cycling and spandex is metal!
Good weather + strong legs = awesome day!
Chris, Spencer, and I met at the North Boulder Spruce Confections as usual. I just replaced the batteries in my computer so I was pretty excited to watch my speed and cadence all day. Whilst drinking my Florentine with extra whipped cream Mr. Serbia rode up to get some post-ride sugar. We chatted for a bit and began the ride.
From the get-go I was feeling super good, which was a pleasant surprise. I've felt pretty bad for about two weeks now. I've been wrestling with posterior tendonitis in my knee, which I think has finally calmed down. As a result I've been intentionally riding easy, which has become quite boring. Yes, riding hard is fun when you feel good. We were riding between 23 and 30 mph all the way to Hygiene and it felt relatively effortless.
We parted ways with Spencer when we turned north 83rd, he continued along Woodland Rd; he was supposedly on a "lunch ride" from work. Chris and I continued to Carter. When we got to the dam climb I did my best to stay seated, felt pretty good. It's a good view once you're on top, kind of like 007.
It came as an unpleasant surprise to find that they shut off the water fountains in the winter, but we should have expected that. We refilled and snacked at the general store/ house thing. The descent down the backside was fast as usual and that right turn at the bottom is always fun to rip around. When we came to the T we turned left towards Pinewood mountain. I forgot how hard that climb is. In a way it's perfect; lots of corners, steep with a few flat spots, and not too long. One of these days I'd like to keep going after the summit and see what else there is.
The descent back down Pinewood was awesome as usual. I passed a pickup truck and a motorcycle that seemed to be moving backwards. I had a few close calls though. My back tire went into a skid at one point and I could have sworn my front tire was skidding around one of the corners. Super fun!
Long ride home into a head wind. Energy was good though, didn't need to eat very much all day. Stopped in Hygiene for a Coke. Rode into town still with tons of energy, stopped to get a mocha so that I could have a second half to the day.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Movie Review: Tour Baby Deux
two thumbs way downI would not recommend Tour Baby 1 or 2 to anyone. While I was at the Tour of California I won the DVD in a little stationary bike race. At first I was pretty excited—I had never owned a cycling film before and I avoided paying the $30 that it originally sold for. Little did I know, I had accepted a gift that would decrease my quality of life.
First off, Scott Coady is a total twat. I don’t know what his background is, but either he is totally loaded, or he put a lot of somebody else’s money to waste. Through out the film he is given some sort of VIP treatment that was obviously reserved for the highest bidder. Instead of capturing beautiful images or worthwhile documentary footage, he uses a low quality camera and spends too much time focusing on random, scantily clad girls with pretty faces. In addition, he has this weird sort of sexual catch phrase that he uses through out the duration of the film.
He says something like, “We are going to go deep inside the Tour de France, baby.” It’s obvious, through his language and content that he’s trying to create some sort of Girls Gone Wild/ Spring Break ’08 reality flick. The end result is shaky cinematography, lame one-liners, and dozens of awkward female interactions.Worst of all, you have to look at Scott Chodey’s soul patch-goatee flavor saver for 97 whole minutes.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
New and Improved!
Welcome, again! This is the new and improved Boulder Bike Rides blog, now under the way cooler name "The Kings of Metal."
What's new?
What's new?
- The Kings of Metal name, which has been floating around our group of friends for awhile, originally spawned from the Manowar album. Why metal and why Manowar? Well, because metal rules and Manowar often sings about "wheels of fire" and other glorious things.
- The look and feel. I got rid of the old blogspot look and replaced it with a more sophisticated one.
- Last, and most awesome of all... The new Kings of Metal blog has numerous authors! So you don't have to listen to the rants and raves of just me, you now get it from about six pissed cyclists.
- We will still be posting rides in the "next ride" section, which you are welcome to attend.
- You can still read about what kind of rides we're doing and see photos of our horrific faces. Once again, even better, there will be a broader source of material, not just my crap.
- And, we will be continually improving the routes, links, and resource lists, just for you.
The Knee Scene
by RobbieCycling is often prescribed as an alternative to other athletic ventures, such as running. The reason for this is that cycling is a low impact sport. However, the repetitive motions of cycling amplify stress to the body that would normally be negligible.
For example, let's say you go on a ride that lasts two hours, and your average cadence is 90 revolutions per minute. That means you did 10,800 pedal strokes... A four-hour ride at an average cadence of 90 rpm's would mean that you initiated 21,600 pedal strokes. Now imagine that for some reason you didn't quite put the cleat of your pedal onto your right shoe correctly; let's say that it is off of zero by 5 degrees. You might not notice this mistake instantly because we are hardly ever in perfect anatomical position. We move every-which-way on a daily basis and our bodies seem to take it just fine. But when we force a series of joints into an awkward, immovable position and load it with stress repeatedly, about 11,000 "reps," cartilage, tendons, ligaments, and muscles may become irritated.
Yes, we can adapt to unusual positions, that’s the nature of the beast for cyclists—for competitive cyclists it's all about adapting to the most aerodynamic position without sacrificing power or causing injury. There is a difference; with a screwy cleat the joint is being stressed, and with the cycling position muscle is being used in a new way. Soft-tissue does a much better job of adapting to new stress because it has a much greater range of motion and is generally unaffected by slight abnormalities in movement. When muscle doesn't adapt, we are usually informed quickly in the form of a strain or a tear of the muscle. These injuries are extremely rare in cycling, but are possible.
So who cares if a knee or a hip gets a little irritated? The knee and hip might only care for a few days, or however long it takes to recover. The real trouble begins when the damaged tissue is not given time to mend before it is stressed again. An injury of this sort is usually referred to as a "chronic injury," and will continue to be a pain until it is given some undivided attention.
These nagging injuries should be given priority if they ever flare up. If they are not treated promptly, they can become more severe and more difficult to cure. More pain from a nagging injury usually means that it is being damaged even more, which causes it to swell. Generally speaking, the longer a chronic injury causes pain, the longer it will take to remedy the problem. Vice versa, the sooner you address a problem, the sooner it will be remedied.
So how can you avoid a cycling-induced chronic knee injury? Listed below are some things that you should take into consideration if you plan to increase your weekly hours and would like to avoid knee injury:
1. If it hurts, stop. This is the most obvious rule in the book. If you feel any sort of nagging in your knee, take it easy. You might not have to stop entirely, but you should definitely lower your intensity and increase your rpm's. Nine times out of 10 the problem is tendonitis, which can easily be treated.
2. Make sure your bike fits properly. Adjust the fore-aft position of your seat if necessary. Triple check the height of your seat; make sure your knees are given enough room to extend as well as not too much. Make sure your seat isn’t tilted forward or backward. Generally speaking, if the front of your knee hurts, your seat is too low, your seat is too far forward, or your cleats are too close to your toe; if the back of your knee hurts, your seat is too high, your seat is too far back, or your cleats are placed too far away from your toes. If your knees hurt medially or laterally, try positioning your cleat to one side or the other. Etc... Read all you can about bike fitting, it seems to be endlessly fascinating.
3. Check your cleats, make sure they are centered and line up with the inside ball of your foot. I recommend Speedplay pedals because they offer tons of low-resistance float.
4. Be smart about your approach to riding/training. You can get away with riding for three hours once a week with your friends, but most people can’t get away with getting off the couch or from behind the desk and expect to ride 15 to 20 hours per week without encountering problems. In the “off season,” do your best to stay active; commute via bicycle if possible, go to the gym, run, if you must. Build your weekly hours slowly and wait to build your intensity until you’re sure you have fully adapted to the demands of cycling.
5. Flexibility. We all probably have room for more flexibility. I know that it’s hard to be consistent with this one but it is highly beneficial. Signing up for a yoga class can help, but what it really comes down to is being consistent. You won’t gain flexibility by stretching a certain muscle group for one minute every Monday and Wednesday in your yoga class. Beyond helping to prevent injury, stretching will also help your performance on the bike. It’s said that being inflexible can sometimes help with sprinting, but at the same time, flexibility will save you energy in the long term because you won’t be fighting your own biomechanics. I’m willing to bet that the best time trialists in the world also have very flexible hamstrings.
6. Spinning versus pushing. Pedals are meant to be spun, not pushed. Especially in the early season, do your best to focus on a high cadence, this should help prevent any early season strains, and it will also make your heart stronger. Generally speaking, physical therapists will suggest spinning on the flats to help cure tendonitis. Climbing or sprinting too early in the season can be problematic because your tendons might not be prepared. Spinning can be helpful and hurtful, but mostly helpful. It can be harmful if you aren’t used to it; I’ve been guilty of focusing more on spinning than going fast and then wonder why I can’t keep up. Vice versa, it’s easier to match the accelerations of the pack when you’re spinning, and I promise you that you can sprint much faster when you aren’t in your 53-11.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
winter riding
by RobbieJanuary is almost over and it's beginning to feel like spring in my mind. The weather was nice for a while, 40 and 50 degree afternoons, but it's back to being frigged. I'm currently in Park City, Utah for the Sundance Film Festival and it's damn cold, but that hasn't stopped me! I brought my fixed gear and my rollers, just in case. I rode them the first night I was here because it was dark and -5 F, but I've been out every day and night since then. I'm really starting to get tired surprisingly. I don't ever remember feeling this fatigued in the winter, but then again I don't ever remember riding like this at this time of year.
Words of wisdom? As the good old Lord Nike says, "Just do it." I certainly failed to just do it in the late fall, but I'm starting to get back on track. The cold is really not that bad. What is bad is being unprepared. The same idea applies year-round. If you are unprepared you are at great risk of being absolutely miserable, which then leads to questions like, "why do I do this shit in the first place?"
Being prepared applies to numerous facets of the sport, such as weather, fuel, and fitness. In all of the above, the best motto is "Be Prepared."
*But at the same time, don't be afraid to take a few risks, that's what it's all about.
Friday, December 14, 2007
winter words
by RobbieAs you well know, the Boulder Bike Rides blog has been quite inactive lately--my apologies. With the weather getting colder and schoolwork piling up, I’ve neglected the organization of group rides. To tell the truth I haven’t been on a “bike ride” in over a month (but I do ride my bike every single day to and fro whilst commuting Boulder). Even though organized riding has been off the radar, it’s a great time of year for snow assaults and fixed-gear flats.
We began the cold season with weekly fixed-gear rides—everyone riding with the same gear ratio so as to “level the playing field.” I suppose Mike and Kevin are still keeping those rides up, I’ve been somewhat out of the loop. The idea is to slowly increase the gear ratio through the winter season and finishing strong in the spring. It’s a good way to get a feel for truly high cadence, and eventually adapting to it.
Riding in the snow has turned out to be quite an adventure. When it’s 15 degrees at 8am and I’m just trying to get to school, I usually want minimal obstacles, but riding in deep snow is a hell-of-a fun way to start the day, and it really jumpstarts your heart and lungs. Bad road conditions are a good way to slow the pace and distance while still putting out the same effort, which can be nice when you have to worry about the possibility of frostbite.
Stay warm.
Have fun.
The blog will be up and rolling soon after the New Year.
Season's greetings.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Monday, September 10, 2007
Flying Scotsman @ Boulder Theater!
VeloNews presents:
THE FLYING SCOTSMAN
Experience the inspirational and true story of an unlikely cycling champion who battled the odds to reach the pinnacle of his sport in The Flying Scotsman.
Jonny Lee Miller (Trainspotting, Melinda and Melinda) stars as Obree, an amateur cyclist and homegrown hero who became Scotland’s two-time world one-hour cycling record holder while also struggling and learning to cope with debilitating bouts of depression and anxiety. A true testament to the human spirit, the film spans the period of Obree’s life that saw him take, lose, and then retake the cycling title as he races to victory on a bicycle he built himself from scraps of metal and washing machine parts. Featuring a remarkable supporting cast including Laura Fraser (Vanilla Sky, A Knights Tale), Billy Boyd (The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, Master and Commander), and Brian Cox (Zodiac, Running With Scissors), The Flying Scotsman is a triumphant tale about a defiant outsider who’s perseverance, undying commitment and ambition allowed him to ride victorious against well-financed, professionally trained competitors on the international cycling scene.
Free admission.
Date/Time: September 14, 2007, 7:30 pm
Door Time: 7:00 pm
Audience: All Ages
[borrowed from the Boulder Theater website]
THE FLYING SCOTSMAN
Experience the inspirational and true story of an unlikely cycling champion who battled the odds to reach the pinnacle of his sport in The Flying Scotsman.
Jonny Lee Miller (Trainspotting, Melinda and Melinda) stars as Obree, an amateur cyclist and homegrown hero who became Scotland’s two-time world one-hour cycling record holder while also struggling and learning to cope with debilitating bouts of depression and anxiety. A true testament to the human spirit, the film spans the period of Obree’s life that saw him take, lose, and then retake the cycling title as he races to victory on a bicycle he built himself from scraps of metal and washing machine parts. Featuring a remarkable supporting cast including Laura Fraser (Vanilla Sky, A Knights Tale), Billy Boyd (The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, Master and Commander), and Brian Cox (Zodiac, Running With Scissors), The Flying Scotsman is a triumphant tale about a defiant outsider who’s perseverance, undying commitment and ambition allowed him to ride victorious against well-financed, professionally trained competitors on the international cycling scene.
Free admission.
Date/Time: September 14, 2007, 7:30 pm
Door Time: 7:00 pm
Audience: All Ages
[borrowed from the Boulder Theater website]
Monday, September 3, 2007
Santa Fe Trail Stage Race
by Robbie
Friday:
Late start, long drive, and a short scare that we would not be able to race the Santa Fe Trail Stage Race. Chris and I missed the registration for this three-day event consisting of a time trial, road race, and criterium. There was no phone number on the event website so I sent an email to “racedirector@...” asking them to call me if we should turn around and head back to Boulder. I did in fact get a call from race director-Kathy and she said it would be fine if we raced, little did she know that we were a troublesome pair.
Arrived in Lamar (Lame-ar) around 7pm. Checked in and paid our dues. Road our bikes up and down the main strip for about 20 minutes to loosen up. While putting our bikes back in (yes in, not on because Chrissy doesn't have a bike rack, but then again, I don't have a car so I can't complain) the car a friend from Boulder stopped by in her car said that she saw us on the road. How random--of all places to see someone you know, it had to be in the vastness of southeastern Colorado. We ate Thai food for dinner, not the best drunken noodle I’ve ever had. We then found an RV park to pitch our tent for the night. This RV park was pretty rad: pool, showers, laundry, frogs, and wireless internet!
It was pretty awesome to be in the middle of nowhere, laying in the grass, and still be “connected.” I tried to sleep outside but that turned out to be a bad idea. Within minutes I was covered in mosquito bites, so I jumped into the tent with Chris. Pretty hot and steamy in there. Did I forget to mention that I forgot my thermarest? Not much of a problem because the grass was thick.
Saturday:
Early awakening to the sun. Breakfast at the truck stop: all you can eat buffet of pancakes, eggs, bacon, French toast sticks, and cholesterol. Drove to the time trial course and inspected it from the car. The TT course ran from south to north and was 20 miles with the turnaround at 10 miles. My start time was 12:35 or so. Really fast on the way out, had a guy in my sights the whole way and caught him at the turnaround. So I had made fun of the straightness of the course while driving it and even suggested that it should be allowed to race without a helmet. I took back my words when I went off the road on my way out. I started moving to the right a little and then I thought I heard someone passing on my left so I swerved a little and headed straight into the ditch. Fortunately I didn’t crash, but I had to pedal pretty slowly out of the ditch and it took quite a bit of energy. Don’t tell anyone. Amazing what can happen when the lactic acid from your legs leaks into your brain... Really bad headwind on the way back. No one in sight. Could barely spin my legs. Finally saw some guy struggling and passed him. Saw another rider struggling and passed him. Finished strong, and then almost vomited before almost passing out. Chris came through after me with his Speedplay cleat ripped off and still stuck to the pedal. It came off when he accelerated to the finish. Fortunately I had a spare Speedplay platform and screws.
Old guy with oxygen tank gave us cantaloupe.
Finished 4th with a time of 49:20.
Sunday:
Woke up at 6:50am for a 9:45am start time. Day ahead of us consisted of a 75 mile road race on flat roads, hot sun, and no wind. Ate breakfast at the truck stop again (coincidentally the site of the race finish and start). Warmed up, stretched, did everything perfect. Rode to the start line and someone from the Pro,1,2 category yelled over that our group had already started. We were about 5 or 10 minutes late because of a change in the start time. I was still using the original race flyer for the start times, meanwhile an updated version was circulating. Chris and I chased. I made him sit on my wheel. We averaged 26mph or so. Thought we made a wrong turn so we stopped and turned around. Turns out we didn’t make a wrong turn. Waited at an intersection that they would soon be crossing for about 20 minutes. The plan was to disqualify ourselves, but race with the group anyway. When they came through I told the motorcycle official the plan, he said that we couldn’t ride with the group and that we had to ride out to the turnaround. So we rode back out the way we had been going, did the turnaround, and spent the whole day by ourselves. Knowing that this was Chris’ first road race and perhaps his longest ride yet this year I told him to sit on my wheel and not to take any pulls. Our average speed at the end of the 75 miles was 21.1mph. Really rough day, mentally and physically. Hot as hell. Chris’ jersey and shorts were completely white with salt. Fast roads though. Went swimming afterward.
Really bored at campsite so we drove out to Las Animas, pretty boring town. Drove back to Lamar and ate a nasty Sonic egg sandwich for dinner. Passed out pretty early, totally exhausted.
Monday:
Up early for 12:10pm crit. Felt horrible in the morning. Swollen eyes, stuffy nose, and clogged lungs. Good breakfast at Hickory restaurant. Hard time getting dressed in my riding clothes and warming up. Felt pretty wasted. Thorn in my front tire right before race, but I was able to change the tube in time. Really slow race. I think everyone was tired. The average speed of the group from the day before was only 23mph, so I figured my solo 21.1 average was comparable for exhaustiveness. A few guys tried to form breakaways in order to improve their GC standing, no successful attempts. Pace picked up on the last five laps. I stayed in position 2 or 3. I sat on front for a good lap or two and then finally a guy tried to make a move but I sat on his wheel until the second to last lap. He tired coming through with one lap to go. I jumped from the field at the line and accelerated until I knew I was clear. Was able to ease up on the gas with 20 meters to go. Finished first for the day, 44 minutes back on the GC from our fiasco the day before.
Pro race was called off after pretty much every rider was in the wheel pit. Three to eight riders were stopping for new wheels during every lap. Aparently the wind, or maybe an ambulance from a nearby field had spread thorns onto the course. I checked out Kevin Suhr’s tire after I helped him swap it out and it had 9 thorns in it… yeah. Kiel and Kevin got both of the primes, word.
Long tired drive home, thanks to Chris for driving.
Looking forward to a real bed.
Friday:
Late start, long drive, and a short scare that we would not be able to race the Santa Fe Trail Stage Race. Chris and I missed the registration for this three-day event consisting of a time trial, road race, and criterium. There was no phone number on the event website so I sent an email to “racedirector@...” asking them to call me if we should turn around and head back to Boulder. I did in fact get a call from race director-Kathy and she said it would be fine if we raced, little did she know that we were a troublesome pair.
Arrived in Lamar (Lame-ar) around 7pm. Checked in and paid our dues. Road our bikes up and down the main strip for about 20 minutes to loosen up. While putting our bikes back in (yes in, not on because Chrissy doesn't have a bike rack, but then again, I don't have a car so I can't complain) the car a friend from Boulder stopped by in her car said that she saw us on the road. How random--of all places to see someone you know, it had to be in the vastness of southeastern Colorado. We ate Thai food for dinner, not the best drunken noodle I’ve ever had. We then found an RV park to pitch our tent for the night. This RV park was pretty rad: pool, showers, laundry, frogs, and wireless internet!
It was pretty awesome to be in the middle of nowhere, laying in the grass, and still be “connected.” I tried to sleep outside but that turned out to be a bad idea. Within minutes I was covered in mosquito bites, so I jumped into the tent with Chris. Pretty hot and steamy in there. Did I forget to mention that I forgot my thermarest? Not much of a problem because the grass was thick.Saturday:
Early awakening to the sun. Breakfast at the truck stop: all you can eat buffet of pancakes, eggs, bacon, French toast sticks, and cholesterol. Drove to the time trial course and inspected it from the car. The TT course ran from south to north and was 20 miles with the turnaround at 10 miles. My start time was 12:35 or so. Really fast on the way out, had a guy in my sights the whole way and caught him at the turnaround. So I had made fun of the straightness of the course while driving it and even suggested that it should be allowed to race without a helmet. I took back my words when I went off the road on my way out. I started moving to the right a little and then I thought I heard someone passing on my left so I swerved a little and headed straight into the ditch. Fortunately I didn’t crash, but I had to pedal pretty slowly out of the ditch and it took quite a bit of energy. Don’t tell anyone. Amazing what can happen when the lactic acid from your legs leaks into your brain... Really bad headwind on the way back. No one in sight. Could barely spin my legs. Finally saw some guy struggling and passed him. Saw another rider struggling and passed him. Finished strong, and then almost vomited before almost passing out. Chris came through after me with his Speedplay cleat ripped off and still stuck to the pedal. It came off when he accelerated to the finish. Fortunately I had a spare Speedplay platform and screws.
Old guy with oxygen tank gave us cantaloupe.
Finished 4th with a time of 49:20.
Sunday:
Woke up at 6:50am for a 9:45am start time. Day ahead of us consisted of a 75 mile road race on flat roads, hot sun, and no wind. Ate breakfast at the truck stop again (coincidentally the site of the race finish and start). Warmed up, stretched, did everything perfect. Rode to the start line and someone from the Pro,1,2 category yelled over that our group had already started. We were about 5 or 10 minutes late because of a change in the start time. I was still using the original race flyer for the start times, meanwhile an updated version was circulating. Chris and I chased. I made him sit on my wheel. We averaged 26mph or so. Thought we made a wrong turn so we stopped and turned around. Turns out we didn’t make a wrong turn. Waited at an intersection that they would soon be crossing for about 20 minutes. The plan was to disqualify ourselves, but race with the group anyway. When they came through I told the motorcycle official the plan, he said that we couldn’t ride with the group and that we had to ride out to the turnaround. So we rode back out the way we had been going, did the turnaround, and spent the whole day by ourselves. Knowing that this was Chris’ first road race and perhaps his longest ride yet this year I told him to sit on my wheel and not to take any pulls. Our average speed at the end of the 75 miles was 21.1mph. Really rough day, mentally and physically. Hot as hell. Chris’ jersey and shorts were completely white with salt. Fast roads though. Went swimming afterward.
Really bored at campsite so we drove out to Las Animas, pretty boring town. Drove back to Lamar and ate a nasty Sonic egg sandwich for dinner. Passed out pretty early, totally exhausted.Monday:
Up early for 12:10pm crit. Felt horrible in the morning. Swollen eyes, stuffy nose, and clogged lungs. Good breakfast at Hickory restaurant. Hard time getting dressed in my riding clothes and warming up. Felt pretty wasted. Thorn in my front tire right before race, but I was able to change the tube in time. Really slow race. I think everyone was tired. The average speed of the group from the day before was only 23mph, so I figured my solo 21.1 average was comparable for exhaustiveness. A few guys tried to form breakaways in order to improve their GC standing, no successful attempts. Pace picked up on the last five laps. I stayed in position 2 or 3. I sat on front for a good lap or two and then finally a guy tried to make a move but I sat on his wheel until the second to last lap. He tired coming through with one lap to go. I jumped from the field at the line and accelerated until I knew I was clear. Was able to ease up on the gas with 20 meters to go. Finished first for the day, 44 minutes back on the GC from our fiasco the day before.
Pro race was called off after pretty much every rider was in the wheel pit. Three to eight riders were stopping for new wheels during every lap. Aparently the wind, or maybe an ambulance from a nearby field had spread thorns onto the course. I checked out Kevin Suhr’s tire after I helped him swap it out and it had 9 thorns in it… yeah. Kiel and Kevin got both of the primes, word.
Long tired drive home, thanks to Chris for driving.
Looking forward to a real bed.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Weekend Close
by Robbie
Friday:
Early morning ride for about a half hour, and then a 30 min. commute. Chris and I drove up to Dillon. Arrived in the dark, ate tasty, expensive Indian food.
Drove around looking for a campsite, all full or closed. Resorted to parking overnight at a trailhead and sleeping in the back of his truck. Should have been fine, but I couldn’t sleep at all. Heard a car roll up around 12:30am, and then footsteps, and then a flashlight tapping against the window. Police guy said we couldn’t sleep there, but we could stay for the night… Then he asked us about the race in the morning. Still couldn’t sleep.
Saturday:
Got out of the truck at 6:30am, but had been awake as far as I knew since 5:30 or so. Really cold at 9000ft when camped next to a lake. Put all of my clothes on and rode to the racecourse, Chris met me there in his truck. Ate a day old PB&J, a banana, a few handfuls of cereal, and a ClifBar for breakfast. By the time I finished pumping my tires, pinning my number, undressing, etc. the race was about to begin. I did two laps around a .58 mile course for my warm up (which I actually got cold doing—how ironic). Really tight, bumpy course. Let some air out of my tires so that the bumpy corners would feel smooth. Started at back of the pack and moved up to the front by lap two. Felt really strong and sat on the front to avoid precarious situations. Someone else got the first prime as I was still moving up in position. I sat at the very front for something like 20 laps, got a prime in there somewhere. Started to get tired so I moved back 5 guys, which turned into 15. Then a crash ensued ahead of me but I had enough room to avoid it. Came into the finish straight-away in position 13 or something. No chance at the overall win.
Stood in Dillon Lake up to my waist for 30 minutes to relieve the knees. Ate a huge hamburger and chugged a Guinness for lunch, yum. Sat in the sun all day watching the other categories race, got the sunburn to prove it.
Sunday:
On the road by 7:30am. Ate a bowl of cereal. Stopped at a bagel store and ate part of an egg, cheese, and ham sandwich + Americano. Plenty of warming up before the race. Really awesome course that wound through the Copper Mountain Village.
Totally awesome cobblestone section with a tight S-turn. Felt really good the whole race. Won the first prime pretty easily, pulled the ol’ cut ‘n’ sprint technique, worked pretty well. Pulled back to 5th position or so for the rest of the race. Felt antsy, anxious, energetic, ready to go when I needed to. With 15 minutes remaining I felt a little bounce in my pedal stroke. Looked down and my rear tire was low, then flat, then rolling on rim. Ran about a quarter of a lap (400m, my old running race). Got to the wheel pit, where I didn’t have a wheel because I had loaned it out earlier in the week. Begged someone from the crowd to let me use a wheel. Meanwhile, the pack rolled through and my free lap was up, but some guy still gave me his rear wheel. Chased really hard for the rest of the race. Never caught on but I got a really good workout. Pretty frustrated about the whole flat tire thing… Next weekend, Niwot crit… No accidents, no mistakes. First things first, trash this Vittoria Diamante Pro. Part of the tire's marketing scheme is that you can race at 150psi. That’s total B.S. For example, at the Longmont crit I pumped my tires up to 135psi, knowing that 150 is just crazy. As soon as I got on my bike and rolled two blocks the back tire just went flat. Two weeks ago, out on a TT ride I had my tires at 120psi and the rear tire (again) went flat. Then this race (120psi)... 150psi my ass.
Before I got this tire I had never had a flat tire on my racing wheels, in all of my CU races; on my 210 mile 21st birthday ride; shit, I didn’t even get a flat (on my training wheels) during my whole bike ride down the west coast with a loaded trailer. Grrr. Next weekend…
Friday:
Early morning ride for about a half hour, and then a 30 min. commute. Chris and I drove up to Dillon. Arrived in the dark, ate tasty, expensive Indian food.
Drove around looking for a campsite, all full or closed. Resorted to parking overnight at a trailhead and sleeping in the back of his truck. Should have been fine, but I couldn’t sleep at all. Heard a car roll up around 12:30am, and then footsteps, and then a flashlight tapping against the window. Police guy said we couldn’t sleep there, but we could stay for the night… Then he asked us about the race in the morning. Still couldn’t sleep.
Saturday:
Got out of the truck at 6:30am, but had been awake as far as I knew since 5:30 or so. Really cold at 9000ft when camped next to a lake. Put all of my clothes on and rode to the racecourse, Chris met me there in his truck. Ate a day old PB&J, a banana, a few handfuls of cereal, and a ClifBar for breakfast. By the time I finished pumping my tires, pinning my number, undressing, etc. the race was about to begin. I did two laps around a .58 mile course for my warm up (which I actually got cold doing—how ironic). Really tight, bumpy course. Let some air out of my tires so that the bumpy corners would feel smooth. Started at back of the pack and moved up to the front by lap two. Felt really strong and sat on the front to avoid precarious situations. Someone else got the first prime as I was still moving up in position. I sat at the very front for something like 20 laps, got a prime in there somewhere. Started to get tired so I moved back 5 guys, which turned into 15. Then a crash ensued ahead of me but I had enough room to avoid it. Came into the finish straight-away in position 13 or something. No chance at the overall win.
Stood in Dillon Lake up to my waist for 30 minutes to relieve the knees. Ate a huge hamburger and chugged a Guinness for lunch, yum. Sat in the sun all day watching the other categories race, got the sunburn to prove it.
Sunday:
On the road by 7:30am. Ate a bowl of cereal. Stopped at a bagel store and ate part of an egg, cheese, and ham sandwich + Americano. Plenty of warming up before the race. Really awesome course that wound through the Copper Mountain Village.
Totally awesome cobblestone section with a tight S-turn. Felt really good the whole race. Won the first prime pretty easily, pulled the ol’ cut ‘n’ sprint technique, worked pretty well. Pulled back to 5th position or so for the rest of the race. Felt antsy, anxious, energetic, ready to go when I needed to. With 15 minutes remaining I felt a little bounce in my pedal stroke. Looked down and my rear tire was low, then flat, then rolling on rim. Ran about a quarter of a lap (400m, my old running race). Got to the wheel pit, where I didn’t have a wheel because I had loaned it out earlier in the week. Begged someone from the crowd to let me use a wheel. Meanwhile, the pack rolled through and my free lap was up, but some guy still gave me his rear wheel. Chased really hard for the rest of the race. Never caught on but I got a really good workout. Pretty frustrated about the whole flat tire thing… Next weekend, Niwot crit… No accidents, no mistakes. First things first, trash this Vittoria Diamante Pro. Part of the tire's marketing scheme is that you can race at 150psi. That’s total B.S. For example, at the Longmont crit I pumped my tires up to 135psi, knowing that 150 is just crazy. As soon as I got on my bike and rolled two blocks the back tire just went flat. Two weeks ago, out on a TT ride I had my tires at 120psi and the rear tire (again) went flat. Then this race (120psi)... 150psi my ass.Before I got this tire I had never had a flat tire on my racing wheels, in all of my CU races; on my 210 mile 21st birthday ride; shit, I didn’t even get a flat (on my training wheels) during my whole bike ride down the west coast with a loaded trailer. Grrr. Next weekend…
Monday, August 13, 2007
Weekend Close
by Robbie
A week(end) to go down in the books... despite being totally exhausted.
Tuesday:
Not really the best week ever, some bad lows and good highs. Tuesday’s Bus Stop ride was horrible. The wind was blowing from the northwest pretty hard, and I was on the west side of the pack while heading north, which means I was catching a lot of wind, especially because I’m ten-feet tall. Wait wait wait… let me start over. As you may remember from the last Weekend Close, I had just finished up a long week and weekend of riding. However, I didn’t give myself much rest afterward. I went to bed pretty late on Sunday night for numerous reasons, one of them being that I was anxious about my stolen bike. Monday night, I stayed up late working on a Road Ragin’ piece for VeloNews. I wouldn’t have stayed up that late if I had finished gathering sources over the weekend, but I was too busy riding, and besides, the rider I interviewed (which I will keep disclosed for now) didn’t come back to town until Monday anyway. On Tuesday, I woke up early and went straight to the couch, where I sat working on another VN piece until 4:30pm, at which point I fried up some eggs, threw on the chamois, and raced up to the Bus Stop for some hardcore, shaved, spandex action.
Back to the wind. So… it was really windy, I couldn’t get a good draft (which shouldn’t have mattered) but I got totally blown before we even got to Lyons. I tried to catch on when they came out of the Fruit Loops but I failed. Regardless, I went into TT mode and chased anyway. They didn’t gain much on me until I cracked heading south on 75th, at which point I caught Tom (ex-Full Cycle dude) and Alex Howes (sp?) of Slipstream-Chipotle. Alex had a very good excuse for falling off the back, he had a bruise the size of a watermelon on the inside of his leg from smashing into a car at 40 mph. He had been pedaling pretty much entirely with his left leg, not bad. That night, I stayed up until 6:45am the next morning working on a VN piece.
Thursday:
Ugh. The plan was to do 1:30 x 15-20 sprints. The reality: me soft-pedaling for two hours while I struggled to make it to Jamestown. Meanwhile, Spencer and Garrick were really bored and doing circles around me. After descending back to 36, and after I refused to climb Olde Stage, I really hit a low in my energy. I wasn’t bonked, hungry, or dehydrated (maybe a little dehydrated actually), I just couldn’t ride my bike. After we got up that little dip by the Neva Rd exit I just wanted to get off my bike and sit down, or walk. I couldn’t get my heart rate up, or my breathing. I tried on the way up to Jamestown and I tried heading back to Boulder, but no matter how hard I tried the result was burning in my legs and frustration.
I asked Mr. Neal Rogers about my riding performance, which I was beginning to make a habit of, and he attributed low energy to three main things: 1. Lack of sleep, 2. Lack of food, 3. Dehydration. It made me feel better to hear this because all three applied to my case. I had been eating old bagels that I got for free off the street for three days; I hadn’t been sleeping; and my lips were super chapped from dehydration. Not to mention two full days on the couch after a long weekend of riding, surprised I didn’t get a blood clot.
Friday:
Rode my Waltworks fixed gear after getting it back the night before, beautiful.
Saturday:
Same old ride up to Raymond on over to Brainard Lake. New addition to the ride was Nick. He did very well for his first time up to the Peak-to-peak, as far as I know. He seemed to be doing fine on the last tough climb after Raymond when Spencer and I decided to go on to Brainard, while Mike, Heather, and Nick went down through Jamestown. I still felt exhausted, pretty worthless. I had a couple good strong efforts, but I couldn’t recover and was fully bonked by the time we reached the base of the road up to Brainard. Spencer is 10 times stronger than he was two weeks ago. He was dragging me along for the ride all the way up to the gate and beyond. Eventually we pulled over to look for mushrooms, no luck—just a lost cleat cover, wet socks, and cold knees. Spencer continued to drag me through the Brainard Lake loop, down through Ward and up the backside of Olde Stage. I felt extremely weak, despite eating two of my own Clifbars and one of Spencers. Calories weren’t the problem, maybe it was the heat? I did drink five water bottles during the span of our ride. Who knows… getting sick of being weak. Thanks to Spencer and Jen for an awesome dinner at Pupusas (sp?), first real dinner in a few days.
Sunday:
Last long ride before the criterium in Dillon (9000ft) coming up on Saturday, Aug. 18th. In an effort to acclimate, I’ve been spending as much time as possible at high altitude. Today’s adventure involved towing a B.O.B. trailer up to Ward on up to Brainard Lake. Finally feeling stronger. Kept a good pace all the way up. Passed people, actually, wasn’t really expecting to. Will and I hid our bikes in the woods up at Brainard, changed into hiking clothes and shoes and hiked up to the tree line in search of mushrooms. I bonked somewhere around 11 or 12,000ft. In my dizzy, oxygen-deprived stumble up some mountain I managed to collect a basket full of boletes and scaly tooths (Teeth?). Between the two of us, I think we gathered somewhere around 20-25 pounds of fungus. I dragged my feet down a really steep mountain, tripping and kicking rocks and roots, and eventually made it back to my bike where a Clifbar awaited my consumption. Ran out of water completely, no big deal though, all downhill to the spring in Ward. Beautiful day in general. Feel good about my ride up to Brainard with the trailer, and satisfied with the mushroom hunting. Oh, and by the way, no wonder people hunt pheasants, they have no sense of “fight or flight;” they’re like domestic cats. This pheasant today actually walked with us for a couple hundred meters. The only reason we parted ways was because we made a sharp turn uphill. After the pheasant led us to one of our first boletes of the day, we decided that it was lucky, and that to hunt it would be extremely unlucky. I’d like to go back up to Brainard before September with a tent, fishing pole, and woven basket, and eat sautéed fish and mushrooms for dinner every night.
As I sit here, I’ve got a face full of sunburn, a stomach full of freshly cooked mushrooms and pasta, and maybe a hint of hope that my energy will return for Saturday’s race at 9000 feet.
A week(end) to go down in the books... despite being totally exhausted.
Tuesday:
Not really the best week ever, some bad lows and good highs. Tuesday’s Bus Stop ride was horrible. The wind was blowing from the northwest pretty hard, and I was on the west side of the pack while heading north, which means I was catching a lot of wind, especially because I’m ten-feet tall. Wait wait wait… let me start over. As you may remember from the last Weekend Close, I had just finished up a long week and weekend of riding. However, I didn’t give myself much rest afterward. I went to bed pretty late on Sunday night for numerous reasons, one of them being that I was anxious about my stolen bike. Monday night, I stayed up late working on a Road Ragin’ piece for VeloNews. I wouldn’t have stayed up that late if I had finished gathering sources over the weekend, but I was too busy riding, and besides, the rider I interviewed (which I will keep disclosed for now) didn’t come back to town until Monday anyway. On Tuesday, I woke up early and went straight to the couch, where I sat working on another VN piece until 4:30pm, at which point I fried up some eggs, threw on the chamois, and raced up to the Bus Stop for some hardcore, shaved, spandex action.
Back to the wind. So… it was really windy, I couldn’t get a good draft (which shouldn’t have mattered) but I got totally blown before we even got to Lyons. I tried to catch on when they came out of the Fruit Loops but I failed. Regardless, I went into TT mode and chased anyway. They didn’t gain much on me until I cracked heading south on 75th, at which point I caught Tom (ex-Full Cycle dude) and Alex Howes (sp?) of Slipstream-Chipotle. Alex had a very good excuse for falling off the back, he had a bruise the size of a watermelon on the inside of his leg from smashing into a car at 40 mph. He had been pedaling pretty much entirely with his left leg, not bad. That night, I stayed up until 6:45am the next morning working on a VN piece.
Thursday:
Ugh. The plan was to do 1:30 x 15-20 sprints. The reality: me soft-pedaling for two hours while I struggled to make it to Jamestown. Meanwhile, Spencer and Garrick were really bored and doing circles around me. After descending back to 36, and after I refused to climb Olde Stage, I really hit a low in my energy. I wasn’t bonked, hungry, or dehydrated (maybe a little dehydrated actually), I just couldn’t ride my bike. After we got up that little dip by the Neva Rd exit I just wanted to get off my bike and sit down, or walk. I couldn’t get my heart rate up, or my breathing. I tried on the way up to Jamestown and I tried heading back to Boulder, but no matter how hard I tried the result was burning in my legs and frustration.
I asked Mr. Neal Rogers about my riding performance, which I was beginning to make a habit of, and he attributed low energy to three main things: 1. Lack of sleep, 2. Lack of food, 3. Dehydration. It made me feel better to hear this because all three applied to my case. I had been eating old bagels that I got for free off the street for three days; I hadn’t been sleeping; and my lips were super chapped from dehydration. Not to mention two full days on the couch after a long weekend of riding, surprised I didn’t get a blood clot.
Friday:
Rode my Waltworks fixed gear after getting it back the night before, beautiful.
Saturday:
Same old ride up to Raymond on over to Brainard Lake. New addition to the ride was Nick. He did very well for his first time up to the Peak-to-peak, as far as I know. He seemed to be doing fine on the last tough climb after Raymond when Spencer and I decided to go on to Brainard, while Mike, Heather, and Nick went down through Jamestown. I still felt exhausted, pretty worthless. I had a couple good strong efforts, but I couldn’t recover and was fully bonked by the time we reached the base of the road up to Brainard. Spencer is 10 times stronger than he was two weeks ago. He was dragging me along for the ride all the way up to the gate and beyond. Eventually we pulled over to look for mushrooms, no luck—just a lost cleat cover, wet socks, and cold knees. Spencer continued to drag me through the Brainard Lake loop, down through Ward and up the backside of Olde Stage. I felt extremely weak, despite eating two of my own Clifbars and one of Spencers. Calories weren’t the problem, maybe it was the heat? I did drink five water bottles during the span of our ride. Who knows… getting sick of being weak. Thanks to Spencer and Jen for an awesome dinner at Pupusas (sp?), first real dinner in a few days.
Sunday:
Last long ride before the criterium in Dillon (9000ft) coming up on Saturday, Aug. 18th. In an effort to acclimate, I’ve been spending as much time as possible at high altitude. Today’s adventure involved towing a B.O.B. trailer up to Ward on up to Brainard Lake. Finally feeling stronger. Kept a good pace all the way up. Passed people, actually, wasn’t really expecting to. Will and I hid our bikes in the woods up at Brainard, changed into hiking clothes and shoes and hiked up to the tree line in search of mushrooms. I bonked somewhere around 11 or 12,000ft. In my dizzy, oxygen-deprived stumble up some mountain I managed to collect a basket full of boletes and scaly tooths (Teeth?). Between the two of us, I think we gathered somewhere around 20-25 pounds of fungus. I dragged my feet down a really steep mountain, tripping and kicking rocks and roots, and eventually made it back to my bike where a Clifbar awaited my consumption. Ran out of water completely, no big deal though, all downhill to the spring in Ward. Beautiful day in general. Feel good about my ride up to Brainard with the trailer, and satisfied with the mushroom hunting. Oh, and by the way, no wonder people hunt pheasants, they have no sense of “fight or flight;” they’re like domestic cats. This pheasant today actually walked with us for a couple hundred meters. The only reason we parted ways was because we made a sharp turn uphill. After the pheasant led us to one of our first boletes of the day, we decided that it was lucky, and that to hunt it would be extremely unlucky. I’d like to go back up to Brainard before September with a tent, fishing pole, and woven basket, and eat sautéed fish and mushrooms for dinner every night.
As I sit here, I’ve got a face full of sunburn, a stomach full of freshly cooked mushrooms and pasta, and maybe a hint of hope that my energy will return for Saturday’s race at 9000 feet.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Reclaimed!
by RobbieTom LeCarner, a fellow VeloNews employee spotted my bike on Pearl Street tonight. The bike was leaned against a bathroom entrance while a guy stood next to it.
Tom asked, "Is this your bike?"
and the guy said, "no."
And then Tom said, "Well I know who it belongs to." At that moment he took it from the wall and rolled it back to his car.
Once he started driving he gave me a call, best damn call this year.
He dropped it off shortly after. The seat was dropped all the way down to the frame. There are a few new scratches in the paint and through the stickers, but that is trivial in comparison to the joy I felt upon seeing my bike again.
Lesson learned: Don't leave your bike unlocked anywhere, ever. And, if it still manages to get stolen, spread the word to as many people as you can, because maybe, just maybe, it might be spotted as mine was.
Tom asked, "Is this your bike?"
and the guy said, "no."
And then Tom said, "Well I know who it belongs to." At that moment he took it from the wall and rolled it back to his car.
Once he started driving he gave me a call, best damn call this year.
He dropped it off shortly after. The seat was dropped all the way down to the frame. There are a few new scratches in the paint and through the stickers, but that is trivial in comparison to the joy I felt upon seeing my bike again.
Lesson learned: Don't leave your bike unlocked anywhere, ever. And, if it still manages to get stolen, spread the word to as many people as you can, because maybe, just maybe, it might be spotted as mine was.
Monday, August 6, 2007
Weekend Close
by Robbie
Saturday:
Long day in a new chamois, and a long day in the saddle in general. To begin, we did the Lyons-Raymond-Peak to Peak-Brainard Lake-Ward... ride. The ride started out with Will Stewart, Spencer Sator, Kevin Selker, and Heather Unger. I had my usual pre-ride meal of Spruce Confections' granola bowl with yogurt (and sometimes soy milk) and a cup of coffee, which totally rocks!
The clouds were looking pretty darn ominous considering we were headed up to the peak to peak hwy. Somehow it is always cold up there and often raining, hailing, or snowing. I felt really crappy for the first part of the ride. My new bib was too tight all over the place. It felt like my legs were tied in tourniquets and for some reason the spandex was squeaking around on my seat. This new chamois also professes a “denser chamois” which felt a little too dense at first; I felt like I had a brick between my legs. My right knee was aching and it felt like I was slipping off of my seat so I compensated by pedaling funny. Ugh.
On the way North on 36 Phil Zajicek passed us riding with another Navigator's rider and Mara Abbott--just another day in Boulder...
Kevin and I sprinted to a purple sign and he totally blew me away. We caught up to Phil and Mara after they were stopped at the stoplight coming into Lyons. They were out on a relaxed ride, as were we, but their relaxed pace is a little faster so they disappeared again. Spencer was feeling stronger than he did last week so he took off on the climb up to Raymond. Eventually Will decided to chase, and then much later Kevin decided to chase. The way that Spencer recapped the events was that Will and Spencer were taking turns pulling just to be gentlemanly, but when Kevin caught up and pulled away they had to draft each other to keep from falling off the back. Eventually we reconvened at the Raymond general store. Phil, Mara, and Fred Dreier were also hanging out up there. They went their way and we followed suit shortly after.
I put in an effort heading up the final pitch up to the peak to peak. My legs felt pretty dead though, I wasn’t experiencing any of that “weightlessness” I mentioned last week. It was another one of those rides (which I keep having) where I swear my brakes are rubbing or my tires are flat; neither of which have been true yet. Another ugh. We continued on the peak to peak until the Brainard Lake turn-off, at which Kevin and Heather headed down through Ward and Will, Spencer, and I headed upward.
Spencer, though much stronger already than last week was suffering on the way up to Brainard. The way I look at training is that it improves your ability to continuously burn matches through out the day. Without training we all have a match or two to burn, it usually goes out after any big effort. Spencer had about twice as many matches than last week, but they ran out somewhere on the road to Brainard. He eventually told us that he’d wait at the spring in Ward. Will and I continued riding and paid $1 to do the Brainard Lake loop.
Then we rode downhill for like 40 minutes and my back hurt. The End.
Sunday:
Rode 5 hours with VeloNews crew and Mr. Zajicek. Flatted coming down from Gold Hill to Lefthand, pinched tube with tire iron, Fred had to lend me another one. Had to chase group up the Ward Wall. Ate a Clifbar. Rode fast up to Brainard. Phil sprinted past at like 25mph uphill and taunted Fred, I tried to catch on but failed. Rode solo up to the pay station. Rode the Brainard Lake loop. I suck at descending so I had to ride really hard to catch Fred and Phil down on Lefthand. Then Phil did another crazy sprint up the backside of Lee Hill and disappeared. Meanwhile I had already bonked and was zigzagging. I ran out of water and ate a goo, but it got all stuck in my mouth. When I could breathe again I pushed my pedals harder until I caught up to Fred and Phil, who had been soft-pedaling for a mile to let me catch up. Then they went really fast on the downhill and I was back to chasing. Then I got a mocha at the downtown Spruce Confections. Then I rode up Flagstaff to go to the Zinn 25th anniversary party, where I proceeded to drink beer and stumble around like a zombie. I think I actually descended much faster after putting down a few beers. Long day of ouch.
I found out my Waltworks track bike was stolen when I got home so I rode around for another two hours on the mountain bike, in search of the criminal. I think I started to develop a saddle sore by 8pm or so.
Hope I'll be recovered in time for Tuesday's Bus Stop ride.
Saturday:
Long day in a new chamois, and a long day in the saddle in general. To begin, we did the Lyons-Raymond-Peak to Peak-Brainard Lake-Ward... ride. The ride started out with Will Stewart, Spencer Sator, Kevin Selker, and Heather Unger. I had my usual pre-ride meal of Spruce Confections' granola bowl with yogurt (and sometimes soy milk) and a cup of coffee, which totally rocks!
The clouds were looking pretty darn ominous considering we were headed up to the peak to peak hwy. Somehow it is always cold up there and often raining, hailing, or snowing. I felt really crappy for the first part of the ride. My new bib was too tight all over the place. It felt like my legs were tied in tourniquets and for some reason the spandex was squeaking around on my seat. This new chamois also professes a “denser chamois” which felt a little too dense at first; I felt like I had a brick between my legs. My right knee was aching and it felt like I was slipping off of my seat so I compensated by pedaling funny. Ugh.
On the way North on 36 Phil Zajicek passed us riding with another Navigator's rider and Mara Abbott--just another day in Boulder...
Kevin and I sprinted to a purple sign and he totally blew me away. We caught up to Phil and Mara after they were stopped at the stoplight coming into Lyons. They were out on a relaxed ride, as were we, but their relaxed pace is a little faster so they disappeared again. Spencer was feeling stronger than he did last week so he took off on the climb up to Raymond. Eventually Will decided to chase, and then much later Kevin decided to chase. The way that Spencer recapped the events was that Will and Spencer were taking turns pulling just to be gentlemanly, but when Kevin caught up and pulled away they had to draft each other to keep from falling off the back. Eventually we reconvened at the Raymond general store. Phil, Mara, and Fred Dreier were also hanging out up there. They went their way and we followed suit shortly after.
I put in an effort heading up the final pitch up to the peak to peak. My legs felt pretty dead though, I wasn’t experiencing any of that “weightlessness” I mentioned last week. It was another one of those rides (which I keep having) where I swear my brakes are rubbing or my tires are flat; neither of which have been true yet. Another ugh. We continued on the peak to peak until the Brainard Lake turn-off, at which Kevin and Heather headed down through Ward and Will, Spencer, and I headed upward.
Spencer, though much stronger already than last week was suffering on the way up to Brainard. The way I look at training is that it improves your ability to continuously burn matches through out the day. Without training we all have a match or two to burn, it usually goes out after any big effort. Spencer had about twice as many matches than last week, but they ran out somewhere on the road to Brainard. He eventually told us that he’d wait at the spring in Ward. Will and I continued riding and paid $1 to do the Brainard Lake loop.
Then we rode downhill for like 40 minutes and my back hurt. The End.
Sunday:
Rode 5 hours with VeloNews crew and Mr. Zajicek. Flatted coming down from Gold Hill to Lefthand, pinched tube with tire iron, Fred had to lend me another one. Had to chase group up the Ward Wall. Ate a Clifbar. Rode fast up to Brainard. Phil sprinted past at like 25mph uphill and taunted Fred, I tried to catch on but failed. Rode solo up to the pay station. Rode the Brainard Lake loop. I suck at descending so I had to ride really hard to catch Fred and Phil down on Lefthand. Then Phil did another crazy sprint up the backside of Lee Hill and disappeared. Meanwhile I had already bonked and was zigzagging. I ran out of water and ate a goo, but it got all stuck in my mouth. When I could breathe again I pushed my pedals harder until I caught up to Fred and Phil, who had been soft-pedaling for a mile to let me catch up. Then they went really fast on the downhill and I was back to chasing. Then I got a mocha at the downtown Spruce Confections. Then I rode up Flagstaff to go to the Zinn 25th anniversary party, where I proceeded to drink beer and stumble around like a zombie. I think I actually descended much faster after putting down a few beers. Long day of ouch.
I found out my Waltworks track bike was stolen when I got home so I rode around for another two hours on the mountain bike, in search of the criminal. I think I started to develop a saddle sore by 8pm or so.
Hope I'll be recovered in time for Tuesday's Bus Stop ride.
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Bike Thieves Beware!
Bike theft is morally wrong on all too many levels. I got back from a five hour ride today and noticed that my custom steel Waltworks track bike was missing. Actually, I noticed this morning that the side-yard gate was open, and I was glad that my dog hadn't been killed by a car, but I didn't notice my missing bike because I was racing to be on time to a ride.
I loved that bike. It has been my longest-lasting bike to date. I'm pretty sure it was the only track frame built by Walt, so it cannot be mistaken. I just put Campy Record cranks onto it, as well as a new Fizik saddle and Profile bull horns.
Pretty upset about it. It was one-of-a-kind. Built specifically for me and my long legs and long arms. The top tube is longer than anything sold on the market, so whoever rides it, expecting a normal 63cm frame, will find that they have to reach further than usual. I hope they develop permanent back problems.
Please keep a lookout for it. Black frame, Waltworks (yellow font), Campy cranks, Mavic cyclo-cross rims, Ritchey stem, Profile Design TT drop bars, MKS road flats and steel cages, Soma double leather straps, Tekro front brake, wine corks stuffed into the handlebar ends.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Saturday's Ride
by Robbie
Saturday:
Long day in a new chamois, and a long day in the saddle in general. To begin, we did the Lyons-Raymond-Peak to Peak-Brainard Lake-Ward... ride. The ride started out with Will Stewart, Spencer Sator, Kevin Selker, and Heather Unger. I had my usual pre-ride meal of Spruce Confections' granola bowl with yogurt (and sometimes soy milk) and a cup of coffee, which totally rocks! The clouds were looking pretty darn ominous considering we were headed up to the peak to peak hwy. Somehow it is always cold up there and often raining, hailing, or snowing. On the way North on 36 Phil Zajicek passed us riding with another Navigator's rider and Mara Abbott--just another day in Boulder... Kevin and I sprinted to a purple sign and he totally blew me away. We caught up to Phil and Mara after they were stopped at the stoplight coming into Lyons. They were out on a relaxed ride, as were we, but their relaxed pace is a little faster so they disappeared again. Spencer was feeling stronger than he did last week so he took off on the climb up to Raymond. Eventually Will decided to chase
Saturday:
Long day in a new chamois, and a long day in the saddle in general. To begin, we did the Lyons-Raymond-Peak to Peak-Brainard Lake-Ward... ride. The ride started out with Will Stewart, Spencer Sator, Kevin Selker, and Heather Unger. I had my usual pre-ride meal of Spruce Confections' granola bowl with yogurt (and sometimes soy milk) and a cup of coffee, which totally rocks! The clouds were looking pretty darn ominous considering we were headed up to the peak to peak hwy. Somehow it is always cold up there and often raining, hailing, or snowing. On the way North on 36 Phil Zajicek passed us riding with another Navigator's rider and Mara Abbott--just another day in Boulder... Kevin and I sprinted to a purple sign and he totally blew me away. We caught up to Phil and Mara after they were stopped at the stoplight coming into Lyons. They were out on a relaxed ride, as were we, but their relaxed pace is a little faster so they disappeared again. Spencer was feeling stronger than he did last week so he took off on the climb up to Raymond. Eventually Will decided to chase
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