Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Enter, 'Cross Season!

 It's been a busy summer here at the shop, and I've been a bit remiss in my blogging duties. As we transition into fall, I hope to be able to devote a little more time to the blogular sciences. We're also going to have a lot more subject matter to write about as cyclocross season is here and heating up quickly. The first race of the season was actually August 31st (I know!) and there has been at least one if not two races every weekend since. I myself (along with the Hymanator and Secret Chilidog, with moral support provided by The Schwartz) kicked off the season last Sunday at Fazio Farms. They call it a farm, but it's as much a gravel pit as a farm, with lots of heavy machinery and huge piles of dirt and rock. I didn't have much time for photojournalizing, and I didn't have a real camera, but here are a few cellphone pictures to give you an idea of the majesty of the scene.
The 3 tents on the right are the finish line. The tents on the left had FREE BEER!
The course is in a great location between the Columbia River and the Columbia Slough, just West of the airport. It was an easy 15 minute ride from my house. It featured a mix of fast, flat (though bumpy) dirt and grass stretches and a few short but steep climbs. The main feature was the bomber downhill followed by the uphill to 180 which I referred to as the halfpipe. Holy shit was it fun.
Dropping in. Don't touch your brakes. Just trust me.
Full speed ahead!
Now pedal your ass off!
But wait, there's more!
The view from the beer tent to the "dinosaur back".
The other main feature was the so-called Dinosaur Back. It was a steep (though rideable) hill with a less dramatic though still fun descent. It's best feature was a sweet berm that funneled you around the hill and into a narrow chute of marshy grass that immediately sapped all your momentum.
Coming down the Dinosaur Back. Note Sr. Chilidog repping the orange.
Dig in and let your tires do the work.
All in all, I vote Fazio Farms as most fun cross course ever. And there was free Tecate!
Next weekend you have a choice between Ninkrossi (featuring lots of Ninkasi beer) or the Battle at Barlow (featuring no beer because it's at a high school). For more details check out the OBRA calendar. If Fazio Farms looked like fun, it's coming back for a rematch on November 16th! In 2 weeks shit gets real when the infamous 'Cross Crusade kicks off at the Alpenrose Dairy.

2 comments:

  1. is Secret Chili Dog, Senior Chili Dogs alter ego? and dont forget about blind date

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Also well written and I like the pics because I have never been there.

      Delete