Lincoln Cyclcross Weekend

This past weekend was the Lincoln Cyclocross weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska. I opted to only do Saturday's race because of all the racing still to come this season. This race although not the biggest race is always my favorite race and favorite course of the year. The promoter, Troy Krause, always sets up a great course and the crowd on "Hooligan Hill" is always enthusiastic.
The long story-short of the race was after 2 laps I came out of a corner and accelerated to hear a pop and saw that my chain was broken. This ended my race and I was a little bit disappointed but I felt like I was riding really well up until it happened.
I am headed to Europe tomorrow for the UCI World Cup in Koksijde, Belgium on Saturday then the Superprestige race in Gieten, Holland on Sunday. Although I am nervous about these races I am excited to see how I stack up against the world's best.

USGP Mercer Cup

Finally some time to update! Hard to believe how much school you miss from being for only 2 days. But the USGP Mercer Cup was an ok weekend.
I met up with my teammates at the airport last Friday morning and before we knew it we were in Trenton, NJ. With a delayed flight, we ended up getting there too late to get in a ride so we were forced to ride inside. After this and dinner, we were all tired from the day of traveling so we all quick to bed.
The next morning I awoke to look outside and see heavy rain. I knew it was going to be a muddy day. All of us arrived at the course and I noticed it had been totally changed from the year before but like the previous year the mud was thick...very thick. I pre-rode the course and it was obvious that bike changes were going to be required every half lap.
The race started and I got a good start but things did not go so great from there. I felt like I was powerless and had nothing in my legs. I rode most of the race alone and finished in a disappointing 14th.
The next day I was very motivated to turn around my performance from the day before. To my liking the course had dried up considerably.
I got a pretty good start off the line and was riding in 3rd after the first half lap. While I was attempting to close in on second I took a bad line in a muddy turn and fell into the course tape. I quickly got up but realized my bike all wrapped up in the course tape. By the time I got it unwrapped and going again I had lost about 45 seconds and around 6 places. The rest of the race I just rode as hard as I could and ended up 5th place.
At the end of the weekend I was kind of disappointed in how I rode, but I have tried to work harder lately because of it.
A big thanks to my teammates/pit crew- Bill Marshall and Tom Price for all of the help throughout the weekend.
Also thanks to former manager of the Navigators Insurance Pro Cycling Team, Ray Cipollini, for coming out and cheering during Sunday's race.

Grand Prix HPT and Veterans Cross

This past weekend we were greeted with some unusually warm November temperatures in Kansas City but it made it perfect for the racing.
The Grand Prix HPT took place on Saturday night and was an "avondcross" (Flemish for evening cyclocross). The race was one of the coolest I have ever experienced; it was under the lights at the Heartland Raceway in Topeka. The course went on the dirt track, in the infield, and outside of the track making for a very unique course. I got an OK start and started to make my way up on the long straightaways of the race track. At the end of the first lap it was me and 3 others battling it out for the lead. The 4 of us were split up about mid race due to a crash. I was unfortunately in the wrong place at the wrong time and had to totally stop to avoid the rider. I rode the rest of the race alone trying to catch 3rd but was never able to and ended up 4th. Good race for teammate Joseph Schmalz who took the win.
The next day was the Veterans Cross race in Leavenworth. The course was what defenately made this race difficult, lots of climbing, bumpy, and very windy. The start went well and after the first lap I was with 2 other riders battling it out. Looking for more of a hard workout than a result I went to the front of our group and start to pull pretty hard. After 2 laps of this I was feeling pretty well spent and the 2 other riders were able to drop me and I was able to hang on for 3rd.
Overall it was a good weekend and my body is feeling good leading into Trenton next weekend and the beginning of the bulk of my season.

Over the barriers on Sunday.

Looking forward to start wearing new Navigators Jerseys.

No Colorado and the Upcoming Weeks

After seeing 18 inches of snow in Boulder and I-70 still shut down on Friday morning, my parents and I decided to stay in town this weekend. We were not sure if we would be able to make it to Boulder! It was a good weekend to be able to rest a bit as a lot of traveling to big races is coming up.
I plan on doing 1 local race next weekend before the USGP race in Trenton, NJ, taking place on the 14th and 15th. The USGP in Trenton will be the first round of the World Championship qualifiers for the Jr 17-18 racers. That weekend along with the USGP in Portland, 3 weeks after NJ, will decide what 5 make the World Championship team. I am hoping for the best at those races along with the rest of the season.