I’m online from the Amazing Grace coffeehouse and bakery in Canal Park in Duluth. Normally I use Browser’s Internet Cafe to get online when I’m in Duluth but they don’t open till 9 on Sundays. The ancient Acer PC here at Amazing Grace has never worked when I’ve been here, but today it is. And it’s free to use, too.
It’s about 30 degrees now, with a stiff wind. But it’s sunny and should be a decent day for day two of the trial at Spirit Mountain. We’re riding the same area where we hosted the USA World Round in June.
Yesterday’s event was extremely muddy as it rained a couple of inches the night before. I generally ride well in mud and finished 4th out of 12 in the Expert class. I’m happy with that but with a little more concentration… ahh, there I go again.
I wrenched my shoulder (rotator cuff) on the final section of the day, so it’s an Ibuprofen morning. Not sure if I’ll have enough yanking power to make it through today’s event, but no matter. I’m lucky to be here. And grateful to US Montesa importer Martin Belair for loaning me a ’99 Montesa Cota 315R for the season… and for the extra bed in his hotel room last night. I’d planned to camp, and that would’ve been miserable since all my gear was wet and muddy and wouldn’t have dried out for today.
Kent emailed me directions to his house for tomorrow. Turns out that Mapquest was about a mile off. I checked Yahoo’s maps and they’re off, too. Ah well, not too bad for the deep woods of northern Minnesota.