The Wright Brothers Cycles wheelbuilding class in Fremont is fast approaching, and I haven't decided on hubs for my wheels.  New or used?  Expensive or inexpensive?  Servicable or disposable bearings?  There's 6 choices already.  Then, consider if the bike should be all serviceable bearings, or if it could have serviceable wheels and a non-serviceable bottom bracket?  I have Shimano Ultegra hubs with serviceable cup-and-cone bearings, and I like those.  The Campagnolo BB I just bought from a guy on Craigslist would make the bike's bearings all serviceable, but mixing Shimano and Campagnolo? That's not the orderly setup I need.  Is this telling me something about myself?  This is what obsession looks like.

I am a USA Cycling Level C official, and work at USAC-sanctioned bicycle road and track racing events in my area.  Becoming a USAC official is easy - attend an afternoon seminar and get a 70% grade on an open book test.  Getting the experience to be a good official is hard.  The USAC Rule Book is complicated, races are a fast-moving blur, and the other more-experienced officials are too busy or involved with their responsibilities to explain much.  You have to be willing to pick it up as you go, make "new-guy" mistakes, and tolerate having the racers, the race promoter and the other officials thinking you are a dumb-ass.  Leave your pride at home, ask questions until the other officials don't feel like answering anymore, and write down what they tell you because you can't possibly remember it all.  At the end of my first race year, I think I have progressed to semi dumb-ass, and I'm proud of that.