Season Wrap-Up

It is that time of year again, where the snow starts to fly and you get an opportunity to reflect on how the racing and riding season went.

• Completed a total of 16 races this year. 10 Mountain Bike races and 6 Cyclocross races.
• I found my legs in the sport category and will try to maintain that fitness through the winter. I have seen it drop off through the CX season, with a continued drop is the standings.
• Fell in love with single-speed racing.
• Didn't do enough fun rides. That is always the case.
• Found a new pain threshold, and thinned out quite a bit

I am not going to stop riding this winter like I have done in years past. I did a 17 mile ride this weekend while it snowed. As long as it is above 10 degrees F, I will be out on the bike two times per week. I am also going to get racing earlier this year by doing a couple of the Crits in the early spring. Beyond that it will be a mix of weights, running, and riding. Above all, I am going to look at putting together a more structured approach to training. I hope to have something in place by the end of the year.

Cross Time

With the mountain bike season wrapping up last weekend, we move into the beautiful fall cross season. This year I have plans on riding more races than the 2 I did last year. I was a rookie last year, with a 26" wheel bike that wasn't primed to be an adequate cross bike. I now have the Niner and better fitness to make a true run at the sport.

Single Track Escape
The last race of the mountain bike season this year is the Single Track Escape in St. Cloud. It is also the single speed state championship, so the field of racers was quite a bit bigger. I hadn't raced for about a month but was hoping to get a good finish for the year. There were some top riders in the lineup that included Brendan Moore and Heath Weibrud. My goal for the race was to lead out fast and try to hold that position through the entire race. I tend to fade later in the race as other riders ratchet it up. My theory is that my body size is better suited for shorter hard efforts, and the guys that catch me are smaller and more efficient.

The prologue for this race is a long run down some double track ski trails. At the start I sprinted to the top 10 position and settled into the pace as we hit the double track. I found Todd Trembley's wheel in the double track and decided to let him do the leadout. The field was spread out and we were moving along fast enough to spin out my 36-20 29er gearing. I was feeling good behind Todd and knew I would need to make a move before the single track. At the end of the double track, just before the single track, there was a short kicker (maybe 30-40 yards straight up). I shot around Todd and hammered the climb as hard as I could. After that, I rode alone. The guys in front of me were Expert/Pros and I didn't see much of them after the double track. The guys behind me were my Sport competition stuck in traffic behind me.

The first lap I was all alone. No one came up to me in SS, and the other sport riders were all behind. Half way through the second lap I got caught by 5 or 6 non-SS sport riders. I was starting to cramp a bit from the cool weather and tight/technical single track. I ran one of the small climbs and that seemed to relieve the cramps. I had lost a bottle on the first lap and really needed some water. In the final section of single track I got caught by someone in SS running some impressive gearing. He beat me to the finish by about 30 seconds.

I finished 3rd in SS 35+ and 13 out of 25 in the SS state championship. It was a fun race on a tight course.

Hudson Double Cross Shootout
Raced my first cross race of the season this last Saturday. I raced the Niner with my 2.2" Small Block 8s.

I went to the starting line late and was pretty close to the back. Was racing with Josh Collins in the newly formed Ready-Rail -- Team Dirty team colors ;)  At the whistle, the course took us up a long gradual climb to the spectator area. I decided to go up the right side and got boxed in on the climb. I watched as Josh found a hole on the left side and shot past. I wanted to try to hold his wheel and did some aggressive passing on the far right. I did make some good positions with the move, but it killed me. I found myself alone between the lead pack of riders and the rest of the field. Kept up the tempo and gradually lost a few positions over the race. Finish 15th out of 54 riders and Josh took the win in CX4!

August Wrap-Up

To close out August, and the height of the mountain bike season, I competed in the Murphy Sprint Series on the 17th and the Border Battle on the 21st.

The Murphy Sprint Series put on by Freewheel has a growing vibe and is a fun training race on Wednesday evenings in August. The race is a time trial format, where riders stage themselves and are sent out in 30 second intervals.

I staged myself toward the back, as I hadn't ridden any of the previous races and wasn't sure of my true positioning. I was riding gears for this race to give the knees a break and allow some spinning. The race went well, and I felt good most the time. Murphy is tight singletrack, so speed is probably more determined by handling skills and I was making a number of mistakes. In short, I rode the trail in 47 minutes and placed somewhere in the top third. What surprised me is the improvement of over 6 minutes from the last time I raced this TT. It was a good confidence builder going into the Border Battle.

The Border Battle race was at Whitetail Ridge in River Falls again this year. Unlike years past, the weather was dry and cool. I was racing in the SS sport category, for my second single speed race of the series.

It could not have been better conditions. The singletrack was fast, the weather was perfect, and Andy and Josh where both at the race. For the Wisconsin series, SS is an open category, so there were a lot of riders in the group. At the line-up we were staged with the 16-20 YO riders. Within the SS category there were 17 riders.

My plan for the race was to be the first SS rider to the singletrack. In order to do that, I would need to sprint to the first climb and stand on the pedals all the way to the top. At the start I was in the second row, and felt like I had a good start position. The gun went off and the chaos began. At the start of the climb, I was in 5th position and surging. As the young guys with gears dropped to something easier, I mashed on the pedals and rode behind two of the young riders. Here is a photo of my arm (black/orange twin six jersey).

At the top, I let the two youngins pace me to the singletrack. That was probably a bad idea, as it allowed some of the other SS riders to close the gap. We rode the singletrack for a while and caught the back of the group in front of us. Mid lap I was caught by one of the SS racers. I let him pass and pace. Again, another bad idea. I wanted to go faster through the singletrack and was riding his wheel. It also allowed another SS rider to catch us. I rode in #2 until the 2nd climb. On the climb we hit a lot of traffic. #3 broke around the traffic with #1 grabbing his wheel. I tried to follow, but couldn't hold on. I rode the rest of the race chasing/running and holding onto #3.

The racing tactics made for a very fun race.

Coming up - Cyclocross (18+ possible races) and the last MMBS race in St. Cloud

Racing Recap - Buck, Hillside, Buck

In the last two weeks I have hit multiple highs for racing. It started with the Buck Hill Thursday Night Race on July 28th, continued with the MMBS #7 at Hillside on July 31st, and closed at the last Buck Hill race on August 4th.

At the Buck Hill race on the 28th, I thought I would try my hand at single speed. I had recently installed a more appropriate fork on the Zion, and wanted to pre-race at Buck before running it in the MMBS series races. I decided to race in the Recreational class because I wasn't about to suffer on the bike before a big weekend race. I also wanted to ride the beginer race with Max in case he had any issues.

I went into the race with a whole different mindset. I wasn't going to sit back for the ride. The full race recap is in the previous post.

The following Sunday I headed up to Elk River for the MMBS #7, Single Track Attack. This race is different than most with its short ups and downs versus the long climbs associated with the ski hill races. I went out for a long warm up and did some intervals to get some blood in the legs. The beginning of this race is a half mile sprint down the dirt road and into the first 'beginner' section of single track. At call ups I identified the two leaders for the 35+ age group with the idea that I would stick to the wheel of the fastest rider. At the start I was stuck in the third row, but centered in the field. At the gun, I took off sprinting and settled in the top 5 riders about half way down the road. I was all spun out with my 36/20 29er setup, with a top speed around 18 mph. I made it to the single track in about 5th place (we were racing with the younger category riders, 20 and under, and the 34 and under SS riders). After passing a rider, I was stuck to the wheel of Todd Trembley. I worked off his wheel as we went through the beginner section, section 3, and section 4. In going through section 3 and 4 we hit a lot of traffic from the group that went out 2 minutes before us. I didn't like sitting behind Todd, because I thought I would get gapped in traffic. In section 4, I took over pacing and dialed it back a bit. We were both redlined and needed a breather. Into section 1 on the first lap I continued to hold the lead. The top 3-4 riders in the group behind caught us, at which point I let Todd go and he gapped me. I probably lost a good 20-30 seconds on him, while I sat in and recovered in section 2.

On lap 2 I was catching more riders in section 3, but for the most part I was riding by myself. Just before section 4, I caught back up to Todd. He must have been recovering when I found him because once he saw that I was there, he took off again. This time I could not hold his wheel. The rest of the race I rode with a guy from the 35-39 group (Daniel Munoz). We passed each other a couple times, but in the end he beat me by 5 seconds (plus the 2 minutes he started behind me).

Recap of the race, I finished 2nd in the SS +35 Sport group and 22 of 110+ riders overall. I also took 3+minutes off my time last year.

The last race of the Buck season on August 4th was to be the end to a great 10 day racing stretch. I decided to go back to gears and see if I could win the Rec race. I was in good position at the start and blew a gasket sprinting to the single track in second place. All that effort was wasted as I couldn't make it around the #1 guy as we crossed the front of the hill. It was obvious that he was spent and his pace allowed the guys behind to catch up. At the top of the climb I was sitting in 4th in so much pain that the drool just dripped out of my mouth. I was able to recover in the single track without anyone passing me. Raced hard to the end and finished 7th with my chain jumping off for the sprint at the end.

This last race was my 30th since returning to racing in 2009. 

Yeah, Buck!

I had a great time a Buck Hill last night. I brought the single speed Zion 29er out of the stable for its first race. I decided to ride in the Rec class, since this was my first single speed race, I didn't want to drain the tanks for Sunday's race, and I wanted to ride with Josh and Max in the beginner race.

My mindset at the beginning of the race was to go as hard as I could the whole time. It seems a bit obvious, but during the Advanced races I tend to hold back and ramp up the intensity.

I wasn't in great position at the start, second row in the middle of the group. At the gun, I hammered the sandy climb and was sitting 7-10 place. I sat in that position until just prior to the first climb. During the climb I past a number of people just before the first S shaped single track section. On the paved climb, a few of the overzealous riders blew, and I was sitting at the front of the group with 1 rider escaping into the single track before me.

Once in the single track, the 36-20 gearing suited me quite well. I was able to extend my gap on the chase of 3 behind me. By the end of the single track, I was picking up the advanced ladies and was finding it difficult to get by them. At the end of the lap I got stuck behind a group of 3 women, with no room to pass (safely). On the last cross-hill section, the group of 3 men riders were able to catch me.

The end of the 1st lap opens to the sandy area where we all passed the women, and the three men snuck passed me. I kept up the intensity to the front climb sitting in 5th place. When I got to the paved climb, I picked up the escaped rider from the first lap. He had blown himself and was barely moving up the hill.

With the major climbs complete, I knew I could hold my position to the finish. I tried catching the group of 3 in front of me, but I just couldn't make time. At the end I pushed up the sandy hill and crossed the line only 20 seconds off the #3 rider. Official time was 30min even. A 3 minute improvement over my best Rec time.

I think I will ride the SS at Elm Creek this weekend. It doesn't allow me to sit and spin, which I will tend to do if the pain is high.

Beat The 1-Hour Hurdle

Last night I beat my personal goal of finishing the Buck Hill race is less than an hour. Officially, I met that goal with a time of 59:18. Unofficially, my gps logged a time of 60:07. Both were a little close, but I'll say I met that goal. I also had the GoPro running for the race, so I will put up a video shortly.

The next race is Sunday in Elk River. I am considering riding SS, but haven't decided. I have only been off raod with that bike once, but it seems to ride well.

Proof

Here is the proof that I actually raced at Red Wing. since I didn't make the first lap, I am not showing up in the results.

First MMBS Race 2011 - Fail

I decided to head down to Red Wing this weekend for the Wheelhouse Classic MTB race. It was to be my first MMBS race of the season. The conditions were great; partly sunny and dry, and I felt lively.

I was a little late arriving, so everything was a bit of a rush. In the lineup I was all the way to the back, but was allowed to move up because of my permanent number plate. At the start I felt great and was keeping with the pack over the rolling double track. I pushed a little harder and starting passing riders. Once we hit the woods my press was starting to sneak up on me and before I knew it I was redlining. I started to dial it back so I didn't blow, but I was continuing to fade. The places I had taken at the start were slowly whittling away.

After about 2 miles of riding, my water bottle cage was about to fall off. I was considering riding on, but I didn't want to loose my bottle on the first lap. I had to stop, pull out my wrench, and tighten the bolts. I lost some serious position after that and decided to have fun the rest of the way. That's when (at about 4 miles in) I was turning a switchback and didn't see the low hanging branch. It caught me between the eyes, and progressed to the top of my head, leaving a quarter size puncture wound.

With blood coming down my face, a fellow rider (Larry) stopped to help me out. He was very kind to guide me to the nearest exit. I made it back to the start area with alot of attention. The paramedics were very helpful and cleaned the wound. Once they got the bleeding to stop, they wrapped my head so I could get home. I looked like I was a wounded soldier.

I made it home, showered and went to Urgent Care. The doctor scrubbed the wound and pulled it open to look for stick parts (by far the most painful event). After it was cleaned, she pulled out the stapler and hit me with 4. No Novocaine, just pain. Here is a camera phone photo of the results.

Not a great photo, but you can see where the stick hit the bridge of my nose, progressed up my forehead, and piercing my melon.

Floating On Air

I put some new tires on my ride and have been very happy with the benefits (better control, more squish). I decided to go with the Small Block 8s. The reason was simple; price. I tried to race last night, but didn't leave work early enough. Ended up doing a 25 mile ride to Theo, but the trails were closed. Bummer, strike two. Hopefully can get out on some dirt this weekend, or maybe race Afton.

First Race

The first race of the season is always interesting. It happened to be a Buck Hill Thursday night race this year, but I still had some of the anxiety. Once I got to the venue the butterflies subsided as I got to meet some of the familiar folks from last season. The weather was perfect, and the advanced group was loaded with approximately 75 riders. At the start I was most the way in the back and had to fight my way up until we went single file into the woods. The legs were a little heavy, but it wasn't a surprise. The warm-up lap 'informed' me that I needed some more rest after a hard ride Monday night. Lap 1 I was pushing it pretty hard, and keeping good position. In the back single track there was a surge from a group behind and I felt like I was going to blow. I was able to maintain, but I knew I needed to sit back on lap 2 or I was going to be done. Lap 2 was rehydration and a gel to get my blood sugar up. Lap 3 I was starting to come back. I changed from a spin to a masher gear and did the climbs standing up. Lap 4 was more of the same with passing a couple people along the way. Finish time was just under 66 minutes. My goal was an hour, but didn't have it in me. Without the 2 crashes and better fueling, I think I could be there by next week.

Training Update

I am coming into the first week of racing feeling stong. I have been gauging my performance on some local hills, and I am crushing my last-years-self regarding speed and perceived effort. The true measure will be on Thursday with the first Buck Hill race.

I have been able to get out for three rides a week thus far, and will increase that to four once we get into some warmer weather. I am fighting some muscle tightness and calf cramping, but it has been subsiding with my taper in effort over the last few rides. I have been pushing some bigger gears and need to remember to include some spinning.

I should have a better idea where I stand once I get through Thursday...

Lacrosse Rehab

Since it has been frigid and wet the last couple of weeks, I decided to shift my focus from riding to lacrosse. Played last Thursday and used some long forgotten muscles. The last indoor game is this week. then it is going to get warm out...

Week In Review - "No Gloves"

This last week I started to get a little more motivated to ride. I think it was a culmination of a few different things; the weather was warmer, I am headed to Moab in a week, and I started to put together a racing schedule for the year. Training was easier, as I was able to get outside without bundling up. I put in 3 mile runs on Wednesday and Friday, rode 25 miles on Saturday, and put in some strength training throughout the week. By Sunday I was feeling that satisfying soreness that comes with a week of hard work.

The ride on Saturday was a ball buster. I was riding the single-speed and had to show some roadies how it worked. I pulled in behind a couple of guys on road bikes to draft for a while. I was feeling good, so I thought I would try to drop them, and bridge to the next guy about 1/2 a mile ahead. I put the hammer down and fell into a tough pace. The roadies put a little kick in, but I continued to pull away. It felt satisfying, but was a difficult pace. I continued to grind away until I reached freewheel bike, a good 8-10 miles of riding. It is then that I realized that I was clenching my teeth the whole time. My jaw was sore. I decided to grab a cup of coffee and stretch. The ride home was a little more relaxed, but still a great early season workout. One thing I noticed is that I didn't have any issues with hitting the wall (glycogen stores). I seem to have retained some muscle efficiency from last season.

The Niner has a new seat, and will have a new chain and handlebar shortly. I think it will be a few more weeks before I switch over to the non-Winter bike. Can't wait!

Cold Toes

Another cold weather ride this weekend has left me yearning for Spring. I went out on Sunday and rode my 17 mile loop. Conditions we good on the outbound trail, but very icy on the loop back. The ice patches forced some sprint intervals -- slowing for each large puddle/ice patch and hammering back up to cruising speed.

I got a little frostbit on the toes during the ride. Nothing damaging, but enough to feel as they warmed at home. I made the mistake of putting cold shoes on, which had been sitting in the garage all week. My poor footsies never had a chance...

I am officially headed out west over the last week of March for some riding (Moab) and skiing (Steamboat) with Asher. We are going to have a great time. Watch for the post-trip pictures and movies. I am going to try to pick up the GoPro before we leave.

RIDE-Coffee-RIDE-Burgers-RIDE

Rode the east and west river road trails this Sunday with Josh. We rode a total of 24 miles with a stop at the Angry Catfish for coffee and a stop at ... Hmmm. I can't remember the name. Anyway, we had burgers at a pub over by St. Thomas and then rode back downtown where we started.

Weekend Rides

I have been turning up the dial on the weekend rides. My goal is to get out once every weekend until spring arrives. I am three weeks into it and not minding the cool weather grinds. Last Saturday I rode my 17 mile loop with the Zion SS. It is relativly flat, but the whole trail was snow covered. It ended up being a good workout. This weekend should see different conditions with the short thaw this week.

I am down in St. Louis and it is going to be 75 degrees today. Not a bad little break from the cold and snow.

Downhill skied with Max on Sunday, and the week before as well. Seems like good cross training, but the hills in Minnesota are pretty short. I can't really get the legs burning with such a short run. Max has discovered the art of bombing down the hill at full tilt. He a little speed freak. Josh is learning to snowboard...

First Official Ride

I got out this last Sunday with Josh for the first official ride of the year. We tried to ride Murphy, but without fat tires it was slow going. We rode the trail for about 30 minutes, and then moved to the dirt roads for another 30 minutes. It was hard work, but that's the point. I probably beat last year's first ride by 4 months. I hope that it pays off this year. I have high expectations and lofty goals.

Winter Bike - SS steel 29er

This weekend I finished putting together my new single-speed winter riding bike. The build goal was to have a bike that I could beat on this winter, while keeping it cheap and mechanically simple. The frame is a ZION cromoly SS with EBB. I pulled the Chris King headset from my old Diamondback XR8. The fork is carbon eXotic from the Schwinn. The stem, and handle bars are also from the schwinn, which were originally on my Heckler. I had to cut the handle bars down because one of the ends was cracked from getting a bar end caught on a tree this summer. The front brake is an Avid 3.5 that I bought last summer for the Schwinn. The rear brake is an old XT set that I had on the Diamondback. I threw a new set of pads on, and they still work great. The crank is a single Race Face that I have been running on the Schwinn for 2 years. The front wheel is the Chris King/ZTR 355 that I was running on the Schwinn with the same Crossmark tire (it seems to have enough tread to cover turning in the snow. The rear tire I had built with the Chris King hub and ZTR Arch (a little cheaper, but looks the same). I am happy to have this wheelset as a backup for the Niner. I will probably run these wheels with an agressive tread when the summer rolls around. Gearing is 36-18. Cog is a Surly 18tooth Cromo-zinc plated. Chain is SRAM PC-1. Time to ride!

The Training Begins

I started my training this weekend. My initial focus will be to build core strength and endurance. My first goal is to ride the Cold Bear race at Hillside on February 20th with my new SS bike. More to come on the new ride...