051: Lantern Rouge

DCCX is an outstanding event. The course is balanced, mixing open power sections with some deceivingly technical sections. Marc Gwadz and the DC MTB team obviously put a ton of effort into not only the race but also to the entire event. The venue is unique and the course is laid out in a manner that allows the screaming fans to be close to the beer, but also central to key parts of the course. Really a great time, the weather was beautiful and I'm glad I made the trip down today.

As for my race, I make no excuses. I am the Lantern Rouge of the master's 123 race. Let me continue: DFL, that's dead fucking last. Check the results, they will tell the tale, I was full of suck this weekend. 46th place.

I started third row, quickly moved into the top 10. I was wheezing a little. I thought to myself, this can't be good. Then my peers in the Master's 123 class forgot that we were the Masters 123 and not the cat 4 race as by the time we finished 1/2 the first lap, there were 4 big crashes with lots of bodies hitting the deck. I understand things happen, but brothers that was a supershit show. We are better than that.. Okay today you were better than that, me not so much.

But I digress, back to my suckness. The sensations in my legs they were very bad. My legs felt like wood. Despite inserting myself in the top 10, I was going backwards quickly. As I rode past the pit for the first time I gave Diane the signal that indicates I was not feeling so special. As she cheered for me I responded with this:

Being as we drove 2 hours for me to be awful, I kept riding around. It was a beautiful course, a
beautiful day, why pull the plug?

So I noodled around, took some beer feeds, high fived the crowd, rode a super sweet full suspension Merlin decked out with XTR, and generally made a jackass out of myself. I had fun.

As Lantern Rouge and 46th place finisher, I received a super sweet preme of beer from Fordham Brewer. This was supposed to be for the 50th place finisher, but those 10 suckers that called it a day opened the door for me. The best prize ever for 46th place. thank you Marc Gwadz and DC MTB... Sweet.

The day finished up well as I got to pit for my teammates in the women's races and of course got to hang out with Monkey today. So all in all it was a pretty great day, you know except for you know racing the worst race of my life.

You know if last week I raced some of the best cross of my life, pretty clearly today was my worst. I promise, I'll do better next week.

best to you.

respect
fatmarc

picture of super sweet full suspension bike by Scott Thompson

050: kitchen duty

Cleaned my bike in the kitchen.

I wanted to talk to Monkey while she was working on the computer. I didn't want to be in the garage while she was in the house. We talked some good shit.
a little mess to clean up later but it all worked out.

respect.
fatmarc
"I need to hear some sounds that feel the pain in me."

049: let the wild rumpus start!

Friday morning Monkey and I took the dogs to the vet for their annual checkup.
Riding in the car with our dogs is such joy.

Friday afternoon we taped Granogue and our weekend guests arrived.
Mayhew, Soupie and Tom. A great group of guests who were very helpful and made the weekend fun.

Unless you have been living under a stone, Granogue/Wiss the Queen of the MAC, in my opinion the best complete cross weekend in the Mid Atlantic, was last weekend. It was muddy as hell.

Tom sent out a nice message to the DCCoD and C3 folks who really pulled through and made this weekend happen.

I won’t be able to nail Tom’s flavor, but here is my take. We put on the highest quality event, in the worst possible conditions and it went smoothly. We have a lot of folks show up in shit weather and work their asses off to make this happen. This isn’t a club race, it’s a community race, no one really has an obligation to make it happen, other than our love for cross. Word.

Thanks to everyone who came out to race. Thanks to everyone who worked their asses off. Thanks to Keith Ely, who I was a total douche to on Wednesday before the race, but he was the guy making sure the slip and slide hillside stayed taped as, no exaggeration, hundreds of folks bailed through the tape, and he fixed it up every time. And he didn’t even race.

Monkey is the prize czar for our races now. She makes sure when results are done, we hand out the prizes as quickly as we possibly can. She commented at our MTB races, folks want their prizes as quick as possible, and then hit the road.

At the cross race, she said it much harder to give the stuff out. Frankly, the racers were much more likely to go get a beer, and then go out and cheer for folks on the course. Later they’d show up and check on their prize hours later. That’s a statement about the strength of our community.

Okay personal highlight for me. We are staging the 2/3/4 master men. Two guys from the cat four race come racing down the road towards the locked and loaded masters. Under a minute to go until the gun. I yell to the group, “on the count of three, give me a OUT OF TE ROAD DUMB ASS” and sure enough on the count of three the entire master 2/3/4 class yells, “OUT OF THE ROAD DUMB ASS” It was a feel the love moment for me.

You may have noticed in the photos today, that I was not wearing my team issue blue and white helmet. Friends of fatmarc.com will remember that I lost that helmet at the Gloucester races a few weeks ago. I have ordered another helmet, but it hasn’t come in yet. My old helmet is black, and goes well with my kit, but whilst riding the course Wednesday night, I crashed rather abruptly and cracked it. So, well with no other helmet in my possession, the pink leopard was brought from the bullpen, and out of retirement. I thought Auer’s eyes were going to pop out of his head when he saw it, but he laughed when I told him the story. He reminded me that he offered to get me a pink helmet when I first joined the team. Riding with a pink helmet you don’t really think about it, but it was the first time in over 3 years that someone cheered for me calling me, “go pink helmet guy” or go “pinky” that was pretty funny.

Maybe the cutest picture ever: Kelly and Haley.

Granogue Race.
Went well for me. Started in the 4th row of a big field. Pushed hard early to get as far to the front as I could . I love racing in the mud. It’s hard, it’s when all those years of experience and practice pay off. I have said that racing cross is an art form, it’s a craft, and I pride myself in being an artisan of this sport. Mud races reward the prepared, the experienced, and the technically sound. I got at least two out of those three. I was taking a fresh bike each lap, thanks to my father in law and monkey for pitting for me. Fast Forward to the last lap: Fergie rolls by me on the road. I’m kind of on the ropes, but I’m staying close. Up the run up I can nip him a little, we start in to the downhill, and as I come around the big bush off the backside (he said big bush), Fergie is right there. I’d find out later that he had crashed. We head into the first 180, he takes my line, I go for broke and dive inside hoping I can stick it.
I do.
I get a little momentum gap of 10 feet. Knowing Fergie was hot on my heels kept me honest to the line I am really focused on keeping it clean. He’s right there but I held him off.

I heart Elkton.
2:30 am. Saturday night Diane and I hear a banging. We creep over to bedroom window and look out our backyard into the neighborhood behind ours. “I KNOW SHE’S IN THERE JOHN!!” we hear a man yell as he pounds on the front door. A women replies, “DON’T HURT HIM!!” More banging on the door, lights flashing. A second man yells out of the house. “I’m calling the cops!!” Diane and I squat down watching. “I think we are going to get our own private version of cops here.” I whisper to Diane. “if you hear shots get down.” I continue kinda seriously. Oh the joys of living in Elkton.

Wiss Cross
Started in the 3rd row, my best starting spot this year, and charged to the front following Fergie and Dream Weaver. I might have over-started a little but figured what the hell, ride it out. I spent the middle laps hiding on wheels, and trying to stay smooth. At the beginning of the last lap I had a nice little gap back to Piccolo and a kid in a “huplike” kit. Then I laid it down in on one of the 180’s, letting my 2 chasers inch closer to me.
I admit, I felt defeated.
I focus on my driving. (that was for you Rotten) We hit the spiral of doom, and I hit the deck again. This time when I get up, my chasers are on my wheel. “I’m screwed I say to myself” The “huplike” kit dude passes me, I charge up the run up, and get back to the front.

We hit the pavement, and I can’t see Piccolo behind the “huplike” kit guy. “Hupkit guy” goes, I jump on his wheel, Piccolo is still there. I jump way too early, I think I have the gap, I let up maybe 10 feet before the line, which to be honest I can’t see because I am certain I am bleeding out my eyes. Joe slips in beside me and takes it. I take 2nd in a 3 up sprint. Man, I fucked up that last lap, badly.
Immediately following the race I admit I was destroyed. I didn’t leave anything in the tank, I was hyperventilating a little. I was really dizzy and struggling to breath. Tom calmed me down and gave me beer.

Beer fixes everything sometimes.

As I started to come out of oxygen debt, Colt came over and interviewed Tom and I for his awesome page cyclingdirt.com. See it here.

What a great weekend. I am destroyed.

Thanks to everyone that came out.

Pictures from Mike Kirk, Anthony, and Dennisbike.

respect
fatmarc
“ inside of all of us there is a Wild Thing..."

048: Granogue is Saturday. (in case you didn't know)

some, but not all of the people working hard to bring you Granogue:
pre-race, perfection, execution meeting:

you're god damn right Leo is on the list...


gratuitous tower shot...


Usually it would be faux paux to say that the event you help promote is your favorite cross course ever. But since I have no hand in course design this year at all, I can say the way the course rode tonight, this is my favorite cross course ever. Tom has taken it to another level. He has been simply inspired. I am very excited to see how it races... Now about barrier placement...

see 521 (at 3:23 AM) of you on Saturday. If you haven't registered yet, better do it now, only 12 hours to go...

Thanks to Dennis Smith for the great pictures.

respect
fatmarc
"this is not an event put on by one man, or one group, but by a community of teams/people who recognize the importance of giving back to the sport that has given them so much."

"I can't think of another race that works by committee like ours, but it works for us..."

047: swiftwick

Perhaps some of the loyal readers of fatmarc.com have noticed the new link for Swiftwick over on the side. Recently, I was contacted by the fine folks at Swiftwick, and they asked me to do a test and review of their product. Now, I’ll be honest I have only reviewed one other product on this blog. Although my review was positive, Mr. Accelorade never contacted me again following my review and use of his product. Hmmm.

Let me be honest, I like socks. I also have historically not really thought that there was much of a difference in socks. My preference has always been twin-six socks, as Brent and Ryan put together some fine socks, that are comfortable, look cool and keep my feet warm. Frankly, they do what I expect a sock to do.

When I got the swiftwick socks I quickly put them on. Honestly, I expected them to feel like any other sock. I was wrong. I have to admit they damn felt good. I mean I could feel that I had a sock on my foot, and frankly it felt very supportive. As the day worn on, I stayed aware of the sock, and frankly my feet felt good. Finally, when I got ready to ride I noticed, the socks remained comfortable, still felt supportive, and after a day at the office, in a pair of old clogs, and admittedly my sweaty feet, they smelled fresh.

I wore them on a ride. Feet felt good, and although after my ride they no longer smelled fresh, my feet felt good. I admit I kinda thought all the hub bub about compression tights/compression socks as kinda hooey. I will further admit that this could have been 100% placebo effect.

Regardless, my feet felt really good all day, and frankly, the next day I wore another pair and again my feet felt great. My two pairs of swiftwick socks are now on top of my sock pile as my favorite socks. They look good and work too. Perfect.

At the outset of this, I expected socks to look cool, hold up to my gargoyle feet, and be comfortable. I never really expected any support from a sock. Swiftwick socks have made me really happy, and now that I have been given a couple pair to test, I fully intend to order a couple more pairs. They are really sweet.

respect
Fatmarc
“I grew up doing all that stuff because I was obsessed with the '50s. I had sock hops for birthday parties. So I've always done The Twist and stuff. It was pretty natural and, with my parents doing it all the time, I'd just copy them. Not very pretty.”

046: pillow talk

Saturday Night. October 3, 2009. 09:30 pm EST.

Diane: “Honey there is something I need talk to you about.”

Fatmarc: “What is it Monkey?”

Diane: “It’s serious, I need your attention here.”

Fatmarc: “ Okay, you have my attention, what’s wrong..”

Diane: “ well, it’s about your race today, and that technical section after the second pit”

Fatmarc: “yeah, I’m listening…”

Diane: “well, this is hard to say, I mean, I don’t want to upset you…”

Fatmarc: “No, I appreciate the feedback, what it is?”

Diane: “ what the FUCK was up with that lazy corner?”

Fatmarc: “Lazy corner!? What are you talking about?”

Diane: “you’d come charging past the pit, up the hill, dismount and just kinda meander around
the corner, like you were in slow mo or something, once you made the corner you’d start
running hard but that corner…”

Fatmarc: “ meander!? I was meandering? What are you talking about ?”

Diane: “ it was so bad Bad Kat and I were laughing about it in the pit, I told her to watch as you
charged into the hill, and then all of a sudden you are off the bike and meandering
around the corner…”

Fatmarc: “wait you guys were laughing at me, and meander, I never meander…?”

Diane: “Oh, that was a lazy corner let me tell you, Mr. Lazy Meandering corner. And what were
you thinking in the section after that, I mean each lap you’d move up on a group, and
you’d get to that section, try to ride it, and totally screw it up. I mean, Guys were
running past you. Why didn’t you just pick up the bike and run, you would have been so
much faster…”

Fatmarc: “ I thought I was making it through there pretty well”

Diane: “ what the first 4 times you screwed up that section, didn’t clue you in to running it? You
just kept trying and bobbling your way through?"

Fatmarc: “what first I meander and now I bobble? Anything else?”

Diane: “Hey, don’t get mad, you would have killed me if I did that stuff, I mean you kept moving
up but every lap you’d give up ground to folks you just gapped, or chased down. Hell, on
the last lap you had just caught 2 guys, and youl ost those spots… I’m just sayin’”

Fatmarc: “I’m going to bed now…”

Diane: “I mean, if you couldn’t ride it smooth the first 3 times, you might have thought to run
it…”

Fatmarc: “ great, good night honey.”

Diane: “I’m just saying if I had done that you’d have been told me to change my tactic…”

Fatmarc: “ got it, you could have said something during the race”

Diane: “ you usually are good at figuring that stuff out…”

Fatmarc: “ really thanks, I’m going to bed now”

Diane: “I’m trying to help.”

Fatmarc: “good night.”

Diane: “really… helping…”

Fatmarc: "...."

Diane: “ are you mad?”

Fatmarc: “no, I’m trying to sleep.”

“ you guys laughed at me?”

Diane: “ just a little…”

my wife totally fucking rules.

respect.
fatmarc
"just when you think you've caught her,she glides across the water
she calls for you tonight, to share this moonlight"

045: Pilgramage to Gloucester

Charging up the New Jersey Turnpike for the weekends event at the New England World Championships, I pick up my phone and dial my brother Craig, who lives in Greenfield, MA.

"Hey, buddy, It's Fatmarc, what do you have going on this weekend?" Craig carefully answered, "nothing , why?" I followed up, " I know it's kinda late notice, but I'm speeding up the highway towards my destiny in a little town called Gloucester, sure love to see you, your lovely wife and the kids." Craig, being the bad ass that he is, "hey man, I gotta go."

Confused I asked, "Dude, what's up?" Craig continued, " the wolf has been called in my man, I gotta throw the wife and the kids in the car and get my ass over to Gloucester to hang with Fatmarc and Aunt Monkey!"

and it was on.

Craig and family rendezvous with our small posse from the Mid-Atlantic containing: Buzz, L-Web, Papa Tom, Jeffy, Clutch Bergey, Gunnar, KMill, Forrest, Bad Andy, Bad Kat, Monkey Jan and Myself. We were fortunate enough to have a buddy's "summer cottage" about 5 miles from the venue at our disposal. It was amazing.

Jan showed up, drank a few martini's and headed home after a long day heckling Saturday with a nasty cold/illnesess. Bummer, he would have loved Sunday.
Friday, when we arrived, we immediately bumped into JD, who gave us the low down on the event. A little walked tour of the race course and a warm welcome. I was in awe of the venue, and frankly can't use any other term than reverence as Tom, Jeffy and I did some laps around the course. Valhalla I am coming home.

Diane got this shot of me warming up from the big fucking rock.
Yup that that big fucking rock:

Saturday morning, we woke to the sound of raindrops bouncing on the roof of the "summer cottage". Monkey and I were sharing a room with Bad Kat and Bad Andy. Andy, woke up and said, "it's gonna be another epic Gloucester..."


My race went well. I have no New England points, and as 1st timer really deserved to start in the back. Frankly, I think I was in another zip code from the front row. The skies pissed down, and the wind blew as the official sent us on our way. I got a good start from row 8, and I was stoked.

The course was a wreck, muddy as all hell. Line choices were tough. Friends, let me tell you a little secret, I am a mudder, I am a bike driver. The entire race, I focused on trying to pick my lines, be consistent, and continue moving up. Just keep racing the bike.

Heading into the last lap I had two guys within reach. A dude from ECV who looked like he was on the ropes, and dude in grey. Into the last technical section I attacked past grey dude remembering from the pre-ride that Papa Tom had said,"where ever you come in through this section is where you are going to end up." Sadly, Tom didn't tell my two compatriots.

Up the hill I got a little gap, and totally blew my dismount, allowing both guys to get a little gap on me. That was all she wrote. I was covered in mud, and rode to a 28th place finish. Starting where I started, and how I worked through the crowd. I couldn't have been happier. I had a great ride.

Saturday night was a great time at the "summer cottage" lots of story sharing. Lots of kids bombing around and the most amazing vegetarian lasagna that Bad Kat made. I will admit I think the broccoli Lasagna may have made me extra flatulent. My apologizes to my roommates Kat/Andy/Monkey (who's kinda used to it).

I have to admit I was totally mentally wrecked. I lost my car keys this day, and my brand new team helmet seemed to disappear. The keys I have no theory on, but I remember setting my helmet in the back of the element. Sadly there were 3 Honda elements parked next to each other that day, and because I lost my keys, I didn't lock the rear hatch. I think by mistake one of my fellow element drivers, opened the hatch, popped my helmet on their head and took off riding, unaware until later that they had mistakenly taken my brand new team helmet, (BTW I am 1-2 on new team helmets lasting longer than 2 weeks with me, sorry Auer)

As it got late, Bad Andy went up stairs to our room. I heard a weird commotion and Andy as Kat were settling down for the evening. I popped in to check and make sure everything was cool. BA says, "uh, there's a baby in that bed over there, and he's snoring really loudly, it surprised me when I came in..." It was totally laugh out loud funny. Beth, my sister in law collected my nephew Carter, and headed down stairs as we all settled in for a good night's sleep.

Sunday the course dried out significantly. The new loop was super swoopy and fun, lots of 180 degree turns, which I kinda dig. As the course dried out and became tacky, it was clear that this was going to be a fast race. As we staged I couldn't believe it, but it felt like I was even further back than the day before.

The Gun went off and I had a bad start. All year I felt like I could move up off the gun, despite my best starting position being a 4th row this year. Today, I didn't move at all. I had planned to jump on Chris Samuel's wheel but got denied quickly. That first lap hurt a lot, and was way faster than I thought I could hold, I wasn't going backwards but I sure as hell wasn't making any ground forwards. The first thought of doubt crept into my head, "maybe I gave too much yesterday?"

I blocked that out of my head, "fighters fight" I repeated to myself and set out to do my best. After the first lap, people started coming back to me a bit, I was moving up. I was driving well, and I found a rhythm.

With two to go I found myself in a group with 2 dudes I didn't know and a dude that slapped me around pretty good last year at Blunt Park. The one fellow from Cape Cod Racing and I had similar lines, and were eventually able get out on our own. Diane would later tell me that she was worried that he sat on me so much. The Last section of the last lap was coming up quickly.

Coming into the barrier chicane, he rode all the way to the barriers, I dismounted shouldered the bike and ran to his wheel. We came off the 90 degree corner and hit the barriers, as he picked up his bike. I sprinted past him through the barriers and up the little hill. He remounted first, and accelerated past me, I got on cleanly and jumped onto his wheel. In my most Adam Myerson voice I heard it in my head, "he's mine" we hit the pavement, I dove inside and threw down my best fatmarc sprint, taking would you believe it 28th place again.

Saturday and Sunday were two different races, style wise. To score the same result in both races made me pretty damn happy. It was also cool that Saturday I kinda blew my technique at the end and it cost me a spot, where Sunday it totally bailed me out. That's cross.
I came into this weekend with no expectations. I knew how far back I'd be starting, and how deep and talented the riders would be in the race. I had written in my goals for the week "finish with a 3_ next to your name." Both days were exercises in racing my best cross, not really worried about a result, or earning points, but being out there and battling guys for any ground I could. I kept reminding myself to race out of every corner, and keep pushing forward. 28th isn't sunshine and roses, but making the pilgrimage to Gloucester was amazing, and frankly I am convinced the trip brought out my best cross this weekend, and frankly made me a better racer.

So yeah, 28th in the 1/2/3 master's isn't the best result I ever got, but damn it's something I am definitely going to build on.

thanks for reading.

items of interest :

1 set of keys lost
1 brand new helmet gone
1 other set of keys locked in the car
1 camera ruined in a puddle of Diane's pocket
1 guy yelling "fatmarc, you ain't in the south anymore buddy!"
100 strange dogs that Diane pet this weekend
Working pit and hanging with LVG and Ellitston was cool too.
Thanks to Monkey for working her ass of for me all weekend
WONDERFUL to SEE COMBSY!! Thanks for all your help and cheering!
Clutch Bergey saves the day like 100x this weekend. Great Guy so glad to be associated with him.

a really great weekend, thanks to everyone that made it happen.

respect
fatmarc
"I'll give you candy, give you diamonds, give you pills,
Give you anything you want, hundred dollar bills"

044: love this

I really, really love this.

Trust me it will be worth the 1:34 of your life...

respect.
fatmarc