For the 2008 – 2009 season, I’m really fortunate to have Clif Bar on board as a sponsor. Basically, Clif Bar is helping me take care of my nutritional training and racing needs. Thanks to Clif Bar, I’ve got a my pre-race nutrition, race, and post-race nutrition covered. Shot Bloks, Clif Bars, and Shots are always in my race bag. And for a little treat, I’ve been known to munch on chocolate raspberry Nectar bar.

Check out the Clif Bar web site to learn more about the company, its products, the company’s efforts to fight global warming, and most importantly Cliff Bar’s community involvement projects.

Big thanks to Clif Bar for helping me out this year. Very much appreciated.

So it is that time. Time to iron out my new season goals for the 2008 – 2009 cyclo-cross season. As most of you know, my goal for this season was to represent Canada at the 2009 World Cyclo-Cross Championships on Feb. 1, 2009.

I set myself a big goal. Perhaps the biggest I could set (apart from wanting to win the World Champs). This is the thing about goals – sometimes they aren’t attainable. I think this is the sign of a worthy goal – one that is hard to reach, one that takes a lot of focus, one that does not come easy.

So now what? What are my goals for the rest of the season? Good questions. It is tempting to take the easy way out and say something like: three top ten finishes in elite women’s races (but I’ve already done this). Lets just say, I don’t know yet. I’ve got some ideas ruminating in my brain. These goals have to be strong. When I’ve had such a massive goal, the subsequent ones have to be just as worthy.

Challenging. Attainable only with continued hard work and dedication. You see, I’m a goal-oriented person. I need to shoot for the moon. I also need a lot on my plate. So this means I need to have goals that force me to stay busy and focused.

I’m still going to Europe! Yay! Leaving Dec. 9. But now instead of doing four World Cups, I’ll most likely only do one World Cup. I’ll have more room in my schedule to pick and choose races (heck, I can even take a weekend off if I want).

I’ll admit, this has been a tough week. I was tired from the racing on the weekend combined with the travel. Then my knee became infected. I’ve just been feeling tired. But today, I’m feeling better. Stoked to get out and spin the legs again. I think I’m missing my goal a bit – it was something I could hang onto – when I didn’t feel like getting out in the cold and pounding out intervals – I had the goal to get me out there. It really helped me.

Now what? Tough to know what to do. I’ll get it sorted though. It just might take me a while to get myself sorted out.

As for upcoming racing, well decided not to go to Delaware and Pennsylvania for the races this weekend. I’m no longer on a UCI points chase (lets face it – 125 UCI points is pretty much impossible for me to get by December – I think I have 7 points right now…). So I’ll be racing in Kingston this weekend – haven’t raced there in a while. Should be fun. I’ll still be hitting up the New England Verge series and the New Jersey USGP races. Then it is on the plane for approximately 18 races in Belgium and Holland (I still haven’t updated the race calendar…).

So this is where I’m at.

So, it has taken a while but I’ve got the photos up. Sort of… Couldn’t find a very elegant way to manage the photos. So for now there is a new widget in the sidebar. This will link you to my Flickr page.

On my Flickr page, click 2008 Cyclo-Cross Nationals and 2008 Jim Horner.

Sorry that there aren’t any descriptions. Also, the order is completely random. But for nationals, there are photos from the Masters B, Elite Women, and Junior races. For the Jim Horner race, there are photos from the Masters B, Elite Women, Junior, and Elite Men races.

Thanks to my dad for the photos.

If you’d like a copy of a photo, drop me an email.

The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy…It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed.
–Jacqueline Gareau, 1980 Boston Marathon champ

As most of you know, my dad made the trip out to Edmonton to watch the ‘cross races and generally help us out in all manners possible. Well, this was also his first time ever seeing a cyclo-cross race. I asked him to write a post for the site about his impressions of the weekend:

Confessions of a Neophyte Cyclo-Cross spectator – by Paul Thomas

Seven days ago, if you had asked me about rolling a tubular, I would have thought that I was being offered an illegal smoke! If I’d been introduced to a commissaire, I’d have expected to meet a commissionaire-wanna-be. How perspectives change…

My first exposure to cyclo-cross racing was in Edmonton at the Cross Nationals and the Jim Horner races held over the Thanksgiving weekend. And what a weekend it turned out to be. Aside from being able to spend it with Vicki and Marc, I got to meet Fearless Leader (from the Victoria’s Island blog), and several other cycling friends of theirs, and, most importantly, I garnered an understanding – albeit probably most superficial – of what it means to be a member of that particular community.

How did I do this? Let me count the ways: Not to suggest that it was a love-in, but I was struck first by the camaraderie. In the staging area, at the start, and again at the races’ conclusions, there was obvious bonhomie, a willingness to help, and an enormous amount of genuinely delivered congratulatory comments. Second, the spectators seemed to be there for all the riders, not just their own family/team members. One would call out encouragement to a rider, by name, and then others would pick up the name and attach it to their shout comments. I’m told by racers how much this means to them. Third, and possibly most telling, was the generosity of the spectators and non-participating racers: in all of the races that I watched, there were one or two riders who were having problems keeping up. Bluntly, they were very clearly out-classed. Yet there were no derisive comments, no jeers, no snide asides. Only words of praise; words geared (excuse the pun) to promote sustained effort and self-worth! Wow! That is the way confidence grows and participants stay the course.

But what about the races? Sorry, but they became almost incidental to this spectator. I appreciated the skill, the strength, even the fancy bikes and skinsuits, but mainly I learned that having fun, developing and growing do not depend on winning. It’s the people who count.

Thanks Dad for the great weekend summary. P.S. – my dad took a whole lot of photos during the weekend. I’m currently trying to get them up on the site. I’ll post when they are up.

Thanks again Dad for helping us all out so much. The Ottawa race crew is indebted to you. Hmm, maybe next year my dad should pull on a skinsuit and do some cyclo-cross racing? What do you think?