XTERRA's Fire and Ice

In just a few weeks when the second running of the XTERRA Winter World Championship takes place at Snowbasin Resort, a special Fire and Ice Award will be presented to the men’s and women’s pro and amateur racers with the fastest combined times from the 2008 XTERRA World Championship off-road triathlon in Maui and the 2009 XTERRA Winter Worlds race in Utah.

This year there's even more competition for the Fire and Ice honors, with at least 16 racers in the mix including the top three American finishers in this years Maui World Champs - Josiah Middaugh, Brian Smith, and Seth Wealing (and they are seperated by less than five minutes). The forever young Jenny Tobin, coming off a 7th place finish in Maui, leads the women's pro division while Colorado native Greg Abrahamson has nearly 10 minutes on Minnesota's Peter Hanson in the men's amateur race. In the women's amateur race Caroline Colonna will look to defend her crown, she has a little less than four minutes on 35-39 XTERRA World Champ Sarah McMahan.

Day to Night Ride - Wednesday Night

Well, we've got an almost weekly night ride going on. Although, with the days getting longer, it's easy to start in the sunshine which is always nice. Come out and join us next week. We've been riding some of the new trails open in South Boulder. Prairie Vista, Flat Irons Vista, Doudy Draw, and North/South Brook trails are excellent trails to ride at night. Not very technical, but fun easily accessible single track.

Bike Baggage Fees - Southwest

Hey teamers,
So I've had a couple of discussions on bike baggage policies with people on our team, spurring me to investigate my claim that southwest is still $50 each way, as opposed to $100 to $175 each way like other carriers (Delta, United, you should be ashamed of yourselves. I mean, seriously? You're gonna let some richy rich a-hole golfer check clubs or some punk skier check skis for free, and then charge $175 each way for a bike?) Upon further review, Southwest is still $50 each way! See text directly from their website below. In case they've change their policy but haven't updated their site, I recommend bringing a printed copy of their policy to the airport if you are paranoid. Which you should be. They'll be charging you to $1 to take a leak on flights pretty soon, and $50 to take a dump (they know they've got you).

Weight and Size Allowance: Maximum weight is 50 pounds and maximum size is 62 inches (length + width + height) per checked piece of luggage. Effective March 1, 2005, overweight items from 51 to 70 pounds will be accepted for a charge of $25.00 per item. Items weighing from 71 to 100 pounds and oversized items in excess of 62 inches but not more than 80 inches (i.e., surfboards, bicycles, vaulting poles) will be accepted for a charge of $50.00 per item. Any item weighing more than 100 pounds must be shipped as Air Cargo. However, Customers cannot use SWA Cargo unless classified as a Known Shipper as defined by the TSA or TSA approved Indirect Air Carriers (IAC). For full details about shipping cargo, visit swacargo.com.

President's Day Long Ride Anyone?

Not sure if anyone else has tomorrow off from work, but I do so I'm going to get in a longer ride. Probably head up to Ward from my house if the weather cooperates. Lemme know if you wanna ride along.