Blueberry Tandem Cyclocross

After riding for a year with Louie on "The Blueberry," I know I can expect anything but boredom, so I was not surprised when Louie said he wanted to race. Being the sane member of this team I told him that I want to keep my body in one piece so I can ride another day. Louie said this race would be on soft grass and dirt. I would have gentle slopes and one or two short climbs. We would even get to ride the Velodrome. Did I also say that I am the gullible member of this team? Not so bad, so I agree to load up "The Blueberry" and make my decision once there.

We arrive at Alpenrose early enough to do a practice run. Louie promises me not to be too serious about the race. Though Saturday had been wet, we are dry so far. We start our practice run in the parking lot - pavement. I can live with that. Once through the Christmas town and onto the travel is still livable. Out we go onto the gentle sloping grassy field - a little tough, but ok. The gentle sloping hill turns into a single-track style path. Bumping and bouncing on my thud buster post, I hang on for dear life. Splat - into the mud pit. "Give me some Becky power back here," says Louie. OK, I am thinking that maybe this is not such a great adventure after all. Into and around the Velodrome, then back down we go into another grassy field. Up ahead is the mother of all hills. Off we hop. We have "The Blueberry" onto our shoulders and scramble up. Out we go into another field where we hop off again and together lift "The Blueberry" over some obstacles placed there for our enjoyment. Up we go into the parking lot. OK, I made it. I decide that today is as good a day as any to die. I agree to race.

The rain starts coming down fast and furious. The bell rings. Off we go - parking lot, to town, to gravel, to what is now more like grass floating on top of mud. We power through with the wheels sinking past the rims. On the single track, Louie takes the high track. Bump - whoops! - over I go into my first ever endo done from the back of the tandem face first into a mud puddle. Louie falls over into the grass. I come up for air laughing so hard I just sit. "Get up - Get up. We are racing, remember!" Louie says. We scramble back on the bike. We power through the mud pit, ride around the Velodrome, hop off and attempt to carry "The Blueberry" up what is now a slick slimy wall. Louie keeps sliding back into me. I catch him, shove him up the hill with my right arm, lift "The Blueberry" with my left arm and heave it up the hill as hard as I can. Louie catches it, scrambles up a few more feet and I follow after. This is not exactly conventional, but effective. Off we go into the next field. We carry "The Blueberry" over the obstacles, get on and ride into the parking lot. Round two. More rain. Back to the gravel and splash into the now muddy mess. "Take the lower track. Not the mud puddle!" I shout. Bump - whoops! - Off I go splashing into the very same mud puddle. I crawl out tugging and pulling on my tights. I am very glad everyone else is in front of us because I am not sure of my rear view. My tights are caked with mud and I can't keep them up! Back we go through the mud pit. WOW! The bike hits something and launches me over the handlebars again. "Louie - don't leave without me!" He is still on the bike upright and I am sitting in the mud. Back on the bike. Through the Velodrome, throw it up the hill, carry it together over the obstacles and ride it into the parking lot. "Do you want to stop?" Louie asks. "No way. We are going to finish!" I insist. Besides I am having the time of my life. Round three - town, gravel, splash in muddy field, single track and then :The lower track. The lower track." shout. Bump - whoops! Back into that very same puddle. I grab my tights, back on the bike we go. We slide through the mud pit and back around the Velodrome. We make the turn to go out. Yikes! We go down into a slider up the wall of the Velodrome and come to a stop at the top edge of the exit. I am laughing so hard that no amount of coaxing can get me up. An official comes racing over to check. "Are you all right? he asks. "She must be" says Louie. "She is laughing." Back onto the bike, hold the tights, heave "The Blueberry" up the hill, ride the field, hop off, let Louie carry it over the obstacles, on again and into the parking lot. Sometime during this fun, the bell rang, but we did not hear it. We take another round. It does not count. I let Louie know that if I end up in the same puddle again, I am going to take him with me. We take the lower track. We slog through the mud pit, around the Velodrome, carefully out the exit, heave the bike up the hill, let Louie carry it over the obstacles and back to the parking lot and are done.

I am covered in mud from head to foot. Louie has some mud on him. He hoses me off along with the bike, then off I go to the showers.

We check the race results and find we are third from the last. I suppose if I hadn't spent so much time in the puddles we could have placed a little higher, but this has been the most fun I have had in a long time. It certainly made me less afraid of falling off the bike, helped our mounts and dismounts, and increased our handling skills. I am not sure if and when we will do this again, but I am up for it. It was a blast!