More new tires - Challenge Baby Limus tubulars

I think I previously mentioned that I had planned to race cyclocross on Clement/Donnely MXPs again this year, ideally on wide, tubeless wheels. But that wound up not happening, because Alex at Missoula Bicycle Works had a set of tubulars sitting in the back. Seeing how everyone is now on disc brakes they weren't doing him any good so I got some new wheels.

How I learned to stop worrying about the stutter step and love cyclocross

I think I'm going into my 5th season of cyclocross, and maybe the 6th season of racing bikes. For me, a full season has been around 3-5 road events (including gravel races), another 5 or 6 mountain bike races, and then 6-7 cyclocross races. A big portion of those are the wed night beer league, where we have 4 mtb races and 6 cross races. Outside of those I don't get out much and have actually never even left town for a cross race. The only "real" cross race I've done is Rolling Thunder, and I've done that I think 3 times. Every year I intend on doing more of the wild west series, and every year it seems not to happen. Mostly because it costs money to go drive somewhere and race and I always seem to wind up kind of broke in the fall. The other is that it's the end of the year and prime time for slacking off and drinking beers.

Where was I going with this? Oh, yeah, cross racing, and racing in general, and the fact that I am not actually all that experienced or good at it. In cyclocross, you have that added challenge of needing to get off and back on your bike for runups, barriers, and other obstacles. if you are not good at running the barriers and other obstacles, and carrying speed through corners and difficult sections, you won't do very well even if you have the best fitness. The other side if this is that if you are good at doing those things, you will do better in races even if you aren't the fastest guy at wed worlds. While the pros make it look so easy and fast and smooth, getting to that point takes work, and I had not been doing enough.

Crowsnest pass, Alberta, Canada

Last July when I was in Canada I got in a short ride at the crowsnest pass, which is the border of Alberta and BC. It looked like there was a lot more trail to check out and I was a little disappointed to have not spent more time in the area. Then this July when I was there, my uncle mentioned he was going to be camping there for the first week or so of August. It worked out for me to go up and bring my mountain bike and a tent.