Race Report- NCCX Southern Pines- 2 days playing in the sand

I wanted to do both days at Southern Pines, so I decided to make it a family outing as well. Since my race was at 10am and it's a 2 1/2 hour drive, we had to get up pretty early. I wanted to do both days it is pretty flat and not a lot of climbing. Yes, all that was true, but the SAND! Some of which I smuggled back with me as a souvenir inside my bottom bracket, chain, shoes and body crevasses. Life's a beach..... sometimes...... so is Cyclocross!

Day 1-
I took a easy spin around the course just to get a feel for the turns and obstacles. I took another lap with more speed, checking out different lines, and to see if places were ride-able. Although the course was flat, it was tough.  It wasn't an exciting day of racing for me.  Yeah, I passed a few racers and I raced pretty well but nothing worthy of writing a race report. The only thing exciting about this race was when the sprinklers came on mid-race. For the excitement see Day 2. That being said, watch this video of a portion of the course-by far the most difficult part.




link to video

You can also see "The Shelf" at the top of the run up. Some of my fellow height challenged competitors had to kneel on the top step to get up to the top.

Day 2-
We arrived early.  It was very foggy; it had rained the night before and the grass was wet. On pre-ride the small mud puddle at the bottom of the hill had turned into a 20' long gauntlet of slick mud. Somehow they also found more sand for the second day and re-routed the course to include
more drivetrain killing sand. I finished 1 lap and wanted to switch tires to my Clement PDX but realized I forgot to bring a tire lever. I bailed on switching tires and decided to continue with warming up. On the warm up I could hear the sand grinding the inside of the bottom bracket. That's NOT good!




Foggy and damp start to day 2- greenway to the finish line.

The whistle blew and we all sprinted down the straightway then slammed on the brakes for everyone to file 2x into a narrow paved greenway. Into the woods then out onto a paved downhill section and into the mud. While most guys took the inside line, I followed a friend, Bob, on the outside which was a little straighter and dryer. Mind you, this mud is directly after a fast paved downhill, so you are going through this mud with some speed.  Mud was thrown everywhere-on the bike, legs, shoes and fellow racers. The course then turned to grass with sandy corners. Then another fast downhill with a really fun 90 degree right hard banked turn with a slight uphill-no brakes needed on that turn! The turn put you on top of a dam of a small pond, then more SAND.  Actually, an uphill section of sand that was maybe 1/4 mile of soft sugar sand which stuck like glue to the mud from before. Then the crux of the course was a 1/2 pipe of soft sand which provided the crowd with many stopped front wheels and resulting face plants. Once past the sand the course set up pretty well for me - a ride-able steep hill followed by a grassy flat field and a paved track to the finish.

The first few laps everyone got sorted out into their positions. Going into the race I wanted to stay on Bob's wheel, or least have him in sight. On the last lap things were pretty much as they had started until the sand run-up. On the run-up my legs were burning.  The sand was so soft-- as I took a step my foot would sink into the deep sand.  I was exhausted and my legs said "We aren't running up this!" so I relented and walked up the sandy incline-2 guys ran pass me. We followed each other down the drop-in and up the small sandy hill to a hard right hand turn. The crowd was going wild- ringing cowbells, yelling and heckling us.  With the 2 racers right in front me, I jumped on the gas and passed one before a narrow section of single track. Then I passed the second guy who was on a mountain bike. I gunned it as we approached the steep ride up. I had to take the outside line because of the big roots on the inside. Once I got to the top I made a hard right turn.  Just as I got my bike straighten out, the guy on the mountain bike rode up next to me, apparently taking the more direct line up the hill. We were neck and neck on the flat grass, pedaling side by side on the back side on the course. As we approached a 180 degree corner, I got out in front, took the corner and poured on the power after the corner to drop him.





You can see the 2 guys in front me that I'm getting ready to pass. Knuckles & Elbows!

Next up is a group of 3 riders, one of which was Bob. I'm in no man's land all by myself. We went through the volley ball court (as if there wasn't enough sand on the course) and passed another guy that was sitting up and spinning- he was fried! I passed him and went through the barriers and noticed Bob and another racer on the Greenway.  I took the turn onto the greenway and closed the gap on the mountain biker. I blew by him.  I wanted to put enough distance between us to dissuade him from trying to catch me but before I knew it I was closing in on Bob. I was happy where I was but I just kept peddling. I thought it was going to come down to a sprint at the finish but I passed Bob as the track straighten out. I finished, EXHAUSTED! The course was set up very well for me- A Fast flat finish! I finished 39th out of 59- my best finish to date. I'm beginning to think that racing every weekend is finally paying off. I feel like I'm getting faster, and bike handling is getting better. I'm able to trust my tires more in the corners.  I was able to make it through some tough sections of sand. Overall I'm very pleased with the weekend of racing.



Me with Bob in my sights - 100 yds form the finish line.

All that being said, I doubt I will be back to play in this sandbox (see liter box). Once we got back I immediately had to disassemble the bike and spent the next 2 days cleaning the drive train of grit to get ready for the "Fight under the Lights" race on Tuesday night.



My crank after the 2nd race. I'm pretty sure sand isn't supposed to be inside the bottom bracket.

Boone NCCX- Race Report

Cold, sticky mud, big nasty run-up, great racing, costumes, heckling, grilled pizza's, flat course (?), big fields, free beer, fast, loads of spectators, and a fun course! I had a great time. Thanks Boone, See you next year!

All Hallow's Eve Cyclocross

We (myself and the family) made the drive to Winston over the weekend to race the All Hallows Eve race presented by Mock Orange Bikes. It was pretty cold when we arrived but warmed up nicely by the start of the 10 O'Clock race. I did my usual warm up, and got the to start early and positioned myself in the middle on the left side. The whistle blew and we took off, we all sprinted up a paved road and then some switch backs where I was either in the weeds or the tape on every turn. Then it really bottled up and had to dab a foot. Once again the best thing about racing CX is even if you are in the back there are still people to race. This race was no different, myself a 2 others guys were changing places on the first 2 laps. I'd get a lead then they would catch me on the 1 long climb.

The end of the second lap I noticed I was pulling a guy around the course, and was taking some very bad lines through the turns. As we approached the end of the lap he was behind me as we started down a short downhill with a hard right hand turn with a climb after the turn. I set myself for the turn, hit the apex and turned on the jets. I stood up and powered my way up the hill. I kept on the power, and was all by myself for the entire last lap. Approaching the finish line some of the leaders were passing me. The last turn into the finish and someone behind me yells "Left". Thinking it was another leader and not wanting to get in the way of the leaders I moved over. As he passed me at the finish Line I realized it was the guy I had been racing the entire race. I was disappointed that he passed me at the finish- That won't happen again!



The last lap approaching the finish- you can see the guy that passed me at the finish in the background.

I loved the course- some sections were a little rough but the fast, flat and smooth sections made up for it. My favorite part was a section around the soccer fields- you entered the field on a downhill with 2 18" jumps, and the field was flat, hard, and short grass. I could fly on this surface, and the corners held up well. I also loved all of the off-camber turns. As we headed back to Charlotte I couldn't wait until the next race in Boone. See you there.

Hey, at least I didn't throw up.

My first Cross race of the season was this weekend. I'm not where I had wanted to be at this time of the year but, I have improved from last year. Here's how the race went:

I spent the week leading up to the race watching the weather closely to see if I needed to put on the mud tires or keep the Racing Ralphs. I went to help Luna Cycles/ Fiets Maan racing to help set up the course up Friday. The course was dry even though it rained Thursday- I decided against switching tires and stick with what I had. The morning of the race was cool and damp/ a slight drizzle but no mud.  I went to get my number and the guy apologized and said "this is no reflection on you as a person". I looked at it and read 666! I'm not a superstitious person and thought BEAST MODE! I did my warm up laps, then saw some friends and talked with them for awhile and then headed to the start line. I lined up right in the middle of the pack. I looked down at my heart rate and it showed zone 2. I tried to clam down as we waited for the start but as soon as the starter called "TWO MINUTES" my heart rate jumped to all most zone 3. The whistle blew and we all took off, about 100 feet into the race and at full speed the mountain bike in front of me started skidding the rear tire- his chain was throw into the rear wheel spokes. I hit the brakes and then went around him, I stayed with the pack until the finish line climb. I was pretty focused so I don't remember a lot of details. I do remember racing a few guys, back and forth changing positions.

On the 2nd lap I was following a guy around the course but didn't have a great place to pass. We rode through the bottom of the course near the start line, up the small hill, he went wide and I cut inside. We were side by side on the short descent. I pedaled hard to the run up, took the inside line and ran as hard as I could. Got back on the Van Dessel and pushed as hard as I could, I was trying to get as far away as possible so he wouldn't want to chase me down. In my opinion this was the hardest part of the course- most of the elevation changed happened in between the run-up and finish line. The rest of the race I was pretty much by myself the rest of the race until the finish when the race winners passed me cutting my race 1 lap short. I was glad it was over.

Last year the finish is where I started dry heaving in between gasping for breath. It was so embarrassing, the finish is right next to the sand where everyone sits and watches the race..... by race I mean CARNAGE that happens in the sand. But that didn't happen this year. I didn't win but I felt better than last year. I did better than last year, I wasn't pushing to stay out of DFL. Training hasn't gone great, lots of excuses! But the race was just enough of a butt kicking with the right amount of success to keep me motivated. I'm looking forward racing next weekend in Winston-Salem. #Knuckles&Elbows!

 

By the way, the team (Kevin and myself) did great this weekend, lots of compliments on the jerseys, and we had fun! Looking forward to have the other guys with us soon.

four letter word - "CAN'T"

I came across the video this week and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. This dude is amazing! ENJOY

 

 

Things I've been thinking about this week:

 

Do you think Richie ever said the phase "I can't"?

 

What do you think he thinks when he hears someone say "I can't" or "It's too hard"?

 

Is he Pissed or does he feel sorry for them?

 

 

 

If we all had Richie's attitude think of how the world be different place to live. I'm guilty of using that phase but I think and hope every time I say it I think of Richie. People are awesome!

 

Feel free to leave comments below, id love to hear what you think.

Acting lessons

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. It's also a great way to achieve a goal. For instance, if you wanted to play basketball in the NBA. Who might you try to imitate? Definitely not me! Maybe its Kobe Bryant, or Lebron James. You should find how they train and do the same. It might be shooting 100 free throws everyday, or going to the gym and do drills, or playing street ball. I want to race and would love to be competitive. Unfortunately I don't personally know Adam Myerson, Jeremy Powers, and Tim Johnson, but I can still train like them. Cross season is fast approaching (less 3 weeks away) and I'm not where I had hoped I was going to be. Sickness, vacations, lack of motivation are all excuses!

This past week the shop I was working at closed its doors for good. I must say I was pretty disappointed. It's the end of the season and bike shops tend to scale back hours in September-April so the chances of landing another job are very slim. So I going to look at things a bit differently this year. I'm going to be a bike racer! No not professionally but I'm going to act like I am. I'm looking at this as an opportunity, not as a setback. I'm free to train and race all fall and Winter. The old Mike would typically get depressed and feel that this is a set back. But I'm planning on taking full advantage if this time. Yes, I know how lucky I am! Then come spring I'll start looking for another job. 

So what does all of this mean?

It means I'm going to treat my body like a machine. 

It means eating well- whole foods, no junk!

It means training, no matter what.

It means riding in the heat, rain, cold, or when I'm sore, tired and unmotivated. 

It means when I'm not training, I'm resting so I'll be ready to train.

It means pushing hard during the workouts.

It means doing all of the workouts. 

It means racing as much as possible.

It means putting in time on the trails not just the road.

It means staying positive!

It means getting out of my comfort zone.

It means not giving up.

It means planning training, racing, and meals ahead of time.

If I want to be a bike racer, I better start acting like it.

Goodbye Rocky, Hello Bronson!

Ok, so those of you that know me,  I was more of a quite hum. I rode Bent Creek (Greens Lick) yesterday on the new bike, a Santa Cruz Bronson. Ever since I ordered the bike over 2 months ago I've been eagerly waiting to ride this trail. The climb up was brutal, it was very humid, and trail was washed out from all of the rain we have had the last 40 days and 40 nights. Like I said I've been waiting to get to the top of Green's Lick for 2 months. For those who don't know Green's Lick is a very fast sometimes steep downhill full of jumps and berms. And its pretty long! How long? I'm not sure because we kept stopping and re-riding the fun sections of trail. Check the trail out if you are ever in Asheville. The bike wants to be in the air! And the landing are pillowy soft. I'm still learning how get the bike airborne buts a lot easier than the Rocky. It's a Plush bike, but at the same time it pedals very well- actually better than my Rocky XC bike. The biggest difference is the suspension design. There is no chain growth when the suspension flexes. The VPP suspension is great for bigger riders - I'm running 70 psi less pressure in the rear and its still not using all of the travel. The bike is way more capable than it's rider.

highlights: 650b wheels
                  6" travel
                  67 degree head angle
                  VPP Suspension
                  It's a Santa Cruz!

 

 

 

3x10 Drive train - probably going to switch it a 2x with a bash ring. Looking forward to trying out the Shimano clutch Rear Derailleur.

The Avid Elixir 5 Brakes are great. And the VPP suspension is awesome! No chain growth and suspension remains active. 

Santa Cruz!

 

 Burly Maxxis High Roller 2.3

 

I love this picture - wish the neighbors house wasn't in the background (may need to retake it). Oh and by the way these pics were taken before the ride- it's a little dirty now.

 

Goals and Lists

I'm a list person. I have lists scattered all over the house. Lists for grocery shopping, honey-do's, things to do this summer with my son, lists for things to buy, training plans, bikes to buy, accessories and componets to upgrade...........   So it's only natural that I have one for the fast approaching Cyclocross season. So here it is my goals for the season.


Cyclocross Goals

Races - NCCX- Southern Pines
                               Raleigh
                               Boone
                              Salisbury
                              Wilkesboro
                              Durham
                              Statesville
                              Charlotte (State Championships?)
                              Winston
                               Hendersonville (2 races) (UCI NCGP)

                AVLCX- Bent Creek
                                Pisgah Brewery
                                Carrier Park (night race)

               North Meck- October Training races

Goals
-Race as much as possible, dependent on location, and time.
-I'm hoping that I can regularly finish mid-pack and maybe finish in the top 25%.
-Thinking about doing 2 races in a day- Masters Cat 4 & Cat 5.
-Either start or join a weekly CX training race.
-Make the races an all day event.
-Have FUN!


Enduro Goals
-Paris Mountain Wild Turkey Enduro
-To not fly off the mountain and kill myself!


Winter Short Track- Race the entire series (5 races)!
-Finish in top half of races
-1 Top 10 finish


Weight Loss - Continue to progress to my ultimate goal of 190-200
 By CX race #1 September 7 AVLCX Bent Creek - 240 lbs
 By Short Track Race #1 January 11(?) - 210 lbs


Here is a list things I'm thinking about doing next year-
The Doubleshot
Jerdon Mountain Challenge
3 peaks USA
Love Valley Roubaix
Boone Roubaix
Tom Dula's Revenge
More Enduro racing

A goal properly set is halfway reached

– Abraham Lincoln

 

 

You must have long term goals to keep you from being frustrated by short term failures

– Charles C. Noble

Mindful Eating

What comes to mind when you read the words below?

Thanksgiving -

Superbowl -

Football -

4th of July -

Valentines day -

Christmas -

State fair -

Birthdays -

Weddings -

If you are the average American you probably replied with a food item- Turkey, Wings, Hot dogs, Chocolate, Corn dogs, and Cake?

In our society everything seems to revolve around food including holidays, sporting events, family reunions, business deals, Birthdays, Graduations, and even funerals. Our society is obsessed with food. Fast food is on every corner, large pizzas "ready now" for $5, Kids are offered "Happy Meals", Big Gulps the size of a 5 gallon bucket, Value sized meals, Krispy Kreme Cheese Burgers, and processed food commercials are non-stop on TV. It's no wonder why Americans are dealing with an obesity epidemic.

What part of the chicken does the "Chicken Ring" come from? I can think of only 1 area. GROSS!

 

 

Turtle Burgers (hamburgers + hot dogs + bacon + cheese) = REALLY?!

When we moved to Charlotte I loved the fact that fast food is really hard to find, I have no idea where a Little Cesar's is located, and we ditched TV so no more commercials. These changes has helped us as a family transform the way we eat. Here are some tips that have helped me, maybe they will help you as well. (If you have other tips please share in the comments section below.)

ReThink Food - Food is NOT to give you pleasure. It's there to provide fuel/energy to your muscles to move. So....... MOVE........ and eat well to provide them good fuel. Your body is a high performance machine feed it what it needs, not grease, sugar, and fat. A lot of my races are out of town, and it would be very tempting and easy to grab a biscuit, bagel, or doughnut but I know that I would feel awful after eating that and I wouldn't perform at my best. Also DO NOT reward yourself with food - instead reward yourself with a new cycling kit, or running shoes, or a piece of fitness equipment.

Watch the carbs - As a cyclist I know I need carbs. But I try to stay away from sugar and processed carbs. That being said after a hard ride, I need carbs. But I also don't want to waste my ride by eating just anything. I just want to replace the glycogen to my muscles and keep hungry at bay. I like to instead refuel with a banana, Greek yogurt, or Chocolate Milk.

Watch when you eat - I don't eat after 8 pm. Do not eat when you are not hungry, food is energy/fuel. Eating Crap food is not going to make anymore social, in fact I bet their is another person you are with that's trying to eat well. You could become a good influence on them and both will be helping each other out of a hard situation.

Keep a eating journal - You will be surprised by how many calories you are actually eating. I recommend Training peaks and my fitness pal. Both of these are Apps for your phone that keep track of the food (even restaurants) you intake as well the calories burnt while exercising.

Don't drink your calories - This is a hard one for me - I love my morning coffee and a sweet tea or soda with my meal. Don't quit cold turkey otherwise you could get caffeine withdraw headaches - Not Fun! Just do your best to slowly taper off. Do your best but stay away from the "diet" sodas. A Starbucks Cinnamon Dolce Latte has 450 calories. That's as much as a small meal. Things to watch out for are Beer, Soda, Coffee, even Gatorade.

 Eat at the table or snack standing up - DO NOT eat while watching TV.  Watching TV turns off your brain and distracts you from what you are doing. Have you ever sat down to watch a show with a bag of chips and by the end of the show the bag is empty? It happens! Either Snack standing up or pour what you want in a bowl and put the rest back in the pantry. Also turn off Wheel of Fortune and eat with your family AT THE TABLE.

Cheat well - When faced with eating something that's not falling into the diet ask you yourself "Is this worth the extra calories?" If it's not don't continue to eat it, throw it away. If I'm craving pizza, I'm not going to have a frozen pizza or Little Cesar's. I'm going to choose either a Mellow Mushroom, local NY pizza joint, or if I have time I'll make a homemade pizza. Why? Calories are calories so why not cheat with something that tastes great? Besides a good quality pizza will satisfy that craving which is the point right. Choose quality over quantity.

Final advice - We, you, me make mistakes! We let temptations, social pressure and circumstances influence what we know to be good and healthy. Don't beat yourself up over a bad choice. 1 bad meal is not going to undo all of the work that you have done thus far. When you a bad choice for a meal don't make it a bad choice for the day, week or month. Just because you eat something unhealthy doesn't mean the day is ruined. Get back at as soon as possible.

 

....... not for the fame, the fortune, not even the chick's!

Before my current job at the bike shop (sales and service) I was a high school teacher. As a teacher I made decent money, was respected in my community, and I even had a lot of job satisfaction. I loved seeing the "light bulb" light up when a student understood a difficult concept. Or when a student, a student who wasn't the popular kid in school, was asked by all of the jocks, prom queens, cheerleaders, nerds,.......... to help them with their assignments. When I moved to Charlotte I had a teaching job waiting here if I wanted it. So why did I decide to instead become a bike shop employee? Was it for the ........

Fame?
Trust me there is no fame in a bike shop. Some customers think because I work retail that I don't have a college degree, I'm living in my parents basement, and play video games when I'm not at work.

Fortune?
You must be kidding?! I went from making decent money making just over minimum wage. My pay amounts to having gas in the truck and that's about it.

Chicks?
ummmmmmm...................yeah right! #1- I'm married to a wonderful woman that allows me the freedom to work in a bike shop. #2- If you need more info see above.


This is why I do it.....

I do it help a dad ride with his son.
I do it for racers to have an edge on their competition.
I do it for buddies to ride and hang out together.
I do it to keep families together riding.
I do so kids will have fun exercising.
I do it so little girls can ride to their friends house for a tea party
I do it so boys can build jumps in the front yard.
I do it for adults to feel like kids again.
I do it for seniors to feel young again.
I do it for the commuter to stay safe.
I do it for the new mom to have fun with her kids outside.
I do it to encourage people to lose weight.
I do it for the kids to feel independent.
I do it for the overworked one's that need a stress reliever.
I do it for anyone that walks into my shop looking for a bike, accessory, advice, or encouragement.

OK, I do it also because I'm surrounded by bikes, people who ride bikes, and people who want to ride bikes, bike racers, bike commuters all day.  

Tsali Knobscorcher race report

 

This was my son's spring break so we all took off the week and headed to the mountains for some mountain biking. Our first stop was Gateway Park in Travelers Rest for an afternoon of fun. Basically trying to get my son back on his back and having fun. Then next day it poured, and poured, and poured rain!

 

Friday we meet a friend and went to Bent Creek. Pamela and Keanan went for a hike while Jon and I went for a bike ride. But not just any ride - GREEN"S LICK. I've heard this name so many times but haven't been on it even though I practically live in Asheville. First we had to get to the top, no easy feat in and of itself. A 45 minute 1500+ feet of climbing to the get to the top of Greens lick. The downhill was worth the climb (actually I didn't think the climb was that bad). By the time we finished we were starving and hit the nearest Papas and Beer.

Saturday we pre-rode the course at Tsali. Keanan and Pamela also rode a shorter version of the course. It was a tough day after riding Greens Lick the day before. We underestimated the heat, some of the climbs were rocky and exposed to the sun. This lead to the sun heat radiating up at us on the climbs. It felt almost like a high dessert, very dry and HOT! We each brought only 1 water bottle - a big mistake! We finished and headed to the nearest Mexican restaurant to refuel.

Sunday- RACE DAY! We got to Tsali, checked in, and started warming up? There were racers from all over the east coast and actually saw a license plate from Ohio. On the starting line there were 25 racers in my class. After the start was a mile long uphill. Most of the entire field left me in their dust on the start line. My race plan was to take it easy and not blow up on the climbs (walk if necessary), gun it on the flats, bomb the downhills. We headed into the woods and was feeling better. I caught a couple guys that blew up on the first climb. I passed them and now they are chasing me. They both passed me as I was letting the fast girls go by. At the next hill I see them both standing beside their bikes gasping for air. I passed them again.

On the next hill I knew I was going to walk it. It's a very steep rocky exposed climb that gets really hot in the sunshine. As I'm walking up the hill this guy comes from behind and passes me. He's an older guy, in his 60's and built like me, and he's climbing this hill. I was so impressed that I give him some encouragement to make it to the top. We get to the top and he's off the bike and dry heaving. He tells me he doesn't have any water- it came out at the start line. Luckily I had an extra bottle and gave him some water to help cool him down. As I'm giving him water 2 guys and a girl pass me. I stay with the guy for a few minutes. We all take off down the trail. I had trouble getting clicked back in on the rocky descent and never saw the guy again until the finish line.

I struggled trying to keep pushing on the flats, walking the steep hills, and bombing the descents. I passed someone that flatted. Then I eventually caught the girl, even though I caught her she was moving pretty well. She wasn't comfortable on the rocky tech sections and would walk through them so I passed her. I wanted to catch the guy I was racing earlier in the race. I came around a bend and there he was walking up the trail, resting his legs. I poured on the power to pass him quickly and discourage him from trying to catch me. I heard him get back on the bike but it was of no use, I was in front and I wasn't going to lose. I finished, Pamela and Keanan cheering me on.

It was a really tough day on the bike. But, I was really proud of what I accomplished.

Things I learned at Tsali
-There are more important things than bike racing.
-I need to focus on shorter intense races
-I need to work on my Technical skills
-Bring more water on the pre-ride

The cyclist ahead of you could be Me!

 

Bike racing is funny by nature. During the race you are trying to bury your competitors. You are trying to inflict as much pain on your fellow racers by either pushing them to make a mistake or making them chase you down. Mind games and deception are part of the strategy. But afterwards, Those same people are the ones you're enjoying an adult beverage with, and reliving the race. After the race we are friends, pals, and Buddies! So when I heard the news this week of fellow competitor was in a horrific bike accident, a hit and run by a semi truck, I was devastated.

To be honest I broke down in tears Monday. As every cyclist knows - That could have easily have been me. Every cyclist has had close calls. Every cyclist has been intimated by someone wheelding a 2000 pound vehicle going 50 mph. Every cyclist has been taunted, yelled at, buzzed, things thrown at them, and so on and so on....... If you are reading this you are either a friend, or family member and I'm begging you to please be careful around cyclists. When you see a cyclist I want you to think, "that could be Mike". Then treat that cyclist like it's ME. Just like me, that cyclist has a family, a wife, husband, father, mother, sister, brother, son, daughter, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew. The point is that person riding a bike in front of you has people that love them and wish for their safe return. As a cyclist I put my faith, trust and my life in your hands when I ride my bike on the road. As a driver you have the power to make my son grow up without a father and my wife to be a widow.

Here is some info into the thought process of what that bike is doing in "your" lane. In my next post I'm going to give some tips to the 4 wheel types as to what to do when you come up to a cyclist in the lane. Please be careful!

If I owned a bike shop I'd..........

I must say this picture makes as giddy as a school girl when I think about what could be.

I'm sure it's a lot of hard work and financially very risky but I'd love to own a bike shop. When we moved to Charlotte and the wife said it was fine to get a part time job. I jumped at the chance to work at a Bike shop. Fact is I'd probably do it for free. I love talking about bikes, I love getting husbands riding with their wives, I love getting families riding together, I love helping people get back on a bike after many years of not riding (btw, the saying is true "It's like riding a bike, you never forget how to ride). It's been a dream of mine for a while. Needless to say I've been in a lot of shops over the years. When on vacation or in a new city I always try to check out the local bike shop. Over the years I've made mental notes of things of I've liked and disliked.  Here's my list of the perfect bike shop

Products- I'd carry brands and products that I believe are the best or at least serve a purpose. I would carry only quality products, if I wouldn't put it on my bike then it doesn't belong in my shop. Employees are the heartbeat of the store and know what's the latest and greatest- I'd ask them for their opinion. Ask them "What products do you want?" Then buy it and watch it sell! It's very difficult trying to sell a product that you wouldn't put on your commuter.

Service- Repairs would be quick but also thorough. If a customer came in for a derailleur adjustment but needed a wheel rebuild, I'd want them to know that before they left my store not a few days later out on the trail. I wouldn't nickel and dime every repair. If a customer bought some grips, kickstand, saddle or the like from me and I wasn't busy I'd be glad to help them out by installing it. Also my mechanics would work on every bike - my top mechanic would work on a $10,000 Specialized Venge as well as a $100 Huffy.

Community- I'd really like to be as involved in the cycling community as much as possible. I'd want my customers to know and realize that I'm fighting for their rights to be on the road, that I support all of the great bike related organizations out there such as Trips for kids, Bike Law, Bike! Charlotte, weeklyrides.com, and Take a kid Mountain Biking......... Why? Because I know how cycling can change lives. It changed mine!

Rides- Of course we would have weekly rides. Road rides, mountain rides, night rides, urban/ greenway rides, and any other fun ride I could think of. I'd also have a day set aside for employees and owners to ride together and lunch afterwards together. I'd want my employees to know I appreciate them and treat them as I would want to be treated. People in the bike industry are not doing it for the money- they are doing it because they love bikes! They love being around bikes, talking about bikes, helping others find the joy that only a bike can bring, they love bringing a family together to ride bikes. Take a kid mountain biking would be every weekend. Relevant clinics would be once a month.

Atmosphere- I would like the atmosphere to more like a neighborhood coffee shop than a Mercedes Benz dealership. I'd want my customers to be able to ask anything. I'd want them to pick my brain. I'd want them feel they could ask me a question and feel like they got an honest answer. I'd also like to serve free coffee. I'd also have a place to chill, relax, and watch a bike video, or live race. Sofas, arm chairs, and coffee tables would be just as normal as the smell of rubber tires.

Employees- I'd like my employees to work as teammates rather than adversaries! No commission sales, it's not that I don't want to reward the sales people it's that I don't like the used car salesmen pounce. Once again relaxed and comfortable I'd want the approach to be helping the customer find the best bike for them, not selling them the most expensive one. I want the customer to feel like my employees were their friends listening and giving the best advice.

It's been a wild ride so far, Maybe one day this dream will come true? If it does I hope you come see me for your next bike!

Wanna see my VD?

By the way VD also stands for Van Dessel, as in the bike company. Check them out here if you like what you see. Once I decided to try CX I wanted to get a CX bike - I could have started on a mountain bike but felt it would be a huge disadvantage. And on some courses it would be. I first bought a RedLine Conquest pro, I very nice bike and had great reviews. But there was something wrong with it. It was a 54 and I ride a 56. I thought you were supposed to go down 1 size but that was wrong. See what Mr. Myerson says on the subject here. I found this info out by helping a friend get into CX. So after realizing that the Redline was to small I've decided to find a new CX bike before the season starts. Bikes I looked at were the Redline Conquest, Specialized Crux, Masi, Marin, Rocky Mountain, and Van Dessel. After researching all of them I decided on the Van Dessel Gin and Trombones.

I've always loved the look of their bikes. A little flashy, great paint, and from the reviews I have read great geometry. The forks are massive, very stiff and full Carbon including steerer tube. They also have carbon rear stays. Ordering was painless and the frame arrived a few days later. I immediately opened it up and unpacked it. It looked great! In the box was a frame, fork, headset, carbon fork plug, and a bag of miscellaneous parts. I should say that I have never built up a bike completely from scratch before. I have always wanted to try and this was the perfect time to give it a shot because I was going to use all of the components from the Redline which included Rival, Avid Ultimate brakes, FSA stem, bars, seatpost. Just needed to order a BB30 crank since the Redline had gpx.

Build Specs

Frame - Van Dessel Gin & Trombones

Shifters - SRAM Rival

Rear Derailleur - SRAM Rival

Front Derailleur - SRAM Rival

Brakes - Avid Ultimates Canti

Cranks - FSA Omega (upgrade will be SRAM Force)

Saddle - Fizik Aliante

Wheels - Ritchey Pro (Upgrading to Industry Nine i25's)

Tires - Schwalbe Racing Ralphs

Just unpacked the G&T now it's relaxing on the sofa.

 

 

 Beautiful Carbon - looks like it's made of snake skin to me.

 

 

First time in the stand. Seat tube, Fork and headset installed.

 

 

 

Took me awhile to figure out what these little horse shoe shaped pieces were in the package. They are so you can use a mountain bike wheel with 135mm spacing instead of the traditional road spacing 130mm. I love it when a manufactured pays attention to the details!

 

Another View from the back of the spacers. 

 

 

 

Avid Ultimates and Racing Ralphs! Soon to include I9's. 

 

 

Massive Carbon fork with Ultimates. 

 

 

 Rear of the bike. This will be how all of my fellow competitors will see my bike as I go by them.

 

 

 

Clean cassette and Rival Derailleur taken from the Redline.



Still waiting on Crank. Just got an email that it should be here Monday. Hopefully by next weekend I'll be able to fine tune the fit then cut the steerer tube, and wrap the bars.

 

 

 Almost finished. Sorry about the bad picture.

 

 

 

Conclusion: I had a lot of fun building my own bike. As I said before I've wanted to do this for some time now and can now cross that off of the Bucket List. I would totally do it again given the right circumstances and being cost effective. 



It takes a village

The Evolution of America

It's been said that "It takes a Village to raise a Child" I think it takes a village to lose weight, race bikes and get healthy. The little bit of success I have had is not mine alone. By the way, I've lost 45 lbs and went from finishing a race to competing! I have a lot of people in my corner offering help, encouragement, love and accountability.

I have an amazing wife that has encouraged me and hasn't given up on me even though I have tried and failed many, many times before. She loves me and wants the very best for me. She wants me to ride, encourages me to race, and puts up with all my bikes and gear. She doesn't even complain about me fixing dinner of grilled chicken every night for a week. I'm sure it's hard for her because she's a skier and during the winter months (and secretly in October) praying for cold weather where I'm begging for warm sunny days. This made Short Track Racing A sacrifice on her part I know she would have rather been skiing those days. But no, She stayed home to cheer me on instead! I love that woman!

But there are others....

Anyone that's riden with me - Thanks for riding with me and not leting me slack off. Riding is much more fun with others.

Anyone I have raced against - Thanks for pushing me and for helping me realize I can do more than I thought. Sorry if I dropped you. If you beat me last time look out I'm coming for you next!

Anyone who has cheered me on - Thanks for your encouragement especially the people I don't know. MORE COWBELL!

Anyone who has given me advice - Thanks for all of the tips and tricks on diet, training, racing, or bike parts.

Anyone who has fixed my bike - Thanks for caring for my bike as if it was yours.

Anyone that has listened to my dreams - Thanks for seeing the skinny guy in this big body and seeing my potential.

Anyone who has inspired me - Thanks to those who have gone before me and shown me that it is possible.

A lot of people have given up things, time, energy, money so that I can be a better person. You know who you are and so do I. Thanks!

Switching Teams

No Mom not that team - I'm still hetero! And no I'm not changing to Team Edward. Nope, not going to play Basketball for the Miami Heat. Yes, I'm still a Pirate! I'm switching from a weight weenie Roadie to a beer drinking Mountain Biker. There are many reasons for the switch and I'm not going to bash roadies. Since I announced that I was selling my road bike I've gotten some strange looks followed by lots questions. Hopefully this will explain.

The back story - As with most people, I rode a bike as a kid but stopped after I got my driver's license.  I got a mountain bike, an old Specialized Rockhopper, back in college and rode a few times but nothing serious. And it wasn't until some friends asked me to ride with them I picked it back up 6 or 7 years ago in my late 30's. I was teaching High School which left me lots of time during the summer to ride. However I didn't want to stop in the fall. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't continue riding once school was in session, dark came earlier and cold weather set in. A friend asked me if I wanted to ride on the road before work with him - I cautiously agreed to give it a try. We rode from 5:00 - 6:00am in the mornings. I know it sounds crazy but I had my reasons: #1. Riding in the morning didn't take away from family time the evening; #2. I got my exercise out of the way before the day got started; #3. I could ride the road in the dark. It actually worked out pretty well. So I switched over to only riding on the road.

1. Different Focus - I used to only worry about my average speed. Now I'm only concerned with heart rate and staying in my zones. So when it's cold out and adding a 20mph wind chill into the mix I instead ride the mountain bike. I'm working harder, going slower, staying warmer, and getting a great workout. Speed makes no difference. I have even thought of getting a fat bike to make it even harder on the road.

2. Racing - In Charlotte there are so many more opportunities to race in the dirt. In fact there are at least 25-30 races within an hour drive and only 3 road races. More opportunities to race means more of me pushing my limits, which means I get faster, which means moving closer to the podium.

3. Woods - While I do love seeing rural farm land, I prefer mountain scenery. My favorite place to visit after all is Asheville/ Hendersonville/ and Western North Carolina. Which is affectionately called the Moab of the east. Mountain biking areas include Pisgah, Dupont, Tsali, totaling more than 270 miles of trails. That's not including trails like Bent Creek, PantherTown, WCU, Warrior Creek, Sugar Mountain, Linville and many more. You could spend weeks out here and not ride the same trail twice. Here's a link to some of the trails in the area http://www.tarheeltrailblazers.com/TrailsTest.cfm

4. Safety - While mountain biking isn't exactly a safe sport there also aren't people out trying to harm you while out on the trail. Mountain biking is all up to me on how safe I am. If I don't feel comfortable with an obstacle I'll walk it. I'm not trying to dissuade anyone from road riding I'm just telling you why I stopped. While on the road I've been intimated, harassed, buzzed by SUV's, yelled at, and had an air horn blown directly at my ear- (yea, that SUCKED!) Mind you I still ride on the road, just not as much as I used to.

5. Friends - Lets face it, Friends make riding fun! I know a lot more mountain bikers than I do roadies in my new town, Charlotte, NC.  There's nothing like reliving a ride with friends over a good beer or cold chocolate milk.

6. CX Biking - OK I'm not exactly giving up all road riding, I still ride my mountain bike on the road. Plus I can still have a CX bike that can be switched over to road tires for short distances, I wouldn't want to try to do a century on it but for a 20-30 miler, it's fine. The CX bike will be good for recovery, tempo, endurance rides, and commuting to work during the spring and summer before I need to switch the bike over to a CX race bike.

7. Skills- Since riding road my technical skills and confidence has diminished greatly. No wonder, the only technical section of a road is one full of pot holes, train tracks and the occasional road kill. Before I started road biking I thought I could clear most obstacles on my local trail, which by the way was not a very technical trail. But now rooty climbs, rock gardens, log crossing, tight switchbacks, steep slippery climbs are all par for the course. Something I'm still working on!

8. Variety- There's also a huge variety in mountain biking from trail to trail in Charlotte. Annie feels just like I'm in the mountains, Sherman is fast and flowy, Lake Norman puts a smile on my face every time I ride it, Whitewater Center is a great workout. Before I had only 1 choice in trails to ride now I have 6 or 8 that are fairly close.

9. Money- Maintaining a road bike costs a lot! And its a lot of money sitting there for recreation when that money could be used to upgrade my race rigs. Since selling the Roubaix I've decided to upgrade my mountain bike with I9 Wheels (click here to check them out) and upgrade my CX bike to a Van Dessel Gin & Trombones.

10. IDK- Ok I really dont have a 10th reason but felt I couldn't stop at 9 so reason 10 will be ......... I know we could play madlibs -

I love mountain biking because of the ______________ (natural object) and the ______________ (natural object) are always so ______________ (adjective) in the _____________ (season) months. I love how the _____________ (bike part)  __________ (sound) and look like ____________ (body part) touching a ____________ (favorite food).

     

 

 

Peace out! Keep the rubber side down. Keep moving!

Kill your Television

Well now that the Super Bowl has passed I guess I better explain something that I received a lot of questions about. Last August when we moved into our new house we decided to try out not having a TV. Now that's not entirely true - we have a TV but no cable and I'm not sure it works with rabbit ears or not. Its basically there only for my sons Wii. I must say I was a little nervous about giving up my precious glowing black box. But after a long summer with my 10 year old constantly watching TV I was willing to try anything. Here's what I have experienced by not having a TV.

Then: TV was relaxing.
Now: I find sitting on the patio listening to music to be much more relaxing.

Then: TV helped me decompress after a long day at work.
Now: I ride my bike, go for a walk, relax outside.

Then: I probably watched 3-4 hours a night.
Now: I watch Hulu and Netflix - maybe average 20 minutes a day.

Then: I thought I'd be missing something if I didn't have TV.
Now: I'm glad that I have no idea who Honey Boo Boo is or who a Kardashian is dating.

Then: I thought I'd be bored without TV.
Now: I get so much more done during the day without that glowing box.

Then: I thought TV was important for life in the modern world.
Now: I save $100+ every month! Can you say BIKE FUND!


Let me give you a real example of what I'm talking about.

A Tale of 2 Thanksgivings.

Before this thanksgiving we had a very traditional Thanksgiving. "TV Thanksgiving" would involve us watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade even though it's pretty much exactly the same as the year before. But there was no way I was going to miss it- it's a tradition! Then the football games were on, and we would snack all day. Then the main attraction was a huge feast where the mind set was "Eat as much as you can, this will be your last meal for the entire week". Then we would feel so bad and roll to the sofa to watch more football until the pie's were ready.

Thanksgiving this year involved me getting up early helping my wife prepare the bird. At 7:30 I left to go on a Thanksgiving day bike ride - 28 miles at a moderate speed in 40 degree weather. Returned home for some Greek yogurt, banana, and a shower. Then sat with the family and talked about what was going on in each others lives. Yes, we snacked on carrots, celery, and nuts. All had a reasonable dinner with no seconds and I didn't feel stuffed. I even had a slice of pie. The next day I felt great and went on mountain ride with the family.

Race Report - Short Track #4

I'm going to make this short and sweet because 1. I'm tired and 2. I have a busy day ahead of me. So after being off the bike due to illness for 2 weeks and last week just not feeling like training I was now on the start line. I felt a little drained from the weeks rides and a hike (something I'm not used to doing) the day before. The start went pretty well - I think I went into the woods around mid pack, Single track started out with 5 people in front of me slamming on brakes and skidding tires and me doing the same - I think someone was going  bit to fast and caused a chain reaction. Went back and forth racing a couple guys but by the 3rd lap I was by myself. A very odd feeling when there are 60+ racers on less than a mile track. I'm thinking the fields are getting smaller and the fast guys are left and me. I figure I'm behind the fast guys and in front of a few slow guys. With no one to race the lap times for laps 4 & 5 were a bit slower. It actually got a little boring with no one to race/chase/stay-away from. I tried to catch my mechanic Dread on he last lap but he was to far ahead and I basically just pedaled it in.

Despite how I felt on the bike and no one to race I still bettered my time by 20 seconds. All in all a good race with descent results. The last race is next week and on to training for the Double Shot at Hanging Rock State Park on March 9.

 

Picture of my friend Jon clearing the jump on the short track. SWEEEET!

The 3 P's

I'll be honest a lot of what I write on this blog is at times hard for me to live out all of the time even though I believe it 100%. My hope is that by repeating, writing, and reading it over and over and over again and again that I will one day it will penetrate this thick skull of mine.

Patience- Face it, we live in a society of instant gratification. We want it, and we want it NOW! We take pills to get the results we want, and want the easiest quickest fix. Our focus is for a week, maybe a month. Proof? Do you remember now busy the gym was the first week in January- I bet now you will have no problem finding a treadmill!

This is a hard one for me because I want patience but I want it right now! When I think about where I'll be in August/September I feel like a kid at Christmas - I CAN'T WAIT! I don't want to slow down and work slowly and let the work take care of itself. I need to see progress weather its racing, weight loss or anything else. As long as the scale is moving downward I'm fine. But when I hit a plateau all hell breaks lose. The same thing with racing, When things aren't progressing as fast as I'd like I get discouraged. If I'm only losing a pound a week its difficult for me to see the end. It helps me if I widen the scope out a month (or even 2) and look at the trends instead of being hyperfocused on todays stats- the plateuas are barely noticable.

Persistence- There's a saying "Life Happens!",  DOES IT EVER! It seems every time I'm on track something inevitably comes up- car repairs, family visit, sick kid, I get sick,..... when stuff happens it makes a difficult task even harder. There's another saying "If you aren't moving forward then you are going backwards". When I had to stay off my feet because of the Gout I tried very hard not to eat to make myself feel better. Actually during those 2 weeks I didn't gain a pound- surprising since I couldn't eat protein (a key componet in my diet). I'm counting that as a win for me! For me to progress I need to keep moving. Racing is the fun, training is the hard part. It's difficult to get my heart rate into zone 4 on a training ride but during a race I can empty the tank and peg zone 6. I have had some great strides on the short track but if I'm going to see the plan come together for cross country and CX I need to stay focused on my diet, training, and racing to see those dreams come true.

Perspiration- This is easy for me! I love riding my bike. I love the endorphins after a hard workout. If its been raining and cold outside and I haven't been riding for a while I admit I get a little cranky. My wife will tell me "You need to go for a ride!" Meaning: go ride and don't come back until you are in a better mood! Once again its the training that's the hard part. You would think that it would get easier but it doesn't. Mentally it does get easier dealing with the pain and knowing how far you can push yourself. But, the training still hurts. My friend says "It does get any easier, You just get faster!"

Patience, persistence and perspiration make

an unbeatable combination for success.

-Napoleon Hill