Our landscaping is finally starting to look like something over a year after I redid the entire property.
Colored ornamental peppers.
Ornamental kale.
The garden is looking good.
Incoming pollinator
Carolina Reapers starting to form up.
Tasty Cayennes are ready!
Finally a big AND tasty jalapeno! This is the first variety I've been happy with since we started farming peppers.
We had a lot of fun at Plymouth Speedway when we were up in northern Indiana for DINO Potato Creek. With as much as I am into racing it was crazy to think I had never made it to our local dirt track in Clarksville. Shannon, my Mom and Dina all joined me for a Saturday night at Clarksville Speedway. The classes were a bit smaller, but the racing was still very exciting. Clarksville is a smaller track with steep banking. It is hardpack clay and looks like a bowl in the ground. It was a much different kind of race. The dirt that is slung up the track as cars slide the corner is known in dirt track racing as the "cushion." Most of the time the cushion is soft and acts like a berm if hit right. The clay at Clarksville packed down and made for a hard berm that became a ledge as it was run over and packed down. You then had to stay away from it as it got tall enough later in the night to wreck a bumper. We saw it happen a few times.
Early races in the late afternoon sun at Clarksville Speedway.
Main events under the lights
Blur of speed on the Clarksville clay.
The next bike race for us was a local one at Lock 4, but I would be the only one from the family racing this week. On Wednesday, Dina had a doctor's appointment before the Music City Crits race. She has still been losing weight and no longer trying to. She just went in to make sure everything was ok since she has been sick after a few races and has lost about 20 pounds without trying. Turns out she has Type 1 Diabetes. It was a shock to all of us as nobody in our family has ever had it, but it explains a lot of the things she has had happen to her this year. Normal blood sugar levels are 100-140 mg/dL depending on if you have eaten or not. Dina's levels were well over 600 mg/dL and likely have been for some time now. A person can go into a coma at around 600 mg/dL, so it is amazing how well she was functioning. Her doctor sent her to the hospital where she was admitted for a few days until they could get her blood sugar down to around 200. That was still high, but compared to her norm, it was really low and her body was having a tough time dealing with it. She not only felt weak, but began to have some major vision changes. Diabetes can affect your vision and had made hers much worse. Her vision improved dramatically in just a few days and her prescription no longer fit her vision making both her contacts and glasses useless. She had to not only follow-up often with her medical doctor, but then had several visits with her optometrist. The vision was changing so much that they had to wait a few weeks to even get her some permanent lenses. Needless to say, she skipped Lock 4.
The Old Hickory Classic at Lock 4 Park in Gallatin, TN is always an interesting race. It's a place I have raced at since my very first year of racing. I think this was the third place I ever raced a mountain bike actually. I've had some pretty awesome moments of victory, plenty of suffering, mechanical disasters that have cost me wins, and some pretty epic battles with strong opponents. It's also a place where the crowd tends to be mixed, as it seems to be at most local races for me nowadays. I was pretty excited to do this race as I don't get to do this race every year and I have been on better form the last few weeks.
Cat. 2 riders on course in the first race wave of the day.
Jameson Simms grabbed the holeshot and held it all the way to the end for the Singlespeed win.
National Champ Mike Taglio
Rick Harmon finishing up a lap.
Michael Edens starts another lap
Ben Brinton on his way to a third place finish in Cat. 2 15-39.
Keith Lucas took second in Masters 50+
It was a hotter race day this week. We started at 10:30 and it was in the 80s. For sure it could have been worse with it being the end of July, but it was plenty humid and took its toll during the race. I didn't have a great warm-up. The legs were just sluggish and not feeling as snappy as the last two weeks. That made the holeshot even more important so I could control the pace and let my legs come around.
We had five starters in the Pro/Cat. 1 Open. I knew two of them, the other two I had heard of, but didn't really know much about them. We raced four laps on a shorter XC course, which has been the format at Lock 4 the past few years rather than using the full loop. This shortened loop omits the northwestern section of trails, which is the shorter side of the road if you are familiar with the trails there.
I got the holeshot that I had hoped for and took us through the first section. I felt even worse once we got up to speed so I slowed things down. I knew I needed to back off and if somebody came by than so be it. But nobody wanted to pass and they let me lead the whole first lap. I didn't realize it, but I actually gapped two riders off the back on some of the climbs near the end of the loop. Harrison Klapheke was sitting on my wheel with Chase Peeler behind him. Once we hit the field to end the first lap I could see we had gapped the other two. Simon Lewis was chasing back on and joined us right as we began lap 2.
Holeshot!
In the woods and in front.
Craig Battinelli
Getting into the second half of lap 1 and prying open a bit of a gap on one of the uphill drags.
Coming up the last hill to end lap 1.
Harrison Klapheke right on me in second.
Chase Peeler in third.
My legs still felt like junk, but it was time to go. I had no snap so I just tried to set the tempo as high as I could and just hold it there. I tried my best to hold every little ounce of momentum up the hills. It may not be the sharp accelerations that open gaps quickly, but the steady pace began to slowly bludgeon everyone's legs. This was one of those days where I felt like experience payed off. I knew I had 4th place legs, but if I rode it right I might could still podium.
Early in Lap 2 with Simon Lewis now back in the group.
Harrison and Chase stayed with me throughout lap 2, but we shelled Simon again in the second half of the lap and this time he didn't come back across. The second lap was a few seconds faster than the first, and we picked it up a little more on lap 3. I expected Harrison to attack me at some point. I didn't know much about Chase, but he seemed to be riding well. I caught some slack from the crowd starting lap 3. Again, I was apparently holding everyone up. People were yelling for me to get out of the way and stop holding up Harrison. I've heard this before and funny thing is I never hold anyone up, they sit on my wheel willingly.
Starting Lap 3
Later in Lap 3
I dug a little deeper on the power climbs the third lap and started to pry open a gap on Harrison. Chase passed Harrison and came across to me, dragging Harrison back up as well. That really motivated me as I knew the bludgeoning was working. I picked up the pace a little more on the next climb and Harrison was off again.
Just me and Chase now.
Harrison chasing in third.
Nearing the end of Lap 3.
We came through the field to end the third lap in peaceful silence this time. Chase and I raced to the woods and I was able to keep the lead. I knew I was safe now until we hit the old jeep road climb which has been my nemesis over the years. There weren't many passing opportunities until then. I just needed to stay upright for now. There was a new jump added to the course recently and it claimed several victims in the earlier Cat. 2 race wave. A few got packed out with fractures. I had cleared it all three laps, but it was a little tricky as the lip wanted to buck the rear of the bike on take-off.
I cleared the jump and then we were on the jeep road and heading up. As expected, Chase put the hammer down. We had a drag race for a few seconds and then he pulled clear of me. I could tell he was stronger, but I was able to stay within two bike lengths of him at the top. I held the gap for the next few miles, but never really got back to his wheel. Then I started to cramp with a few miles to go and he started to pull away. Chase put a few bike lengths on me on each climb and then I finally cramped enough I had to back off. Chase rolled in to take the win. I took my 4th placed legs to a 2nd place about 54 seconds behind Chase. I considered that a successful day as I really didn't feel good, but fought through it. Never quit!
Chase out front with a little over two miles to go.
Still pushing hard in second, but cramping.
Chase Peeler heading out of the woods to grab the win.
Pro/Cat. 1 Open podium
I hung around to watch the afternoon Cat. 3 races. This shorter course is not my favorite to ride as I really love the section of trail that is left off of the course, but it does make for some great spectating. It was a good turnout for the Cat. 3s in every class. My Dad came off the couch to race the Cat. 3 40+, ending up in 5th out of 11 starters. Posted below are Cat. 3 pictures and a video of the full day of racing. Full results came be found here.
Juniors kick off the Cat. 3 wave of races.
Pops got the holeshot for the Cat. 3 40+ race.
Presleigh Jennings topped the Junior Women 15-18.
Matthew Edens with his buddy Nolan Long right behind him. These two are always together, before, during and after the race.
Nolan Long
Dad nearing the finish
Video: Video from the racing at Lock 4
Lock 4 ended July. We rolled into August with another round of the DINO Series. This time it was off to Versailles State Park in Versailles, IN. This race is one of the closer Indiana races for us. We were able to go up on Saturday and stayed at Muscatatuck Park in North Vernon about 45 minutes to the west of Versailles. We stay here because this park has a nice campground that allows you to book for one night, whereas the state parks in Indiana require a two night stay. Muscatatuck Park also has nice mountain bike trails. The park has hosted DINO races in the past, including in 2016 when I came here for my first ever DINO Series event. So we get a good place to stay that we can afford, with a shower I might add, and we get to ride a good trail.
We had a good ride. It was a hot day, but at least the trail was shaded. It was muddy in places and little overgrown, but rideable. Afterwards we went down to the river and showed Dina the trilobite fossils we hunted down last time we were here. Dina's blood sugar was starting to level out now and she was feeling decent enough to ride and try to race. Her vision was still changing, but she had some temporary glasses that at least helped her see somewhat normally for the weekend.
Mushrooms along the trail at Muscatatuck.
Shannon ripping the singletrack
Of course I found plenty of colorful mushrooms in the summer shade.
Below the Vinegar Mill as we head down toward the river.
The biggest, most visible trilobite fossil.
Two more trilobites. These are a bit harder to find.
Last year when we stayed here, we could here a speedway that sounded very close to the campground. I scouted it out when we got home and was ready this year. After we got cleaned up and had some dinner, we headed down the road to Twin Cites Raceway Park to watch some dirt track action. Three races in a month at three different places! What a treat! This track was pretty awesome! Its size is somewhere between Plymouth and Clarksville. Speeds were still high, but things were tighter than Plymouth. There was a great crowd for the features and a good showing of cars. I felt like the spectators were really into the races and everything was very organized compared to the other tracks. I really liked it. These people really love their dirt track racing and it shows.
Heat races at Twin Cities Raceway
They had an interesting pit crew competition. The crews and driver had to change the tires, then the driver hopped in, buckled up and took off for a lap on the track.
The feature races started as the sun began to set.
Late models doing a four-wide salute to the fans before the start.
The next morning we were up early and on the road over to Versailles. I loved this trail last year and was excited to get back out there. After last week's flat legs at Lock 4, I was expecting to have a much better day today. I was ready to put up a fight like I did at Potato Creek.
It took me a little longer to get ready for some reason and I was a little pressed on time for my warm-up. I tried to get in some intensity to get me ready for the opening climb that kicks off the Versailles course, but I think I overdid it. I was feeling way too hot before I even got to the start line. The start stretch here is wide, but they had us in a narrow start chute. We had nine riders in the Elite group and only seven fit in the front row. I sat in the shade to try to cool down until the last possible second so I ended up on the second row.
The start stretch is a long, slightly uphill drag in the grass, then turns left onto pavement and finally crossing a ditch and into the woods. There's room to pass on the start, but you never want to be on the second row if you can keep from it as getting into the woods in a good position is really key to this race. The course at Versailles is a little over 10 miles in length and it's mostly singletrack. There's really only one climb about 2/3 of the way around the loop where you have plenty of room to make a pass. You have to squeeze by someone everywhere else. We don't even come out of the woods at the end of each lap, only heading to the grass again for the finish of the race after the third lap is complete.
I was excited to be racing in my DINO Series Champion jersey that I earned last season and received a few weeks ago at Brown County. It was way too small in the arms to comfortably ride in, so Shannon had to let the sleeves out some. It was the first time in my life I have ever had to let the sleeves out in anything. Usually I'm taking up slack to fit sleeves to my negative biceps.
The start was fast. I had a good jump, but then the rider in front of me unclipped from his pedal and nearly went over the bars. I had to check up and then re-accelerate. We fell back from the others and he beat me to the woods. I hit the trail in 9th out of nine, not exactly what I was hoping for. My body felt a bit sluggish as we started to climb. It almost felt like my body was holding back even though I was telling it to go. The group started to pull away and all I could do was watch. By the top of the climb they were all out of sight. I barely even caught a glimpse of anyone the rest of the first lap. I could see the back of the group starting the main descent on the backside of the loop and I was a startling 55 seconds back. Ouch.
Riders flying down the start stretch
I closed the gap down to 35 seconds in the next flowy section. I then passed three riders before the end of the lap. Apparently, only one was actually in the race. I was very confused when Shannon told me I was still in 8th at the end of the lap. I felt like I should be in 6th after passing those guys. I lost three minutes to the leaders that first lap. That would be hard to make up even if I started to feel great.
An Elite rider ending Lap 1
Me in the blue DINO Series Champion jersey finishing up Lap 1.
I was kind of confused here when I asked where I was and heard 8th. It didn't make sense and the time and still doesn't really.
I started Lap 2 15 seconds behind 7th. I worked hard, but it still took me 3/4 of the lap to catch him. I was feeling better, but not really going any faster. I could see 5th and 6th ahead and started going after them. The rider in 6th crashed and I got by before he got up. I then picked off 5th in the final section before ending the second lap. I was thinking maybe a comeback was still possible until I got a time check starting Lap 3. I was now 4:35 off the leading four who were still together. No way I was bridging that gap.
A rider comes through the Feed Zone to start another lap.
Good idea on a hot day.
Dina rolling through to start another lap. She had to race in glasses today due to major vision changes since getting her blood sugar under control.
The rider I passed at the end of Lap 2 stayed close to me for about 3/4 of the third lap. He made me work hard even when I felt overheated and weak. It would have been so easy to slow down, but I had to go hard and salvage what I could. I needed the points if I wanted to get a top 3 in the series. I was able to fight through cramps the final few miles and hold on for 5th, over 7:30 behind the top four. I didn't have a bad day, but not really a good day either. I just got smoked. I cramped pretty bad after the race and had to lie down in the grass for a while before I could get back to the car. I think I was dehydrated today. I have felt acclimated to the heat so far this summer, but for some reason I was hot all day today and sweating a lot more than normal. Maybe it was the jersey. All I know is I did not represent that jersey or the #1 plate very well today.
Rick Mezo leads the front group through the Feed Zone starting Lap 3.
Me hitting the line to end my race in 5th. Not the kind of day I wanted, but I kept working hard and ended up with a decent finish.
Rick Mezo bested the others in the front group to nab his third win of the series, pretty much ensuring he will get the series title. I have a decent shot of holding on to 3rd in the series as long as I can survive the finals in Indy with no disasters. Elites ruled the day again posting the top seven overall times.
Dina survived her first race as an official diabetic. She has apparently been a diabetic for a while, we just weren't aware yet. She managed things well, stopping once to check her blood sugar just in case it was getting out of control. It must have been a little scary to go into a race after going through what she has been through the last week or so, and not knowing anything about what your blood sugar does during exercise or really how to control it. She did surprisingly well for using the day as a test session, ending up 6th out of nine riders. She was less than two minutes off a top 5.
That does it for this post. Next up was some time racing on the road with a time trial and crit before the DINO finals in Indy. Find out if I held onto third in the series in the next post.
