Tuesday, May 29, 2007

memorable memorial day

relax and full gas


had to fill up before we made our north bound journey. gas prices can go as high as they want. i don't care. maybe the motor city will begin to construct more bike lanes for people who would rather park cars and commute on bicycles.


once we arrived it was like we were completely detached from all other civilizations. so calming and disconnected. everything slowed down. beachs, sun and sand. it couldn't have been a better place to take a time out.


of course when you're north you have to take advantage of the beautiful riding. the roads were just awesome. rolling hills and light traffic. just awesome. on saturday morn we had breakfast outside then headed into town to start the 3 hour ride. a great day in the saddle.


the van looked pretty full when we packed it all in. wow vans are starting to become attractive simply for the traveling cyclist. auto doors and lots of room.


that eve was the dinner of the weekend. total relaxation with a full belly. of course wine to aid in the digestion.


layered salad topped with goat cheese.

body buzz from wine and the fire place to ease all tensions. nothing can bother me now.



a gentle spin on sunday to keep the legs awake. monday morn drive 3 hours to grand rapids for the coolest criterium so far this year. only the 2nd but definitely ranks high with ada for cool factor.



the race was just awesome. the atmosphere of the event was really great. gas lamps with lots of restaurants and of course a convenient starbucks right on the course. a covered parking deck to shield us from the intense sun was perfect for warm up.


the course was really nice with only a couple gacks in the road. fast as hell but smooth with flowing corners. when i was warming up on the trainer i new right away i had good legs. the nice 3hr ride on saturday followed by the recovery spin the day prior made for the perfect race day condition. i was spinning for like 40 min then took a few laps before the start. just Will, Foshag and myself were the only mates in the race so that didn't leave us much to work with. the gun went off and on the first 2 laps i felt like riding away. of course that would never happen. but i felt really comfortable and wasn't hurting at all. at first i just tried to ride the race with nothing on my mind. trying to keep a good position and not screw anything up. it was a big field with like 65 riders. i never was at the back but rarely was at the front. i think foshag was 6th place or better the entire race. he never left the front. Will and i floated a lot and occasionally found a wheel that was moving fast and that maybe rolled off the front briefly. for some reason i didn't feel like i was riding smoothly even though my fitness and legs were working beautifully. i should have been at the front to try and help foshag a little better. we just kept riding laps with the lathrup boys again and again trying to make something happen. tarrant was tired since he had just come off a huge string of races and achieved a nice win in elkhart. priority was present but didn't seem to have the normal organization they usually show. essex was in there and west coast had a ton of bodies. with 3 to go i had to find a way to the front some how. for some reason i could only find maybe 12th wheel with 1 to go. i could see the front good but it was fast so i didn't have a good position to move up for any type of sprint. on the last corner i saw 2 west coast guys take the corner and bump elbows just a bit and then blast off for the line. foshag appeared to be in a really good position. i think he got 4th or something. really great. todd shoeberg won and brian adams got second. i think i got 23rd. Will was in there with me somewhere. i'm glad we got in there a little bit for the team points. it was a race i'll certainly return to. good weekend.

Sunday, May 20, 2007

TOKV

3 stages 2 days

it was damn early this morning when we left but it was beautiful. sun coming up, cool air, bikes and trainers loaded, its off to the 3rd and final stage. a perfect morning for racing. (i've never done a kensington that was warm for the race) it was cold again but awesome.


sipping tea on the drive. should we roll the dice for a 3rd try and take a chance with US23 today? was it early enough in the morning that we could be traffic? sure, 3rd time is a charm. we made it smooth sailing! it was to be a good day.


arrival. i had a good warm up. plenty of time today. no matter what, cars get trashed when going to races.


staging for the 1/2 field. it was a huge field today with 80+ riders. just awesome.

so yesterdays crit was pretty cool. the race was really fast. every time i looked at the computer it was like 30mph.


i swear we were ripping this corner at like 35. it was awesome. i'm happy nobody crashed. well at least not on the corner. i think a couple guys lost it on the back strip. hopefully they are ok.


i felt pretty good during the crit. it looked like danny was riding really well and i like to be on his wheel. he fills gaps nicely and makes moves with the right people. i marked him for a bit and eventually took a flyer hoping to get a little gap. the field was just too attentive to let anything go so it was more like just going to the front to say hi. i felt good doing it even though i knew it wouldn't stick.


cooling down afterwards. i think every person that rode by commented on my new riser block. some left over catalogs floating around in the trunk. they work well. try them if you have them. let me know if you don't. i have plenty.


corner marshall shueg knight was a bit drained after directing traffic all day. i think the sun got to his head. the WSD blue hat and shirt were just not working. someone get this guy a drink and a lazy boy.

warming up for the TT. i was early for the race. then with plenty of time to go, i rode to the start and missed it! how the hell did that happen. i was kinda pissed. it didn't matter though. its chip timed and they just let me go last. i felt ok in the TT but may have needed it to be a bit longer to get the legs wound up. i was near the back of the finishers for TT times. so funny, everyone's excuse for the TT and crit was that they were saving up for today's big road race. yeah right. just race your frick'n bike.


danny took off just before me. he adopted the same strategy i did, a quick modification to the road bike with bolt on aero bars.


i think shueg knight was having a little too much fun with his fingers sending off riders. click the pic to enlarge and you'll see what i'm talking about.


danny went so fast he out ran the ambulance.


results.





and my video of the 1/2 staging is a little grainy but its still cool to watch.







and here is the finish of the 1/2 race for stage 3. so awesome. it was a great race.

the road race was really great today. i had a feeling i would have good legs today after yesterdays effort. the crit was a wake up for the legs after the TT and a good meal with sleep would be a perfect recipe for the long race of today that included the classic kensington climbs. it was cool but a very nice temp to race in. i had a great warm up. on the 2nd lap, jim ordered myself and tony to go to the front. i felt decent so i integrated myself into the priority health train at the front. those guys controlled the race really well and were not about to let anything go. on the 3rd lap i think, mishka took a nice flyer to make the presence known for the team. i stayed at the front feeling good hoping that maybe we could get clark, card or crawford into a move if they could slip away. after a bit it was obvious that absolutely nothing was going. i went to the back to rest. on the last lap just before the climbs near the finish a huge surge disrupted the group and almost split the field in two. as we crested the finish for the last lap, a nice gap opened and i quickly noticed i was in the wrong group. myself and a few others had to make a choice if we were to remain in the race for any type of placing. i was happy that a couple bigger guys pinned it and we got back on. i regained confidence when we made the juncture. it was a relief. as we continued with the last lap i began to recover and thought that if i wanted to have any type of a placing i needed to move up. i navigated my way through the group and found a teammates jersey. awesome! it was foshag. if i could stay locked onto him i know i can get to the front for a shot at helping my sprinters and even getting myself into a nice place. i didn't leave his wheel once. it got a little dicey but it was fun. we got very close to the finish on the climb and i was sitting top 15. card went to the front and just drilled it. that strung things out and forced people into position for the sprint. i lost foshags wheel and now it was every man for himself. i just kept my head down and crossed i think 20th. i was happy. spinning down back to the car i could tell my recovery was good. the entire race was really great. joe and john and his entire crew did a really great job busting their asses to put on a great stage race. i hope more people give them a handshake for the organization. putting on a race is hard work and this is just the first one. memorial weekend is next and more racing. can't wait.


Thursday, May 17, 2007

nothing beats italian

the man
Di Luca is the shit. last year he wins the pro tour and this year he is red hot for the Giro. i hope he can hang until the end.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

record

rally rally!

i don't care what anybody says, finance and stocks were planted in my blood in 2001 and ever since i find it necessary to keep an eye on the market.

another record for the Dow today after economic data. 13,487.53! go market go!

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

wife beaters and cars

power stance

yea well this is not me. but when you get swagged water bottles it seems that they can be put anywhere for free hands. who is this?

i don't care about the demo....this car is getting more attention than the bikes!

it would be great if the person who owns this car is willing to part from it. i'll find a way to afford such a fine auto. this thing was mint.

Friday, May 11, 2007

big!

friday's close

thats what i'm talking about. another killer week for the dow. keep rolling baby!

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

after effects

attack of the dust storm

so i've talked with like 5 people after sundays race that said they also came down with a fierce case of the nostril kicker.


so about 4 hours or so after the race, the sneezing began and totally checked me out. my nose would not stop running and i was stuffed up for the next 24hrs. sneezing like a bitch. totally plugged.

at one point during dinner, my nose was like a faucet. it was just coming out. i didn't eat anything weird. it was a normal day. well after doing some research, i found that all the dust kicked up from the raced coupled with the farmers churning the fields with chemicals and shit caused a severe allergic reaction. i'm glad i'm over it. damn it was bad.




Sunday, May 06, 2007

Destruction

The bad land flats of Milan

got a little worried leaving the bikes on the top of the car the other night while eating after the ride. the trunk was full so the front seat was the next best place. they fit comfortably.


matt 2 row, let the big engine fly today. post shot....looking like he just got back from a nap.

i had a stellar week of riding in. i was hoping for the light snappy legs this morning. too bad as soon as we hit hte pave' the needle went to zero. no power. dangling off the back killing myself to stay on and its only the first 2 miles of the race. this is the shot of the 4 man break with 1 lap to go. rytleski, a west coast rider and 2 texas roadhouse guys. nice group of riders.


sunny but brutal wind today. the finish as the blown riders all dressed down anxiously await the big finish.


and the win. west coast has a good win with cone now out of the way. rytleski comes in for second and the 2 texas roadhouse boys 3rd and 4th. not sure what happened there. would like to have seen how that unfolded.

so todays temps were a bit cooler than expected. it was very sunny but the finish strip is a beautiful fresh paved road that is a perfect east west drag strip. i ride this road all the time. 9 out of 10 rides has the wind ripping riders directly down the strip as fast as one can pedal. not on this day. the flags were straight out and pointing west. a very stern eastern wind made for a very different race. the first lap was really hard for me. i dangled with just a few riders and didn't even make it to the first turn and was dropped. i could see riders escaping away when they turned west. i had shueg knight with me which was nice since i'm used to his wheel. we tried hard to find the restart button and turned back onto the pave' section heading north. i started to come around. we then turned west again still on the pave' and just ripped it in the high 20's. i still didn't feel like i was putting out 100%. about 25 yards from the paved turn to head back north i flat. damn! i have to eat my words about the bontrager hard case tires i told everyone to ride. but i have to say that i hit some grand canyon pot holes on that last strip. i'm pretty sure i pinched that bitch. i waited for the neutral wheel and got it on my bike. i was back to zero. i jumped on with some kenda rider for a bit. i was starting over. we passed thru the finish and hit the first pave' section again and i began to get ramped back up. i rode with a few different groups throughout the rest of my 3 laps beginning to feel like i was able to put out some watts but eventually pulled out with no chance of catching any groups that would put me in a placing. it looked like a lot of people had flats and no legs today so i didn't feel too bad. right now i feel fine and am not disappointed with the day. it was damn hard. i'll have a couple weeks to spin the legs and prep for the kensington event. should be fun. saturn rocked today, in the race and putting on a great event. i hope all the riders who attended found that things went smooth.

classics over, road race start.

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

post A2 - pre real season

not a cloud

local hammers timez 2. pre race.


post race - lathrup discusses yet another victory. 7 wins out of 11 for tarrant. nice!


wolverine hammers, cavender you trying out for chip n dales or play girl? nice chest hair.



post race vet - dybo himself. i felt much better on this day. i showed my face at the front of the race much more than the prior week. i felt good. only problem is i flatted about half way through. raced to the car and got the spare wheel that was so conveniently placed in the back seat. jumped back in and tried my damnedest to get the teammate to the front for the sprint. i finished in the field. next up the queen of the classics for michigan, cone.

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