Today I woke up promptly at seven, my head aching, my bedroom messy (normally it's not like that), and my helmet missing. How does one conquer a hangover? Hammer Heed! How does one know one is getting in better shape for cycling? When 3 Jack and Cokes give you a hangover!
After chugging a bottle of Heed, I slept until ten and woke to a beautiful day, lots of motivation to ride, and no more headache! After taking the Simply City to Ground Zero, I began to get philosophical about riding bikes. Buckle up, kiddos...
Who inspires me to ride? Let's start with my coach, Aaron Whalen. Whale dropped his entire life in Madison on 24 hours notice to move to Colorado and pursue racing. He knows a thing or two about sacrifice, and when I'm feeling conflicted about racing, he always has good advice.
Next, Doug Swanson. He's fast as hell, he's a normal guy, and even though I've only met him once he impressed me with how down to earth he was. I would love to be half as fast as he is and still have my head on that straight.
Chris Shaw. Yes, Shawzam. I've known the guy for about a year, and one time he said something that I repeat to myself during every race. We were talking about using the brakes as little as possible on singletrack, and I asked him how he manages to descend entire sections without the brakes. Did he take the roughest line, or accelerate less? His response was no, "Sometimes you just gotta go for it." or as I paraphrase "You never know what you can't do until you crash." This year I've had some really good bails, and a few solid crashes, but I am way faster in singletrack than in my more cautious riding years' past.
Oh, and Shaw introduced me to Tony Chachere's, which has become a staple of my training diet.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday, August 27, 2009
passive voice and passive training.
I have been training. Or to use the passive voice, "Training has happened." The passive voice feels more appropriate, however incorrect, for the fact that I don't have a plan, and I've been riding without serious concern for where I'm going. I have been riding passively, so the passive voice can happen.
It's wonderful; I've simply been riding for the sake of riding.
A new favorite loop at Jim's, which I call the figure-8, rides as follows: Ascend The Old New trail, descend New New trail, ascend back up Old New, and then descend Five-Layer Cake and The Switch. Rinse, repeat, rip it.
I've been riding enough lately that I can drift the tires a bit in corners again. This is a skill I hope won't disappear with the leaves over the winter months. Gotta love gettin' loose.
Cyclocross? Maybe. Still a definite maybe.
It's wonderful; I've simply been riding for the sake of riding.
A new favorite loop at Jim's, which I call the figure-8, rides as follows: Ascend The Old New trail, descend New New trail, ascend back up Old New, and then descend Five-Layer Cake and The Switch. Rinse, repeat, rip it.
I've been riding enough lately that I can drift the tires a bit in corners again. This is a skill I hope won't disappear with the leaves over the winter months. Gotta love gettin' loose.
Cyclocross? Maybe. Still a definite maybe.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Calling it a season
Today we discuss the effective end of my season.
I haven't raced since Alterra, and won't be racing again until Chequamegon, which is at the end of September. It will probably be my last race of the year. I've achieved what I'd hoped to do, which was to upgrade to cat. 1 (I'll do that once the season is over) and got 5 top 5 finishes.
The last month has been a hard one for training and racing. I was sick for about a week and a half after Eau Claire, and the past week has been occupied by the Trek dealer show; I simply had no time to ride. Then at the end of the week I got a nasty head cold, from which I'm only now recovering.
Tough month. And frustrating.
My hopes for the rest of the year involve increased bicycle commuting, improved training, more mountain biking, and perhaps even trying out cyclo-cross.
I also have a freeride bike for sale if anybody is interested. I built it this spring and haven't used it yet, so it's gotta go: Gary Fisher Kingfisher with upgraded suspension and an LX/XT drivetrain. Bontrager Big Earl Wheelset and Hayes disc brakes. $600 OBO.
I haven't raced since Alterra, and won't be racing again until Chequamegon, which is at the end of September. It will probably be my last race of the year. I've achieved what I'd hoped to do, which was to upgrade to cat. 1 (I'll do that once the season is over) and got 5 top 5 finishes.
The last month has been a hard one for training and racing. I was sick for about a week and a half after Eau Claire, and the past week has been occupied by the Trek dealer show; I simply had no time to ride. Then at the end of the week I got a nasty head cold, from which I'm only now recovering.
Tough month. And frustrating.
My hopes for the rest of the year involve increased bicycle commuting, improved training, more mountain biking, and perhaps even trying out cyclo-cross.
I also have a freeride bike for sale if anybody is interested. I built it this spring and haven't used it yet, so it's gotta go: Gary Fisher Kingfisher with upgraded suspension and an LX/XT drivetrain. Bontrager Big Earl Wheelset and Hayes disc brakes. $600 OBO.
Friday, August 7, 2009
pedalhing hard(er).
Tuesday I did a two-hour coffee ride on my road bike. This means that I rode my road bike for an hour or so, stopped for coffee, and rode home in about 40 minutes. My legs were still a little tired from Sunday's race, but not bad.
Wednesday I rode two very fast laps at Jim's trails. I felt somewhat on, but the dirt was so dry it was dusty and difficult to really dig the tires into it.
Thursday I rode for a little over three hours on my road bike. I went to the hilly area southwest of Madison and made sure I kept a good pace on the ride. By the end my legs were smoked and I was a bit sunburned.
Then I went to a trailday at Jim's and got to add a feature to the new trail called Trad.
Tonight: if there's no rain there will be more Jim's trails riding.
Wednesday I rode two very fast laps at Jim's trails. I felt somewhat on, but the dirt was so dry it was dusty and difficult to really dig the tires into it.
Thursday I rode for a little over three hours on my road bike. I went to the hilly area southwest of Madison and made sure I kept a good pace on the ride. By the end my legs were smoked and I was a bit sunburned.
Then I went to a trailday at Jim's and got to add a feature to the new trail called Trad.
Tonight: if there's no rain there will be more Jim's trails riding.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
The Alterra MTB race
Today's post is about not having a strong sense of what to do next:
After getting sick, getting better, moving, and not riding a whole lot, the Franklin WORS race felt like a mysterious mountain looming in the distance.
It turned out to simply be the trash heap that is the Crystal Ridge ski area, where the race is hosted. This year we climbed up the start hill, hammered around to the singletrack, and then dove into tight, twisty hardpack. Once you were in the woods there was no hope of passing, so a good start was important.
I missed my pedal, got bumped, clipped out, clipped in, and then realized I'd missed the boat. Most of the field was ahead of me. Going into the woods in nearly last position was frustrating, so I resolved to do the only thing I could do:
Save my energy for when I could pass and attack like a demon once I got the chance. The first lap was a waste, with a few complete stops in the singletrack for people who couldn't steer. I just kept my breathing under control and had some snacks while we were stopped.
On the second lap things started to open up, so I made up a few spots here and there. It wasn't until the final lap that I really started jamming and got a gap at the start of the singletrack. It was time to open it up, and boy howdy did I rip some singletrack.
After riding through most of the singletrack alone on that last lap, I caught Bruce Lagerquist (Trekie) as he rode behind a junior. Once we passed the junior, we were nearly at the long climb up the hill. I knew this was it, so I let it all hang out on the climb. After dropping Bruce, I quickly caught John Fang.
Coming off of the switchback sections near the peak, I dropped John and had a gap by the time we got to the last steep final climb. I gunned it and opened up the propedal for the descent.
I only caught and passed a few people for the rest of the lap, and rolled in for 6th. Not bad, considering I was almost last when the race started on a course with little passing room.
No more racing for this guy for a month. Work is busy, but I'll be busy training.
After getting sick, getting better, moving, and not riding a whole lot, the Franklin WORS race felt like a mysterious mountain looming in the distance.
It turned out to simply be the trash heap that is the Crystal Ridge ski area, where the race is hosted. This year we climbed up the start hill, hammered around to the singletrack, and then dove into tight, twisty hardpack. Once you were in the woods there was no hope of passing, so a good start was important.
I missed my pedal, got bumped, clipped out, clipped in, and then realized I'd missed the boat. Most of the field was ahead of me. Going into the woods in nearly last position was frustrating, so I resolved to do the only thing I could do:
Save my energy for when I could pass and attack like a demon once I got the chance. The first lap was a waste, with a few complete stops in the singletrack for people who couldn't steer. I just kept my breathing under control and had some snacks while we were stopped.
On the second lap things started to open up, so I made up a few spots here and there. It wasn't until the final lap that I really started jamming and got a gap at the start of the singletrack. It was time to open it up, and boy howdy did I rip some singletrack.
After riding through most of the singletrack alone on that last lap, I caught Bruce Lagerquist (Trekie) as he rode behind a junior. Once we passed the junior, we were nearly at the long climb up the hill. I knew this was it, so I let it all hang out on the climb. After dropping Bruce, I quickly caught John Fang.
Coming off of the switchback sections near the peak, I dropped John and had a gap by the time we got to the last steep final climb. I gunned it and opened up the propedal for the descent.
I only caught and passed a few people for the rest of the lap, and rolled in for 6th. Not bad, considering I was almost last when the race started on a course with little passing room.
No more racing for this guy for a month. Work is busy, but I'll be busy training.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
moving, movement, bike parts to move.
Today's post topic involves movement.
I'm moving into my own apartment today. It's over on East Johnson Street near Teh Gehling and Claire, as well as near my brother's house.
In moving, I have found some bike things that I was unaware were still in my possession. I'll post a list here in a few hours and if you want to buy or trade for them, let a fella know.
Training has been difficult the last week. After my cold, I still had a hard time getting into the swing of riding again. I'd ride for an hour and a half and just feel spent. I couldn't put out any effort, or maintain any sort of speed. It wasn't until this week that I felt even remotely close to where I was at Eau Claire. I did 1.5 road hours Monday, 2.5 Tuesday, and 2 on the MTB Wednesday. While I wasn't climbing as strongly, I could ride at tempo pretty comfortably.
Today (Thursday) the weather sucks, with a chilly rain. I'll be packing and moving until the clouds pack up and move along, each in our respective ways.
This blog is about bike racing, but I'm thinking about bringing back the other blog I used to maintain while in school: the one about words.
Last week a poem happened to me while biking, between two single-letter roads, between two four-letter towns. It was the sort of bike ride that is done to ride away from something more than toward something.
Ars Graffitica
I'm moving into my own apartment today. It's over on East Johnson Street near Teh Gehling and Claire, as well as near my brother's house.
In moving, I have found some bike things that I was unaware were still in my possession. I'll post a list here in a few hours and if you want to buy or trade for them, let a fella know.
Training has been difficult the last week. After my cold, I still had a hard time getting into the swing of riding again. I'd ride for an hour and a half and just feel spent. I couldn't put out any effort, or maintain any sort of speed. It wasn't until this week that I felt even remotely close to where I was at Eau Claire. I did 1.5 road hours Monday, 2.5 Tuesday, and 2 on the MTB Wednesday. While I wasn't climbing as strongly, I could ride at tempo pretty comfortably.
Today (Thursday) the weather sucks, with a chilly rain. I'll be packing and moving until the clouds pack up and move along, each in our respective ways.
This blog is about bike racing, but I'm thinking about bringing back the other blog I used to maintain while in school: the one about words.
Last week a poem happened to me while biking, between two single-letter roads, between two four-letter towns. It was the sort of bike ride that is done to ride away from something more than toward something.
Ars Graffitica
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
topping out and getting le sick
I don't get sick much, but when I do, I make it count. Last year I went without a cold the entire year. The year before that I only got sick once and had bronchitis so badly I was at the doctor every four days and missed the entire collegiate MTB season.
Last Monday (the 13th) I went on a two hour road ride and was just flying without even trying. The day before that I was jamming at Jim's and absolutely killing it and didn't even feel tired. I was starting to plateau in my training and needed some time off. However, I didn't recognize that I was starting to overtrain so the next morning I woke up with a nasty headcold. My throat was sore, sinuses clogged, and I even had a headache, which is quite uncommon for me.
The past week was spent in full-on recovery mode. I sat on my butt any time I wasn't at work. And even when I was at work I was chugging water. The winning combination went like this: Emergen-C every morning, tons of water during the day, sittging in bed or in front of the computer in warm clothing while at home, and getting ten hours of sleep each night.
On Sunday I turned 24. This year has been very challenging and full of change, and I wouldn't have guessed I'd be here if you'd asked me on my 23rd birthday. Racing (and being competative) at the top of cat.2 is something I never thought I could do even if I had the opportunity, so I'm really glad I've had the chance to do that.
At the beginning of this season I made a list of goals for the year:
-Pay off student loans. (On schedule to finish paying them by year end)
-Buy a car (Done in February)
-5 top-5 finishes (So far 3. 4th at Rhinelander, 2nd at Eau Claire, 1st in Super-D at Mt. Morris)
-Win the Subaru Cup (I didn't win it, but I learned I can throw down with the top Comp Racers)
-Move out in September. (I'm moving into my new place August 1st)
I'm going to add some goals for the second half of the season, as I've checked off a few of my current goals.
-Win a comp race.
-Learn to race cyclo-cross and complete three races.
Last Monday (the 13th) I went on a two hour road ride and was just flying without even trying. The day before that I was jamming at Jim's and absolutely killing it and didn't even feel tired. I was starting to plateau in my training and needed some time off. However, I didn't recognize that I was starting to overtrain so the next morning I woke up with a nasty headcold. My throat was sore, sinuses clogged, and I even had a headache, which is quite uncommon for me.
The past week was spent in full-on recovery mode. I sat on my butt any time I wasn't at work. And even when I was at work I was chugging water. The winning combination went like this: Emergen-C every morning, tons of water during the day, sittging in bed or in front of the computer in warm clothing while at home, and getting ten hours of sleep each night.
On Sunday I turned 24. This year has been very challenging and full of change, and I wouldn't have guessed I'd be here if you'd asked me on my 23rd birthday. Racing (and being competative) at the top of cat.2 is something I never thought I could do even if I had the opportunity, so I'm really glad I've had the chance to do that.
At the beginning of this season I made a list of goals for the year:
-Pay off student loans. (On schedule to finish paying them by year end)
-Buy a car (Done in February)
-5 top-5 finishes (So far 3. 4th at Rhinelander, 2nd at Eau Claire, 1st in Super-D at Mt. Morris)
-Win the Subaru Cup (I didn't win it, but I learned I can throw down with the top Comp Racers)
-Move out in September. (I'm moving into my new place August 1st)
I'm going to add some goals for the second half of the season, as I've checked off a few of my current goals.
-Win a comp race.
-Learn to race cyclo-cross and complete three races.
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