switcheroo

I ended up pre riding yesterday... getting your place ready to sell can be kinda crazy.

The original plan was to pick up sealant yesterday, then hit up Cutler since it was right down the street.  Get the new tire on the rear and back to tubeless in the front so that today I would be able to get to Massasoit and pre ride.

Well, I got an email from my wife yesterday letting me know that our third, and final realtor candidate would be by today (Thursday) at 4:30 to check out the place.  And then our contractor who "fixed" our back door was coming by at 5:30 due to the gap in the door and the apparent water coming in now....  blah.

So looks like that means no chance for a ride.  So it was scramble time after work yesterday.  Shoot up to Newton to grab my sealant, and then head back the opposite way to get to Massasoit to get in a ride.  Then back up to Boston to make it for Trivia night.

The pre ride was good.  The first lap I stayed a little closer to the course.  The second lap I latched on to a group of riders about half way through to ensure I stuck to the course - which showed me a spot or two where I had drifted.  I still ended up with 7.33 miles - as opposed to the advertised 7.1 - so I may still have taken a turn here or there I wasn't supposed to.  But overall I like the course.  It is going to be another fast one.  And another case of wishing for rain.  It's sandy out there in spots!!  The singletrack, for the most part, is less technical and not as tight and twisty.  And it felt like there was more climbing than at Winding Trails.

My question, what is up with that last big climb???  That is insane!!  I cleared all the initial climbs - and should be fine come race time.  But that last big one is definitely a straight up hike a bike for me.  Then there is that last short one right before the descent to the finish that I may be able to make depending on if there are riders around... to get in the way and all.  So I'm "excited."  Although I'm not stoked that it doesn't look like I'll get a ride in today... and tomorrow is prom - so no ride then either.... that is no good.  Oh, and we didn't make Trivia last night (just in case you were keeping track).

That just means more energy for race day, right??  ha ha.

I'll leave you with this.  I was eating a delicious Gu packet between laps yesterday and I found myself chewing the Gu... what's up with that?  To chew or not to chew?

leftovers

So after my race I hung around and took pictures of the Cat 2 and Cat1/Pro races.  I finally got them all labeled and posted... I'm honestly not super thrilled with them.  I think I chose a decent spot, but I didn't frame them all that well (didn't get much the the actual trail in the shot).  I mean, it's ok - I got the rider and that's the important part... but ideally I like to show the trail as well... so those not participating in the race have an idea of what was really going on in the picture. 

Hey, I'm doing it for free - and I was sitting the in the rain!!  So, if you participated in the race... have a look.  If you are curious... well I guess that's ok too.

Winding Trails pictures.

Also, official results were posted.  Nothing has changed, but it's in the books.  10th place (which still gets me points) and a finishing time of 1:03:26.

Next up, Massasoit.  The LBS (second location) called to let me know my sealant is in, so I'll pick that up today and probably hit up Cutler (since it's right down the street from the shop) to try out the new and improved loop.  I'll get my tires all set (new one on back and back to tubeless all around) tonight.  And tomorrow afternoon hit up Massasoit for a pre-ride (now that I know to follow the yellow blazes).

It's almost May...  that might not mean anything to you.... but for those of us in a school system - HOLY CRAP!!  This year has FLOWN by!

(not so) pre-ride

Monday it was BALLS hot out.

And I went to try to pre-ride Massasoit.

Let's count the ways things went wrong.

1.  I take the HiFi off the rack and hear a hiss.  Is it so hot it's making my tire leak??  I quickly discover a nice little slit in the sidewall of my front tire.  Random.  I see if the caffe latex will seal, nope just spurts out.  I try to patch the outside (being lazy) and of course that doesn't work.....  ugh.  I just drove all the way out here, am I going to be forced to go home empty handed?  I contemplate a couple more options...
patch the right way and see if I can't get the tire to sit correctly with a floor pump, dump the caffe latex and tube it up... hoping that the sidewall won't tear further while on the ride, find a local shop and buy a new tire....

I threw a tube in the front and rolled the dice.  Gamble worked, made it through the ride with no further problems.

2. I was, however, not able to get a new tire after the ride.  I headed back to the LBS and was stopped by police barriers... the Boston Marathon was preventing me from getting across the road to the shop.  Balls, back home it is.  I had originally thought to go home, grab the roadie and ride to the shop, but I figured that the race would be past by 4... guess not....
(a plus... wasn't totally digging my front tire anyway, so here's a legit excuse need to get a new tire, YAY!)

So, back to the ride.

3. I thought I had stumbled upon the course as I saw some nice red dots/arrows on the trails - so I followed.  And it seemed like a great course... except it wasn't the course.  Ended up with 10+ miles, and the course is 7.1, hmmmmm.  Even accounting for some retracing when missing turns and some side exploration to see if I was on the right track I didn't think I could have racked up 3+ extra miles.

I did however come across this guy.

I think he was of the snapping variety so I used a stick to "help" him off the trail... he didn't like that so much.

4. When I got home I jumped on the Root 66 board and found that the course had been marked with yellow blazes.  So I was on the course some of the time, but didn't know to follow the yellow when it strayed from the red.  Oh well, I got a taste for the terrain, and me likey!

Do I got back and pre-ride?  Yeah, prolly.  Dunno if it will be this week or next, I've got time.  Still have the Fat Tire Classic up first (Winding Trails).

Yard work tomorrow, and maybe a road ride.... I've got goodies waiting for me at the post office.  SWEET!!