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.