late post #1 - xmas ride

thanks for the arm warmers, kenny!

i've been slacking on the posts, i know. but i will it up to thee hoffenchards. eric and i went on a xmas day ride at bent creek because it was beautiful weather and we had nothing else to do. it was in the low 60s on xmas here in wnc, 40 degrees warmer than my ride 3 days before xmas (which pretty much sucked). we met a really nice couple out on the trail, jay & jen (check jay out at bike zoo in knoxville). we met when i was trying to tackle a log obstacle for my 2nd time ever as they were stopped at the end of it. the pressure was on since they were my audience and my coach was 1/2 mile ahead as usual, and as expected i was in the wrong gear. i made it mostly across, but my dismount was none too graceful. we rode with them for the next 45 mins or so - down boyd branch, around explorer loop, deerfield to the lake, and back to parking lot. it was a bit muddy since it's been raining here for the past 2 weeks, but not as bad as i expected since the sunshine on xmas eve dried some of it out. jen was on a specialized 29er and was nice enough to let me ride it for more than half of the ride so i could get the feel for it's size since i want one. it was awesome and huge and i am now thoroughly convinced now that i need one. it will be bittersweet to say goodbye to the soma (my 1st mtn bike ever!) but i feel it's time to move on to better and bigger. the most inspiring part of the ride was the fact that jay & jen had driven from knoxville to asheville just to ride something different. granted, it's only about a 2hr drive, but we hardly even drive to pisgah since bent creek is so close! they told us about some great places to ride in TN and our goal is to explore more in our general area once the spring arrives. anyone ever ridden racoon mtn? i think that's what they recommended as fun, flowy trails in chattanooga, tn. so joshie, kenny, kyle, will - you up for some mtn bike camping trips this spring?

Tis the season

The holidays approach and as were consumed with presents and holiday joy we often neglect our most important friend of all: our bicycles. Even this fare blog writer has fallen victim to the laziness that occurs during the holiday season. But after commuting to work yesterday for the first time in about two weeks, my love for riding is rekindled and i am looking forward to my vaca back to VA and the scenic riding which i have missed. I feel i have forgotten what its like to ride for hours without seeing a car and im super stoked to ride the routes of my homeland of good ole Lynchburg, VA once again. I do believe that i will even hit up the North Carolina Winter CycloCross Series on my way back home to SC to get in a race or two of the sport ive come to love.

On an unrelated note...
shout out to the boys and girls of Team Pegasus up north. These kids know what riding and racing is all about! THE FUN! and if you havent gotten yours yet, be sure to pick up you Ladies of Pegasus calendar. It for a good cause and there is nothing better than chicks and bikes!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Race Report NCCX Finals

So the regular series of the North Carolina Cyclo Cross series has come to an end and i think the Hoffen boys were ready for it. I am however still somewhat sad to see the end of the season on the horizon since my new found love for cross racing is still fresh. What am i suspose to do with my sundays now? Well i know this weekend ill be sitting close to my computer keeping track of Nationals out in KS (man i wish i can make the trip out someday). Or perhaps ill give my Kona the much needed cleaning and overhaul that it deserves. But i digress back to the race...

After call ups in the 60+ field, we all new what was up.. everyone looked hungry to get those last precious points to try and claw their way up the overall standings. Will had an uncharacteristic bad start missing a pedal and falling back to the middle of the field but worked his was back up to the lead group by the end of the first lap. We both took our turns trading pulls for the rest of the race. Our Cane Creek buddy Jim Morrison spent his race going down in front of us, by my count at least three times but still finished in front on us. We crossed the line with 7th and 8th place finishes which we were both pretty satisfied with (Will with 7th and myself with 8th).

As for the overall standings, even though we beat everyone that was ranked higher than us in prerace standing and with this race's double points, we didnt jump any spots. Will ended up just off the podium in 4th and i was right behind in 5th overall. Not bad for a couple first time cross racers.


So now we enjoy a little R&R before the Winter Series or Short Track Mtb begins in Janurary.

Big thanks to Will, Tony, and Krystle for an awesome belated birthday weekend. Thanks guys!

Oh by the way.. Tony finished 23rd and is now selling his cross bike... so if anyones interested get in touch.

NCCX Finals

The finals of North Carolina Cyclo Cross series is this weekend in Salisbury, NC. This time the usual boys of hoffen cross will be joined by none other than the TameWolf (aka TeenWolf, aka Tony Z, aka ShwankBank, aka Man Hair Sweater Beast). Will we work together to try and wrap up top spots in the series or will we be at each others throats for bragging rights? Some have been training, some have not and after this past weekend of gluttony its anyones guess whos going to be this weekend king o cross. Spanky and KB are suposidly making the trip to support their bastard children racers and ring their cowbells with furious intent. Joshie may also be on hand to snap photos of the action.

In other news 09 kit design has been finalized and we will be placing our order by the end of Janurary so dont miss out. Be sure to get in touch with Ken about who wants what, he'll be making a list, so keep with the Hoffen spirit and make sure your naughty and not nice... HOHOHOLYCRAP