West Virginia, Mountain Mama

     It was a short week after Versailles. We had only three days to get things unpacked, cleaned up and then repacked to head for West Virginia on Thursday for USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships. The Pro races were on Friday and Sunday so we were able to leave on Thursday morning and take our time getting to West Virginia. The Short Track was the first event for me coming on Friday in the early afternoon. It doesn't require much of a pre-ride so we didn't have to actually be at Snowshoe Mountain until Friday. We tried to find a place on the mountain to stay, but couldn't find anything we could afford that would allow bikes inside the room. I am not going to leave my bike outside somewhere overnight. I would rather sleep in my car than take a chance on having my Epic stolen. I was told over and over "absolutely no bikes inside." It was annoying because when we got there everyone had their bikes inside and none of the places said a word about it.

     The place we could afford was only about 20 miles away from Snowshoe in the tiny town of Durbin. It was an AirBNB rental that was a historic home. It had a very rustic feel and more than enough room for me and Shannon. Dina did not want to go on this trip since she had already been to Utah with me back in May and we couldn't find anyone from our area that wanted to split a room with us so Shannon and I were alone on this one. It may have only been 20 miles to Snowshoe, but it was a winding 20 miles through some twisty mountain backroads that made the trip take 50 minutes to get to the top of the mountain. It was a beautiful drive so we really didn't mind it on all but one of the trips we had to make.

Passing through Charleston, WV

     We had a nice, easy drive from home to West Virginia. We planned a stop at the Mountwood Park trails in Waverly, WV to stretch the legs and ride something new. There are about 50 miles of mountain bike trails in the park. With it being in the mountains there was a good amount of climbing, but the woods were absolutely beautiful! The first trail we took along the side of the mountain was called Haystack and went through some of the darkest forest I have ever gone through with moss and ferns galore. The trail passed by some old oil pumps and equipment from the mid-1800s. There were also several elevated wooden bridges over ravines along singletrack that was just plain fun.

Haystack trail

     It was late in the afternoon when we got to the top of the mountain, so we explored the ridge and then went back down to the car so we could get loaded up before dark. We were unable to get our bike rack fixed after it was hit by a car and broken at Helen, so we had our bikes inside the car which made for a real pain with loading and unloading. We basically had to take everything out of the trunk to put my old hardtail  back in, which Shannon was riding on this trip, and the backseat had to be mostly empty for my Epic to fit in. It was a pain, but we made it work. While up on the ridge we saw some ruins from old houses and settlements built in the 1800s when the oil industry was huge in this part of West Virginia. There was a town on the other side of the mountain called Volcano that was built around some oil wells. Most of the oil was pumped out of the ground using wooden rigs, one of which is on display in the park. A fire burned the town of Volcano to the ground in 1879 and ended the oil boom there. The land has been gradually turning back to forest since then, but some of the signs of the town still remain in the woods.

Stone foundations atop the mountain

Mountwood Park Lake

Spinning on the road from trail to car

Sunset from Mountwood Park

     We left Mountwood Park at dark and started what I thought was a two hour drive to Durbin. It turned into over four hours and we rolled into our rental house around midnight. We had trouble finding gas at one point because it was so late and gas stations are few and far between in parts of the state. I don't know how I misfigured the drive so much, but I was way off. The curvy mountain roads didn't help us make time, but they did show me some places I wanted to check out before we left the area. It was tough to find our rental house in the dark, but we did manage to find the place and get settled into the bed by 1 AM. Thankfully, we could sleep in since my short track was not until the afternoon on Friday.

     We got over to the resort and race venue in the late morning on Friday. We had actually wanted to get there early enough to catch the Cat. 1 Men's XC races, but decided sleep was more important after such a late night. The weather had been rainy and foggy all morning so they delayed the starts and we actually got to sleep and still make it for the start of the races. When we arrived, the Cat. 1 Women were wrapping up their race in some very heavy fog.

Cat. 1 Women finishing up their race

     It was fun to cheer on people who are your rivals most weekends. Guys like Dustin White and Justin McMurrer were out there among a bunch of others we know. We cheered on all of our friends. Dustin was in the top five early in the 25-29 age group, but fell back to 11th at the end. He was a bit disappointed, but I thought it was a good ride in a stacked field. I saw many riders in Cat. 1 that I have raced in Pro previously. I'm not sure how so many were able to move back, but they were in there and it made for some really fast races. Jamie Babcock fought them all hard to take a top 5. Justin ended up sixth in the 30-34 class. All of our regional riders represented the southeast well. Full Cat. 1 XC results are available here.

Cat. 1 Men in staging. Still very foggy.

Dustin White through the fog

Seth Kemp

Big group battling for a podium position in the 25-29 class

Merwin Davis leading the 25-29 class with Seth Kemp on his wheel

Davis and Kemp

Jamie Babcock took a top 5 in 25-29

Justin McMurrer

Dustin White coming to the finish

Video: Cat. 1 Men XC

     I want to give praise to the people at registration. It was by far the smoothest, fastest registration process I have ever encountered at a national event of any kind and as good as any small event I have ever been to. They were totally ready and it was greatly appreciated by all the riders. I picked up both of my number plates and was back out the door with all the info I needed in less than three minutes.

     There was talk about a big storm heading toward the mountain after the Cat. 1 XCs, but details were sketchy as cell service was almost nonexistent and wifi was poor at the race venue. The announcement was made that the afternoon short tracks were cancelled and would be rescheduled for Saturday with times to be decided later. There were dark clouds around and thunder in the distance, but it appeared to be a ways off. I ran to the car and unloaded my bike, changed my clothes and hit the XC course for a pre-ride lap while there was no traffic. I didn’t want to miss a chance to ride today and I also needed to work on my pedals. I was not able to replace the left pedal I bent in my crash at Versailles last week. Nobody in our area carries Xpedo and I really didn’t have the money to buy a new set anyway. We spent quite a bit to get to Snowshoe, so shelling out for pedals right now when I know I have a set coming from the SERC Series in a few weeks just wasn't feasible. Ordering online from Xpedo would have been pointless anyway as there was not enough time for them to ship to me on a short week and I sure couldn’t afford overnight shipping charges. The pedal was not destroyed and was still intact, so I was able to work on them all week with a lot of hammering and prying to get the clips shaped up enough to let me clip in. By the end of this ride, I got them where getting into the pedal was easy, but clipping out was still tough. I’ll take my chances with that versus not being able to keep my foot in while pedaling.

     On the XC pre-ride lap, I was a bit disappointed with what I found. I have raced Snowshoe before and remember a lot of nasty singletrack, sometimes too nasty to even ride. I had heard they still had a lot of singletrack in the loop, but it would be much more rideable than past courses. There was actually very little singletrack on the loop though. I would say of a 20-minute loop, less than three minutes were on singletrack trail. There was some wide, machine-built trail on several descents, but that is not real singletrack. The loop might have been more suitable for a cross bike in all but the final section. The Pro course was shorter and less technical than the course used for other classes. The extension on their loop was mostly singletrack, just like the course at the Utah Pro XCT.

     The Pro XC loop began on pavement through the Snowshoe Village, then descended in grass behind the village before going into the woods on machine-built trail that is part of the bike park. At the bottom of this trail was a left turn onto a dirt road climb that was very steep up the final 30 meters. We then turned right onto pavement for a short stretch before a left into the real singletrack. It was wet in there, but rideable and very fun. I really liked the small descent to end the section as it was full of slick roots and small drops. Next up was a long dirt road section which was flat at first, then descended to a right turn into more wide trail that is part of the bike park. More dirt and gravel road followed with another short descent and then a big gravel climb back up towards the village. There was a break in the middle of this climb where the gradient flattened out and a man-made rock garden was built. There were multiple lines across the rocks, but all were difficult and even tougher when you factor in that you have been climbing for a solid three minutes to get to the rock garden. More climbing followed the rock garden as we passed through the Tech/Feed Zone for the first time. The course then descended on more bike park trail that flowed along the hillside with some really big berms. There were some scattered rocks in the dirt, but nothing major on this decent. There was one little section of roots and rocks at the bottom as you rolled out of the woods and onto another long dirt road climb. This was another 3-4 minute climb up a steep slope that took you back into the woods on trail that was as wide as a road, but littered with boulders sticking up out of the ground. It was a tough section as the boulders kept you on your toes and there was no smooth places where you could build up a lot of speed. It was slow trudging through rocks and puddles while gradually gaining elevation on your way back to the village. There was one 15-second piece of singletrack in the middle of this final woods section, but otherwise it was all the same. This trail ended near the village and dumped you into the grass for one final pitch up to another man-made rock garden, this time a descending one. This rock garden had several clear lines through it. There was one line on the right side with a gap jump that was really cool, but too big of a risk in my opinion. There was an off-camber left turn leaving the rock garden and taking that far right line put you at a big disadvantage on that off-camber slope. It bit a few people over the course of the weekend, but that line certainly was a crowd pleaser. The second trip past the Tech/Feed Zone followed the rock garden. We then had a fly-over that took us back to the village and onto pavement for an uphill sprint to the line. It was a short, tough course with a lot of climbing and not a lot of singletrack. I was hoping for a bit more from an east coast National Championship course, but it seems as though they wanted to build it more for the spectators than for the riders. It had more of the west coast national course feel to it, just without the high altitude.

Pro XC Course Map

     During the second half of my pre-ride lap the storm arrived and I got soaked. I actually hid out in the woods with another rider on the last long climb to avoid some heavy lightning. I hated getting my bike so nasty, but I had all night to get it cleaned back up. With everyone hiding out from the rain inside, there was no line at this bike wash. Once I got the bike clean we loaded up and headed down the mountain. We stopped in the town of Cass to check out the scenic railroad and general store, which had some really good ice cream!

     We then went back to our rental house in Durbin to make dinner. Shannon cooked while I took my bike apart and did a thorough clean-up. We had good internet at the house and I happened to check the USA Cycling Twitter page to see if anything had been posted about the rescheduled short track times for Saturday and to my surprise they had posted that the short track races were going to start in just over an hour. What?!! How can you cancel a race and then two hours later decide it’s back on? You can’t backtrack once a race has been cancelled for the day. Even if you jump the gun on your decision you have to stick with the announcement you made. They didn’t take into account anyone that was staying off the mountain, or the poor communication that was happening onsite with the minimal cell/internet service. It was complete BS in my opinion, but that is how it seems to go at these national races. I would not be surprised at all if someone missed their race. So, I had to scramble to put my bike back together and hurry back to the mountain. That was the drive over from Durbin that we didn’t enjoy. Thankfully, there were a few short tracks ahead of mine and we had just enough time to get there and get me in a short warm-up. I managed to get in one lap on the course before the start.

Junior Women

Lily Peck from Indiana rocked a 4th place in Junior Women 11-16 class

     The Pro Women raced right before us and Kate Courtney had a huge lead and then flatted with a few laps to go, which was an eternity on this course as it was very long for a short track. She had to ride the flat as there is no pit in short track. Her lead was so big that she was still in front on the final lap, but ended up getting caught by several riders just before the end and finished fifth. She was devastated to say the least. Her flat handed the win over to Erin Huck, who couldn't believe it.

     We had 64 riders take to the start line for the Pro Men’s STXC which was scheduled for 20 minutes +3 laps. I think 20 minutes is a bit short for the Pro class at the national championships, but this course was long so the +3 really added on some major time. The loop was 1.1 miles in length and nearly all wide open. It was the start and finish of the XC loop with two connectors. It was basically all the spectator-friendly areas I wasn’t very fond of when I pre-rode earlier in the day. Yay. So we began with a slight uphill on pavement through the village before a fast grass descent behind the lodges and under the fly-over. There was a quick pedaling section on pavement before more descending down some wide trail with a hard right at the bottom to cut across to the first man-made rock garden. After the rocks came a decent climb that leveled out before a right turn took you onto another short, steep climb to take you toward the second rock garden, which we bypassed in the short track. There was more slight descending to the fly-over, then it was uphill to the finish in the village. Other than the one 50 meter stretch in the middle of the climb, you were either going up or down on this course. It was a course for the climber for sure.

Short track course map

     I got called up to the start in the last five spots so I had a lot of work to do. I got a good jump off the line, but there wasn’t a lot of room to move up as we were packed so tight barrier-to-barrier through the village. A guy in front of me went down and I had to almost stop to avoid him. That sent me to the back. Of those still upright, I was next to last coming out of the village and starting down the grass descent. The congestion helped me a bit down this first downhill and I was able to take the far left line and pick up a few spots while things were packed up. I tried to ride the rock garden which was a mistake as everyone was running with their bikes and I got blocked up. The entire group flew up the climb the first lap and it was all I could do just to hold onto the end of the group as things started to split. I gave up several spots, but was still ahead of the first split and had gained positions overall. People started to slow down as soon as we started lap two and I got a few position through the village and on the first descent again. I took a lot of chances on the downhill and it nearly cost me. I jumped a big ditch in the weeds and it set me up at a weird angle for a wooden bridge which was very slick from the earlier rain. I got all kinds of sideways, but I stayed upright and kept rolling.

Pro Men STXC start

photo by PB Creative Photo

Me in the middle of this group of three. Had to go with the black kit again since it was a UCI race.

Me coming across the fly-over

     I cleaned the rock garden the second lap, which got me another spot, but there was a big gap ahead of me now and I knew I couldn’t close it. I went as hard as I could the rest of lap 2 and that basically destroyed me. I picked off two more riders, but then lost them on lap 3 as I had to recover. I also botched the rock garden again and almost went flying of the bars in the middle. They pulled me as I exited the village on lap 4. We were in no danger of getting lapped yet on a course this big, but they pulled us anyway. The two guys that had just repassed me and were only a few bike lengths ahead got to stay in while I was pulled out. I just don't understand the methods to their pulling madness.

Howard Grotts rolling toward the title

The battle for second.

     They listed me 58th out of 61 on the results which is far from correct. I passed many riders and only gave up a couple of spots. I would say it was more like 50th out of 64. Nothing to brag about either way, but I would appreciate it if they would score us correctly when we pay $85 to race for 14 minutes. The whole day was really just a big mess. I did take away one positive though. My pedal worked great! I was even able to clip out fairly easily after the race. Props to the Pro group out there as that was definitely the fastest group I have ever raced with. Howard Grotts ended up getting the stars-and-stripes jersey with a win. Keegan Swenson, who dominated at the Utah Pro XCT round, was second and Luke Vrouwenvelder finished in third. Full results from Friday's short tracks are posted here. A video is posted below.

Video: Junior Women and Pro Men STXC

     We were treated to a nice sunset on the drive down the mountain. It was a nice way to end what was a wild and disappointing day.

Sunset behind the parking lot

Sail!

     July continued with one more race before the national championships. I originally planned to skip the fourth round of the DINO Series as you are allowed to drop two races. It came just five days before Nationals began for me. After the staleness I felt at Helen, I felt I needed one more race to get me ready. I needed it for confidence as much as anything.

     This DINO race was another new venue for us. This time we were in southeast Indiana just outside the town of Versailles at Versailles State Park. Versailles is pronounced "ver-say-elles" in case you were wondering. The park required a two-night minimum for camping so we were forced to look elsewhere for a place to stay. Leaving on Friday was not an option with work, plus we had a neighborhood yard sale to attend on Friday and Saturday morning. Our neighborhood decided to have multiple yard sales on the same day to attract more people. Yard sales are already huge around here so we had no difficulty drawing in the people. We didn't have much to sell, but wanted to sit out there with our farm veggies and see what happened. Our house is hidden at the back of our street, so we set up at my parents' house which is the first house on the street. We were both surprised and very pleased at how many people were interested in our produce. Shannon stepped up our offerings by adding canned pickles made from our cucumbers and also some muffins. We sold more during these two days of yard sale than all of last year. Shannon's pickles were quite the hit and have taken off even more since. Staying for the yard sale cost us a chance to pre-ride, but it was well worth it for what we made and for the exposure our little farm got. We got really good feedback on how good our veggies taste and how they look. Several people said we had the most beautiful, perfect peppers they had ever seen. I think my favorite part of the yard sale was watching the three 10-year-old girls that live a few houses up from us. They would sell something at their yard sale, then bring the money down to ours and buy veggies for each other. They are the only people I have ever seen sit around a snack on whole, raw squash.

Pickles in the making

Our yard sale set-up

Our veggie table at the yard sale

Peppers, squash, okra and cucumbers finally ready

Hot jalapenos, habaneros and sweet yellow pear tomatoes along with green onions and some chocolate muffins. We had a bit of everything and sold a bit of everything.

     We hit the road after lunch and made it to North Vernon, IN where we camped for the night at Muscatatuck Park, a place where we did a DINO Series race last year. The park was the perfect spot to stop for the night. It was just 45 minutes from Versailles, allowed a one-night stay, had available campsites and had trails where we could ride. We had just enough time to set up our tents and get in a lap on the trail system before dark. There is a dirt track speedway just down the road so we were treated to the growling sounds of cars racing on the dirt as we cooked dinner and got ready for bed. I hope next time we come up this way we have a little more time and can make it over to the track to actually watch the racing. It was a good thing we were camping this week. Dina always has to drive her truck on camping weekend so we have room for three bikes and camping gear. We couldn't have driven anyway as we still don't have a bike rack after ours got hit last weekend at Helen and the wheel tray was broken off. We have ordered a new tray from Thule and are waiting for it to arrive. Hopefully, it will be here before we leave for West Virginia.

Camping at Muscatatuck park

On the Muscatatuck trails

These two waiting on me because I was either trying to jump something or taking a picture of something

     Dina and I packed up the tents early Sunday morning while Shannon cooked us up a good breakfast. Then it was on the road headed further east to Versailles State Park. This would be the third race of the four DINOs so far this year where we wouldn't be able to pre-ride. I got out for a partial lap on the shorter Beginner course before the race and I found a trail that was rocky in places with several technical sections of roots, rocks and tight turns with awkward exits. It looked like a good course for me.

     Race distance today was three laps on a 10-mile loop. There were almost no passing areas to be found on the sections I rode, which included the first two miles and the final two miles. The start would definitely be important. I was feeling good in my warm-up and excited by what I saw, so I planned to not just try for a good start, but go for the hole shot and set a super high pace right from the start to hopefully bust things up in the opening technical sections.

     We had 11 riders in the Elite class today so it was a packed start line. I got there early to make sure I was on the front row. The start was long across a grass field, followed by a left turn onto the pavement and then slightly uphill on the road before crossing a ditch to the right and into the singletrack. I got a good push off the line, but pulled my foot out of the pedal on the third pedal stroke. Fortunately, I didn’t go over the handlebars as that is easy to do when you are sprinting that hard. I was able to sit down and get the bike straight again, but that dropped me to last in the group. I was only able to pick up two spots along the road and crossing the ditch, so I entered the woods in ninth. It wasn’t how I wanted the start to go, but I stayed patient and was able to get another spot back on the first climb when Lee Hauber had a scary crash where he clipped a pedal while trying to make a pass along a narrow portion of trail that had a big drop to the left side. He got catapulted into the air and over the side of the trail, landing on his back way down the hill. He was ok, but I would say that significantly effected the rest of his race. Then my rival for the series, Chris Bowman, cut a tire and was done for the day. I was up to seventh after two miles without making any effort to pass.

Big Expert group on the pavement on the start. Apparently, cones and flags are just suggestions at a DINO Series race.

Next group heads across the opening stretch of grass just after the start

     Another rider had a mechanical halfway through the first lap that helped me move up to sixth. I was able to bridge to the front five in the middle portion of the loop, which was the part I didn’t get to pre-ride. It was a fast, flowy trail with one big climb coming with about three miles to go. I had really liked the part I pre-rode, but I think the section I didn’t see before the race suited me even more. Versailles was just a great trail for me. I was getting my "sail" on for sure. At the end of the first lap I knew that I had to get the win today. This place was too good for me to not come out of here with maximum points.

     I tried to go for fifth in the one open section before the end of the loop, but the rider ran me off into the bushes. Riders in this series will race you to the death for every position. They can be a bit aggressive at times. It got me fired up and made me want to go on the attack, but there was nowhere to pass so I had to calm back down and get back to being patient and smooth.

     The group began to split as we started lap 2. The first climb int he lap was a bit tough and it caused some gaps to open. Craig Baker was falling back and was nice enough to let me pass at the top of the climb. I slowly closed the gap to the front four, trying to save as much as I could for the third lap. They seemed to bit a little stronger than me on the climbs, but I was also holding back because I knew I could close down a gap in the flowy middle section, which I did. Five of us were together until about two miles to go in lap two. On rider fell on a bridge and that created some chaotic chasing which ultimately led to a mechanical for one rider, followed by another blowing up. I was prepared for the exchanging of elbows again in the passing section, but I was already into third and beyond that rider by the time we got there. I still took advantage of the opportunity though and went for the lead up the hill in the grass. The two ahead of me seemed to be sleeping and didn’t put up a fight at all. I was feeling good so I ripped the last singletrack section and hit the climb with only Jason Kors on my wheel.

James Rasmussen

     Kors hung on my wheel up the first climb, but then I accelerated over the top into the flowier sections that included a lot of rocks. I got a small gap and then really buried myself for the next three miles to get out of sight. My quads started trying to cramp almost immediately upon me attacking, but I knew from past cramping experiences this season that I can still go for a while before the cramps get bad. I was hoping to keep building on my lead all the way to the back section where I was so fast, then I could afford to back off a little and still hold my gap.

     My hamstrings and hip flexors joined the cramping party on the next climb. My legs were strong, but they were spasming like crazy when I reached my favorite section. I settled in and tried to conserve what little bit of leg I had left. I actually think my settled pace was still faster than everyone else. I went from 30 seconds ahead starting the section to at least one minute ahead when I hit the main climb at three miles to go. You get a long view from the top of the climb and I didn’t see anyone coming.

     Once I crested that climb and my legs were still able to do circles, I knew I had this one. I had heavy traffic in the final two miles, but I tried to be patient with them since I knew I had a good lead. But some of them just wouldn’t let me pass. Again, most of the Sport-level riders want to stop to let you pass. Nobody wants to stop with two miles left in a race. All you have to do is give me a foot and I’ll go by. I ended up having to chance it with a few passes to get me onto the last stretch along the river. I made the passes and thought I was good to go for the rest of the way, but suddenly I was flying over the bars. I guess I hit something with my pedal and it vaulted me over bars and I sailed down the bank towards the river. I never saw anything to hit, but there was something big lurking on the edge of the trail. I landed hard on my right side way off the trail. My bike went flying, but I was somehow able to grab the back wheel and remain attached to it. I don’t think I ever stopped. I went from sliding on my back to running back up the slope with my bike dragging behind me. As I got back to the trail, another rider hit the same object and went flying over the bars just like I did. I didn’t see what he hit either, but there was definitely something there.

     I jumped back on with a lot of adrenaline as I did not want to give up this win! I couldn’t get my foot clipped in on the left side, which is the side I hit the object with. The rock or whatever I hit crushed the clips on the pedal and it was useless. So I just put the ball of my foot on the pedal and hammered the last mile to the finish. Thankfully, I didn’t have to sprint anyone as my bars weren’t straight and my brake levers and shifter were way off my normal setting. I was able to limp in with a sore hip and shoulder. If I had messed around any I would have been caught as Kors and Tomasz Golas came sprinting in for second only nine seconds behind me. That just goes to show you that it is never over and you have to be on your toes all the way to the finish line. Tomasz pipped Kors for second. You can see their close sprint int he video posted below.

I was excited to get the win at Versailles!

     I was super happy to get the win today, especially considering the wild finish. Despite the cramping, I rode very strong, maybe the best I have ridden all season which is good to see after how much I struggled last week. I think my form is coming on right when I need it with nationals coming in just a few days. I think the cramps today were more from dehydration than fatigue since I haven't had as much water as I should this week. I think I’m as ready as I can with the training I've been able to do. I just wish I wasn't all banged up going into a short week before the biggest events of the year. 

     I hate it for Chris that he had a mechanical, but at least we get to drop two races for the series so he is not completely out yet. I took full advantage of his bad day though and came out with maximum points. I just need one more finish ahead of him now to sew up the series title. I had a lot of people tell me before the race that my Epic was not a good bike for this course. Most felt more suspension was better and I saw a lot of  bikes 120mm of travel or more on the start line. The Epic was actually perfect for this course. It has the stiffness to tackle the climbs and, when set up right, is plush enough to soak up the technical features this course throws at you. 

     Dina had a good day too, finishing in fourth place overall for Sport Women and third in 19-39 class.  She netted some more valuable points as well. She is leading the series for her Sport 19-39 age group without drop races and is really riding well. This trail was a good place for us as some of the sections felt like our home trail where having skills really pays off.

Shaking hands on the way to the podium

Got that Indiana State Pie that I missed at Brown County. The pies are a cool addition to the podium prizes. And yes it tasted good.

Dina on box three today

Video: DINO action from Race #4 in Versailles

     After the race we explored some of the park, checking out the dam and a covered bridge. Indiana is full of covered bridges and we have been able to see some really cool ones so far this year.

Spillway on Laugherty Creek

These stairs to the top of the dam seemed really big when going up on cramping legs

From the top

The lake along Laugherty Creek

Busching Covered Bridge

From the other side

     Next up on the agenda is the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Championships in Snowshoe, WV. It’ll be my first trip to nationals since 2008 and I am super excited to get to go. More on that experience in the next post!