Winter

This spring this blog will begin to become a little more consistent. After a pretty lax late summer and fall I've got the itch to race again. I wanted to race cross more than I did this fall but the travel got to me. If I was in KC, cross would probably be my primary season, but here it's going to have to take a back seat. Now, due to logistics, I'm going to focus on MTB racing and throw in some road where it fits. There are more MTB races in the area than road or cross and the longer length of a MTB race makes traveling 2+ hours more justified. In addition, I think road and crits aren't as much fun as MTB or Cross racing.



The snow has been falling here in Wisconsin, and the cross country skiing is good. It's also more muscularly and aerobically demanding than riding. By far. We skied the Birkie Tour on the famous Birkie Trail in northern Wisconsin. Very pretty, but very tough. Lots of hills and rollers - which in skiing is a lot tougher than climbing hills on a bike. The skiing really keeps my legs strong. While it's not the exact same muscles, it's close enough. I am looking forward to riding weather again - Although I have some snow and cold weather to come before it gets decent outside.

Doing my first gravel race this coming May. The Almanzo 100. 100 miles of gravel, free to race. That should be interesting. I need to get tons of miles in before that one so I don't blow up in the middle of Southeastern Minnesota. Hopefully doing that race will set me up aerobically and with my legs for the rest of the season. I want to get really fast again - kind of like I did 2 summers ago. Since that summer of racing, I really haven't been close in fitness to what I could do. All I did that summer was race myself into shape. This year I hope to race into shape with experience and come out really fast. We'll see.

Hudson cyclocross

Went up to Hudson, WI for one of the Minnesota cyclocross series races. Saw Nathan Cuka, old teammate from KC who was doing a rotation at the Mayo clinic. Course was fairly crappy. Too many 180's and a mowed path out in some overgrown field. The field section was by far the most uneven terrain I've ever seen on a cross course. It eventually became my demise.

Started second row and had a great start. Settled in about 5th place and was feeling good. By the second lap I had passed a few and gotten passed by some. Was probably about 7th or 8th and the guy in front of me bit it hard on the bumpy field section and I plowed into him going full bore. I went over the bars and laid on the ground for about 15 seconds while I gathered my thoughts and did a system check. Got up and my rear wheel had completely came free from the bike, and it wasn't like I didn't tighten my skewer either. It blew through the brakes as well. The derailleur hanger was bent way out. I started to run back to the pits and as was well in last place. I eventually just stopped and bent it back by hand and was able to get going again. I was far enough back that everytime I came through start/finish that they had to add a lap because they thought the leader was going to lap me - but my victory was that the leader never got me and maybe only put 5-10 seconds into me over 3 laps. I was gaining on Nathan Cuka but never caught him.

So I finished dead last but I finished. TCPC did not represent well. Last place and second to last. My fitness is coming along. There are still some races I'm going to hit up and get some revenge.

On a sadder note, we had to put one of our cats down. Mittens was almost 17 years old and she developed cancer in her throat. She had been losing a bunch of weight and hasn't had much energy of late. It was pretty tough. she was a great pet and a great friend. Easily one of the friendliest cats who loved being next to us. Putting her to sleep was the right thing to do and it would have only gotten worse. She will be missed and the house won't be the same without her.

.

carson park cross

decided to skip saturday's cross race and do the sunday race which wasn't as far to drive. this was a first year race and a non sanctioned one at that. no course tape anywhere. just little flags stuck in the ground. this wouldn't have been that bad if it was only in the straightaways or where it was obvious you had to turn. but when you're going fast early in the race it was easy to get off course.

lined up in the "b" race with 20 others. course was a bit weird, some parts were good but some not so good. Defintely too many barriers - one set of 3 barriers and then 4 other individual barriers. That wouldn't have flown in a usac event. The huge amount of barriers really took away from the flow of riding. But what do you expect from a non sanctioned fred cx race. It was still fun in the end and a great workout too.

took off and settled 2nd wheel. I made the pass for first as I wanted to get to the run up which I was riding. rode the run up and put some good time into the chasers. Was joined by one other halfway into the course and we stuck together for the next lap. We had about a 10 second gap until I crashed in the single-track descent. I lost contact from there and he was pretty much gone. I tried to chase back on but was soon caught and had a pretty bad lap where I was suffering and slipped back a few spots. Chased back to a group of two and by the last lap passed one of them. Pretty sure I finished 4th but they have me listed as 5th. Regardless it was good get out and get the legs moving.

Next weekend is the wirth park cross race in minneapolis. there is something like a 80 stair run up. should be interesting. I'm going to run the bluff trails this evening to prepare for that one. should be a good race with big numbers. Fitness is coming along. every race I feel stronger and stronger after a relatively inactive summer of racing. Still looking for that cat 3 podium.

it's been awhile - USGP - planet bike cup

so...been some time since last post. need to get more consistent, although I'm not sure anyone in WI actually knows I have this blog, probably still just KC folk.
Fall is in full swing here and its been nice. cross has started and it's been rough. Last year I had crazy good fitness from all the racing I did all summer. This summer was so busy with stuff that riding/racing really took a back seat. and when i did ride/race it was generally of poor quality. The roads are great here though for riding. So now cross season has started and although I've got an acceptable amount of fitness, I've got no anaerobic power, which is a problem. Last saturday I did the first race of the WI cyclocross series "No good double cross." The course was ok in design, but it rained a bunch the day before and poured right before the first race went off. So it was pretty muddy. Some people love the mud and say that is what cross is all about, and while i don't mind it that much, i just suck in it. So, out of 37 cat 3 racers who actually finished, I came in 36. Lined up last row and didn't do much from there.

Tried to get motivated for the usgp race in madison the next weekend. did some good rides early and then my right knee went through a bit of a swelling that didn't allow me to really ride thursday, friday, and eventually i decided not to race on saturday and save it for sunday. probably a smart decision. I did however, still make the trip to watch the pro races on saturday. Pretty awesome seeing all the big names in cross tear it up in front of you. walk through the parking lot and see trebon here, molly there, stood right next to katie compton. barry wicks and trebon's bikes are very big by the way. john page is a jackass. saw all the cannondale guys, who are all much smaller in person.

sunday I lined up 5th row of about 9 rows of racers. just under 100 cat 2/3's apparently made the start. the course was pretty awesome, fast, mostly flat, some technical sections and a steep ride up followed by the same hill that you had to run up. took off and made a few passes. probably settled in somewhere 40-50th. so many racers it was tough to find open space at first. rode the first two laps fast, then I just began to fade. got a bit clumsy and had a few crashes, usually involving other people who would slow down or bobble in front of you. At the end of it I was about 7 minutes behind the leader (Andrew Coe from KC). He just about lapped me but I made it out on the final lap. Although I didn't race great, it was still fun and I wish I could ride a course like that again - really nice. I finished 67th out of 85 or something like that. eventually i'll bring it together this season. I just need more races in my legs.

Catching Up

A lot has happened since last post, almost a month ago. Namely moving from kansas city to La Crosse, WI. We've been in the house for about 3 weeks now and are finally getting settled in. A trip to IKEA to buy some much needed furniture helped with the organization. Yesterday Jane and I put in an 8 hour day of yard work which completely drained me. Then I raced at MTB race in the WORS series today. I was still feeling the effects from yesterday. This is a shot of our house, corner lot on a semi busy street but we love it.


Racing wise, I did the tour de grove weekend in st. louis just before we moved to WI. It was really hot. Saturday I apparently finished pretty much mid pack in the cat 2/3 race. Sunday it was hotter and a bit faster. I wasn't feeling good at all and pulled the plug. It's weather like that, that makes me glad we are in WI. the hottest it's been here has been upper 80's. Usually it hovers in the low 80's. Pretty nice. Road riding has been good too. Tons of country roads with crazy tough climbs all over the place. Low traffic and pretty amazing scenery. I'll have to take some pics from a ride and post. Every tuesday night there is a fairly fast group ride that goes out and hammers it. Lots of fast people around here too, not as fast as KC but enough to put you in your place.

The big thing here is MTB racing. The WORS series is the largest MTB series in the nation. 12 races all over the state. There are huge turnouts. The first weekend I was in town I raced the Subaru Cup which was also a stop on the pro circuit. Easily over 500 racers, which is apparently pretty typical of the series. The races are crazy fast too. I've done 2 races now, the subaru cup and then some race today, both in the cat 2 group. Both races I've only managed to finish mid pack of my age group. To race any road or eventually cyclocross I'll have to travel a bit. Still flying the Colavita/Parisi flag though.

Down and Dirty - Warsaw, MO

Sort of wished I had gone to Tulsa to race, but it would have been a disaster. Didn't ride much the week before and didn't quite have the legs for anything. We did have the plans on meeting my parents in Arkansas for a quick vacation before we move so instead of hitting up Tulsa then AR, I raced some MTB race in warsaw that was pretty much on the way. Rolled in with 1 hour to start and got registered and began to warm up. Never ridden the trails there before so wasn't quite sure what to expect. Lined up with the rest of the cat 2 folks and took off. Settled in 3rd wheel into the singletrack. Early on I felt pretty good and was anxious to get around the 2 in front. Went through a creek crossing and my foot came unclipped and in that mix up got passed by a few riders. Got going pretty quick and made a few passes and tried to pass again only to body check a tree on my right. The tree threw me to the ground and again I lost a few more. Left knee took a bit of a beating on that wreck.

Eventually got around most of the riders and by then there were 2 off the front. Stayed like that for the whole first lap when another rider came up from behind to me. We started the second lap together but my legs were fading fast. He eventually rode away from me and I finished 4th overall in the sport, and 1st in the age group of not many riders. It will be a different game once I get the stock wheels on the MTB switched out. Those things weigh a ton. Volker got me a set of Stans crest 29ers which i'll run tubeless. Should be a lot faster.

Good video

saw this video and had to share it. Makes you want to go out and ride.

2009 CONTINENTAL IN RETROSPECT from RAPHA on Vimeo.

Moving to Wisconsin

So I graduated this past weekend and Jane and I will be headed to La Crosse, WI. Nice city on the Mississippi r. The metro area population is probably close to 100k. Decent bike community from what I've seen/heard/researched. Definitely doesn't have a race scene like KC - that for me is the biggest drawback but a fair compromise when it comes time to get a job and pay some bills down. We're about 2.5 hours from Minneapolis (excellent race and cross scene) and 2.5 from Madison, WI - equally good racing and cyclocross. That just leaves a bit of driving if we plan on racing any - which we will. At least for this season I'll try to salvage some fitness for the summer and concentrate on cyclocross.
Legs are finally coming around a bit. Did tuesday night crit this week and although i didn't do too much, felt comfortable. We'll see what races I do in the next month. Unfortunately I have to be in Rolla this weekend and miss the auburn RR. Although there is racing in nearby Ft. Wood and Newburg there is a conveniently scheduled brunch for Jane and I during the time of the RR. There is a crit on saturday but it is way overpriced at $45 and only paying out 3 spots for cat 3. If you pre-reg it was $35. But $45? Damn ridiculous.

thinking about iowa races memorial day weekend. Tulsa tough, we'll see. The upside to moving to La Crosse is that I can cross country ski in the winter. Also the terrain around the area is pretty good for riding. Lots of bluffs to climb up. One block from where we'll be living is a 2 mile climb that goes up almost 700 feet. The riding seems to be either completely flat or going up or down a coulee, no rollers to speak of. In a 30 mile ride you can climb 2000 feet though.

It will be good to move on and get started working but it definitely sucks to leave all the friends Jane and I have made. Who knows what will happen long term. We could maybe come back one day, and I'll tear up some spring flings and perry dam races.

Bonebender MTB

With the only road racing being in Hermann, MO a 3 hour MTB race in Smithville sounded pretty fun. Options for racing were a 3 hour or 6 hour race. Do as many laps as you can in the time frame. Since Joe A. is mending a bum knee I took the opportunity to steal his MTB from him since I don't have a MTB of my own. If you have to borrow a bike from someone, this is the kind of bike you want. Spooky frame, 1x9 gears with grip shift, nice set of tubeless wheels and tires, SID team fork. The whole package had to weigh around 22 lbs. Thanks Joe. I went into the race thinking I was just going to ride a good pace, stay within myself and have fun. I figured top half would be a good result considering I haven't ridden a MTB in almost 2 years.
LeMans start, got out really slow, near the back. Was pretty much riding single file behind someone the whole first lap it was so congested. Didn't really work too hard the first lap, when I came through the pit I stopped and added some air to a soft rear tire, got a drink and was off. 1 hour 6 minutes. Got out on the second lap with some room to ride and just started hammering it. Caught right back up to the group I was with but eventually made the pass. Was riding really well, went down once and dropped the chain another time. Came through at 2:08. Had lots of room to ride once again and was going good. Legs started to feel a bit heavy. Some cramping came on and dropped the chain again. Came upon a group of guys that included teammate Brad W. who was racing the 6 hour solo race. I had seen him after the first lap when he was about 5 minutes ahead so I knew I was doing good. Rode with them for a bit and by the finish line passed them all. Ended up finishing 4th overall in the 3 hour under 35 category at 3 hours 10 minutes. Was really happy and surprised. Britton was the next fastest a couple minutes ahead of me. First place was really fast and second was only a minute ahead of Britton. Britton did have a bunch of mechanical though. The way I see it, Britton should have had second and I should have had 3rd. Next year.

Overall good day. Legs were in agony after race. 35 miles of singletrack is about the equivalent of 70 on the road, maybe more. Will sleep good tonight.

Humble pie tastes like crap

Bazaar RR. Did this race last year, only in the 4/5 category. Did well. This year in the Cat 3 field. Not so well. The only disclaimers I will make are that it was a combined 1/2/3 field and I just clinical boards the day before. Other than that I'm just not in good racing form yet. I knew that going in and my goal was to not get dropped.
The race is an out and back one way and then out and back the other direction. only 48 miles total. At about mile 14-15 I was blowing up. We started getting into some of the rolling hills and the pace was too quick for me. Off the back I went. I ended up calling it at the end of the first out and back which was mile 32.

Will get some more riding in before auburn RR in 2 weeks.

Riding and stuff

Finally able to get a few good days of riding in. Weather has been good lately, although it has been very windy. Just now putting in some bigger efforts on rides. Did my first spring fling on saturday. It was a good day to ride, that's about all i can say about that day. My goal going into it was to just get a good workout. Wasn't too interested in killing myself or anything like that. Not much pop in the legs at this time, so when riders started launching to bridge a small gap I stayed. Thinking it would come back together I looked around me and realized that wasn't going to happen. Eventually 2 bike shack racers who were off the front, Kent Woerman included, lapped us and they dragged us back to the group.

Winter riding

Been busy with job searching, traveling for job interviews, getting stuff in order to graduate, and the biggest - getting ready to take clinical boards. Oh yeah, I'm also getting married in less than 2 weeks. So it's been a busy winter, which has made riding pretty tough. Still building some base fitness and am realistically a month away from being close to fast. Just got done riding the GOTHR ride. 45 miles and I was struggling to keep up. not sure when my first race will be. This time last year I had been pretty busy with spring flings and perry dam race but I've been opting out of those. It'll come around soon enough. After I graduate, I'll have about a 6 weeks before I can actually begin working due to licensing etc. Plan on doing a lot of riding and racing during that time.

music

First time I've posted anything music related on here. Probably the best version of this song I've heard live. Nothing really comes close to SRV on guitar.

The off-season - *plus bonus video*

After the cross race on Dec. 5th I've slid into a non bike mode. I've occasionally spun around but not much else. Got back in the pool and weight room. Pretty depressing how much upper body strength I've lost in the almost 2 years of not lifting seriously. I've shed what amounts to about 20 lbs. of muscle mass to my current hovering weight of 160. Went on a few runs but it's been pretty cold lately.

I also had a 3 week cram session for the second half of my national board exam which I took in mid December. I'm about 99.9% I passed, I just have to receive my scores to confirm. I've only got one more semester left and it will consist of preparing for my clinical board exam and job searching. Jane and I could really end up anywhere - Wisconsin, Colorado, Oregon, or stay put for a couple years. We'll see what happens.

We just got back from a week in Colorado. It was pretty nice and got to enjoy a few days on the slopes. I mostly snowboard but did get on the skis for a day. The video is of a cruiser run on peak 7 at Breck. Jane was following on skis. It was one of only a few runs that would allow for decent filming while holding a camera in hand. Had great snow that day but it was frigid cold. I don't think it got above 0 degrees above the tree line all day. Had an interesting time going up the T-bar when it stopped mid-way. The wind was blowing pretty stiff and by the time I made the peak I had to run into the ski patrol shack to warm up. Once inside a ski patroler kindly let me know that some frost had formed on the tip of my nose and advised me to let that warm up. The snow was worth it though. 8 inches provides enough powder to do about anything you want. Bombing the steeps with fresh snow is about as good as it gets. The one thing about breck is it's pretty crowded - but probably deservedly so. It does get tracked out relatively quick. On good snow days it's a race to find the good snow before it's gone. We spent some time at keystone as well but in my opinion there isn't enough variation in terrain there. They do have some long and consistently steep groomers though.
Jane and I also ice skated on the largest outdoor ice rink - I think it was 5 acres.



So beginning tomorrow I'll drag myself to the trainer to begin what is my second season of bike racing. Cat 3 road should be interesting - I'll try to prepare as best I can but it will be a busy spring and summer for me. On the list is getting married, graduating from D. school, finding a job/beginning practicing. My goal is to just keep improving. I'm am really looking forward to next cross season as well. Should be good.