My fellow Srammies, Jim joined me as well as Andy who showed his appreciation to us for introducing him to this fine sport by coughing up a nice bit of bile with blood mixed in after he crossed the finish line...yep , he's hooked. It was great to see the usual suspects out and about yesterday. Keller from Boulder Cycle Sport/Mud and Cowbells, Big Tom was out as always, I was particularly stoked to re-connect with Matt, a riding partner friend of mine from back in Maine. Despite a huge chasm in levels of fitness between us, Matt always humored me by dragging me out on some beautifully loopy, hilly road rides and I'd show him our local trail rides. After we'd come back to town, I would collapse on the couch while Matt would change out his gear and go for a 3 hour trail run. After we left Maine for Colorado almost 5 years ago, Matt headed East, way East to one of the "stan" countries to climb, then picked up a Masters at UAF in Alaska and his pursuit of a PhD landed he and his wife to be in Denver recently. My cycling family never ceases to amaze me, despite years that may go by without a word,that time or distance doesn't diminish the strength of our friendships, thankfully cycling is still the tie that binds us all and I am forever grateful.
Jen and I are spending a pre-wedding anniversary weekend in the high country next weekend so hope to see you at Frisco CrossShotty
As of today, the 
It needs a new saddle, a 
Martin and I spent a great deal of time on the weekends exploring the woods all over Keene, our posse size was growing slowly and every new addition came back with a massive ear to ear grin filled with black flies and mud. The Fat Chance was absolutely dreamy, the old Fisher felt like an old sled in comparison. The wheelbase was nice and short, but with a slack head angle and short chainstays, the bike just floated over the nastiest terrain. An added bonus was while Martin and I were home during the summers in Connecticut, we would still get together and find new places to ride. I also continued to race, the Norba Eastern Nationals were to held in our state so by all means we would be in attendance. During that summer I was working with my brother-in-law doing home construction work. I would fill a day working and then jump on bike until dark in order to prep for this race. Much like the initial Ross race, the Eastern Nationals brought in some serious talent. Tomac, was there, riding for Mongoose bikes at the time. Ned Overend made his appearance back when he was sponsored by Schwinn. I was completely geeked out over the fact that Ned and I shared a camo-graphic Bell V1-Pro helmet. Martin and I raced the Novice class and I managed to pull off a win that day with Martin coming in second, perhaps there was some sandbagging involved but that race wasn't a cakewalk.
It finally dawned on me about halfway through school that their just might be some way to pull off making a career out of this mountain bike thing. There are others out there doing just that, so what could stop me from following in their steps. My focus during school was technically oriented, computer-aided design and manufacturing. I was super intrigued by developments down in Somerville, Mass. that had some ex-Fat City employees dabbling in Titanium with a new company called Merlin Metalworks. I had reached out to them for a project at school where I wanted to do a study of Titaniums properties, someone at Merlin was kind enough to send me a chainstay to run some tests on. I received an A on that paper and I think my prof. was a bit dumbstruck at the time as to why such an exotic and costly material was to be used on a childs toy...a bicycle of all things!! One of my classes was about tool design so of course my focus was on a better way to hold a tube or a frame during the manufacturing process. During my senior year, I drove down to Somerville and interviewed with Chris Chance very much hoping/planning for a foot in the door at Fat City doing something...anything. Turns out that doing something...anything wasn't going to pay that well and Boston is not a cheap place to live. While I was there, I walked across the parking from Fat City into Merlin. This was a study in extreme contrasts. Fat City was dirty, very punk rock, loud, dangerous even. Merlin on the other hand was obviously run by pointy heads who may have come from MIT nearby and just happened to like bikes. Super clean shop, beautifully crafted bikes on display...nerd central. By graduation time I was very much in love with a girl from Maine ( yes, the first time I spotted her on campus was while she was riding a Peugeot mountain bike) I followed her to Maine and fell into a position managing a bike shop in coastal Camden. Being a responsible for what was on the sales floor, of course Fat Chance and Merlin were both represented nicely.
My obsessive/compulsive tendencies with all things two-wheels continued unabated. I finally bid the old Fat Chance a fond farewell and moved onto a Wicked Fat Chance. The yearly Norba National at Mount Snow VT had become an institution, a meca for riders from all over the Northeast. The XC loop was legendary for how ridiculously difficult is was ( and still is ) if it rained, the very talented smiled, the rest hung their heads. In 92, I was riding through Camden, when I spotted the Rockshox tech van and trailer, fresh from working the Mt Snow event. I'll admit I was giddy as a little school girl, I quick wrote a note to the driver asking/pleading with them to come down to the shop and give us a clinic on suspension forks, something none of us knew anything about except that Rockshox was on to something. Terry Howe was driving the van and sure enough, he stopped in and we had a nice couple of hours chatting. I threw out the possibility that if he ever needed any help working an event in New England then please give me a ring. As luck and a lot of persistence would have it. Terry contacted my the following summer and I spent the next 3 weekends, one at Mt Snow and an additional 2 up in Quebec, drowning in shock fluid and absolutely loving it. Paul Turner, founder of Rockshox attended those events and I was able to make a half-assed attempt letting him know that if Rockshox was hiring,then I'm your man. Whatever work ethic was on display at these events was recognized with a position as an R&D tech at Rockshox's facility in Boulder, CO. Pure heaven for bike nerds like myself.
I mention in the header that this is the final installment. I've been wanting/almost needing to put down ALL these words for a long time. I've always wanted some mean of capturing an amazing course in my life and I know may of you have shared this same path. I wrote in the first installment on why the mountain bike is the best invention of my lifetime. That a bit of a bold statement but I mean it. This bike was responsible for getting millions of people to think of bicycles in a whole new way,in an entirely new light. From the mountain bike spawned the commuter, the hybrid, an evolved townie bike, comfortable road bikes. Think about it. This was the nineties and who do you know that didn't get a mountain bike or a version thereof. Sure for some folks it didn't stick but for the most part we are still feeling the positive effects of this revolution that took place decades ago. Mountain biking is responsible for providing my wife and I a very modest living, the ability to travel the world, keeping us healthy and happy, meeting the most amazing people I've ever had the pleasure to ride with. Mountain biking is directly responsible for my obsession with cyclocross. Cross is blending my old-school road bike roots with the attitude of mountain biking, cross is not for everyone, it's ridiculously,stupid hard but pays off massive dividends, much like it's fat tired cousin.
Thanks a ton for reading all this, hope you enjoyed reading it as much I've enjoyed reminiscing- Shotty
I blame my interest in racing on the Fat Tire Flyer, a West coast based publication dedicated to the fat tire phenomenon. The magazine was filled with a hefty calender of upcoming races and results postings. I had fooled myself into believing that I had built up the requisite skills to start thinking seriously about entering one of these things. Problem was, there was nothing to enter. As with most trends, the New England scene was barely in bloom. Inevitably, a race did pop up on our calender, the Sandhopper up on Cape Cod ,it was a time trial format on a mix of pine needles and super fine sand. My memory of this race is hazy, I finished 3rd and came home with a prize...a pair of Shimano DX flat pedals. What made an impression at this race were some pretty nifty bikes, all painted primary colors ( same all on the same frame ), the logo on the downtube read " Fat Chance" and rumor had it that Chris Chance was building the finest mountain bikes available for tackling the wet slimy root and rock infested New England trails. Next up was another time trial called Tour De Bluff in Groton, CT. I remember lots of thorny prickers, slimy muddy corners and a giant tree in the middle of the course that required portaging. I was on the podium again and took home some Suntour components.
Luckily, that same summer of 1984, the circus arrived in Wendell State Park in Western Mass, billed as the Ross Stage race. Ross bicycle company had thrown a bunch of money into sponsoring a formidable team as had Specialized and Gary Fisher. All the talent from the West would be attending. Stan and I quickly booked a dorm room at UMass in Amherst and readied ourselves for the weekend. I was stunned when I arrived, V-dub campers, tents pitched, there was a game on Ultimate Frisbee going on, campfires and bikes everywhere. Next sensation was becoming star struck, I spotted Jacquie Phelan with her goofy dropped bar, aluminum frame that resembled no other bike in existence, Joe Murray on a sweet red, black and yellow Gary Fisher, Gavin Chilcot, Dave McLaughlin sporting their bright pink Specialized Stumpumper Race bikes, Aaron Cox riding a fillet brazed Ross, the Cook brothers from Crested Butte, Chris Chance in his crew had organized a photo shoot for everyone there riding his bikes. There was not one ounce of the road scene in this group, everyone had arrived to enjoy themselves on 2 wheels in the dirt. Lot's of smiles and hairy legs. At the end of the weekend someone would be awarded the win but that was a secondary prioritization. There were 4 events held and since it was a stage race, all events were meant to be participated in. There was the hillclimb, the downhill, ( both time trial format ) observed trials and the cross country race ended the weekend. I raced the cross country wearing striped calf-high athletic socks, cut-off jean shorts and a t-shirt with a cotton hoodie over it. I can't quite remember but I think I fit right in. I had also taken this sport with bait, hook, line and sinker, it was providing way too much fun to ignore.