the crux of it

Long time, no post, eh?  Well, most know that the last 8 weeks or so have been building up to a long weekend of good times in Spearfish, SD.  And the Dakota Five-O delivered!

Anyone that knows me, knows that I love to analyze stuff.  Heck, I over analyze stuff.  What might be stressful, tedious analysis for one person might actually be thrilling for me.  I think I’m pretty good about not letting analysis clutter the fact that I’m having a damn good time on the bike.  Fortunately, being surrounded by the right people makes the pain of racing even more enjoyable, and that was the highlight of my Labor Day weekend racing experience.

So aside from this little tidbit, I’m saving the “analysis” for a later post: In 2010, I had a great day and finished a best ever 4:25, 28th place overall.  In 2011, I had a day that didn’t “feel” as great and finished in 4:29, 32nd place in a bigger overall field.  A good day.  Four minutes difference, negligible, perhaps.  Fought cramps a bit more this year.  Interestingly, I hit Aid #2 in exactly 2:12, both years.  In 2010, I urinated once; in 2011, twice.  Maybe there’s my extra time?  Who knows.  As in every year, I’m all smiles at the finish.

Rox & I love taking people to new trails, new races, new experiences, and Dakota Five-O was the perfect place for it.  Omaha, and Nebraska in general had a host of folks targeting this event as their longest mtb race ever, or even their first mtb experience outside of the Psycowpath Series.  I do enjoy trying to be a source of honest (admittedly biased) advice and encouragement for people who are getting stoked on cross country mountain biking!  Watching others weekends, and races, unfold was just as rewarding as any result I was going to capture, so indulge me as I share my contemplative perspective on their efforts.

First, the kids.  What can I say?  Youthful exuberance sometimes rips into some gnar with little regard for consequences.  Sometimes contagious enthusiasm trumps skill.  Alas, that’s how we learn and get better.  Cole Skiba and Buddy Houts both crashed out, the latter with a seriously taco’ed front wheel.  Good news, I think they’re both hooked on technical singletrack.  Hot damn!  Cole’s anticipation, questions, and energy had me pretty stoked for him to do well, and he probably would have without the crash.  While some would crash and decide to hate mountain biking, I think Cole is already looking for more challenging/rocky singletrack action. And Buddy is on the lookout for a sweet new wheel, or maybe a whole new bike, with disc brakes!  Sweetness.

Rob Skiba seemed to be balancing all week on the knife edge of cautious optimism and utter terror.  I don’t think either he nor Cole had ever experienced rocky singletrack before.  I think Rob’s accomplished more than most by just lining up at an event like that.  Rob’s not exactly built like an endurance racer (though he’s becoming more so every week), and he knew that this was a stretch.  It takes some courage and confidence to put yourself out there for this, to make the lifestyle/habit changes he’s made and jump in with both feet.  I mean, you don’t see me lining up next week to play linebacker, do you?  He made it to aid 2, and after a ribs-bruising crash, road gravel back to the start finish.  Even cutting the course to get home safely, Rob admitted this was the best & hardest effort of his mtb career– nice.  It only gets better, my friend.

Larry Kintner has done this race many times, and aside from a few flats, put in another stellar performance.  I think what makes his consistent performance year in, year out, is that he makes sacrifices to train that would turn the rest of us into mere weekend riders.  He gets up at 4am and trains nearly every weekday.  Before work, before father and husband duties kick in.  His son Scott was great to hang out with around our campsite, and I hope Scott isn’t too scarred by my sense of humor.

At the backwards Swanson race Aug 13, Carly Thomsen showed up and did her first bike race, ever.  Why?  Because she had signed up for the Dakota Five O!  Why did she ever sign up for that?  She was inspired watching Race Across the Sky at Filmstreams last fall, and decided to try a mountain bike race, and thought that 50mi seemed a better option than Leadville’s 100.  Um, yeah.  Then she raced Maskenthine, 2nd bike race ever, 2 laps, about 10mi.  Nice.  If she was ever nervous about Dakota, you couldn’t tell amongst her constant running of the mouth.  She finally stopped talking at the race start, and managed to finish within her time goal.  ”I can’t believe I just did that!” You just did.  Believe it. Rock!

Similar story: Todd Eyberg’s been doing endurance mtb rides for a couple years now, and his wife April is often resigned to handing up water bottles or holding down the folding chairs while Todd’s out enjoying himself.  No more!  She signed up months ago, and went on some awfully long rides in early August to prepare.  She’ll probably admit she’s more of a runner, but dang, she pulled it off.  Now, Todd destroyed his previous time and finished the course in 4:39 (damn near Cat 1 time?).  Yet his accomplishment was a fraction of the anticipation and hope he displayed waiting for April to come in.  Would she finish, or hitch a ride in the back of truck? Would she be ok?  Would she come back to hate mountain biking, and rocky singletrack, and her husband?  Was she going to hate Rox & I for selling her Rox’s old sweet race bike?  No way! She rolled in, tired but smiling, huge sense of accomplishment.  I think she might do it again!

In 2010, I was stoked to help Brandon Mullins and Glen Houts keep the Ponca race alive.  In 2010, I met Glen houts, a cycling enthusiast but perhaps reluctant participant.  But this pudgy little dude was certainly excited to do whatever it takes to keep XC racing alive and well at Ponca.  And when I next saw Glen, in the spring of this year, I didn’t recognize him at first.  He wasn’t just bringing his son to race.  He was signed up to race.  For a long time– marathon, in fact.  He was a shell of his former self.  Slender, focused, always positive.  This is a guy that made a lifestyle turnaround and was clearly loving every minute.  And what was his big goal?  None other than our beloved Five-O.  Ladies and gentleman, in the summer of 2010 I wouldn’t have trusted Glen to make it to Aid 1 without a coronary.  In 2011, though, this guy knocked out 50mi of techy singletrack and climbing in just five hours and 10 minutes, 40th out of 134 riders in his age group.  I have no doubt he’ll be back next year, and I better be on my A-game if I want to stay ahead of him.

Mike Farrell and Martin Bixby… now these guys have been around for awhile.  They know mountain biking, they know volunteering, they know the scene.  But they don’t exactly train all the time (well, by my dumb standards), and they don’t exactly ride mountain bikes for hours on end all the time.  But they do have some appetite for adventure and big hairy audacious goals.  They knew this would be different than their usual 5-15mi XC race.  For Martin, this would be his longest ride of the year, and I think the same probably applies for Mike.  Both  came in with flying colors, Martin met his expectations of a sub 6 hour finish, and continues to rave about the course, the finish line party, the camping accomodations, and the overall vibe.  He’ll be back.

Todd and I were waiting for April at the last paved corner for a bit, when we saw Mike approaching.  About 70 yards ahead of him, some dude looked like he was hurting on the bike.  As the lead guy (hurting) rode by, I quietly said “just chill dude, you’re almost there, good job.”  He looked relieved, and gently rode around the last corner to face the 400m (?) false flat to the finish.  A few seconds later, when Mike rode by, I screamed “go! go!  that dude is slowing down!”  I was totally entertaining myself.  Sure enough, I saw Mike’s chain go to the big ring and he jumped out of the saddle!  Mike pegged it all the way to the line and right past that other guy (who was probably in a different age group, but hey?).
John Downey took HOURS off his time from his last attempt in 2008.  Progress feels great, you’ve earned it.  Brandon Mullins, another top notch Ponca steward, had a good time too.

Many people ride bikes.  Some people race.  A select few don’t just race, they’re ambassadors.  They bring friends to races.  They motivate others.  They lead group rides, and genuinely build excitement around them about great rides and great events.  I think we’re fortunate to have quite of few of these folks in our regional scene, but few are so new and energetic as Liz.  For Elizabeth Reinkordt, the Dakota Five-O was to be her longest singletrack race ever (pretty sure, anyway).  And with something new: rocks!  She tells her story quite well here.  Needless to say, it’s pleasure to see her perform so well and find so much joy throughout such a “painfully beautiful” race.

Some mtb veterans had good days too…
Matt Gersib… had a great start just like last year.  It’s good to be with friends on a tough climb, and we were right together.  Right behind me on the steeps, it sounded like he was breathing too hard– I almost worried for him.  In 2010, he had a good start then crumbled a bit.  This year, as I settled in to a pace I felt was sustainable, Gersib kept it moving.  He went around and I watched him ride away… I was nervous I’d see him later in the race, trailside losing his lunch or something. Nope, he stuck it, 4:22 and 22nd place.  I told him later “now THAT’s the Matt Gersib I’ve come to know!”  Way to race, buddy.

Jay Chesterman, who I’d bested at the last local XC race, bridged to the leaders on the gravel road climb, probably into a top 10 spot.  I thought “he’ll blow up and I’ll see him after aid 2.”  Nope.  Jay crushed it.  Every mile of it, 4:02.  Hope to be with you next year buddy, and I think I can.  :-)

Rafal, Eyberg, Will Wolf, Jeremy Cook, Todd Wixon… all had good races and improved over last years times, even with JC taking a detour.  You guys are on my heels, I feel pushed.  Motivated.  Stoked.

I know there’s even more friends and stories that I’m missing here.  So many good experiences!  I’m already making plans for a better race next year, and I hope that once again I’ll be able to share the race with some great people!

Well the Firecracker 50 didn’t exactly go as planned.  I finished lap 1 of 2 at 2:20, 27mi in total– thats 2mi longer than the 2010 course, and 7 minutes faster for those keeping track.  And from reviewing the splits, that put me right in the middle of a field of Cat 1′s that all live above 5k feet– nice.  Then way up the mountain, well into my second lap– I gave 1 of my 2 spare tubes to a desperate guy in need.  Fifteen minutes later, I was the desperate guy in need.  Descending flume trail after the infamous Little French climb, I cut a sidewall, and stan’s wasn’t going to seal it.  And the spare tube I had with me…. well, it was a dud.  Plain & simple.  I had to cut the course to get to an aid station, fix my flat, and ride back home– for a total of 48 miles of riding.  I still had fun, and I’m excited to go back next year.  Lesson: check your spares and make sure they’re good.

climbing... which is pretty much all you do when you ride mtb in Breck

how can this not be fun?

To make myself feel better, Tuesday morning July 5 we awoke early to journey to Winter Park just after the lifts opened– yes, I did it.  Despite my claims to earn your descents, I had a BLAST.  Wow.  Rox & I, with April & Todd Eyberg, got over 9k feet of descending in and nearly 40 miles of riding– without climbing.

someday with a bigger bike....

Drops (small-ish ones), jumps (yep smaller ones), and bermed corners…. I was loving it.  I took a few opportunities to keep pace down a few easy black runs with guys on DH bikes and body armor…. and that was all the pushing I needed to do.  Super fun.  I will be back.  Hopefully this year.

We came back to Omaha Wednesday to a whirlwind of race promotion and preparation. We pulled into our house at about 5:40pm, and by 6:15pm I was hiking Lewis & Clark with lopers to clear the trail.  Sent out some publicity, helped those with questions, then Rox & I, along with Dale & Danna, spent a few hours Friday night shuffling waivers and bib numbers getting ready to handle riders at 3 events over the weekend.

To the chase: I lined up at L&C TT unsure of my form, worried mostly about Jesse Bergman and Noah Marcus.  I took few risks on the downhills, and tried to crush every uphill until my lungs burned.  I had more leftover at the end this year then I did last year.  I beat Jesse by 18 seconds and everyone else by over a minute, with a time of just under 21 minutes.  I’ll take it.

I flatted in literally the first half mile of the short track– an event I was also hoping to win.  Next time.

Time for XC Sunday…. lots more faces on the line… Clarke Dolton, John Rokke, Nate Woodman, Jesse Bergman…. guys that had been beating me handily earlier in the year.  This was going to be hard.  I was too busy making sure the event went off without a hitch to think much strategy, other than it would be hot, and that I should drink a full 20oz bottle per lap.  At the start I went out hard– not ridiculous, but I thought it was almost on par with what Kent & Cam usually subject us to.  No one jumped on my wheel.  I worked every climb to try and get out of sight.  I came through my first 9mi lap in about 37 minutes, with about a 40 second gap.  And adrenalin drove me right past my cooler of cold liquid.  One mile into lap 2 is a bad time to realize that when its 110 heat index.

Time to settle in do some damage control– its a long race, and I’m less then half way, and there’s a lot of fast guys not too far back.  They slowly reeled me in, and we came in to finish 2nd lap as a group of 4: Dolton and Rokke right behind me, Bergman flew by and into first place.  Up the first climb, he seemed to fade, and I punched it a bit to get around him.  I wanted him to ride MY pace through the flat twisty stuff, not his pace.  Maybe it worked.  We took advantage of the open fast stuff to lose Clarke, and on the final climbs I pushed hard to get a gap on Jesse.  I came through to finish my third lap with over a minute lead.  Heck yes.  Did I just win a local Cat 1 race?  I think I did.

Although a few local horses were missing, it was very rewarding to race against guys that were pushing me to the end.  I had to be smart, and not think about slowing down, really, ever.  Very fun, and very rewarding to have good friends and great riders pushing me to my limit.

For 1:56 ride time, I averaged 170bpm, with a temp of 98deg and a heat index of over 110.  I drank constantly until 7pm, when I finally urinated for the first time since 10am.  I know you were curious.

stoked to race and win against these fast guys-- they pushed me to the end!

I have no idea whats up with my shorts– they were stuck to me.  As of Tuesday 5pm, my shoes are still wet from sweat.  Awesome.

Rox and I went out Sunday night for margaritas– since she had the opportunity to jump on the podium’s top step amongst a full female podium– a rare occurence at a Psycowpath event– keep it coming ladies!

Next up… starting a new block of training with the Omaha weekend’s road racing, maybe a weekend off, then Laramie Enduro, then more XC races… all leading to Dakota five-O!

The week of June 13 was a big one.

My car’s CEL was almost as familiar and comfortable as a warm winter hearth– but the car’s performance, not so much.  Tuesday night, late after a particularly taxing set of intervals, the guys at Autozone gave me the reading from my computer codes, I troubleshooted (shot?) the plugs, wires, coil packs (none the culprit), and finally replaced the EGR valve (expensive option).  Now the car runs like a top, no more CEL.  Knock wood.

Of course, getting to the EGR required removing the air intake, which crumbled in my hands like a loaf of bread.

Not good. But nothing that a little duct tape couldn’t fix.

that should do just fine

Now with the car running well, on to the important stuff: making the mountain bike run even better.  Time to experiment with Fox mountain bike forks (after a grueling Wed night worlds, no less– yes I’ve been staying up late to tinker).  I had one leaking, so it was time to experiment.

the two forks apart. Notice one has a newer chassis and longer steerer tube-- the only one I could fit on my bike. Interesting, the stanchions are the same length for the stock 100 and 120 fork.

I took a terralogic damper from an older 100mm fork (with a steerer too short for me) and put it my newer 120mm fork chassis. Tried it at 120mm but I got a distinct “thump” when the damper (which admittedly came off a 100mm fork) topped out. Adjusted the air spring down to 100mm of travel, in hopes that would fix it.  I should note, I did measure the possible movement of the terralogic damper– it moves exactly 120mm– hence why Itried it at 120.

comparing the dampers and air springs-- 100mm terralogic left, 120RL right

However, with air spring set up for 120, the uppers slide out to about 123-125mm of extension, hence the “thunk” when topping out. That was my hypothesis anyway. Hammering out and moving a pin from my 120mm air spring, I moved the fork down to 100mm, and it works great in the stand. Fortunately it proved to work great at Ponca as well.

Same as in 2010, I lined up for the Ponca Marathon category.  I needed a steady 3 hour workout to test nutrition and pacing in preparation for the Firecracker 50 coming July 4.  Looking around, there were some fast guys– Dale Pinkelman out of Lincoln wins these frequently, Rafal’s no slouch, and Mike Bartels also has some Cat 1 speed, and a few Iowa guys that were unknowns.  My strategy was to get out ahead early on the opening climbs, get out of site, and settle in– and that’s exactly what I did.  Even after 3 laps, some guys at the road crossing were saying my gap was 30-60 seconds– not comfortable– so I kept pushing, but also keeping gas in the tank in case I got caught.  Well, I think those friends were looking at lapped riders, because in the end my gap was 9 minutes.  I’ll take it.  The pressure kept me going.

keeping the effort strong but steady. thanks Kerri Peterson for the photos!

I came in at 2:53 with 8 laps complete– and time for one more.  I knew I was beating my 2010 win of 8 laps, but the time comparison would be key.  Was I consistent?  Steady?  Able to knock out a strong 9th lap without cramping?  Thankfully yes.  Again going into a race with less then fresh legs– knowing this is a means to an end– and riding steady, paying attention to leg force, RPE, heart rate…. it worked out for the win.

After my first 2 laps to establish my lead, all my lap times are within 30 seconds of each other– through no deliberate timing or pacing other than RPE.  And my average lap time in 2011 was 51 seconds faster than average lap time in 2010– an improvement of 4%.  I’ll take that for sure.

Next weekend, the final “topping off of the tank” before tapering. After some business travel Thursday & Friday, I’ll tackle the state TT championship on Saturday June 25, then head south to Perry Lake for a 38mi mountain bike race at the Crocodile Rock Kansas State Mountain Bike Championships.  After an hour TT, it’ll be interesting.  And I hate TT’s– always a weakness, but hopefully improved.  I’m counting on the mtb race Sunday to put the smile back on my face.

June 11 & 12– intervals are getting shorter but harder.  I went out on a rode ride Saturday June 11 with a medium-fast crowd, and put the screws down a couple times.  Solo’ed off the front for a few hills, then vowed to chill.  All in all, got 2.5 hours of decent work.  Which meant that on Sunday June 12 at Ida Grove, I was only 3 minutes into my warm up when I knew I had less than perfect legs.  A super fast start by Jesse Bergman had me into the red zone but excited by the fact we were leaving the rest of the field behind.  Sure enough, about 15 minutes in I came to regret letting some air out of the tires.  With greasy conditions, I warmed up at 20/22 psi front/rear, and then went down from there.  It felt great, until I braked really hard then slammed the bike sideways through a sharp corner at the bottom of a hill, and my rear burped quite a bit of air.  It re-seated but now felt like it had about 10 psi.  I soft-pedaled until I got to my car* to add air with a real pump, as other riders went by.  First Jay Chesterman, looking strong & fresh, then Mike Miles.

With fresh air in my tire and anger in my heart, I jumped back on the bike.  I was off the podium, but not by much.  For better or worse, I let out all my anger in a hurry and went by Mike pretty quick.  In retrospect, all that adrenaline was probably not necessary on lap 2 of 5.  Once I got by Mike I didn’t see him again until after the race, to learn he had crashed out.  But with some matches spent, less than stellar legs, and no carrots to chase, I settled into a sustainable rhythm and finished 3rd.  Come to find out at the finish I was just 20 seconds off 2nd place Jesse Bergman…. another day.

*Racers note, most of our local races are USAC sanctioned, and you can’t use floor pumps or other equipment that’s left at your car.  That said, this wasn’t a USAC race.  And I calculated (perhaps poorly) that soft pedaling to the car then refilling with a proper (fast) pump would be overall quicker than dealing with a mini pump trail side.

June 11 & 12 counted towards my strategy of doubling up: 2 hard days in a row, once on the weekend, once during the week.  Although it was frustrating to race with less than fresh legs, I’m not disappointed in my result, and I know this race was just a means to greater ends later in the season.

This was a weekend that almost wasn’t.

I could have gone mountain bike racing in Southern Missouri.  But that would’ve been a long drive, and without the greater fitness benefits of road racing.  Not too mention all the teamwork, camaraderie, and fun.

Saturday’s road race went… okay.  Lots of second guessing going on the interwebs, some taking more blame then they should… hindsight is always 20/20, folks.  We had two guys in a break that was eventually absorbed for a field sprint.  I think teammates may have been counting on my for the Cat 3 win.  I worked hard at the 55ish mile mark to reel in another Cat 3 that tried a solo flier… a match I didn’t want to burn.  As the finish approached, I was trying to stay out of the wind and save the legs for one last jump… Mark Merritt jumped waaaay too early and I was in a bad spot.  I know better– I should’ve been closer to the front.  I still sprinted and made up a few spots, fifth across the line in the combined 1/2/3 field, but…. 2nd in the 3′s.  Lee Bumgarner had a good sprint.

couldn't find the right wheel after the sprint started (way early) on the bridge

Better positioning on my part, maybe I could’ve made things turn out differently.  Maybe.  Last year I cramped pretty bad in the sprint but managed a 3rd place (amongst 3′s).  This year I worked harder during the event, and felt more fresh for the sprint.  Feels like progress.  Nice to see Mark Savery have a great sprint– missed overall win by a hair, but got the Nebraska State Championship (as the guy in yellow is from Colorado).

leaving it all out there, but not quite enough

Saturday night of recovery tights, salmon, sweet potatoes, and some mini golf left me excited and nervous for Sunday’s criterium.  Last year I fell off the pace after a ridiculously hard start and too many hard pulls.  Stretching, recovery, and eating right, I hoped to make a difference.  We had a fresh teammate coming into Sunday, Lucas Marshall.  But Kaos had a couple fresh guys too.

welp, this is probably gonna hurt

Things went about perfectly– teammates Lucas (Cat 3) & Paul Webb (Cat 2) launched an early attack.  I worked with teammates to block and chase down a few folks.  Mark’s “old school blocking tactics” were the most effective I’ve ever seen at the front of a group– and Lucas & Paul are a perfect pair to pull off a break– and it worked.  When the bell rang for one lap, I saw Savery start to pin it.  I hesitated for a moment– he’s a teammate, not my job to reel him in or help others stay with him– but as soon as I heard guys coming around me hard I jumped.  I sat about 4th or 5th wheel through a blazing fast lap and went hard into the last corner.  It was a long sprint– Mark stayed ahead, a think at least one Cat 2 used me for a good lead out, and I managed to be the first Cat 3 across the line from the bunch, and 2nd Cat 3 to teammate Lucas Marshall– a place I can definitely be proud of.  I did some work for teammates, disrupted a few chase attempts, and still managed a decent sprint at the end.

happy to report that neither got by me

I think I want to do more crit races.  Oh, and power numbers from the crit indicate that fitness is on the way up.  That means intervals just got harder.  Woohoo!

With a wet, and often stormy spring here in the midwest, sometimes you need to make training decisions and plan adjustments that are less than ideal:

After racing a 60min crit last Saturday and a 2 hour mountain bike race last Sunday, I took Monday off the bike– it was a bit forced, as I traveled to Houston to visit a client, a nice short trip as I flew in early and flew back home that night.  Tuesday the legs were feeling pretty fresh at the stairs at Gallup, and Wednesday’s forecast isn’t promising.  Tuesday intervals it is!  After 2 of 8 intervals, I was feeling it.  Moreso than I should.  Maybe I need more than 36 hours to recover from two days of racing.  Oh well.  I got em’ done anyway and managed to stay within 5% of goal on each one, but it required more than typical mental coaxing.  Good thing I got them in, since Wednesday’s ride was out of the picture due to thunderstorms.

Thursday after work Rox & I packed up the car, climbed aboard with Jesse & Katie Bergman in Sioux City, and took off towards Rapid City.  After a quick night in Mitchell, we joined up with the Black Hills Fat Tire Festival.  Nearly all of our riding was going to be slower, rocky techy singletrack– good times.  We spent about 2.5 hours Friday afternoon riding Buzzards Roost after its official grand opening with the Forest Service and local news outlets.  Friday night’s opening food social and live music was entertaining.  It got interesting when a guy in the band called out gb Jason regarding the Super D the next morning.  Jason, Jesse, and I all stepped up– looks like super D racing is on tap for Saturday morning.  It’s always interesting doing something like this downhill time trial without hardly any course knowledge.  Ends up Jesse got 4th, I got 7th, and Jason was a bit farther back in a group of 78 total riders!  With the local and regional crowd that was there, I’m happy with my result.  Also, its surprising how 10 minutes of focused downhill racing (with a few uphill sprints) can exhaust you (maybe just me).  It was a nice treat to be interviewed by the the Rapid City Journal at the finish line.

So what to do after racing?  We tackled the Victoria Lake trails along with some new stuff to connect a 4 hour plus big ride.  Lots of rocks, lots of climbs, some deep streams, and some tight trees.  As Rox would say, it was all yummy.  Saturday night we were pretty destroyed and ate enough to show it.

Sunday 2am the rain rolled in and never rolled out.  Thankful for great friends, we spent the day shopping and bumming around Rapid City, packed up our stuff, and stayed with Jason for our last night.  The closing BBQ and awards were fun– the people make it great.  Monday the rain didn’t stop until we reached Chamberlain, SD, en route home.

So was this a great training weekend?  Is that even the right question?  I had a great time with my wife and close friends, and we all spent a bunch of time on our mountain bikes.  I used every bit of 100mm of rear suspension and fully enjoyed a fox 120mm on the front (more on that later).  Did I eat smart, go to bed early, stretch, and push my FTP up through focused riding?  Probably not.  Will I pay for it?  Maybe.  Will I regret it?  Not a bit.

Time to sum up:
Sunday May 1: 5th Place in Cat 1 at the Rabbit Valley Rally in Fruita, part of the Mountain States Cup race series.   To quote Larry, “that’s pretty epic for an XC course.” Yeah, 1 big lap, 32 mile course of rocky, sandy, double & singletrack on the CO/UT border.  I advanced a few places in the rocky sections on top of westwater mesa, and held it to the finish.  My time was almost exactly the same as last year– which I’ll accept, given I had 8 days (23 hours) of CO/UT mountain biking in the legs.  The next day I flew to Delaware for a few days.  Not back in routine yet.  No more riding until…

Saturday May 7: Platte River Battle Royal– great race hosted by our friends at Cycleworks in Lincoln.  Record turnout made it a blast!  I started well, faded a bit and let a few guys by me.  Caught ‘em in laps 2 & 3, and saw Savery up ahead on lap 4.  Now, with his handling skills he can fly through twisty singletrack effortlessly.  So my only chance to catch him was on the climbs.  I dug pretty deep up the Platte opening climb to try to get him in sight, and pushed hard on the climbs up to the middle pasture, but no dice.  Turns out he was over-geared anyhow.  I was happy with my finish but definitely felt I wasn’t in the form I had seen in late March/early April.  No more riding until…

Sunday May 15: That’s right, I took a week to really focus on finishing off the deck.  Bulk of it was built last fall, but I needed to add a pergola roof, lattice on the sides, and some landscaping.  I’ve been eager to get this done so we can enjoy it and I can get back into a training routine.  Big thanks to Todd who helped with the roof on Saturday.  It’s all done now, and looking pretty sweet.  Rox is happy.  Sunday May 15 Mike Miles & Jeremy Cook took Rox & I out on my first road bike ride since, well, Twin Bing.  Yes, that was on April 10.  So more than a month off the road bike?  Awesome.  Not so much.  Maybe.  Time to get back into a structured training routine….

Tuesday May 17, intervals.  Wednesday May 18: perhaps my least impressive Wednesday Night Worlds performance in over a year.  Partial bad luck, partial bad timing/tactics, partial drop in fitness.  So I was pretty nervous going into the Capitol City Criterium, but I was excited to work with a large number of teammates for the first time.

May 21: Capitol City Criterium: I’m not a break away kind of guy, but I was excited to try and create or protect a break for a teammate.  We worked pretty hard to launch Lucas early, and he did get away for awhile, but totally alone.  Probably tough to solo off the front for 45 minutes– he came back.  Eventually Brady Murphy made a great break of four.  Matt, Redemske, Lucas, EOB, and myself did what we could to control the peloton’s tempo and help the break stick.  I think we each chased down a potential chaser or two (or seven).  It was probably the most aggressive I’ve ever seen Redemske race– it’s exciting to see him back on form after a rough couple years, with more progress still to come.  With about 20 minutes left, I realized I had been in my drops the whole time.  Bryan told me to go for the field sprint.  So I tried to relax a bit, and be smooth.  I’ll admit, that’s not as fun as diving into every corner.  I’m still amazed at what a road bike can do with a tire contact patch the size of a dime, even on that course’s rough pavement.  With two laps to go, I’m strategically biding my time in mid-pack, and Bryan comes by and says “get up there!”  One hard fast corner and I’m sitting fourth wheel, just as the pace really heats up.  Lucas, Matt, and a guy from Rasmussen are pushing hard at the front, and I’m staying with ‘em no problem.  Now I’m fired up.  Full-on adrenalin.  Around the last corner, over the bump on a tight line, and its speeding up, I’m about 3rd wheel, keeping an open line in front of me… but it doesn’t seem like we’re in a full on sprint yet….

If there’s one thing I hate, its getting boxed in during a sprint behind someone slower (no offense).  When that happens, it just feels like 60 minutes (or whatever race duration) is just… wasted.  With the finish in sight, I had a line, and it didn’t feel like anyone else was in full on sprint mode yet… so I gunned it.  I’d much rather go to early and flame out then wait too long and get boxed in.  I think the Zipp 404′s are working… I quickly had a bike length on everyone and kept going, and stuck it to the finish line to win the field sprint for fifth.

Shortly thereafter I learned Brady had emerged to win from the break– a great day for Midwest Cycling Community!  I’m stoked to report that MWCC made it a full on successful weekend with Lucas Marshall and Matt Tillinghast taking first & second in Sunday’s Pioneers Park Grand Prix!  Those guys worked hard all weekend and deserved it.  Why wasn’t I there to help?

Sunday May 22: Dirt is calling.  Noah and Rox had found a race outside Manhattan, KS– the Dirty Little Secret (on FB too!) at Fancy Creek State Park.  Eyberg was in as well– a full car for cheap gas expenses!  Rox wanted to race, and I love to find a new trail.  It was rocky– big rocks that caused you to pick lines and thread the needle.  Tight twisty moves and big steps up were required.  I got boxed in at the start, and was a few places back from where I wanted to be upon entering the singletrack climb.  One guy got out of the way pretty quick.  Another wasn’t quite handling the rocks the way I wanted to, he let me around about 6 minutes in, and I got on the lead train, sitting in fourth behind a few guys that I know have massive power– Garret Steinmetz, Aaron Elwell, Travis Donn.  The rocks were a nice equalizer, I stayed with ‘em for awhile.  Elwell bobbled a big tricky rock step up, and I rode by.  Adrenalin charged, and I tried to remain calm.  We just entered wide open grassy singletrack, and I needed to stay consistent and moderate to save energy for the long race and the techy sections.  Travis set a good pace, and I was gauging my legs.  I had already spent a lot of time above threshold, and we were about halfway through lap 1 of 3.  Sure enough, diesel engine pro Elwell came by and powered it.  I fell off the leader pace but settled into my own rhythm with 5th right behind me.  During lap 2, I shook off fifth place in the rocky climbs and stayed on my own pace to finish 4th overall and 3rd in my age group 30-39.  I lost my balance once during lap 2 and crashed, and had a few close calls.  With a crit the day before, I needed to ride within my limits and be consistent.  It worked for fourth.  Another couple months of structure, and I’d like to think I could hang with the leaders on a rocky course like that.  Photos are on FB here, and should be on general interwebs soon, I’ll add the link.  Rox finished 1st in Cat 1 Women, and Noah & Todd got 1st & 2nd in Cat 2, respectively– nice to go home with a car full of hardware!

Post race fashion show!

Onward!  I’m one week into a six week block of training leading up to July 4 Firecracker 50.  Racing is on tap nearly ever weekend for the next 6 weeks.  This is going to be fun.

A promise to you, dear reader…. minimum two blog posts a week.  Public goals create accountability.  Thats right.  Routine, structure, goals…. back in action.  On the road bike, and on the blog.

The last 9 days have featured a whole lot of awesomeness.  Our annual spring trip to Moab & Fruita went as planned, with some new faces and new races thrown in.  Due to a larger than usual appetite for racing, it was a bit extended.

First up, Voodoo Fire in Pueblo, CO, part of the Rocky Mountain Endurance Series.

I figured it’d be a pretty chill “half marathon” race of about 35 miles on fast singletrack– I was guessing less than 3 hours, but no real reference point.  Competition was hotter than expected, guess thats what happens when you race down the road from the Olympic Training Center.  Uphill road mass start, I got away with a group of about 10 guys, many of whom I later discovered were pros– I discovered that on loose singletrack corners.  15 minutes in, I knew I was working harder than the other guys coming out of the corners.  I needed to ride within my limits, race smart, and maybe corner a little better: stay loose, trust my tires, look ahead, and lean– and go fast.  About 30 minutes in I was sliding sideways through a loose corner and then hooked up fast and highsided it– went over the bars and sent the bike flying– thankfully I was mostly on my own at this point, but it would have been an awesome picture.  Got up, caught my breathe, bike’s ok, I’m bloody but functional– press on.  I rode much more conservatively– this was the first day of a week vacation of mountain biking world class singletrack.  Sure enough, I quickly cut a tire sidewall.  Threw in a tube, rode 50 yards when the tube blew the tire off the bead and I managed to roll the bare wheel on rocks and damage the rim tape.  I had no more tubes, barely any CO2 left, and I was about as far from the car as I could get.  I bushwacked back to an aid station, got a tube and a pump, and rode my bloody knees back to car.  Bummer– after some good luck in Arkansas & Clinton Lake, today was not my day.

The following 7 days of riding in Moab, Fruita, and Grand Junction were not without some crashes, sprains, and twists.  Knee pads on the downhill runs definitely saved me (further injury) in a few spots.

Fortunately, I’d get my good race luck back for the Mountain States Cup Rabbit Valley Rally in Fruita on May 1.  But more on that in part 2…

I sure hope I remember how to put on a suit & tie tomorrow morning… since I flew straight from Grand Junction to Wilmington, DE to work with a client Tues & Wednesday.  Here goes…

Ha, so my blog still works.  That’s a good thing because it appears that 2011 may bring some good stories, with good friends.

There’s a lot of good friends, good shops, and good group rides in Omaha.  Nonetheless, I’m sporting some new team colors this year.  These are the guys I train, travel, and race with so much, it just made sense.  Also, a bike purchased from John Rokke last fall with a few upgrades.  

My 2010-2011 off season was not one for the record books.  Well, maybe for certain reasons, but not for disciplined, relentless, structured training.  Last fall, I voluntarily took 6+ weeks off the bike– for reasons worthy of a separate post.  Also racked up nearly over 2 dozen hotel stays in November through January as work picked up.  Late January I was wondering whether this season would be a step backwards.

Maybe I did something right in February & March.

I blew out the cobwebs on March 12 at the Hot Springs Spa City Extreme 6 Hour MTB event, with a few good buddies.  I’m bringing even more friends next year– mark your calendars.  With so many teams mixed in, I had no idea how I did.  The next day we returned to the venue to discover I had placed 2nd in Men 30-39 with Mike Miles in 4th, and I was 10th overall!  Full results made Cyclingnews.

Twin Bing, was well, good.  But a road race, nonetheless.  Having a a lot of teammates made it that much more interesting and exciting. But nothing newsworthy.

Next up: after a wet and rainy week, the trails at Clinton Lake dried up wonderfully for the BoneBender in Lawrence, KS.

Great traction.  I got into the trees in top ten, moved up a few spots, then a few more, and came into my last bottle pick-up right behind Bill Stolte, one lap to go.  He had to add air, so I took off.  I saw him jump back on course about 80 yards behind me.  I knew if I could get into the rocks ahead of him I could probably get out of sight.  It worked.  I rode my last lap pretty hard, but saving a surge in case he caught me.  At the end, I had put about 2 minutes over him on last lap to take 2nd place in the Cat 1 Men 3 Hour.  Thrilled.

My one & only Rox made this her first MTB race since last July, when she broke her scapula.  And in late December she had surgery on tendons in her forearm.  It was a heckuva course to test the surgeons handiwork.  Super proud of her, she had a good safe ride, finishing 3rd in Cat 1 Women 3 Hour.

Big props to a number of friends that started to have a great race but suffered flats.  This race gave me additional confidence in running super low tire pressures.  Much more mtb racing to come, fellas.

Next up: Voodoo Fire in Pueblo, CO; a week of riding in Fruita & Moab, chased with the Rabbit Valley Rally Mountain States Cup race.  Oh, and more frequent blog updates.  Maybe.  Thanks Bryan for the positive peer pressure; and free podium shirt (only available with TrekFest coupon, limit one* per customer).

*I have been informed that said podium shirt may be used for more than one podium finish– let’s hope.

Ryan Feagan about halfway through the Dakota 50

By any of my measures of the day, the race was a success.  So, that’s what an endurance mountain bike event is supposed to feel like.  I get it now.  I think.  It only took 5 times at Dakota 50 and 5 times at the Firecracker 50 to have such a good experience.

My mantra going into this race was all about pacing myself.  Coach Jason told me weeks ago he wanted to see a negative split for this race: he thought I should be faster in the last 25 miles than in the first.  That seems a bit crazy to me… I always have good starts and then fade a bit.  And at the end of every epic I always seem to be surviving and not really racing.  I’ve even had some decent finishes when I’m just surviving.  In fact, in long races in the mountains, its all I’d ever experienced, and it had shaped my notions of success…. if I was blown at the end, it means I went hard enough and left it all out there.  I thought it was the norm…. until Sunday.

Friday we arrived and were on bikes by 4pm to get a warm up and show friends the start of the course.  Climbing the gravel out of town, either my legs or my mind wasn’t happy, not sure which.  It felt like I had one of two speeds, sprint speed or too slow speed- and neither was going to be a good option come race day.  Even descending the singletrack back down felt awkward and uncoordinated.  Saturday’s next bit of climbing warmup was a little better, but not much.  I elected to seperate from the group and climb just the gravel roads for miles on end, shifting from an easy z2 pace, slowly ratcheting up a minute through each heart rate zone and just touching 178+ bpm for a few seconds.  I tried to get a feel for what 1-2 mins constant z4 climbing felt like, but it was hard– and hard to fathom doing it for 5 hours the next day.  Honestly, it kind of put me in a funk, making me a bit less social leading up to start time then I’d like to be.  Thank goodness for good friends and an incredible wife that puts up with me.

Saturday eating was pretty typical, lots of fruit, some grilled chicken, and two boiled sweet potatoes, hopefully topping off the glycogen stores (I ate potatoes Friday too, as that was probably the more accurate window for topping off glycogen– in case any nutritionists are reading).  Breakfast before a 7am start was going to be minimalist.  Sunday morning wake up at 5am and it was good and cold, probably a bit below 50.  A handful of grapes and a glass of water made it seem colder, so a boiled sweet potato helped to warm the body a bit.  Thank goodness for Rafal’s coffee, his french press is on time.  One good cup and I was almost warm.  Almost.

By 6:30 I was kitting up in the Bike Masters threads, wondering how I was going to keep warm in an outfit designed to keep you cool when its 90.  Movement was key.  I found a short hill by the start line & did a few repeats, got the HR up, high cadence low force efforts, still shivering.  Better go line up and get a good spot.  Good to see Lucas & Mod lined up on the front row, where they belong.  On a good day I might be able to outsprint them, but this was no sprint.  Maybe next year I’ll line up with them but for now…. I line up about 3 rows back, next to Mike Miles, maybe even a bit more conservative positioning than last year.  But I know the talent pool is deeper this year, as the field has grown by 25% and you can’t toss a water bottle without hitting a respectable Colorado racer.  Standing next to me, Mike has had some impressive performances lately, and I know his endurance power numbers are very close to mine…. but I’ll be resisting the urge to keep an eye on him…. I need to race my own race.  Smokey the Bear starts to roll out.  I jump up positions a bit and settle into a spin.  My HR monitor is set to buzz at me anytime I hit 178bpm or more, I’m hoping that will keep me in check.

First paved climb in town is short, and it feels way easier than the warmup spin just 36 hours ago.  HR still in check, gained a few positions on that short climb, awesome, only 49.5 miles to go.  Mike is still right with me.  On to the steeper climbs, on gravel, no more pavement for another 45+ miles.

Mentally, I’m going hard, but not too hard.   Not sure where Mike is, wait, I don’t care, right?  I see Jay Chesterman roll by, faster than I want to go.  I knew I had enough jump in my legs to get on his wheel, but I let him go.  Race my own race.  Maybe sprinting up to stay on him would toast me.  I didn’t want to risk finding out.  The first 10 miles of the race was nearly all climbing, and I wanted to be strong for all of it, not awesome for half of it.  At the same time, I knew that if I went to slow on the opening 3 miles of steep gravel climbing, I could get stuck behind some slower folks that could fade badly on the singletrack, and it would be hard to get around them efficiently.  Top of the gravel Jay has dropped me, Mike is somewhere behind, and there’s a steep kicker into the singletrack.  Rox & friends are cheering for me, and sure enough my Garmin 500 starts beeping: I’ve hit 178+ beats per minute.

Ryan's Zone 5 moment, about to enter the singletrack.

“It’s worth it” I tell myself, as it insures I have a decent entry into the singletrack, and also reminds me of what you can do when your friends are watching.  Just need to make sure I don’t dip into the z5 book of matches too frequently.

HR dropped a bit once on the singletrack, and I was mostly diggin the pace.  Two guys in front of me didn’t have the best rhythm climbing, and eventually they let me by pretty easily.  Glancing down, I was settling into a low z4 climb with occasional spikes and it felt pretty good.  I knew I could go faster, but I kind of felt like I could do this for a long time.  I remember trying to guess my wattage based on feel.  If it feels like 390, thats too much.  If it feels like 290 with the occasional 400w burst, thats ok.  That mental calibration would be well rewarded.

Ten miles in, hit aid station 1, time to see how much time I’d have to spend refueling.  I had done a good job in the first hour drinking 24+ ounces of fuel, about 280 calories, perfect.  Hop off the bike, one of many AWESOME volunteers takes my bottle and fills it halfway with wate per my instructions.  I open a ziploc baggy and empty my drink mix into the bottle, shake to mix it up, then then a volunteer tops it off with water.  Jump back on the bike, and I’m going again.  Garmin data confirms, about 60 seconds spent at aid 1, perfect.

A mile later I see Jay Chesterman, hopping on his bike.  Maybe he made an adjustment or was recovering from a crash, not sure, but he jumped right on my wheel.  I also see gb Matt Gersib a bit up the trail.  I’m near guys I know, and that means racing and ego might just get in my way soon.  Thank goodness for that HR alarm on the Garmin, because I’m thinking its about to get interesting, or I’m about to get stupid.

Jay gets around me, cool, I don’t want to punch it to keep up.  I’m climbing my own sustainable pace.  Then I spent some time on Matt’s wheel.  I think quite a bit about my position there, Matt’s a fast guy, and he’s got this a decade or two more experience than I do in the endurance stuff.  Sitting on his wheel doesn’t seem too bad.  Still, my rhythm of little wheels and punchy climbing isn’t matching his efforts too well, so I jump around him.  Sure enough, next longish climb he is around me again– we would trade places a couple times while I could still see Jay Chesterman a hundred yards up.

Somewhere around mile 16-18 I think, I felt like the guys I was with were climbing at a reasonable pace, but I had more energy I wanted to use on the false flats and definitely on the downhills.  Flat section, I pass Jay and keep motoring through a fast rocky downhill.  Levels out flat again, I keep pushing.  Then up, I settle into my comfy low z4 climbing pace.  I get to the top, turn around and expect to see Jay gaining on the climbs…. but no one is there.  Turn forward and keep drilling it.  Heart rate in z3 to 4, steady, downhill skills feeling good, solid powering on the flats, climbing to keep the pace.

Aid 2, the halfway point: it was awesome to see some friends there yelling for me.  Rox helped top off my bottles, I mixed a new batch of Infinit, and then, first time ever during a race, I had to pee.  Awesome!  I must by hydrating properly!  Seriously, that never happens.

Back on the bike.  I catch up with a few guys I hadn’t seen before.  Am I gaining on people?  I climb up to a guy sporting some Ft Collins sponsors, then to another rider from Boulder.  I’m pretty stoked to be climbing past some dudes that live in the front range.  I’m guessing I’m hovering around 50th place and hoping for a finish around 4:30 total time.

Topped off the bottles at aid 3, which came up really fast, not worth mixing in more Infinit mix.  Aid 4 came up even faster; looking at my mileage, it looked like less than 7 miles before the descent into town…. thats 7 miles left of climbing effort… and I have probably 20oz of water left between my two bottles… I felt close to finishing, so I blew through Aid 4.

When I heard the “citadel slide” portion of the course was being rerouted, I was kinda bummed.  It was a super loose super steep downhill that I was always proud to ride, barely.  Most people I know were glad to see it go.  After riding the new portion, I’m a believer!  The Ridge Riders know how to build trail.  The new stuff is more dynamic, more fun, and equally technically challenging with the old stuff.  Awesome sauce.

Somewhere in that new tasty goodness, I caught up to another two riders, and we rode together across the top of the ridge.  When the trail pointed down, however, those two fine riders were coming between me and my beloved gravity.  Both kindly let me by and I let off the brakes and let ‘em rip.  Got to the bottom, started climbing the last hot doubletrack ascent, looked back and didn’t see anyone.  Sweet.

You know you’re having a good race when you’re more excited about looking forward then back.  Farther up that last doubletrack ascent, I see another rider sporting a Colorado team jersey.  I step on the gas a bit and I’m into a high z4 climbing pace.  Maybe it’s worth burning a match to catch that guy…. I’m looking at our elevation, nearly 5500 ft and going up, and soon we’ll make a turn and it will be flat then downhill…. now might be the time to attack.  Keeping it steady, I catch the guy, come around, and like any good racer he jumps right on my wheel.  He sits in my draft and I can hear every pedal stroke.  Now, I’m not going to bury myself just so he can pass me at the top.  So I’m careful to find my sustainable climbing pace, a bit slower than what I used to catch him, and he still sits there, right on my wheel.  Another minute or so and he’s had enough, he jumps around, he’s a skinny guy and has good climbing skills.  I let him go, and ride my pace.  Cresting the climb he’s got about 100 yards on me.

The next couple miles are flat to rolling.  I know we’re at the high point of elevation, there’s no real climbing left, but there’s some flats and a tasty downhill.  I’m stoked, knowing I’m going to beat my previous time, but not sure by how much.  The flats feel like home, and I start motoring.  Big ring, suspension in full effect, high cadence big gear riding, near threshold power.  I couldn’t believe how fast the good climber and another guy came into view.  I thought for sure they’d see me coming and it would get ugly.  First guy I went by on the flats, he doesn’t respond.  Next guy looks more serious, I speed up to pass him for the demoralizing effect…. it almost worked.  He jumped on for about 20 seconds but decided flat big ring efforts must not be his thing.  The trail started down and kept shifting up…. more gravity, more speed.

Last 5 miles into town are all downhill on awesome twisty singletrack…. I’ve crashed a few times here due to fatigue, cramping and the like.  Mistakes here would mean those last two riders would catch me for sure.  But those 5 miles of descending were probably the best I’ve had at the Five-O.  I flew hard into every corner, lit up the brake rotors super late, and took every corner on the edge.  Caught up to another rider taking it cautiously, I think I scared him a bit because he about jumped out of my way.  Thank you sir, I’m on it.

Exit the singletrack, wow that was fun.  3 miles into town on downhill gravel roads, nearly 40mph.  I pedaled the whole way.  Back in town, there’s one short paved neighborhood climb left- as I approach the base, a rider 2/3 the way up looks back and sees me chasing.  Now, unless he’s really, really, cracking, there’s no way I’m going to catch him, but damned if I don’t at least try.  I’m out of the saddle, and he sees it, and he jumps out the saddle.  He thought he was going to mosey on into the finish holding his position.  Not if I can help it.  Well, I wasn’t going to catch him, but it felt good to make him a bit nervous for a minute or so.  Pushed it hard through the finishing straight, then slowed at the last 10 yards to give some kids a high five.

Always nice to see friends at the finish!

Rolled across the line to learn I’d finished 28th place overall in a field of 500+ riders.  4:25 total ride time.  35 minutes faster than last year on a course rumored to add approx 10 mins to old course records…. I’ll take it.  Race file is online here, analysis to come later this week.

Crossing the Finish

Big props to the Nebraska crew, representing well in the Black Hills.  Racing is always sweeter with friends!

The Nebraska Racers Celebrating a Good Day