Seized Bearings

After a little inspection and cleaning of the bike, I discovered that the non-drive side bottom bracket bearings had seized. I looked at the crank arm spindle, and there is a smear of plastic where the spindle meets the bottom bracket bushing. I receive the new BB today, so it will be interesting to see if I can notice the reduction in drag.

My plan is to race Red Wing this weekend, but it will be dependent on a lot of different stuff:

• Grandma's 90th birthday the evening before.
• I will have to come down from up north.
• Family coming into town and meeting up at the cabin.
• Quantity of rum runners consumed on Saturday...
• Weather, no rain or mud allowed

Mt Kato

Mt. Kato is typically my favorite race of the year, but I knew I was going to have issues as soon as I woke up Sunday morning. My legs we stiff from playing lacrosse Friday night, but I thought I could still make a good showing. My plan was to start slow this week, and ramp it up over the three laps. My body started with a no, and was screaming no by the end of the last lap.

It was fun racing with Andy for a while, but he blew my doors off by the end of the second lap. He caught me at the top on lap two, and just kept on accelerating to the end. It was fun to see him in good form. I saw a lot of other friendly faces, which always make racing so much fun!

I think I am done racing the mud this year. I don't enjoy, and don't have the time for, the bike maintenance. After 2 mud races this year, the bearings on my rear derailleur pulleys are toast and so is my bottom bracket. I have a new rear der. and bb on order. I should get them later this week.

Next stop: Red Wing

Results: 10th out of 11th in 35-39 Sport. 53 out of 84 and 2:45 behind Andy.

Loop the Loop

17 miles this morning riding the loop. A little sluggish from the full body massage the night before (Father's Day gift from Jenny). The massage was nice, but not my cup of tea.

Mt Kato; ready or not, here I come...

Pizza Guilt

I ordered a pizza (large) for lunch yesterday with the intention of only eating half. Gluttony got the best of me, and I ate the whole thing. I was ashamed.

Pizza guilt drove me to riding hard last night. Rode intervals on my local hill, then pounded out 15 miles. I feel ready for Mt Kato. I will probably get out and spin a couple more times before Sunday.

Lebanon Hills

Being that it was Father's Day weekend, I had a lot of play time allotted to me. On Friday, we had our first lacrosse practice and scrimmage for Geezlax. It was a great time. I played middie, so I got a good deal of running in. After lacrosse, I went for a quick 15 mile ride on the road. Suffice to say, I was spent that evening.

Saturday was lacrosse pictures for the boys and a graduation party. I was feeling a little pain from the field running, so it was a good opportunity to rest. I also picked up a roof rack (Yakima) for the car, so I spent a portion of the day setting it up.

Sunday was the perfect Father's Day. Jenny made a big breakfast, and I opened some gifts from the kids. I did some lifting (kettle bell) in the morning and we went on a family bike ride. In the afternoon, we grabbed some Chipolte and came home and had a water balloon fight. We like to buy the full size balloons and see how big we can make the balloons. Asher made one that probably had 3 gallons of water in it.

To top off the perfect weekend, I headed down to Lebanon Hills for some mountain biking. Andy joined me for the ride, and we had a great time. It was the first time for me to get down there this year and the trail was in prime condition. We rode a total of 17 miles. Andy kept me honest on the second lap, and made me finish fast.

Morning Loop

It was warm and dry enough to hit my morning loop today. The ride is 16.5 miles with a couple of stop lights and stop signs. Rode it in 1 hour (timed from the clock at home). Probably averaged 17-18mph, based on the measurement method. I want to get a real simple cycle computer. Any suggestions?

Morning Run

My morning ride turned into a morning run today. Rain, rain, go away... Somehow I got dog or goose poop on the back of my leg. Tragedy on the trail...

Making The Turn

After a rough time last week, I think I am starting to make the turn. The cold is letting up, and the bike is set to ride. The only thing holding me back now is the weather. We have hit a bit of a cold rainy snap and it is hard to get motivated to ride the road. It really needs to dry out so we can get out on the dirt again.

I read on another blog that Dirtspanker was a mud-fest. I am glad I didn't head up this weekend, because I don't want to deal with the mechanical issues as a result of mud. It is my opinion that the chain suck incidents during Freewheel damaged my chain, resulting in the break during afton.

Two weeks out to Mankato. My favorite race of the year. I plan on racing Buck this Thursday in preparation.

I bought a new XT cassette, and was suprised by the change in appearance. The cogs in earlier versions were shiny and crisp looking. The new XT cogs look sintered and cheap.

Drivetrain Update

With the chain breakage at Afton, I spent a little time looking into other options beyond SRAM and Shimano. I found some good reviews on the Connex chain by Wipperman. Much like the SRAM chains it has a special link for easy assembly. I am also a little leary that the quality of SRAM and Shimano isn't what it use to be with a majority of manufacturing in China. Wipperman is a German company that specializes in chains, so I thought I would give it a try. I will be installing a new cassette and chain tonight, and let you all know how it works.

My questions to you guys is, "how long do your chains last?" The chain I had fail was raced at Powder Monkey, Chequamegon 40, Jail Trial, Freewheel Frolic, and Afton. Plus I use this bike for all of my training. Is that too much to ask from a chain these days?

On a side note, I also threw some barends on the HG. I like it.

Bittersweat Ride

In line with the economy and the success of my company, we had some deep cuts (layoffs) yesterday. I was kept on, but over 1/2 the people I work with are leaving over the next month. I wish them the best...

With the news of the layoff, we were all sent home for the day. I took that opportunity to get in a good 35 mile ride. It was a good opportunity to get focused on the pile of work ahead...

MnMBS #2 Pics - Courtesy of Dana Schoppe

Now that I can look back, it was fun while it lasted...

Afton Suck Fest

Let's just say that things didn't go as planned at Afton. After going out fast on the first lap, I was struggling to find sections to recover in. I didn't find any. On the second lap, I dialed back the pace on the front section to recover a bit. Took a gel in preparation for the next series of climbs, and brought my heartrate down. The gel and recovery started to kick in on the first climb. I climbed at a good pace and started to pass a few people. On the long double track climb, I passed two guys in my age group that passed me on the first lap. They were walking, and I was riding. I made the first crest and headed into the twisting singletrack. I was bouncing around on a rocky section of downhill singletrack when, clink...clink...clink...(quiet)... My chain had exploded into 2 sections. My race was over. At first I thought I would hike a bike to the finish line, but after considering the 3-4 mile jaunt, I quickly changed my mind. I went straight down the hill and walked the road back to the finish. DNF. Makes me mad. What else can I say. I was reeling people back in, and was hoping for a strong finish. Next week...

Secret Blog

I got out and put a little spin on after lacrosse practice. I hit some hills on the spin and felt strong.

Jenny found out about my 'secret blog', and all the follows I have ;) I told her that I was going to write about this...

Anywho, I plan on re-cabling the bike tonight. The shifting and brakes still suck after the first (mud) race.

MnMBS #1 Official Pictures

The official photos are up. In one I look like a scared monkey. Enjoy.

Life Strikes Again

Coming into another summer with the expectation of putting on a lot of miles has gone out the window. I am not throwing in the towel, but I am definitely going to have to restructure my training schedule. It seems that if you have any experience with lacrosse in this state, there are organizations that need you as a volunteer. For the third straight year, I am coaching lacrosse. The plan was to take this summer off, but unfortunately there hasn't been anyone to step up and take my job. Oh well, it could be worse...

I haven't been on the bike much, so I am a little concerned about the Afton race this weekend. I am excited and all signed up, and will just have to ride within my capabilities. In returning to racing last year, Afton was the race where I fell apart after the first climb and literally had to stop and catch my breath. I guess I can be happy that I am far from that former self, and that I can get out and enjoy a race with friends.