Still resting

Above is a pic from the Tour of America's Dairyland Homepage. That was from the Blue Mounds road race of Stage 1. I am still sort of exhausted, but I imagine I will be motivated to get back on the bike again by Tuesday.

Tour of America's Dairyland... I'm Back

I made it through 6 intense races up in Wisconsin, and am now recouping at home....

-TUESDAY-FON DU LAC ROAD RACE-
I hopped out of my car Tuesday to be greeted by intense heat. It was a record breaker, in the high 90's and heat index probably in 100's. Hmm... this could be good for me, as have been doing better in 'harder' races. I decided to race in the advanced Cat 1,2,3 Master's category, as the money was much better and I wasn't really up here looking for upgrade points, though the Cat 3 field was tough as well.

We were doing 6 laps totalling 10 miles. Some rollers, but the heat was really causing everyone to race cautiously. I took a sip from my waterbottle... it was boiling. Riders weren't really attacking as much as sort of slipping up ahead. After about 4 laps I was really feeling the fatigue from the conditions. Good news, however, was that I seemed to be handling the situation better than some of the field.

A few riders were slipping up ahead and with 1 lap to go, only about half our field was still on board (22 riders). I plotted my move over the course of the next 9 miles. I knew that most of the field was merely in survival mode, just not sure, being new to racing with such a 'wise' group of mostly Cat 1's or 2's.

I decided to try a solo flyer with about 1 mile to go. I hit it hard and was happy to see that the field wasn't interested. I got a comfortable gap, though I was anything but comfortable. I turned the last corner which then meant an uphill grind then a downhill finish. I smiled as I seemed to have timed it perfectly.

Crap, the field was charging up the hill quickly, as they were now sprinting. I gave it all I had. Unfortunately, the front of the field caught me, but just at the line, so only 4 people got around me, which ended up being good enough for 13th place (7 people had made the breakaway earlier) and in the money.

I was on the verge of heat stroke as I veered into the medical tent area and used the sponge buckets to cool off. Many were submerging themselves in the portable pool. It was hot but I felt some measure of success against this respectable field of accomplished riders.

WEDNESDAY - FON DU LAC CRIT-
Ok, still hot as hell. Facing two crits today, as I entered both Cat 3 and the Cat 1,2,3 Master's events. The 50 minute, 4 corner, cat 3 race was first. The field was soft, again due to the heat. It took me a few laps to get a feel for the roads and corners, but I was feeling very calm. I meandered at the back, and waited for the group to settle in a bit.

Midway through the race, as things slowed down, I went to the front and pushed the pace a bit, as a rider was up ahead. A break formed with Jonathon Cook (Team Wheaton),Matt Howe (Team Geargrinder) and myself. Awesome, I felt great.

We caught the rider up ahead, and then rotated through a bit. I was determined to make this break stick, so I ended up pulling the group most of the final laps. Ok, it gets a little rude at this point, because this tour has some sweet primes. The announcer called a $100 prime and a $40 prime while we were in the front. I lead it out, still worried about getting caught, and Jonathon and Matt then went around and sprinted. Jonathon won both of them, nice cash.

Then they settled in behind me and we continued. That fourth guy was with us as well, just never saw him. Finally I saw the field up ahead, which meant we had well over a minute gap.
I eased up a little, but Matt and Jonathon were 'sprinters' and not interested in leading.

I came around the last corner and hit it hard. Deja Vu of the prime sprints, they came around me at the line, but I had a strong finish to get on the podium. I was really happy with this result, as I have never been on a podium before. Miss Wisconsin came up to the stage and gave the winner some chocolate milk to chug.

Now, I had to step up to the longer, faster, wiser Master's race... Well, I was obviously a little tired and discouraged that I didn't see anyone from my earlier Cat 3 race in this race... were these guys all Cat 1/2's or just saving their legs by doing only the one race?

This race started fast, but then again settled down as the heat was intense. About 5 guys had already slipped up ahead, as I decided to try and make something happen. The announcer's primes were tricky to work with, because the field would surge accordingly. I was trying to dangle off the front to entice some strong riders to bridge up and make a second group, but the field wasn't going to let anyone else go.

I was exhausted from trying to slip up ahead and didn't contest the field sprint, so finished at the back. 55 miles of crit racing... time to rest, but not until I watched a great Pro 1/2 race.

THURSDAY - SHEBOYGAN CRIT-
The temperatue was back in the 80's so it felt cool. The course had four corners, seperated by long straights. I wasn't sure what to expect from the Cat 3 race, but soon found that they were much 'snappier' with the improved weather conditions. A breakaway just wasn't going to happen today, for this field.

I decided to roll the dice and go 'all or nothing'. With about 3 and a half laps to go, after I felt the announcer was done calling prime laps, I attacked hard.... foam was coming out of my mouth. No reaction from the field, as I picked that time in the race when everyone was starting to save it for the sprint. I went around and saw 3 laps to go, then 2 laps to go, as I hoped to make this stick, or maybe have a strong rider or two bridge up.

Nope, the field caught me, and I just hung in the pack to finish with the group.

I was again tired from the effort, as I lined up for my second race. This race started out fast and really never let up. Basically around 27 - 31 mph on the back straightaway. Sometimes it dipped down to 24mph as the group braced for the next attack.

There were some strong team efforts at these crits and lots of primes which made things seem helpless. About half through the race, after really just hanging on to the back, amazed at how relentless the pace was, I began to ride agressively and bridged up to a few breaks. A group with an IS Corp rider was ahead, and his teamates were shutting everything down.

I gave up the fight towards the end, but still felt strong, so decided to give the sprint a try. I got boxed in the last half of the lap, and cursed myself for the poor position. I still sprinted well, though mostly just following the pace of the group (which was over 37 mph) as we were all bunched up.

Later I checked out Lake Michigan and a girl on a bike and I talked for about an hour. The rumors are true about people being friendly up in Wisconsin.

FRIDAY - GREENBUSH ROAD RACE -
Another 60 mile road race with the Master's Cat 1,2,3's. I was very disappointed with the course as we made our first lap. So much descending and blind cornering. It actually was a great course in a thickly wooded state park, just didn't suit me as well as the other 2 RR's I had done.

Today the breakaways just weren't working. Didn't matter to me much, becuase I stayed at the back and hung out with the 'silver fox'. This guy is famous for being in his 60's and still very strong. Unfortunatly, he was always forcing his way behind wheels, so I plotted to make my way to the front at some point, so I could free myself from his tyranny.

I thought about quitting the race often, as I didn't see much opportunity to break away due to all of the descending. I realized that was probably just mental burnout from being in my 11th race over an 8 day period, so I persisted.

I very tactifully planned to slip away after the 5th lap, feeling that the group wouldn't mind. There was a group of three up ahead, but by now, I believed the group had softened up enough.
Sure enough, no response as I very slowly moved up ahead. As soon as I was around a corner and couldn't see the field, I picked up the pace and sort of attacked. Bingo, they were out of sight due to the corners.

Ahh, this was awesome, finally some freedom from the silver fox, and some much needed alone time. I descended fast and smooth (42 mph, compared to 39mph with the group). In all I spent 7 miles enjoying my possibly successful move, hoping that the group wouldn't try to reel me in.

Unfortunately, on an extremely long straight section, the pace car could be seen. Yes, I was almost briding up to the lead group, but I looked behind and could just barely see the field. This was just the motivation they would need to pick up the pace.

Sure enough, with about 2 miles to go, Peter Anderson (from a super strong team in California) had bridged everyone up. As soon as he got to me he pleaded with the group to help pull in hopes of catching the leaders. No one responded so I went to the front again, moments after just being caught. I turned around and I had another large gap, everyone was saving it for the final two hills, I suppose.

Finally I was caught again. I settled in for a bit, and couldn't believe it as I attacked again on the second to last hill. In retrospect, I should have saved this burst for the end, but I was amped up. A team mate of the California team came around and set the tempo as we approached the final 'wall'. Everyone charged hard up the hill which crested with downhill sprint to the finish.

I saw Tracy Thomspon, and got around him to see if maybe I could sling shot him up into the pack, as we were just out of the money spots. Unfortunately we ran out of roadway, so I just finished strong for a respectable 18th place out of about 45 or so starters.

What a great experience, I will most likely attend this event next year. I had some success, some failure, but overall just a good time racing in Wisconsin. I look forward to seeing how this experience will shape my future efforts in Iowa races.

Hummer Hammer Race Report

I was excited to enjoy Father's Day racing underneath the Quad Cities Air Show at the Hummer Hammer. The DICE team puts on a good race with nice payouts, food and organization, however the turnout wasn't very good (competing regional races, rain forecast, father's day conflict?...not sure).

The Cat 3 race was plagued with rain which made for a very slow pace, especially initially. Ok, there were only 7 people that entered in a race that paid back $350 for 5 spots. This is a very generous payout and everyone had great odds.

We raced 18 laps for a total of about 23 miles. Once I had a feel for the corners I began to get antsy with the pace. The smart thing would have been to chill until the last lap, but I thought I would try my hand at dropping one or two of the riders. With only 6 riders (one guy bailed), I had to basically attack my own attacks. I wasn't really fully committed to the attacks either, so basically just setting tempo for no apparent reason, during the last 10 laps.

No one dropped off, so all five of the remaining riders attacked at the second to last corner. I hung on and sprinted to 4th place as all 6 of us basically were at the line at the same time.
1st: Jerome Rewerts - All Nine Yards
2nd: Chris Reed - HBA
3rd: Bruce Grell - DICE
4th: Chad Bishop - Harper's Racing Team/Melon City Bike Club
5th: Doug Klahsen - All Nine Yards
6th: not sure

'The Main Event'.

Feeling a little tired from that race, I lined up for the longer and more comptetitve Cat 1,2,3 race. All Nine Yards had 3 guys, Bikes2You had 4, DICE had Derek Cassady, then myself and former pro Jeff Bradley.

The attacks were frequent with All Nine Yards covering the alternating Bikes2You moves. So, with one green and one yellow jersey up ahead, I had to decide whether to bridge up or not. The times I did, I brought the group with and had to endure a counter attack, the times I didn't they blocked.

About 5 laps into this very hot 22 lap race Sean Walker(Bikes2You) and Jerome Rewerts(All Nine Yards) were up ahead. The others blocked leaving me and the DICE rider with the task of bringing that break back (for some reason Jeff Bradley dropped out). Alas, the problem, if it got brought back, the riders that sat in would counter. Ok, racing solo against teams doesn't always work out.

So, the second group became a race for the last three paying spots ($450 for the five spots). Derek (DICE) was probably still hoping to get in to the break so he was riding agressively, while Bryan Moritz and Will Greenwood were probably mostly interested in shedding me from the group while maintaining a gap for Sean.

The attacks and counter attacks popped me and Finn (Bikes2You). Finn tried to get back on, but ended up following my wheel for the last half of the race as I rode at my threshold. I was hoping that one or two of the riders from the second group would pop, so I could get back into the money spots.

They kept their gap, but I didn't let up, though it was very tempting, as it seemed like it was four against one. Eventually, Derek fell off the group and I passed him (with Finn in tow). Ok, now I am in 6th place chasing Will, Bryan and Lane Anderson, I just need one of those guys to throw in the towel.

Towards the end of the race, they eased off the pace momentarily and I was only about 5 seconds back... I tried to surge, but it was into the head wind. They noticed how close I was and turned up their pace.

This was a very hot and grueling process. Sure it was basically like a time trial, so I was in my element, but mentally and physically this was daunting. With about 2 laps to go Will was popped from the group as I believe the three were making their final moves to race for 3rd. Could this work out for me?

Unfortunately, Will still had the stamina to hold me off. Finn played his team role well, and then attacked me during the last lap to get 6th.

I was screwed from the start of this thing, but what great training for the Tour of Wisconsin this week. Jerome, who also raced in the cat 3 event, proved to be ultra strong, making the break, and then working with Sean to hold off the field.

Off to Wisconsin for 6 races Tuesday through Friday.

June Racing Tour Day #2 - State Center Crit

Friday night I raced in State Center, Ia at the Rose Festival Criterium put on by Colorbiotics. I was hoping that this would be a small race that I would give me a chance to practice my criterium racing.

Upon arrival I headed to the Rose Festival to put down a 2 pound burrito and have my photo taken with the 'Rose Queen'. It was raining, but I was confident the course would be try by the time my race started.

I rode up with Bikes2You racer, Nick Campbell, who achieved a 3rd place finish in th Cat 4/5 race even after getting taken out in the last lap in a wipeout.

One by one, I started to see some of Iowa's best Cat 1/2/3 racers showing up. At the start, there were 28 competitors racing for 9 spots. That was much larger and more talented field then I expected for a first year, single day race on a Friday night.

The course was interesting with 4 quick turns then two longer stretches. Two slight upgrades added a bit of pressure to the legs and contributed to some of the riders that dropped out.

I am embarassed to say that I was extremely uncomfortable the first few laps. I was having severe flashbacks of my last criterium experience in which I wiped out on a wet corner at the Quad Cities Crit. It took some time to convince myself that I could race through the corners at speed. Alas, I found my rhythm and was able to enjoy a really great race.

Cat 1/2/3 Iowa riders are a great group of guys. Large team turnouts from Rasmussens, All Nine Yards, Bikes2You and Colorbiotics. Attacks and counter-attacks were frequent. This made for some intense racing, but ultimately they were always reeled back in. I even found myself with a 7 second gap with Jerome Rewerts of All Nine Yards. I wasn't feeling the move, though, which allowed the field to catch up.

All of the attacking, however did shed quite a few riders. I imagine it was mostly Cat 3's and Masters racers(who had just completed their race moments earlier).

Toward the 2nd or 3rd to last lap I found myself in fifth wheel. I should have punched it right then and there, but I didn't and ended up with horrible position coming around the final corner. I advanced one spot, though to finish 11th, just a bit shy of the money spots.

I can say, I witnessed a beautiful move by the Bikes2You team on the last lap. I looked up to see three gleaming gold jerseys leading the field. There designated sprinter, Will Greenwood, was in 3rd wheel, with Andrew F. and Bryan Moritz leading him out.

The leadout men peeled off perfectly and Will hammered out the victory.

This was a great race, and worth the drive. I feel really good about my chances in upcoming events. I have the physical side of things in line, now I am sharpening up my mental game.

Day three of my racing tour continues in Johnston, Ia (Des Moines Suburb) for the Greendays Criterium.

Blue Mounds Race of the Future Report

Thursday Morning I attended the first race of the Tour of America's Dairyland event in Wisconsin. This road race was presented on the proposed road race course for the 2016 Olympics. The description from the website:

The 22-mile loop offers three considerable climbs totaling up to 2,200 feet per lap with an additional finishing mile stretch that averages a grade of eight percent.

They weren't kidding about that 'additional finishing mile stretch', it was indeed quite an 'offering' that played a key factor in the race, making the final climb about 2.5 miles.

On arrival, it was exciting to see a good turnout, and pro-style finishing stretch. I was lucky enough to get to park right next to the Trek/Livestrong development team. I have the exact same bike they use, so I did have to make sure I got on the right bike as I warmed up. I also appreciated seeing Steve Tilford strolling around, as well as Team Bissell, Team Type 1, Kelly Benefits, Gear Grinder, and some pro-women teams.

The start/finish is atop the Blue Mound State Park. I guess this 'blue mound' is about the closest thing to a mountain I will ever see in my racing career. I enetered the Cat 3 race, which entailed 2 laps totalling 44 miles. The turnout was probably just a bit over 50 riders, which was probably good for a Thursday morning event.

We started rolling down the 'mound' at about 9am. There were a couple of short climbs, but otherwise the first 7 or 8 miles were all spent descending. It didn't take long to figure out that we eventually were going to have to climb back up at some point, but when?

The largest hill comes at the very end of the loop, so the first real split occured as we went over it the first time. There was a small sort of group that managed to stay together over the climb, but most everyone else was getting strung out. I had no idea when the climb was going to end, but thankful as we crested. I did have a little ground to catch up, but working with another rider, I was back on with the field for lap number 2.

Lots of descending/recovering for the group, but during one of the middle climbs another split occured. I lost contact again just for a bit, and when I rejoined was happy to see that there were only 11 of us left in this race that paid back 10 spots.

Unfortunately, no one really had much motivation to make this gap stick, as it was pretty obvious that the finishing climb that loomed in our future would be steep enough to shake things out accordingly, so some of the racers caught back on.

I was pretty apprehensive about climbing that hill again, as the first time around was an all out effort to hang on. Fortunately, I was feeling confident that I could place somewhere in the top 10, based on the effect the inclines were having on the group up to this point and the ever dwindling field.

THE MOUND
It finally came at about 42 miles into our race. My guess is that there were about 20 Cat 3's who entered the final climb together. Everyone seemed to be basically riding their 39x25 gearing to the max that their fitness would allow. About half way into the climb gaps were opening up all over the place. I quickly counted to see how many were up ahead of me, and realized I was still racing for about 9th place.

I ended up in a sort of chase group of 3 with a comfortable advantage on the rest of the remaining field. That meant that if I didn't hang on to these two, I would slip out of the top ten, and go home empty handed. We rounded the last 'added bonus incline' up to the finish. The lead group was in sight as it began shattering, but we were really just trying to make it to the top without cracking.

I inadvertantly attacked my chase group when I saw some orange cones (wishfully thinking that was the finishing area). One of the guys couldn't hang on but Garret McAllister of Wheaton/Franciscan was still there. He started to weaken and I was able to gap him, meaning I was in 9th place with the last 200 meters in sight.

I set my sights on maybe advancing another place as I saw another Wheaton/Franciscan rider within reach, but it wasn't meant to be. In fact, the featherweight (maybe 130pounds) rider I had earlier gapped overtook me at the end so I ended up in 10th overall. Paquette of Wheaton/Franciscan won our race in which 28 (about half the field) posted a finishing result.

Steve Tilford's blog has good information about the Pro/1/2 race, and I believe Amanda Miller won the Women's Pro 1/2/3 race. Check the results to see how everyone did.

If that ends up being the 2016 Olympic Road Race course, Fabian Cancellara won't be as successful due to the fact that the mile finishing incline will be a launching pad for the pure climbers.

I went back to Iowa after that race, as I am planning on doing some small Iowa races and then go back up to 'the tour' for Tuesdays Road Race in Fon DuLac. Quite a few riders are competing in the omnium (racing all 10 days). Tracy Thompson of Bikes 2 You , for example, is racing the entire week. Unfortunately, he got a flat tire in his race.

It's about to hit the fan

Well, not much going on, currently, but my race calendar is alive with anticipation as this will be a great summer of bike racing. Once it kicks in next week, I will be racing frequently all summer long.

In fact, during my cycling vacation at the end of June, I counted that I will potentially be racing 11 times over 9 days. I can't wait to read my blog after that experience is all said and done. So many different ways that can turn out... crashing, winning, quiting, attacking, crying, cheering, dropping, sketching, thriving, reinforcing, crushing, etc.

This week it has been fun to keep an eye on the Nature Valley Grand Prix in Minnesota. Former Iowa residents Amanda Miller, Tom Zirbel and Nick Frye are of interest. I also like to look to see how far down on the results Floyd Landis is. He needs to start doing whiskey shots, because he really doesn't seem to be much of a factor these days. Also, Steve Tilford is always noteworthy, and dutifully updates his blog about the race. I learn a lot from his wisdom.

This weekend the amateurs get to tear it up during Cat 2/3 races at Nature Valley. I am not free to go, but I know quite a few Cat 2's are making the trip, excited to not have to battle against Pro/1's for a change. Maybe the concept of Cat 2/3 races will catch on, as it can be quite an upgrade jump for a Cat 3 who then has to race against Pros and Cat 1's. Imagine how cool it would be to have a Cat 2 only race during, for example, the Memorial Day Weekend Races.

The 2009 Memorial Day weekend races didn't go all that well, however I can now make the most of those races by using the knowledge, fitness, experience, etc to hopefully perform well throughout the summer.

Rain Pain

I came out of my psychodelic trance just in time to head up to Nichols, Ia for the Iowa City Time Trial #2. It is held on the state TT course and only about a 20 minute drive, so I had this race marked in bold on my race calendar. It was nice to leave at 8:10am for a race that started at 9am.

One problem. It was raining and windy at 8am, so I was debating whether to go or not. Hopefully you can't relate to this, but I had based my training week around this race/workout and really didn't have a plan 'b' for how to spend my morning. So I loaded up my bike and some rain type gear and decided to drive up and ride the course even if it was rained out.

I saw a few cars lined up along the road, and learned that 12 participants had signed up despite the pending thunderstorms.. It actually stopped raining and the wind tamed down a bit (probably around 10mph), so other than puddled roads, we ended up having compatible weather.

I won the cat 3 division by default, as I was the only one. In fact, I believe vitually everybody that showed up managed to take home some sort of prize.

PIE OR BEER... I have to admit, I struggle with this age old question... I opted for the Perkins chocolate cream pie. I am always confused about those prize options, offering prizes like a 6 pack of GU, some waterbottles or maybe even a small cash payout would be much less ironic, and for my troubled mind, much less traumatizing...

Most successful cycling nutritional plans will likely dictate limiting the intake of pie and beer, so sort of fun (in a sadistic sense), to then taunt exercise addicts to 'fall off the wagon' by succombing to their cravings. These prizes are sort of a cruel and unusual form of post race punishment for me. I finished off half the pie Sunday and then curled up into a fetal position and cried myself to sleep. The shame was unbearable the next morning, I couldn't even look at my bloated pie face in the mirror.

I am thankful to the organizers of this series, as I would have one seriously dusty TT bike without it. I have a pretty good lead in the Cat 1,2,3 division of this 4 race series, so hopefully I can hang on and get some sort of merchandise award (Giro TT helmet is one of the awards). On the other hand, maybe they are going to 'reward' us with some sort of beer keg or multi-leveled frosted chocalate cake. Oh... the horror.

Getting My MoJo Rising

I finally felt a sense that I was going to recover from my mentally and physically deflated state as I tossed and turned while sleeping last night.

The first indication was that I can now sleep on either side of my body, as my road rashes have healed enough to open up the right side sleeping option.

It then became very clear as Jim Morrison appeared to me. He was in an empty bathtub but still conscious. He told me that I can now 'break on through to the other side' as I will be a reincarnated version of my past racing self.

A Native American then whizzed by on an old school Schwinn. He beckoned me to follow him and we went on a training ride across the soutwestern desert. I enjoyed utilizing my sage-like cycling knowledge while gathering even more insight from his wheeled wisdom.

We didn't get too many miles in, as our road bikes weren't well-equipped to ride accross the sandy dunes of Death Valley. Fortunately, my new spiritual advisor had some Peyote and Sodium Tabs in his cycling jersey, which gave us the extra 'boost' we needed to finish our ride.