It was a nice warm and dry day for the season Cyclocross opener at Blunt Park in Springfield MA and a chance to show off the new kits.  Cliff Kenyon, Joe Tindal, Chris Franson and Dave Hildebrand were on hand to give it a go. This is a fast and fun course with a typical New England setup in a Park.  The race starts off with a fast section of pavement and quickly hairpins into a single track dirt section.  The course can be broken down into a few key segments… 1) first the woods with a few obstacles challenging your skills to ride or speed to dismount and clean quickly – you never know which is faster some times. 2) followed by a couple of taped off turns to give you a short taste of corning but this segment is really known for a very long stretch of single track on the grass between the trees and the road – it’s long and fast and can make you tired quick. 3) you coming into a few more corners that leads you to the quadruple barriers – no riding this section friends. 4) Lastly a few more turns, some straight aways and you pop out onto the start again.  Hit enter and repeat numerous times!

Cliff, Dave and Joe lined up for the 1/2/3 race just behind (30 seconds) the 35+ field of around 25 riders.  At the whistle it was time to drill it – all the planning of the summer and training came to this first and very exciting moment.  Cliff and Dave entered into the woods at the head of their field and motored through traffic from the 35+ field and found themselves at the front of the race quickly.  Joe continued to put in a solid effort throughout the race which is very impressive given he recent riding trip to Canada where he logged over 50 hours and 500 miles in just 8 days.  The race continued fast and within the first lap Dave and Cliff were on the front with no one else in their group in sight.  They were at the front with the two leaders from the 35+ field setting a good overall pace through to the finish.  Dave and Cliff would finish 1st and 2nd and Joe just outside the top 10.  Chris Franson put in a good showing in his field and finished in the middle of the pack.

All and all it was a great day and the Expo fella’s put in a good showing. -DaveH

The Jeremy Powers Wheelhouse Grand Fundo in Southampton, MA was in my calender and I was excited to partake this year and it sure didn’t disappoint. A bunch of us decided to make the short trip up, Cliff K., Jon T., Jeff B., Dave H., Keith G., Todd B., Joe T. & Mike M. Dave J. & Linda met us there along with Chris F. from Boston. As we arrived the atmosphere was energetic and festive with the slight hint of a bike race-which made me a little nervous. But at the start we were reassured that this was not a race and we were out there to have FUN! So we rolled out, Dave H off the front…..kidding, but in the front somewhere and then a couple miles in…………

This is how I got to ride with Jellybelly Pro (Brad Huff) and a young Elite rider from Canada (Sean Adamson) by accident. The night before I decided to change my tires, so within the first couple miles I pinch flatted from my awesome tire changing abilities. So here I am by the side of the road, forgot my tire iron, trying to use a stick to pry my tire off as everyone flew by. I debated hitching back to the car to get a very early jump on the festivities just as Sean, sweeping the course asked if I was OK. Great, he can help me and I may have a chance to catch back up. I handed him my 1st tube…..too small (not sure why I had a small tri-bike tube)…..2nd tube out of the plastic package had a hole in it?! OK, Sean kindly offered his only tube, popped it in and yup…..it had a hole in it! I think at this point Brad Huff was there, seemingly annoyed, takes one out from his back pocket tool box and a minute later tells Sean to corral me back. I hop on Sean’s wheel and we are moving pretty good until we hear Brad yelling at us from down the road, damn we missed the turn. Now obviously annoyed he tells Sean to go ahead and we started riding.

We had a nice conversation and he was super nice, asked me what I did for living and then I politely asked him what he did for a living……oops, he’s doing it right now (i didn’t know who he was)! Along the way Brad offered some nice tips and a nice view by his garment selection for that day of missing material in the rear.

After riding with Brad and Sean (again) until they had to rescue others, I eventually made it to the first water stop and was pleased to see Dave J. and his girlfriend Linda. We rode together until we came upon the ice cream truck stop, yes ice cream stop where I was surprised to see Jon T., he was sidelined for a while waiting for a new wheel from the SRAM neutral support. I actually wasn’t feeling it and took a pass on the ice cream. Back on our bikes, Jon was gracious enough to ride with me for the last half (more like pull me) through some gorgeous challenging country rodes and farms.

We made it back to the tent without any more incidents (just barely) and thus began the Pig-Roast BBQ with the gods at High & Mighty Brewery serving up the Beer. The crew was already enjoying the festivities with the exception of one “Man” who thought 64 miles with 5,400 ft of climbing and 20 miles of dirt rodes just wasn’t enough so he would bust out the Hundo with double the climbing and 20 more miles…….nice job, you deserve a few extra beers for that Todd B!

What else can I say but the FUNdo/Hundo was a blast, that supports a great cause (J.A.M. Fund) and shared with friends!