I now know many things I didn't know before:
- One cannot put a star nut in a carbon steerer tube.
- There are very important washers on the bolts which secure the brake caliper to the front fork.
- Disassembling brake calipers at 2:30 AM the night / morning before a race increases stress levels.
- One cannot race effectively when one is half-convinced that one's bike is about to disintegrate.
- Many Open Master's riders in Nebraska are sketchier than their Elite 3 counterparts.
I have also been reminded of things I used to know but had somehow forgotten:
- Fast guys are fast no matter where they're racing.
- I hate humidity.
- My back hurts after 15 minutes of really hard pedaling.
- No amount of warming up compensates for a lack of anaerobic fitness.
- Doubling up for two categories of crit. racing demands a healthy aerobic base.
- Trading a week's training for 12 hours of bike building / repair is a sure-fire recipe for failure.
- Having the above as an excuse doesn't ease the sting of getting dropped.
- Getting dropped is simply getting dropped. There are no excuses.
Then, there were things I thought I knew but now really, really know:
- Brandon Fenster, Vaughn Pierce, Joe Savoie, Bryan Redemske, Craig Harding, Lucas Marshall, "Skinny" Mark Savery, The Skibas, C.T. Weatherman, Dan Spray, Janna "Old Lady" Vavra, and Rich Anderson are cool cats and/or good folks.
- The wrenches at both Trek Stores are top-notch.
- The Flatwater Cycling Team runs a great event.
- I'm slowly, slowly getting less slow.
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