Clunk, Clunk, Clunk, Clunk....

That was the sound that accompanied chain-slap as you all sped down the Belgian Steps last night. I must say, it was fun and impressive to watch. I think there was only one casualty from the steps, though at least one rider slid out on the surprise mud at the bottom. Yann Ropers has some pictures from last night.

Of course John Mansell was there -- as always with his cyclocross bike. He dismounted and sprinted down the stairs, and showed us all how to remount and speed off again. He'll be ready for the fall/winter cross season for sure.

Josh Whitney provided some entertainment throughout the evening - he brought a bunch of prizes for the night - t-shirts and burrito coupons from EVOL, delicious chocolate from Pharmaca Life, and drinks from Good Belly. The entertainment came in the hand-ups of chocolate bars and burrito coupons. They both proved very challenging to hang on to. The entire crowd cheered loudly when finally one racer successfully pocketed a burrito coupon.

The results are posted, and with some tight moves for the overall in a few categories - the top 3 in the Men's C's are all within 30 points of each other. The standings will be interesting in these last few weeks. Remember that we're dropping the 4 lowest scores for the entire 13-race series, so with 9 races down, the rest will go to improving older scores.

We apologize for the terrible delay at the start of the evening. But it was awesome that so many racers were patient and even happy to help us with the final course adjustments. Thanks a ton to all of you who helped out so much there. We'll do everything we can to make sure the shortage of course setup staff and park construction don't occur together again.

Don't forget about Valmont Trail Work, tonight (Thursday) at 5:30, and we'll see you next Wednesday.