Who would have ever thought I'd be where I am right now? The UCI World Cup circuit. I've only ever seen pictures of it. Competing on the largest stage of the sport feels surreal, but in the same respect it is inspiring. In the last 2 months I've plunged head first into the world of professional mountain bike racing. That's not to say that I have become any more "professional" than before all this happened, but it has motivated me to try and make the switch, and bridge the big gap between being pro and being a professional.

Lets get down to the racing bit. My motive behind all this crazy racing lately boils down to UCI points. 2 or 3 years ago, the UCI mandated that all athletes have at least 20 points to qualify for the World Cup events. These points, especially in the US, are hard to come by for younger, developing riders, so USA Cycling offers spots on the National Team for these riders to get into WC races without having enough points. That is how I got where I am now. Next year I will not be a U23 anymore, which means there will be no more foot in the door, and I'll need my own points next time. So far its working. As long as I finish this weekend in Bromont I will just make the cut with 21 points, and be free to race WC in 2010.

This crazy block of racing started two weekends ago with the US National Championships in Granby, CO. With a starting altitude of 8200ft, my expectations going in were relatively low. For a while, I considered not going at all, but who doesn't show up to the biggest one day event of the year? In the interest of my financial well being, I opted for the skid in/skid out approach for the weekend with the option of racing the night XC at Marsh Creek, Michaux, or both in hopes of making my wachovia statements a little less embarrassing. The latter would not materialize. Less than 48 hours after flying in, I was back on a flight the Philly with a nice little satisfactory 7th place result in my pocket. I landed back home by 4:30 on Saturday afternoon, with plenty of time to make the 11pm start time in Marsh Creek. I started getting excited because eveything was going so smoothly, which should have made me realized something wouldn't go so smoothly. I made my way through the terminal and down to baggage claim and in a few minutes it cranked up and started spitting bags out onto the belt. I watched and waited as the number of bags and people dwindled until it was just me and the baggage claim. Then the carousel stopped and the lights shut off. I wouldn't get my bike until the next morning, just in the nick of time to not make either race. Perfect.

With that, I am going to take a nap. I'll tell you the story of my first world cup race tomorrow.

Where do I start?

So much has happened in the past week. My 22nd birthday was last Sunday. I spent it racing my bike, eating an amazing cake, and filing police reports. Wow, vehicular burgulary, just what I wanted!! How did they know. I didn't really want those 2 ipods or the cell phone anyway, and I was just thinking that it was about time to replace my passenger side window too. Thank you! Less than 24 hours later, the Experience and I were in NYC knocking out a couple of LT intervals down Broadway. Motorpacing, ya know? We hucked some rocks in central park and napped along the Hudson. Then I got smoked by a taxi cab door, thrown to the ground, and met perhaps the most apoligetic man in the city. My wounds are healing.My friend Matt Lester also had his wedding this weekend. I was part of the wedding party and go to dress up and look pretty sexy. It was an outdoor ceremony in a state park, and was really nice. I'm glad I had to chance to be there. Nice job Matt. I would totally hit on me if I wasn't me.

Now it's time to get back to racing and regain some focus. I need it. My schedule has never been so packed as it is right now. A snapshot of the next 6 weeks:

Leave Weds., the day after tomorrow, for CO. National Championships on Friday morning. Catch the soonest flight back east in time to race the Marsh Creek XC saturday night and/or Michaux on Sunday. Work. Leave Weds enroute to Mount-Saint-Anne for the World Cup number 5, followed by Bromont World Cup one week later. Come home and work. Leave the following Thursday for Mt Snow ProXTC. Come home and work, then leave the next Thursday for the ProXTC in Windham, NY on Saturday, skip the short track on Sunday and come home for the French Creek XC instead. Then maybe a weekend off. Or maybe not.

Get the dirt

I've been meaning to do this.

So there's this new website, cyclingdirt.org, that provides nothing but the best mountain bike racing coverage all over the US. Most of us already know about it, and log on daily. For those that haven't heard, give it a look. The site is run by Colt MacElwaine, and used to be centered in his apartment in MA, which he has since sold and has been on the road jumping from race to race all over the continent. His coverage is solid. His coverage picks out some of the lesser known riders and gives them an outlet for some exposure. He hypes up the rivalries between the top dogs. And he gives a peek into the life of the pros by posting interview all the time. And he's got race results posted quicker than most other sites to boot. His site could single-handedly change the sport. It's exactly what the sport needs.