Rain, More Rain, Racing and New Wheels

Two years ago I was forced to get a new set of wheels. Unfortunately at the time I decided on Mavic 717 with XT hubs. Ever since then I have regretted not being able to spend the extra money for UST rims. Today I found a sweet deal on an Eclipse Tubeless Kit on eBay.

The reviews I saw on this seem to rival the Stans system and a couple of reviewers stated that the valves don't clog like the Stans do. The real trick is how well will they work with the Panaracer XC Pro. I'm hoping since these are a brand new set they will work ok because they aren't a lightweight tire.

I'm really getting antsy about racing. I can’t do the Cholla Challenge so Bikeman Dave talked me into doing the Hell of the North. I’m nervous about it because I’ve never done a road race before and I’m not sure that a 4 loop 5-mile course that includes 1.25 miles of dirt each lap is a good way to get my feet wet. The rain that started yesterday continued today looks like it will go on through tomorrow. With this being a race week I would normally try and get a good ride in today and take tomorrow off, but it looks like tomorrow I’ll try and do a good flat spin since I haven't been on the bike since Monday.