The Last Fun-Raiser of the Year......must be December!

Man, it's been a helluva year when I take a sec to think back on it! it's been busy-like-mad here @ the shop and the rides have been bigger 'n better than ever, the JDRF Rides continue to grow (Montana and Death Valley were both awesome in completely different ways) , the Kokopelli Trail trip was an experience and a memory that's better to "have" than to "have been doing", our trip to the bike show was the usual hoot and 'cross season 'twas more fun than ever! (More painful too!)

We had the last Fun-Raiser of 2006 here yesterday. I called it the "Pavement Pounding Pizza Party" and we had about 50 riders anxious to take advantage of the mid-Dec sunshine. (Which we lost about halfway throught the ride)

I swear........half the group musta been from GR! Between Danielle bringin' her buds and me gettin' to know all those Crazy Bastards (www.cbcross.com) we see more from the Big Town every ride! Kinda cool. Hell.......more of the VCC staff lives in GR than in Holland so maybe it ain't that weird, huh?

We did 20-ish in a pretty nasty SW wind then demolished nearly a dozen large pizzas from Subs-n-More and lotsa refreshing frosty beverages from our good friends @ The Curragh Irish Pub next door.

Speaking of The Curragh.......they're the first biz in downtown to offer valet parking. That's right......head on down to check out'cher favorite bike shop on Friday night and they'll park your car for you! Just pull up out front. (And maybe stop in there for a snack when you're done over here!) No word on valet bicycle parking yet, however.

The long-awaited Velo City Pub Glass is here. A full Imperial pint mind you, not one of those sissy 16 ouncers. They rock.

The even-more-eagerly-awaited VCC kit is 5 weeks away and we cannot wait! Stop in and check out the design next time you're in the area........we think you'll dig it.

Man, there's just a ton of stuff to do and a ton of stuff going on! That Gerry Barnaby dude from Channel 41 called Rach about an article they're doing on bike commuters, the JDRF team for '07 is starting to form, cool bikes and bikestuff rolls in every day...........I need to learn to do w/ out sleep!

We're lookin' for prospective Velo-Citizens for the upcoming season, natch. Gimme a shout or stop by if that little nugget of info tickles your fancy at all.

Gotta go...............thanks for reading, thanks for caring about the shop, thanks for ridin' w/ us!

Don't forget the New Year's Day Ride here @ 1:00pm!

MC

The 'Cross season is over (for this boy at least!)

So....we went over to the "east side" for the State Cyclo-cross Championships this past Sunday. The Third Coast had a decent representation.........HUP-sters Mossimo, Doez, new-friend-John-from-Kalamazoo and myself, Crazy Bastards Surley and Jeff, Jason from Slingshot and Scott ridin' for Founders, Mr kissCross his-own-self, Tom from the W.M.C.R. and Slingshot Pro and Crazy Bastard-ette Danielle were all racing plus we had CD, Brother Jurrian, Sweet T, Krisanne and M2 ringin' the cowbells. A buncha us lined up for the 10:00am "C" race and off we went. Damn, it was cold and gettin colder every minute! I was the only one the entire day to race w/ bare legs, but I had a bunch of embrocation slathered on my legs, not to mention my toes, earlobes and lower back. We did 4 laps of a long and fairly flat course that wound all over the grounds of the Waterford Raceway. (Looked a lot like Grattan) There was a bitchy run-up following some barriers, a little singletrack, a stretch of roadway and a lot of grindin' down long bumpy grass straights. Hard..... but not a killer. After 2 laps everything sorted itself out loke it usually does and it was pretty much a painful processional to the finish line. I flet better that last week........which ain't sayin' much at all.......but still pretty much brought up the rear. We done good though..........Mossimo was 7th (I think) overall, which was good enough to make him the FRIKKIN' STATE CHAMP in the 35-49 class! Surley was good for the #2 spot on the podium in the 50+ class and I was one lone spot off the podium in 4th. Rats. Doez and Rick/aka Snake/aka Mr. KissCross both had good rides too, finishing up there towards the middle of the pack overall.
In the "B" race we totally embarrassed John-from-Kalamazoo w/ our fervish shouts of "HupHupHup!!!" anytime he was in sight. He was in a chase group w/ Jason and 2 others and they stayed together 'til the bitter end.
Then, after a trip inside to thaw a bit it was time for the Elite Wmn / Masters event. Danielle and Scott lined up and off they went. Danielle settled down about 4 laps in..............she's more used to those "all day sucker" events after all.........and she was 3rd overall and #2 in the state when the dust settled. Scott had a good race but I'm not sure where he placed. Looked good though.
We watched the big boys through squinting eyes over chattering teeth...........it just colder and colder all dang day. Then it was off to the local pub for chow and fluids and then a long and semi-sketchy drive home. Long day, but a good one.

Here's the thing................I am in love w/ the idea of 'cross! I think it's so cool and I wish I was better at it than I am. Dudes that I beat all season long on the road crush me at 'cross every damn race and I keep sayin' that I'm gonna be ready for the season next year.

Yeah......that's right.....I'm gonna be ready for 'cross next year! Yeah, that's the ticket!

We'll see.


Lots goin' on @ the shop..............gotta ride this Sunday, gotta get the Newsletter out, gotta get ready for the Holidaze. Bike life remains good.............hope all is "groovey and flowing" on your end. (To quote Bob Roll)

See you later!