Thru Endurance We Conquer!

Isis snuggled in the quilts on the bed It's amazing how much our pets can touch us and influence our lives. When I got Isis (although I think she picked me) she was a scrawny six pound alley cat who'd been dumped at the vet with her kittens. She was scared of everything and everyone except for me. We were a duo - she aways snuggled, slept with me and kept me company. I played with her, made sure the food bowl was always full (part of the reason she got up to 16 pounds...) I'd come home from PT class with a pile of homework, a lab exam to study for and three projects. She'd meet me at the door with a meow and take my mind off of the stress of the day with her throaty purr and antics like eating my sweet potato off my plate. When I was in Spokane for one of my clinical, Isis stayed with Mom. Mom told me when I go home that she'd never seen a more unhappy cat for those two months. I'm too comfortable to play - but that looks fun. Fast forward a year and I...

 The 2011 24 Hours of Colorado Springs proved to be quite the adventure before the race even started. After a successful first year on the Falcon Trail at the Air Force Academy, plans were made for the National Championships and another fun time riding up Stanley Canyon. Then things changed and we weren't even sure of a venue for the 24 Hours of COS. So a huge congratulations to the race director and organizing committee for securing a fun and challenging venue in the middle of Colorado Springs. This year it truly was the 24 Hours of Colorado Springs, set at a favorite play ground - Palmer Park. I rode one lap two weeks before the event and while it seemed "easy" for Palmer Park, but after a few laps it would be challenging. A good mix of technical riding, fun single track and fast double track that didn't provide much respite. On race day however, I wouldn't get much more then a quarter of a mile from the camper. This is a race report about crewing for ...

Autumn - the days get shorter and the riding weather turns crisp. And that means it's time to break out the lights and find some friends to ride with! Tracy, Kristi and I met up for a fun ride up Buckhorn and down Jacks on Wednesday, looking forward to some tight and fun trails - thanks to all the rain and snow from last weekend. Meeting at the main Stratton parking lot, we meandered up the single track to Goldcamp road under the light of the setting sun. There weren't many clouds, but the ones that lingered were tinged with fuchsia and gold. The line of the horizon out east was deepening into a rich purple as the sun vanished behind the mountains. And the the moon peaked up from the edge of the earth - gleaming orange and huge over the city below. A beautiful start to the ride! We hit Gold Camp and set our sights on Buckhorn. There was hardly any traffic on the road at that hour - meaning we could take up the entire road and ride in the smoothest part. I still had my annoyin...

Or Winter picked the wrong weekend to make an appearance. I was supposed to race in the Bear it All Triathlon on Sunday. It sounded like a fun race to close out the season with a 1500 swim, a 24m bike and 5.6 mile run. Well, as the forecasted morning low temp started plummeting the race director made the call to change to a run/bike/run duathlon instead. A smart move - I know how hard it was to try and run after swimming in 53 degree water when the air temp was mid 40s. I could not imagine trying to ride in those conditions. I like feeling my fingers and toes while riding! So I was looking forward to a du - since swapping swim for run wouldn't affect my race that much. Then winter moved in with snow and rain all along the front range. Nick and I loaded up the turtle and headed north, hopeful the weather would improve. Got my packet and a campsite and headed out to preride. It was fun - a little mud and some puddles, but nothing I couldn't handle. Especially since I was on my ...

 The trail from Pineview - a great day for racing Photo - Nick Thelen  Another perfect Utah day provided the backdrop for the racing action at Xterra USA. The new bike course lent to speedy times despite the climb, while the technical run course kept racers on their toes. Spectators lining the course, hoping for a glimpse of Lance Armstrong, were treated to a battle royal on the men's side and a commanding performance by Melanie on the women's side. She laid it down on the bike and finished in 2:43:00. Lesie Patterson made a last minute charge on the run, but took second in 2:45:59. Danelle Kabush had a strong performance to finish third in 2:47:43, with Kelly Cullen (2:49:20) and Emma G (2:52:01) rounding out the top five. I had strong swim, a decent bike (but well off the pace off the rest of the women) and a really solid run to finish 13th pro and 17th overall. I had hoped for a top ten finish this year, but it was not to be. But I still had a solid race and a good ...

Top four Solo Single speed on the podium Carney, Plews, Liddell, Nick Photo - Tim Bergsten The 24 hours of Colorado Springs, the 2011 USAC 24hr MTB National Championships is in the books. Nick raced this year and I handled support crew for him. He took fourth in the Solo Men Single Speed behind Evan Plews (18 laps), AJ Liddell (17 laps) and Andrew Carney (15 laps). Nick had a decent race and persevered though some tough physical issues that had him wanting to quit at 1:00 am. Doing support for him was as hard as racing! I'll have some notes from the race up soon.