I'm packing for Iola. I'm thinking of the long leadout to the first bit of singletrack and how hard you have to go for the first part so you don't get pinched in the singletrack.
Monday I did 3 hours on the MTB at Jim's.
Tuesday I didn't ride due to work.
Wednesday I did sprints on the trainer because the weather sucked.
Thursday I rode to work and felt awesome. Tomorrow's going to be an easy day, and Saturday I'll preride.
I've been doing lots of sit-ups faster and faster now. My 100 don't take long. And the planks are getting easier. Not quite at six-pack status, but getting there.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
one week until Iola
Between some faily events and my bike getting stolen (and returned), I haven't ridden this week since Monday. Now that it is Sunday, I thought I'd better at least go for an easy spin to get the legs ready for a week of racing.
So I did, and it was fun. And I stretched, and did sit-ups.
Tomorrow I'm headed out to Jim's trails for an attempt at four laps in a row. I don't know that I've done that before: 4 complete laps. I'm taking a lot of food and two water bottles and wearing my racing kit. I'm not treating it like a race, I'm treating it like an endurance ride, but all the same I'm going to use it as mental preparation for the race next Sunday.
Speaking of which,
Iola was the first place I went mountain biking in 2002. That race was my first ever, and my first time on real trails. I love the course and although it's not a goal event of mine, I'd love to at least step on the podium. The pine section toward the end is one of my favorite parts of mountain biking.
I dislike most cycling magazines (except Dirt Rag), but this month's Mountain Bike has an article on speed, cornering, and braking that is extremely helpful. Check it out if you get a chance.
So I did, and it was fun. And I stretched, and did sit-ups.
Tomorrow I'm headed out to Jim's trails for an attempt at four laps in a row. I don't know that I've done that before: 4 complete laps. I'm taking a lot of food and two water bottles and wearing my racing kit. I'm not treating it like a race, I'm treating it like an endurance ride, but all the same I'm going to use it as mental preparation for the race next Sunday.
Speaking of which,
Iola was the first place I went mountain biking in 2002. That race was my first ever, and my first time on real trails. I love the course and although it's not a goal event of mine, I'd love to at least step on the podium. The pine section toward the end is one of my favorite parts of mountain biking.
I dislike most cycling magazines (except Dirt Rag), but this month's Mountain Bike has an article on speed, cornering, and braking that is extremely helpful. Check it out if you get a chance.
Friday, May 8, 2009
The return of the Madone
Without my road bike it's been a frustrating week. Beyond commuting and a few laps at a demo day at Jim's Trails on Monday, I simply haven't ridden much.
Then on Tuesday I got a call from Homer, my outside sales rep at Trek. It went a bit like this:
"Hey Andrew, Homer here."
"Hey Homer! What's happenin?"
"You used to have a Madone 5.2 Pro, right? 58cm Carrera blue?"
"Yes, I did. Until it was stolen."
"You want it back?"
Monday morning a man named Kevin (whose last name I don't even know) was biking to work from his house in the Atwood neighborhood, when he passed the corner of Atwood and Dunning, where he saw a very nice road bike leaning against a dumpster, unattended and unlocked. It looked lost, and Kevin knew that such bikes do not attend to themselves.
He stood in thought for about half an hour. Something about this situation seemed wrong. So he called his wife saying, "I think I should grab it." After she agreed, they called the police, although each agreed, the police probably wouldn't do much. They asked if the police had a database, and they said no. So they called Machinery Row Bicycles.
And that is where bicycle karma struck with brilliant force.
The folks at The Row told Kevin they hadn't sold the bicycle, but they could give the serial number to their inside sales rep, Homer, who was standing in the shop when Kevin had called. After hearing the description, Homer (who knew my bike had disappeared) thought it might be mine, and so he ran the serial number through Trek's system and found that the bike had been shipped to Boehm's cycle in St. Paul, Minnesota. The same shop I'd worked at for two years in college.
Thursday evening I drove over to Kevin's and picked up my bike, completely intact and functional, save for some torn bar tape. What a strange series of events, that Kevin would go to such lengths to get it back to me, that Homer would be in the right place at the right time.
I owe them both quite a lot. Tonight I'm doing a victory lap.
Then on Tuesday I got a call from Homer, my outside sales rep at Trek. It went a bit like this:
"Hey Andrew, Homer here."
"Hey Homer! What's happenin?"
"You used to have a Madone 5.2 Pro, right? 58cm Carrera blue?"
"Yes, I did. Until it was stolen."
"You want it back?"
Monday morning a man named Kevin (whose last name I don't even know) was biking to work from his house in the Atwood neighborhood, when he passed the corner of Atwood and Dunning, where he saw a very nice road bike leaning against a dumpster, unattended and unlocked. It looked lost, and Kevin knew that such bikes do not attend to themselves.
He stood in thought for about half an hour. Something about this situation seemed wrong. So he called his wife saying, "I think I should grab it." After she agreed, they called the police, although each agreed, the police probably wouldn't do much. They asked if the police had a database, and they said no. So they called Machinery Row Bicycles.
And that is where bicycle karma struck with brilliant force.
The folks at The Row told Kevin they hadn't sold the bicycle, but they could give the serial number to their inside sales rep, Homer, who was standing in the shop when Kevin had called. After hearing the description, Homer (who knew my bike had disappeared) thought it might be mine, and so he ran the serial number through Trek's system and found that the bike had been shipped to Boehm's cycle in St. Paul, Minnesota. The same shop I'd worked at for two years in college.
Thursday evening I drove over to Kevin's and picked up my bike, completely intact and functional, save for some torn bar tape. What a strange series of events, that Kevin would go to such lengths to get it back to me, that Homer would be in the right place at the right time.
I owe them both quite a lot. Tonight I'm doing a victory lap.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
sleep, the kettles, goodbye Madone
It has been quite the week! First off, my Madone got jacked out of the garage Saturday night, so my training plan has changed a bit. If I get any insurance money I'll just buy a new one. If not, I'll use the store demo bike for a while and get a new one later this summer. It's unsettling, and I keep trying to tell myself that a bicycle is merely a thing.
My training last week was as follows:
Wednesday: Intervals. I felt great and they were almost fun, even though I was tired by the last one. At the end I threw down a sprint just to see what I had left.
Thursday was a recovery day, so I cruised at an easy pace.
Thursday night I couldn't sleep. After work Friday I got home and went to bed instead of riding, so I shifted my schedule back a day.
Saturday I did a 2 hour ride at Jim's, and Sunday I went to the Kettles with Matt (Gehling) and Clare and Ashley and got my face melted for about fifteen minutes by Nathan Guerra. Then Matt and I kinda cruised the rest of it. I was fried by the end, but I popped an accel gel with 3 miles left and just drilled it to the end.
We werent' even going that fast out there and we passed tons of people. I feel good about the season. Gehling is faster than me, but that is a reality I have come to accept. 26 miles with somebody faster than me on mountain bikes is a good workout. Monday I rested.
My training last week was as follows:
Wednesday: Intervals. I felt great and they were almost fun, even though I was tired by the last one. At the end I threw down a sprint just to see what I had left.
Thursday was a recovery day, so I cruised at an easy pace.
Thursday night I couldn't sleep. After work Friday I got home and went to bed instead of riding, so I shifted my schedule back a day.
Saturday I did a 2 hour ride at Jim's, and Sunday I went to the Kettles with Matt (Gehling) and Clare and Ashley and got my face melted for about fifteen minutes by Nathan Guerra. Then Matt and I kinda cruised the rest of it. I was fried by the end, but I popped an accel gel with 3 miles left and just drilled it to the end.
We werent' even going that fast out there and we passed tons of people. I feel good about the season. Gehling is faster than me, but that is a reality I have come to accept. 26 miles with somebody faster than me on mountain bikes is a good workout. Monday I rested.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
A day to think.
Monday was my rest day, so Tuesday was my endurance ride day. I did 2.5 hours at an average of 158 BPM.
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=277533
Once I got home, I noticed a police radar trailer was set up to display the speed of cars driving near Sandburg elementary. My legs were tired, but I decided to see how hard of a sprint I could throw down. I broke 30mph, but I could feel my legs saying "no thanks, we're done for the day."
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=277533
Once I got home, I noticed a police radar trailer was set up to display the speed of cars driving near Sandburg elementary. My legs were tired, but I decided to see how hard of a sprint I could throw down. I broke 30mph, but I could feel my legs saying "no thanks, we're done for the day."
Monday, April 27, 2009
recover, sunburn, recover, chunky lungs
Thursday I did some active recovery and rode over to my brother's house and cruised by the lake. It was nice.
Friday I did 2.5 very hard hours in the wind and sun. Due to time constraints I couldn't do the full time I'd scheduled, but managed to have a good hard ride.
Saturday morning I spun out my legs in preparation for the Campus Crit in Minneapolis: a race I thought I had a shot at winning.
Sunday morning saw rain, and tons of it. The course had puddles that would get swept out by course marshals between rider gaps. The 4s race had 5 participants, and we went hard from the whistle. It strung out, and on the windy backside, we got split apart. I chased up to the front two riders, and as soon as I got up there, the 2nd place guy(Randy) drilled it. He got another gap, and the GP guy who was with us jumped and went right past Randy. I tried to chase and popped.
When I dropped back to the last two, they weren't talking to each other or me. They wouldn't work together, and they kept attacking, trying to get back up to the front GP rider. It sucked, big time. They kept attacking me until I couldn't respond. There was no recovery, and I rode the last five laps alone and discouraged. According to the official, it didn't even look like a race after the first three laps; Just one rider every five seconds, hammering on his own.
I was soaked, cold, and shaking when I got done. I warmed up, stretched a ton, and went to the Mall of America to get some shoes before driving home through terrible rain that night. The saddest part is that when there's a good field, that race is awesome.
Cold, damp weather always does a number on my lungs. I felt them constricting right away after the race and just for safety took some mucinex the next day. It got a bit of the congestion out, and I feel better today, but chunky lungs always make me nervous.
A year-and-a-half ago now, I was going into the collegiate MTB season feeling great. I felt strong and excited about the chance of qualifying for nationals (I would have gotten smoked at nats, but it would have been awesome). The last road event I was going to go was the campus crit. I had a bit of a cold, but I didn't think it serious enough to drop from the race.
I raced hard that year, and was a little hung over from the previous night, so my cold turned to serious bronchitis in a day or two. It took me off the bike for three months, out of the MTB season, and involved weekly visits to the doctor to check on my progress. The most frustrating cold I've ever had wasn't severe, but I put on 15 lbs, missed my last collegiate MTB season, and learned a big lesson the hard way.
Friday I did 2.5 very hard hours in the wind and sun. Due to time constraints I couldn't do the full time I'd scheduled, but managed to have a good hard ride.
Saturday morning I spun out my legs in preparation for the Campus Crit in Minneapolis: a race I thought I had a shot at winning.
Sunday morning saw rain, and tons of it. The course had puddles that would get swept out by course marshals between rider gaps. The 4s race had 5 participants, and we went hard from the whistle. It strung out, and on the windy backside, we got split apart. I chased up to the front two riders, and as soon as I got up there, the 2nd place guy(Randy) drilled it. He got another gap, and the GP guy who was with us jumped and went right past Randy. I tried to chase and popped.
When I dropped back to the last two, they weren't talking to each other or me. They wouldn't work together, and they kept attacking, trying to get back up to the front GP rider. It sucked, big time. They kept attacking me until I couldn't respond. There was no recovery, and I rode the last five laps alone and discouraged. According to the official, it didn't even look like a race after the first three laps; Just one rider every five seconds, hammering on his own.
I was soaked, cold, and shaking when I got done. I warmed up, stretched a ton, and went to the Mall of America to get some shoes before driving home through terrible rain that night. The saddest part is that when there's a good field, that race is awesome.
Cold, damp weather always does a number on my lungs. I felt them constricting right away after the race and just for safety took some mucinex the next day. It got a bit of the congestion out, and I feel better today, but chunky lungs always make me nervous.
A year-and-a-half ago now, I was going into the collegiate MTB season feeling great. I felt strong and excited about the chance of qualifying for nationals (I would have gotten smoked at nats, but it would have been awesome). The last road event I was going to go was the campus crit. I had a bit of a cold, but I didn't think it serious enough to drop from the race.
I raced hard that year, and was a little hung over from the previous night, so my cold turned to serious bronchitis in a day or two. It took me off the bike for three months, out of the MTB season, and involved weekly visits to the doctor to check on my progress. The most frustrating cold I've ever had wasn't severe, but I put on 15 lbs, missed my last collegiate MTB season, and learned a big lesson the hard way.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Shitty weather: shitty movie!
Because I raced Sunday, my schedule got a little wonky: Monday I did a 60 minute active recovery ride instead of the planned 4x11 minute cruise intervals. I did my intervals on Sunday. And I did my core workouts Monday, as well.
Tuesday it was cold and rainy, so the trainer tire went back on and I watched Quantum of Solace while riding for 2.5 hours at 145. I know I was schedule to do 3-4 hours outside, but I got so freakin bored sitting in the basement that I had to cut it short. And the movie ended. It was a pretty good movie, I have to admit. Although there was less gadgetry and intrigue than on Bond movies, it was still fun.
You know what movie sucks? Transporter 3. There were a few good action sequences (including one on fa BMX bike that was just absurd), but the overall movie lacked any real plot. For as fun an pop-corn chompin silly as the first two were, the third just failed.
Wednesday I did hill sprint repeats. On a short hill out Portage road. With a headwind. It was really hard with that wind, and as hard as I was working I know I wasn't moving too quickly. 100 situps and big core workouts and stretching and all that good stuff.
Tuesday it was cold and rainy, so the trainer tire went back on and I watched Quantum of Solace while riding for 2.5 hours at 145. I know I was schedule to do 3-4 hours outside, but I got so freakin bored sitting in the basement that I had to cut it short. And the movie ended. It was a pretty good movie, I have to admit. Although there was less gadgetry and intrigue than on Bond movies, it was still fun.
You know what movie sucks? Transporter 3. There were a few good action sequences (including one on fa BMX bike that was just absurd), but the overall movie lacked any real plot. For as fun an pop-corn chompin silly as the first two were, the third just failed.
Wednesday I did hill sprint repeats. On a short hill out Portage road. With a headwind. It was really hard with that wind, and as hard as I was working I know I wasn't moving too quickly. 100 situps and big core workouts and stretching and all that good stuff.
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