Be Thankful

Take a few minutes and think about how truly lucky you are. You have a home that provides shelter and security. A family that loves you. A job that provides both the needs and wants of your family. We are also lucky because we have strong minds and bodies that propel us on our rides.

I am thankful for all of this and so much more, too much to even imagine. Take a second and be thankful for all that we have, whether we actually needed it or not. Cycling can become a bit of a sport about who has what and what the latest carbon widget weighs. Lets all just slow down for a second and realize how good we really have it. Just the fact that we have the opportunity to ride our bikes is pretty great. The fact that we can race them is even better. Now add to that the fact that most of us are riding around on bikes that cost as much as some people make all year, and things come into perspective a bit.

We, as cyclists are truly blessed. Whether we are blessed with talent, or the the time to train, or the means to buy the things you want , we have a lot to be thankful for. Don't let that thought be lost on you this year. Especially this year, as many people struggle to make ends meet. More families this year are looking for a way to feed themselves and keep a roof over their heads, while we are out racing our bikes.

Rather than sit by and do nothing, you can help. And helping those that need it most can often times be more rewarding than anything else. This year at the Illinois State Cyclocross Championships hosted by Turin is supporting the Greater Chicago Food Depository in their "One City, One Food Drive" program. The goal this year is to donate 200lbs. of canned food after the race, which is only about 1lb. per racer.

I say lets take it one step further, lets see how much the 'cross community can donate. Lets double that number, heck why not triple it. All it will take is a can or two per person. Take a second, look in your cabinets, grab a few cans. Those few cans may not mean much to you and I, but they can mean the difference between a single mother feeding her family after she lost her job, or them going hungry, again.

Lets show that we can care about something other than tubulars and carbon this year. We always talk about doing the right thing, lets show that we actually mean it. If you have the means to do so, donate , $1.00 provides 4 meals. Let someone have the chance to have a hot meal this holiday season before they spend the night on the street because they are homeless. While we are thankful for all of the things that we have, someone else can only dream of a life like ours.

Be thankful for what you have. Be thankful that you have the means to achieve it. Be thankful that you are healthy. Be thankful that your family loves you. Be thankful.

In The Mood

This outta get everyone in the mood for Montrose!

You Have Been Warned

I have created individual pages for some, but not all of the riders yet on the team. A few of us are making use of the bandwidth to relay their own experiences both on and off the bike. If you care to find out what makes us tick, simply click on the name of the rider on the right hand side of the page. A disclaimer follows:

Neither the Beverly Bike-Vee Pak, Inc. Racing Team nor any of its riders, makes any warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the Beverly Bike-Vee Pak, Inc. Racing Team. The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the Beverly Bike-Vee Pak, Inc. Racing Team and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes.

And Then There Was One

With the race today in Woodstock being the second to last in the Chicago Cyclocross Cup series, I became a little sad. Sad about the fact that this season will be over very soon. Sad about the fact that it will be very cold very soon. And sad about the fact that all of the great people that I have met this year, I won't see on a weekly basis.

Enough of the sob story, lets talk racin'! The course today was huge! It also offered a bit of everything, everything except sand. Personally I think my bike has seen enough sand this year, and my shifters will wholeheartedly agree. From the nice wide start/finish chute into the two climbs on "singletrack", that spit you out onto a false flat on the asphalt, then into a bumpy grass section with the token pinwheel thrown in. I knew the race was going to be fast, but I didn't think it was going to be that fast.

The off-camber sections were nice since they were actually rideable without any fear of serious personal bodily injury. Although the barriers seemed a tad bit too close together, maybe it was just me. I loved that fact that there were power sections followed by recovery sections, that led back into some more power sections. I just wish I had the power to put down today.

As for the team we all lined up in the second row today. When I say all, let me clarify, just Tony, Patrick and myself for the A's race. We all had a great start with me just getting ahead of Tony and Patrick initially. Tony came past me as we entered the woods the first time and took up position just a few riders ahead. I dug deep on the climb but hadn't realized there was a false flat. Ouch! He opened up a gap that wasn't to be closed today. Going into the pinwheel, Tony was just ahead and Patrick just behind, but slower traffic allowed the gap to grow even further. Through the end of lap one and Tony still led myself then Patrick.

Apparently Patrick had different plans though on the second lap. As we climber the second singletrack climb he came past me like a rocket. I worked for the next few minutes to bring him back, then settled into a rhythm, albeit a painful rhythm. The whole time Tony was dangling just ahead of us.

As we came around with one to go I put in a big acceleration in an effort to bridge up and Patrick and I got rid of some dead weight, or so I thought. Patrick passed me going through the barriers as I struggled with their placement again and I was left to chase back to his wheel. The ground down by the lake was getting a bit soggy at this point and my legs apparently were also. Patrick accelerated and I tried to go, to no avail. He slid out of my reach by about 20 feet or so as we crested the final climb out from the lake. At this point I figured I would have an easy finish as there was no one behind me. Well, there shouldn't have been anyone behind me, I thought we dropped everyone. Yeah, not so much. Someone slipped past me before the last off-camber section so that I finished in 23rd, Patrick in 21st, and Tony in 20th.

Jorge recieved yet another call up in the B's race which is incredible since he has only raced 'cross 8 times so far. His power and fluidity are something to behold. He just seems to float through the tough sections, often times with a smile! Off the start he was sitting in 10th, but he wouldn't be able to hold it for the remainder of the race. As the race progressed he slowly slipped back a few positions each lap.
The top ten finish that he wants so bad was not going to happen today. A bad knee and consecutive work weeks of 60-80 hours are taking the their toll on him. Hopefully the week of from racing and the holiday will afford him the time to repair his body and rest his mind. I'm not sure where he finished, but probably from 20-25th is a good guess.

I think we are all looking forward to a week of no racing and no driving. The rest and time with our families will be good. The race at Montrose can usually be pretty ugly with the weather conditions and the course turning into a muddy, sloppy mess. The week off should give everyone time to tend to both their bodies and their bikes. This has been a long season, longer than we have ever had locally for 'cross and rest week will surely be welcomed.

You Know You Want To Watch It