Pats Peak, a response.

I'm not a fan of commenting on my own blog. It strikes me as amateurish. The squirt gun show is for me to try and amuse you with my wit and opinions. It is not a tool I use learn the opinion of others. But every once in a while, the squirt gun show collects some comments that are just too hard to ignore.

First up is Anonymous. What happened? We used to be so cool. You used to agree with me. You used to think I should be Pro. Let's make up, why don't you tell me which parts of my post were not true, aside from the fact that it was an entirely contrived conversation between two imaginary individuals, and I will apologize for them. Are grassy, muddy traverses actually awesome? Were the dirt road climbs straight up the ski trail not actually there, were they just a mirage? Do mountain bikers like trying to race through an ecological disaster that is so encompassing you can't even run it without losing a shoe? Was it the palette bridges, do they actually take significant effort to lay on the ground? Did I miss some fresh cut that you and your buddies worked on all spring?

Wait, the more I read your comment, the more it makes no sense. What I am actually trying to do is throw mud in face of 100% of the people who think Pats Peak is the best course in the Northeast. What I think you're trying to do is allude to some poll you conducted, where you asked every mountain biker in the Northeast what their favorite course is, and 99% of them said Pats Peak. Yeah. Maybe we shouldn't be friends. (you didn't poll me)

And why is PPG2 talking to himself, does it have anything to do with your missing spellcheck button?

Rosey, Right on. Nice to see that there are still people that appreciate a little creativity sprinkled on top of their Internet rants. Anyone can rant (see below), making your rant amusing or interesting takes a little extra time. Thank you for noticing.

McKittrich, you have a call from Kettle on line one. Are you seriously going to try and play the promoter card? The most tired argument in bike racing? Didn't feel like thinking yesterday? Figured you would just cut and paste some crap someone left as a comment on your blog?

The "plight of the promoter" argument isn't going to fly. This event was put on by Pats Peak. It wasn't some individual putting his neck out with his own money, making deals with land managers, arranging for porta-potties, getting permission from land owners, renting a PA system, etc... It was held on private land, and was (probably) organized by Pats Peak employees.

Besides, how does me not having any promotion experience suddenly make a complete lack of trail maintenance excusable? Are screaming downhills into loose, or muddy, 90 degree corners only sketchy after I have promoted a race? The course hasn't changed a lick in the 3 years I've been familiar with it. Silence is not going to get an actual bridge built, or a climb rerouted. Please prove me wrong. (PLEASE!) Other parts of your comment will be addressed later this week.

Colin, There is an actual race report coming, it's already typed. I wrote it before I wrote "the discussion." It contains facts about what happened during my race. It's about as whiney as the English language can possibly get.

John Spartan. Finishing 18th out of 23 doesn't put me in "dead last". Or are we somehow pretending that dropping out of a race puts you in front of the finishers?

In summary:

"The discussion" was supposed to be the humorous appetizer served before a week long bitch-fest. You have all jumped the gun. As the week wears on, my posts will become more whiney, and less creative. So please, holster your hate-pistols until I have given you a full clip of ammo.