So, you think you're fast? Join me and the rest of the Hit Squad for the Herriott Sports Performance (HSP) Rocket Ride to see how you stack up against some of the fastest guys in the Pacific Northwest. This group ride WILL put you in The Box, Pain Cave, Hurt Locker or whatever, so don't act surprised when you feel like dying. What better way to start off a Saturday morning in the Seattle winter?
"Saturday, November 3rd 9AM at Log Boom Park in Kenmore marks the start
of the Rocket Ride for this season. Every Saturday at 9am it leaves Log
Boom (weather dependent). The rule of thumb is, 40* & wet = no
ride. Follow us on Twitter to get morning of updates. If the weather is
iffy, we make the call by 8am. The Rocket Ride is the same course every week. It’s just under 50 miles and takes 2-3 hours. We all meet
at the Woodinville Starbucks [after] to have some coffee & swap war
stories. This is a drop ride, so bring everything you need…including
game." - hspseattle.com
Showing posts with label Seattle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Seattle. Show all posts
Monday, November 26, 2012
Friday, November 16, 2012
Black Friday Group Ride: The Leftover Roll
As some of you may or may not be aware, my favorite holiday is approaching rather quickly and, no, I'm not referring to Black Friday. Vegan Thanksgiving, of course! Time to try and out-do eachother at the potluck parties, yet again. The best part of Vegan Thanksgiving is watching my friends get motivated to put forth the effort of curating a well-rounded (vegan) dish, whom otherwise aren't so comfortable in the kitchen. I'm not a snob when it comes to home-cooked meals, I enjoy devouring them equally. And since the third Thursday of every November is all about being thankful for what you do have while eating and drinking as much as possible, what better way to spend the following afternoon than with a nice bike ride? Good company, swapping experiences of the prior's day coma-induced cuisine, COFFEE and a nice ride to burn at least a fraction of the calorie surplus we all accumulated. Yes.
If you know myself, Bryan Clark Smith (Emerald City Bicycles), Greg Mertzlufft or Ryan Schuetze (Go Means Go) then you are invited to join us on the 1st Annual Leftover Roll. If you don't know any of us, come along anyways and make some new friends.
"After spending your Turkey Day with friends and family stuffing your face and drinking your fill you will be looking forward to the leftovers the next day. Especially The Leftover Roll. Meet up at Fremont Coffee @ 1:30pm, the ride will roll at 2pm sharp.
Expect a casual paced, friendly group ride of about 15-20 miles. Ride will wrap up before dark, but be sure and bring a lock and lights if you plan on staying out after the ride." - via FB
(https://www.facebook.com/events/293257467459455/293425797442622)
-Fremont Coffee Co, 459 N 36th St, Seattle, Washington 98103
-All bikes welcome.
If you know myself, Bryan Clark Smith (Emerald City Bicycles), Greg Mertzlufft or Ryan Schuetze (Go Means Go) then you are invited to join us on the 1st Annual Leftover Roll. If you don't know any of us, come along anyways and make some new friends.
"After spending your Turkey Day with friends and family stuffing your face and drinking your fill you will be looking forward to the leftovers the next day. Especially The Leftover Roll. Meet up at Fremont Coffee @ 1:30pm, the ride will roll at 2pm sharp.
Expect a casual paced, friendly group ride of about 15-20 miles. Ride will wrap up before dark, but be sure and bring a lock and lights if you plan on staying out after the ride." - via FB
(https://www.facebook.com/events/293257467459455/293425797442622)
-Fremont Coffee Co, 459 N 36th St, Seattle, Washington 98103
-All bikes welcome.
Friday, September 21, 2012
HSP Garage Sale
Head over to Herriott Sports Performance (101 Nickerson Street, Suite 150
Seattle, WA 98109) for their annual Garage Sale:
-"HSP presents the 2nd Annual Garage Sale September 21st & 22nd. Friday from 7AM-6PM & Saturday 7AM-3PM we’ll be blowing-out close-outs, demo gear/bikes, certified pre-owned products, race team equipment, rental fleets & more. We’ll have bins full of saddles, helmets, shoes, clothing, small parts, frames, handlebars, etc. This is a great time to get next seasons race wheels, build up a TT bike, cross bike or rain bike. Get there early…it only happens once-a-year! We’ll provide the coffee."
(via- http://hspseattle.com/wp/events-and-presentations/)
Personally, I've been in the market for a PowerTap powermeter hub for quite some time. I showed up at 7:09am this morning to make sure I got first pick at the goods. By goods, I'm referring to the hope of a PowerTap. Naturally, my luck seems to be timeless so there was one, WITH A CAMPY FREE HUB, hiding in the back destined for the internet. This puppy, was hand built by Thomas Broadrick and laced to a HED Belgium Series C2 wheel. I won't tell you how much I paid for it, but I will tell you that they could have made a profit off of it - instead, they sold it to me at a price I could just afford. I am forever grateful for the generosity HSP has always shown me.
You better hurry over there before everything is gone! Just as forced myself to leave, I watched a guy scoop up a pair of Zipp 808's at $900. FUUUUUUUCK. The BMC Time Machine frameset (size large) was still there at $375. That's the kind of deals I'm talking about. Show your support for the best bike shop in America.
-"HSP presents the 2nd Annual Garage Sale September 21st & 22nd. Friday from 7AM-6PM & Saturday 7AM-3PM we’ll be blowing-out close-outs, demo gear/bikes, certified pre-owned products, race team equipment, rental fleets & more. We’ll have bins full of saddles, helmets, shoes, clothing, small parts, frames, handlebars, etc. This is a great time to get next seasons race wheels, build up a TT bike, cross bike or rain bike. Get there early…it only happens once-a-year! We’ll provide the coffee."
(via- http://hspseattle.com/wp/events-and-presentations/)
Personally, I've been in the market for a PowerTap powermeter hub for quite some time. I showed up at 7:09am this morning to make sure I got first pick at the goods. By goods, I'm referring to the hope of a PowerTap. Naturally, my luck seems to be timeless so there was one, WITH A CAMPY FREE HUB, hiding in the back destined for the internet. This puppy, was hand built by Thomas Broadrick and laced to a HED Belgium Series C2 wheel. I won't tell you how much I paid for it, but I will tell you that they could have made a profit off of it - instead, they sold it to me at a price I could just afford. I am forever grateful for the generosity HSP has always shown me.
You better hurry over there before everything is gone! Just as forced myself to leave, I watched a guy scoop up a pair of Zipp 808's at $900. FUUUUUUUCK. The BMC Time Machine frameset (size large) was still there at $375. That's the kind of deals I'm talking about. Show your support for the best bike shop in America.
Friday, June 8, 2012
Ballard Twilight Criterium: Recap
June 2nd, 2012 - 6:30pm
Cat 3 Men - 50 minutes - 1k 4-corner mixed brick and asphalt course on a light uphill in the heart of historic Ballard.
Avg Speed - 24.7mph
Max Speed - 32.5mph
19th of 43 starters
With the weather being fussy days prior to Seattle's biggest bike race, The Ballard Twilight Crit, I knew the field would be at an astonishing low. To be frank, most people wouldn't want to race a 4-corner crit on gnarly brick roads in the rain - or damp ground for that matter. In all honesty, I consulted teammates who are former PRO's about racing if rain showed.
"Race. Do everything you can to be prepare for the rain...tyre pressure/selection/etc. Race at the front from the gun. Don't try risky shit. Race smart. Kill it." - David "Rocket" Richter
I pre-registered for the crit and wanted to race it regardless of rain, snow and/or apocalypse, but many experienced folk told me wet brick is a great way to ruin your season. Screw that. Besides, I made a Facebook event so all my friends could see what my obsession with this crazy bicycle racing thing is all about. Seems difficult to look tough not racing when the rain shows up, IN SEATTLE.
The Morning of
Ugh, 8am? I can still taste all that wine. Gross. Back to bed.
The Afternoon of
12:30, close enough. I kit up, throw a 25c Continental tyre on my rear wheel for a little drag racing status and begin my spin around the city for a proper warm-up. In my personal experience, it's important to ride a few hours before a crit so the body is 100% ready for battle. Anyone who loves or hates to race crits can attest that, yes, crit racing is battle. It's fast as fuck from start to finish, and you've got a few centimeters for personal space for an hour. Need I remind you, the more popular the race, the bigger the prize purse. This purse is usually dispersed throughout the race in random laps called primes ("preemes"), where the first person to cross the finish line on the designated lap gets paid X-amount of $$. In the big leagues, we all know the biggest payout (outside of winning) is always with a lap or 2 to go. What a great way to fuck up everyones plans of crossing the line first. I love it.
The Race
I met up with good friend, Nate Pitts (Gregg's Cycles - Trek,) for the tail-end of my warm up as we chatted about our plans for our 50 minutes of pain. Did I mention that this was going to be my first CAT 3 race? He kept me sane with constant reminders that these guys are just CAT 4's that won a few races, no big deal. I knew I was going to do my thing and be on the attack as often as possible. I mean, I couldn't let down my old competitors that I've raced with before they upgraded.
MISSION: Attack, attack, attack. Keep pace hot at all costs. Stay in the front. Win.
Ambitious, I know. But lets just say that not 2 laps after that gun went off. I was on a MISSION. I'm confident in saying that this was my best performance of any crit I've ever done (minus Tacoma 2011). I dont think I dipped further than 7 wheels back until 4 to go. Ouch. I know Nate is a strong rider (CAT 2 - Track) so I tried my best to work with him on this popular occasion. When he took flyers, I didn't chase. When he was reeled in, I jumped. If I saw him pulling on the front for a bit, I'd come join to share the work load. The idea being, we're all friends until 1 to go so lets tire everyone out until then. One's odds increase as opponents lose hope.
More often than not, I found myself off or on the front most of the race. Sometimes I felt dumb for doing so much work, but mostly, I just felt like I was instigating a potentially winning move. If I was a threat to everyone for all the prime$ , they'd have to chase. If they didn't, then I could solo victory. Eventually I look forward to my teammates replicating Ted Schwartz and I's old "shake and bake" maneuver in these crit situations:
He sits in while I'm on the attack, and once I'm reeled in, he attacks. While he's off the front, I sit in and wait to attack when they reel him in. This shit works like clockwork. And I miss it.
At Ballard, I only had Dan Doran (whom I'd never met or raced with) and Thorsten Askervold (CAT 2 - Track, 16, raced 4 or 5 times with). Fortunately, my boys also stayed up front for all 50 minutes. Unfortunately, I felt like I was the only one animating the race. After just losing each prime that came up, I decided to sit in with 5 to go. The only problem with this technique is that I wasn't a threat to anyone and they could all rest for the sprint. That's the last thing I wanted. I sat on Pitts' wheel with 2 to go thinking he would know how to maneuver through this mess so I could strike with 1 to go. Ooops, too late, someone jumped as I was 15 wheels back or so, the pace roared to catch him. And wouldn't you know - some CAT 2 track kid counter-attacked and nobody could close the gap before his crossed the line first. Too bad it wasn't Thor, since an HSP victory would have been appropriate for such prime positioning.
I will say, that I definitely needed the recovery towards the end, but foolishly allowed myself to be overwhelmed with the exponentially growing number of spectators. My friends seemed to be at every corner, it's Jessica's (my fiance) 29th birthday AND she's at the start/finish with all of her friends. So much pressure, and yet I can't even use that as an excuse because none of this prioritized in front of "MOVE UP". I simply assumed everyone was so weak, that I'd be able to get into sprint position. Nope. They wanted it just as badly as I. Surprise, surprise.
My good friends at GO MEANS GO did a sweet little write up on their spectating experience with photos included!
Professional photography:
-Dennis Crane
-Amara Edwards
Cat 3 Men - 50 minutes - 1k 4-corner mixed brick and asphalt course on a light uphill in the heart of historic Ballard.
Avg Speed - 24.7mph
Max Speed - 32.5mph
19th of 43 starters
With the weather being fussy days prior to Seattle's biggest bike race, The Ballard Twilight Crit, I knew the field would be at an astonishing low. To be frank, most people wouldn't want to race a 4-corner crit on gnarly brick roads in the rain - or damp ground for that matter. In all honesty, I consulted teammates who are former PRO's about racing if rain showed.
"Race. Do everything you can to be prepare for the rain...tyre pressure/selection/etc. Race at the front from the gun. Don't try risky shit. Race smart. Kill it." - David "Rocket" Richter
I pre-registered for the crit and wanted to race it regardless of rain, snow and/or apocalypse, but many experienced folk told me wet brick is a great way to ruin your season. Screw that. Besides, I made a Facebook event so all my friends could see what my obsession with this crazy bicycle racing thing is all about. Seems difficult to look tough not racing when the rain shows up, IN SEATTLE.
The Morning of
Ugh, 8am? I can still taste all that wine. Gross. Back to bed.
The Afternoon of
12:30, close enough. I kit up, throw a 25c Continental tyre on my rear wheel for a little drag racing status and begin my spin around the city for a proper warm-up. In my personal experience, it's important to ride a few hours before a crit so the body is 100% ready for battle. Anyone who loves or hates to race crits can attest that, yes, crit racing is battle. It's fast as fuck from start to finish, and you've got a few centimeters for personal space for an hour. Need I remind you, the more popular the race, the bigger the prize purse. This purse is usually dispersed throughout the race in random laps called primes ("preemes"), where the first person to cross the finish line on the designated lap gets paid X-amount of $$. In the big leagues, we all know the biggest payout (outside of winning) is always with a lap or 2 to go. What a great way to fuck up everyones plans of crossing the line first. I love it.
The Race
I met up with good friend, Nate Pitts (Gregg's Cycles - Trek,) for the tail-end of my warm up as we chatted about our plans for our 50 minutes of pain. Did I mention that this was going to be my first CAT 3 race? He kept me sane with constant reminders that these guys are just CAT 4's that won a few races, no big deal. I knew I was going to do my thing and be on the attack as often as possible. I mean, I couldn't let down my old competitors that I've raced with before they upgraded.
MISSION: Attack, attack, attack. Keep pace hot at all costs. Stay in the front. Win.
Ambitious, I know. But lets just say that not 2 laps after that gun went off. I was on a MISSION. I'm confident in saying that this was my best performance of any crit I've ever done (minus Tacoma 2011). I dont think I dipped further than 7 wheels back until 4 to go. Ouch. I know Nate is a strong rider (CAT 2 - Track) so I tried my best to work with him on this popular occasion. When he took flyers, I didn't chase. When he was reeled in, I jumped. If I saw him pulling on the front for a bit, I'd come join to share the work load. The idea being, we're all friends until 1 to go so lets tire everyone out until then. One's odds increase as opponents lose hope.
More often than not, I found myself off or on the front most of the race. Sometimes I felt dumb for doing so much work, but mostly, I just felt like I was instigating a potentially winning move. If I was a threat to everyone for all the prime$ , they'd have to chase. If they didn't, then I could solo victory. Eventually I look forward to my teammates replicating Ted Schwartz and I's old "shake and bake" maneuver in these crit situations:
He sits in while I'm on the attack, and once I'm reeled in, he attacks. While he's off the front, I sit in and wait to attack when they reel him in. This shit works like clockwork. And I miss it.
At Ballard, I only had Dan Doran (whom I'd never met or raced with) and Thorsten Askervold (CAT 2 - Track, 16, raced 4 or 5 times with). Fortunately, my boys also stayed up front for all 50 minutes. Unfortunately, I felt like I was the only one animating the race. After just losing each prime that came up, I decided to sit in with 5 to go. The only problem with this technique is that I wasn't a threat to anyone and they could all rest for the sprint. That's the last thing I wanted. I sat on Pitts' wheel with 2 to go thinking he would know how to maneuver through this mess so I could strike with 1 to go. Ooops, too late, someone jumped as I was 15 wheels back or so, the pace roared to catch him. And wouldn't you know - some CAT 2 track kid counter-attacked and nobody could close the gap before his crossed the line first. Too bad it wasn't Thor, since an HSP victory would have been appropriate for such prime positioning.
I will say, that I definitely needed the recovery towards the end, but foolishly allowed myself to be overwhelmed with the exponentially growing number of spectators. My friends seemed to be at every corner, it's Jessica's (my fiance) 29th birthday AND she's at the start/finish with all of her friends. So much pressure, and yet I can't even use that as an excuse because none of this prioritized in front of "MOVE UP". I simply assumed everyone was so weak, that I'd be able to get into sprint position. Nope. They wanted it just as badly as I. Surprise, surprise.
My good friends at GO MEANS GO did a sweet little write up on their spectating experience with photos included!
Professional photography:
-Dennis Crane
-Amara Edwards
Friday, April 27, 2012
Volunteer Park Criterium: Race Report
4/7/2012 8:40am
Cat 4 Men, 40 minutes, D-shaped 1k circuit with 50' of climbing per lap, copious amounts of moss on the back stretch - Ooooooooooh.
Avg Speed 23.3 mph
Max Speed 40.5 mph
8th place of 61
This race recap will be short and sweet. It's only a 40 minute race and my brain was without oxygen most of the time. So it's a little hazy.
I was pretty stoked on this crit in general; the course suits me, it's local, it's fast. With 50 feet of climbing per lap, which includes the uphill finish, I felt I could win this race. The plan was to race aggressively (shake and bake with Chris), ignore the primes and attack for the win with 2 to go.
At the very start of the race I dropped my chain and unclipped and almost ate shit without even turning the pedal all the way around. The announcer JUST warned us not to embarrass ourselves in front of him or he'd give us a heckling. This was because there were multiple crashes at the start/finish of the Cat 5 race just before us. I embarrassed myself and had to try and catch back on.
After the first 5 minutes the pace slowed down a bit so Chis and I took turns attacking halfway up the climb until one of us was caught. This is also when I ran over a reflector turtle and my water bottle popped out of its cage. FUCKING 5 MINUTES IN, NO MORE WATER. On the 3rd round he actually got away, and stayed away for 3 or 4 laps. Just before he was swallowed up he lapped a couple dropped riders at the start/finish and snagged a prime. The announcer wasn't paying attention and awarded it to someone in the front of the field thinking Chris was a said dropped rider. Oh well. We stayed near the front of group to make sure nobody tried to get away. The only moves that went off where the ones that typically do when that bell rings for another enticing prime. I was so focused on reading my body and the race I hardly noticed prime laps or how many laps to go there were to go. Sometimes I think we all get like this during the intensity of a criterium, that is until "5 to go." This is when you wake the fuck up and get in line.
When 5 laps to go arrived I had learned that there were a handful of guys just sitting in the whole race making sure they were fresh for the sprint. Along with the campers were their allies making sure nobody got away. I decided that there was no way I was gonna pull a Tacoma Twilight move and win this with 2 to go. So I sat 5th wheel and didn't let anyone in. It turns out I only need a lap or so to (almost) completely recover. I felt surprisingly strong by the time the final lap arrived.
Last Lap
I moved up one more spot to 4th wheel since coming out of the last corner in prime position makes all the difference. I felt fresh and started the climb in a perfect gear with a perfect spin. All I could think about was how stoked I was that I'm going to win. I could easily come around these guys and snag it before everyone finished coming out of the corner. SO FRESH. YES. Then everything went the opposite direction. We come flying around the corner into the false flat finishing 200m and my lead out train pops and spreads. They start falling apart out of position forming this perfect little box around me. Go around left, I get the curb. Go around right, we all crash. FUCK. I let them veer left out of the turn when I knew perfectly well, everyone wins this race staying to the right! just before a gap opened infront of me to the right so I could come around, here comes Tony Blazejack (SCCA/Starbucks) and the rest of the fucking field are well up to speed. All I can do now is throttle it out as hard as I can and try to squeeze the top 7 (point only awarded 7 deep in crits). I proceed to cross the finish line with 1/2 a tank left. Whack Attack. 8th place.
Most people finish a race with excuses. Almost always. I'd like to finish this short recap with a little responsibility to my actions. I knew better, yet stayed on the doomed train anyways. Call it the heat of the moment, poor planning, etc. But in the end, it's my own damn fault.
Here is a set I picked out from the ever talented ReedKJ.SmugMug.com she makes me look fast and I am thankful. One of these days, when I have extra dollars, I'll have to donate to show my appreciation.
Cat 4 Men, 40 minutes, D-shaped 1k circuit with 50' of climbing per lap, copious amounts of moss on the back stretch - Ooooooooooh.
Avg Speed 23.3 mph
Max Speed 40.5 mph
8th place of 61
This race recap will be short and sweet. It's only a 40 minute race and my brain was without oxygen most of the time. So it's a little hazy.
I was pretty stoked on this crit in general; the course suits me, it's local, it's fast. With 50 feet of climbing per lap, which includes the uphill finish, I felt I could win this race. The plan was to race aggressively (shake and bake with Chris), ignore the primes and attack for the win with 2 to go.
At the very start of the race I dropped my chain and unclipped and almost ate shit without even turning the pedal all the way around. The announcer JUST warned us not to embarrass ourselves in front of him or he'd give us a heckling. This was because there were multiple crashes at the start/finish of the Cat 5 race just before us. I embarrassed myself and had to try and catch back on.
After the first 5 minutes the pace slowed down a bit so Chis and I took turns attacking halfway up the climb until one of us was caught. This is also when I ran over a reflector turtle and my water bottle popped out of its cage. FUCKING 5 MINUTES IN, NO MORE WATER. On the 3rd round he actually got away, and stayed away for 3 or 4 laps. Just before he was swallowed up he lapped a couple dropped riders at the start/finish and snagged a prime. The announcer wasn't paying attention and awarded it to someone in the front of the field thinking Chris was a said dropped rider. Oh well. We stayed near the front of group to make sure nobody tried to get away. The only moves that went off where the ones that typically do when that bell rings for another enticing prime. I was so focused on reading my body and the race I hardly noticed prime laps or how many laps to go there were to go. Sometimes I think we all get like this during the intensity of a criterium, that is until "5 to go." This is when you wake the fuck up and get in line.
When 5 laps to go arrived I had learned that there were a handful of guys just sitting in the whole race making sure they were fresh for the sprint. Along with the campers were their allies making sure nobody got away. I decided that there was no way I was gonna pull a Tacoma Twilight move and win this with 2 to go. So I sat 5th wheel and didn't let anyone in. It turns out I only need a lap or so to (almost) completely recover. I felt surprisingly strong by the time the final lap arrived.
Last Lap
I moved up one more spot to 4th wheel since coming out of the last corner in prime position makes all the difference. I felt fresh and started the climb in a perfect gear with a perfect spin. All I could think about was how stoked I was that I'm going to win. I could easily come around these guys and snag it before everyone finished coming out of the corner. SO FRESH. YES. Then everything went the opposite direction. We come flying around the corner into the false flat finishing 200m and my lead out train pops and spreads. They start falling apart out of position forming this perfect little box around me. Go around left, I get the curb. Go around right, we all crash. FUCK. I let them veer left out of the turn when I knew perfectly well, everyone wins this race staying to the right! just before a gap opened infront of me to the right so I could come around, here comes Tony Blazejack (SCCA/Starbucks) and the rest of the fucking field are well up to speed. All I can do now is throttle it out as hard as I can and try to squeeze the top 7 (point only awarded 7 deep in crits). I proceed to cross the finish line with 1/2 a tank left. Whack Attack. 8th place.
Most people finish a race with excuses. Almost always. I'd like to finish this short recap with a little responsibility to my actions. I knew better, yet stayed on the doomed train anyways. Call it the heat of the moment, poor planning, etc. But in the end, it's my own damn fault.
Here is a set I picked out from the ever talented ReedKJ.SmugMug.com she makes me look fast and I am thankful. One of these days, when I have extra dollars, I'll have to donate to show my appreciation.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Independence Valley Road Race Classic - Race Report
3/24/2012 9:30am
Cat 4 Men, 41 miles, 2 laps of rolling country roads with 2 major climbs
Avg Speed 25.5 mph
Max Speed 50.5 mph
8th place of 66
IVRR is becoming a true 'hardman' spring classic race of the Pacific Northwest. The long steep climbs definitely separate the billy goats from the boys. Then you have the rollers that fill one valley between the climbs and open windy farmland in the other valley. It's an all around tough course.
Fortunately I learned a lesson after year's race. My teammate, Jake Langdon, and I chased the 6-man breakaway (included one of our guys, Ted Schwartz) that formed immediately after the first climb, for nearly the entire race. Ted 3rd place and 6 minutes later Jake and I rolled in for 7th & 8th. Although this was an impressive effort for all of us, had we warmed up before the race, the three of us could have controlled the break. Instead, Jake and I were dropped with a handful of other poor souls that we eventually rode away from ourselves.
8:05am - Warm Up
My HSP teammate, Chris Carter, drove us to the race and got us there with almost an hour and a half to warm up and get situated. Score. We set up our trainers next to the truck, kitted up, and sipped on coffee and killed a bottle of water as we spun it out. I've never warmed up on the trainer before a race before; I don't know if that makes me an idiot or what. It was supposed to get into the mid-50's and you could feel it coming too, so I backed down on my embro application a little and got away with ARMWARMERS - woohoo! Finally a spring race where you can see the sun, feel it, and not have to wear everything you own to stay warm/dry enough to make it to the finish line.
9:20am - Line it up!
The official calls us up to the line, gives us the schpeel. As he is telling us we get the whole road at 1k to go instead of 200m, race organizer, Erik O Anderson, calls me out for not having a WSBA # yet. He then proceeds to make me feel like an ass for talking shit on his newest project, Capital Stage Race. Ooops. Who knew the internet was pubic? Or that people even read my blog for that matter? I couldn't tell if I should be flattered or embarrassed. I was a little of both. He wanted to kick me in the shin, regardless.
9:29am - Race
As we follow the lead car for neutral roll-out onto the race course, I find myself riding next to a familiar face, Nick Koops (Fischer Plumber Cycling, formerly ByrneInvent), and we get to chatting. We are talking about training, the course, and how we may or may not fare this gorgeous morning. I-shit-you-not, less than 10seconds after I compliment his Madfiber wheels, he hits a pothole, endos and eats major shit right next to me. His face hit my shoes, it was so close.
The car honks for the race to get under way, I had to forget about what just happened and start focusing on the climb that awaited us less than 2 miles up the road. I moved up to mid-pack and before I knew it, there we were. Boy was I glad I warmed up, I felt like a million bucks and just whizzed my way to the front group. It's fair to say nobody really expected what happened next, the entire field blew up and a selection was immediately made. I saw the fast guys in the lead group ahead of me so I began to bridge a seemingly small gap. This gap wasn't truly bridged until well after the decent because SOMEONE (Francis Atkinson SCCA/Starbucks Cycling) made it a point to "tear the legs off" anyone who tried to hold on. I sat on his wheel and look over my shoulder to find there were only 20 of us in the race now.
The Selection
With 20 of us working together I knew this was the move (crushing the first climb) that was going to win the race. Crazy. We had enough horsepower to split this group in half on the 2nd climb seeing as we had Garret, Paul and Martin (Audi), Francis and Jeff (SCCA), Todd (Stanley) then HSP boys Chris Carter and yours truly. These are all guys that usually make the break or instigate them on any given weekend, plus there has to be a couple new faces that wanted it bad enough to hang on.
We round the turn after miles of pacelining on open rolling farmland and begin the ascent we've all been anticipating. It's not that this climb is particularly gnarly, but that it's the last thing you want to deal with after driving the pace up and down rollers at threshold. Welcome to bicycle racing. I was mid pack starting the climb, and since there were only around 20 of us, it was pretty easy to just pull off to the left and pass anyone who was falling behind. It was then I saw the true beastmode strength of my teammate, Chris, as he motored up this hill effortlessly and almost dropped the whole group. WTF? I didn't know he was the Billy Goat King, sorry guys. By the time we finished our 50.5mph descent I noticed yet again the group had been split. There were now only 11 of us, woohoo.
Pain Cave
I often hear cyclists talk about the "Pain Cave", but as a frequent visitor myself, I know most of them don't know what it's like to really enter that dark place. I'm confident that our group of 11 went there atleast 4 or 5 different times as we finished out this last lap. I say this because no matter what moves were made we all finished the race together. Ouch. As we took turns pulling, well by we I mean everyone except the guy on Olympic Orthopaedic, the thought on everyones mind was in anticipation as to who would drive the train up that first hill again. These moments are probably my favorite aspects of racing, when friends become enemies. We all worked so hard to get away and stay away, but on this last lap, it's all about shaking off a few more people (to increase your odds at finishing well) then working together again with whoever survived.
To properly 'cut to the chase,' I will say that we all tried to shake eachother multiple times and all failed. However, there was this moment on the final climb when Chris attacked but nobody could possibly hold his wheel, so he just soloed up to the top and down the climb. He was caught by us before we got to the bottom. If a couple people could have caught him, that could have been it. The true hadman of the day was Francis. He drove the pace of our group almost the whole time, then in the final 5k decideds to counter attack after Garrett and I have our fun. This guy proceeds to just time trial away from all of us. We let him dangle out there, but not so much because it's a tactical decision, but more because none of us want to kill ourselves just to catch him. We are getting close to 2k, so we unanimously decide to chase. It sucks but we caught that SOB. Uh oh, there's the 1k sign! We get the whole road, whose gonna lead it out? I don't care I'm sitting 3rd wheel. Crap everyone just slowed down and now I'm leading the sprint. Fine, full gas and I'm hoping nobody has the legs to come around. But they all do. 150m and everyone jumps around me and it's just a battle to catch a draft then BOOM Jeff Reed (SCCA) takes the win, compliments to his teammate Francis. I finished right behind Paul for 8th place - 2 points YAY!
I wanted 1st pretty badly, but I made the mistake of working a little too much though out the race and not sitting further back in the final lead up to the sprint. Not to mention, it was a really fucking hard race and we went fast the whole time, so I'm not sure I'd have the legs to deliver in the end anyways.
Next week, one of my favorite races the Volunteer Park Criterium.
Cat 4 Men, 41 miles, 2 laps of rolling country roads with 2 major climbs
Avg Speed 25.5 mph
Max Speed 50.5 mph
8th place of 66
IVRR is becoming a true 'hardman' spring classic race of the Pacific Northwest. The long steep climbs definitely separate the billy goats from the boys. Then you have the rollers that fill one valley between the climbs and open windy farmland in the other valley. It's an all around tough course.
Fortunately I learned a lesson after year's race. My teammate, Jake Langdon, and I chased the 6-man breakaway (included one of our guys, Ted Schwartz) that formed immediately after the first climb, for nearly the entire race. Ted 3rd place and 6 minutes later Jake and I rolled in for 7th & 8th. Although this was an impressive effort for all of us, had we warmed up before the race, the three of us could have controlled the break. Instead, Jake and I were dropped with a handful of other poor souls that we eventually rode away from ourselves.
8:05am - Warm Up
My HSP teammate, Chris Carter, drove us to the race and got us there with almost an hour and a half to warm up and get situated. Score. We set up our trainers next to the truck, kitted up, and sipped on coffee and killed a bottle of water as we spun it out. I've never warmed up on the trainer before a race before; I don't know if that makes me an idiot or what. It was supposed to get into the mid-50's and you could feel it coming too, so I backed down on my embro application a little and got away with ARMWARMERS - woohoo! Finally a spring race where you can see the sun, feel it, and not have to wear everything you own to stay warm/dry enough to make it to the finish line.
9:20am - Line it up!
The official calls us up to the line, gives us the schpeel. As he is telling us we get the whole road at 1k to go instead of 200m, race organizer, Erik O Anderson, calls me out for not having a WSBA # yet. He then proceeds to make me feel like an ass for talking shit on his newest project, Capital Stage Race. Ooops. Who knew the internet was pubic? Or that people even read my blog for that matter? I couldn't tell if I should be flattered or embarrassed. I was a little of both. He wanted to kick me in the shin, regardless.
9:29am - Race
As we follow the lead car for neutral roll-out onto the race course, I find myself riding next to a familiar face, Nick Koops (Fischer Plumber Cycling, formerly ByrneInvent), and we get to chatting. We are talking about training, the course, and how we may or may not fare this gorgeous morning. I-shit-you-not, less than 10seconds after I compliment his Madfiber wheels, he hits a pothole, endos and eats major shit right next to me. His face hit my shoes, it was so close.
The car honks for the race to get under way, I had to forget about what just happened and start focusing on the climb that awaited us less than 2 miles up the road. I moved up to mid-pack and before I knew it, there we were. Boy was I glad I warmed up, I felt like a million bucks and just whizzed my way to the front group. It's fair to say nobody really expected what happened next, the entire field blew up and a selection was immediately made. I saw the fast guys in the lead group ahead of me so I began to bridge a seemingly small gap. This gap wasn't truly bridged until well after the decent because SOMEONE (Francis Atkinson SCCA/Starbucks Cycling) made it a point to "tear the legs off" anyone who tried to hold on. I sat on his wheel and look over my shoulder to find there were only 20 of us in the race now.
The Selection
With 20 of us working together I knew this was the move (crushing the first climb) that was going to win the race. Crazy. We had enough horsepower to split this group in half on the 2nd climb seeing as we had Garret, Paul and Martin (Audi), Francis and Jeff (SCCA), Todd (Stanley) then HSP boys Chris Carter and yours truly. These are all guys that usually make the break or instigate them on any given weekend, plus there has to be a couple new faces that wanted it bad enough to hang on.
We round the turn after miles of pacelining on open rolling farmland and begin the ascent we've all been anticipating. It's not that this climb is particularly gnarly, but that it's the last thing you want to deal with after driving the pace up and down rollers at threshold. Welcome to bicycle racing. I was mid pack starting the climb, and since there were only around 20 of us, it was pretty easy to just pull off to the left and pass anyone who was falling behind. It was then I saw the true beastmode strength of my teammate, Chris, as he motored up this hill effortlessly and almost dropped the whole group. WTF? I didn't know he was the Billy Goat King, sorry guys. By the time we finished our 50.5mph descent I noticed yet again the group had been split. There were now only 11 of us, woohoo.
Pain Cave
I often hear cyclists talk about the "Pain Cave", but as a frequent visitor myself, I know most of them don't know what it's like to really enter that dark place. I'm confident that our group of 11 went there atleast 4 or 5 different times as we finished out this last lap. I say this because no matter what moves were made we all finished the race together. Ouch. As we took turns pulling, well by we I mean everyone except the guy on Olympic Orthopaedic, the thought on everyones mind was in anticipation as to who would drive the train up that first hill again. These moments are probably my favorite aspects of racing, when friends become enemies. We all worked so hard to get away and stay away, but on this last lap, it's all about shaking off a few more people (to increase your odds at finishing well) then working together again with whoever survived.
To properly 'cut to the chase,' I will say that we all tried to shake eachother multiple times and all failed. However, there was this moment on the final climb when Chris attacked but nobody could possibly hold his wheel, so he just soloed up to the top and down the climb. He was caught by us before we got to the bottom. If a couple people could have caught him, that could have been it. The true hadman of the day was Francis. He drove the pace of our group almost the whole time, then in the final 5k decideds to counter attack after Garrett and I have our fun. This guy proceeds to just time trial away from all of us. We let him dangle out there, but not so much because it's a tactical decision, but more because none of us want to kill ourselves just to catch him. We are getting close to 2k, so we unanimously decide to chase. It sucks but we caught that SOB. Uh oh, there's the 1k sign! We get the whole road, whose gonna lead it out? I don't care I'm sitting 3rd wheel. Crap everyone just slowed down and now I'm leading the sprint. Fine, full gas and I'm hoping nobody has the legs to come around. But they all do. 150m and everyone jumps around me and it's just a battle to catch a draft then BOOM Jeff Reed (SCCA) takes the win, compliments to his teammate Francis. I finished right behind Paul for 8th place - 2 points YAY!
I wanted 1st pretty badly, but I made the mistake of working a little too much though out the race and not sitting further back in the final lead up to the sprint. Not to mention, it was a really fucking hard race and we went fast the whole time, so I'm not sure I'd have the legs to deliver in the end anyways.
Next week, one of my favorite races the Volunteer Park Criterium.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Stairmaster 6000 Alleycat - Seattle
(via ZLOG)
The Stairmaster 6000 race is quickly approaching this Saturday the 31st. It will be a grueling challenge of man and bike versus stairs. This is another race to benefit the 2013 NACCC in Seattle, so be there and show your suppoort. Check out the Facebook page for this race and also the 2013 NACCCs.
The Stairmaster 6000 race is quickly approaching this Saturday the 31st. It will be a grueling challenge of man and bike versus stairs. This is another race to benefit the 2013 NACCC in Seattle, so be there and show your suppoort. Check out the Facebook page for this race and also the 2013 NACCCs.
Monday, March 12, 2012
Mason Lake Road Race Series #1 - Race Report
3/4/2012 9:30am
Cat 4 Men, 48 miles, 4 laps of rolling and narrow country roads
Avg Speed 23.7mph
Max Speed 38.9mph
11th* of 68
Just to get this out of the way, the *asterisk above is because the WSBA Racing results say that I got 12th, but after our race was over I took a picture of the results and tweeted a congrats to Thorsten for his 2nd place, as I had 11th. This is a short and boring Cat 4 race, and points only go 9 deep so it truly doesn't matter.
Roll Out
Anyways, to the report. After my pack finish at the Eatonville RR last month, I was eager to recover from being sick and get to crushing dreams again... which translates directly to "upgrade asap." The plan was to sit near the front the entire race and jump into a promising break (real original, right?) Because the wind is stupid crazy out on Mason Lake, you aren't going anywhere outside the pack if you have less than 5 strong dudes with you. I learned the hard way. After sitting in for the first 6 miles I got bored and feisty as usual and wanted to test the waters. The pace was only 20mph at this point so why not?
Dishing It Out
I moved up to about 6th wheel after Cycle U covered the first move of the morning made by someone on Starbucks (they're starting the season off right, btw) , then gassed it with just about everything I had. Of course nobody bridges, they all just freak out, yell at each other and start chasing me. I continue to TT it up the road but the wind is devastating. I really didn't want to burn all my matches on my first move that obviously wasn't going to end in a solo victory 40 miles later. My legs just weren't warm enough. I was caught about 3 minutes later and took a wheel in the front. The pace picks up and stays about 25mph for a few more miles. After a small roller climb I hear everyone wheezing (a bunch of pussies, I swear) so I follow up with another move. I get even further but the wind gets worse and I start to lose morale. To my surprise, 2 minutes later just before I decide to sit up, a UW kid rolls up next to me and yells "Lets go dude, c'mon". He pulls my tired ass very shortly before giving me a flick (not ideal, but whatever) so I pull through and realize I cant possibly keep this up in this kind of wind so I sit up. His teammate bridges and they both ride off into the wind, literally. After I'm caught I find a wheel next to Bryan Urakawa (Fischer Plumber Cycling Team) and joked around about when my next counter attack was. We've raced a lot together, he's a really strong sprinter and I'm a stupidly aggressive racer, so we always have something to chat about. UW was caught almost immediately after me.
The Boring Part
I sat mid pack with my HSP teammate, Jim Peterson, and collectively decided that sitting in until the last lap was our best bet. So we did just that. The unfortunate part about sitting in on a course like this with Cat 4's is the endless amounts of surging and braking. I think everyone behind the first 10 wheels went through most of their brake pads in this race alone. Lame, but luckily no crashes :)
LAST LAP
Jim and I begin moving up on the short back stretch because that's probably the "saftest" area to do such things before we turn onto twisty chip-seal road. We get into the front 3rd before entering said road where the pace ups to 26mph and continues to steadily climb. Luckily there was less stop and go this time around and our team Junior racer, Thorsten (15yrs old) positioned himself like a lead out right infront of me. Since he's a Cat 2 on the track I figured he would know how to position himself for the sprint. I, on the other hand, am a poor sprinter and prefer to take my chances in breakaways. 2k to go! I refuse to let go of Thor's wheel as we dangerously squeeze into what little spots open up infront of us. Everyone is getting giddy and we are now cruising at 28mph with riders taking their chances in the tiny dirt shoulder just to get into position. At 1k a couple guys thought it would be cool to ignore the double yellow line and cut infront of everyone. That didn't go over well as everyone was telling them to get the fuck of the road and out of the race, then again at 400m! WTF?!
*For the uninitiated, at 200m from the finish line on the last lap of a road or circuit race, the entire road is open for everyone to sprint it out. Before 200m YOU WILL BE DISQUALIFIED for riding on the wrong side of the road, no exceptions.
Anyhow, at 400m Sam Park (Hagens Berman Cycling Team) jumped over the yellow line and laid down the hammer. Lead outs immediately popped and next thing I know Thor and I are literally zig zagging from 20 wheels back through gassed out riders. It got really sketchy but I was set up for 4th place behind him! 10m before we get to the line, a gap of tired sprinters closed and Thor was the only one able to squeeze through. This was a disappointment since I had to brake and find a way to the finish that costed me 7 places. But that's bike racing. It could have been worse.
Lesson of the day: If you want to place well in the field sprint, you have to be willing to sacrifice your body at high speeds to attain the right position.
Bike racing truly is a hardman sport, I don't care what other stupid Americans say. Thanks for reading.
Pictures found HERE, complements of ReedKJ Photography.
Cat 4 Men, 48 miles, 4 laps of rolling and narrow country roads
Avg Speed 23.7mph
Max Speed 38.9mph
11th* of 68
Just to get this out of the way, the *asterisk above is because the WSBA Racing results say that I got 12th, but after our race was over I took a picture of the results and tweeted a congrats to Thorsten for his 2nd place, as I had 11th. This is a short and boring Cat 4 race, and points only go 9 deep so it truly doesn't matter.
Roll Out
Anyways, to the report. After my pack finish at the Eatonville RR last month, I was eager to recover from being sick and get to crushing dreams again... which translates directly to "upgrade asap." The plan was to sit near the front the entire race and jump into a promising break (real original, right?) Because the wind is stupid crazy out on Mason Lake, you aren't going anywhere outside the pack if you have less than 5 strong dudes with you. I learned the hard way. After sitting in for the first 6 miles I got bored and feisty as usual and wanted to test the waters. The pace was only 20mph at this point so why not?
Dishing It Out
I moved up to about 6th wheel after Cycle U covered the first move of the morning made by someone on Starbucks (they're starting the season off right, btw) , then gassed it with just about everything I had. Of course nobody bridges, they all just freak out, yell at each other and start chasing me. I continue to TT it up the road but the wind is devastating. I really didn't want to burn all my matches on my first move that obviously wasn't going to end in a solo victory 40 miles later. My legs just weren't warm enough. I was caught about 3 minutes later and took a wheel in the front. The pace picks up and stays about 25mph for a few more miles. After a small roller climb I hear everyone wheezing (a bunch of pussies, I swear) so I follow up with another move. I get even further but the wind gets worse and I start to lose morale. To my surprise, 2 minutes later just before I decide to sit up, a UW kid rolls up next to me and yells "Lets go dude, c'mon". He pulls my tired ass very shortly before giving me a flick (not ideal, but whatever) so I pull through and realize I cant possibly keep this up in this kind of wind so I sit up. His teammate bridges and they both ride off into the wind, literally. After I'm caught I find a wheel next to Bryan Urakawa (Fischer Plumber Cycling Team) and joked around about when my next counter attack was. We've raced a lot together, he's a really strong sprinter and I'm a stupidly aggressive racer, so we always have something to chat about. UW was caught almost immediately after me.
The Boring Part
I sat mid pack with my HSP teammate, Jim Peterson, and collectively decided that sitting in until the last lap was our best bet. So we did just that. The unfortunate part about sitting in on a course like this with Cat 4's is the endless amounts of surging and braking. I think everyone behind the first 10 wheels went through most of their brake pads in this race alone. Lame, but luckily no crashes :)
LAST LAP
Jim and I begin moving up on the short back stretch because that's probably the "saftest" area to do such things before we turn onto twisty chip-seal road. We get into the front 3rd before entering said road where the pace ups to 26mph and continues to steadily climb. Luckily there was less stop and go this time around and our team Junior racer, Thorsten (15yrs old) positioned himself like a lead out right infront of me. Since he's a Cat 2 on the track I figured he would know how to position himself for the sprint. I, on the other hand, am a poor sprinter and prefer to take my chances in breakaways. 2k to go! I refuse to let go of Thor's wheel as we dangerously squeeze into what little spots open up infront of us. Everyone is getting giddy and we are now cruising at 28mph with riders taking their chances in the tiny dirt shoulder just to get into position. At 1k a couple guys thought it would be cool to ignore the double yellow line and cut infront of everyone. That didn't go over well as everyone was telling them to get the fuck of the road and out of the race, then again at 400m! WTF?!
*For the uninitiated, at 200m from the finish line on the last lap of a road or circuit race, the entire road is open for everyone to sprint it out. Before 200m YOU WILL BE DISQUALIFIED for riding on the wrong side of the road, no exceptions.
Anyhow, at 400m Sam Park (Hagens Berman Cycling Team) jumped over the yellow line and laid down the hammer. Lead outs immediately popped and next thing I know Thor and I are literally zig zagging from 20 wheels back through gassed out riders. It got really sketchy but I was set up for 4th place behind him! 10m before we get to the line, a gap of tired sprinters closed and Thor was the only one able to squeeze through. This was a disappointment since I had to brake and find a way to the finish that costed me 7 places. But that's bike racing. It could have been worse.
Lesson of the day: If you want to place well in the field sprint, you have to be willing to sacrifice your body at high speeds to attain the right position.
Bike racing truly is a hardman sport, I don't care what other stupid Americans say. Thanks for reading.
Pictures found HERE, complements of ReedKJ Photography.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
As a means to motivate myself to keep this blog more active and generally entertaining, I have decided to overhaul some things. The new layout is dedicated to the new cycling club and race team that I am riding for in this 2012 season, Herriott Sports Perfomance (hspseattle.com) The facility and group are going to be great for me and excited doesn't even begin to describe my feelings for this opportunity. So there's that. Also, I was recently promoted to Sous Chef over at Ocho so food is becoming exciting all over again as I start the first major part of this parallel career. I say "parallel" because my dream is to one day combine my love for cycling and making delicious (vegan mostly) food into something that will make me enough money to support me and my soon-to-be wife in our life adventures.
With that being said, here's the part that applies to you, my faithful readers: I will be posting recipes on a weekly basis to keep things interesting, your mouth watering and your stomach happy.
I just got home from the Eatonville (Keller Rohrback) Road Race and should have a full report soon. Interesting little town, but I'll get to that within the next couple days. Personally I like to wait until the pictures surface to give the report some spice.
Enjoy your Sunday. If youre in Seattle, go outside, away from your computer. It's gorgeous out.... and it's beer 'o clock.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Support Your Local Scene (whatever that may be)
It's been a while since I've been to a show, or even took any time to check out some new bands. Sometimes I get caught up in bike racing and forget the rest of the world is doing cool things too. Luckily, for my social life, the season is winding down and it's time to be a homie and support my friends in what their doing, just as I have asked that of them. For example, my boys Kusha Karimi , Joseph Wolfe, and Joe have started a new "death metal/ grind" project (it's about time, they're talented in this field) called THEORIES check out some face-melting tracks HERE. They will be playing a show at 8pm tonight at El Corazon in Seattle. Very fun and promising line up if you ask me: Landmine Marathon, Owen Hart, Numb and Theories.
I'll be making an appearance at Cross Club (Genasee Park) for some heckling and beer then up over the ridge to get my metal on.
I'll be making an appearance at Cross Club (Genasee Park) for some heckling and beer then up over the ridge to get my metal on.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
'Cross Club, So Good
Last night was my first 'Cross Club race, and I must say, it's well worth the $2, bruised knee, sore legs, and filthy bike. I recently discovered this "not-so-underground" pirate cyclocross racing event through the likes of Robert Higdon (whom I believe to be the fearless leader of Team Soft like Kitten). My first encounter with 'Cross Club was just a few weeks ago, when I learned (via twitter; @cross_club) that their ever-changing location was just down the way from my house. I finished my training ride after work, went home to grab my bag (for beer, of course), got a 12-pk of Rainier, and meandered my way to the meeting spot in the park.
Now, let the record show 1) I don't own a cyclocross bike, yet. 2) I hardly know anyone that might be there, so I brought my own beer... I mean, this is 'cross right? 3) I've only done 2 cross rides before, 1 race and 1 practice ride. With that being said, upon my arrival I was greeted with kindness and beer from the 13 people that were there to race. I merely came to spectate, heckle and meet some new friends. I received plenty of guff for not racing, although they were understanding of my situation. However, I was told that I need to get a bike and race next time because standing around couldn't possibly be as fun. Truth.
Last night I decided that my current "race" bike could undergo a small transformation to make the cut for a 'cross ride, given that it was dry out. With the waterbottle cages removed, the quick installation of some spd mountain bike pedals I had lying around and a pair of Vittoria Randonneur tires... she was ready. Well, as ready as a road bike can be for terrain its not made for.
Next step, go to the park and practice mount/dismounting before Cross Club to avoid looking like a rookie. As everyone should know, it's okay to be a rookie at something, but for all that is sacred, please don't be so obvious about it. I felt pretty confident in my technique, so now all I had to do was show up and not crash. After riding the course with Matt, one of the Hodala Raleigh dudes, I noticed the collection of racers had more than doubled from what I noticed last time. I think everyone was a little shocked. Being that there were 30 of us, the field was split into new people and the experienced. I raced with the newbies and managed to hold top 10 after the longest 4 laps of my life. I'm sure my ego had a little to do with that, since I couldn't show up as a known roadie and not place decently. My fitness is respectable, but it was no match for the kind of fitness required to kick ass in a 'cross ride. I only "almost" went down once at the finish line with 1 lap to go IN FRONT OF EVERYONE, but because I didn't eat dirt, I was applauded and kept going. I can't wait to get a real bike rolling for this season, riding in the grass and dirt will make me a lot better at racing road, and I'm already making more friends. All good things here. If you live in Seattle and are interested, sign up at crossclubseattle.com for Tuesday night pain, beer, and really good company. No attitudes here :)
These were snapped before the mob showed up.
Now, let the record show 1) I don't own a cyclocross bike, yet. 2) I hardly know anyone that might be there, so I brought my own beer... I mean, this is 'cross right? 3) I've only done 2 cross rides before, 1 race and 1 practice ride. With that being said, upon my arrival I was greeted with kindness and beer from the 13 people that were there to race. I merely came to spectate, heckle and meet some new friends. I received plenty of guff for not racing, although they were understanding of my situation. However, I was told that I need to get a bike and race next time because standing around couldn't possibly be as fun. Truth.
Last night I decided that my current "race" bike could undergo a small transformation to make the cut for a 'cross ride, given that it was dry out. With the waterbottle cages removed, the quick installation of some spd mountain bike pedals I had lying around and a pair of Vittoria Randonneur tires... she was ready. Well, as ready as a road bike can be for terrain its not made for.
Next step, go to the park and practice mount/dismounting before Cross Club to avoid looking like a rookie. As everyone should know, it's okay to be a rookie at something, but for all that is sacred, please don't be so obvious about it. I felt pretty confident in my technique, so now all I had to do was show up and not crash. After riding the course with Matt, one of the Hodala Raleigh dudes, I noticed the collection of racers had more than doubled from what I noticed last time. I think everyone was a little shocked. Being that there were 30 of us, the field was split into new people and the experienced. I raced with the newbies and managed to hold top 10 after the longest 4 laps of my life. I'm sure my ego had a little to do with that, since I couldn't show up as a known roadie and not place decently. My fitness is respectable, but it was no match for the kind of fitness required to kick ass in a 'cross ride. I only "almost" went down once at the finish line with 1 lap to go IN FRONT OF EVERYONE, but because I didn't eat dirt, I was applauded and kept going. I can't wait to get a real bike rolling for this season, riding in the grass and dirt will make me a lot better at racing road, and I'm already making more friends. All good things here. If you live in Seattle and are interested, sign up at crossclubseattle.com for Tuesday night pain, beer, and really good company. No attitudes here :)
These were snapped before the mob showed up.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Food Done Right
Yesterday I took my friend (& teammate), Mike Roecklein to one of Seattle's few organic cafes, Chaco Canyon, for lunch. He's only able to come visit from California once or twice a year so I try to make sure he gets to experience some of the best vegan food this city has to offer. It was difficult to finalize an order with so many delicious looking menu items, but in the end we stuck with an Artichoke Melt (w/ House Salad) and a Lentil Burger (w/ quinoa taboulleh). We devoured our own sides and split the burger and sandwich so we could get a well rounded experience. Before I go any further about the meal, I have something to get off my chest...
-Almost everywhere I've gone to eat that offers a vegan plate, fails to put ANY salt in said meal. WTF?! We like flavor just as much as the next person, theres nothing cruel about salt consumption!
As you may have guessed, yes, our meal was a little under-seasoned. But on the flip side, it was still really fucking good. They've got Himalayan salt and black pepper on the table, so no harm done. The lentil burger was especially impressive. It wasn't dry, nor did it flake apart after each bite. In fact, it had the texture everyone desires in a burger patty: moist, firm and flavorful throughout. And for being so well executed, it was surprisingly "light," as Mike put it.
If you're in the University District of Seattle looking for some good eats, Chaco Canyon gets my vote. But don't take my word for it... take a look at their menu.
-Almost everywhere I've gone to eat that offers a vegan plate, fails to put ANY salt in said meal. WTF?! We like flavor just as much as the next person, theres nothing cruel about salt consumption!
As you may have guessed, yes, our meal was a little under-seasoned. But on the flip side, it was still really fucking good. They've got Himalayan salt and black pepper on the table, so no harm done. The lentil burger was especially impressive. It wasn't dry, nor did it flake apart after each bite. In fact, it had the texture everyone desires in a burger patty: moist, firm and flavorful throughout. And for being so well executed, it was surprisingly "light," as Mike put it.
If you're in the University District of Seattle looking for some good eats, Chaco Canyon gets my vote. But don't take my word for it... take a look at their menu.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Spectating, Made Fun
The Ballard Twilight Crit is upon us and you know what that means? People on bikes racing through Old Ballard at 25+MPH while enthused locals cheer them on from one of many awesome bars along the course. Some of which actually stream the race live on their TVs. If booze isn't your thing, you can always get super jacked on caffeine at some the local cafes.
Either way, this event holds a special place in my heart because of the post-race comradery that develops between me and my opponents. Nothing like hauling ass for 40 minutes through a historic part of town on shitty brick against 75 other dudes who all want it was badly as you, then kicking back some cold ones and nerding out together. It's magical, and if youre reading this I highly recommend that you join me in the race and/or post-race. I mean, it's a Saturday afternoon, lets have a good time!
Either way, this event holds a special place in my heart because of the post-race comradery that develops between me and my opponents. Nothing like hauling ass for 40 minutes through a historic part of town on shitty brick against 75 other dudes who all want it was badly as you, then kicking back some cold ones and nerding out together. It's magical, and if youre reading this I highly recommend that you join me in the race and/or post-race. I mean, it's a Saturday afternoon, lets have a good time!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)