Saturday morning Jake, Ashley, and Coach McElhaney carpooled to the Ozarks Conference XC meet and Ian, Deb, and I drove separately. This event did not disappoint as the course is tough and the winners deserve it as you can't hide. Kickapoo's Thater took top honor in the boy's side while Jake's friends from Lebanon took 4th and 5th. West Plains... well, they were WPs and they dominated the overall team and all seven looked super solid. After the meet we did some Ian shoe shopping and generally goofed around SPR until mid-afternoon. Got home and played some catch with Ian while Deb got in a good ride. I jumped on the rig for 30min just to get the legs open for the next day's race. Jake got in a good 5miler and thinks he is back to 100%.
Our buddy was having a surprise b-day party which included tons of food, drink (non-alcoholic since this is pretty much our Sunday School group of guys), and poker. The plan was to play until late in the night then grab the b-day boy and head to SPR for a George's Steakhouse or IHOP; just a guys late night road trip and being stupid. I knew I would pay the price at the Chris Cross race the next day, but it was Chad's birthday and it took priority to goof with him. That being said, the cards were played and one by one the core skirt-wearing Nancys that talked a strong game got up and left... went home... not a single word about coming back, they freaking left?!?!?! I was on my third cup of super strong coffee (at 11:40pm) knowing it would keep me firing for the road trip, but guess freaking what - it was just Chad and I at the end of the night! He was looking pretty tired, but said he was game so we discussed going on down, but (like I) he was hoping for a bigger group so he called it a night. I go home still wired and end up kicking around the house and finally dying off at 5am... alarm for KC goes off at 7:15am; this is going to be a long LONG day.
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Hop out of bed and realize I had not done any packing/prep the day before and now I was scrambling. A quick trip to Wally World got me grub/drinks for the day (and some breakfast for the Jones crew) then throw some clothing/gear together. Scotty and I leave a little after 8:30 for the drive to Leavenworth (just northwest of KC). More coffee had me feeling pretty decent though was bordering on Zombie Land with the lack of sleep. When we get out of the car there was an initial shock to the system as it was stinking 39* (at home it was in the 50s). We get our stuff together and get ready to hit some preview laps before Scott's race at 1pm. While using Scott's SUPER PRO inflate system I mistakenly unscrew the core (an adapter is screwed over the presta to inflate) from my tubeless system and lose all air and subsequently lose my bead/seal so 1 wheel down. Not a big issue as I has a spare set. I get on course and get a burp that loses all air on my rear in an off-camber bumpy section (which summed up most of the course - bumpy) and tubeless wheel #2 goes down. This is a little frustrating as the system worked to a T at Diamond and I expected the same for this course. Back to the car (got in some shouldered running - so not a total loss) and swapped out with spare which meant no wheel pit for me this week. Got some more laps in, spent some time on the trainer, then headed over to my race. I should have shook myself as I was not aggressive right from the start and it took a lap for me to get my head in the game and actually race (instead of ride). It was too late and several were far ahead. I got in a small group with a 360 and SKC guys and we worked our way back into the mix (minus the front three as they were gone). SKC attacked with one to go and drops 360 guy while I bide my time on SKC guy's wheel. He waves me through about 2/3rd of last lap and I settle on the front at my pace leaving plenty for the cobble (er... brick road) slight climb to the finish. SKC guys pulls along side and asks if I want to go at it side by side, I agree, and immediately drop him for 7th spot (32 in race). Way better than what I expected considering the night before, but still would have liked the top 5. The air temps played havoc with everyone as breathing in was cut in half. Great weather for 'cross, but a shock to the system as there was no getting used to it for a couple days.
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The course was great with lots of elevation changes and off-camber stuff and the venue was solid. ***Below pics are from Roger Harrison (nice shots)*** The 'SuperFan' in the neon jump suit is none other than Crusty himself. He had the kit, the mega ringer (three cowbells on a single seat post with yeti grips - classic), whistle, and anti-freeze working. The only suit to rival Crusty's might be Rick's.
After hog'in on Heather's cookies Scotty and I turned the car south. After a quick stop at the h1n1 factory we arrived in 54* temps that felt more like the 70's. Got unpacked as Deb and Ian came home from his basketball practice.
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We got in some football catch before heading inside for the rest of the evening. Jake spent most of the day at church with youth activities and was looking for some down time online with friends. Deb and I whipped up some of my famous dip (fresh pico de gallo) and settled in for a little Amazing Race followed by Banana-grams (me 2 she 1). Bed could not have came soon enough for me Sunday!.
Next weekend racing Saturday (Capital Cup) and Sunday (Blvd Cup) in the KC area. Jake has his conference meet on Tuesday. Pretty routine rest of the week.
How about this in Arizona (sorry to harsh your mellow, but the picture is powerful once you know the reason)...
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