Plan A? Come up with a Plan B

Planning a "season" is sometimes about planning the planning. Some races fill up in hours and others have staggered prices that benefit the early worm and punish those who do not know when to get off the pot.

I had to elect to "use" the pot yesterday when I decided to join in on the fun at the Southern Cross race. Putting off the inevitable would not have increased the registration fee, but signing up before Jan 7th (5:00pm exactly) netted me a sweet T-shirt.

It's probably unfortunate for me that the shirt is pretty good looking. Usually my happiness with the aesthetics of the t-shirt is an direct inverse of my happiness regarding my performance. I have a lot of great looking t-shirts from the races I sucked at, and a smaller pile of ugly shirts from races where I ended up doing well.

Speaking of cross racing and my lack of a proper cross bike...

Raleigh has come out with a single speed cross bike that is officially the cream of the dream. Full carbon nasty, no gear shifty bit stops, no disc brake mounts, two water bottle mounts, but unfortunately out of my price range ($1 - $75). Bringing back an appropriate phrase from the late 80's, "It's tits." Though for the price of just the frame and fork I could get a fully built Crosby and still have enough cash left over for a six week supply of EPO. So if I could have one bike I didn't really need, that would be it right there since I don't need EPO (or components) to make great bike race. If you all got together and surprised me for Valentine's Day, that would be nice.

More snooze and lose info?

ORAMM (what used to be the most important race on the international calender... before I lost in a miserable fashion last year) is already open for registration.


If you register now (or before January 31st) you'll pay 2010 rates. Wait until February or later and you'll end up paying more (or less depending on Todd Branham's sense of humor). How much more? Somewhere in the neighborhood of an additional $5 to $1,000,ooo. If you know you are going to do this race for sure, pay up now.

I signed up for the 2011 Trans-Sylvania Epic a long time ago. It's a stage race, so the penalty for waiting is proportional to the relatively high cost of entering a stage race. If you wait until after Feb 28th you're going to pay $100 more than you have to. That does not mean that I won't still offer you the TSE Registration Incentive Package if you drop my name, but I might send you send you a condolences card for the loss of your hard earned money.

I am not yet registered for PMBAR, but that is because Eric "PMBAR Honcho" Wever has been too busy getting the first ever PMBAR themed jersey ready for the event and registration (which will sell out, folks) is yet to open.

Some assembly required.

For 2011 I am partnering up with my 2008 partner Mark "Elk" Elsasser.

"He picked me? Not that squirrely Thad guy from Kentucky? I better bring the Rolaids."

Yes, Elk and I are coming back to avenge our 2nd place from aught eight. Hopefully our 2nd place fueled vengeance does not have a similar effect on Elk as it did Thad when we were looking to best our second place finish of 2009 just last year causing Thad to dig too deep into his suitcase of hyponatremia. Elk did promise to keep better track of his car on the way home from the race.

Thad "Dude, where's my car?" Hoffman's Mazda adrift somewhere off the coast of Tennessee

Once I get into early June I am at a loss until I get to ORAMM in late July (the race I'll have to sign up for six months earlier). I have no idea what to do in the span of time from the end of the TSE until ORAMM. June and July seem like prime racing months, yet there just ain't much to do 'round here. I have consulted the all knowing calendar of knowledge over on XXCMag.com, but I see a hole that needs filled. Good lord, I might just end up at the pure hell that is the Tour de Burg once again.

photo cred: Nater