2009

Sitting around the check in counter at work the other day several of us agreed that it had recently dawned on us that we are in the midst of a good winter for trailriding. Although there has been a trickle of moisture here and there it has basically been cold enough to keep a consistent flow of rides on the frozen trails, and only once has it been a complete icescapade. Back about a month ago a sizable crew was out on Blue River riding singletrack that you could have ice skated sections of. I remember getting back to my car after being out 3 hours and feeling like I had cheated death. All in all the hours are racking up better so far this year than the past couple of seasons, I really hope I can keep this momentum rolling for the second half of winter.

The highlights on my 2009 calendar are for all three of the Granny Gear 24 hour races. We have a seasoned team of racers and we are all excited about trying to throw down. I think I have wrote it on here before but team 24 hour races are basically my favorite thing to do in the world. You are still stupid tired, your head is still frazzled, you are still eating as much as you can possibly get into your system, but most importantly you are still riding fast. I cannot wait to be in West Virginia at 3:00 AM going ridiculously fast over some slimy roots, not consciously thinking about a thing, your mind in that zone where the only thing it knows is maximum velocity down the trail. I love when one of your buddies comes in from a lap all totally buzzing, telling you some kind of crazy story that always starts with, "you know that one section..." I am definitely motivated for our team to try and get out there and win some races, but most importantly I just want to be going bogus fast having a freaking riot. When I get real happy riding I get this feeling that my brain is swelling up and my checks hurt from smiling even though I haven't been smiling. I want to get that feeling allot.