So

The pumpkin on the right was carved by Cour10ay of the McGuire Women's Pro Team. She's multi-talented, and good looking to boot!


So here's a little bit of what's been going on:
--I've been pulling 10 hour shifts at the mines regularly as of late. I don't feel cheated or anything, as it's completely necessary. However, my ass has been dragging and I usually end up most evenings with a pretty good headache. Thank goodness I gave up serious drinking a while ago; otherwise, I'd be putting the alcohol content by volume to good use.
--I haven't ridden my bike in over two weeks -- since the Boom Island CX race. Haven't really missed it, but haven't had the energy to do anything about it, either. Plus, since I was getting out of work at dusk and don't have the trainer set up yet, well, you get the picture.
--With the lack of riding, I feel like I've gained 5 pounds really quickly. I don't own a scale, so it might be just a feeling. But I do feel fat.
--I haven't shaved my legs in a while, either. I feel like a lazy woman.
--I went to Madison a couple of weeks ago. I was hoping for a nice, sunlit fall weekend. Instead, it was raining and forty degrees all weekend. Perfect.
--One of my riding partners is moving to South America for a year or so, then to California after that for another two years or so. Not good times.
--So, yeah. That's about it. What about you?

"You Are Free", Joseph Arthur

Time is moving onYou and meYou and meSuffering is goneYou are freeYou are freeI know I let you downThose days are over nowI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasTime is moving onYou and meYou and meSuffering is goneYou are freeYou are freeI know I let you downThose days are over nowI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who you thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who you thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who you thought I wasI'm no longer who I wasNo longer who I thought I wasI'm not afraid of nothingI'm not afraid of anyoneI'm not afraid of losing myselfThere ain't no self to loseI'm not afraid of losing myselfThere ain't no self to loseI'm not afraid of losing myselfThere ain't no self to loseI'm not afraidTime is moving onYou and meYou and meSuffering is doneLet it beLet it beWhen you feel you're strongYou are freeYou are free

This is all I've got.

Ex-Cat6er Fil asked, "When is the next blog update?"

Well, here it is. This is all I've got for now.

But, while I'm here, I'll give you a couple of movie picks:
--"The Squid and the Whale": This one got a lot of pub last year, and deservedly so. The story is set in New York, circa the mid-1980s. Written and directed by Noah Baumbach, and produced by Wes Anderson of "Royal Tenenbaums" fame.
--"You, Me and Everyone We Know": What would happen if Robert Altman and Tim Burton ever collaborated? You'd get this film. A story in which all of the plots eventually intertwine, yet quirky as hell. I'm still thinking about this one.

Til next time.

Baseball, National League-style

[image caption] New York Mets manager Willie Randolph describes to reporters how big he believed his balls to be before he allowed Cliff Floyd to swing away with the season on the line. [image courtesy MLB.com]


Last night.

Game 7.

St. Louis @ New York Mets.

Top of the 9th inning. St. Louis' catcher, Yadier Molina hits a 2-run home run, giving the Cardinals a seemingly insurmountable 3-1 lead in the last frame.

The Mets come to bat.

Let's turn the call over to ESPN's (Boston) Sports Guy:
"8:29 -- Valentin bloops a single into right-center to start the ninth. Shades of Ray Knight's hit 20 years ago. I just had a Nam-like flashback. Meanwhile, they're playing one of the inspirational songs from the Rocky-Drago fight on the PA system -- it's like they went out of their way to make my buddy Gus feel better. Good God. It can't happen again, can it?

8:31 -- Chavez singles. Two on, nobody out. I am staring at a ghost right now. This is eerie. The Cardinals fans must be DYING. How can Fox not show the flashback to 1986 Game Six right now? What are they waiting for?

8:33 -- Pinch-hitter Cliff Floyd is the winning run at home plate ...

8:35 -- ... and strikes out on a pretty breaking ball. One out. Wouldn't it have made more sense to bunt there? Hmmmmm. 'No lefthanded hitter in baseball could have hit that pitch,' McCarver yelps. I don't even have the energy to argue with him anymore. Let's see if Ho-zaaaaaaaaay Ho-zay Ho-zay Ho-zay can do something."

Whoa! Hold it right there!

Let's go back to this line: "Wouldn't it have made more sense to bunt there?"

Answer: Goddamn it! Yes!

What the hell were manager Willie Randolph and the rest of the Mets thinking about?

You've got the tying run at first base with no outs in the bottom of the 9th IN GAME 7 OF THE NLCS! YOU BUNT HERE!

You have to -- HAVE TO -- get your tying run in scoring position RIGHT NOW!

The really weird thing is that I'm convinced that Randolph would've had Cliff Floyd (or a pinch-bunter) bunt in an identical situation in the regular season. That's National League baseball! Small ball! Move runners over! Manufacture runs!

But, being that this is the playoffs and all, Randolph suddenly reverted back to American League "big boy" baseball: play for the home run.

And, with Floyd at-bat, that logic might have made some sense...IF YOU WEREN'T DOWN BY TWO RUNS IN THE BOTTOM OF THE 9TH WITH THE TYING RUN STANDING AT FIRST BASE WITH NO OUTS!

Bunt the damn baseball!

University of Minnesota Associate Head Coach Rob Fornasiere has a rule about bunting runners over: the only time to bunt is when you gain two bases.

The meaning here is that either a lone baserunner can get two bases, or, more likely, two baserunners each move up one base respectively.

Memo to Willie Randolph: You bunt here!

But Randolph didn't call on Floyd to bunt. Let's see how this turned out. Back to Simmons, courtesy of ESPN:
"8:38 -- Nope. Lines out to Edmonds. Looked like a hit coming off the bat. Two outs, LoDuca batting to save the season ...

8:41 -- ... and he walks! Holy crap. Bases loaded, two outs, Beltran up. I don't care about either team and I want to throw up. Agonizing. This game might make the cut at ESPN Classic yet.

8:43 -- Or, maybe not. Wainwright just snuck a 0-2 deuce past Beltran to end the series. Wow. I mean ... wow. Has a dramatic playoff game ever ended with the best player on the better team striking out looking? That couldn't have been more anticlimactic. It's not possible. Congrats to the Cards fans -- that's a great win. Even if they almost killed you in the process."

Good luck next year, Mr. Randolph.

Damn Bad

From the Uni Watch Blog:
"Eric Glickman has noticed that the logos of the last six teams to defeat the Yankees in the postseason spell out how the Bombers have fared in October since winning it all in 2000…"

Crossword

ACROSS
1 Bunsen burner fuel = "gas"
2 Womb contents = "fetus"
9 Identical socks = Uh...dammit!

Get Your Tickets Now!

Tuffy will be appearing at the Boom Island / Alan Factory Cup CX Race today at 1pm.

I can't wait to endure hearing:
"Why aren't you racing?"
"You should really race CX!"
"C'mon! Copious dismounts/remounts, running with a bike over your shoulder, and doing most of your races in really cold/wet conditions is fun!"

Because of that, I'm riding my road bike over. The less people know that I actually own a CX bike the less guff I'll get.

See you there.

Love and Happiness

The 2006 BMC SLT01 has asked for a Campy Record upgrade and white Deda bar tape.

Anything for you, Slut-1.

What would it look like if you wore the top half of a "fit kit" in a CX race?

Fil provides the answer:

J2: Juggment Day

The Press Conference

A while back, T3 of Cat6 wondered if he had missed the press conference.

No, you hadn't. But here it is for you today.

Press Conference, Part 1
Press Conference, Part 2
Press Conference, Part 3

Conversations

Recent conversation:


Tuffy: "I heard Toyota is going to be new to NASCAR next season."

Guy: "Yeah. It's terrible. It's supposed to be an All-American sport, you know?"

Tuffy: "Hey...you play baseball, right?"

Guy: "Yeah. So?"

Tuffy: "What kind of shoes do you wear when you play?"

Guy: "Nike."

Tuffy: "Well, you're playing 'the American pasttime' and you're wearing Chinese shoes. How terrible!"


I didn't ask him where the gasoline and oil in "American" NASCARs come from...

Mailbag!

I got this one today from a fellow MCF racer:


Not gonna go public on this one...but if you want me to obey your dictum to me, "keep my name out of your mouth" I would suggest you live to that standard as well.

FWIW, instead of calling somebody out indirectly on a public message board, I think it would make more sense to go directly to the officials and address it or notify Matt Anderson our upgrade guy, and notify Mike Hanley the Midwest Region Coordinator. That way you don't piss off the guys that you want to come and support the race you are going to promote next year.

For the record, you complained (publicly or privately) no less than four times to a race promoter who happens to be a co-worker and a very good friend of mine. For all I know, you've complained to every race promoter and every official. I only know what I've heard of, and I'm no psychic. Over the whole CX category thing, you don't even race, but decided to call out a 17 year old who was regularly doing well in the B races, over 2 guys who are a minimum of 6 years older than said highschooler (and I am not sure one of them really even cared to have you call anyone out on their behalf).

But really, why are we upset with each other? If I remember right, it's merely because I disagree with you. Honestly, I do respect your right to your opinion and have no problem with you voicing it, and the only time I have ever had a problem with you voicing said opinions is when you do so in a negative and inflammatory fashion. I'm entirely willing to bury the hatchet on this. I think you're extremely intelligent and a potential asset to the cycling community, but the directed negativity is a bit much. I really wish you would respect the right for people to have opinions that differ from yours and keep things respectful, and I commit to doing so with you from this moment forward. I really hope that you change your opinion of the MCF and those who guide it, and continue to attend meetings and be involved, in a positive and constructive way.

Respectfully,

Racer X


Here's the Official Tuffy Response:

--First, I'm going to post your message and my response publicly because you, sir, have chosen on numerous occasions to publicly bring my name up during your comments on others' sites incessantly, regardless of whether or not I had anything to do with the issue at hand. You, sir, have initiated this behavior in every instance. I feel justified in responding to your libelous slander but, frankly, am always annoyed that I have to bother.

--Point 2: I'm not angry with you Racer X, because the opposite of love is not hate: it's apathy. And I really don't care all that much, if at all, about you. You are a minor, minor speck on my day-to-day radar.

--#3: You can call my comments negative or inflammatory all you want. But anyone who has paid attention to the critiques that I've offered will see that, time and time again, my main beef has been the lack of attention paid to the rules that govern our sport. Whether the issue is proper upgrading/downgrading etiquette, Category 5 racers getting shorted laps at OPUS, coaches at OPUS interfering in races, or flat-out lying on the part of (SRR) race promoters, my intent has been to improve the sport. In retrospect, it seems that your focus during the same debates has routinely been to improve your self-image or to act condescending towards your fellow racers. Sometimes both.

--And finally, Numero Cuatro: The main thing I detest about cycling culture is elitism. Racer X, you embody this element more than anyone I've met in Minnesota racing to date, and your message to me today reeks of it.

Respectfully disagreeing with your assessment,
Tuffy

Did you see Jackie Robinson hit that ball?

A great man died tonight. This is the best tribute I've seen thus far...

Chelsea Cooley Hits, Joe Mauer Doesn't

Checked the stats, and I'm getting a lot more Joe Mauer - Chelsea Cooley related hits. Even after local papers quoted Joe as saying that Miss USA is "just a friend" and that he "doesn't really have time" for a relationship.

[photo caption] Quick! Find Miss USA! (image courtesy USO-NC.Org)

I've been busy. Don't complain.

How do shoes end up on the side of the road? And so often?

American Idle is the Bees Knees

How do you know the GOP Convention has come to town? Thanks, American Idle.