Still struggling to get back on track with the multi media updates, as stages 3-6 had us in the sticks.
Blake and Sager wrapped up a great week here, with the courses and competitors much tougher than in 2011. Blake finished fourth overall and came terribly close to taking the win on stage 5, while sager won stages 2,3 and 6 to finish second on GC to an impressively strong Stefan Sahm, of Germany.
We’re about to jump on a plane….here’s a video to hold ya over, and keep your eyes peeled …

We’re doing a pretty rough job with keeping all forms of intranet updated….facebook, instagram, cyclingnews.com journals, Vimeo videos and Cyclingdirt.org, where does one end and the next begin?
For now…we’re heading into stage 3. Harlan’s sitting in 4th, Sager’s in 2nd after winning yesterday’s stage. We’re both dragging from our great idea to race an “opener” marathon in Osorno, but honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. What would you do? You’re in Chile, its NOT SNOWING (like at home)?
You’d race your bike, that’s what you’d do.

Cyclocross championships was simultaneously the last race of the long 2011 season for me and
also the first race of 2012.
It seemed that pushing CX nationals into January has misled the weather in Madison, WI. Almost a year ago when I found out that CX nationals will be held in January in Wisconsin, I was scared to imagine the weather that will torture all CX racers – way below freezing.

But it looked like fall weather has waited and waited until CX nationals weekend –
highs of 40′s and even 50′s, no snow on the …

Well – season is done folks.
Finally. I say that as if we’re ready for it to end…and we are/were, yet it was our best season yet. Wins at Trans Andes and the defense of Rotem’s  national title, a dozen stage wins, top tens in every Pro XCT, a heap of back yard victories for all of the guys and gals in their respective regions – in everything from ‘cross to STXC, Marathon to good old fashioned point-to-point races. Heck, a few of us even hit Premier Elite flying status, and …

The 2011 MTB season….that’s a wrap !
The last mountain bike race of 2011 season – The U.S. Collegiate National Championships.
It’s been a long season of racing mountain bikes, one to remember for the good for sure.
I’ve been on quite a few new race venues this year – Missoula, Armstrong’s ranch, Slovakia and a
few more. It’s always sweet to arrive at a new race venue and race course that you I have never
been on. It’s like a whole new world of opportunities.
Checking the race course for good new lines that other …

Dude. We’ve been up to a lot, but at the same time, it’s been a pretty low key Fall since Blake raced the Breck Epic.
Local racing, resting, some training, then a really long and convoluted series of plane flights to get us to the Langkawi (Malaysia) International Mountain Bike Classic.
Results were mixed, Thomas Turner and Blake Harlan starting the week off strongly while Sager was sick, then as Sager came around, TT and Blake started feeling a little goofy themselves. In the end we ended up with top 20′s …

That business hurts. First off…a little skidding.

We did a little morning TV show bit for the local news about the event. Being on site and camera ready at 5:45am hurt even more.

I ran a crazy setup – 36t single ring with 140mm fork. Sounds like a trail bike, which it is, except its a XC frame and the whole package weighs 21.5 lbs. Which is how trail bikes are supposed to be, right? No compromise. Unless a 1:1 low gear ratio doesn’t work for you.

Its all worth it in the …

Today was gonna hurt. The last day of Breck Epic is a scorcher. The most jeep road of any stage, smooth single track and only 30 miles. Frustrated with yesterday’s stage I came to the start line today to really let it all hang loose, you know giv’r. If I didn’t cross the line blasted, something was wrong and that’s about how the day went. Two times up and over Boreas Pass will hurt, racing over it will really hurt.

The day started with Colin Cares and Lico lighting it …

To put it simply, I blew it today. There are plenty of excuses I could make to myself to feel better about what happened today but really it comes down to rider error. The gun went off and ten minutes into the race the lead group at which point I was the tail end of missed one of these guys…

As the roughly eight man group took the wrong turn we all rode through a little mud puddle. The difference was that when I hit it my tire abruptly went flat. …

There was no rest for the weary today. Coming on the back end of the Mt. Guyot loop, today’s Keystone loop featured climb after climb. I managed to take a digger on a high speed, pee gravel descent. The crash did nothing more than destroy a pair of shorts and cause me to be a little sore this afternoon. The racing today was tight as a group of us were together until Aid 2. After the never ending climb out of Aid 2 racers were blessed with yet another perfect …