Holy Shit! I love my dog.

Man, I really love my dog Kona. She is a trip, and it's great to have a dog that can share in my love of the outdoors and keep up while we run, hike and ride.

This is my leg-opener ride for last weekend's races. Took out the MTB on some local trails to enjoy the Autumn weather. It had rained a few days before so I took Patrick the Paragon (my mountain bike) so my Rita the Redline (cyclocross bike) would be nice and fresh for the race. I'm glad I did that, I rolled through some very stinky feces perhaps from a horse of someone else's dog. Thus the "Holy Shit!"

Yeah, it's great to share recovery rides and take time to smell the roses with my little four-legged companion. We're lucky she is very good off-leash, and it gets her the exercise she needs.

It's Gold Baby!

Sweet! I'm the Ohio State Cyclocross Champion, of dudes aged 35-39. Champagne and hookers all night! Okay, maybe not. But I DO have Tom Boonen's haircut.

Top of the World, if just for a Day

It looks like I won the perfect attendance award. Twice.

I've raced just about every cyclocross race I can find, searching for results I can be happy with, but most races leave me feeling like I could have done better. Since I'm out there everyweekend I've tallied up enough points to earn top rankings in old dudes in Ohio as well as the OVCX.

I'm still searching for my luck, my fitness and my technique to come together for the perfect race. Only 3 more left in the OVCX, I have a feeling there are many racers lurking in the shadows and I hope to maintain a podium in the overall, but will be just as happy with a top 5.

Race #105, Caught by the short and curlies

A beautiful day in Bloomington! I was just starting to find my groove in the race when my front tubie went flat! I may have caught a thorn during the race or perhaps even before the race.

So after making an inept wheel change I got back out there but I couldn't resist grabbing some dollars from Shamrock Cycle's guru Tim and a chocolate chip cookie from some little girls in the sandpit. I took a bite and stuffed the rest with the money down the front of my skinsuit. It made an interesting photo once I unzipped after the race.

Nice fall weather! And the BioWheels dudes hit Bloomington's Uphill Brewery for some beer and a bite. Bjet and I got to carpool with BioWheels newest Cat 3 Dan, who tore up the Cat 4s. It was nice to have a new friend on a very long car trip.

Although I had another bad day, it was wonderful to see Bjet return to form as she took 3rd place overall and 2nd in the Elite Women's Open.

Commute home along the mighty Ohio.

Bjet and I took the day off to celebrate our 4 year Wedding anniversary. A hike with Kona and a leisurely ride on some local trails with a stop for some chocolates!