US NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS 2009

US National Champs in Colorado! I was so stoked to be able to represent socal. unfortunately I got a flat tire in my qualifying run and was unable to make the finals. It's par for me this year, I have had mechanicals one after another in 2009 but I still and a great week out there in Colorado and enjoyed every second of it.

2009 San Diego Charger Helmet

This is a older THE helmet that I had Jeremiah Dylan Dean paint for me! I had this idea in mind and designed it in illustrator. A few months later Dylan Dean Designs brought it to life! I got it just in time for the US National Championships! Extremely stoked with Jeremiah's work!

www.the-industries.com
www.dylandeandesigns.com

Angel Fire, New Mexico 2009

The weather conditions in Angel Fire, New Mexico had been up and down all weekend raining everyday.
The Monday weather was beautiful until around 2 o’clock and then the rain started to come down.
With pro men only an hour away, many started to get nervous.

The pro men downhill course has had its fair share of victims this weekend. The World Cup downhill
course is arguably the most physical, and mentally the toughest course around. Testing all aspects that
are necessary to win a downhill race.

Luckily when race time came the rain had past and made for a dry course. I left the start box with a clear
head and intentions of throwing down a smooth and faster then my qualifier run. I had a very conservative
Qualifier run in the morning and knew there was plenty of time to be made up in the finals.
I was extremely happy with the track conditions. After a weekend of mostly wet conditions I was a whole lot
more comfortable in the dry. My confidence was up and I was on a great run until three quarters of the
way down. My chain broke and for 30 seconds I had a locked up drive train. It finally released and fell off the
bike so I was able to coast into the last stretch of downhill.

I ended up beating my qualifying time by thirteen seconds but fifteen seconds from were I should of been.
I finished 71st out of 104 Pros and left Angel Fire with a hungry appetite once again. Besides the miss fortune
in my race run it was a great five days out there with friends on a beautiful mountain.

Shimano Winter Series Final

Well the 2009 Shimano Winter series is officially over, and to be honest I’m happy. I need a fresh start. This year
started out ruff for me! Race runs with crashes and injuries, horrible physical performances and a unconfident
race head! This weekend was no different. I placed 27th with a horrible time and I knew it during the last 40 seconds
of my race run. I gassed out way to early and blew all chances of a good result. I blame most of it on my head! I wasn't
that excited about the course and only did a few practice runs on Saturday. Sunday morning it rained and had
no motivation to practice before my race run and was considering not even racing. About forty minutes before
race time the rain stops so I figured I’d better get a run in just so I don’t hit the course unexpectedly and crash all over
the place because it’s greasy or these new rutt’s! The course was actually a whole lot better than Saturday due to
the rain. You where able to stick the corners, but to make a long story short I still hadn’t had the motivation that I
needed to win or be in contention all weekend. Lesson Learned! I ended up finishing 18th over all in the series. With
plenty of work to do....

On the brighter side of things. This weekend is the FONTANA National and first round of the Cal-State Nationals. I am
excited and eager to rip these courses apart and get back on top were I belong. I look forward to the rest of the
Season. Some of the venues have courses that suite my style more and I can’t wait to put together solid race runs!
Thanks again for all your support! I appreciate you helping me do what I love to do and continue to chase my dream!
Special thanks to Chris Wood for all the outstanding photos this year.

Shimano Winter Series #5

Almost done with the winter series and still no overall points. It's been a tuff start this year with a competitive pro class. This wknd brought me another midpack finish! Aghhhhhhh.

SHIMANO WINTER SERIES ROUND 4

This last weekend was my first race back after my crash and rib injury at the 2nd round of the series
this year. I was off the bike for a total of three weeks and was pushing it as we always do. I felt really good when
I got back on the bike. Didn't feel like I could win but felt like I could compete. The conditions this weekend were really nice.
65-70 degrees and just enough moisture in the dirt to get the right amount of traction. Southridge taped
off a whole new section off hill that made for some good highspeed sections. It was a fairly simple course but
challenging with the off camber. I felt good after five practice runs on saturday and figured I would do good on sunday.
I did my normal one practice run on sunday morning before the race just to check the course and make sure everything
was still the same. My race run felt good. I railed most of the turns up top and pushed myself on the wall which is the last
200 yards or so before the finish.

I ended up midpack with a little bit of disapointment but at the same time I was extreamley
stoked that I put together a solid run with no bobbles or crashes! I was 13 seconds off the leader and 10 seconds off the
podium so I have a little work to do but I felt it was a successfull weekend and really happy that I’m back on the clean run
program :) I plan on getting back on the bike everyday so I look forward to seeing a improvement and a better finish next round .

Shimano Winter Series Round 2

Round 2 of the Southridge Shimano Winter Series brought some nice weather and great conditions. It rained a little on Saturday but not enough to stop anyone from practicing. The little rain we had was enough to keep the course dust free and somewhat tacky. Once again Donny Jackson taped off a great course with good flow to it! I was feeling pretty good come raceday and even did a few extra practice runs before I was scheduled to leave the start box. I felt like I put together a really good run until the last 10 yards of my run. I was coming off this right hand turn to drop off and my bike just slid right out from under me. Before I could even comprehend what was going on I hit the ground. I think I would of knocked the wind out of myself but I was so gassed from pinning it I didn't have any air in my lungs! lol

I slowly got up and rolled across the finish line in disappointment. My friend Carlos Gonzalez was standing right there when I crashed and said it was the most violent crash he had seen in person. So strike two for me at the winter series. I got chest xrays on wed and have a hairline fracture in my L5 rib and bruising on a few others so I will be taking a couple weeks off. Doc says 3-4 weeks since it's just a hairline but I'm already starting to feel better wearing this rib belt they gave me to wear so hopefully I'll only miss round 3 and the bootleg race on valentines day? I plan on getting back on the bike next week so I dont lose to much of my cardio.

Thanks for the support even though my performance has been horrible at the start of this 09 season.