Gravel?

Well...I guess my season isn't over yet. I am giving my old road bike a makeover to a cross bike in preparation for Jayhawk Rock, a gravel road race. Some knobby 700x30 tires and a small triple crank (42/32/22) might do the trick. The first of November may be a cold one but I raced on some pretty cold days last March.

Arkansas Results - End of season recap

Well, my season is effectively over and I didn't attain my goals. Springdale was a tough race. I finish 12th in the Cat 5 and 10th in the Masters 35+. I'm good with that. I may race cyclocross this winter, but more likely I will train for 2009.

My only regret is putting too much emphasis on the early season and peaking too soon.

Oh well, next season will be here soon enough. See you then!!!

OP Grand Prix

I finished in the top 30 and I had fun. I'm installing a compact crankset this weekend. Training for Arkansas starts tomorrow.

Out of shape and nearly out of time

The Misses and I raced the last two Twilights and it felt pretty bad for me. She did better than I expected for her first time out. Raced the Tour of KC Cliff Drive Classic this morning in the rain. I didn't finish well but I didn't crash either. The OP Grand Prix is tomorrow and I am approaching it with some trepidation. We'll see what happens. The last race of the season for me will be in Arkansas. It's a small event and I actually have a chance of taking it...?

Sunflower State Games

Been traveling a lot but was home long enough to take 4th in the cat 5 crit in the Sunflower State Games. Next? The tour of KC in August...

SPIN!

My better half and I rode SPIN! last night and then stayed for pizza and salad. The ride was ok but the weather was beautiful. Planning on the Sunflower State Games crit July 20th. It's a cat 4/5 so I don't expect great things but it's a good warm up for the Tour of KC and the St Joe Team Time Trial and RR, assuming I can get a three person team together by September. Traveling for now but hope to ridr this weekend.

Who has time to ride?????

Travel has become a mainstay of my new gig. So...that means cycling has suffered. I went out last Monday and felt pretty good but did a group ride Tuesday and felt terrible. I've opted to skip the Baldwin City RR in favor of spending time with my wife and kids. I'll be on the road a lot in the coming weeks so it doesn't look good for now.

Three days in a row?

The misses and I rode Sunday morning, Monday night and tomorrow I will ride to work! Three days in one week? I thought it might be pushing it to race tomorrow night also but I'll be traveling for a couple of days and I don't recover well in an airport.

Rain anyone?

I've been getting in some rides in between thunderstorms and feel really strong. I don't know what it is (nor do I care) but my strength and endurance have increased dramatically in the last couple of weeks. With Baldwin City coming up in a few weeks, I'll take every advantage I can get!
Today is the first day of commuting to work. I was able to get here in 1:04, just under 17.5 mph average. I'll have a tailwind on the way back (looking forward to it) and maybe even get in the Tuesday night race?

Great weather, finally!

Have had some great weather for the last week or so. Did the Joel's charity ride yesterday plus some extra miles so I got in almost 50. Taking the day off and will hit the Tuesday nighter assuming I feel better...woke up with a sore throat and congestion.

Rain and more rain

It has been raining nearly non-stop lately...not great for riding.

Excellent weather!

Things have been good for the last week. I've gotten a lot of miles in including a team ride on Saturday that covered 40 miles of urban and suburban areas of the county. I'll be heading to the Tuesday nighter tonight and see if I can tear it up!

I can still ride!

Took in the Tuesday Nighter and it felt pretty good. After over two weeks of little activity I did well. Time to hit it hard again and prepare for the Baldwin City Road Race next month.

Recovery week?

While my recovery week was much needed and fruitful, it turned into almost two weeks. Work, family and rain. Oh well. I got my Trek back from the shop yesterday. I was having some stability issues at the Grand Prix so I took it in. They wheels were seriously out of true. The Misses and I will ride today and, weather permitting, I'll get back to racing on Tuesday.

Velotek Grand Prix

Sorry I've been absent for a bit, it's been an interesting month. Just finished the Velotek Grand Prix stage race and boy am I tired! It was the most difficult and demanding race I have ever competed in. I finished 8th over the three stages which consisted of a 2.5km time trial, a 7k criterium and a 17k road race over two days. I managed to shave an amazing 10 seconds off my previous time trial time! I'm taking a break for a week and then I hit it again.

Good show!

Well, Tuesday didn't work out with daughter #2 sick so I skipped it and rode solo Wednesday instead. The wife and I rode briefly Friday night as part of our date and come Saturday, I came through...I took second place in the final sprint at SF #6! I am very happy with that though I am still feeling somewhat apprehensive about being in a tight pack, I'm sure it will take time to recover mentally from the wipeout.

Spring Fling #5

Had a disappointing day. I am suffering from some lingering back pain from last week's wreck and a little apprehension riding tightly in a pack. The Tuesday nighter returns again with a chance to brush up on my pack skills before Spring Fling #6, my last chance to score points. More importantly, my chance to prove to myself that I can improve.
The VeloTek Grand Prix is at the end of the month. I have a hard road of training laid in front of me. Luckily, my wonderful family is very supportive.

Ciao for now.

The Equipment

This is my ride:

Trek 1500 SLR

• Shimano 105 double crankset (53/39)
• Shimano 105 9 speed STI shifter
• Shimano 105 front/rear ders
• Cane Creek Brakes
• Bontrager carbon fork w/ aluminum steerer
• Bontrager Select stem and oversized bars
• Bontrager carbon seatpost
• Bontrager Race Select wheels
• Vittoria Rubino 23c tires
• Wellgo SPD pedals
• Velo saddle
  

Ticket to Ride

Got my bike back today. Everything seems to be in working order. The weather is looking good for tomorrow. I am now in 9th place overall in points for this series. With two weeks left to go I have to give it everything I have.

Crash!!!

Well, the cheering section worked until...CRASH! The guy in front of me was bumped and downed so I did what anybody else would have done, I ran over him. Didn't have much choice. I have some cuts, scrapes and bruises but I am mostly ok. My helmet, of course, is not. And my bike is still a question mark. I'll take it today and see what the doc thinks.

Spring Fling #4 Results

I took 6th place in the Prologue TT and 10th in the crit. Not so happy with the results of the series so far. I have just two more dates in the series to earn some points. Getting ready for the Tuesday night crit later on. My girls will be present...maybe I just need a cheering section?

SF #3 results

The weather certainly has taken a toll on me lately. Had a pretty poor race day and dropped in the points standings from sixth overall to tenth. The prolouge time trial is this weekend...it'll be my chance to pick up some badly needed points (I hope). Got two great rides in today, one when I got home and this evening I hooked up with a local group ride. Gotta love it.

Oh Goody! More Snow!!!!

Spring Fling #3 tomorrow looks to be a cold and snowy one. I am hoping that the snow won't stick on the course. Wet is ok, but snow + ice = death.

Fantastic!

Despite the wind, which was gusting up to 20 mph, I just couldn't pass up a 65 degree day. I rode out to Leawood south and back (22 miles) and it felt great. I am feeling competitive again after a long and cold off-season. However, the weather looks yucky again for this weekend's race with rain and snow in the forecast. Oh well, that's Kansas!

SPIN! Ride

Attended the the first SPIN! group ride sponsored by Velotek and SPIN! Pizza and had a good turn out. Hopefully it will continue throughout the summer.

More Spring Fling Pics

Spring Fling #2

It was a cold and windy morning...

I entered both Cat 5 races today and had moderate success. I finished 10th with the 35 and under crowd and 5th with the 36+ category. I'm pretty happy with that! Here's a pic:

Blah!!

I've been battling his cold all week!!! I race again at Saturday and I feel so unprepared. After a poor showing last week I am nervous. Went out today for a thoroughly unenjoyable ride while floating lung cookies all over the city. Yummy!

Tuesday ride

Got home a little early yesterday and got in about 20 miles. Temp was 43 and light NNW winds. And...I climbed the steepest hill in Wyandotte County! I don't have a % grade function on my cyclometer but it's steep! My guess is a 200+ foot elevation gain in less than a 1/4 mile. I'll have to snap a picture sometime.

New pic

Here's the promised pic of Spring Fling #1. More to follow...

Spring Fling #1

It was almost 70 degrees when my race started....the wind was also gusting up to 30 mph! I didn't do as well as I expected with a 12th place finish. I didn't earn any points but there are 5 more crits and a time trial to go in the series. Next Saturday is forecast to be sunny and 40 but will probably be more like 30 when I start. That's to my advantage since I have acclimated myself to the cold weather this winter. We'll see what happens.
I came down with a cold Sunday night so I won't be riding much this week. And the pictures I promised to post? I'm still working on it...

Cool pic

Found this pic on my external drive. Estes Park, Colorado, August 2007-- Try climbing 21% grades in a 42x27 gear!

Getting ready!

Got out for a one hour ride this afternoon. The temps were in the upper 40's and winds were light so no excuses for NOT going. The Spring Fling crit series starts on Saturday and I am psyched! Made some minor adjustments to my seat and bar positions today. I could feel it in my elbows that something wasn't quite right, though I'm not completely sure if I corrected it or not. I tell you after the races this weekend. I'll post pics next week. Wish me luck...

Snow, again

It snowed again Saturday night. :( It wasn't much...just enough to be annoying. By 2pm all that remained was the black melting muck that a bicycle is a magnet for. My lovely wife and I got out for a bit Sunday afternoon but it just wasn't very enjoyable. I guess I am just itchy for the season to start. The season opener is on Saturday in Lawrence...I'm stoked! I added a link to the flyer in the links section.

Odd winter

Got out for a 15 mile ride yesterday afternoon. It was 12 degrees when I left for work and it was 41 when I rode. Felt good.

Found a pic on the web from a time trial last season...

Sick of winter

Got in a ride yesterday morning before the rain hit. Only about 12 miles but it felt good. The snow that fell this morning is already melting and will hopefully be gone by midweek. Hope to ride more then. (sigh)

Cold and colder?

I picked up my Trek today and went for a ride after work. They installed a 90 mm 7 degree stem to replace a 80 mm 17 degree stem. I'm not totally sold on it yet...maybe because during my ride the temperature dropped 10 degrees and the north wind picked up so much that I had to cut the ride short so I only got in 10 miles or so. I am a little bugged that the bike shop raised my seat. Although they had to because of their work stand, the mechanic didn't mark the old position. It took weeks of tweeking to find the "sweet spot". Bummer. Well, on the bright side, it will be cold for a few days and will allow me to do some tweaking on the trainer before crit camp on Sunday.

Old bike = weird ride

Took my Trek in the shop for a longer stem so I went out yesterday afternoon on my trusty backup. The Dawes seemed a little...weird. It just handles differently and I haven't been on it, except on the trainer, for a long while. It is heavier, has slightly wider tires (700x25 instead on my usual 700x23 slick) and no carbon fiber. Boy have I gotten used to that! The carbon fork and seatpost on the Trek sure does smooth the road buzz. I'll pick up my racing bike tonight and maybe get in a ride. I sure would like to hammer on the Blue Moose ride but it may be too chilly for me. We'll see...

Change of plans

Didn't end up going out of town but did get in a good ride on Saturday. I decided to skip the A.M. team ride and opted for something later in the afternoon when the temps were better. I pushed myself pretty hard to see what would happen...it felt good to go really, really fast. I used the 20+/- miles from Desoto to home to work on sprints. I'm really happy with the results. Crit camp is next weekend at Clinton Lake, too bad it will be cold. I'm really excited for the season to start and see how my work has paid off. Cheers!

Out of town

I will be in St Louis this weekend for some family stuff. The weather is going to be nice, mid 40s, so I'm taking my bike with me. Might as well, since it just keeps snowing here!

Amazing! Simply amazing!

It was 71 degrees when I got home from work today. I had a sore throat and generally don't feel very good but it was hard to pass up a chance to ride with shorts and a short sleeve jersey. The ride was short and sweet (about 18 miles) but it felt good to sweat. I understand we are in for some pretty big snow accumulations tomorrow night...weird.

Beautiful weather...but don't blink! You just might miss it!

Had a good ride with the team on Saturday. Light winds and temps in the 40s are a good combination. Road about 20 miles on a 3.5 mile course around Honeywell in Olathe and practiced a rotating paceline. We started slow but eventually picked up to 30+ mph. My lovely wife dropped me off so I got the pleasure of riding the 20 miles home with a tailwind. Doesn't get much better than that!

Motivation is sometimes hard to find...

It's been really cold and windy lately and just not great weather to be out. I tried to get a workout on the trainer but I have just had enough! I'm ready to ride outside whenever I want! Team drills are this Saturday and crit camp starts in two weeks. Since the Spring Fling series starts on March 1st, it's time to get the cobwebs out. It's also an opportunity to meet the new members.

Training camp

We rode 100+ miles between Friday and Saturday in the beautiful Ozarks. It was a bit chilly Friday with a high of around 26 but Saturday warmed up nicely into the 50's. I'm a little sore but that's to be expected. Got to spend some time with teammates and relax. Overall, it was a good time.

Brrr

Had a brisk ride after work. Used the opportunity to visit the bike shop and get a much needed tune up on my Trek. I'll get the whole kielbasa of a once over before the season starts.
I figured if I can ride in 30 degree weather with a -2 wind chill, I can do anything! (I hope that's true).
I leave for training camp tomorrow night. Looking forward to 8+ hours of riding/training over the weekend. I'll update next week. Ciao!

Let it snow, let it snow!

This is in Springdale, Arkansas last September.
That's me in third place though I won't be there
for long. I didn't get a podium finish out of
that one but had a good time.




It was cold and rainy yesterday and this morning it is cold and snowy with about three inches on the ground. Not much, I know, but just enough to be bothersome. It's 16 degrees and the warmest it will be for the week, so says the weatherman. I leave for winter training camp next Thursday so I am hoping for a big warmup by then. Rode the trainer last night and apparently will be for the next week or so.


I found more pics from last season...

And winter drags on...and on...ad infinitum

Have you ever looked outside and seen a great sunny day? That was today, except when I hit the road this afternoon it was a chilly 31 and it didn't warm up. Brrr! Got a good 10 miles out of it, though. Winter training camp is a week and half away so I need to plod on with the miles.

Another good ride

This week hasn't been very conducive for outside riding. I've either had appointments in the afternoon or the weather hasn't cooperated. I finally got on the road yesterday after work and had a good ride. It was 49 and sunny when I left but when I returned an hour later in was 36 and cloudy.
Wow! What a difference that makes! If I had known it would drop so quickly I might have made different wardrobe selections. Oh well, it felt good to be out again. With the season less than two months away, I hope there are many more days like this. I really do loathe the trainer.

More weather.

It seems that Kansas has no shortage of weather. It was in the 60s this past weekend so it only seems natural that it should rain and snow a few days later. The sun came out as I was getting home from work and I actually thought about going out...but the roads were still wet and the temp was in the 30's. I reluctantly rode the trainer instead. :( Checked the rest of this week's forecast and it looks like more of the same.

I've continued with the upper body workout and the pain in my left arm has subsided somewhat. I'll keep it up three days a week for a couple of weeks then increase to five until race season starts.

Cool pics from last season from Haskell and Sedalia

Excellent ride!

Today's weather was fantastic for a training ride. Did 2.5 hours on suburban JoCo roads with the team. I feel strong...a good sign.

Workout woes

Started back on lifting weights last night to build up my arms and chest. Having some pain in my left arm, maybe I hit it too hard right off. I'll probably stay off my bike until Sunday's ride with some of the team. I feel better and more comfortable on the bike than I did all last season. As much as I hate the cold, it has allowed some time for much needed rest.

Cold, cold, cold

Wowie! I saw a bicycle commuter early this morning, not a bad day to ride since it was 9 degrees at the time. Had a good workout on the trainer. Looking forward to the 50s this weekend.