We're back! :)

We are back from our Florida vacation! It was awesome! I'll post more about that later when I have more time. We got back around noon on Saturday. Jess' parents picked us up from the airport. We then headed to JT Whitneys so we could have lunch and watch the 2nd half of the Michigan/Wisconsin game. It was a good game, I wish the result was better but such is life. We came home and I got pretty organized, doing all my laundry and cleaning up and getting ready for Sunday. Yes Sunday, we still had grand notions of doing the WORS race in Wisconsin Rapids.

Sunday came and I wasn't really feeling racing but I wanted to go anyways as it was a beautiful cool fall day and the course is pretty fun! The trip up was good luck, first the XM played Life by Haddaway which was a good sign. XM 54 was also hitting up all of our 90's alternative favorites. We caught up to the Longs on the road which was also cool! I also saw some bison on the way up so I was really having a good luck day! We finally get to the race and register. It was kind of chilly but eventually I got ready and warmed up.

The race: Expectations low, I don't really care about points, I ate alot of crap food in the last week and flew in yesterday. I don't get a call up this year as it was only my 6th WORS race and 3 of them sucked. I did weasel my way into a front row start and I was ready. From the gun I tried hard to get to the front. Only problem is that I don't really have top-end speed any more. :( I got passed by a few and entered the woods in maybe 12th place. WI Rapids is a course that is almost all flat (one slight climb at the end of each lap) with mostly singletrack connected with some fast double track, ski trail and other open trail. After lap 1 I was battling for 7th-8th place in my age. But the last half mile of each lap and the first half mile of the next lap I could dominate. And I did. I passed tons of people. 1 mile into the 2nd lap I was in 5th place by a hair. I got passed by a guy who is better in singletrack than me and settled in behind him as we worked the singletrack. No one could keep with me on the end of the lap, so I hammered it and never saw that guy again. I did however start to see Ebben as we entered the 1st real singletrack. I got up to his wheel and then he messed up a pass and went down so I passed him and I was in 4th. I settled in and started taking chances then but couldn't see anyone else. Finally I pull onto the road to take the last climb to the finish, threw it in the big and flew around 5-6 people, the last one happened to be in my age group as well, so I just buried it and in about 300yards I put 10 seconds into him and finished 3rd. Parman and Gosse are duking it out for the title so they both got ahead of us by a ways. But I was happy, Rapids usually isn't a great Mark Larson course. I also finished in the 20's in the overall which is awesome for me for being in the last wave. It's weird, I have no top end speed but I can really hammer for a long time so I just can't rock the start like I used to but I don't fall off pace either. Hopefully I can get a little snap back by Sheboygan so I can race close to the lead.

So the good luck continued on the way home. After the race we needed some eats, Jess wanted Culvers but I thought I remembered a Taco Bell to the left. We go left and I see the Taco Bell. Just when we are getting there though, there was a friggin' Checkers Drive Thru! No lie! So I had to hit that, even though I just had it on Friday! Awesome! No worries, we still went to Culvers for Jess' Grilled Cheese! Then we settled in, listened to the Packers and got home! Pack and Colts both win! A good day! :)

Others:
Jess: 4th in age; her best race this year!
Jen: 2nd; oh what a season!
Ryan R: 2nd! What a stud!
Mike W: 1st! Awesome!
Jerry: 7th overall in Elite, by far his best finish ever! Congrats!
Ryan: 11th overall in Elite, I believe his best finish too!

Florida trip report coming soon!