Giving Thanks - For Bicycles!

This weekend I travelled up to Seattle to spend some time with Socko, Kate, Bryan, Bittin and the kids. We had a blast catching up and relaxing. Bryan and Socko were working on a new chopper bike for Bryan to cruise the streets of Coos Bay on. It turned out pretty cool. The frame is a vintage Schwinn, turned upside down, with a new bottom bracket welded to what was originally the top of the seat tube! The extended forks were a nice touch as well. We got out on bikes that night and took in the sights and sounds of Lynwood WA, then packed up and headed into Seattle for a ride through our old stomping grounds of Wallingford. We eventually ended up at the Blue Moon Tavern, and it was as dark and foul smelling as I remember!!

SSCXWC

Wow, what a wild day! Today was the second annual Single Speed Cyclocross World Championships (SSCXWC) here in Portland and it was a blast. The day started off with the regualr suite of cyclocross races on the Cross Crusade calender. I rode in the morning and was having a great race (7th out of 160+) until I managed to tear my derailieur right off the bike and got it wedged into the back wheel. Fortunately there was someone right there who saw it all and handed me a beer immediately. Perfect! And that was the end of my race. Fortunately the later race were really entertaining, especially the SSCXWC. Almost every contestant in the singlespeed race was dressed in a costume, and some were dressed in barely anything at all. The highlight of the race was the "wall of bubbles" that the riders had to ride through on each lap (below).

More Cyclocross!!

Another weekend of cyclocross racing has come and gone. This time we were out at Barton Park, just a little south and east of Portland near the town of Estacada. The course was muddy and lots of fun, technical in some places and really fast in others. I did OK, despite having mechanical problems with my bike that dropped me from the top 15 down to 42nd place.