come out and ride

If you are looking for a new group ride in the area you should swing by Bike Source on Wednesday nights. I have started a road ride that leaves late, after we close down at 8:00, and heads out into the dark for a few hours of rambling. It is a super low key ride, but is going to be a blast. Last week we rode a couple of hours with forays into the skate park and hitting some bike paths. I wrecked hard in the skate park on my road bike, and that seemed to be my companion's highlight, so I will work hard to keep up the entertainment. Bring lights if you got em, if not just follow close. Call me at the store or email me if you have any questions.

StL MtB

I went over to the other side of Misery for my first straight up MTB race of the year this weekend. After a burner of a day at the bike shop it was a nice sigh to hop in the backseat with a couple of buddies, I got laugh, relax, and get ready to race. The course was at Linwood College outside of St. Charles somewhere. It was a fast course with little singletrack, but the trail that was part of the course was extremely fun. We started with a few miles down a dirt road, the expert field was 20 or so strong and we were kicking up a good pace along the gravel. You made a long steep plunge down to the start finish line and then went into the 9+ mile loop. Climbing up away from the finish line I moved to the front of the group and kept a steady pace into the first singletrack section. I got a little gap on Mike Best and a strong chase group just behind him, not really knowing what the course was like I just decided it was best to stick to the age old MTB adage, "when in doubt gas it." I continued grabbing a second here and there, and looked back a couple of times to see Mike Best was joined by one other chaser, Chris Ploch raging on a singlespeed. After the climb back up the hill to start lap 2 I looked once more and they had not made up ground on me, I was feeling pretty steady and just rode consistently until I got into lap three and started opening it up once again. At the finish line Mike was still real close I think within a minute and Chris had spun himself mad into 3rd place.

After the race we all sat around in the grass laughing and enjoying the beautiful weather. After the awards we went and ate at the Tavern in Defiance, MO. In another stroke of luck the waitress brought us a extra gonzo burger. It was a good day

Crit Racing

When you get your mind thinking you will race it is a pretty hard let down if you don't get to follow up. Since the MTB race was postponed I went back to Clinton Lake for the second race in the Spring Fling Crit Series. Even though I enjoy criterium racing and I really like watching them, it is pretty odd racing. I sat in until after the first points sprint, then I tried to be up racing as much as I could. Nothing exciting happened, we all stayed together. I was pretty happy with my legs for the first effort as such this year. Every big one hour effort I get in means that race pace on my laps at West Virginia the second weekend of June will be a little swifter and a little more comfortable.

09 Underway

Kicking the race season off for me was this weekends 'Devil's Revenge' off-road dualathlon. After taking a year hiatus the series is back, with this being the first of three races. I had planned on doing this series since I saw the dates announced, but it was only a few weeks ago that Brian Prosser reminded me at the shop that it was quick approaching and gave me the mental image of the pain that could be if I did not get running soon. That was enough to spur a run every few days, and after a few I started enjoying it like I once did back in High School. Since I have a base of aerobic fitness, I really just need to beat on my legs enough to hold up and let the years of bike racing do the rest.
It was perfect weather on the start line, overcast and a nice cooling wind. Tony Raboin and another good runner took off faster than I could and I already trailed 30 yards or so entering the woods. Once in the trails I began to distance the people that were behind me and was beginning to slowly reel in the leaders. I went around the runner in between Tony and I and was keeping pace with the front. About half way through the run I was feeling real good and was running right with Tony, things in the run would have stayed considerably less painful had I not rolled my right foot on some uneven surface. I heard a little pop from my foot and spent a minute or so stumbling down the trail hoping the pain would ease up. It did enough, and I continued on and entered the bike transition right behind Tony.

Since my Epic is not scheduled to arrive for another few weeks I went ahead and raced my fixed gear 29er. Even though I have ridden it a ton and feel confident going pretty hard on it I was still apprehensive about picking it up to race pace. I went into the lead and just focused on riding smooth and not making to many errors. The ride was uneventful, and even though I knew I wasn't slaying it, it would be enough to win. My right foot was having difficulty and I was happy to see the finish line.
It is hard to tell right now how bad my foot is. A blue bubble has formed on it, and I have been icing it off and on since we got home. I have no muscle strength to pull my toes towards me, but it does not hurt to bend it around manually. I have a light week of training planned this week, so maybe it will be a good thing. Rarely do I stay the course of a rest week, hammering is much more satisfying.

burning

weekend report

Snow instead of a race. Saturday morning I was planning on doing the the first Spring Fling Crit, but a fresh few inches of white canceled that. I still managed to get some super quality riding and running in, so I felt good about the weekend.

It won't be long now. Warm months are coming and a few promising days this week. Soon Tuesday night crits will begin, and then Thursday night short track MTB racing. Life will accelerate once more and hopefully I will be ready to accelerate my rear wheel. One fun thing that will be new for me this year is a Monday night beginner/recovery ride out of Spin! Pizza. We will be starting rides in May, and if you are interested it is going to be a great ride to help new cyclists learn to ride in a group on the road and spin your legs easy after a weekend of crushing. Triple bonus is you will get 10% off their delicious pizza if you show for the ride. I will post more details as we get closer.

Racing should begin in earnest next weekend, so I will look for you there.

One of the most entertaining riders to watch is keeping busy so far this season. Sprinting along side Cavendish, even taking a win in Qatar, and winning early classics, it appears Tom Boonen is on Super Man form. Paris Roubaix should be a blast to watch.