Power testing today

Power testing is a good thing, a really good thing. OTOH, it also has drawbacks. #1, it hurts to complete the test. If you are doing it correctly and going all out it should hurt. #2, if everything is working out correctly and your numbers are higher you have to increase your daily training goals which also hurts. I wish there was an easier way to get faster. If anyone has any ideas let me know, I'm open to easier solutions.
So how did my test go? Well, I'm 3% stronger today than I was 1 month ago last time I tested. I guess that is pretty good since I got sick for a week and could barely eat or drink anything for that time. I've been using the same winter training program for the last 3 years so my gains are pretty predictable. I have read an article about a new type of intervals that I'm planning on starting later in the off season that should be helpful when it's time for really hard intervals closer to the start of race season.
I've found that I'm a strange breed of person, for may reasons. The one I'm talking about today is because I'm one of the few people who actually enjoy riding inside on the trainer. It allows me to combine two of my favorite things, riding a bike and watching TV. Anyway, I enjoy it and I'm not afraid to say it;-)

winter updates are slow

I guess it's about time for an update. Nothing really exciting happening right now. Mostly indoor training which is going well. I was sick last week and that really sucked. I had a huge ulcer in the back of my throat and I lived on pudding for about 5 days. My throat is still healing but now I can eat normal food and I'm felling better. I've really started feeling better on the bike. I was finally able to get outside for a ride yesterday and I'll be outside again today. I'm really looking forward to going to Florida in February for some warmer extended outdoor sessions.

the snow is here

I got my first dose of snow yesterday and now I've committed myself to moving back to VA next spring/summer. I hate snow, at least I hate driving in it. I'd love to do a cyclocross race in it but I think this weekend was my last weekend to give it a shot and since I'm not racing it's looking like it may have to be another year. Today was my first 2 hour trainer ride. It was truly a trying task. Being on the trainer for 2 hours is a killer both physically and mentally. Even with the TV to watch and a fan blowing on me it seems like a long time. Florida in February seems like a long time away but maybe I'll make it down there in January for some out long outdoor training;-)

2009 season starts now

My 2009 season started today with a one hour trainer ride after a month off of the bike. That was a long time off after going more than two years without missing back to back days on the bike.
So today I was back on the trainer in my parent's basement, the same place where I started my odyssey to try and become a bike racer 5 years ago. For the last two years I've spent the winter doing power based, steady state workouts on the trainer and it has worked out pretty well but this year I'm going to try to add some shorter and more intense intervals to my plan to try and make 2009 a break through year. I'm not even sure what definition I want to use for "break through" but in the coming weeks I'll jot down some ideas and let everyone know how things are progressing. It's good to be back;-)

Ironcross VI

In every race there is a story to be told. No one does this better than my teammate Dirty Mike. I, on the other hand, will just tell it like it is.
My race weekend started on Thursday afternoon when I got off work. This is because I was of Friday-Sunday so I had plenty of time to enjoy the Ironcross race weekend. Things started off on a bad note on Thursday evening when I broke a mirror in my bathroom. Jump ahead to Saturday when I showed up for Ironcross Lite. I went to the registration table to pick up my packet and I was handed #13. Now I'm not superstitious but this was just ridiculous. I really didn't have huge expectations for this race because mass start races and racing off road isn't really a strong point for me and cyclocross has both. I've done cyclocross races before but it never fails to surprise me just how fast these races start. I had a pretty good start and was mid field and starting to settle into a rhythm. It was an awesome course complete with 4 log jumps and a pumpkin orange Cannondale death spiral to go along with the normal cyclocross stuff like barriers and a sand pit. After a few laps and managing to clear all of the logs and not face plant I somehow managed to pinch flat my rear tire when I was sitting my bike down after carrying it over a set of barriers. RACE OVER! That quick I was done. I thought to myself, "this is disappointing but I guess I'll just save my energy for tomorrow." So I went into recovery mode to prepare to put my best foot forward for Ironcross VI on Sunday.
Saturday evening Dirty Mike, Doug Milliken and I went to Olive Garden for dinner and then watched Transition 2: 'Cross the Pond to get pumped up for the next days race. Then it was off to bed early.
Sunday wake up time was 06:00am. Breakfast for me was pancakes. Dirty Mike opted for waffles (I think he was trying to gain some Belgain 'cross magic). Time to head to the race!
The race was staged so that the first group were the past winners of the event and the winners of the Ironcross Lite races. Then came all of the the races who thought they could finish in less than 5 hours. Next it was the races with an approximate finish time of 5-6 hours and the final group were racers with an approximate finish time of >6 hours. The crazy thing about this race is that even though it was >62 miles long it started just as fast as the Ironcross Lite race the day before. I was in a good place at the start and stayed close to DM through the cross course and onto the first section of trail. Then we started up the first big hill and I, of course, crumbled. I stayed steady and caught back up to DM's group on the hill but another acceleration left me in their wake. Then Doug caught me and we joined up and started a paceline to try and catch DM's group and were making good progress when Doug went down in some loose gravel on a tight turn on the downhill road section. I slowed down but he yelled that he was OK and told me to push on. I did but it wasn't long before Doug and a paceline of about 10 strong guys (many of whom were in DM's group and flatted on the first hill/trail) came blowing by me and I was unable to hang on on the series of hills we were on and then once again I was all by myself. I hit the first section of downhill of single track where I was subsequently passed by what seemed like half of the race. I stopped once during the single track and once later on to lend my pump or a tube to racers who had neglected to prepare for the course. Which brings me to my next image of how disappointed I was when I came across DM walking down a hill with a flat tubular clincher tire and no replacement. We refilled it with a CO2 and the tire sealed for a minute but went flat pretty quickly. He told me he was going to walk back to the last checkpoint and I was on my own again but this time it was until the end. I ran out of water soon after passing the final checkpoint and little did I know I still had an hour to ride. I was in pretty bad shape by the end but managed to finish in 5:01:xx. I missed my goal time of no worse than a 5 hour finish but would have made it if I didn't stop to help a few people so I'm OK with it. I arrived at the finish line a few minutes after DM. We had some burittos and coke, then jumped into the lake to cool off and clean up before the drive home. It was a fun day but only now am I realizing how disappointed I am with not being able to do well in mass start races. I'm now starting my month awake from biking. I'm looking for a coach for to work with next season that can help me with this problem. If anyone has any suggestions let me know.

IronMike's Ironcross Death March II

This was m second attempt at IronMike's Ironcross Death March. On the first attempt 3 years ago I had my pedal cross threaded and fell off around 45 minutes into the ride. I was hoping that this time around would go better. Mike had been spending time over the prior 2 weeks planning a course that would closely mimic the actual Ironcross course and hopefully be just a little bit harder.
He did an exquisite job right down to the minor details. There was a little paved road, lots of gravel roads, washed out mud/gravel descents, an awesome excursion onto a new trail sponsored by the folks at TMR. Mike was even nice enough to throw in a nice muddy, wash out "run up", similar to the climbs "Insult" and "Injury" (the two killer power-line climbs in Ironcross) and not only did we get to ride it, when we got done trudging to the top we immediately rode back to the bottom made 3 left turns and did it again just to accurately match Ironcross.
Mike asked me at the beginning of the ride if I considered us to be friends. Of course I answered "yes." Then he said "I hope you still say that at the end of the day." It was an awesome day and great ride. It was one of those epic rides that you talk about for years and everyone wonders how you can remember such miniscule details about a seemingly meaningless training ride. I'm sorry more people couldn't make it out to ride with us. The ride ended up lasting 4.5 hours and included less than 10 feet of flat ground (I think). I just want to take one last second to thank Mike again for planning such a great ride. Great ride, great fun! Now I'm Fast Like Pancakes for Ironcross.

Peanut Butter Festival

Now I realized going in that I haven't been riding my MTB. I mean even less than normal so I was ready to go in with absolutely no technical skills but that is OK since there are none (or next to none) required for this wide open course. I was thinking my fitness could carry me through for a decent finish and that is right when m fitness failed. I do believe that this could be classified as my worst race ever. Even after my 10 hour cramping experience at the Wilderness 101. I had an asthma attack and got lost in this race. I don't understand why it is but when I get on a MT bike it just feels like all of the power is sucked right out of my legs. Oh well, I guess there is always next year. It was cool that Sam got the race win, Rich got third in his age group, and although I'm not completely sure I think I managed to win the "male nurse" category. It was painful and my worst race ever but I'll be back next year.

I was actually pretty happy about how I did on the MTB parts of the course like stream crossings and logs. I didn't have to put a foot down on any of them which is a major accomplishment for me. However not being able to breathe will quickly put an end to chances of doing well in any bike race


And now it's time to reveal............................................................................................................

Ironcross Weaponry

atleast until I save up the $$ for my dream bike

2nd place, State TT championships

During the winter I was sitting in Indiana Cycling and Fitness talking to Rich on a cold snowy day and I told him, "This year I'm actually going to train hard and not just ride a bunch of junk miles." Problem is that is the exact thing I told him last winter and it never happened. Fast forward 9 months and I'm in my top condition and totally prepared for this race. I actually did train this year but how would it all play out. I had a good warm up and I felt ready. I started out into a slight head wind and I could see it reflected in my time. I was 15 seconds slower to the turnaround than when Rich and I had done this course in July. I was really hurting but I guess that's good because it means I was going hard enough. I may even have gone out too hard. On the way back I managed to make up some time and I ended up finishing 30 seconds faster than the TT in July on the same course. I was happy with my time but now came the long wait to see how it compared to the others. Long story short it was good enough (only good enough) for second place. I guess training with a purpose really does pay off. I just like to say thank you to everyone who has helped get me started into racing and all of the knowledge you all have shared. I'd gladly split my metal with all of you but the thing is so small it looks more like a key chain.(Medal shown here larger than actual size)

Nicest looking bike ever!

It's not that great of a picture but I got my hands on the new 2009 Cannondale catalog today and their new cross bike is beautiful. The back is lightning white, the front is patriot blue, it has race red highlights and decals, and the whole thing is high gloss. It's way too pretty to be a cross bike but I love it. If anyone at Cannondale reads this and wants to donate a frameset or a complete bike to me I'll need a size 54 and will do everything in my power to make a good showing on the bike.
Ladies and Gentleman here it is, the Amazing, Exploding Stem. It's adjustable so you have to tighten it enough so the pivot point won't move. The problem is that in trying to do that I had to make it so tight that the bolt snapped in half. I did the same thing to one of the bolts that attaches the faceplate. I guess it's back to the drawing board for this stem design and to the garbage can with this stem.

Giant preview: 2009 TCX

Well, mine will be red instead of blue but the new Hydroformed frame and 1 1/4-1 1/8 headtube looks impressive.

Back on the bike

I was back on the bike today after 2 days off. Sunday I didn't have time to ride between church and work. Then I had to work overtime Sunday night so all I did on Monday was sleep until it was time to go back to work. So today I was back on the bike and it felt great. I did a long ride at a pretty mellow race. This week I'll be tapering for he State Championship ITT this weekend. So it's just a few hard efforts and lots of easy riding.

New Weapon is on the way

I ordered my new cross bike today. I can't wait to put some miles on this thing. I'll post real pics once it arrives.

Nice day for a ride

It was a chilly 67* at the start of the ride but quickly warmed up. I did a fast tempo ride from Mechanicsburg to Ski Roundtop and back.


I always pass this little bike shop on this ride. It's just some guy's garage with 100-150 used bikes (mostly of the walmart variety) outside.

All group rides are not created equal

I showed up at a new group ride tonight. I should have seen bad things coming because of the lack of the usual banter that usually occurs before these rides. We rolled at an easy pace and continued that way for about 7miles and then things started to pick up a little. It still wasn't what you would call a hard ride, just cruising at around 23-24 mph. Then I feel my rear tire get squishy. I signal to the rest of the group that I'm pulling out of the paceline and yell the same so they know my intentions. Well, one of the people in the paceline somewhere behind me yells at me asking "what do you think you're doing?" So I pull off the road to fix my flat. Turns out I ran over a sliver of wire and it went straight through my tire. Anyway, none of these jerks even stopped or asked if I was OK. So, I fixed my tire and luckily I knew where I was and knew how to get back. What a way to welcome a new rider to the group. So I just wanted to say "Thank You!" to all of the people who I have gone on group rides with who are pleasant and helpful. It's people like the ones I rode with tonight who people talk about when they say how roadies are jerks. RANT OFF

Carlisle 40k ITT

Sunday started early @ 5:30am. Even though the TT was only 15 miles from my house My start time was 7:55am so it was still an early day. I was excited because it was my first time using my new Hed Jet disc (I'll review that later). When I was loading my car to leave I remembered that I hadn't put a magnet on the new disc yet so I ran back into the house and grabbed the extra magnet and decided to put it on once I was at the event and got my bike set up on the trainer for my warm up.

I had a good warm up and the conditions were close to perfect. Temps in the mid 60's and almost no wind. The course was an rolling out and back. There were more uphill sections on the way out and then a bit more down hill on the way back. I started out and felt good but every time I looked down it seemed like I was going really slow so I kept pushing harder and harder to try to get up to the speeds I thought I should be reaching. I hit the turn around and was happy to see that it was on a slight uphill so speed wouldn't be a problem and it was sitting at a section of the road with a turning lane on each side so you had 4 lanes to make the u-turn and carry some speed. This was especially good for me since I'm usually the guy you see locking up his brakes and power sliding around the cone. I looked at my speedo at the turn around and it was 28:xx. I wasn't really sure how this was possible with the speeds I was seeing on my way out.

I started my back to the finish and felt fast but my speeds still looked low. Then I realized that the magnet wasn't registering every time it passed the computer sensor, only like 2 out of 3 times. I was truly turning myself inside out and I was really hurting. When I passed the 35k mark I turned up the pace a bit more and then at 3k I went all out. I was really happy the final 1k had only a small rise and then a gentle down slope to the finish because I was spent.
I finished with a 0:54:37. The only reason I can imagine for this good time was that my computer had tricked me into going out extra hard on the slightly uphill section of the course and then I kept pushing hard on the final half of the course.

Wilderness 101 (my worst day on a bike, ever!)

There are a lot of things I could say about this race. It was a beautiful day for a race 85 degrees and not a cloud to be seen. Mike had convinced me that this race had enough gravel roads that I might be able to finish in around 10 hours. So, 10 miles/hour for 10 hours, I can do that. At least that’s what I thought. We got started at 0712 and I was excited to get started. I was feeling strong and not starting out too hard. Everything was feeling good until 0900 when I got my first leg cramp of the day. Things went down hill from there. Between checkpoint 1 and 2 is where Mark Nicoll caught me for the first time. I heard someone behind me shouting “hello pretty lady” and then BOOM! For a second I thought we were riding through a hunting area or something until I realized that it was Mark’s tire. After my first cramp all I could do was soft pedal up hills in my granny gear. I managed to make it to checkpoint #2 and refuel with hopes that I would start feeling better.

When you leave checkpoint #2 there is a hill that seems to keep going forever. I don’t know how long it really was but I heard someone say 6 miles and it felt like it. I was really starting to hurt at that point and I couldn’t even make it up the hill soft pedaling and had get off of the bike and walk several times. It was on the following downhill, single track section that Mark caught and passed me for the last time. I arrived at checkpoint #3 at the 60 mile mark in 6 hours. I was hurting but I figured I was still making pretty good time so I grabbed a hearty snack of some orange slices, apple slices, half a banana, and some gummy fish. I refilled my water and I was gone. The way I had things figured I needed to save time and hurry through the rest stops because moving forward slowly is better than not at all and it may make the difference between me finishing and being pulled out of the race.

This is the point where my race started to get really long and really started to spiral downhill and out of control. The hill leading out of checkpoint #3 was the only quasi-technical uphill that I can remember in the whole course. It’s too bad that I only rode about 150 feet of it before I was off my bike and cramping for the rest of the climb. After the climb there was some relatively easy and nice flowing single track but once again I was cramping too bad to ride any of it. From this point on it was all about walking up hills and coasting down. The only good thing about this was that I figured that I needed to make up time on the descents and I did this by simply refusing to use my brakes. It greatly improved my descending ability and speed. Most of the journey from checkpoint 3 to checkpoint 4 was a blur deep in the pain cave. I thought about quitting a lot during this time. After covering 60 miles in the first 6 hours I only covered 15 miles in the next 3 hours on my way to checkpoint #4. I ran out of water a couple miles before I arrived at the checkpoint. Luckily for me from the time I was out of water until I arrived at checkpoint 4 it was all flat and down hill. When I finally reached the short downhill road section leading up to checkpoint 4 I was relieved to finally have a break and figured I could recover a little. I got on my bike and started pedaling easily down the hill. Then I cramped in my left leg and had to unclip and only pedal with my right leg so my left one wouldn’t seize up. I finally arrived at checkpoint 4 at 1600. I refueled on apples, gummy fish and as much salty food as I could get my hands on. Once again I tried to make it a quick stop to avoid missing a cutoff time.

When I left checkpoint 4 I coasted the rest of the way to the bottom of the hill and then cramped as soon as I saw the next large climb that lay ahead. I spent the next 40 minutes walking up that hill. I stopped walking a few times and tried to get on my bike but my legs seized up when I tried to lift them over the bike. I don’t really remember much of what else happened between checkpoint 4 and checkpoint 5. I only remember lots of cramping and hoping that the cramping would stop. I managed to make it from checkpoint 4 to checkpoint 5 in a little over 2 hours.

I arrived at checkpoint 5 (final checkpoint) and my spirits were instantly lifted. At the checkpoint I filled up with 4 endurolyte capsules and more gummy fish. I must admit that I’ve never used them nor did I read the directions (great healthcare professional that I am) but I just wanted lots of anything that may help me stop cramping. Then I asked one of the aid station attendants about the remaining 12 miles. His reply, “it’s an easy trip from here on in, except the big hill.” It didn’t really matter because whether it was the excitement of finishing or the endurolytes I was flying out of checkpoint 5. I was in my biggest gear and flying. I was able to pull back everyone who had passed me coming out of checkpoint 4 by the middle of the last climb and from there on I was on my own. My legs were finally functioning again and I was able to pedal again. On the final flat section to the finish I was pushing hard and I started to cramp again as I was hitting the finish line. I fell over right after finishing and lay on the ground with both legs cramping again, but it was OK. I had made it through and I’d like to think that all of the day’s adversity has somehow made me a stronger person, but it’s been said that adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals it. On that note I’d like to say thank you to everyone who has done their part of torturing me and helping me complete this.

Random thoughts during the race:

1) I’m quitting at 1900 no matter what, I figured Mike told me I’d be done by 1700 so why should I keep going after that

2) If I quit and don’t complete this I may have the urge to do it again someday just to see if I can do it

3) I really miss my grandma who died 4 years ago, she wouldn’t want me to quit

4) I’m selling my mountain bike once this is over

5) If I sell my mountain bike I’ll just want to buy another one and why would I ever want to buy another mountain bike

6) I’ve still only got 2 testicles (you’ll have to ask Mike if you want to know the story behind this)

7) I’m going on a diet

*If this sounds like rambling and doesn’t make sense that is because my thoughts were jumbled during the race and they didn’t make sense then either.

**If any of my descriptions of the course or events described are incorrect it’s because I was delirious.

New WMD!

Competition beware, I've reloaded!

UPMC 10 mile ITT

It was a great day for a race and a great showing by all. Here are just some of the pics I got from the race. Sorry I missed some of you but I obviously couldn't take many pics while I was riding and my photographer was only taking pictures of me. Great job one and all!

20 mile ITT at Washington BVLD

We had a good team showing. 4 of the 12 people who showed up were AG3R/Indianacycling.com riders. It was muggy and rain was threatening the whole time but never came. I started really well but started to feel the effort at the 13 mile mark. I guess I went out too hard and it was a struggle from that point forward. Maybe that just means I finally went hard enough, because I usually feel like I have something left at the end. I managed to break the track record and I held it for roughly 3 minutes until Eric Hodos finished and surpassed my mark by 20 seconds. So I ended up in second place. Now that I think about it, I haven't won a race for a really long time.

Post race nutrition:
"The Baconator"

June Racing (an interesting month)

I made a conscious attempt to race in the month of June after almost the entire team took the whole month of May off. I looked up races so I'd have at least one possibility every weekend. Even with the weekend I was moving to Mechanicsburg i managed to find a suitable race to do. Good thing I did go to that race because it was the only race I managed to finish this month. The first TT of the month I ended up flatting out. Then I finished well in Erie and things seemed to be looking up. Finally I showed up at the Brookville race because I couldn't make it to the VA state ITT championships after my boss decided I needed to start my night shift training on Sunday night and I wouldn't have made it back on time. That race was the biggest disaster of all since it was canceled because the township, in all of their wisdom, decided the day before a bike race would be the ideal time to re-tar and chip the roads. Anyway, my busy racing month of June turned into more of just a busy month for driving to races, not much actual racing was done. Although I must admit it was worth the ride. Hopefully July will be just as much fun and the races will be more of a success.

Brookville Summer Heat ITT- big let down

I made the trip up to Brookville today for the YMCA Summer Heat ITT. I've done this race 3 other times and it is a good one. It's a small community level event but the course is fun and challenging. It involves alot of rolling hills and some bigger than that but just enough to make it really hurt. Anyway, I show up today and they make and announcement that the race is canceled due to the road workers covering the entire course in fresh tar'N'chips yesterday and it was unsafe to race on. So I headed back to Indiana and rode with Rich after he shut the shop down. Like I said, not much to report.

PLT TT #1

The day started early at 4:30AM. That's what time I had to get up to head to Chesapeake for the race. My start time was 10:20AM and I arrived at 8:30AM so I had plenty of time to get my number pinned on, everything set up, and a good warm-up before the race. It was scorching hot out, 95* at race start and 102* by the time I left. It was a flat lollipop course with a head/cross wind out and tail/cross on the return trip. I wasn't sure how I'd manage to do since I'm just getting over being sick and I'm also very sun burnt. I started out and felt good. I was riding at 26.5mph into the head wind on the way out. Then on the back side of the course I was able to cruise along at 28mph with a tail wind. Then when I was about 200 yards from my last turn before turning back onto the final straight stretch I hear that awful hissing sound that every cyclist knows and hates. I had a flat front tire. Day over! I was averaging 25.45mph at that point with only 8 miles remaining mostly with a tail wind. Oh well, better luck next time. The good news is that I know I'm finally recovered from being sick. Form is also looking good for next weekend in Erie;-)

I hate flat tires!

New Kit!

It was like Christmas when the post man showed up yesterday with a box full of Ag3r/Indianacycling.com kit. Everything fit great and seems like really nice quality stuff. It looks great. I wish someone would send me a box like this every week, Thanks Henry!
And then it was out for a ride to test all of the new stuff. The verdict is in, it passes with flying colors.

Asthma, yuck!

I just got back from the asthma doctor and now I have 3 new medicines that she wants me to try. This sucks, seriously, I don't wanna take this stuff. If it was EPO I'd consider it but this legal stuff just makes me feel like an old person in a nursing home. Anyway I'm now doomed to be taking Pulmicort daily, Singular for at least a month, and Albuterol for sudden asthma attacks (or as my doctor put it, "When you have an important competition for that extra umph") Hopefully all of this will help because although we often take it for granted, breathing is important for cycling*. It has been said that all you need to be a great cyclist are lungs and legs. Imagine what happens when one half of that equation goes down the drain whenever you do a hard effort.

*understatement of the century

Tour de Ephrata 08

Well this race certainly didn't go as I was hoping but it was still a good time and I met alot of really cool people. Saturday started with the road race at 2:03pm just 3 minutes after the 1,2,3 field took off over the same course. I was in the 3,4 race and was doing pretty well for the first two laps and then the bad stuff happened. There was a wreck in the middle of the road and I got stuck behind it. I almost got caught up to the group but just couldn't quite latch on and I was spent. Then I spent the remainder of the race just riding tempo around the course just because to continue with racing on Sunday you had to finish on Saturday. I ended up 71 out of 85 finishers and countless DNFer's. It was sad to finish like that considering how well the race had started but I survived to race another day.

On Sunday morning more bad luck started early. My TT start time was 9:42am and it was only 42*. Here is my picture of me warming up on the trainer and gasping for air while having an asthma attack just doing an easy spin before my actual TT warm up routine.

It was a fun course, starting with 5.5 flat miles before you really started to go up. I knew I was in trouble from the start when I couldn't breathe and my speeds on the flat terrain were low. Then once I got to the mountain part of the course I really began to struggle. I still could barely breathe and now I was trying to mash away up the climb in a 42x27 gear. I put on the biggest cassette i own but didn't want to bother changing my chain rings for this one race. My time put me mid-pack, even with all that working against me. So I had to be a little happy.The crit. in the afternoon didn't start until 2:25pm so I had a while to wait. I went and got something to eat and then went to the race venue to see all of the earlier races. This whole time I was very tired from the combination of the two previous races, having to wake up early the previous two mornings (Saturday to get up and drive to the race and Sunday to get up for the TT), and lastly I was tired from the 4 1/2 drive to the race venue on Saturday. The crit. was 25 laps long or about 23 miles. I started with no snap in my legs and dangled near the back for about 5 laps at which point I decided that I wasn't moving up any and I just kept falling further behind out of corners so I decided to pull the plug on the weekend's racing a little early.
It was a good time and a wonderfully organized race. The competition at this race far superseded any at any other 3,4 race I've ever been a part of. I'm really glad I got to experience this event but only wish I could have had a better showing for Ag3r/Indianacycling.com.

Spring stinks!

I think the winter down here in VA has nicer weather than the Spring. It's been cloudy or rainy here for about 3 weeks with a few beautiful days thrown in. Yesterday started out cloudy for my ride on the parkway but there were still a ton of people out riding. I passed 2 groups of 10 or more. I met one guy on a touring bike fully loaded so I decided to slow down and talk with him on one of the climbs. He had an Australian accent and told me that he was on his third day of a 2 month journey that would take him from Williamsburg, VA to Oregon. If I only had 2 months to spare! Actually if I had 2 months to spare I'd probably just stay around here but be able to race more often.
If I could get a hold of some of this stuff, I'd probably go faster. Maybe they could sponsor us;-)

At the end of my ride yesterday i decided to do my monthly power tests. I thought after riding for 2 hours my numbers would be lower than last time but to my surprise I had my highest power for 20 minutes ever. I guess all of those intervals are working. Now I'm just taking it easy on Thursday and Friday ahead of the Tour de Ephrata this weekend.