No Need for Excuses

Racing bikes, like any other athletic competition, requires perseverance. If you happen to be good at it right out of the gate, that's great but you won't stay on top forever. Eventually water reaches its own level. For us older riders it often happens sooner rather than later.

Having come into BMX from a Mountain biking background, I was able to utilize my fitness for quick gains in the Rookie division. My naturally fast pedaling allowed me to win the Championship race last year. I've learned that Intermediate is a whole different animal. Forget the natural advantages, this is where real skills start to matter.

My 2012 season has been rough. It started sweet with 2nd and 3rd place finishes in Jacksonville. Naples, however, was a bust. I was getting used to a new bike so I stayed away from risks. This safety first tactic left me in 4th place on the first day and then I faced the 41+ crowd the second day missing the main by one point. I couldn't afford to race Okee and could only swing one day at High Springs where I crashed in the first moto. Finally there was Sarasota which I didn't race because I hurt my back the night before.

With my qualifier performances awash, I accumulated 26 locals to bolster my ranking. Due to the merger the SSA was forced to change the value of locals. As a result I lost tons of points and fell from 1st place to 6th place.

It was unrealistic for me to assume that I could make a splash in my first season at Inter but that's the result of high aspirations. When you love to do something, you want to be the best at it.

As for the 2012 Florida Cup Championships, my desire is only to race. My injured back is still in rough shape. The best I can hope for is to complete the motos. I won't get a better position this year but as a consolation prize I have earned a special award for completing 30 races during the season.

This was a transition year, a time for adjusting expectations which will allow me to become better prepared for the next time around but I will persevere.

Comments

CST Patrol MTB Tire Review

I've always been a sucker for cheap tires. In part because I'm a starving artist but also because riders tend to pay too much when it comes to upgrading their bikes. For example: How often have you seen a recreational rider purchase top of the line tires because they save him a few grams in weight? In most cases, if you really want to cut a few grams put down the cheeseburger. When it comes to mountain bike tires my measurement of quality sits at the apex between cost and consistency. For this reason I'm a huge fan of Schwalbe's Rapid Rob tires ( Read that review here ). While I'm still running a Rapid Rob on the front of my bike, I decided to try something new on the rear. Something even cheaper. Introducing the CST Patrol. For about $26. the 26" by 2.25" version of the CST Patrol is uber cheap. You get a wire bead, a weight of 780 grams with a single rubber compound but no EPS (Exceptional Puncture Safety) which can be found on other ve

Schwalbe Rapid Rob MTB Tire Review

Schwalbe has an excellent reputation for putting out stellar, high quality MTB tires. The up side has been their grip and superior compounds, the down side has been their prices, that is until now. The New Rapid Rob follows a long tradition of tires named with the alliterative double R, like Racing Ralph and Rocket Ron. Not a bad tradition to be a part of. So, what is different with the Rapid Rob that we haven't seen before? I bought a pair of 26 by 2.10 and put them on my bike to find out.

Bike Review: 2014 Raleigh Talus 29er

I have only ever tested a handful of 29ers. I generally found them to be more stable, aggressive on technical downhills with laid out geometry that felt race focused. While that sense of balance and control left a positive impression, I have never been able to afford such a beast. However, I will get to race one. Bicycles International of Venice and Luksha Reconstruction noticed my recent boost in name recognition, mostly due to the popularity of my book Twisted Trails . Then I told them about my ambitious racing schedule so they decided to sponsor me for the 2015 season. What I needed most was a bike good enough for cross country racing and gravel grinders. It didn't have to be a world beater but it had to stand a step above my now beat up Trek Four Series. Admittedly, that would be an easy task. "What kind of bikes do you see at the races?" asked Jason Luksha, owner of Luksha Reconstruction. While the trends have been fluctuating over the years between 26, 27

Author Alex Hutchinson

Search This Blog