Whats been going on?

Sorry for the lack of updating lately. Working full time takes up a lot of time and it kind of sucks. But I don’t really want to talk about work right now. So the last time I updated the page was after the Bromont World Cup. The race was awesome and I am still in awe that I was able to brake the top 50! After Bromont I was in need of some desperate time off. I drove to work a few days in a row and decided to only race Maine races for the rest of the season.

I had the option to go south to Mass and race a Root 66 Series race or go north and race the Camden Snowbowl. The choice was pretty simple, race Snowbowl! I love the classic small ski resort races. Plus I also feel its important to support the series that got me into racing. The course was in awesome condition. I wasn’t feeling super race day, but none the less I was still going to have a great time. On the first climb I burped my rear tire, stopped put some Co2 into it and proceeded on. After regaining the lead I completely rolled my rear tire. Going through the start finish area I hit up the back of my car got a floor pump, filled up my rear tire with air, and picked up some more tubes and Co2. I continued on with my chase to move back up into the lead. 3rd lap I burped my front tire, put more Co2 into it, then later on rolled the tire. Again fix the flat and move on. I was lucky enough to catch up to 4th place right before the finish. I am a little bummed about the four flats, but hey that’s racing. I think I might have been running too low of pressure, but not sure.

After Camden and another long week of work I finally had a weekend completely off from racing. To top it off, Hattie had the entire weekend off too! We didn’t have to go to any bike races or anywhere, we just got to stick around the house and enjoy life. Our friend Jess came down from Orono and we hit up a Sea Dogs game. While we are trying to find a parking spot in Deering Oaks Park Jess noticed two people having sex in the middle of the park at 7pm! It was horrible. A mother with young children was trying to protect them from years of therapy, as they were only 75 yards away from the scene. No more details there. FWD to the game, we had amazing seats! Right behind home plate 5 rows up. Some scouts were sitting in front of us and we had a clear view of the radar guns. The home team ended up winning to make the night even better. To top off a baseball game we decided to hit up McDonalds from some ice cream. As we enjoyed our ice cream a drunk walked in with a six pack, ordered some food and enjoyed his meal while popping some type of pills. Ah Maine the way life should be, sex in the open park and beer at McDonalds….

I also finally got to go to the beach. Hattie and I hit up Ferry Beach State Park in Biddeford for some fun. The sun was out and it was awesome! Beaches rules. I even found a crab, held it and let a little kid release it. Despite a full day at the beach, sunny skies, a ton of spf 45 sun block I am still pretty white.

Fast forward after another week of commuting to work via bike and it’s time for the annual Sugarloaf Mountain Bike Race!! Back in August of 1999 I lined up to the start line for my very first mountain bike race at Sugarloaf USA. Half way into my first race my saddle fell off the bike, I finished the remaining 7 miles standing. For some odd reason I had a lot of fun and signed up for more races. 9 years later I still can’t get enough of the racing at Sugarloaf. Again I raced my El Santo. I decided to race the El Santo as much as possible and run it into the ground this year. The bike is from 06 and the parts are more than worn on it. Ok back to the race. The numbers were scary small which is too bad. I need to get more jrs involved in racing. The completion was between Todd Wheelden and myself. About a half mile into the first lap I put a gap onto Wheels. By the time I crested the top of the climb the gap was over a minute. I guess the crit that Wheels did the day before slowed him down more than he thought. There isn’t too much else to say about the race. I had a great time riding on some great trails. My lead was big enough to stop and talk to Hattie as I counted down the laps. After the race my parents, Hattie and I stopped by the Orange Cat Café in Kingfield for lunch. That place is awesome! The food is unbelievably great, and there baked goods are out of this world!

Labor Day weekend: Since Labor Day is the unofficial end of summer I decided it would be a good idea for the parents, Hattie, and myself to go up to the Rangeley Lake Region for a few days to unwind from the summer and relax before Hattie’s 40hrr week unpaid internship starts. We hiked, biked, went out on the canoe, played a lot of cards, ate way too much food, and enjoyed lots of coffee in the morning as we sat on the porch and overlooked the lake. The time at camp was awesome and just what we needed to unwind. There was no set schedule of what we had or wanted to do, we just wanted to play it as it went and that’s what we did. To top it all off on Labor Day there was a mountain bike race in Rangeley!

The Rangeley mountain bike course is similar to Sugarlaof minus the big climb, open rough Nordic ski trails with a bunch of rocky rooty single track thrown in there for good measure. The start is a mile or so long dirt road before entering the loop. Wheels lead off the start allowing me to sit on his wheel and enjoy a draft. As soon as Wheels pulled off to the side I hit the gas and red lined it. To my surprise Wheels was right on my tail! I was shocked and thought I might have burnt to many candles too soon. I lead for about 2/3rds of the 1s lap at a slower than normal pace hoping to recover from my foolish attack. Somewhere in a section of single track I put a gap on Wheels that he was never able to close. On my fourth and final lap I was able to play the “Big Ring” game. This game is where you see if you can big ring the entire lap. I was pretty successful as I only had to run about the last 20 meters of a 100 meter long mud bog, not too shabby if you ask me.

After the race I was able to talk with the Hall family from Yarmouth. I met Ted, the father, when I interviewed for my substitute job, and Jackson the son when I was a substitute teacher. This was Jackson’s first mtn bike race. He said he had a lot of fun and wants to do more! I am going to hook Jackson and some of his friends up with extra bike parts I have laying around the house and teach them how to work on bikes etc… If time permits hopefully I can get out and ride at Bradbury with some juniors.

So yeah that’s a long update on a few races and what not. I hope you enjoyed the long read, if you made it through the entire entry that is. I promise to do a better job with updating AndrewFreye.com.

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