Bustle in Your Hedgerow
This photo of a Joint Hedgerow Maneuver with Teammates Signaling the Achievement was found in an archive at a local library and depicts a technique we’ve had stashed in the Vault of Cross Knowledge, alongside Ocean Runups and Baryshnikov over the Barriers.
If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now
You may have noticed the bussle of Cross posts, tweets, and statuses. We’re back racing this season after spending last Fall riding the Mobile Social Worldwide. We’re training now in our neighbors hedgerows, at local parks, and running up stadium steps.
Kruger’s Kermesse
Our Season started at Kruger’s Kermesse – a dirt crit in Portland that has no barriers or runups, but a huge turnout and fun, fast course.
Gift with Purchase
Mark V received this complimentary gift in his race. We’re not sure how it went down. What we know is I heard the Emcee call for “friends of Mark V” to the registration tent to tend to him. He got his bell rung, ticket punched, and learned about avoiding the potholes on a hardtail with 700c wheels.
He’s ok and back at it. Said some really funny things with a concussion too. Oddly his embrocation reeks of alchohol. Will inquire about that later.
Dirt Tan and Moondust Facial
Every Cross race I wonder if I’m in the wrong gear, if my tire is flat, if my brakes are rubbing. All three happened in the second lap at Krugers!
I reached back to flip the rear brake open and that was worth another 1/2 mph. With a flat tire, I could powerslide the corners and that seemed to please the crowd. Meanwhile Molly Cameron lapped me 3 times.
My first race back is why I enjoy Cross so much. It’s a muddy, dirt TT with guys yelling, “on your left.” A chaotic, fast, bewildering, leg-aching effort with no idea where you’re placed ‘till the end. You just go into a zone and leave behind the headgames of road racing. It’s you and your bike versus the course.
Hugga Goes Hard
A 20th something is where I finished with the flat and tweaked tire. I was good with that. My road season this year was plagued by an injury, bad luck, and getting sick. I tried too hard to make something happen and regrouped for this race. I was determined to finish and the flat just made me go harder.
Right at the point I was tripping balls out there, a woman who looked like Minnie Pearl got onto the course. Don’t know if she was at Kruger’s to pick up berries for a pie. Maybe she had stumbled onto the course en route to a squaredance or wanted to test her Dutch bike on the dirt? Whatever she was doing, she was in the way and I growled at her turning into the finishing stretch. Sorry about that Minnie, but hey test your bike between races and not during my big comeback.
Pam is Competitive
Pam tries to tell me she’s not competitive and was just gonna race Cross for fun. That’s not an expression of fun on her face. That’s, “got gapped by the girls a few bike lengths ahead of her through the blinding, moondust section.” She caught ‘em for 3rd.
Our Season
Our next race is Labor Day Cross and then 6 to 8 more races. Our season is truncated by another trip to Europe and I’ll talk about that in another post. We’re back in London and visiting Berlin for the first time this year.
Partners
This year we’re working with Redline and racing on Conquest Teams. Also on board with Cycling Northwest and will have our Gear at the races.
See you there. We’ve got more in the vault of knowledge and some Zeppelin on shuffle.