I PROMISE

My next post will contain a bike related picture. I swear. But I had to show off the cool Santa.

I really have been meaning to post

I've been meaning to update this thing, but never seem to get the chance.

Gina and I went for a ride on the paved trails last Sunday while her mom watched Chris. It was a nice day. The trails were icey and sketchy, but it was still nice to get out and ride. It was only the second time that Gina and I rode together since Chris was born. Not counting the 2 'cross races I did.

I think Chris is going to skip the whole crawling thing and just go to walking. He shows no interest in moving when we put him on his belly. However, if I hold him to help him stand, he's all over the place. He's going to be a handful.

Still need to do a bunch of X-mas shopping. I'm really slacking off. The plan is to get some time on the bike after the holidays. I really need it bad. I suck.

We had our group Christmas party last night. We went and played some pool after work and then headed off to the United Center to watch the Bulls beat the Bucks. It was a pretty good time and it was Gina's first Bulls game. I may have spoiled her since we had a skybox. The seats in the box were awesome and there was tons of food. The desserts ruled too.

I'd post something, but I have nothing to say.

Congrats Randy and Erica. Hope Tess is home in your arms soon.

Gina is racing cross tomorrow, well I guess it's technically today. I've been sick lately and haven't completely gotten better. Besides that and the fact that is will be 20 degrees, I'm not racing. I might do a little Christmas shopping for Gina.

Google Blog

I have changed my blog over to the google blog. It makes editing links and stuff much easier. Just an fyi.

I found a cool video to post, but didn't get around to it. Hopefully I find it again and will add it.

Happy Thanksgiving.

For you Bloggers out there

Check this out.

Not Very Exciting

Raced 'cross on Sunday. Rode the singlespeed stumpjumper. It was hard. Rather than race myself into some sort of shape, I think I'm going to race myself into the cardiac unit of a hospital.

Couple of times I felt I cleaned the barriers pretty well. Other times, not so well. Still haven't tripped over them yet. Sure that will happen eventually.

Pretty big turn out again for the 4's. They need to add more races to that schedule. I was nice to race in the city. It was warm in my driveway before the race. Thought I might be racing in shorts. I was actually really cold at the course. No way in hell was I racing in short. It took about a lap an a half to get into a good rythem. Guess I wasn't warmed up enough or I cooled off too much watching the end of Gina's race.

Alright, Alright.

I didn't race this weekend. Got some stuff done around the house on Sunday and got a little extra sleep.

I guess I'm a sissy. But one in a better mood than before. I also went for a short run Sunday evening after watching most of the Bear's, I mean, Dolphin's game with Christopher. Felt like I was running in cement shoes. I need to get out more.

Did I tell you the fire department was at our house???

Ok, it's been a bit since the last post. But if you look at the first couple of posts, I'm blogging like a madman.

Last Wed., I woke to the sound of our carbon monoxide detector. It's loud. Especially at 4:30 in the morning or whenever it was. We went downstairs and unplugged it and opened some windows. I went into the basement and there seemed to be an odor coming from the furnace. So, I turned off the gas.

We ended up having a furnace guy, Nicor (gas) guy, and 3 firemen in our house. Gina brought Chris to stay with her mom for the day. The fire dept. thought the furnace was the most likely culprit although they didn't feel 100%. Our furnace is OLD. It's the original furnace for our house and I think it was a couple model years old when they put it in. We also had a small natural gas leak from the pipe going to the furnace. Glad our house didn't explode. That would have really ruined my day.

The furnace guy really thought we should replace our furnace. We probably could get buy with getting the old one serviced, but it was really old. Amazingly, the guy didn't even try pushing an expensive furnace. They did a nice job besides dropping my old furnace on our hardwood floor.

Gina raced cross this weekend. I was tired and too lazy. Although I should race this weekend.

Stay tuned.

Happy Anniversary

Today is our 6th wedding anniversary. It also falls on the same day of the week we got married. How many of you can say you got married on a Tuesday? Happy Anniversary, Gina.

Not much has been happening since my last post, but since Greenfield added a link here, I felt I should update. We went to the CAMBr poker ride on Sunday. We skipped the ride since it was cold and wet. They didn't ride any single track anyways. Gina got a t-shirt for her work days and I got a certificate for a Thompson seatpost or stem for my work days. There was some cool schwag they gave away. Too bad Christopher was born on a work day. If I had another day or two, I coulda got some really nice stuff.

Rachel and John brought their kids. Zoe is about 2 weeks younger than Chris, but seemed like 3x the size of him. Zoe was alert and checking out everything, while Chris had enough and went to sleep. After a bit, we had enough of the cold and headed home.

I think we are heading to Milwaukee this weekend for some cyclocross. I think it's Sunday. I should look into that.

I added a few new links and ditched Evil's link, since his lair seems to have been raided. I don't need no stinkin' feds busting down my door in the middle of the night becasue they think I associate with him.

It looks like MountainGoat is going as Tupac for Halloween. So if you see him, feel free to shoot him in the nuts. Tupac was only Onepac when he was murdered.

Chicago Cyclocross Race #1

Sunday was the first race of the Chicago Cyclocross series. It's only 4 races, so not much of a series, but it will do.

We drop Chris off at my mom's place so she could watch him and spend some time with him while we went to the race. It was a pretty uneventful trip to Carpentersville and we got there with plenty of time to register and get ready. The weather wasn't nearly as nice as it was before we left the house though.

Gina and I registered and changed. Then rode around the park for a bit to check out the course while the current race was going on. The course was pretty flat with several barriers, drainage ditches, and a sand pit to traverse. After cruising a round for a bit, we headed back to the car to drop off our jackets. That's when we realize the course was now open for pre-riding. Cool, I figure that I better check it out. I started riding to realize that I need another layer on for this race. So back I went and grabbed my wind jacket. Ahhh, this is much better. Time to check out the course a bit. The first set of barriers were 3 of them followed by a short but steep up hill. No chance anyone actually can ride up the hill after the barriers. There was absolutely no room. Gotta hike up that sucker and jump on at the top as you go back down. I decide to skip a bunch of shit and mainly get a good look at the barriers. As I begin my way back to the start, I hear them calling out to line up. Damn, they are all the way across the park. I make it to the start line and take my spot in the back. I figure that I might as well start where I'm going to end up anyways.

The races starts and I realize the the field is pretty huge. I think we had over 60 guys. I'm out of shape on my singlespeed mtn. bike, so I mainly concern myself with just pushing it for the duration of the race. On the first set of barriers, we get a bottleneck as some of the lead riders crash and trip over the barriers. The field was a little bit stretched out, so it wasn't too bad I got there. I slowed up a bit, but it wasn't too bad. I cleared the first set of barriers and ran up the hill. Hop back on the bike and ride down the other side. Hey, not too bad I think, but the field is stretching out even more now. I decide to settle in and just concentrate on my riding. I'm not beating a bunch of people that have been racing and riding all season long.

The race continues on pretty uneventfully except for the fact that I felt like I was at my AT while easy pedaling. WTF?!?! I DIDN'T HAVE THE BABY! With all the heavy panting I was doing, I was getting thirsty quick. I reached down for my bottle, only to find that it had abandoned ship without me knowing. Hmmmm... I better keep an eye of for 'em. Around I go, panting, jumping, running, but mainly panting. I lap through again not having any idea which lap I'm actually on ( it was probably 3 or 4 or 5, but felt more like 300 or 400 or 5oo). It says 4 laps on the lap counter (which was supposed to estimate how many laps we'd do based on the times from the first lap or two). BUT IT SAID 4 LAPS LAST TIME. God damn, does time stand still during these races?!?! I'm not superman going so fast that I'm going back in time. I get to the barriers and notice my little friend that had abandoned me. How do I get my bottle that is off the course next to all the barriers? I decided I could make it another lap without him while I try and think of a plan.

Up the hill I run (or did I walk), trying to figure out how to get that bottle. I think I really need it. I'm getting thirsty, like Russell at a PBR plant thirsty. I clear the next set of barriers and hatch a plan. Did I mention at some point I passed someone in my group? Yey me. There had been someone I was riding right behind, but at some point, i fell off his wheel. Apparently, he passed this guy too, because I thought we might have a fight for last place. Oh, back to my plan. See the bottle's contents were badly needed in my belly. I decided that I'd hop the barriers and run up the hill. Then I'd drop the bike, run back and grab the bottle and head back up the hill. Sounds like a lot of work for a measly bottle, but I really wanted something to drink now. Blah, blah through the sand pit, up the hill, back to start/finish. Hey look, it doesn't say 4 laps anymore. I look confusingly at the officials area, then notice a girl sort of ringing a bell. God I hope this is the last lap. See there were a lot of people ring bells and it would be just my luck for her to be one of them.

Well, I take the chance and pick it up a bit. It is the last lap after all. Got to the barriers and eyed up my water bottle real good. I'll be back my little friend. Don't have the time right now. Over the barriers and up the hill for the last time. Boy, this gets tiring. Through the fields and next barriers I went. Half way through the lap, I noticed the guy I had been behind for a chunck of my little race. He's almost in striking distantce. I picked up the pace a touch more and managed to not pass out. I'm clearly gaining some ground and catch him right after we ride through a drainage ditch. Picked it up a little more. The sand pit is just ahead. I had a clean dismount, shouldered the bike and jogged/meandered though the sand. Hmmm... if he didn't catch me in the sand, maybe I have a chance. I hopped back on the bike for the last time (didn't injure the boys once) and gave a good effort up the short steep hill (same hill with barriers on the other side). He STILL didn't catch me. Down I go and pick up my cadence. As I make the final turn, I hear someone coming up behind me. Picked it up yet again. I can't get passed here. I spun my way to the finish and held off who ever was behind me. I'm not sure, but I think it was actually someone lapping me and not the guy I was trying to beat.

I finished. Dropped my bike and headed over to my little friend. See, I told ya I'd be back. Ahhh, cytomax never tasted so good. So I did my first cross race and wasn't DFL. In fact, I don't think I wasn't even second to DFL. God those guys suck.

Things I learned at the race...
1. Cyclocross hurts
2. Don't lose your water bottle
3. Cyclocross is fun

We plan on hitting the 'cross race in Milwaukee at the end of the month. Anybody going?

I WON!!

Well, I won in the raffle anyways. Took home a t-shirt and chain tool. That's cool, because I needed a chain tool. I would have bought a Park one, but free is better. Wrench Force will have to do.

I pre-rode the course on Saturday. Thought I rode fairly well considering, but when you are riding alone you never can tell.

"On your left" was all I heard. Over and over and over again. That's ok. I haven't been racing all season, nor riding, so it wasn't like I was actually competing. Rode the single track cleanly for the most part and that made me happy. I thought I was being nice when I stopped and let big group go past me right before the roots of evil. That was dumb. I expected them to ride and not fall over into a pile. Oh well, guess I better run. So I picked up the bike and ran/hiked up to the top side of the switch back and remounted. Disappointed I didn't ride the roots, but I rode them cleanly except for the switchback during my pre-ride. My legs were burning and my heart was pounding, so I tried to just get in a groove and pace myself. Pedaled over to the log jump and had a clean jump, but then got cut off, by the guy I was behind as he went to the right. I probably should have just ran into him to have something good to write about. I cruised over to the other side of the the street and headed to the equalizer. I had no intention of evening trying to get my bike part of the way up. My legs were killing me. They had nothing in them. So, I pushed that damn bike all the way up and hopped back on. At this point, I have felt like complete shit for some time. After lapping I couldn't help but pull off the course when I approached the team tent.

My legs abandoned me during that race. Apparently they were pissed that I abandoned them the last 10 months or so. I just need to get some time back on the bike.

Oh, as I passed Russell, he called me Randy. Hey, Fuck You, Russell. Apparently he didn't like me reminding him Rome Around was a race. Or he was just being Russell.

Not Much Happening

First, I just saw the Chicago cyclocross schedule is up.

Not much exciting happening. Been cleaning up the basement. It's pretty musty down there now. I have some fans running and a dehumidifier too. I read on the internet to place a few cups of vinegar down there. So I did that last night. Hope it helps.

Rome Around is this weekend. I need to call to make sure the RV is done. We had to get an oil change and had some problems with the brakes. It better be fixed now. We are leaving in a couple of days.

My rear wheel is still in the bike shop. Those slackers are taking forever to replace the bearings on it. I can't complain too much because they have gotten a lot done for me on previous occassions. Including, getting me a new fork in about 2 days so I'd be able to race that weekend.

Cable internet is up, but I'm having problems with my router. Didn't get a chance to pick on up last night like I had planned. I brought Chris to my grandma's to visit. It gave Gina a little break from him. I was about to leave my grandma's and head to Circuit City when she decided that she wanted to hold him some more. Can't really argue with her, so I stayed a little longer. On my way home, I knew I couldn't get to the store by 9pm, so I guess it will have to wait.

Damn Storms

Well the storms the other day were strong enough for my basement to flood. Luckily, we only got a few inches that receeded right away. However, I was lucky (if you can call it that) that I was able to leave work early and clean up the basement. Not exactly how I wanted to spend several hours.

The storms also knocked out our cable internet. Which affects our phone now that we have Vonage. Comcast left us a message on our non-working phone, that service was restored to our area. However, it wasn't. WTF?!?!?! No idea when it will be up.

I NEED A NAP

This little guy has been a lot of work. I took this pic while he was in my arms a week or two ago. I think he started screaming shortly afterwards.

Haven't spent much time on the bike or running. The rain we've been having isn't helping either. Hopefully I get some sort of exercise in soon. I'm going to die if I race.

Maybe I'll remember to pick up my rear wheel this weekend. I needed to get the bearings replaced. It's for my fuel, which is what I'll probably race. The old stumpjumper that I made a ss will kill me if I race on it. Especially if we go to wisconsin rapids. That course it too flat for my 32x16.

Gina found out her maternity leave is shorter than expected when her editor called her last friday. He told her that some HR woman was expecting her to be back to work this past Monday. Luckily, Gina got it extended a couple of weeks with a doctor's note.

Time to go get a couple of things done.

Hurray

Christopher was actually pretty good today. Gina went for a run/walk with him and Drexl. She definately over did it. I had to give her a back massage and she used the compex for a while too. Hope a good night's sleep helps her out.

Barring pouring rain, I'm going for a short ride or run in the evening. It will be the first since Chris was born. God I'm out of shape. And it doesn't help that I've never been fast to begin with. But I'm excited to just get out and do something.

Another thing, Gina and I are going to the movies on Sun. Her mom is going to watch Chris for a while. That will be a nice little break. It will be the longest Gina has been away from him (I think).

We may try and make it up to Rome Around. Gina likes the course and hopes to give it a shot. Personally, I think she's nuts and should just slowly try and recover. If she's capable of racing Rome Around, I assume we'd go to Sheboygan too. The Chicago Cyclocross schedule should be up soon. That will be our main riding for the year. Did I mention Gina wants to race the 24 hours of DINO? She should be committed, but I just can't call. I'd miss her if she went to the looney bin.

I really missed the WEMS races. They are such a blast. You get to ride more and ride cooler trails. WEMS may be a problem next season since Gina and I race at the same time. We'll look more into it as next season approaches. Gina's thoughts were that I could watch Chris one race, then her mom can watch him a race, then I could watch him another race, etc. That doesn't seem very fair, but I may take her up on it. (If I could only get her mom to watch the cats too).

I need some sleep now. Maybe I'll dream about some cyclocross bikes I'm eyeing on e-bay. Money's a little tighter with the new guys, so dreaming may be all it is this year.

Newborn pics

This is while he was still at the hospital.


Here is Gina right before coming home with Chris.

These are pics from the hospital. He's now 4 weeks old. I'll try and post some new pictures soon. My most recent pics are on my phone, so they aren't the best quality.

Holy Shit!!

My non-blog had post from actual people and not spam. Ok, Christopher is now 4 weeks old. It's been 4 weeks without a good night of sleep. If I get around to it, I should post some pics. I'm adding this post on my handheld at work. That means I'm using a pen to type this in on a little keyboard on the screen. It's a real pain in the ass.

I need to start running or something, because I'm out of shape and plan on racing some 'cross races w/ Gina.

Second Post ever

Ok, nobody knows this exists so I haven't had a need to update it. However, I was reading somepeople's blogs today and decided I needed to add a post.

Normally this time of year, gina and i would be racing like mad, but not this year. This year, we are taking a break since gina is pregnant. She's 34 weeks now and wants this kid out bad. Boy is she generally miserable.