12 Hours of Snowmass is just 4 days away. I’ve been riding as much as I can to prepare for it, but in all honesty, I’m not anywhere near the shape I need to be in for a race of this caliper. I thought I was acclimating to the elevation and getting used to the climbing, but two tough rides last week were quick to put me in my place. I’ve got my last tough ride tonight and after that I will focus on rest and other preparation. I will be completely on my own for this one, so food and liquid preparation will have to be extra meticulous.

If this is the first time you’ve heard of my decision to compete in this race (i.e. we aren’t facebook friends), I didn’t really have the funds to make the trip and put up the registration fee. Luckily, they offer an option for you to fundraise your entry fee through activegiving.com. I reckoned if  I could even raise half the fee I could somehow manage to cover the rest. I’m pleased to announce that ZoeFitness stepped up and agreed to pay my full race fee, so I will be representing Zoe’s team at this race, and possibly some future races. Thank you so much, Zoe.

I would also like to thank my dear mom and former NRC/pedalmasher teammate Nick Cirrincione for contributing $30 to the cause. If anyone else wishes to contribute, the channels are still open to do so. Please visit my fundraising page . All donations  benefit the Aspen Youth Center, a safe and supportive place for youth to connect, learn and grow.  Although I can now cover whatever I fall short of $150 (thanks to a check from ZoeFitness), any additional funds I raise will help me cover race expenses, of which there are a lot at a 12 hour race. Your help is greatly appreciated. I also promise to pay it forward once I’m back on my feet in this new chapter of my life.  Stay tuned next week for a race recap.

Now, on to the racoons.

Since moving here I’ve had to kill one skunk and a racoon. They were tearing stuff up and the skunk posed a bit of a “health” risk snooping around my back door. I popped another skunk with a shot the other night and after that felt kinda bad, since he got away and either died a slow painful death somewhere in the woods, or survived, but perhaps slightly disabled. I decided I was going to live and let live after that fiasco and wouldn’t shoot any more critters unless I really had to.

Well, last night, I was rudely awakened by a pack of 5 coons ransacking my outdoor cook station. They had knocked down my skillets and were all over them like white on rice. The grunting licking sounds they were making were just disgusting. I open the door and they just sit there and stare at me. Two of them don’t even care and are going to town on whatever it is (goose fat I think) that is left in the pan. I don’t want to shoot them at point blank range, (1) because I’m in the RV and the shot will be a little loud, (2) if i miss i might hit the pan and have a bad richochet and (3) i don’t wont racoon guts on my porch and pans. There happens to be a framing level right next to the door, so I grab that and bop ’em on the head a few times so they scatter towards the yard.

I grab the trusty 9 shot .22 revolver and walk into the cool night air wearing only a pair of boxers. The first shot goes off without a hitch. Can’t tell if I hit one because my flashlight is going dim. I do know there was mass movement of racoons though. I go around to the back of the storage shed and there are three of them hanging out by a tree. At this point,  I think they realize I am not messing around. Two of them hightail it up the trail while the stupid one gives me a blank stare.  Well, this one gets popped with a cap. I hear an awful grunting sound for a few seconds and then he runs away. Tough little booger.

I flank around to another storage container and see two of them trying to hide underneath it. I close in for a better shot and take it. Could’ve been the same one I already shot, could have been a different one, but I still had no confirmed kill. I’m ticked at this point and hear them running for the woods. I initiate pursuit, but they have good cover and my light is pretty much dead, plus I’m getting cold. So, the little bastards appear to have won this battle, albeit with some casualty. Next time, they won’t be so lucky. I’ll forego the modern destructive power of a revolver and instead jab ’em with a caveman spear I’m working on. This way I don’t have to worry about neighbors calling in gunshots too.