Passion?
Greetings Readers!
What is it? What is Passion? What is it about cross that grips us so? Why pray tell, do we spend an exorbatant amount of our discretionary income on cross bikes, parts, tubulars and what not? How in the hell, can we justify spending money on something that we’ll use 10 times a year? For most of us across the US, we race locally. There’s no national event to go to so we can compete with the nations best. For most of us, were just not fast enough, or we don’t have the means to go to nationals, or both. What this means (for most of us) is 10 to 11 races a season tops.
So I ask you; for 10 Sunday’s a year, is it worth the extra cost of say some Dugast or FMB’s, over say a set of Grifo’s or Flexus? Or over a set of Clinchers even? For some yes, For some no. There are plenty of guys who have a 2nd mortgage in tubular wheelsets and tiyas just for cross season. And damn well they should have. We crossers are a passionate bunch, we love our sport, obsessively so. It’s a shame that the season is so short, but cross in nice weather wouldn’t be cross, and the cycling season needs to end sometime. So for 10 weeks in the fall, our cherished cross takes over our lives. And take over our lives it does. We obsess over all the little details, tiyas and tiya pressures. The fine art of dialing in the perfect pressure, and a tubular to match the conditions is more ellusive than a top 5 in your class. Crossers bring multiple bikes, and even more multiple sets of tubulars and clinchers, to each race. Getting traction in the mud is paramount to going fast, and going fast is paramount to having a good race. We all want to compete, we all want to have a good race, regardless if were in the beginners class, or were mixing it up with the Elites, we want to have our best race. You’ve got to have confidence; in your tiyas that is, to rail the corners and hold a line. Playing slip-n-slide in the pig slop does not constitute going fast, or having a good race.
What does all this have to do with the price of your entry fee? Back in early June I did a post on Rhino’s. In that post I conveyed my stress and angst over buying some serious tubulars for the mud. I stated the pros and cons, and why I was in such turmoil. Sooner or later that angst was going to come to a head and I was either going to crack, and show up for Hillsboro sporting some hardware in the form of Dugast, or I was going to let “it” go. Given my love of cross, my desire to be takin’ seriously, and my need to compete, the former won out.
My beautiful Wife, who gets up at O’ dark thirty and goes to the races with me, stands in horrible weather taking pictures, and screaming her heart out for me and my buddy while taking care of ALL our needs including the pits, bought me a pair of Rhino’s for my birthday. (no, she is mine and you can’t have her)
Keep in mind I’m no Tire snob, nor am I a cyclocross tubular guru. But, my 1st impression is “WOW” handmade quality. I’ve a pair of Grifo’s and Flexus and neither can compare. The casing is just velvet smooth and good grief, are they gonna rock in the Mud. WorldClassCycles has the best deals on cross tubulars.
Do I (lets face it the $$ comes from the same place) have Buyers Remorse? Nope, I figure I was going to get a set of tubulars anyhow, so what’s another $34. It would certainly buy an entry fee and some gas, but I digress. Sooner or later, we’ll get some serious Mud in Portland, its really just a queston of when. Will it be the early part of the season? Or will in come to a climatic end in Hillsboro and the USGP? Either way it’s coming. Only this year, I’ll be riding through the snot with velcro on my wheels and hey, I’ll take every stinkin’ advantage I can get. I cannot wait, to roll 25 psi on some stinkin’ off camber greasy grassy slop on the best mud tiyas I can roll. Hell, if they net me one lousy placing, they’ll be worth every penny to me. 
If I suck, I sure as hell can’t blame my Tiyas.
Cheers!