Epic Racing around the World

by Bart Gilliespie (not really, but written by me as I think Bart would have written it)

Shhh, don’t let the secret out. All winter I’ve treated my recreational activities as if it was, well, winter. Bike training is over rated.

Skiing, working, family, and snow blowing. Sure, there’s been a bike ride thrown in here and there, but for the most part the balance of sport and life has swung right where I wanted it, and cycling has been reserved for when the grass is a little closer to the surface of the 4′ snow pack in my back yard.

Heading down to the land of Dixie in southern Utah was more of an opportunity to re-acquaint myself with the mountain bike ratherm than having any sort of race performance expectations. I fully expected to get waxed, speaking of skiing.

The race started aggressively, the long break in racing having done nothing to temper the aggression of big hitters like Troy Wells, Travis Brown, my USADA buddy Cale Redpath, Adam Snyder, et.all…

Much to my dismay, Travis seemed to have been doing more skiing than I had (he popped early), and Troy must’ve spent most of his winter on his road bike (he flatted on the DH) which left me riding the majority of the race alone. 3.5 laps of 4, solo in the wind, being chased by some of the region’s best is a tall order, but once out there…there’s little that inspires you more than a challenge like holding onto a lead once you’re in possession of it.

Congrats to Matt Ohran in his first Pro/Open race in eight years, bringing in a top 8 finish. Good thing he didn’t wait nine years, right? Has he laid down a new challenge for team managers and industry employees?

One thing’s for sure, some of Ohran’s Cannondale bicycle retailers had a some fun poking Matt about his “one piece racing leotard…”

I seem to remember Laurent Fignon making fun of aero helmets in the 1989 Tour de France, too.

A skinsuit is a bold choice…and one that you can only back up by talking with the legs. However, I’m noticing a chest to stomach ratio that seems to correlate somehow with age. Maybe we’re all becoming belly breathers as we exit our 20’s?

Mitchell Peterson pulled his knobbie tires out from the garage, awakening, albeit, slowly, from his post-cyclocross break.

And never one to wear white before Labor Day, Bart’s Dad, also known as Roger, showed his boys how to do it, winning against the young guys in the 45+ age group.

We have to do something about our team and the random red helmets.

Another story and some results can be found here.

Pirated photos should be credited to Zazoosh.