The chaos the ensues on Canton Ave.

Canton Avenue finds solace in reeking havoc on Dirty Dozeners...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3bHNcO_Wwc&feature=related

Dirty Dozen!

It's a rather sick and disturbing appeal, but the Pittsburgh hills for the Dirty Dozen were a lot of fun. Approximately 150 riders met up on a cold, slightly windy Saturday morning for 13 steep hills (along with 2 tough hills in transition), 55 miles of riding, and 6000 feet of elevation gain. All for the glory of saying that they accomplished the feat. Okay, some elite riders were actually competing for points. Myself, along with a couple of buddies, were in it just to make it through all 13 hills. Things were going well until hill 10 when my legs started to finally feel the wrath of these grueling hills. Some Advil and tons of nutrition got me through the last 3 hills. The picture is from one of the more difficult hills, Logan Avenue. It gets extremely steep at the end of the hill, and apparently the rider behind me opted to just lay down the bike. Top 3 most difficult hills were Sycamore, Barry/Holt/Eleanor, and Logan. Trickiest hill was definitely Canton Avenue at a ridiculous 38% grade. All in all, it was a great time...looking forward to next year's DD.

New sharrows and bike lanes in Pittsburgh

The sunshine and 60 degree temperatures were perfect reasons to explore the new East End sharrows and bike lanes. Many of these markings are part of my 25 mile city loop. Evidently, the city plans to install roughly 12 miles of bike markings before the end of the year. Keep 'em coming.

Sweet revenge at Canton Ave.

At a 37% grade, it is supposedly the steepest hill in the Western Hemisphere. The hill is characterized by payment that turns to gapping cobblestone as you make your way up the tedious climb. It's rough...I won't kid you. Last year, Sarah and I ventured out to the South HIlls to try our legs on this hill. It got the best of me as I was only able to make it halfway up. Granted, my climbing legs are not what they are today, and I had my Surly Cross Check (heavier bike with slightly different gearing). This last weekend, I revisited my foe of last year is hope of redeeming myself. Equipped with my Cannondale road bike and running a 11-27 cassette, I was able to crank through this hill not once, but yes, twice (just wanted to make sure for good measure). It was quite monumental, at least in my mind. Sarah didn't seem quite so impressed with a return text that said, "I am proud?" Oh, you should be. Dirty Dozen is less than two weeks away. I've now hammered through 12 of those 13 hills successfully. The trick is doing all 13 in a row without bailing on the 50+ mile ride over Thanksgiving weekend. Should be interesting.

Sporting the Mexico soccer player costume as I did two cyclocross races this last weekend in Morgantown, WV. I had a good showing in the Cat 4 race on Sunday morning at White Park. Marilla Park, on Saturday, didn't fair so well as I was having some mechanicals (dropped my chain ring twice; one time it got stuck between the crank and frame). However, Marilla Park was an amazing course. It offered up a deep sandpit, barriers, a massive hill with steps at the top, and very tight switchbacks. By far the best cross course that I've ridden. White Park was different in that it offered up two baseball fields. The dirty was quite loose from the relatively rainy week, so it became squirrelly in the turns. All in all, a fun weekend to be on the bike.

Month of Mud race at North Park

This particular race at North Park prompted over 200 racers to test their mountain biking skills in the North Hills of Pittsburgh. I think the ideal location and perfect weather made for a huge turnout. This race was another time trial, so individual races start at 1 minute intervals. Oddly, I was positioned just behind two friends that were 1 and 2 minutes in front of me. They were act as my "rabbits" in the chase to see if I could in fact catch them. The race began with a tough switchback climb for almost a mile. The loop continued with several steep descents and a few log crossings. One particular section was relatively rocky, so a full-suspension bike would have come in the preferred bike. I managed to pass one of my friends at about the 4 mile mark, but was not able to overcome my other friend in the last 1/2 mile descent to the finish line. I ended up placing 11th out of 45 racers in the Sport division. Again, not a bad showing and an improvement from Bavington's results placing 13th there. That's it for me this year with Month of Mud. Can't do Moraine next weekend because I'll be returning to NE for my college class reunion. Next up, two cyclocross races over Halloween weekend in Morgantown, WV.

Month of Mud at Bavington

First race of the fall season and my first mountain bike race in PA was decent. I was able to ride 1/2 the course for pre-race with a couple of other Sport racers. I discovered that the tight singletrack did not allow for me to pick up very much speed, even on descents. So, I had to keep the speed in check throughout the entire race. I ended up finishing the 7.5 mile time trial race in just over 50 minutes, which placed me 13th out of 36 Sport riders. Not bad considering it was my first official mtn bike race out here. I realized there are lots of great riders here which certainly amplifies the competition. Next up, my third ever cyclocross race this Saturday. I went through a cyclocross clinic last Saturday, so hopefully the skills that I took from that will manifest themselves on Saturday.