Beer, Bikes, and Snow

Two weeks after the ESC Glen Park Enduro, MASS would be hosting the Glen Park Enduro Round 1.  Due to my schedule, I was on the fence about racing since I couldn't get up to pre-ride and inspect the course.  Lucky for me, the course would be the same five stages I raced prior.  So I signed up at the last minute. The day before the race, heavy rain storms passed through, causing some concern about wet roots and slick corners.  As we waited for the racer meeting, it started to rain.  Great.  The promoter announced that there were a few minor changes from the ESC course, but for the most part, everything was the same.  I had a goal of nailing the two spots I struggled with two weeks ago - Stage 1 and Stage 3.  Oh, and to stay upright.   I noted who the Pro women were - and knew that in addition to my friend (who opted not to race) there was only one other girl registered in my field.  So there were two of us. I took my time getting ...

Last year I was bored with racing XC and needed a change.  I got my feet wet in a few races last year and decided 2017 would be the year I tried more enduros and DH racing.  I got a rad new "big" bike for enduro racing and signed up for the first local race, Eastern States Cup Glen Park Enduro. I'd raced Glen Park last spring and had success.  The park has a history of great free-riding with lots of steep chutes and drops.  The race was the last weekend of my spring break but due to my schedule, I would have to go up as they were marking the course.  The trails are a network of criss-cross tangled lines, and it was up to me to figure out what trails would be included in the five stages. I arrived to find a few guys pre-riding and offered to let me follow.  I actually ended up riding with a father and son from VT, who were incredibly fast and fun to ride behind.  Until I ate it on Stage 3 - why didn't I wear knee pads? I ignored the blood an...

Are you still looking for something for your kids to do this summer? If so you may want to consider sending them to mountain bike camp!! The camp is run out of the Morristown-Beard School by myself and Brad Turner  and we travel to parks an ywhere within an hour of Morristown. Here is the  weblink . If you are interested and have questions feel free to  email me .  We run two different camps:   Beginner Mountain Bike Camp  (Ages 9-14): Two weekly sessions, weeks of  6/26-6/30 7/3-7/7 With an emphasis on Mountain Biking, this camp for boys and girls ages 9 and up offers attentive instruction and a low camper-to-counselor ratio. Riders of all abilities will learn the basics of mountain biking and safety while making new friends and exploring great trails. Campers should have some experience riding a geared bicycle. We will introduce trail etiquette and bike maintenance and basic trail riding skills to the campers. We will be riding a...

A year ago I attended the New Jersey Interscholastic Cycling League’s (NJICL) inaugural meeting.  New Jersey was now the 19th league to enter the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA).  Representatives from NICA and the NJICL presented the program, providing background, insight, and a description of what would be happening. When I first was presented with the idea of coaching, I was hesitant.  How would my involvement as a public school teacher play out? How would this impact my own personal training? How much time would I be willing to give up? Leading up to the NJ Leader’s Summit in September, I was still unsure of how much time I could (and willing) to devote to helping with the NICA coaching.  However, after attending and presenting at the NJ Leader’s Summit as well watching a fall PA NICA race, I made the decision to fully commit to getting more kids on bikes . Our season officially started in December 2016, but due to my CX traini...

I mentioned in an earlier blog post that this year's CX Nats would be one of my only chances to race Nationals.  With the locations moving every year, Hartford, Connecticut was one I could pull off with work and traveling.  So I trained longer in my season than I usually do and had January 5th as my last race. I had a pretty stellar season, winning a few races and earning my Cat 1 upgrade - and I kept Nationals as an "experience" race.  I didn't want to put so much pressure on myself that I was a stressed-out mess leading up to it.  My legs and mind felt great leading up to the race. Nationals started on Tuesday, January 3rd .  The weather was mild with rain - making the course an absolute mudfest.  I watched videos posted of people slogging up Bonk Breaker Hill and sliding down on their butts.  Lots of running.  Bikes completely covered in mud.  Would it be like this for my race Thursday? The forecast was calling for colder temps to ar...

I had two races left on my calendar for the 2016 season.  These would be the last two races before Nationals. Solstice CX and Limestone CX at the Kiln were both in Emmaus, PA - Solstice was a new venue for me and I had only raced Limestone once, a few years ago (which was 2013, in a few inches of snow).  After taking a few weekends off for the holiday and recovering from being sick, I was looking forward to seeing friends and getting back out on the CX bike. When I arrived at Solstice, there was a light coating of snow on the ground.  I got out for a pre-ride lap, noticing that the ground was frozen and the corners were icy.  I talked to a few others about the conditions, what pressure to run, and what lines to take.  I went back to check out one section and ate it on a corner.  I knew this race would be one that was slower but required more handling skills. As the day progressed, temperatures rose enough to thaw sections of the course, creating a...

With the MAC series over, I've been looking to fill my calendar with some new-to-me venues in order to keep pushing towards Nationals .  Lucky for me, the PACX series keeps going to mid-December.  This past weekend I headed to West Chester, PA for their 2nd CX race of the series. I arrived early enough to get in two laps before the first race.  I heard the course had some climbing and that was true.  Some off-camber sections and flowy turns.  But that wind. This was a race that I wanted to hide if I could. Since it was blustery cold, I sat in my car in between races rather than watch.  Oh, and I've now decided it's not necessary to arrive uber-early only to sit in my car (rather than spectate). I rolled over to the start, noticing how much tape was down from the wind.  A bunch of us huddled together to stay warm since we were out in an open field. Pre-race huddle - photo by B. White We lined up, waiting until the 1-minute warning to s...