My 2017 Racing Season Ends

Man-made snow today at Sunburst. Yeah, it's THAT cold already. (Jeff Wren photo)

Back on October 21, a warm and sunny Saturday, I didn’t imagine that I was doing my last race of 2017. But the GP Jo Vanderaffe will have that distinction. Our rapid temperature drop is mostly to blame for my recent lack of motivation. We’ve been 10-15° below normal all month. There are other factors, though.

I gave up today’s cyclocross race in Sheboygan Falls so that I could complete my fall cleanup around the yard and the garage. Friday will be this year’s last leaf pickup in the City of West Bend, and I’m damned if I’m schlepping bags of leaves to the city yard for disposal. (As you can see above, there was time for a 25-mile ride late this afternoon. But I couldn't spend the whole day on bike racing.) I will give up next Saturday’s cyclocross race in Oshkosh to be with my family for Thanksgiving dinner, a tradition we normally keep on the holiday itself but which requires a different schedule this year.

What about the state cyclocross championships on December 2? Well, maybe if it’s an uncommonly warm day, but there’s no reason to expect that. And my fitness will only decline between now and then, so it wouldn’t be a good result for me anyway. I’ve done 19 races this year, more than I usually do … and probably enough.