Keep Cross Weird

My buddy Steven Pamlenyi is to thank for my recent trip to Austin, TX.  Were it not for his stout 2012 Ford Econoline van and marathon driving record, I would've never gotten the ducks lined up in time to get to Austin.  The guys over at The Tennyson Collective told me they had purchased plane tickets for Austin months ago, but being broke I decided to opt out.   On a whim I asked Steven if he'd like to to head to Austin, TX for a few days and having been off the bike dealing with some things back in his home of Minnesota, his stoke meter was high.

The Mad Hungarian

Legit signage.

After sleeping off our 14 hour drive, we awoke and rode around by ourselves for a day, getting coffee and checking out the great network of crushed gravel paths along the Colorado River.  Personally, I had just started riding after 8 weeks of recovering from a broken clavicle, yet my lack of fitness wasn't going to stop me from enjoying the week!  Joshua Hines of Beat the Clock Cycling was kind enough to offer his living room as our home base, while we assume Flat Track Coffee as satellite base #2.

Amanda as a young'n and now.

Breakfast Lindy remnants.

Basically anyone who's involved in the burgeoning DIY scene in Austin rolls through Flat Track on any given afternoon, including Caleb from LAND, Luke Kalloch, and Ross Spruiell both of Beat the Clock Cycling.  It so happened that it was the barista, Amanda's, birthday.  Being the awesome person she is, she whipped up a trilogy she referred to as a Breakfast Lindy.   A type of lively swing dance that your grandparents may have done, this particular off-menu Lindy was comprised of a double shot of bourbon, a macchiato, and a nip of beer.  We certainly were swinging on out of there as we headed out for the rest of our day.

Josh Hines, our host

Definitely Open!

Luke....

Made in Maine!

The following day, we rolled over to Roy G. Guerrero Park.  Its spacious layout provided a course which included lots of gravel, grass, paving stones, limestone shale, rough singletrack, and a "secret beach", all of which made up different features of the Keep Cross Weird course.  Throw in some intentionally placed logs on the straightaway and you have a properly tough course.  The last important details are that it flooded in Austin only a month ago, leaving many roots unearthed and ruts where flood waters washed the trails away.  Oh, and the race took place at night.  Even with a full moon and lights, many riders were pitted against difficult terrain including a crazy long sand section with a U turn and a very muddy chicane through the woods and back uphill.  50 riders showed up, 30, but in the end everyone had a great time.

Ross Sprueill sans head.

Weird enough.

The Sandy U-Turn

The Hungarian goes down!
Photo by Erik Binggeser

The mountain otter comes out at night!

On Friday, a group of us headed out on a 40 mile mixed terrain ride.  The 75 degree weather made for the most perfect conditions and our halfway point had us rope swinging into a pool of water.  In mid-November!  A stop at Torchy's Tacos and a ripping descent through the University of Texas campus back to downtown brought our trip to a fantastic conclusion.  Thanks Austin, we'll see you again!

Dropping in.

Riding Up.

Only one flat the whole ride!

Me crossing the river we eventually swam in.
Courtesy of John Watson.