QC Crit Photo

I just found some more photos at:
http://bryan.moritzcycling.com/pictures/
This is a great resource for regional cycling photos thanks to the Bryan Moritz Family. I am impressed that they cover various races on the events that they are at, not just the ones that Bryan competes in. I have a link to this page on this blog. I find it is nice to save pictures from the races, because they happen so fast, and are hard to truly appreciate while you are actually participating in them. Below is a great shot that showcases the Cat 3 field and the beautiful downton Rock Island Crit venue...
And here I am trying to follow Timothy Campbell's acceleration. I believe there were a couple of riders up ahead, at this point, that he was trying to bridge up to. Unfortunately, when I got up to him, the field was basically with me, and I didn't have enough power to keep accelerating. Still a good shot, and one that captures a defining moment of the race for me.
The Muscatine Multi-sport uniforms just arrived, so stay-tuned for some 'action' shots. I am hoping that my push-up routine has helped me look more like a tri-athlete, not a bird-chested roadie, as these uniforms are sleeveless and very tight. I helped with the design of this gear as well, so I was pleased to see that they look great.

More Weekend Crit Reports

Before I begin, I apologize that I had an error in my last post regarding the crash that I saw at the Melon City Crit involving Bryan Moritz and two other guys. He clears it up in his comment under that blog entry. I thought Bryan was the one that was getting punched at, apparently it was some other guy. The aggressor did get relegated to last place, which seems like a good call by the refs, because we should be able to compete in local crits without fear of getting assaulted. Below is a pic as the crash was unfolding... I am right in the middle of the two fallen riders. Reminds of the picture below from the 2006 Wapello to Burlingto Road Races where I am also seen to the far left of the photo narrowly escaping a crash... ---
QC Crit-
I need a lot more practice doing flat multi-corner crits if I am going to get better at them. I have done around 10 crits total in my racing career, which doesn't seem to measure up to what some of the out of town Cat 3's had under their belt. Since a weekly criterium practice event is out of question, I will simply need to travel to find more crits to compete in. Maybe superweek, maybe st. louis, maybe just switch gears and focus on some other aspect of the sport.

For the race, over 80 Cat 3's lined up. It was fast and furious most of the time, with everyone trying to get nestled in to the front portion of the group. It took me about 10 laps to find any sort of confidence. I did get a feel for the race during the middle portion, once everyone sort of settled down a bit. Then some attacks started to happen, and I sort of did a half-assed attempt to bridge up to one of the solo fliers (I believe Tim Campell of West Liberty).

I got up to him, sort of, but basically brought the group up as well. Unfortunately, I blew a lot of energy during the few laps in the middle that I tried to break free, and join the riders up ahead. This is the luck and/or gambling part of the discipline. If I could have bridged up, worked with the rider(s) ahead and created a strong gap, we all have top finishes. OR- I use precious amounts of power and energy trying this tactic, and then don't have enough left during the last lap to get into the front of the sprint.

Flat muli-corner criteriums are definately a new challenge, that I will evaluate and most likely come up with a plan to do better at them in future efforts.

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Hilarious... Below is a picture of me at snake alley (photo by bryan moritz family, thanks) climbing up the approach to the 'snake' on the first lap. Notice my eager expression as I am excited to conquer my fear of this race... not knowing that my race would be over in about 20 more seconds.

And a good shot at the melon city crit with the field climbing up the weed park hill.

Redemption at the park

Sunday's race at Weed Park in Muscatine, IA, "The Melon City Criterium" ended up being just what I needed, maybe even deserved, after such a miserable race the day before on Burlington's Snake Alley.

This race is a 'two-corner' crit, but also includes a speed bump, duck obstructions and a fairly good sized climb on each of the one mile laps. I lined up with the 'Number One' pinned to my back and gratefully positioned myself dead center of the first row.

Around 85 other riders took their places as well, so the self-doubt kicked in, realizing the race only paid back 15 places, and these were all established Cat 3 racers. On the other hand, I knew this course would favor some of my strengths, and I have ridden it countless times in races and training. I even ride up the hill portion of the course a few times a week whenever I bike to work.

I tore off at the beginning of the race, expecting the frantic dash of saturday's race, but found that everyone was much more relaxed, so this wasn't necessary. This allowed me to settle in to the groove and start trying to find my rhthym.

Since there were a lot of local spectators from Muscatine there rooting for the home team, I had fun trying out different spots in the pack, inside, outside, middle, front, etc. I guess it just makes you more self conscious of where you are in the pack, when people are constantly cheering things like "move up", or "keep on em" or "get to the inside", etc.

Another way I passed the time was to see how fast we were going over the speed bump. I was able to get up to around 41 mph on some of the laps. Some of the riders were even able to get some good air as they ramped over the bump. I wonder if certain frame compositions are better suited for speed bump sailing?

I saw the bike cops looming around the race, so I hoped they didn't mind that we were exceeding the posted speed limit signs. I also wondered if they actually put in any 'off duty' mileage to qualify to be a 'bike cop'. I am not a criminal, per se, however, I would love to get caught up in a high speed police chase against bike cops, with me saddled up on my cyclocross bike. Maybe I will grow a mullet, get some tattos, then take my shirt off and go shoplift some 'fodies' of Old English from the Kum N Go.

Seriously, how hard would it be to drop these guys? Sort of an inadvertant perk to having good bike fitness. This, of course, assumes that they don't have the helicopter out tracking my crime spree.

I should do research to see if they make daisy duke style cut-offs with chamois pads? Most likely I would still opt to wear my helmet, just in case any of my fellow bike club members were watching the pursuit on tv. Plus, a wicked case of 'helmet head hair' combined with my mullet would be an added bonus for the viewers.

... oh, back to the racing. As luck was not on my side saturday, it was shining down on me sunday, as I was able to avoid a very horrible crash that laid out right in front of me. I was the next in line to go down, except I had just enough time to react and stay clear.

This shook up the field, and I had good position the remaining few laps. I executed my stategy and had enough energy left to come around the last switch back in good position. Everyone was sprinting out everything they had on the last portion of the last lap, so the question was basically 'who had the most left'.

I was pleased to be able to maintain my position after the switchback for a seventh place finish. This is a good result, higher than I ever got in the three previous times I have done this race (as cat 5, and twice as a cat 4). Also, earned me a special call-out from the announcer, since I was a member of the hosting club and a local rider, not to mention some cash (so I didn't have to shoplift my post-race '8-ball of OE' from the Kum N Go).

For the Iowa riders, Dominic M. (burlington, Ia) snuck in for a third or fourth place finish (after winning the cat 4 race last year), so he definately knows how to race around the park. Some years, it seems that Iowa riders get 'schooled' by the out town guests, but so far we have been getting respect with good results in all categories.

Speaking of that, teamate Bill Ford, pulled of a 4th place in the Master's 40 race as well, with Greg (12th place) and Bill Harper also racing well.

The Snake Can Bite My Ass

Well, Saturday's Race in Burlington, "The Snake Alley Criterium" turned out to be a real special event for me. After, spending countless hours thinking about this race in the previous weeks leading up, I ended up being out of contention in the very first minute.

Essentially, I arrived at the first 'snake' uphill climb towards the back of the group of over 60 riders, which put me at high risk of getting behind a crash...

Not my lucky day. Some guy ahead of me went down and I rode over him. This took me to the ground... But the snake doesn't stop there, my chain came off as well. I frantically worked to get my chain on, then had some help from the crowd to push me off, but my seat was off kilter. So I had to stop and fix that, then get another push. I was in dead last, by a good gap.

I heard somebody in the crowd say 'it's over'... yes they were absolutely right, if you don't get up and over snake alley in good position on the first pass, you are out of the race, because it doesn't wait up.

I gave it a shot at getting back in the race and passed many people. Thanks to Carson C., Scott Fett, and the countless others who still cheered me up the hill and kept me motivated to get in as many laps as possible before the refs pulled me.

Yeah, they pulled me after about my 8th lap. So, at least I didn't quit, but still a bitter pill to swallow. I will say that I am glad to have entered the race, because I won't be as sketchy next year (if I do it, not too excited about it right now). Also, it was truly a unique experience to climb up that alley, and see what everyone has been talking about. I also got a good rhythm on the corners, so great prep for rock island.

I live right behing Weed Park, in Muscatine, IA, so I am able to use my house as a warm-up/mechanic station for the Melon City Crit. Maybe I will do better... wait, it isn't possible to do any worse.

Crit Racing

The word 'Criterium' is french for 'Competition'... definately some good competition heading to eastern IA/western IL this weekend. The british call Crits 'roundy rounds'. More usesless trivia, but anyone who races in this area is probably thinking about this weekend.

Today, I am wondering if a taper is in order. Most cyclist don't seem to taper in favor of 'saddle time' so I usually follow suit. Tapering is the key to success for running events, but I am going to hit it hard again tonight, hoping to gain some confidence and maintain my fitness.

I have been doing some reading on racing tactics for criteriums. Strength and fitness are important in criterium racing, but equally important (in some ways more important) is tactical skill and intelligence/experience. A little luck and courage also help.

I am doing all of the Cat 3 events 1) Snake Alley in Burlington, 2) Melon City Crit in Muscatine (my backyard) 3)Quad Cities Criterium in Rock Island, Il. My goals are to hopefully get in the money in some of the races. They pay back deep (20 places or so) however there is such strong competition that I will really have to earn a spot that high up on the leader board.

In the back of my mind, yes I do also want to continue building my fitness and gaining racing skill, so I will be having some measure of success regardless of the outcome. I hope that Iowa riders are confident and ready to get some high placings since this is basically our home turf.

The Iowa Cup continues with Snake Alley and Melon City Crits, so a competition within a competition will be occuring as we can also measure our results against the local racers.

There is no reason to hold anything back this weekend, so good luck to all, and ride strong... real strong.

DICE 20kTT Starting Block

DICE 20k Time Trial

Today was the day to officially put a number to my TT skills with the 8th annual 20k Time Trial championships in Barstow, IL. I had entered this race the two previous years, but this was the first year with an actual TT bike, so I was obviously hoping to build upon my previous efforts.

While there were well over 100 people in past years, the 2008 edition had a rather sparse attendance, but, as we all know, you race against who shows up, not to mention the fact that this is really a race against the clock.

Speaking of who showed up, Bryce Mead, a pro rider from Team Jelly Belly, decided to enter the race, arriving early for this weekend's Memorial Day events. I checked it out to make sure he was the real deal: http://jellybellycycling.com/team/

Anyway, he won first overall, surprise, and beat the old course record of 26:13, set by Paul Deninger with a 25:16 (about 29.51mph ave). This is especially noteworthy because that put me down a spot, finishing second overall with a 26:16 (28.39mph).

I was hoping to do well today, and was very happy when I crossed the line, but floored to hear about some guy getting a 25minute time... I was relieved that he raced professionally (sort of made it seem like he was overqualified to compete with us amateurs, or something), but still would have rather he stayed home today.

The rest of the Muscatine Multisport gang did well, with Eric Furnas and Chris Mann taking firsts in their age group, and Connie Mann achieving a 2nd place overall in the female division.

Ok, well this Bryce Mead guy is in town for one of the region's main events... Memorial Day Weekend Racing. Going fast in a straight line is one thing, but this weekend is about so much more, specifically going fast through corners.

I am pretty sure crit racing is one of my weakest areas, but if luck falls my way I might have a result worth posting.

Muscatine Multi-sport Duathlon

Wednesday was the newly formed Muscatine Multi-sport's group training event. We set up a course at saulsbury rec. center that included a 2 mile run, a 20k bike and then another 2 mile run.

Pretty good attendance, with a few people trying a duathlon for the first time. I imagine they will now be inspired to upgrade their bike and/or their running efforts and equipment to take on this challenging new discipline.

My running times seemed right on track, considering I am only running once per week. I am hoping to simply maintain my runs, and keep amping up my Time trialing results as the season goes on.

I did the course in 54 minutes and 48 seconds. My first run was 5:43/mile and second run was 6:11/mile. I did the bike part in 29minutes and 52 seconds. Thanks to connie mann for doing the timing, which she was forced into, having brought a bike with no brake pads (they were taken out to install some brand new super fast zipp wheels).

I am still tweaking my bike position and fit, but I almost have it locked in to the most aerodynamic I can get without injuring myself or comprosining on comfort and optimum power output.

Local bike shop owner Greg Harper, gets honorable mention, for fixing my gear shifter earlier that day. Yes, I have many cycling skills, but I learn as I go with the mechanical aspects fo the sport, and really screwed up my gears by trying to make an adjustment myself. Greg saved the day for me however, and I am back up to speed.

Weekend Training Race

I decided to do the Two Bee Race last saturday, called Tech Tach Teicher. I wasn't sure what to expect, but usually the races put on by Conn Day and friends are a little bit more low key. They are great options, however, to break up the predictability of training with the same people.

My pre-race train of thought was to make sure I got a good work-out, so I wasn't planning on sitting in the back, or letting breakaways loose, if possible. Once I arrived, however, I was excited to see a much larger turnout than what I expected, 38 starters.

Most notable was the fact that 'Bikes To You' had basically their entire Cat 1/2 team, yet all the Cat 3's were absent (racing in arkansas I believe). Also, was the large team 'Atlas' representation.

Ok, so this was going to be a hard race without me going out of my way, because some of the best of the 'east coast Iowa racers' were lining up.

Basically, the race consisted of Bikes To You and Atlas taking turns attacking, chasing and blocking. I was mostly up for the 'fitness assessment' aspect of this race, since I had plenty of Michelob Ultra stockpiled from the Two Bee time trial races I have been doing. So, I chased the attacks down as well.

This meant I got to follow the wheels of some big hammers like Lee Venteicher (hey is this race named after him?), Tracy Thompson, Josh Madsen, Jim Cochran, Sean Walker, Ryan Jacobsen, etc. I used tons of energy bridging up to these attacks, and really I didn't have any specific reason for doing it (tactics wise).

Towards the end of the 27.5 mile race, a field of 14 was still intact. On one of the incline portions, with about 2 miles to go, I was on the front looking to slow down to conserve energy for the final sprint. Just then, Lee V. (I think, didn't look back) literally pushed me ahead with his hand. I guess this was non-verbal communication to 'go for it', 'take a pull' or perhaps even a great tactic to finally get rid of me, by coaxing me into burning my last bit of energy.

I accellerated/pulled for a bit, who knew, maybe some more people would get shelled off... Nope, only the strong had survived, and strong indeed they were. This was a terrible time to attack, and not really intentional, I just went with the momentum of Lee's 'push'. Next thing I know I was being dropped, along with ryan jacobsen (who had done a lot of work throughout the race, so understandably tired).

I watched the group carry onward, and looked down at my spedometer to see that there was only 1 mile left in the race. Well, I felt sort of silly, maybe embarrassed, perhaps dissappointed. Not sure. Because of my confusion, I opted to get the hell out of dodge immediately after the race, as I needed some alone time to reflect on what had happened.

Definately a great race, and thoroughly rewarding to compete with the group that showed up. Hopefully I furthered my fitness, because race tactic wise, I am more confused than ever.

The 'Cat 3' race had five riders, and I came in 2nd. Ian Robinson won the cat 3 division, and Lee Venteicher won the Cat 1/2. A handful of 4's and 5's were in this lead group, so great work for them. Glad to see former Muscatine resident Scott Fett finishing top 10 (7th) in this race.

Let Levi Ride... With Me

I took some pictures of me pedalling my new TT bike, to try and get just the right fit. I scoured over pictures of pro-riders on the internet and compared them to my positioning and adjustments. Below is a picture of Levi and me, posing for the team website.

Here is another shot of my new bike.

An update on the Duathlon I did Sunday... I just got to look at the results and I was a little surprised to see how much slower my runs were than everyone elses. I even lost 20 seconds on the transitions. Fortunately, I had the fastest bike split, with a rate of 28.5mph.

That result is how I was able to still come in second overall, despite only being the 13th and 20th fastest runner in the two running segments. This was only my second time running on anything but the treadmill, so maybe I will have to break down and do some outside runs, but probably not. I better focus on the cycling end of things, because I know all the roadie's are charging full steam ahead with their bike training.

Runnin to my Bike - Duathlon

May 4th was the 'Cinco Du Mayo' Duathlon at the Hummer Lot in Davenport, IA. My spanish isn't perfect, but I believe the event was a day early than it's namesake.

Due to the nasty winter weather, I was sort of forced to cross train on my treadmill in the basement. I didn't have any real goal in mind as I ran in my basement, but I was steadily building up my running pace and mileage. At some point, it clicked that I was a good runner again, oops. This could spell trouble for my cycling season...

No worries, running is sort of boring, and the weather is now perfect for cycling, so I avoided a near castostrophe. However, I thought I would try and hang on to my running fitness just long enough to compete in this duathlon.

My new Trek TT bike arrived Wednesday, so everything was working out well. I had just enough time to practice riding it before the event (more on my TT bike and some action photos to come later).

Duathlons, for me anyway, are bike time trials, with an annoying run up to the bike, and then an even more unbearable run across the finish line. This was a 'sprint' duathlon so it was full gear for a 3k run, 17k bike and 3k run. The running portions don't really 'help' your bike time, but once your heart rate subsides from the run, you can actually get a pretty good clip going.

So, how'd I do? I rocked it out with a 2nd place overall! While I was about 10th or so after the run, I passed everyone on the bike except a guy from the Univ. of Iowa Triathlon team who actually was in the process of setting a course record. I was really nervous that I would get passed on the second leg of the run, but my gap on the third placed competitor ended up being large enough that I held on to 2nd.

There was a lot of good competition there. Not really any cyclists that I could recognize, but the University of Iowa brought up about 8 men/women from their Triathlon team, and they were very strong. There are also many regional multi-sporters who compete in this event, as it is the first real race of the season for triathletes and duathletes.

I am still going to run once in awhile, because I think my VO2 Max is improving because of the cardio work-out I get from running. I won't overdo it, I understand I need the weekly mileage on the bike to hang on to the Cat 3 caliber of racing.

The new 'Muscatine Multi-sport' club is having training races the second wednesday of may, june and july at saulisbury rec center, 6pm. These will help keep me in shape for the du-state du and august and harvest hammer in september.

Photo above is by Joe Mann, thanks.