My favorite GPS logging website is Strava.com and the most recent challenge is the Rapha Festive 500. This challenge is to ride 500km (311 miles) from Christmas Eve to New Years Eve. Which is a lot of miles for 8 days. It's a pretty cool challenge and will certainly help get rid of some foolish eating which I did on Christmas Eve and Day. I also have the week off and figured this would be a good goal to accomplish.
Well, it's turned out to me much harder than I expected. The recent snow has limited the available roads (clear of snow) to ride on and worse yet, it got super cold this week. I rode on Christmas Eve and for the effort I put in I should have had 50 miles instead of the 25 that I actually accomplished. The going was slow and it was crazy cold. 12 degrees F, add in the wind and I only had 1 hand and zero feet that weren't froze when I got back home. The next day I went out for 45 min and only got 9 miles in and it was even colder yet. The worst part is how tired I was from those two efforts, the cold just zaps the energy out of you.
Wednesday I only did a Crossfit WOD, and then on Thursday it Snows again! This means I'm now riding indoors for the rest of the challenge. I got a couple trainer rides in the last few days, but if I was going to finish the challenge I needed some big days in on the trainer! So I bought some movies and psyched myself up for 5+ hours in on the trainer today. Well, this didn't work out so well. After the first movie, I got off the bike to rest and everything tightened up and my legs said your done. Refusing to beleive this verdict I got on the bike and thought I could work things loose again, but no dice. My legs are just overworked from everthing. Too much Crossfit and too much riding. Tendons hurt and there was just no way to continue.
At this point I'm unsure if I'll be able to ride tomorrow. If I can ride the next two days I will but really I just have too many miles left to try and get in, in the two days that remain. I'm basically only 50% complete.
I'm definately ready for a rest week, perhaps I'll start tomorrow or if possible on Tuesday. I'll see how things go tomorrow.
29 December 2012
Winter Training & Crossfit
After the Alpine Odyssey race in September, I officially started the off season and I was ready to get busy training for next year. I'm not sure why I'm more motivated this year, but it seems I'm finally mentally ready to put the hours in this winter and battle the cold weather. I've claimed for years, that I was going to train all winter, but really I was just never serious about it. This year is different though and so far things are going well.
The weather has been really nice and I've been able to ride outside a lot. We didn't start riding indoors on Tuesdays until November. We've braved some cold days on the weekends but really until the snow last Wed I've mostly been riding outside. I also switched over to base miles with only 1 day/week of high intensity, this will be a good plan through January.
The biggest news I have is that I started Crossfit in October. Depending on what information you read, you may hear things like "crossfit is dangerous" or "crossfit is a bad program for cyclists" This is a load of crap, and anyone saying such things is a complete twat waffle, YES, I just called some Carmichael Coaches Twatwaffles!
If you read the book, Weight Training for Cyclists, you will find that it pretty much prescribes Crossfit as what you should be doing over the winter for weight training. Actually, Crossfit is better than what the book recommends, but I'm not here to rant about this topic.
I do want to say how awesome Crossfit is! Absolutely, the best workout there is, no debate about it. Last year is when I first heard about Crossfit, not knowing much about it, I figured it must just be some trendy thing that would disappear eventually, or maybe at best just be another jazzercise place in a strip mall... Was I ever wrong, as more and more people I knew, and respected, starting drinking the Kool-aid I figured I better take a closer look at it.
I knew a few things when I signed up for foundation classes, First, doing something was better than nothing, next is was structured and I would not be able to slack off, and lastly, I knew it used the "bars" as I called it, but formally known as the Olympic Lifts.
Within 3 weeks I was hooked. There is no doubt in my mind, Crossfit will dominate the fitness scene as it continues to grow in popularity, and it's not going away! Not only is the workout fun, it's practical, and community is promoted equally to the workout! Imagine that, actually going to a place where you like the people there and they like you!
I could really write for hours and hours on how great Crossfit is. What I do know is that my clothes fit looser, I'm a lot stronger, and I have more energy than ever! I've always known in the back of my mind that only cycling was just not healthy enough for a balanced life, discovering Crossfit has certainly been a blessing in my life, not only just for my general health, but also for the great people I've met and look forward to seeing 3 to 4 times a week!
The weather has been really nice and I've been able to ride outside a lot. We didn't start riding indoors on Tuesdays until November. We've braved some cold days on the weekends but really until the snow last Wed I've mostly been riding outside. I also switched over to base miles with only 1 day/week of high intensity, this will be a good plan through January.
The biggest news I have is that I started Crossfit in October. Depending on what information you read, you may hear things like "crossfit is dangerous" or "crossfit is a bad program for cyclists" This is a load of crap, and anyone saying such things is a complete twat waffle, YES, I just called some Carmichael Coaches Twatwaffles!
If you read the book, Weight Training for Cyclists, you will find that it pretty much prescribes Crossfit as what you should be doing over the winter for weight training. Actually, Crossfit is better than what the book recommends, but I'm not here to rant about this topic.
I do want to say how awesome Crossfit is! Absolutely, the best workout there is, no debate about it. Last year is when I first heard about Crossfit, not knowing much about it, I figured it must just be some trendy thing that would disappear eventually, or maybe at best just be another jazzercise place in a strip mall... Was I ever wrong, as more and more people I knew, and respected, starting drinking the Kool-aid I figured I better take a closer look at it.
I knew a few things when I signed up for foundation classes, First, doing something was better than nothing, next is was structured and I would not be able to slack off, and lastly, I knew it used the "bars" as I called it, but formally known as the Olympic Lifts.
Within 3 weeks I was hooked. There is no doubt in my mind, Crossfit will dominate the fitness scene as it continues to grow in popularity, and it's not going away! Not only is the workout fun, it's practical, and community is promoted equally to the workout! Imagine that, actually going to a place where you like the people there and they like you!
I could really write for hours and hours on how great Crossfit is. What I do know is that my clothes fit looser, I'm a lot stronger, and I have more energy than ever! I've always known in the back of my mind that only cycling was just not healthy enough for a balanced life, discovering Crossfit has certainly been a blessing in my life, not only just for my general health, but also for the great people I've met and look forward to seeing 3 to 4 times a week!
27 December 2012
Too busy to blog?
This summer was a blurr, I don't recall doing anything but riding and racing. Great for fitness and fun, but not for my badly neglected blog. Last post I made was done while I was on vacation. Guess what I'm on vacation again!
So many stories and things I would like to blog about, but due to time at the moment, I'm going to give as super short highlight of a few events:
So that's pretty much sums up the past few months, which will have to be the transition into my recent undertaking: The Rapha Festive 500km Challenge #festive500
So many stories and things I would like to blog about, but due to time at the moment, I'm going to give as super short highlight of a few events:
- Finished my 3rd Leadville 100 MTB race in 10:31. 20 minutes faster than last year, but lots slower than I felt I could have done. I still feel I could have done sub-10hrs, but due to some poor training decisions 2 weeks earlier, I just wasn't ready for race day...
- Raced the Alpine Odyssey 100k Leadville Qualifier, had a good day on the bike and best of all, I QUALIFIED for the 2013 Leadville 100 MTB !!!!!!! This is awesome, next year I can focus on local races and getting upgraded.
- I also decided I was finally ready to train all winter! This seems like an elementary concept, but actually doing over the course of a winter has always defeated me. As I write this (27 Dec), I have been doing very well and keeping the hours up and getting lots of base miles in!
- Another key thing to do over the winter months is start a lifting program. I joined our local Crossfit Affiliate: Crossfit Heartland, right here in Grand Island, NE. Awesome program and wow am I getting strong and rebuilding all the weak areas/imbalances the bike creates!
So that's pretty much sums up the past few months, which will have to be the transition into my recent undertaking: The Rapha Festive 500km Challenge #festive500
04 June 2012
Epic Mountain Bike Adventure
I guess since necessary evil of my life is working right now this Adventure is really just a vacation, but no matter, it's still going to be EPIC!
The start of the Adventure really started with the Barn Burner race, already posted how that went, so it's obvious to say that the week has started out AMAZING! The race itself was Epic and then I drawn in the Lottery! After 106 miles on the bike, I was questioning if the adventure would end there, Saturday night after the race, I felt so bad I figured I would just drive straight home and be done with it. I really didn't want to do that and Sunday morning I felt ok, a bit sore and few odd things going on, so I figured I would rest and see how it went, I was originally going to go to Sedona and ride on Sunday, but really I have no itinerary, so I just bummed around town, got a coffee at Late for the Train, then ate at Salsa Brava which was featured on The Food Channel. After that I decided I should get to Moab and at least try riding.
I was now listening to Book 4 of Master & Commander and was completely engulfed in the Adventures of Jack Aubray and Steven Machurin in the service of the British Royal Navy, when I realized I missed a turn and was an hour of my way! Didn't get to Moab until 11pm due to that folly. Oh well, no big deal, the scenery in AZ and UT is amazing, never been on these roads before! Being cheap again, I parked in a Super 8 parking lot and slept in the car. Waking up around 7am, I figured I probably better get out to the trail and test the legs out.
I drove out to Slickrock Trail, this is the Mecca of all mountain biking trails and figured if I was only going to get one ride in it should be this one! Getting ready was a big fiasco, I discovered a broken spoke on my rear wheel, it broke at the rim, so it had to be from a rock in the race. Sort of fortunately, I had an extra spoke with me (this is rather amazing as its not something I normally have) I had the spoke because I had previously dropped the chain on the inside of the cassette and broke one from the hub end...
Gave the bike a quick clean and lube and after digging all my stuff out I was finally ready to ride. I got my GoPro HeroHD mounted on my helmet, tested, and I was off! The first 100 yards of the trails were incredible and since it was my first experience on "slick rock" I was amazed at how much traction the tires had and I instantly knew I was in for a great ride. What happened next was incredible, I crested a climb and got a panoramic view of the landscape and I instantly broke out into a huge grin as I realized how amazing of morning this was going to be! And it was! The sandstone type lava rock or whatever it is, has so much traction, that you are only limited by your legs in how steep you can climb and your only limited by your courage in how much off camber you can deal with. I climbed the steeped grades of my life today and rode on an offcamber steeper than I ever have before and experienced pure terror and delight as I did both! And I know I didn't even push the bike to it's limits, only mine!
Next best thing of the day is that my legs felt great. I road the whole main loop, also did the practice loop (I have no idea why its called that, maybe because it was only 2 miles?) and ended up with a 2 and half hour ride, plenty for the day, no need to overdo and besides that I drank my whole camelback of 100ozs and it was getting really hot out, car temp said 100 degrees.
Next I checked into the Lazy Lizard Hostel and took a shower and now I'm hanging out at the Moab coffee Roasters updating facebook and obviously this blog. Still need to do laundry yet, there's a brewery in town and at some point I really need to start studying for the GRE which is supposed to be a priority on this trip...
I'll probably end up doing more blogging that studying, so stay tuned, the adventure is just beginning!
The start of the Adventure really started with the Barn Burner race, already posted how that went, so it's obvious to say that the week has started out AMAZING! The race itself was Epic and then I drawn in the Lottery! After 106 miles on the bike, I was questioning if the adventure would end there, Saturday night after the race, I felt so bad I figured I would just drive straight home and be done with it. I really didn't want to do that and Sunday morning I felt ok, a bit sore and few odd things going on, so I figured I would rest and see how it went, I was originally going to go to Sedona and ride on Sunday, but really I have no itinerary, so I just bummed around town, got a coffee at Late for the Train, then ate at Salsa Brava which was featured on The Food Channel. After that I decided I should get to Moab and at least try riding.
I was now listening to Book 4 of Master & Commander and was completely engulfed in the Adventures of Jack Aubray and Steven Machurin in the service of the British Royal Navy, when I realized I missed a turn and was an hour of my way! Didn't get to Moab until 11pm due to that folly. Oh well, no big deal, the scenery in AZ and UT is amazing, never been on these roads before! Being cheap again, I parked in a Super 8 parking lot and slept in the car. Waking up around 7am, I figured I probably better get out to the trail and test the legs out.
I drove out to Slickrock Trail, this is the Mecca of all mountain biking trails and figured if I was only going to get one ride in it should be this one! Getting ready was a big fiasco, I discovered a broken spoke on my rear wheel, it broke at the rim, so it had to be from a rock in the race. Sort of fortunately, I had an extra spoke with me (this is rather amazing as its not something I normally have) I had the spoke because I had previously dropped the chain on the inside of the cassette and broke one from the hub end...
Gave the bike a quick clean and lube and after digging all my stuff out I was finally ready to ride. I got my GoPro HeroHD mounted on my helmet, tested, and I was off! The first 100 yards of the trails were incredible and since it was my first experience on "slick rock" I was amazed at how much traction the tires had and I instantly knew I was in for a great ride. What happened next was incredible, I crested a climb and got a panoramic view of the landscape and I instantly broke out into a huge grin as I realized how amazing of morning this was going to be! And it was! The sandstone type lava rock or whatever it is, has so much traction, that you are only limited by your legs in how steep you can climb and your only limited by your courage in how much off camber you can deal with. I climbed the steeped grades of my life today and rode on an offcamber steeper than I ever have before and experienced pure terror and delight as I did both! And I know I didn't even push the bike to it's limits, only mine!
Next best thing of the day is that my legs felt great. I road the whole main loop, also did the practice loop (I have no idea why its called that, maybe because it was only 2 miles?) and ended up with a 2 and half hour ride, plenty for the day, no need to overdo and besides that I drank my whole camelback of 100ozs and it was getting really hot out, car temp said 100 degrees.
Next I checked into the Lazy Lizard Hostel and took a shower and now I'm hanging out at the Moab coffee Roasters updating facebook and obviously this blog. Still need to do laundry yet, there's a brewery in town and at some point I really need to start studying for the GRE which is supposed to be a priority on this trip...
I'll probably end up doing more blogging that studying, so stay tuned, the adventure is just beginning!
Barn Burner 104 - Leadville Qualifier #2
After not getting into Leadville at the Austin Rattler, I was in a desperate state of affairs... I've had to ponder the meaning of life and consider what sort of alternatives I have available if I don't get in, I mean really what's left? How will life go on? OK so that's a dramatization of course, but I really do want into the race! As I mentioned in my last blog I am going to do the SilverRush50 but the odds won't be good, so my only other opportunity is to do the Barn Burner 104 in Flagstaff, AZ.
I couldn't figure out how to make flying out to it work, it was just going to be too expensive, so next option is to take some vacation, skip the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in Durango (the weekend B4) and drive the 18 hours myself to Flagstaff... and that's just what I did!
It was a long drive, but other than just eating too much along the way, it went by pretty quick, I was listening to Book 3 of the Master & Commander series and that kept me well entertained! I rolled into Flagstaff around 1am, parked at a Walmart and slept in the car. Sleeping in the car is always a terrible option, but I'm too cheap to pay for a hotel, besides that it's supposed to be cool in the mountains and I have nothing to do all day Friday, so I'll just sleep and rest up for the race.
That was a great plan, but it turns out its HOT in the mountains, and even worse yet, it was super DUSTY, I set up my tent under some pine trees, and tried to rest, but it just wasn't possible. It was also a long drive on bad roads out to the race start/camp grounds that it hardly seemed worth it to drive back to Flagstaff for the afternoon, I knew it would cool down once the sun set, so now it was long day of suffering in the heat just to get the day over with.. Finally around 6 I decided I would get on the bike and loosen the legs up, it was still hot and I didn't feel like riding, but I figured I better. That went ok, and after that was the racer meeting and before I knew it the sun was down and it was cooling down fast. The cold night was awesome, I slept great and was ready to go in the morning!
The Lemans (running) start was kind of fun, I got some good advice from some other guys and got a pretty good start overall, the trick was to set up your bike way at the end of the bikes (avoid the crowd) and run around all the craziness at the start, hard to explain but it worked well and I was off in decent position.
It was dusty as expected and I really figured by lap 3 I would have a headache from it, but for lap 1 I kept telling myself: "Use the force Luke" I liked this movie quote because I could hardly see the trail it was so dusty and I was riding based on where I saw the guy in front of me last. It was kind of scary, but everytime I saw the guy in front of me he was still upright so I figured I would be ok too.
I'm not really sure if that proved to be true, because a couple miles into lap 2 my rear tire bubbled up and popped! It was just the outer skin, but it was loud enough I thought the whole tire was done. Amazingly the Stan's sealant seemed to be holding and I had to decide if I should turn around or just keep going, it was big risk to keep going, because I could be looking at 12 mile walk back and the end of my day... I couldn't stomach the idea of turning around so I kept moving forward, around 3/4 of the way through the lap the tire went flat! I stopped and filled it up with the pump, but it went flat again shortly after, so now I had to put a tube in it, the tube held and finished the lap. Many thanks to Landis Cyclery who was doing neutral support and had tires for sale! It took all the cash I had on me, which was only $48 to buy a new tire and they even installed it for me and I was on my way! Wow, I was back and timewise I was in great shape, I started lap 3 at 5 hours into the race.
What I didn't know was that my legs were going downhill fast. Lap 3 hurt and I wouldn't say I was truly "Digging Deep" but I was getting close. I was slowed down enough that any chance of a 9 hour finish (for the big belt buckle) was out, but that was ok I had plenty of time to just finish!
I really figured or maybe hoped that lap 4 would be about the same as lap 3 but not even, Lap 4 was nothing but pure survival and I was deep in the hurt locker! Barring some terrible mechanical failure I had plenty of time to finish and finally I rolled across the finish line around 10:20 and got my finisher medal and belt buckle! I was so glad to be off that course.
This race was so epic that finishing it in itself was a great accomplishment, not wanting to get my hopes up for the lottery, I decided that this 100 miler (which was actually around 106 miles) was epic enough for this summer if there were no more... That is until my name was drawn in the lottery! I was super excited! I got my entry "coin" from Ken and a letter for how to sign up. Thank goodness for the letter, it had a link in it to sign up and I didn't have to wait in line for an hour (or more) like the previous Qualifiers! This was a great improvement and allowed me to leisurely register on Sunday.
So I'm In! Now to just keep training and see how I feel for the rest of the week, because my plan is to swing through Moab, Fruita, Gunnison, and Crested Butte if I have the legs for it this week!
I couldn't figure out how to make flying out to it work, it was just going to be too expensive, so next option is to take some vacation, skip the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in Durango (the weekend B4) and drive the 18 hours myself to Flagstaff... and that's just what I did!
It was a long drive, but other than just eating too much along the way, it went by pretty quick, I was listening to Book 3 of the Master & Commander series and that kept me well entertained! I rolled into Flagstaff around 1am, parked at a Walmart and slept in the car. Sleeping in the car is always a terrible option, but I'm too cheap to pay for a hotel, besides that it's supposed to be cool in the mountains and I have nothing to do all day Friday, so I'll just sleep and rest up for the race.
That was a great plan, but it turns out its HOT in the mountains, and even worse yet, it was super DUSTY, I set up my tent under some pine trees, and tried to rest, but it just wasn't possible. It was also a long drive on bad roads out to the race start/camp grounds that it hardly seemed worth it to drive back to Flagstaff for the afternoon, I knew it would cool down once the sun set, so now it was long day of suffering in the heat just to get the day over with.. Finally around 6 I decided I would get on the bike and loosen the legs up, it was still hot and I didn't feel like riding, but I figured I better. That went ok, and after that was the racer meeting and before I knew it the sun was down and it was cooling down fast. The cold night was awesome, I slept great and was ready to go in the morning!
The Lemans (running) start was kind of fun, I got some good advice from some other guys and got a pretty good start overall, the trick was to set up your bike way at the end of the bikes (avoid the crowd) and run around all the craziness at the start, hard to explain but it worked well and I was off in decent position.
It was dusty as expected and I really figured by lap 3 I would have a headache from it, but for lap 1 I kept telling myself: "Use the force Luke" I liked this movie quote because I could hardly see the trail it was so dusty and I was riding based on where I saw the guy in front of me last. It was kind of scary, but everytime I saw the guy in front of me he was still upright so I figured I would be ok too.
I'm not really sure if that proved to be true, because a couple miles into lap 2 my rear tire bubbled up and popped! It was just the outer skin, but it was loud enough I thought the whole tire was done. Amazingly the Stan's sealant seemed to be holding and I had to decide if I should turn around or just keep going, it was big risk to keep going, because I could be looking at 12 mile walk back and the end of my day... I couldn't stomach the idea of turning around so I kept moving forward, around 3/4 of the way through the lap the tire went flat! I stopped and filled it up with the pump, but it went flat again shortly after, so now I had to put a tube in it, the tube held and finished the lap. Many thanks to Landis Cyclery who was doing neutral support and had tires for sale! It took all the cash I had on me, which was only $48 to buy a new tire and they even installed it for me and I was on my way! Wow, I was back and timewise I was in great shape, I started lap 3 at 5 hours into the race.
What I didn't know was that my legs were going downhill fast. Lap 3 hurt and I wouldn't say I was truly "Digging Deep" but I was getting close. I was slowed down enough that any chance of a 9 hour finish (for the big belt buckle) was out, but that was ok I had plenty of time to just finish!
I really figured or maybe hoped that lap 4 would be about the same as lap 3 but not even, Lap 4 was nothing but pure survival and I was deep in the hurt locker! Barring some terrible mechanical failure I had plenty of time to finish and finally I rolled across the finish line around 10:20 and got my finisher medal and belt buckle! I was so glad to be off that course.
This race was so epic that finishing it in itself was a great accomplishment, not wanting to get my hopes up for the lottery, I decided that this 100 miler (which was actually around 106 miles) was epic enough for this summer if there were no more... That is until my name was drawn in the lottery! I was super excited! I got my entry "coin" from Ken and a letter for how to sign up. Thank goodness for the letter, it had a link in it to sign up and I didn't have to wait in line for an hour (or more) like the previous Qualifiers! This was a great improvement and allowed me to leisurely register on Sunday.
So I'm In! Now to just keep training and see how I feel for the rest of the week, because my plan is to swing through Moab, Fruita, Gunnison, and Crested Butte if I have the legs for it this week!
23 April 2012
Austin Rattler - Leadville Qualifier
After getting into the Leadville 100 race through last years Crested Butte Qualifier race, I figured I would start of this year with the same plan. The first and relatively closest qualifier was the Austin Rattler. Another 100k race, I figured this would be a great start to the year and hopefully get me into the 100 and have that objective out of the road for the summer, so I could focus on some local races...
Plan A: Win the qualifier entry. Well, this was a stretch goal, but I plan was to ride full out and rock it like never before. Well this sort of worked. I was definately rockin it and riding way better than I ever have! That is until near the end of lap 2 when my legs decided they hadn't been properly prepared for such a high level of performance... and the cramps began. I've never cramped up like this before and really I had no idea how things were going to turn out. At this point I went into survival mode and once the pain stopped I got back on the bike and pedaled the course in granny gear with as minimal acceleration and effort as possible.
Plan B: Be a Finisher and get drawn in the lottery. At this point I really had no idea at all if I would even be able to finish the race or ride fast enough to do so. Fortuneatly, my first two laps were somewhat smoking fast and that gave me plenty of time to meander around the course with legs that were ready to cramp at the first thought of a hard effort. Luckily, plan B worked out and I finished the race with plenty of time and was in the lottery.
Unfortunately, I didn't get drawn for one of the 35 lottery spots. Pretty much a complete tragedy! What am I going to do now? Well I do plan to do the SilverRush50, but honestly the odds are going to even worse in that race. So maybe I need to do another Leadville Qualifier... Really not sure if that is even possible as traveling to races is expensive, but maybe...
Overall though, the Lifetime/Leadville crew put on a great race! and it was a super fun day and a much different course than Crested Butte was last year. with 50% single track this course was tough, I actually cant remember the last time I suffered like this. This race was possibly the hardest race I've ever done. My word of the day was "brutal" Of course that's a variable statement as I'm sure later in the year when I'm in better shape I wouldn't have rated it as that hard.
Here's my data from the race:
Plan A: Win the qualifier entry. Well, this was a stretch goal, but I plan was to ride full out and rock it like never before. Well this sort of worked. I was definately rockin it and riding way better than I ever have! That is until near the end of lap 2 when my legs decided they hadn't been properly prepared for such a high level of performance... and the cramps began. I've never cramped up like this before and really I had no idea how things were going to turn out. At this point I went into survival mode and once the pain stopped I got back on the bike and pedaled the course in granny gear with as minimal acceleration and effort as possible.
Plan B: Be a Finisher and get drawn in the lottery. At this point I really had no idea at all if I would even be able to finish the race or ride fast enough to do so. Fortuneatly, my first two laps were somewhat smoking fast and that gave me plenty of time to meander around the course with legs that were ready to cramp at the first thought of a hard effort. Luckily, plan B worked out and I finished the race with plenty of time and was in the lottery.
Unfortunately, I didn't get drawn for one of the 35 lottery spots. Pretty much a complete tragedy! What am I going to do now? Well I do plan to do the SilverRush50, but honestly the odds are going to even worse in that race. So maybe I need to do another Leadville Qualifier... Really not sure if that is even possible as traveling to races is expensive, but maybe...
Overall though, the Lifetime/Leadville crew put on a great race! and it was a super fun day and a much different course than Crested Butte was last year. with 50% single track this course was tough, I actually cant remember the last time I suffered like this. This race was possibly the hardest race I've ever done. My word of the day was "brutal" Of course that's a variable statement as I'm sure later in the year when I'm in better shape I wouldn't have rated it as that hard.
Here's my data from the race:
2012 Season Under Way!
Well, I've been neglecting my blog lately, now I've got a lot of catching up to do. The 2012 season is in full effect!
Here's the news that I need to get posted:
1. Didn't get selected in Leadville 100 lottery... No surprise there.
2. Race 1 - UNL Tour de Husker Road Race
3. Race 2 - UNL Tour de Husker Criterium
4. Race 3a - Psycowpath Fat Tire Time Trial at Jewel Park
5. Race 3b - Psycowpath Fat Tire Crit
5. Race 4 - Psycowpath Swanson Shootout XC
6. Race 5 - Austin Rattler Leadville Qualifier
Yes, I have a lot of catching up to do, it's likely I'm so far behind because the weather has been nice and I've been out riding. Last year at this time I probably only had 100 miles in... This year, well over a 1000. big difference and things are really looking up for this year!
Here's the news that I need to get posted:
1. Didn't get selected in Leadville 100 lottery... No surprise there.
2. Race 1 - UNL Tour de Husker Road Race
3. Race 2 - UNL Tour de Husker Criterium
4. Race 3a - Psycowpath Fat Tire Time Trial at Jewel Park
5. Race 3b - Psycowpath Fat Tire Crit
5. Race 4 - Psycowpath Swanson Shootout XC
6. Race 5 - Austin Rattler Leadville Qualifier
Yes, I have a lot of catching up to do, it's likely I'm so far behind because the weather has been nice and I've been out riding. Last year at this time I probably only had 100 miles in... This year, well over a 1000. big difference and things are really looking up for this year!
07 February 2012
Serrota Upgrades
05 January 2012
2012
Thought I would check in with the ol blog and just say that I'm starting to get ready for the new year. Haven't been riding as much as I should have the past few months, but the good side is that I have been riding, so as long as I get things ramped up now, I'll be in good shape come summer!
I have been focusing on getting my Serotta back together. After I canibalized it last fall (to get the CX bike going), it's been in pieces since. Just ordered some cool new parts for it today. Got some Easton EC90 Ergo bars and EC90 stem (both are carbon fiber) on an unbeleiveable Performance Bike closeout price. Also ordered a new rear derailler. I needed the derailler for the new 11-28 cassette that I got for Christmas! This is the gear ratio I'll be using for the Iron Horse Classic coming up this May!
Getting registered for the Iron Horse Classic is big news also, registration opened Dec 1, the races were sold out in about 2 days and everything, including the tour was sold out in 5 days! Wow! that's a fast sellout compared to last year.
Also, registered for the Leadville Lottery. Won't know anything about that until Mid February. It sure would be nice to get in the easy way for once.
Also, been sifting through ebay for a set of Aero Carbon Tubular Wheels. If your not a bike nerd like myself, these are superlight and aerodynamic and that means fast. Although I'm not doing so good at dieting right now, I do plan to be in the 160's for race weight, and at that point spending money on light parts is beneficial because I'll have no fat left to lose!
I have been focusing on getting my Serotta back together. After I canibalized it last fall (to get the CX bike going), it's been in pieces since. Just ordered some cool new parts for it today. Got some Easton EC90 Ergo bars and EC90 stem (both are carbon fiber) on an unbeleiveable Performance Bike closeout price. Also ordered a new rear derailler. I needed the derailler for the new 11-28 cassette that I got for Christmas! This is the gear ratio I'll be using for the Iron Horse Classic coming up this May!
Getting registered for the Iron Horse Classic is big news also, registration opened Dec 1, the races were sold out in about 2 days and everything, including the tour was sold out in 5 days! Wow! that's a fast sellout compared to last year.
Also, registered for the Leadville Lottery. Won't know anything about that until Mid February. It sure would be nice to get in the easy way for once.
Also, been sifting through ebay for a set of Aero Carbon Tubular Wheels. If your not a bike nerd like myself, these are superlight and aerodynamic and that means fast. Although I'm not doing so good at dieting right now, I do plan to be in the 160's for race weight, and at that point spending money on light parts is beneficial because I'll have no fat left to lose!
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