State Cross Champ

I just don't feel like posting anything below all the pictures. You think of something funny for yourself. Nate had a great race and rode away to the first place finish and won the State title. the others rode great races for the conditions and it was a blast to watch. Marko sorry about the snowball Nate tossed at ya. Russell made him do it. Later..

Discovery World

Nate on the bed of nails.
Cece on the bed of nails.
Jessica driving the Segway thingy
Cece driving the Segway thingy.

Cece and Nate putting together the foam dragonflies.
Maddie learning something I think.
Jess on the bed of nails.
Maddie on the bed of nails.
Me on the bed of nails as I think this hurts less then hearing Randy talk non stop for a afternoon at the races.

Today we went to Discovery World to check out the art and craft fair that was set up in the hallway. Thee was some real neat things that the people had out to buy. It is still going on tomorrow and it is free if you are looking for some neat gifts to pick up for someone. Then we went into the rest of the museum. There is a bunch of neat things for the kids and adults to do there if you have some time on your hands. We have a family membership that we got as a gift and we have used it a bunch of times now.

Then it was off to run a few errands in the snow. I have to say if you can't drive in the snow get the hell off the road. I don't mind slow drivers but going 20 in a 50 is wrong and everyone going around the slow car was more dangerous then the slow driver. I don't need to drive fast in bad weather but I hate slow drivers causing a long back up. Then it was time to come home and snow blow the alley and the 4 houses of the older ladies in the neighborhood. It took a good 2 hours but it was OK and I don't want to do it again to soon. Now the Punks are decorating the tree and having some hot chocolate. Then it is time to go to bed and get some rest for Nate as he has the State Cross race tomorrow. Later..

Tree shopping

We shop for trees city style. None of that going to the country and cutting for us.
Bike rack used for more then just a bike. Maybe I have to tie a kid to the top one day.

Brought the tree up stairs and letting the limbs open up and then we will add the lights later. I will post pictures of the process. Later..

Light turn out

With Packers playing tonight there was a light turn out at the gate practice tonight. It was nice to be able to just keep going in the gates and not have to wait. For the first hour it was open gates and the little kids were getting a little intimidated with the big guys like Kenny and Fred always lining up next to them so they broke it up for the last hour. We are going to miss the bmx races this weekend as Nate has the State Cross race on Sunday so that will be first over the bmx racing. Nate said the track felt a lot different to ride as the grands track was long and the barn is so short that you have to have to hole shot or you are done. I had Nate ride my cruiser for the last gates as he will be riding a pro cruiser as soon as he gets his. He will also be riding his pro 20 inch when he gets that. Well see you at the cross race. Later..

Dust has settled

Picture of the family after Nate's race.

I have finally had some time to relax after the running around for the last week. It was a blast going to the Grands and all but it is nice to relax a bit. This weekend is the State Cross race and Nate is ready to race the cross bike again after racing the bmx bike for the last weekend. He has been asking about the NBL and a race in Ohio over Christmas vacation. A parent of another racer talked about the race and now Nate is interested in this race. I will have to see about it as it would be another license and I don't know about trying to get to another race that requires about 7 or 8 hours of travel. I will have to look into it and check it out though before I push it aside. Also maybe his new bikes will be here by then. I ordered a Laser Lite Pro 20 inch and 24 inch as he is just a bit to big for his expert 20 inch and cruiser so time for the bigger bikes. Just have to see how things are going around the Christmas time and see if we drive to the race in Ohio. To much to do before then to worry to much about it though. Later..

Grand old time at the Grands

Nate after taking a 4th place at the BMX Grands.
A look at the BMX Grands track that the racers raced on.
Nate relaxing before his First moto on Saturday. Moto 383 out of about 500 plus.
Nate leading a gate practice into turn 1.
My parents and us having Thanksgiving at the BMX Grands track.

Well what a day. We got to the track at 10:45 as the program said the semi finals would be starting at about 12:30. This allowed plenty of time for Nate to warm up and be ready for his race. Well the day just kept dragging on and he finally got to race after 1:30pm. He just needed to place in the top 4 to make the main. Man let me tell you all the racers that were left in the semis were fast. Nate played it smart and got a good gate start and pulled it into the first straight and then settled into 3rd and avoided all the traffic bumping that was going on behind and rolled in 3rd to make the main.

In the main he was next to Alan from Elkhorn and Alan pinched him out of the gate into the rider in the next gate and Nate stopped pedaling for a second to not go down. Then he got going again and the others boxed him into 6th or 7th going into turn 1. Going over the the first obstacle after the turn he just hit the manuals and pedalled himself into 4th place. Out of turn 2 he hit the rhythm section and almost pulled the next 2 racers in but just ran out of track. He had to settle for a 4th and that was a great finish and we are proud of him for his racing over the weekend. I have to tell you that there is alot pressure to race at the Grands and you never would have known by the way Nate was racing and acting. He just raced and made it happen and never was down about how he finished in his motos or races, he was just happy to race his bike and enjoy the time at the races. There are over 500 motos and over 3400 racers. so to make the main is tougher then anything. That is the dream of every racer there and for Nate to make it as he only races during the winter and a few in the summer. These kids and their families have been doing this for years and some of these kids have been racing intermediate for years. This is the start of Nate's 3rd year and he will be expert in 3 more wins and then it will be alot harder to make the mains at the races and he will have to really pick it up. It will be the next step but to get better you have to race faster and better racers and I think Nate will be up for the task.

I drove home from Tulsa after Nate got done racing and we got on the road at 6:40pm and I drove straight through and we got home about 6:15am. As like the way there I drove about 10 hours of each way in the rain. On the way home I had to drive through about 30 minutes of sleet and snow but it wasn't that bad. I drank 2 coffees had a mountain dew and chewed 4 pieces of caffeine gum to keep the eyes open but I made it home just as the sun was coming up. We unloaded the truck and called the kids school to tell them that they weren't going in and I called work and took another vacation day and Cece called a sub to handle her class. I then went to bed for a 3 hour nap and then got a few things done around the yard. I'm know going to go down and lift and maybe ride the spin bike for alittle while to loosen the legs up. To much sitting and driving the last couple of days. Later..

Win and done

Today Nate didn't have to race till after 10:45am in moto 353 so we were able stay at the hotel and relax for a bit. We got there at 10am and they were only on moto 90ish and I thought they would have been further along. After sitting around for awhile Nate got his gear on and went to the staging area to wait for his moto. It was nice today as Nate had a kid that races in Elkhorn in his moto so he was able to sit and talk and that kept him relaxed before his moto. In his moto transfer today the first across the line transferred to the semi final round. Nate not wanting what happened yesterday fired out of the gate and took the hole shot and lead from start to finish. That was nice that he won and moved on as we were able to get out of the Expo center and not sit there all day long again. Now he has the semi final round tomorrow about 12pm and hopefully the finals at about 4pm. Then after that we are hitting the road to drive the 780 miles back home. As it looks like we won't be making it home for the kids to make it to school but this has been a fun trip and well worth it so far. See you when we get home. Later..

Race Of Champions

Today was a long day of moto's and racing for Nate. In his age class there was 22 racers so he had qualifiers to the semis. In his first moto he spun his rear wheel in the gate and had to make up track and finished 3rd and they took the top 2. In his 2nd moto he had gate 8 and had a long way to go. He hit the start perfect and took the 2nd spot and sat there making no mistakes to make it the the semis. In the semis he had another good gate and was running side by side with in 2nd and the guy went down and Nate just hit the gas and his just missed taking Nate with him. Nate again just rolled in for 2nd and was in the main. In the main he had a great start and the guy behind him lost it and hit Nate's rear wheel and it caused Nate to unclip. He clipped back in and tried as hard as he could and caught the back and passed 1 guy to finish 6th. He was easily in the top 2or 3 and is was a disappointment not to ride it out to the finish and challenge for the win but he raced hard and rode his best. It just happens some times and you can't control others actions on the track and just have to race then next race and move on. He will make it up tomorrow when the grands start. Mike Froh had a good day and finished 4th in 41-45 cruiser. Sorry I can't remember how the others finished. Later..

Gates all day

Nate and I spent the entire day at the track as he had gate practice spread out through out the day from 8am till the last one at 6:30pm. He took practices on his cruiser and 20 inch today to get his start and rhythm down even though he is not racing the cruiser. It took till the last round gates to get his first real good looking starts which made him and myself feel that he is ready now. Tomorrow he starts his rounds at 7am and he is in moto 227 and has 22 guys in his class. The Grands will have even more so it will be fun to see how he stacks up the best. I think he should do fine. Now Nate and the girls are in the game room and then it is bedtime as we need to get there at 7 to be ready for the racing. Later..

Tulsa

We got The Punks up @ 4am and we were on the road at 5am this morning. We took I43 to miss the Chicago area as that sucks at any time you drive any where near there. We were to St Louis in 5 hours and then got here in Tulsa by 5pm. I had to drive rain or a mist the entire way here but the traffic was not that bad as it was going 75 to 80 the entire time. We made 2 bathroom stops with a gas and a food stop. So it was a 775 mile drive and got it done with the stops in 12 hours. We went to the Expo center right away to check out he track and it is really cool. It was is a long track with some real cool tables and rhythm sections. I think Nate is going to do well and the goal is to make the mains in the Race of Champions on Friday and also the mains in the Grands on Sat and Sunday. If he makes the mains on Sunday he races after 4pm so it is going to be a long night ride home. We may not make it in time to get them to school but oh well. I will call in and take a vacation day as I have a week and 1 day left for the year yet. Cece already took a personal day and sent in her sub plans so we are in no hurry. I need sleep as Nate has gate practices tomorrow so off to bed I am. Later..

Happy Birthday Little Dog

Happy Birthday Jessica. It is her 6th today. She picked BW's for wings tonight, only the hot wings for this little one.

Views of the hunt

Here is my brother Wades house where we stayed for the weekend of hunting.
The trail that I walked out to my stand that is right behind his house.
My Dad's deer stand that was about a 4 minute walk from the door for him. Nice..
My deer stand that was about a 15 to 20 minute walk but well worth the trip.
My killing machine that never unleashed it's powers as I never seen a deer this year. It was a nice weekend and I wish it would have turned out better with a deer hanging. That was OK as we are leaving for BMX Grands in Tulsa on Wed morning and I didn't need that headache or spend the $ for making it into sausage. Time to get a few things ready for the trip.

Oh yea thanks Pat and Russell for taking the Boy to the cross race as Nate had a good race and won the race. Nate has won the series and now only 1 more race and that is the State cross race and he hopes to win that again this year. See ya later..

Luck is still holding

I have been sitting in the tree stand and I have not seen a deer. Not one has come by or anything so I won't have to clean the gun or a deer. I really don't mind not getting one as Cece doesn't eat the meat and the Punks and I are the only ones that do so I always get it all made into sausage and jerky which then costs me about $300.00. Now we are just sitting watching the Packer game and having a few beers so no more hunting today for me. I will get one more day in tomorrow so maybe I will see a deer but if not I won't mind.

I would like to thank Pat and Russell for taking Nate to the Cross race today. I tried calling Russell to find out how the 3 of them did but I got no answer so I will try later. That leaves only the State Cross race to go and we will home for that. We leave Wed for the Grands in Tulsa and I'm looking forward to it. I hope Nate is. Time to catch the game. Later..

Time to live in a tree

I got the Punks to school this morning and then got some petro for the car and a pound of Alterra coffee and hit the road. I got going about 8:30am and got here at 12:30pm. I should have counted the deer on the side of the road as there was at least 100 from Milwaukee to Woodville. I think that there is a better chance to hit a deer with the car then seeing one in the deer stand. I hope that I see a few while I'm sitting there for the next 3 days. I was able to set the cruise control at 75 and just followed the traffic flow. I seen a bunch of State Patrol cars waiting in the woods hoping to ruin someones hunting trip, but I wasn't going to let it happen to me. I just kept the eye out front and slowed each time to prevent the radar from getting me. I also think every truck was on the road with blaze orange, guns and not to forget a bunch of beer heading to the woods. I'm just glad that we hunt by Wade and there is not to any of these guys around us. It is nice as we get to sit behind his place in about 100 acres with only his neighbor and kid and my Dad and I. Time to get out and check the deer stand and get the gun and blaze orange clothes out for the hunt. Later..

Time to get kill'n

Thanks for the pictures Ron.

Tonight Nate and I hit the barn for some more gates. And a big thanks to Ron for coming out and working with Nate. Ron has got Nate getting out of the gate strong and fast and hitting the manuals and rhythm sections smooth and fast. I think Nate should be ready for the Grands in Tulsa next week. He is racing Friday in the Race Of Champions and the then on Saturday and Sunday in the Grand Nationals. The main goal is to make the main event in both and the best would be in the top 3 or the top box. I think if he rides hard and rides the way he has been he has a shot at making the top 3, so I hope that everything goes well.

Tomorrow I will leave to go up by my bothers for deer hunting for the weekend. Like I said there has been a nice big buck around his place and we are hoping to see it and have a shot at it. If not it will be nice to just sit in the woods. I will go up tomorrow and then hunt for 3 days maybe if I don't get lucky and get a deer on one of the first days. I will then head home on Monday night and then get things loaded and head to Tulsa on early Wed morning. Well time to go and get my hunting things ready. Later..