Non Race Weekend

Ellie posing with her sucker from the candy shop at Grand Traverse,

I thought it would have lasted longer.

I decided not to race at all this weekend and it is a strange feeling. Iceman and Louisville were hard weekends and I have been really tired since then. I've been getting a lot sleep but still waking up drowsy and tired. I think a lot of it has to do with the season with the colder temperatures and sun not being out much, it's been overcast and dark the last 3-4 days and that makes a big difference.

Saturday I had to work and a bunch of people recently have asked me what I actually do for work. Well, I work 2nd shift at Sartori Cheese in Plymouth, WI. I am a machine/maintenance tech and have a degree in electro-mechanical technology so me and another guy are pretty much responsible for keeping the two factories going at night. One plant makes cheese and the other plant is a packaging facility and I go back and forth between the buildings. Milk separators, pumps, motors, electrical, pneumatics, packaging machines, boilers. Lots of equipment. I've always been good with working with my hands and troubleshooting and this job is just that. Sartori mostly makes artisan cheeses and their Sarvechio Parmesan has won lots of awards and their Asiago is very good as well. I work 3-11:30pm and rotate every other Saturday which means when I am gone racing I usually have traded Saturdays with the other guy and that means when I am home for a weekend I am working Saturday for him. Basically, it means I am working Saturday night every weekend I am home this time of the year.

So, not racing Sunday and not having to be at work really makes a strange day and almost feels like vacation. I made Pizza Sunday night and Jamie and I both remarked how it feels like I had a day of vacation since I was home at night and all day long - it is very relaxing. I actually got to lay on the couch for the first time in months and watch the packer game and then spent some time in the basement with Ellie working on bikes. I think Ellie might be looking into being a maintenance tech too because she loves helping me work on bikes. I finally got the new FMB SSC Mud tires and they look like they will be awesome. I glued one set up on my regular carbon rims and one set up on my new VCX aluminum rims I just got from Rolf Prima. I wanted to try aluminum to see if it stops better than carbon so putting mud tires on them should be a good test. The aluminum wheels where only 100g heavier than the carbon so not even much difference there.

I also got a brand new G3 powertap hub from CycleOps a few weeks ago and Rolf Prima sent it back last week with a carbon rim laced to it. I just weighed it last night and it comes in at about 780g so about 50g heavier than my normal race wheels, that is amazing!

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Thanks to my awesome sponsors for getting me this equipment, it really makes a huge difference having the right choices out there and I am really lucky to have them.