Time to Head Back to South Dakota

Spring in Arizona is coming to a close. Been a bit of an up and down semester. My staff and I put on a great MBAA XC season, mother nature cooperated with us this year nicely. I did a little bit of racing with  mixed results.

I got caught behind a crash at the start of BWR that slowed me down and caused me to miss the early selection group I needed to be in. I rode strong at Cactus Cup the next weekend, but somewhere along course (I think on the tech drop) I blew most of the air out of my shock which made things pretty inefficient.

I won the Havasu MBAA race, although there wasn’t much competition, but the legs felt great. Whiskey 50 was just meh this year. I raced too conservatively at the start and was never able to make up those spots later in the race. The year’s I was 2nd and 4th that tactic worked well, not so much this year.

The last race of the season was MBAA Flagstaff. That was by far my best race effort of the year. Rode strong from start to finish to end up 5th in a strong field of local riders and a few out of town hitters.

Did a lot of ice skating with Mattie. Ken & Connie came out for the month of January along with the kiddo’s, that was fun. Spent a lot of time puzzling and playing ball with Lucy.

Next week it’s back to Spearfish for the summer. Can’t wait!

Sadly, my friend Justin passed away in April from cancer. RIP friend. You will be missed.

2024 Fall Photos & Winter Fun

It’s been a jam packed fall. Upon returning from Spearfish it was full on MBAA Enduro season. The Sunrise Enduro was our best event yet with tons of improvements made over the summer.

Mattie is heading into her last semester of Pre-School, then next fall it’s off to Kindy. Outside of school she spends a lot of time roller skating (and ice skating), building forts and playing with friends.

I spent some time in Flagstaff in September when we got the only measure able snow this season (ironic). We had to cancel our mountain bike race due to 6″ of snow. Now the two Arizona ski resorts barely have enough to ski one or two runs.

In early October we tubed the Salt River with friends from South Dakota. With the La Nina weather pattern, it’s been a very warm fall / winter so far. This should lead to a very dry winter (not good for skiiers) in the southwest, but will hopefully produce more monsoon rains come July / August.

I did one race this fall, Cave Creek Cactus Classic, a super fun local race and got 2nd (again) to Tanner 🙂 It’s always a great course and super fun after party.

We kayaked Goldwater Lake in Prescott with Trevor and Karlene one Saturday and day after Thanksgiving, went Christmas tree hunting up in Payson.

Evie’s car got hit, but rather than spending $4000 via insurance to have it fixed I bought a bumper, fender cover, and pair of new headlights for $300 and fixed it in the garage myself.

We spent Christmas in Wisconsin this year with my folks. Had a few nice sunny days and some snow. Now we’re back in AZ already gearing up for the first MBAA race in January. ‘Til next year 🙂

Not what you’d expect when you think of Arizona.
Restoration at the Tierra Buena body shop 🙂
She’s a beaut!
Happy New Year!

End of Summer or Endless Summer?

Welp, it’s already time to head back to Arizona so Evie & Mattie can start school. Got a few big improvements done to the house and spent A LOT of time at the lake, tubing, and playing at the beach.

We had a lot of bonfires with friends & neighbors, enjoyed music in the park, Sturgis bike races and playing in the creek.

The silver lining to heading back to Arizona is that the weather is on its way to getting nicer and the endless summer cycle continues.

A photo dump from the summer activities.

Turned the old firewood box into a record player shelf.
Put a big hole in the front of the house.
New window and siding on the front.

 

Took a quick trip in San Diego for our 10th wedding anniversary.
Mattie pedal boating with her cousins.
Many afternoons spent at Iron Creek Lake.

Summer vibes.