A good weekend
It was a fine weekend Chez Garter. We even saw the sun for a fleeting instant or two, which, if you’re not in the Northwest and haven’t seen our record downpours on the evening news, you might not recognize as a phenomenon akin to trumpeting angels “busting out of the clouds,” as I liked to say when I was a tot. Saturday Mr. G and I raked leaves and sawed fallen branches, I planted hellebores in the front garden, we caught up on much-neglected house cleaning and grocery shopping, and then on a whim I baked gingersnaps. We capped it all off with dinner with our favorite neighbors: skewers grilled under the back porch overhang, just out of the rain.
This morning we fell into our Sunday routine: cyclocross. Since most of you probably don’t know about this remarkable sport, I thought a little photo essay might help you get your bearings. Cyclocross is madly popular in Belgium, Italy, Portland, and a select handful of other places where grown adults enjoy the excuse to wallow in the mud and drink a lot of beer in the name of sport (and subsequent recovery). Essentially, it’s cross-country steeplechasing with bicycles, so the course always includes as many mud pits, obstacles, hairy descents, and lung-burning climbs as the designers can manage. Everyone gets utterly filthy, most of the injuries are only flesh wounds, and the competition is serious but friendly. The aforementioned awesome neighbors sucked my husband into this bizarre world, so of course I relish the chance to go out and cheer.
Here’s Mr. Garter getting ready for the start:
 
On course:
Over the barriers:
  
And after 45 grueling minutes, happy to be done:
Mr. Garter is still a beginning ‘crosser. Next year he’d like his own cyclocross bike – “Black Beauty” here is on extremely generous loan from my cousin Bryce. He’d also like to learn to remount like this guy:
I still haven’t figured out how they do this without experiencing excruciating pain and compromising their fertility, but judging by the number of little kids out there cheering for mom and dad (or competing themselves in “Kiddie Kross”, which is as adorable as it sounds, particularly when they’re still using training wheels), all is somehow well.
Cyclocross seems to be a pretty great sport. It’s an enthusiastic and friendly community, and most of the athletes – male and female – are pretty easy on the eyes, too.
I say most:
Ultimately, not everyone looks as good in spandex as my husband.
Oh, and knitting? I worked on the toe of the second Retro Rib sock warming up in the car between races. I’m one row of Kitchener away from being able to close the book on those babies and put them on my feet where they belong. Didn’t make the Socktoberfest deadline, but let’s all say huzzah just the same! Pictures soon. And next time I’ll show you the fruits of my plant-dyeing.
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 4:44 am
well, at least that guy is getting out there. we won’t discuss what i would look like in spandex at this point (i own a pair, but they strictly go under pants for warmth!)
that looks like good clean (lol) fun.
and i know aobut all you need is to kitchener toes. you’ve seen the vanilla sock of doom, i’m sure.
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 5:03 am
hahaha, that last pic gave me a good chuckle 🙂 sounds like a lot of fun! and a great way to get exercise on the weekend.
can’t wait to see your socks and yarn you dyed!
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 5:37 am
Hmm, looks like loads of fun. And I’ve been trying to figure out more ways to get out on my bike. I may have to look into this when I move to Chicago–do you think they ‘cross there?
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 6:12 am
Cyclocross sounds just up your and Adam’s alley! Lots of fun! Thanks for the great pics. Can’t wait to see those socks and your plant-dyed yarn!
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 7:01 am
I love that your photo subject is wearing a beer t-shirt, at least he has a good sense of humor about the whole thing. (Or maybe he lost a bet?)
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 8:03 am
woo, cyclocrossing! I hung out with a bunch of cyclocrossers when I lived in Seattle — I used to mountain bike but never did try cyclocross myself. Looks like you guys had a lot of fun! 🙂
Can’t wait to see the socks and the plant dyeing!
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 8:16 am
I agree with Beth: maybe that last guy lost a bet! He he… Rumping around in the mud sounds like a lot of fun actually.
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 8:55 am
Ha ha–poor guy! The whole thing sounds really fun–though a little sportif, I think I’d join you with the spectators. 🙂
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 12:31 pm
That guy in the last picture is actually quite good. He belongs to Team ‘Beer’, and one of them always dawns the Miller beer, ‘some dude in beer marketing wistfully hopes will be worn by a plastic woman’, tee-shirt. The rest of us can wear regular bike garb that sucks in our wobbly bits.
Laura, I hope they have ‘cross in Chicago so you can try it out! Cyclecross is a hoot, the community is top-notch, and American Men can get away with shaving their legs, wearing spandex and running in the mud. Via la
FranceAmerica.ps. Last week was the true mud spectacular:
http://www.crosscrusade.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=932&PN=1
http://oregonvelo.exposuremanager.com/p/ccbp0601/img_914516
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 12:39 pm
Okay, that looks like tons of fun (to WATCH!) The laundry after? Maybe not so fun.
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 1:58 pm
I have gotten onto my kids for coming home looking like that. Sounds like a fun time and a good opportunity to have some fun. Send some rain this way!
Posted: November 13th, 2006 at 9:11 pm
Congratulations on being so close to finishing the sock!
C (Mr. Seashore) and I enjoyed your cyclocross photos. His team is doing their first event next month, though he will probably just volunteer as a helper this year. We’re still learning about cyclocross. C would like to know what wheels Mr. Garter has on his bike? He really likes them. C has a Cannondale for his racing bike too. (photos of his races and bike are in my June/July archives, with one or two in Sept. and Oct). So nice to meet another cycling couple!!
Posted: November 15th, 2006 at 10:55 am
What a fun idea! I love all these off the beaten path type sports (no pun intended) where the whole family are fanatics. You know it’s just a matter of time before they suck you in too!