Painful

Great two races. I was supposed to do Branchbrook today and South Jersey Training Series tomorrow, but one of my teammates wasn't able to get in the earlier race so I just did two races today instead. The first one was okay, I finish 24 of 67 starters. I could have done better but it wasn't really an issue once I was out of the running. The second race I got 8/21 starters and participated in the sprint. I learned from my last experience about going out too early and this time around I went out too late. I still had some energy to burn when the finish line happened to pop up.

Anyway, this is someone's video of the crash that happened as we started the sprint. It was the most horrifying thing I think I've ever seen. The mixture of components breaking, carbon fiber snapping, and people shouting was absolutely miserable. It got worse when you passed and picked up the smell of burnt rubber. Ambulance came and all the works. The guy looked conscious and all though.

Non-bike related... I saw this dog eating a dead squirrel in the middle of the road today. It was slightly less horrifying than the bike crash. It was a cute little fluffy haired puppy too.

Till next time. A bit less defeat than usual.

Monsters

No crashes and kept up with the main group. That's all I meant to accomplish and I did, so I'm okay with today. I did find an opportunity to sprint up the side and maybe try to sneak in the podium. I sprinted up the right and passed the group. I thought victory was possibly somewhat in my grasp. Thought I had a sizable lead. About 10 seconds later I looked behind to see how far up I was and realized the entire peloton was on my wheel. It was so discouraging with the finish line in sight. Unfortunately my legs gave all they had and back to the group I went. I suffer from a very cycling specific condition called "not being good enough." Time-wise I was all but a few seconds from the guy who won but about 19 cyclists back.

It was silly. But I did it. And I'd do it again. That Pac-man son of a bitch ain't got nothin on me.

And there is my first defeat of 2010. Branchbrook in a couple of weeks.

Murder on the streets

First road race next Sunday. Pretty sure I'll get slaughtered. Scared of just being in the whole mess of the peloton. Crashing is a great fear of mine. Will be sure to inform my reader how it goes.

T-Pain? No, Knee Pain.

Training ride in Skillman leads to a pain no autotune can fix. The knife-in-knee feeling started to present itself the last few miles of climbing. Against my better judgement, I did a team ride with Cycles 54 the day after. The first 20 miles or so definitely had the Nancy Kerrigan kind of thing going on. But then all of a sudden it disappeared. I felt great and was able to ride without any discomfort. Monday? Felt great! No knee pain. Tuesday morning I awoke to that knife-in-knee feeling I talked about earlier. Joint was locked up and took about an hour to loosen it up enough to be able to stand up.

More pathetic than that? Today morning-ish at 3:30 AM the knee stabber struck again. But this time I had to get to the bathroom. It took about 30 minutes for me to be able to fall out of bed. I had to drag the bottom half of my body by grabbing onto the floor and pulling myself to the bathroom (think The Ring meets paraplegic puppy). It was sad, and slightly creepy if anybody watched somehow.

I will take a week or so off cycling to try to heal. This is an awful way to prepare for Battenkill (probably won't make it off the wait list anyway).

All your bases are belong to us

"UPDATE YOUR BLOG MOFO

YOUR READER IS RESTLESS"

Here's to you, reader.

While my last race was the infamous mechanical at Mercer Cup, my season went on till late December. Not competitively, but I kept my mileage up until the week after Christmas. I took a few weeks recovery period (plenty of cross training and core strengthening), and now am back to building that base for the coming road season.

I recently invested in The Cyclist's Training Bible (rave reviews on this piece of training lit), and have come up with a training plan for the year. Intend to peak once during the latter end of the road season and then once more during November in 'cross. Have found the book to be incredibly helpful and have taken a much more scientific approach to training. I'm excited for this year as I think I'll be able to embarrass myself a bit less.

That's pretty much it for cycling talk. I'm planning to do the Tour of Battenkill if I can manage to get off the wait list and into an actual category. I'll post about that some other time though. I spent the past weekend in Vermont and have some okay pictures. Lots of fun riding. Was excited for the chance to do glades.

Funny story about that... glades that is. My reader may remember the epic adventure of getting lost in the blizzard (MTB hazard life). While doing some back country riding, I veered a little too far from the beaten path. Dodging trees and breaking trail is fun and all until you fall in about 4' of snow. It was difficult to regain momentum (despite the incredible steepness of my chosen route). I ended up hiking about 30 minutes (15 minutes, then a required 5 minute breather, then another 15 minutes) to get to a rock that was ridden over that allowed me to strap in, regain my momentum, and continue down the mountain. I feared, just as in the MTB disaster, that I wouldn't be able to make it to safety before sunset. Luckily I found some space that allowed me to continue and the 30 minute hike wasn't extended to a day's journey to god knows where (maybe Canada? it was only a stones throw away).

Here are some pictures. I hope, reader, you are entertained.

Quake 'em up, shoot 'em up

I don't know why I'm choosing this time (if any) to write. Maybe I'm concerned for my follower. There's been a post drought since the 'cross season has ended, and I apologize. My follower deserves better. Anyway, I can assure you the real reason is because I feel cyclist-inspired and got a neat picture from a recent ride today (thanks Jloh).

I enjoyed some play time in the snow, and also had my first ride with Cycles 54 last Sunday. It was a great time and I am starting to feel good about the upcoming road season. I have been riding here and there but nothing too serious yet... After the holiday treats disappear from the fridge and all my friends go back to where they came from, I'll be able to start getting my base in. Hope after an intense road season I will be forced to be in better shape for cross.

Other than that I don't have much to say to you, good reader. I had a mini-adventure when we got lost in the woods during a blizzard and couldn't find our way out because of our disappearing tracks (thanks fresh 12" blanket of snow). As we exited the desolate forest, a park ranger greeted us and informed me he was ready to assemble a search party to find our dead frozen bodies. It was fun, nonetheless. Every once in a while I thought our lives were in jeopardy when we knew there was a frozen stream somewhere not far from our current position. It all looked the same under the snow.

Thank you. Hope your holidays have been kind.

To the ocean and beyond... Not the county

I have not written for quite some time. So to all my follower (intentionally singular) out there, be informed that I have purchased a new bicycle. One of the bikes under heavy consideration was the Felt F5. Entry level carbon fiber, 105 components, and the price made it super appealing. What I did not expect was the opportunity to buy a Felt F4 with Ultegra components for about $100 more. I test rode it, loved it, and purchased it. While I enjoyed the Tarmac's frame a bit more, I really liked having the Ultegra groupset on this bike. I had to compromise at some point, since my 2,300$ budget would not allow for the ultimate bike. And to have a hi-mod carbon fiber ultegra bike for that price seemed almost out of this world. So rode, purchased, rode some more, and loved.

"But Arthur, how can you ride that beast in these frigid temperatures?"

Well... no beast she is, first of all. But today I completed my second ever century. And by completed I mean fell 8 miles short of a solid clean 100. That's okay, it was still amazing. Getting to the beach with zero emissions? Practically zero, I did discard some gel packages in trash receptacles. Super. I have learned a lot from my last century, and learned even more this time around. It's a commitment, spending 6 hours inside your head. All you can do is exchange some inner dialogue with yourself. That I knew. I also learned to change hand positions, so no carpal tunnel this time (wahoo). New information? When the first 50 miles of your century seems like a breeze, it probably has something to do with that strong tail wind pushing you along. The last 50 miles will KILL you. And they did, each mile shoving a dagger into my side. By the end I was absolutely Caesar-fied. Also, while the temperature may be 32 degrees, the 16 MPH headwind makes it much cooler. Booties are important, and will be on my to buy list. Double socking it didn't help as much as I had hoped.

I've been reading a lot again, which has inspired me to write. Maybe I'll start a blog where I can post some of my short fiction and literary expeditions...

To the ocean and beyond...

The county, not the beach. I got my bike repaired today. Bought a new derailleur (Deore LX this time around), but upon installation noticed that my hanger/drop out was bent. SO this is how the derailleur got stuck in the back wheel. Anyway a quick $15 hook up with the bicycle magician and she's ridin' like new. And what's even better? Her sound. No longer ratchety clank just the quiet sound of tires humming whispering those sexy secrets into my ears.

Did a nice trek out to New Egypt and back as the sun was starting to set. I wish I could have pushed her a bit further but no need to be stranded in the dark. It felt good though. It's been too long since I've ridden off the trainer (using old MTB on trainer while the Volpe was out of commission). As I've said before... awesome riding so far without having to stop. I think I passed through two lights the entire journey?

Also have a lot of progress in my road bike research. This weekend I went to Bernie's in Hamilton, Jay's in Princeton, and Knapp's in Trenton... in that order. If you look at a map you'll realize how ridiculous that is. Especially when my point of origin was East Windsor. I began with the Orbea Onix. It was a no-go. Felt okay at the shop, rode it for a while, but no. Staff was awesome though. Went through a lot of trouble to get me fitted as best as they could for a test ride. Even measured my shoulders. This was all good until I sat down on a Madone 4.5. Wowee. Although I have to say Jay's did not really go through much effort to give me an accurate judgement. They didn't even raise the seat for me, so I felt like I was on a tricycle. But the feel of the bike was already 100000% better than that of the Onix. So Onix crossed off my list. Talked to a kid there and said I should try lots of different frame styles. Directed me to Knapps. I battled the fierce memories of last week's race (sponsored by this very store) and made it to the parking lot. Went inside and test rode the Specialized Tarmac. By far the nicest bike I've ridden. It felt amazing. I liked the feel much better than the Madone. It just felt right. So I talked and mingled some, then left to get back home.

Right now, Tarmac wins. At $2,200 MSRP, it's right in my budget. I decided to move up to entry level carbon instead of upper level aluminum. If I don't drop the extra couple hundred bucks I'll hate myself in a couple of years when I'm actually ready for such a bike. So it's an investment.

Weather looks to be shitty this week, so will put old tire on the Volpe and throw her on the trainer. Decided not to do the last cross race next Sunday. Bike is running so smooth, feeling pretty good, will just save money and energy for next year's road races. I didn't want to end on a bad note, but if I were to have another malfunction this race I'd die.

Godspeed.

DNF is an awful way to spell defeat or the story of my derailed derailleur

Tolerating all the pain and anguish that goes into a cyclocross race only to come out with a DNF next to your name is well... more painful than the race itself. I was doing great the entire race, well within my goals I set. Legs were jellied from all the running and inefficient mud cadence, but still I pushed through. Out of breath, heart pounding, and bike gives up on me. I'm not sure exactly how (know it has something to do with the several pounds of grass and mud caked on my bike) but my rear derailleur found itself wedged between my spokes making my bike immobile.

I couldn't even run it or anything, I had to shoulder it and was still a ways from the finish line so swallowed my pride and took a DNF. This happened on the second half of the last lap, and in retrospect, I should have just walked it. I would have given up the place I fought so hard to attain but at least I wouldn't have this overwhelming feeling of letting myself down.

Now I have to wait on new parts (Shimano LX this time, no more road derailleur for me) before I can race again. I'll hook up the old MTB to the trainer to make sure I still maintain some physique and hopefully on November 28th I'll be able to finish the season on a better note. Some spokes were also bent, but my wheel is actually perfectly trued. It's kind of funny because last night it wasn't. So at least something good came of this jam.

Still looking at lots of bikes. Going to try to ride a Trek 2.3 this weekend, as well as an entry level Madone, and see how they measure up to the Cannondale and TCR I was looking at. May go with the Alliance 0 instead of 1 because unsure how I feel about a compact crank for road. I'll get some opinions...

upcoming Mercer Cup USGP....

Moving in with parents for a bit to save some money has already paid off. With no rent cloud constantly hovering over my head, I was able to get myself a Kinetic Road Machine trainer. I opted for the extra package with computer/accessories (who doesn't love discounted accessories?) to fine tune my work outs. Furthermore, father invested in a heart monitor that he no longer uses so am able to plan crazy exercise regiments, and intervals are so much more effective. Although I don't have any device to measure my power output, I've been using MPHs to judge the sum of my efforts. And finally I'm able to measure my cadence. I always assumed I was in the 80's but it turns out I find myself most comfortable/effective/efficient pedaling in the 90's.

Also began looking at road bikes, for real this time. Have a TCR Alliance 1 on hold for me at one shop, and hoping to check out a few others to get a feel for the perfect road monster. That's something I'm incredibly excited about... my first season doing road.

ANYWAY wanted to pre-ride Mercer today for USGP but canceled on account of the weather (as well as the number presentation). But that's okay, I'll still get my fix in tomorrow after work. Living only 5 miles from the course is very convenient for a weekend of races. While tomorrow should be rainy and crazy cross weather, Sunday will clear up (although still be undoubtedly muddy) so excited to see the two sides of cross in one event. Been training a lot and hard so hope to yield better results than the past couple of races. Going to make myself come in top 50%, and hoping to break into top 30%. Did a work out today, but tomorrow will take it very easy and hopefully legs will be feeling as they should... powerful. Well till the Mercer Cup..... . ... . . ..