part of the course in 30 minutes. Again, I don't envy the hand you were dealt and I appreciate what you put into it.
@vanseggern1 - I think you misunderstand my point. I'm not going to hang up biking. I still contend that I'm happy, yesterday's debacle excluded. I'm really saying that if cross has turned into a sport where everyone should be on the verge of death-by-mud-run every week, I don't think this is for me. As you might expect, this was a topic of conversation on & off at the race today. I spent some time talking to someone else very involved in the race scene and he agreed that the sport is not accessible for the average rider anymore.
It may also have simply been the wrong year for me to return to cross racing. It's correct that I haven't done any races of any sort since 2015. But consider this. With no formal training at all, I jumped into 2 endurance mountain bike races in the 45+ class and did just fine. Average, but fine. I then bust my ass for 6 months in an effort to get ready for the parallel class in cross racing, and I lose 2 of 3 races. What does that say? To me, there are just no average guys racing this sport anymore outside of the 4/5 class. If I have nobody to race, it begs the question. Why race?
I've also considered the fact that I may just be out of my league. As a cat 2, should I downgrade? To what? The class I'm in is 1/2/3/4. I can downgrade twice and still be in the "right" class. The cat 2/3 race today had 28 people registered and if I apply my crossresults number to that predictor, I'm just battling for the bottom 5 of that class as well. I don't think that's the answer.
I can only come to one conclusion at this point. In order to maximize my enjoyment of this fall, I need to minimize the number of mud slog races I attend, which may be easier said than done this year. It may also be time to scrap these small local races and focus more on the bigger race venues. On that note, against some bit of common sense, the Northampton Weekend is not totally off the table. That may allow us to race with more people across the spectrum, which would allow us to actually race. Caveat fully stated: Execution of that idea is very far off. Also, if there's any chance we end up driving into a mudslide weekend, it's not going to happen. So it would have to be a decision made the week of the race. Possibly days before.
In any event, I'm not giving up yet Steve. Just like Hippo, I need to use this to learn more about my current constraints, and how best to maximize what I get out of the season as a whole. I'm still committed to that (possibly idiotic) trip to Kentucky. And if it turns out that we get there and it's a mud slog, well that's just a shitty luck and I'll have to deal with it.
Thanks for enduring my mid-cross crisis this weekend.
Average guys don't show up to the mud fest shit shows. You know this. I think you said this to me actually.
I don't think there's any shame in downgrading. You were out of the race game for how many years?
The Cat 4/5 40+ is usually one of the biggest groups, I think you should give it a shot.
I don't think there's any shame in downgrading. You were out of the race game for how many years?
The Cat 4/5 40+ is usually one of the biggest groups, I think you should give it a shot.