Getting ready for winter racing

The winter is upon us. I have finally made the transition from my former employer to my new one. It is unfortunate and difficult to be laid off, but (at least in my case) this was a definate plus. Change is difficult, and my mantra lately has been that it takes both a carrot and a stick to achieve a change...and in this case I really believe that it is a change for the better. I am finally getting back to doing some real research, and work that will actually contribute to the big picture, rather than being lost in the noise. My mind boggles at the number of really smart people who must have contributed increadible advancements to humanity, but just never were able to gain the traction to allow it to come to fruition. Oh well...





Anyway, I have been getting in some training now pretty regularly. I even got a sweet deal on a 'pugsley' winter bike (at less than a quarter the price):



Im going to have to change out a few small things, like the seat and seatpost. Im considering changing out the cranks and putting on a front derailleur to get a triple up there, but I am still unsure about that. It is set up as an 8speed internal rear hub (sachs) with tires that are built around the Endomorph casings (so they are the big fat tires that are the same size as a 29er). I hopefully will be able to handle the side to side squirm that they say comes with these tires. It should be a fun ride if nothing else. Im not sure about the weight, but I am guessing somewhere around 30lbs which is a little chunky, but I think that the wide tires will make up for the weight. I even have a golf course located less than a half mile from my new work which is groomed! This will make for some good xc training and snowshoe training as well. I still miss the hills of Saranac Lake, NY; but Maine does have its own charm.
Well, the first race of the season is coming up on Jan 24th in NH. It is the same Gunstock race which I did last year. It was an outstanding course, with lots of elevation change. It was a lot of fun. All I have to do is just keep healthy, which right now is a challenge (some sort of sinus thing going on). I wish you all the best of new years, and hope to see you out on the course.