Paint chips and pain faces

I've got dual race reports to cover since I've been slacking on the updates.

Tymor Park, race number 3 of the H2H Series went well. The course was killer as was the competition. Matt and I hit up the 3 hour drive together and after doing a little bit of homework on this guy, we both were concerned. World Cups...Top 20 at NORBAs, what? And don't forget fast Eddy the local legend. The start went off and Matt had a good spot sitting somewhere in the top 3 I think. I wasn't so lucky, between the bottle necking and the ridiculous passing the was going on, I was shoved back out of the top 10. Anger set in. I don't get angry too often, especially in bicycle races. Started passing people one by one as they blew up from the start and caught the lead group of 5 somewhere around halfway through the first lap. Still angry. Flew past all five of them on the next field climb with Matty jumping on my wheel. Hammered the rest of the climb and at the top a could see one guy a little ways back. Put my head back down. Lap 2, rain starts falling, hard. The trails turn to peanut butter within half a lap. Said guy is still just a little ways back. Put my head back down. Finished the last lap (not angry anymore) less than a minute ahead of the miscellaneous local rider with Matt in third. Yeah. Its good to have my old buddy back again. Packed up in the rain and went home.

Yesterday was Granogue. Its been at least 2 years since the last time I got to play there. Chris and Harlan both showed and Wes had his new stars and stripes kit. The ensuing event would most likely be fast. Its not often that I wish a race would have been longer but yesterday was one of those times. I didn't feel particularly bad but not particularly good either. Laps 1 and 2 were spent hanging out with Harlan with Brandon and Wes just up the road. Chris was a little farther. Starting the third lap, the legs opened up and I actually felt like a hadn't just come off of three 20 hour weeks. Managed to close in some time on Brandon and Wes but the finish just came a few miles to quick. 4th place. The MASS series continues its ultra competitive legacy.

In all of my summertime, unemployed boredom, my room is getting a fresh coat of paint. While moving all of my stuff out of the room and stripping the walls bare, I realized just how long my room has looked the same. I pulled one of the medals off the wall- Spring Mountain, 2001. For 7 years I've been looking at the same exact things in the same exact spots. The last time any of it was moved I had a naturally occurring falsetto. Time for something different. I think a lovely shade of chalkboard grey should suffice.

I should really start taking more pictures....