Casey at Niwot! Just a good guy!
Friday, August 31, 2007
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
TV TIME?
Its a race!
....and Im winning!
In the big leagues, team directors will send riders off the front at the start of a race with no ambition of winning the race. The sole purpose is to get their sponsors TV Time.
At the Copper Mountain Criterium, I was getting my sponsor some TV time, unfortunately there was no TV, and it appears I didn't get very far off the front, and the only person that told me to do it was the little voice in my head. I could have sworn I was wearing a race radio, because he kept saying, YOU CAN DO IT. That little director often gets me in trouble when I listen to him.
Monday, August 27, 2007
I LOVE FREE STUFF!
I received a free lap in Sundays Niwot Criterium, unfortunately it was not exactly free. The price was one pair of bike shorts, a nice hip pointer, and a gouge in my right elbow.
About 15 minutes into the SM3's race the heavens opened up on us, but i'll get to that.
After a nice talk with my coach regarding my recent racing strategies, err I thing the term that was used was "stupid racing", I was making a serious effort to play smarter than in the last couple of races and maintaining position from 2nd to 5th wheel, rather than pulling the field around. This was a very technical course with 7 corners, two of which were greater than 90 degrees. I found out quickly that any position beyond 5th was too much work coming out of the corners so I decided make the effort and stay at the front, where it was still fast, but a much smoother and even pace. Sprinting 7 times a lap out of the corners is absolutely no fun, and can lead to brain damage due to lack of oxygen, and lactic acid buildup, and I can not afford to lose any more brain cells as you all might know. So, there we were, making circles, the pace was high, but not hold your puke back high, and all of a sudden the sky opened up. The first couple laps were a little interesting. Going from dry pavement one second to soaked asphalt the next required some creative cornering. In other words, hold on we going for a ride. Wheels slide even when you are cautious, manhole covers are like ice, even the striping on the pavement is slicker than @#$%. This combination with a pack of guys that are not afraid to take chance is a recipe for disaster. But, I was extremely surprised when the group throttled the racing back to reasonably fast, with brief periods of cautious. Well, that is until about 4 laps into the down pour when through the 2nd corner I lost traction in my front wheel. I had taken the same line through that corner the previous 3 laps with only a slight slip on the first just after the rain started. I had even backed it off more than the previous laps, as it was getting very slick. After sliding to a stop, I picked up the pieces, counted my fingers and toes, and checked for broken bones. Nope, nothing broken, shorts are shredded on the right hip, and the road rash isnt too bad. Hmm, elbow, ahh, there's a problem, a dime size hole spewing the red stuff, not so bad Ive had worse as a kid. The corner marshal held my bike I slipped the chain back on and I spun through the gears, and all was fine. I was standing there bleeding, sore, and pissed, thinking "man I was having a great ride". Then all of a sudden out of nowhere I had a moment of clarity, ok, lets not sugar coat it, I pulled my head out of my ass. I had to get back to the start, I had a free lap to use. I jumped on my bike and rode the gutter edge of the course backwards to the start, just hoping I would make it back in time to not go down a lap. The whole way back to the start, I was thinking, Im still in this thing. I got to the start finish, rolling by the Cheif Referee, showing my blood soaked elbow, and with no questions he just pointed to the pit area, and gave a encouraging "get to the pit". The guy in the pit asked if the bike was OK, we spun the gears again, and I was good to go. A quick clip in and a push when the lead moto passed and I was back in business. SWEEEEEET, right back where I was before I went down. RACE ON!
Now, the guys in the front hadnt changed, what had changed was that I had crashed, and I think they smelled, or could see blood. The next couple of laps there were quite a few attacks at the front where I was sitting, and it was quite an effort to maintain position. Another thing that had changed was the field, we were a 10 man break, wayyyy off the front of the main field. Apparently there were 7 crashes during the rain, which had now stopped and the field had been shredded. I had no idea we had pulled off like that, until during one lap I heard the announcer shout "this field has been blown to pieces". Well, cool, and next lap what do you know, as we hit the front straight towards the figure 8 portion of the course, where you can see the back straight, there was the main part of the field, a whole 1/2 a lap down. The pace however didnt let down, there were a number of attacks in our break, but it held together. With 3 laps to go I found myself in the familiar position of pulling the break. So I attempted to ease back and allow a couple guys by, but the guys in the break had other ideas, and jumped me. I lost 8 positions, and with 2 laps to go on this type of course, that was too much. The last 2 laps were super fast, and there was absolutely no where, or break in the pace to make up my lost ground. I ended up 8th in the sprint. Damn, but hey I finally broke the top ten in the 3's, and again I learned a lot about racing. Man life is good, my ars is sore, but life is good.
I received a free lap in Sundays Niwot Criterium, unfortunately it was not exactly free. The price was one pair of bike shorts, a nice hip pointer, and a gouge in my right elbow.
About 15 minutes into the SM3's race the heavens opened up on us, but i'll get to that.
After a nice talk with my coach regarding my recent racing strategies, err I thing the term that was used was "stupid racing", I was making a serious effort to play smarter than in the last couple of races and maintaining position from 2nd to 5th wheel, rather than pulling the field around. This was a very technical course with 7 corners, two of which were greater than 90 degrees. I found out quickly that any position beyond 5th was too much work coming out of the corners so I decided make the effort and stay at the front, where it was still fast, but a much smoother and even pace. Sprinting 7 times a lap out of the corners is absolutely no fun, and can lead to brain damage due to lack of oxygen, and lactic acid buildup, and I can not afford to lose any more brain cells as you all might know. So, there we were, making circles, the pace was high, but not hold your puke back high, and all of a sudden the sky opened up. The first couple laps were a little interesting. Going from dry pavement one second to soaked asphalt the next required some creative cornering. In other words, hold on we going for a ride. Wheels slide even when you are cautious, manhole covers are like ice, even the striping on the pavement is slicker than @#$%. This combination with a pack of guys that are not afraid to take chance is a recipe for disaster. But, I was extremely surprised when the group throttled the racing back to reasonably fast, with brief periods of cautious. Well, that is until about 4 laps into the down pour when through the 2nd corner I lost traction in my front wheel. I had taken the same line through that corner the previous 3 laps with only a slight slip on the first just after the rain started. I had even backed it off more than the previous laps, as it was getting very slick. After sliding to a stop, I picked up the pieces, counted my fingers and toes, and checked for broken bones. Nope, nothing broken, shorts are shredded on the right hip, and the road rash isnt too bad. Hmm, elbow, ahh, there's a problem, a dime size hole spewing the red stuff, not so bad Ive had worse as a kid. The corner marshal held my bike I slipped the chain back on and I spun through the gears, and all was fine. I was standing there bleeding, sore, and pissed, thinking "man I was having a great ride". Then all of a sudden out of nowhere I had a moment of clarity, ok, lets not sugar coat it, I pulled my head out of my ass. I had to get back to the start, I had a free lap to use. I jumped on my bike and rode the gutter edge of the course backwards to the start, just hoping I would make it back in time to not go down a lap. The whole way back to the start, I was thinking, Im still in this thing. I got to the start finish, rolling by the Cheif Referee, showing my blood soaked elbow, and with no questions he just pointed to the pit area, and gave a encouraging "get to the pit". The guy in the pit asked if the bike was OK, we spun the gears again, and I was good to go. A quick clip in and a push when the lead moto passed and I was back in business. SWEEEEEET, right back where I was before I went down. RACE ON!
Now, the guys in the front hadnt changed, what had changed was that I had crashed, and I think they smelled, or could see blood. The next couple of laps there were quite a few attacks at the front where I was sitting, and it was quite an effort to maintain position. Another thing that had changed was the field, we were a 10 man break, wayyyy off the front of the main field. Apparently there were 7 crashes during the rain, which had now stopped and the field had been shredded. I had no idea we had pulled off like that, until during one lap I heard the announcer shout "this field has been blown to pieces". Well, cool, and next lap what do you know, as we hit the front straight towards the figure 8 portion of the course, where you can see the back straight, there was the main part of the field, a whole 1/2 a lap down. The pace however didnt let down, there were a number of attacks in our break, but it held together. With 3 laps to go I found myself in the familiar position of pulling the break. So I attempted to ease back and allow a couple guys by, but the guys in the break had other ideas, and jumped me. I lost 8 positions, and with 2 laps to go on this type of course, that was too much. The last 2 laps were super fast, and there was absolutely no where, or break in the pace to make up my lost ground. I ended up 8th in the sprint. Damn, but hey I finally broke the top ten in the 3's, and again I learned a lot about racing. Man life is good, my ars is sore, but life is good.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
To Attack, or Not to Attack, that is the Question.
Dillon Crit, I spent the race, attacking, and covering breaks. I went into the final turns 5th wheel, to get squeezed by an "Inside Guy" that took me to the outside curb. One tap of the brakes and from 5th to 11th. That's racing.
So today was the Copper Mtn Crit, this was probably one of the best courses I have raced ever. Power climb, through 10' wide Pave up the Village, the heart of Copper Village, and a screaming 11T descent. Again, I probably spent too much time at the front. I lauched a couple of attacks, and tried to bridge to a little break, then saved the rest of the bullets. With just over 2 laps to go, my team mate Jared pulled through at the front I hopped his wheel and rode him to the base of the climb, where I pulled through and started drilling it. I was hoping to keep it strung out to the finish, so the big guys didnt have the chance to wined it up from behind, unfortunately I died with about 2/3's of a lap to go. That turned out to be a little to far from the finish for JRAD. Hey we went big, its better than not trying. I'd much rather make a race of it than sit around for a sprint finish. Now we know, and next time we attack the field just a little later. I'm still learning what my limits are, and that was a great test today.
By the way, you know you got great teammates when a guy gives you his prime for throwing it on the line. OOOO man this is just starting to get fun. I cant wait till next weekend!
Dillon Crit, I spent the race, attacking, and covering breaks. I went into the final turns 5th wheel, to get squeezed by an "Inside Guy" that took me to the outside curb. One tap of the brakes and from 5th to 11th. That's racing.
So today was the Copper Mtn Crit, this was probably one of the best courses I have raced ever. Power climb, through 10' wide Pave up the Village, the heart of Copper Village, and a screaming 11T descent. Again, I probably spent too much time at the front. I lauched a couple of attacks, and tried to bridge to a little break, then saved the rest of the bullets. With just over 2 laps to go, my team mate Jared pulled through at the front I hopped his wheel and rode him to the base of the climb, where I pulled through and started drilling it. I was hoping to keep it strung out to the finish, so the big guys didnt have the chance to wined it up from behind, unfortunately I died with about 2/3's of a lap to go. That turned out to be a little to far from the finish for JRAD. Hey we went big, its better than not trying. I'd much rather make a race of it than sit around for a sprint finish. Now we know, and next time we attack the field just a little later. I'm still learning what my limits are, and that was a great test today.
By the way, you know you got great teammates when a guy gives you his prime for throwing it on the line. OOOO man this is just starting to get fun. I cant wait till next weekend!
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Shuffling the Deck
I guess I just needed a change. Is it the right thing to do, is it to soon, is it to late, should I, shouldn't I, why am I really doing this, is it a mistake, should I have done it sooner, should I do it later? I HATE CHANGE. Its some scary stuff. The unknown, and the future is something we have absolutely no control over and I hate not having control over something. Hey, I work on the control thing daily, and I know I don't have control over almost everything, but its still scary stuff. I can just take care of my end and the rest will fall into place the way it is supposed to, like it or not.
Whats the change? Nothing big, I just changed coaches................but, my gut tells me there are some bigger changes around the corner.
I guess I just needed a change. Is it the right thing to do, is it to soon, is it to late, should I, shouldn't I, why am I really doing this, is it a mistake, should I have done it sooner, should I do it later? I HATE CHANGE. Its some scary stuff. The unknown, and the future is something we have absolutely no control over and I hate not having control over something. Hey, I work on the control thing daily, and I know I don't have control over almost everything, but its still scary stuff. I can just take care of my end and the rest will fall into place the way it is supposed to, like it or not.
Whats the change? Nothing big, I just changed coaches................but, my gut tells me there are some bigger changes around the corner.
Monday, August 06, 2007
Mentally Screwing Myself
I feel so used and dirty. I swear if I can figure out how to stay out of my own way, I might be dangerous on the bike someday. This weekend it was back to racing after a little break, and man it was fun again. Saturday, I rolled the Fed Center Circut Race, nice technical course, with a gradual climb on the back side. I felt descent, but didn't quite have the race snap in the legs. It was a good day getting back into things. Sunday was the Bannock St. Criterium, I had never raced this course, and everyone I talked to said it was a blast. Well, man it was a blast, 8turn figure 8 crit in down town Denver. It took a couple of laps to warm up, then the legs felt really good, spent the day sitting in the top 10, unfortunately 5 guys got off the front right from the gun, we reeled in 3, but the other two managed to get out of sight, game over when that happens. There was absolutely no cooperation going on in the field. At one point there was a break of 4 guys that got off the front, a team had a guy in the break, and was blocking for them. I managed to get around the rolling roadblock, and bridge up to the break. That pissed off the guys blocking for their team mate, and decided to chase me down and in doing so towed the field up to the break. Why do you chase down a single rider bridging up to a break, and in essence chase down your own guy? I attempted a leadout for Lance, for a Tokyo Joes prime, but he got nipped at the line. I managed a 2up prime later in the race. With four laps to go It seemed like a good time go get the pace up so there wouldn't be a mass sprint for 3rd (there were still 2 guys off the front and they weren't going to be caught). I towed the field around for 3/4's of a lap, and no one would pull through. So frustrated I sat up, and sat up hard. However by doing so I decreased my pace enough that about 30 guys rolled around me to the left. Why did I do that? I could have been sitting very nicely for the finish, instead I had to work my way back up into position the final 3 laps, and with 3 to go the guys weren't exactly going to slow down for me. I managed to work my way up to 19th for the finish. A lot of work during the race to mentally blow it in the end. I guess I needed to do that so I wouldn't make that mistake in the future. Looks like there are more lessons to be learned, cool.
I feel so used and dirty. I swear if I can figure out how to stay out of my own way, I might be dangerous on the bike someday. This weekend it was back to racing after a little break, and man it was fun again. Saturday, I rolled the Fed Center Circut Race, nice technical course, with a gradual climb on the back side. I felt descent, but didn't quite have the race snap in the legs. It was a good day getting back into things. Sunday was the Bannock St. Criterium, I had never raced this course, and everyone I talked to said it was a blast. Well, man it was a blast, 8turn figure 8 crit in down town Denver. It took a couple of laps to warm up, then the legs felt really good, spent the day sitting in the top 10, unfortunately 5 guys got off the front right from the gun, we reeled in 3, but the other two managed to get out of sight, game over when that happens. There was absolutely no cooperation going on in the field. At one point there was a break of 4 guys that got off the front, a team had a guy in the break, and was blocking for them. I managed to get around the rolling roadblock, and bridge up to the break. That pissed off the guys blocking for their team mate, and decided to chase me down and in doing so towed the field up to the break. Why do you chase down a single rider bridging up to a break, and in essence chase down your own guy? I attempted a leadout for Lance, for a Tokyo Joes prime, but he got nipped at the line. I managed a 2up prime later in the race. With four laps to go It seemed like a good time go get the pace up so there wouldn't be a mass sprint for 3rd (there were still 2 guys off the front and they weren't going to be caught). I towed the field around for 3/4's of a lap, and no one would pull through. So frustrated I sat up, and sat up hard. However by doing so I decreased my pace enough that about 30 guys rolled around me to the left. Why did I do that? I could have been sitting very nicely for the finish, instead I had to work my way back up into position the final 3 laps, and with 3 to go the guys weren't exactly going to slow down for me. I managed to work my way up to 19th for the finish. A lot of work during the race to mentally blow it in the end. I guess I needed to do that so I wouldn't make that mistake in the future. Looks like there are more lessons to be learned, cool.
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