Weekend o' Cross

Through the barriers at Starcrossed.
Hitch was tired after a weekend of cyclocross.

The start of Ted's race in Steilacoom.

The heinous run-up at Steilacoom.

We're back from a pretty busy, but fun, weekend. Starcrossed was fun, as always. The course was good for me because technical sections were pretty minimal. Right as we were heading out to pre-ride the course, Hitcher escaped from Ted's grip and took off through the busy parking lots. He would run toward us when called, but then dodge us at the last second. I felt sick to my stomach because he could have just kept running and been gone. Thankfully, Ted was able to tackle him (literally) to the ground. Needless to say, I was not at all happy with him. Something similar probably happened when he was out hunting with his previous owner, and that's how he ended up starving and cold. Dumb dog!

Anyway, the racing was good. Ted's field was really big, with about 85 guys starting. I didn't get to watch too much of his race because I had to warm up for my race, which followed his, but I could see some of the action from where we were parked. It was his best performance at Starcrossed, so he was relatively happy with it.

For my race, my goals were to avoid being lapped and to not finish last, and I actually accomplished them both. I would lose time each lap through the barriers, but would then gain some back on the faster power sections. I ended up beating some women I had not beaten before in cyclocross and did not lose as much time to the winners as in years past.

We, of course, stayed around to watch the elite men race, and it had gotten really chilly by then. Neither of us even had a beer because were so cold that it wasn't very appealing. Plus, we had that post-race upset stomach. Hitcher sported his fancy coat, which got some laughs and points from some people, as well as a comment that he looked like a "thoroughbred." It did stop his shivering, though!

Since Ted's team puts on Starcrossed, he stayed and helped with course takedown, so it was pretty late (and cold!) by the time we left. Hitcher and I eventually hopped in the car to warm up and the coonhound in him was raging when two raccoons ran in front of the car. I had to plug my ears until he stopped howling.

Ted had some bad luck at yesterday's race. Right before his race started, he threw my rear wheel on his bike. His race started and his chain was skipping all over the place, refusing to stay in any one gear, so he called it quits. He was frustrated at the time, but is glad in retrospect that he stopped because his chain was about to snap, which would have likely launched him over the bars.

By the time my race started, it had warmed up considerably and the sun was shining. I didn't feel great at the start, but began to feel better as the race progressed. At one point, I was sitting in last place, but I managed to rope a few girls in, and actually felt pretty good toward the end of the race. I was shocked when I was handed a check for finishing in the top 15. Me? Making some prize money in cyclocross?

Ted and I have both come to the realization that we have gained some weight since the road season ended, so we are officially on a diet. We are doing a raw food diet, so we basically will be eating a lot of fruits, vegetables, and nuts. We don't know exactly how long we'll keep this up. Chances are good that I'll be the one to crack. We'll have to get creative with our meal prep. Hopefully it jumpstarts our weight loss, as we'd each like to lose at least 10 pounds.