Two Hits on the Bong

It was an early get-up this morning for the Single Bong 20K TT in Wisco and the weather was looking iffy. We'd had rain all night and the forecast was for more of the same. After training in the rain so much it really doesn't bother me to race in it anymore so I was ready for anything. We sort of lucked out, I think. The pavement was wet, there was no precip but there definitely was wind. There appeared to be a fair number of no-shows and given the weather, I was not surprised.

I like the Bong course - a mostly flat to rolling 20K circuit with three right turns. I'd registered to do two rides and while I briefly pondered only doing one, I took a big bite of HTFU after my first ride and lined up for number two. It seemed that the wind was a little stronger the second time but the pavement was drying out so my feet were just cold, not cold and wet. Turned out that I had the first and second fastest times on the day for women and improved upon my previous personal best time by about 30sec. I'll take it. It was a good day for me and while I wasn't feeling so super, I am definitely pleased. It was my first race with the SRM and I love it!

PACT/DishNetwork was well represented and scored some excellent results today - nice job, guys. Bob, Ziggy, Krystian, Dan, Richard and Mike - you boys are the best! I also have to send a shout out to Peter who had a fine performance today - well done.

Some exciting news - I am building a new 'B' (bitch) bike! I scored a sweet aluminum/carbon Blue frameset and while I briefly thought about stripping the Cannondale to build it, I changed my mind. The new ride will be almost entirely new and will become my primary training bike. I really love my RC-7 but it is getting tired (30,000+ miles on it) so it'll be used mainly for racing and only in good weather. I'll post pictures after Alex finishes building it at Roscoe Village Bikes.

Up next, probably a crit next weekend. Best of luck to Wakes who's playing in the dirt next weekend. Beyond that - Blackhawks, Sox and Cubs, oh my!!! Keep winning, boys!

And!! Congrats (?) to my 5 year old niece Elise who lost her first tooth the other day!!

Cherry Valley 30K TT

PACT Power Tools l to r: (interloper) Bob Beck, Ziggy, Mark, Richard, Dan, Bob and Mike

I saw no reason to do the Leland Kermesse yesterday. Riding/racing on a course that includes 6mi of gravel roads in a small, unanimated women's field isn't a fun way for me to spend a weekend day. Don't worry Illinois women, I will be coming out to play soon enough. I have some time trials to do first.

Not sure whether I like or dislike the roughly 30K course at Cherry Valley. It's curvy, rolls a bit and is always windy. I like the first part for sure but the second part is decidedly unscenic as it passes through a wide open, windblown stretch of fields until the corn is up. A set of railroad tracks is a nice bonus feature provided that you don't pinch flat - it's not a very smooth crossing. Seemed to me that we had a cross-tailwind out and cross-headwind back today, so really not a whole lot of relief to be found.

I was feeling decent today during warm up and ended up riding my fastest time ever on the course by nearly a half minute, though it wasn't as fast as I would have liked. I paced my effort just about perfectly with the stretch back being about 20sec faster than the way out. It turned out to be the fastest women's time on the day - hard not to be pleased with that! My SRM still hasn't returned from battery service so I was using a less than optimal aero setup though it wasn't terrible. Hopefully it will be back this week and I'll be able to run both tri-spoke wheels at the Single Bong next weekend.

My PACT/DishNetwork teammates nailed down fast times in the 60+, 55+, 50+, 40+, cat 3 and P1/2 categories today. I don't recall everyone's results but Bob won the 60+, Mike ended up winning the 50+, took 3rd in the P1/2 and had the second fastest men's time on the day. Mark, Mariusz, Jim, Dan and Richard were also at or near the top of their categories. Way to go guys, you rock!! I also have to send out congrats to Peter who did his first TT today completely 'naked' - no aero equipment. In fact, he did TWO!! Nice job Peter!

Beyond that, I'm finishing 'The Bullpen Gospels,' managed to read 'Anthem' by Ayn Rand last week and up next is the classic 'Wuthering Heights' by Emily Bronte. I read it in high school but my level of comprehension back then was admittedly lacking. After that I'm thinking it's time for some Chuck Palahniuk (he has a new book out!) or maybe 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley.

As always, thanks for reading.

Tunes

Robert.

I felt like doing some old-school classic rock for today's playlist and this is what I came up with. After warm up we'll be doing this loop twice: 2X2min Vo2 (hill efforts) on 2min rest then a 5min LT with 3min rest between loops.

Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones
Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple
Paranoid - Black Sabbath
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap - AC/DC
LaGrange - ZZ Top
White Room - Cream
You Really Got Me - Van Halen
I Can See for Miles - The Who
Heartbreaker - Led Zeppelin
Fire Woman - The Cult
Angel - Jimi Hendrix

I really wanted to include 'Whipping Post' by The Allman Brothers but I don't have a quality digital copy that does that song any justice. It's one of the most ass-kicking classic rock tunes ever, in my estimation anyway.

Game On!!

The outdoor TT season has officially begun with today's John Frasier Memorial TT. My goals for today were pretty manageable - finish top 3, have two good rides and most importantly, have fun. Weather in Maple Park was decent this morning - temps warmed up nicely and the sun came out while the wind blew like a mother. Headwind out, tailwind back made for a tedious grind on the way out but allowed for some big speed on the return trip.

I was feeling good during warm up and ended up having a strong first ride. Good enough to take the Women Open category and the fastest women's time on the day. My second ride was just cake - another interval, really. That time was third fastest so I guess I had a pretty good day. In fact, it was a great day for all of PACT/Dish Network - lots of solid placings in all categories - well done, boys! That would be: Mike, Jim, Andy, Ziggy, Mariusz, Krystian, Richard, Dan, Mark, Bob and Marian. Extra special congratulations go out to Mike who clinched the 50+ overall indoor series title and took 2nd in the P1/2. Mark, Krystian, Dan, and Richard also placed well in their respective categories overall. You guys are the best!

It felt great to get out and rip the legs and sear the lungs a bit but I think the best part was catching up with friends I've not seen for a few months, especially Wakes and Preston. I need to send a shout out to Bill (cupcake) who did his first ever TT - and loved it! Great job!

Up next is a 30K TT in Cherry Valley. Undecided as to whether I will do one or two that day - though I'm leaning toward just one. After that is the legendary Single Bong. I plan to do a 'double' Single Bong that weekend. Hopefully my SRM will be back from battery service by then and I'll be able to use a full aero setup.

Other than that, I'm reading 'Anthem' by Ayn Rand and 'The Bullpen Gospels' by Dirk Hayhurst. All good so far!

More Random Ponderances (is that a word?)

Every once in a while I just have to post a list of random thoughts, observations and other things I ponder in hopes that someone will respond to any of those that resemble a question with an intelligent answer. Are you ready? Here goes!!

* Why is it that the category 3 men seem to be crashing all the time of late? I get wind of all the race wreck craziness and feel fortunate that I opt to race instead with the masters boys.

* Have you seen the dude dressed as the Statue of Liberty promoting a nearby tax service on Ashland? I'm talking about the guy with a full beard who's wearing a turban at the same time. Indeed.

* I missed the boat when reality TV was born. Seriously, why does anyone watch that crap?

*Call me picky (or maybe a masters degreed elitist) but seeing repeated misuse of the apostrophe and improper grammar to indicate plurality drives me apeshit.

* It fascinates me how otherwise intelligent, good-hearted friends of mine can become so terribly ugly as soon as they open their mouth and talk politics. FYI, the sky didn't fall and the seas didn't boil when the healthcare bill was passed. If you really lived up to your so-called values about loving thy brother, you'd shut your trap and see the importance of it all. What every happened to all that good will your 'god' expects you to exhibit toward your fellow man? All I see is bitterness, selfishness and especially, ignorance - deliberate ignorance in many cases.

* From my friend Anne: If 4 out of 5 people suffer from diarrhea, does that mean one enjoys it? If you have an answer, let me know and I'll pass it along.

*When you're on your bike and your ass hurts, nothing else matters.

* Attention runners and triathletes: Armwarmers are meant to be worn with a short sleeved jersey, not a sleeveless tank top or singlet. You've taken our accessory and bastardized it. Even renamed it the 'running sleeve.' Please, cease and desist. You look like an idiot.

* And furthermore, stop stop STOP wearing the knee high black compression socks. Again, you look like an idiot.

* While I'm still on the accessory subject: legwarmers....any color other than black or maybe blue is just wrong. Saw some big dude sportin' white the other night - not pretty. I won't mention patterned legwarmers (like jungle or flower motif - yikes!).

* Riding in 30mph crosswinds sucks. Period. Anyone care to argue that point?

* There are things in this world I will never understand. There are people in this world whose motivations, thoughts and actions will always escape me. While this may frustrate me from time to time it's clear that I will just never 'get' certain things/people. Carry on.

* Road construction 'furniture' doesn't ever make it's way to any so-called place for storage. It's merely moved from site to site as projects are finished and new ones are begun.

* What ever happened to the movement dedicated to removing the penny from circulation? Just wondering. I thought it was a dumb idea anyway.

* Easter = candy for breakfast. For days.

* Life is indeed too short to be unhappy but every once it a while it's almost therapeutic to be sad for a little bit. It gives you perspective you might otherwise not have if you're always happy. Just sayin.'

I suppose that's enough for now. In other errata, I'm still reading 'The Fountainhead,' it's a long book but really very good. Up next is something called 'The Bullpen Gospels' by Dirk Hayhurst (of Toronto Blue Jays fame). While it's been called one of the best baseball books ever, apparently it's also just a really good book so I'm sort of excited to start it.

Up next racing-wise is a short time trial next weekend. No, I will not be at Hillsboro the following week - got that ladies? One less wheel to watch for/suck.

Til next time....

Kenosha Velosport Training Crit #3

Why did I forego racing the two USAC crits this weekend? The first 'big' races of the ICA Cup? Lots of reasons but mainly because I have no desire to race a bike on a course designed for auto racing. That would mean it's just like a big track race, untechnical and probably pretty boring. Couple that with small, unanimated women's fields, tasty headwinds and the high probability of negative racing, I opted instead to do the third and final Kenosha Velosport Crit with the masters men. Good choice.

Weather was typical for late March in Wisco - chilly, windy, mostly cloudy with the sun trying really hard to poke through. I was again held out of the 50+ masters race (until such time that the rule is changed) while Mike, Ziggy, Victor and Richard raced. Mike was off the front early and ended up lapping the field and winning by a ton. Not sure of final places for the other guys - I believe Richard took the 55+ sprint - nicely done, boys!

I was feeling good in warm up and we had a large contingent representing for PACT/DishNetwork in the 40+ masters race - me, Dan, Mark, Mike, Victor, Richard and I think maybe Ziggy did the 40+ as well. I'm not certain how many starters there were on the line - maybe 20? Fabio and Brent Emery were on the line as well - very strong guys that need to be watched. Things rolled off nicely enough but nothing was very animated so I threw out a couple of weak little attacks to see if anyone would bite. After about the third or fourth hit, we had a break of maybe 8 guys with me, Dan, Mike, Richard, Mark and a couple others including Fabio and Brent. I again hit it (though not really hard) and found myself with Dan, dangling precariously off the front.

We worked together for a bit and were joined by Fabio and apparently another rider from the original break - and it seemed to be sticking so we continued to rotate and keep a safe distance. I'm sure that Mike, Mark and Richard were helping us back there, controlling stuff. At some point we lost our hanger-on and were about to lap the field. There was a decision to be made - do we stay behind or attempt to pass? My feeling was that I didn't want to be caught from behind so with 3 to go, we opted to go around the field. I really wasn't in a position to sprint against the likes of Fabio and Dan - I pretty much let them go to fight it out between themselves and rolled in a bit behind, taking 3rd. Mark ended up 4th and Mike 5th - a really strong showing for the Dish today!

It was great to race with the guys today and hang out a little while post-race, eating brownies and drinking some kind of cherry-flavored alcoholic concoction that Victor surely ferments/distills in his bathtub. For the record, not a good idea for me to be drinking any kind of alcohol after a race.

I started reading 'The Fountainhead' by Ayn Rand and am loving it - again, amazing stuff. The best way I can describe it is that it's as if every sentence is 'crafted' and the entire book is intricately 'connected.' Maybe you have to read it to understand.

Not sure what's up next - I have to take a look at the schedule. Maybe a time trial? Dunno - we'll see! Right now I'm feeling pretty good and the plan is to continue to train hard, rest and get stronger as we get into the race season proper. If any pictures surface from today, I'll be sure to post them.

Slapped by the Big Hand of Johnny Law

Wonderful afternoon killed at the Cook County Courthouse yesterday. The short story is we were found 'guilty' of 'willfully disobeying a crossing guard' on our bikes a few weeks ago. Nevermind that the Glencoe cop (name: Peterson) lied MULTIPLE TIMES while under oath about the happenings that day, and nevermind that we truly did not 'willfully disobey' her. The judge was immune to the lying and felt that we should have actually gone back and apologized to the crossing guard/cop when we realized that we'd honestly missed her presence. Seriously. The big black hand of Johnny Law bitchslapped us with a $195 fine and four months of supervision for our transgression.

The big beef for me here is the whole dishonesty thing - lie to me, lie about me - enormous no-no. That might be the quickest way to win yourself my disrespect. That, and making me look bad. Another huge no-no. Last but not least, don't mess with my money. Officer Peterson did all three things and for that she's achieved my eternal damnation. Hopefully Karma will come back soon to bite her in her sizable ass.

This blog post is as far as it will go, as spending any more time and energy on these pathetic happenings serves only to piss me off and deepen my mistrust and distaste for all things 'cop.' Sure, there are good, honest, hardworking police officers out there - it is a difficult job that I could never do. But seeing people in court yesterday who were inconvenienced and made to appear over things like a non-working tail light is insane. Is this truly what North Shore police officers are looking for? Cracking cyclists skulls? Pulling over teenagers with too many passengers? Writing citations for faulty headlights? Come on... As N.W.A. said it best, "F*** tha Police!'

Kenosha Velosport Training Crit #2

After a day of snow, rain and freezing coldness that saw me stay indoors pretty much all of Saturday, we rolled once again to Wisconsin for some early spring crit fun. It was snow/sleet/raining in Chicago but as we traveled north things dried out and racing was 'on,' nevermind the snow on the course. I was pretty tired after a hard week of training and a minor bug of sorts that made for some not-so-super moments during the week. That said, I wasn't feeling terrible and was decidedly optimistic about my chances for doing well. Again there was a killer headwind on the back stretch that made for quite a grind at times, just like last week.

Unfortunately I was told that a rule governing women participating in masters men's races is now going to be enforced so I was locked out of doing the 50+ race. Bummer too, Pink and Mike got away and took 1-2 at the end. Impressive performance, guys! I sat around and froze my ass for a while then jumped in with the 40+ guys. The first 30min or so was frustrating - every time someone attacked, three guys from a certain team would chase it down then sit on it, no counter, nothing. It was like racing with the women's field - ride around and wait for the sprint - negative and no fun. Finally with probably about 15-20min to go, Wayne attacked up the left on the tailwind section and got a sizable gap going into the first turn.

I was stuck on the right behind a bunch of guys who rode the brakes through the turn letting gaps open up, effectively preventing me from doing anything to bridge. That was the race, right there. I watched as five other guys jumped up the left side and made it across, while I sat there boxed in and helplessly screwed. Fortunately three of the guys in the break were Dan, Mark and Mike - all smart, strong and very competent racers. In the end Mark took the win with Dan and Mike 3rd and 4th. I ended up 7th with Richard taking 10th. Again, a strong showing for the Dish - well done, boys! I was sort of bummed - I really want to be doing 2 races at this point in the season so hopefully something with the rule can change in the near future.

Next up I suppose is the final Kenosha crit. I know there are two other options next weekend but I'm not really into the idea of doing crits on auto racing courses - boooooring and un-technical = no good for me. After that, maybe some time trials. I'm stoked about the SRM I acquired during the offseason (thanks Guz!!) that's now on my TT bike which will help with motivation, to some degree.

I just finished 'Death of a Salesman' but I haven't decided what's next. I've not visited a bookstore (in the traditional sense) for a few months. There's something to be said for browsing on the nook, selecting and dowloading a book in 20 seconds while lying in bed. Makes me giggle every time - so very cool.

Beyond that, it seems like spring is sort of here. Stepping out the door last week in short sleeves and shorts I saw the neighbors playing catch. My thought, 'I would love to do that!' For those of you who aren't aware, I was a pretty decent ballplayer before discovering the bike. So, any time someone wants to swing by and play some catch, let me know! Softball, baseball, football - whatever, so long as you don't throw like a girl :)

Kenosha Velosport Training Crit #1

Mike with Don Lowe in tow.

Just so it's clear, I do not pay to do indoor time trials on someone else's computrainer. I know the Midwest 'season' has already somewhat officially kicked off with the ABD and VQ indoor TT's but no, I will not be making a cameo appearance any time soon. The closest I'll get to that is showing up to meet my date(s) for lunch after they race and I've already ridden outdoors for at least 80mi.

Now, on to what matters. I headed North of the cheddar curtain for the first Kenosha Velosport training criterium on Sunday. Weather was pretty sucky (40ish with a 20mph headwind on the back stretch) but it sure beats the rain we rode in on Saturday. I raced with the 50+ and 40+ masters men's fields. They don't really like it when I beat them. But the women don't really like it when I race with them either, so to clear the air on the subject, I race where I will be challenged and where I have a teammate that I spend a lot of time training with. That helps a ton - we know each other's abilities well and can key off each other very nicely to take control of a race and make things happen.

In the 50+ race I covered an early attack by Jeff the Planet Bike guy and we managed to open a sizable gap. We stayed away for a long time but were eventually caught by a group of 4 that included another Planet Bike guy (Bob, owner of Planet Bike) and my teammate Mike along with Don from Mack and a hanger-on. A lap or two later I took a pull on the windy backstretch and moved over right for someone to take over - no one did and Mike attacked up the left. It was perfectly timed and only Bob was able to grab his wheel. I yelled for him to go while most of us (except for one lazy, self-proclaimed 'sprinter') settled in and worked together for a few laps before the bell was rung to indicate one to go. I attacked hard coming out of the headwind section, got a sizable gap and carried it to the line. Mike and Bob had just finished ahead of me after a bit of cat-and-mouse with Bob taking the sprint.

I wasn't loving the feel for the 40+ race but we rolled out soon after the 50+ race finished. Things broke up pretty quickly when Mike attacked and took 4 guys with him. In retrospect, I should have gone with that move but it was too late to do anything when I realized it wasn't coming back. It turned out that that group broke up further with 2 guys distancing themselves later on. When it was clear that they were away the pack slowed down to like 12mph on the backstretch. It was ridiculous. So I decided to just roll off the front and was surprised to see that I had a gap. Within a lap I was joined by my teammate Dan and Brent Emery. Yes, that Brent Emery - former US Olympian Brent Emery!! We worked together for a while and then my legs started to get pretty sucky. The guys were so nice - they let me basically sit on for the remainder of the race. Dan caught a fast wheel coming by from the break (the eventual winner) so Brent and I just rode hard to turn 3 when he accelerated away and I ended up finishing 8th. Mike took 5th, Dan was 6th. Not a bad day for PACT!

The racing was fun and I had a great time hanging out with the boys afterward. I was introduced to Culver's and ate the nastiest hamburger and fries - I was starving and almost didn't even taste it. Can't wait to do it all again next weekend (maybe....).

A shout has to go out to Scott Knoepke of PSIMET Racing. Scott got wrecked in the 3s race and is pretty sore - hang in there Scott!

Since finishing 'Atlas Shrugged' I've read 'The Turn of the Screw' by Henry James, 'Shutter Island' by Dennis Lehane and am almost done with 'Flawless' by Scott Andrew Selby and Greg Campbell. Fascinating true crime stuff.

Andy Kerr!! Are you out there????

Le Suck

For lots of reasons, I really do not like law enforcement. Imagine my contempt at being dragged down from behind on the North Shore yesterday for - wait for it - disobeying a crossing guard. WTF? The verrrrrry short story is that supposedly I and my riding companion willfully disobeyed a crossing guard and were subsequently made to wait an hour (yes, an hour - my power file proves it) in the freezing coldness while Glencoe five-oh wrote out violations. An hour. A freaking hour. We were never asked what happened nor were we offered a warm place to wait, like the back seat of the SUV that sat there idling for the duration.

The real kicker with me is that I was never asked what happened - did you see the crossing guard? No, there was a car in front of us obstructing my view not to mention that I was sitting behind 6'3" of fine humanity that was in the way as well. There were no signs in the street indicating that it was a school zone. The crossing guard was not wearing or holding any sort of bright green, yellow or orange indicator of any sort. There was no traffic control at the intersection - no stop sign, no traffic light, nothing. We were passing a car that was sitting in the right lane, going nowhere. Only after going around the car did I even see the crossing guard as she was stepping off the curb - there were no kids in the street, she used no audio or visual indication that I was to stop til she screamed, 'what's the matter with you?' How about, 'I didn't see you at 30mph and couldn't stop in ten feet or less.' Yes, there was a killer tailwind, we were doing an interval and again, there's a power file to prove it.

My big beef is that I was never treated fairly and never given the opportunity to explain that I was powerless to stop - it was an honest mistake. Had I seen her, I would have stopped - no doubt. I know that cyclists get a bad rap for behaving badly on the North Shore but in this instance we weren't willfully being disobedient. We got lumped in with the prevailing shit attitude on the North Shore about people on bikes. They wasted an hour of my time and will now waste even more of my time when I go to court where I will hopefully be given a chance to defend myself and be listened to - fairly.

So to blow off a little steam here's a happy happy playlist:

Everything in It's Right Place - Radiohead
The Day I Tried to Live - Soundgarden
Passive - A Perfect Circle
Burn - Nine Inch Nails
Cryin' Like a Bitch! - Godsmack
Don't You - Candlebox
Drift & Die - Puddle of Mudd
Rise or Fall - BRMC
Famous - Puddle of Mudd
Firestarter - The Prodigy
Landslide - Smashing Pumpkins

I finished all 4001 e-pages of 'Atlas Shrugged' this morning. Might be my most favorite book of all time. 'Shutter Island' by Dennis Lehane starts tonight - have to read it before seeing the movie.

Not. Gonna. Happen.

More and more every day I find myself lusting for a new bike. I've been on the same (very nice) SRAM equipped Blue RC-7 for 3 years and well, it's tired and I'm ready for something new. It's totally great having a wheel sponsor but I'd really really really - really - like a new frameset and gruppo. Of course I've spent some time drooling over all the fine looking bling in the various online and print publications and after careful consideration I think I want another Blue. Their bikes fit me well, handle nicely, are decent looking and afford an owner good value - if you actually have any money to make a purchase, which I do not because well, this economy sucks. Then again, I'd ride most anything right now if the price were right!

A consequence of no longer being part of a formal supported team situation is that 'at cost' and below retail pricing (or free - I remember those days too) is just not an option for me. So much of my race budget is earmarked for travel and race entry expense that I simply can't justify paying full price for a new bike. Not to mention that it seems the price of new bikes has EXPLODED of late. The level of equipment I demand seems to begin in the $5000 range for a complete bike. Not to mention that framesets start around $3000. That is insane!!! I don't need a complete bike - just a frameset and gruppo. I can come up with the rest, somehow.

So I'm open to fundraising suggestions. Calendars? Candy bars? Establish my own charity (of which I am the sole benefactor)? Beg and shake an empty cup on the Jackson Blvd. bridge every morning? Suck it up and save my loose change for ten years? Shovel snow? Mow lawns? Dog walking? Car wash? Or better yet, bike wash? I already work enough so that's not going to change.

As much as I like being a solo act, it does have it's bad points. I've manged to secure some individual sponsorship for a few things but a new bike still evades me. Missing out on some of the perks I had back in the day is sort of a bummer and my middle child tendencies hold me back when it comes to asking for anything. Sigh.

What I've been reading on my nook (Coolest. Toy. Evar.): 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' which was surprisingly great! I'm about 1/3 through 'Atlas Shrugged' by Ayn Rand and loving it. Up next is 'Shutter Island' by Dennis Lehane - it seemed like a wise choice to read something mindless after I finish the very heavy and long 'Atlas.'

Other than that, still grinding it out every day in the freezing coldness. My goal was to keep the total number of indoor training days to 10 or less and I'm happy to report that it stands at 3 right now. Daylight savings starts in less than 4 weeks so I'm pretty sure I'll make it. Aside from that 8 inches of snow we got hammered with last week (which has since melted a lot) we've had a decent winter here, as far as Chicago winter goes. Still getting 18-22hr of saddle time in every week, sometimes more. I'm pleased with that!

Happy Happy Joy Joy

Photo from Rob at PSIMET - my custom training wheelset is ready!!

No real rhyme or reason to this post so I decided it'd be one of my famous bullet point random observation lists with today's spin playlist at the end. One cool piece of info, my custom PSIMET training wheelset is built and ready to go so that has me psyched. My race wheels are being built and I can't wait to get them.

* This Groundhog Day thing is crap unless you make a movie of it, which somehow legitimizes it.
* Chicago drivers suck and they especially suck when there's precip of any sort.
* We've had a mild winter so far. I really hope it stays this way. Maybe I should shut up.
* I can handle cold temps with small precip totals - keeps me outside and staves off trainer hate.
* I still haven't renewed my USAC license. Not sure what that means yet.
* I may need to run another marathon before I turn 40 in a couple years. There. I said it.
* I have an incredibly diverse, supportive network of friends and family. I am thankful for that.
* The NFL Pro Bowl is ridiculous in every way.
* I've been a Blackhawks fan for +15 years and it's awesome to have them playing so well.
* People who anonymously criticize on the web are lame. Own up to your opinions if you feel moved enough to say something. Just sayin'.
* I miss eating stuff like ice cream, pizza, pastries, burgers and fries, etc during the off-season. But I don't miss the hugeness of my ass that is a consequence of eating said items during the off-season.
* Animals and little kids should never have to experience pain, illness or hunger. Even the little bastard ones.
* It's no one's job to make me happy - I alone am responsible for my happiness in this world.
* You should use the little plastic cap thingys on your valve stems in the winter. That way the presta valve top won't break off in your hand from salt corrosion when you go to inflate. Indeed.
* As much as I would like it to be, a new bike is not on my radar any time soon.
* Corn syrup be damned I still love fierce melon Gatorade.
* Sometimes it's good to catch up with old friends you've not seen for 20 years.

We rode to this at mid-day:
Rocket - Smashing Pumpkins
Doesn't Remind Me - Audioslave
Up Tight - The Hives
Hello Conscience - The Zutons
Authority Song - John Mellencamp
A Tisket a Tasket - Stevie Ray Vaughan
I Predict a Riot - Kaiser Chiefs
Read My Mind - The Killers
Danny's Song - Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Longview - Green Day
The State of Massachusetts - Dropkick Murphys
Warning Sign - Coldplay

There you have it.

True Winter Has Finally Arrived, Exited and Returned

I am indeed still riding outside every day, though it's not really very fun mainly because I have to clean my bike after every foray. At this point I've combined outdoor mileage/intervals with some solid indoor work on the rollers at work during class. It's about the only way I can stave off indoor training hate. So far just 2 days of indoor stuff and I hope to keep that under 10 total for winter. I typically end up with 18-22hrs per week right now. I think that's pretty good for January in Chicago. My hope is that I can carry as much fitness into spring as possible and keep the intensity at a level where the hole doesn't get too deep. The older I get the tougher it becomes to lose fitness and rebound, so I'm keeping things rolling and resting as needed.

To all my friends (and frenemies) who did the indoor TT last weekend - nice job!! I'll keep my $ and do my threshold intervals on the rollers....see you on the road for real in a couple of months. Indoor TTs don't motivate or benefit me - the advantage goes to those who can put out big power, period. Some racers get a lot out of doing them but I'm not one of them. Things are different outdoors.

Here's a playlist we're working with this week. Warm up, 12min@tempo, 8min@threshold and 5min@VO2 with short breaks between (we only have 45-50min for class).

Crush With Eyeliner - R.E.M.
I Got Shit - Pearl Jam
I Will Possess Your Heart (radio edit) - Deathcab for Cutie
Hail Hail - Pearl Jam
Devour - Shinedown
1901 - Phoenix
My Wave - Soundgarden
Fake It - Seether
Just Breathe - Pearl Jam
Uprising - Muse
The Great Beyond - R.E.M.

What else.....I've secured individual sponsorship with ZYM for 2010. This is most excellent- the product works well for me and it's a locally owned company run by a very cool guy (thanks Brian!). More stuff floating out there waiting to be nailed down. I'll fill things in as stuff falls into place.

What I just finished reading, 'Heaven Help Us All' by Fred Vargas (a woman). It was shared with me by a client who acquired it while traveling in New Zealand. Just a crime novel, nothing crazy. I'm in a bit of a holding pattern until my nook arrives next month. I'm so excited! Y'all need to get one of those!

Oh - and my state championship jerseys are arriving. New look for 2009/10 - thanks ICA!

2009 - A Season Post-Mort

In the sand pit at the state 'cross championship photo: J. Wrzyca

Wow - where did it all go? Here we find ourselves riding in the same wet, cold weather that we did some of the early April TTs in. As much as it seems like so long ago it's really not that far gone and many of the memories made along the way will stick with me for a long time. Looking over my race resume for 2009 I logged 45 race days, not including time spent at the track. That's a lot of racing - on some of those days I even doubled up and did two events.

Things in 2009 were a departure for me in lots of ways. After spending many years with the same women's team, I moved to PACT/DishNetwork and downsized my travel tremendously. Interestingly, I rode more, was stronger, faster and more fit in 2009 than ever before. Go figure. Maybe it had something to do with being part of a low-pressure, mellow group of racers who only wanted to race drama-free and have fun doing it. That change was exactly what I needed to revive my tired legs and burned out, anxious head. Changing teams was the single, best thing I could have done for my racing in 2009. Huge thanks to my awesome teammates and congratulations to all of them on the fine season they all had. You guys ROCK.

I'm not going to sit here and bask in my 'glorious' results. While I did manage to score a lot of wins, five state titles (Keirin, Points, Pursuit, Road Race and Cyclocross), two medals at Masters Nationals and overall titles in MATTS and ROTY, I worked very hard every day to make those things happen. Not every day was good. In fact, many were not at all good but thanks to a solid training partner who motivates me like no one else can and the determination to be better every day while keeping things fun, I ended up having one of the very best seasons I've ever had. Bottom line - hard work in a good environment brought good results for me.

So looking forward to 2010, I'm not yet certain what my plans are. I definitely want to return to Masters Road Nationals and do a cyclocross season. Not sure about my plans for track racing and I don't know how much local stuff I'll be doing, nor do I know how much travel I will or will not be doing. It's all very 'up in the air' right now. The one thing I know for sure is that whatever I do the most important thing is that it's low-stress and fun. Seems to me that I do best when I'm in that kind of situation :)

There are so many people to thank that I cannot possibly list them all here in this post. I suspect I'll leave many out and that would be uncool. So, let me say that to every person who helped me train and race better, supported me, listened to me, helped me understand myself better and basically was a positive influence on me and my 2009 season, thank you so very much. Your efforts will never be forgotten.

Thanks so much for reading - now and always.

'Cross Season Finale/State Championship @ Montrose Harbor

Reclaiming the State Title
Photo: Mary Wakeley

At long last the finish of the 2009 'cross season (and the season in general) arrives, and none too soon. The state championship was held at Montrose Harbor on Sunday and for the first time in a few years, it wasn't snowing. The last time I did/won this race was in 2006 - I'd chosen to sit it out since, deterred by really really cold, snowy weather and 'cross hate. It wasn't so super warm this year either but temps in the 20s were pretty tolerable, and abundant sunshine made it seem much better.

I'd done a bit of recon in the harbor area the preceding few days though the actual course itself wasn't unveiled til race day. I was on the fence about doing any pre-riding but I opted to head over early and was glad that I did - got in maybe 8-10 easy laps before the first race started and I think it made a huge difference by the time we lined up. I liked the course design, for the most part. I don't mind riding sand - I'm typically pretty good at getting through it, but there was a LOT of it at Montrose. Note to organizer - just because there's a lot of sand in the area doesn't mean you have to use it ALL... The course itself was pretty straightforward and included most every element a decent 'cross race should have - off-camber stuff, short punchy stuff, some technical bits, a little pavement, some gravel, a couple sets of barriers and a nice hill. Thankfully there was no mud and not a run-up to be found. Mercifully there was no goat-rodeo swirly thing.

The field ended up to be around 15 I think, with good representation. I was particularly concerned with Holly's presence - she's always strong and I'd not raced with her all season. I had no idea what to expect but I knew she was the one to watch. To say that I was having some pre-race anxiety was an understatement, following a night of insomnia.

Exiting the sand pit

photo: J. Wrycza

Things rolled off in a hurry and I was not ready. Holly snagged the hole shot and I spent the first 100 yards getting to second position - NOT clipped in. In fact, I didn't clip in until after the first set of barriers. I had some sticky mud in my cleat from standing around in the staging area. Soon enough we hit the big sand pit for the first time and Holly bit it - to my advantage. I made it through clean, hit it hard for the remainder of the lap and basically was away from there to the end. That was the whole race - right there. I was able to see Holly behind me at various points for the next two laps or so (of 6) but after that I was alone and just riding steady. I bit it 2 of the 6 times through the sand, which I though was pretty good all things considered. The entire pit got deeper, slower and more treacherous the more it was ridden through - I wasn't at all pleased with wiping out but in the big picture it turned out not to be an issue.

Crossing the finish line solo, hands in the air, was pretty exciting. I have to send huge thanks to all the cool kids who cheered and encouraged me on as I suffered through the race - copious snot and drool everywhere. In fact so much snot and drool that I fear I may never live that down. I heard each and every one of you and yes - you all helped me keep my head together and my legs pushing. Thanks also to PSIMET.com for taking a chance and sponsoring my 2009 'cross adventure. It worked out pretty well, I'd say!

It would be wrong of me to not include a congrats not only to my Roscoe Village Bikes teammates who raced so well, but also to everyone who came out all season and raced hard. Special congrats to Pony Shop and Verdigris who ended up 1-2 in the series team competition - nice job by all. Wakes - not the greatest day for you but I'm so happy that you made the trip. The sand made it all worthwhile, didn't it? MetLifeGuy - you worked your ass off and earned every bit of your podium spot, congratulations. Mr. Pink - top of the podium again, well done! June - on the podium at last, and you belong there. Feels good, doesn't it? Holly - your being there made me sweat...thanks for the post race Rumple Minze. Holy crap...

The 2009 season wrap post is in the works. It's all in my head, just needs to be typed. The highlights, the lowlights and all the fun we had along the way...give me a week and check back. Til then, thanks for reading!!

El Bandido Finale

I've been pretty burned out on the regular group ride and wet weather of late so the opportunity to do some bandit cross over the long weekend was pretty appealing. I was stuck working on Friday but made it out to the 'burbs for rounds 2 and 3 of the Bandido Finale. NOTE: If you are squeamish about humorous misogyny, don't follow that link...and realize that no one really cares how you finish. It's the fun we have along the way that makes it what it is.

I was bummed to miss round 1 but there was plenty of mud, obstacle jumping, mud, wet grass, mud, quality handups, mud and all the other fun stuff that 'cross is on days 2 and 3 (did I mention the mud?).

Day 2 was someplace out near Bartlett, the same place as day 1 but the course was run in reverse. Part of it was an equestrian competition site which made for some interesting obstacle hopping... There were parts of trees laid sideways four feet high - no, we didn't have to jump those. But we did have to jump over some triangular thingy that required me to actually hop on top of it first then leap over (with the bike). Then there was 'the trench' that had to be about 2.5ft wide and the drop off that was probably between 2-3ft down. Oh, and after that the mud started. I was happy at the end to have survived without falling off my bike, adding to my bruise collection or being lapped by the likes of Boundy and Mr. Pink. The added bonus? Andy Kerr appeared on his vintage mountain bike to say hi - SO great to see you Andy!!

Sunday's course at Poplar Creek Woods was completely different - mostly very wet grass, some muddy sections, a couple barriers, a small stretch of pavement, no sun and a fair amount of wind. Sunday was especially awesome because it was the final Bandido for the year - and there were hand-ups everywhere.

Somehow I managed to not be lapped by the always super strong Mr. Pink, seen here accepting a hand-up from one of the pushers.

When all was finished I'd scored three 6pk boxes of GU, a dozen individual Chomps and GUs and (wait for it) a 2lb cannister of GU2O. Where did I put said hand-ups during the race? Why, in the front of my too big skinsuit of course!! It was so full that my knees were knocking into it all when I pedaled. The best part of the whole race? I still finished on the lead lap even though I stopped at least twice every lap to snag some schwag - we were required to keep whatever we took.

Thanks so much to Rich for all his organizing and course design efforts all season - and all the hand ups!! BC has been the ideal thing for my road-hating head since the weather went south. Over the winter I'll definitely miss the 'racing' itself but even more I'll miss the group of racers that show up to get dirty, work hard and have fun for 45 minutes. Thanks to all of you for your positive attitudes and energy - always so great to be around y'all.

Woodstock 'Cross Report

Photo: J. Wryzca

If conditions were always as they've been the past two weekends, I'd LOVE cyclocross. Unfortunately the mild weather is more of a freak thing so my love/hate relationship with 'cross endures... We had most excellent weather for Sunday's race in Woodstock - sunny skies, minimal wind, and no mud except for a few soft places here and there. I was hating a little bit before warming up but chose to HTFU, get on the bike, suffer through warm up and head to the starting area.

The Woodstock course is very straightforward - 2 miles or so with lots of bumpy grass, some short, punchy hills, a nice dirt singletrack downhill, some off-camber stuff, a double barrier obstacle, single barrier run-up, and one of those stupid-as-hell swirly goat rodeo thingys. I can't really describe it any other way - a course feature where we sort of go in smaller and smaller circles, change direction and corkscrew our way back out. Stupid!! To those who design courses, please...STOP IT!!

I lined up with about 12 women for 45min of fantastic fun. I got the hole shot off the line and managed to get a gap that I held all the way to the end, adding time as I went. We ended up doing 5 laps which was just about enough for me. It was very cool to have a bunch of cheering friends everywhere on the course - seems to take the edge off the suffering just a bit. Special thanks to Brian Akers who lives nearby and came out to say hi and supply much-needed post-race Snickers bars. Thank you Brian!!

The Roscoe Village Bikes Crew

Special thanks also to whomever it was that handed up a bunch of turkey jerky on the run up...ick. That was kind of gross. Note to hecklers: those of us who race early also appreciate quality handups like beer, dog smooches, spam and twinkies - don't just save it all for the later races, okay?

To all my RVB teammates who raced yesterday - well done! You guys are the BOMB. As always, huge congrats to the Pony Shop and Verdigris 'cross teams on their fine finishes - they're duking it out for the team championship and representing well every weekend. Also - Wakes raced somewhere in Iowa or some such place and managed a top 10 finish. Way to go Mike! Best of luck to you at Jingle Cross!

Lastly, thanks as usual to Rob at PSIMET - another victory on Carbon 50s!

What I'm reading at the moment - 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' by Oscar Wilde. Up next, 'Slapstick' by Kurt Vonnegut. Tunes-wise I've been groovin' to The Black Keys and some old school Metallica (before they sold out with the black album...).

Montrose Harbor is 12/05. If it's not snowing, icy, muddy and disgustingly cold, I'll be there...

Indian Lakes 'Cross and Something Very Cool

Exiting sand pit #1 - pic stolen from Rob Curtis
Check out the bitchin' wheels...

Saturday offered my kind of 'cross weather - warm, dry and sunny - so I was happy to head to Bloomingdale for only my second 'cross race of the year. Have I re-caught the bug? No, not really but it was a good workout. The course at Indian Lakes was nicely designed - a few barriers, a run-up, two sand pits, a bumpy section (didn't like that), some twisty grass stuff and a very small mud puddle that fortunately shrunk a bit before we headed out for 45min of enormous fun.

I wasn't feeling super after wrecking a few times in pre-ride/warm-up, being a little too aggressive. I have a lot of pretty bruises that still haven't surfaced completely. I'm sure they'll be rockin' by mid-week and serve as a fine reminder of why I am a 'roadie.' Because I've only done one race, I haven't accumulated enough series points for good start line position but since the field was only about 15 I was able to sneak into the front row after call-ups. This proved to be crucial as I was able to snag the hole shot before the first hairpin and managed to stay out front for the remainder of the race, adding to my lead along the way.

Bikes, post race - Mine on the Left, Wakes's on the Right. Mud. Ick.

I suffered a lot the first two laps before settling in and more or less just kept on the gas the entire way. Sure, I slowed down but got smoother and was able to keep putting time on the chase enough so that I could take a mouth-to-mouth Twizzler hand-up from Scott at the exit of the second sand pit. There were a bunch of 'hecklers' on top of the hill which made for some interesting back-and-forth each time up - of course, all in good fun. From a technical aspect I didn't ride so well - my cornering was sort of sloppy early and my barrier hopping was wanting at times but on the whole it was a decent performance.

VERY COOL: Huge thanks to Rob Curtis from psimet.com for providing me with a set of 50mm carbon tubulars to race on - they're great!! Rob is a local wheelbuilder who has stepped up to support me with training and racing wheels for 2010 and the remainder of the 2009 'cross season. That, and he's a mechanic - since I am a girl with fingernails, this is a good thing. After yesterday I can say with confidence that the carbon 50 wheelset worked just as nicely as my 404s. I'm really excited about this partnership and am looking forward to representing psimet.com in 2010 - thank you, Rob!!

Wakes came out to race the 3s yesterday and ended up with a solid finish in a tough field - he headed to Iowa to race again today. Better yet - he brought post-race Oreos!! Thanks Mike! Congrats to all of the Verdigris and Pony Shop 'cross team racers who came out - they're always at the top of the results page. I'm especially appreciative of the generous prizelist offered by the South Chicago Wheelemen - I was able to actually cover my entry fee and gas expense, always a big plus. Special thanks to Scott and Roman for their quality hand-ups by the sand pit - love you! Mean it!!

I'm sore today from being bounced around so much and decided to just do the Judson ride. Wise choice - my feet are up and I'm watching the PIT/CIN game. Next week's race is in Woodstock. As of right now I am planning to do it but if the weather gets ugly, well...we'll see...

Yes I Am...

...racing at Indian Lakes this weekend. I hate mud and dirt but somehow manage to get on and off a bike pretty well. For a girl. The 14th is my XBF's birthday. No better way to manage the hate than racing hard enough to taste blood.

Yeah baby - bring it on...

Spin Heads

Last post I said there's not much to talk about at the moment. There still isn't. But I'll post the playlist for this morning's class anyway. We had a solid, hardworking group that I divided into 2 teams and assigned names to (On the Left! and The Pillowheads). We warmed up and then alternated efforts at or slightly above threshold with hard tempo for about 30min. Enormous fun.

In the Air Tonight - P. Collins
Dancing with Myself - Billy Idol
What You Need - INXS
Pressure Drop - The Specials
Sell Out - Reel Big FIsh
Blitzkrieg Bop - The Ramones
Desire - U2
Burnout - Green Day
Form a Straight Line - Sugar Shack
Genepool Convulsions - The Hives
Ca Plan Pour Moi - Plastic Bertrand
Shut Your Eyes - The Shout Out Louds
That Great Love Sound - The Ravonettes
Natural One - Folk Implosion

Not Much to Say

I know - imagine that.... The only interesting thing to share is that I'm planning to race this weekend in Northbrook. Other than that, things are pretty much status quo. That's not necessarily a bad thing, is it?

Oh - I did manage to make it to the pages of the 2010 Chicago Bike Racing calendar. Thanks to Luke for selecting the photo. He gets some really great racing shots so I'm flattered that he chose one that includes me from so many others.

I'm reading 'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess but managed to also read 'Catcher in the Rye' by J.D. Salinger and 'Stranger than Fiction' by Chuck Palahniuk since I last posted. 'Orange' is a slower, more involved read so it's going to take a while to finish.

Skip It

RVBR 'cross team kit finally arrived - killer design! I love it!

First of all - congrats to my RVBR teammates who raced at Carpentersville yesterday. Way to go, guys! Thanks to all of my teammates who came out last night to kill some time at Village Tap - it was good to meet you and I'm looking forward to seeing you all at the races. Most of all, thanks to Alex and Lesley from RVB for supporting the team - you guys rock!

Didn't race this past weekend - the Jeep was sick with a dead battery and my racing partner in crime was hurting so I opted for the 'double Judson.' Saturday was a day for full fenders and Sunday turned out to be really nice, though the temp at go time was in the low 30s. It was an especially important weekend in the sense that it marked the last time we'll get to ride with Ted as he's moving to Florida at the end of the week. I will miss him, his sense of humor and the pain he so happily dished out on the ride. I've already claimed a week or so of time to live in his screen porch when the weather gets really sucky here.

I've spent the last few weeks trying to be mellow, riding for fun and remembering what it's like to not be consumed by power numbers and mileage. It's been liberating but at the same time boring in a way. 'Cross is a good substitute to some degree but I'm feeling like I'll be ready to get back to work in a few weeks. After all, the holidays will pass and January will be here before I know it. Until then I'll bomb around at the occasional 'cross race (bandit and sanctioned) and the weekend group ride.

I've been reading 'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess. Interesting indeed - I'm learning a whole new language and getting a fine introduction to 'ultra-violence.' Not sure when I'll get a chance to post again so I'll send wishes of good luck to Wakes now - he's heading to Louisville for the USGP next weekend. Go get 'em Mike!!

Bar B 'Cross at Dan Ryan Woods

I'm entering this 'cross season with no expectation but to have fun. I've heard this part of the year likened to golf's 'silly season' which is exactly what I am trying to make of this. I did a relatively serious 'cross season 2 years ago that sort of burned me out on the whole dirt/mud/cold thing - lots of travel and expense for not a whole lot of fun. Last year I did maybe three races and this year, who knows? I'm planning to do some more of the Chicago 'Cross Cup but probably not anything beyond that and as soon as the snow flies, my bike changes from race rig to dedicated commuter.

Today's race at Dan Ryan Woods on the South Side was VERY cool - great course and even though it was disgustingly cold to start, things warmed up to a balmy 40 degrees at go time. I rolled to the venue early with MetLifeGuy in order to get in some pre-race recon laps. Good thing - there was a fair amount of twisty stuff, a gnarly run up, a very cool off-camber downhill stretch and some barriers on a course where laps ended up taking about 8min. I wasn't quite sure how I was feeling - hating the freezing coldness for sure but also relatively mellow. My warm up was pretty useless and I toed the line essentially cold for the start after watching Mike take 2nd in the 50+ masters race (nice job Mike!!).

First, the details for those of you who think this is important: Gearing-wise my bike had a 40t single front ring and 12/27 cassette. I was running about 30psi front and rear in 32mm Challenge Griffo tubulars. This was ideal for me, weighing in at about 118 currently, maybe 123 fully dressed in 'cross gear. The tires hooked up and carved everything perfectly through all the loose stuff, the small amount of sticky mud and the off-camber. The grass was wet early on but things dried out nicely as the course was ridden on and the sun (yes, the sun!!) came out.

We got off the line in a hurry and I was able to manage 2nd wheel behind Sam Schneider (Team Type 1) by the time we hit the run up. Things got sort of backed up and the two of us emerged with a small gap that we kept adding to for the first 3 laps. At the top of the run-up on lap 4 I wasn't able to clip in - my toe spikes were caked with mud and grass. Sam knew it so she hit it hard and got a small gap into the off-camber while I struggled to clear my cleats and clip in. That was when I had a decision to make - chase or just let it go? By that point 3rd place was nowhere in sight and I was pretty content to roll the last lap and a half at a mellow pace so that's exactly what I did. Sam never got too far away but I wasn't feeling like a rock star at that point so first loser was just fine with me. For not really giving a rip how things ended up, I'm pleased with 2nd. Sam is a very talented young rider and it was great to have her down from Wisconsin for the race today.

Thanks to the Beverly Bike Vee-Pak guys for putting on a great event and laying out a solid course. I have to send a shout out to my old teammates at Verdigris on all their fine finishes today and also to the Pony Shop team - well done, everyone! Next up is Carpentersville. I've done this race lots of times and am very familiar with the various course layouts that have been employed in the past. Hopefully the temps will be a little warmer.

What I'm reading: 'Survivor' by Chuck Palahniuk. So far it's good. I made a trip to the used book store with Steve yesterday and acquired numerous little treasures. The queue is full of classics and some newer stuff that I'm excited to get through over the next few weeks.

One last shout out to Mike Wakeley who travelled to Cincinnati for a 3 race weekend - nice job racing with the heavy hitters! I miss having you around here on the local scene but I know how much you love investigating muddy stuff in other places...keep it up!

Too Much Coffee

I knocked off the coffee for a while and was feeling pretty good then the warm weather went away and here I am again - powerless, addicted and working on the soundtrack for today's lunch hour class. The very cool people who attend noon class have high standards which keeps me on my toes - new music, challenging workouts, different cueing, etc. They make me work hard. Then the morning class gets the same special treatment. Here's what I came up with for today - It's basically a warm up followed by three separate 'pyramid' intervals that are three tracks each, intensity increasing with each song. Rest is short and we repeat.

Can't You Hear Me Knocking - The Rolling Stones
Fall Back Down - Rancid
On the Dark Side - John Cafferty (yes, really)
Brianstorm - Arctic Monkeys
Get it Hot - AC/DC
Wrong Way - Sublime
Genepool Convulsions - The Hives
Superman - Goldfinger
Brain Stew - Green Day
Mediate - INXS
Someday I Suppose - Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Everything Sucks - Reel Big Fish
The Fixer - Pearl Jam (new, and I like it)
I Want You - Kings of Leon

Not much else to report - first legit 'cross race this weekend on the South Side. I'm trying to be un-serious about the entire thing so hopefully I can have some fun and get a good workout without hating. Looks like a wet ass for this afternoon's ride. So be it - in a month I'll be wishing we had weather this 'good.' The white socks and shoes have been retired for the season and replaced by icky black. Hopefully we'll have a mild winter - last winter kicked my ass and my brain!

What We're Doing in Spin Today

Today's gloomy weather has motivated me to make a new playlist for noontime class. We'll be doing a 3/4min tempo/threshold zig-zag workout. Here's the soundtrack:

Blow Up the Outside World - Soundgarden
I Got Mine - The Black Keys
Cochise - Audioslave
The Fixer - Pearl Jam
Whatever Happened to My Rock and Roll - BRMC
Strange Times - The Black Keys
I Woke Up This Mornin' - The Mooney Suzuki
Leash - Pearl Jam
She Builds Quick Machines - Velvet Revolver
Runnin' Wild - Airborne
Devour - Shinedown
Little Wing - Jimi Hendrix

It's not likely that I'll post again til after the weekend so I want to send good luck wishes to Mike Wakeley who's heading to Cincinnati for a weekend of 'cross racing. Go Mike!! Have a great time and race your ass off!

Now that 'cross is where my focus (sort of) lies, the plan was to do some riding at Jackson Park. Depending on the degree of weather hate I experience, that may turn into a (gasp!!) strength workout at the gym. That's right - you heard it here first. I might actually pretend that I'm 'lifting weights.' And my co-workers will probably (justifiably) make fun of me for it.

Fall Fling #3 and #4

So we've arrived at the finish the 2009 road season - a low-stress weekend TT and circuit race to complete the second half of the ABD Fall Fling series. I was sitting tied for first overall in the series after a criterium win and 'second' in the road race (refer to previous post about Fall Fling #1 and 2). I knew I was going to have to win out in order to take the women's overall and at the same time, help my teammate Mike in the 50+ masters circuit race - no small task with the heavy hitters in the men's field.

Saturday's time trial was held in Maple Park and used the same 8mi out-and-back course as last season. I was feeling good after warming up but with Leigh Thompson and Jessi Prinner both racing I knew I would have to have a solid ride to regain the series lead. Jim was kind enough to schlep along his tent for warm-up (thanks Jim!) as the forecast included a threat of rain but fortunately things stayed dry though a bit cool. I had a really strong ride, ended up taking first place points on the day and moved into first overall for the series. The guys also did well with Mike finishing the day tied for first in the overall and Jim taking 5th. Of note was Tom's killer performance - the guy had the third fastest time on the day overall. Interesting here is the fact that he races 55+. Old-man-strength. Indeed.

I have to send a special shout out to Andy Kerr who rode over to say hello - it was so great to see you, Andy!! We've missed you!

Sunday's circuit race was held on a 1.8mi loop in West Chicago. My job for the day was to cover/be in any break that contained the guys Mike was in contention with for the overall and make sure he had good position for the sprint. After Tom and one other rider (who shall remain nameless for a good reason) got away early, Mike tried to further break things up with numerous hard attacks. I was dying but able to cover everything and unfortunately the two 'marked' guys (Fabio and Fleck) were there with every hit. After about 8 attempts it was clear that nothing would stick so the focus had to change and I had to start planning how I'd get Mike in optimal position for the sprint. Everything was going according to plan in the end - Mike was on my wheel out of the wind and the two primary 'targets' were pretty much pinned to the curb on the inside. It seemed perfect and then someone moved...Fabio and Fleck broke hard up the inside (too) early and Mike had to go - NOW. If that hadn't happened, who knows how it would've finished but I tend to think the outcome would have been different.

It was frustrating to have done everything I could possibly do to help Mike to a better finish but because bike racing is far from being 'a perfect world' things didn't quite turn out the way we would have liked. Congrats to Tom for taking the W and to Fabio and Jon for their fine finishes. I was able to cross the line ahead of the other women and so secured first overall. It was a great way to close out the 2009 road season. Special thanks to ABD and ABR - the racing was hard and fun, the courses were good and the entire 4 race series was well-organized and ran smoothly.

Cyclocross season is here! I've missed the first couple of Chicago Cross Cup races but that's okay - I'm just doing it for fun. I haven't checked the schedule so I have no idea what's up next but I'm pretty sure I'll be there.

Spintunes and 2016 Thoughts

The room was full this morning! Lots of good, positive energy as we did the following:

Warm up followed by a 7min threshold effort, 20min of hard tempo with spikes to threshold every 4-5min then an 8min threshold effort to finish. When properly executed, the end is killer.

Not Enough Time - INXS
Poundcake - Van Halen
Black Math - The White Stripes
Immigrant Song - Led Zeppelin
No Quarter - Led Zeppelin
The Impression that I Get - Might Mighty Bosstones
Isn't She Lovely? - Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Are You Gonna Be My Girl? - Jet
My Kind of Girl - The Forty-Fives
Elderly Woman Behind the Counter.... - PJ
Twilight Zone - Golden Earring
The Wind Cries Mary - Jimi Hendrix

Now, a little message from me to all the negative, nay-saying, anti-Olympic creepos: rather than gloating like a bunch of overfed pigs, go find something else to bitch about. Seems like that's what you are best at and surely you won't have to look very hard. Happy people? Carry on - be positive and get the most out of life. There are plenty of negative people who will gladly shoulder what you leave behind. You choose to be an optimist or pessimist. That's right - negative or positive, you have a choice.

I will now step down off the soapbox....

Fall Fling #1 and #2

Judging by the fine headwind and coldness I endured on this morning's commute, fall has definitely arrived. That said, we had a nice weekend for some road racing and it turned out to be mostly good. The organizer has been kind enough to combine the womens and 50+ masters fields (sorting out results separately) which makes for much better racing - especially when the number of women racing is small.

Saturday's criterium went down pretty well - I ended up finishing 4th in the sprint, first woman. Sunday's road race was less satisfying. As usual, I began to see a bunch of guys I'd not seen all day as the final miles wound down and the sprint was looming. Yep - the very same guys who sit on, chase nothing and think they should just be given carte blanche to the front at the end. In the final sprint I was clearly ahead of the 2nd place woman but was bumped by one of the men which caused me to sit up. The 2nd place woman crossed the line just ahead of me and my protest for interference was basically ignored.

I'm not happy because I was not beaten - I got screwed. If I get beaten fairly, fine - I'll take it and move on. Being unfairy impeded and then having a protest ignored is not cool. What is it they say? Revenge is a dish best served cold? I'm looking forward to next weekend...

MetLifeGuy had a great ride yesterday - he rode away in the beginning of the 4th of 7 laps and stayed away to take a well-deserved win. Nice work, Mike. Other fine performances included a win by Brian Harris (PYOC) yesterday and a strong showing at the USGP in Wisconsin by Mike Wakeley - way to go, guys!

Up next is the Maple Park TT on Saturday and a circuit race Sunday. Hopefully we'll get some slightly warmer temps on the weekend - it'd suck to close the road season with soggy or cold weather.

Not 'Crossin' Yet

I still have a few weekends of road stuff to do before busting out the 'cross bike. Yes, I've practiced a couple times but I'm stubbornly holding onto the last bits of the road season before shifting focus to 'cross. Last weekend's Verdigris 40K TT and Kenosha Crit were decent - I posted my fastest 40K time ever (as did most everyone else) and managed to win the field sprint for 3rd overall in the masters 50+ men's race at Kenosha. I've been extremely tired and just 'off' lately - not very punchy, sore, tight legs - typical end of season stuff.

Coming up the next two weekends is the ABD Fall Fling. I'm particularly excited to do the road race in Crete. I grew up not far from there and spent lots of time in the early years of my racing career training on the roads in that area. It'll be good to go 'home,' I miss the open, rolling pavement of the far South 'burbs.

I just finished reading 'Deliverance' by James Dickey which I truly enjoyed. Up next is 'The Rum Diary' by Hunter S. Thompson. Not sure what's coming after that - maybe some John Irving or another classic. We'll see what's on the shelves next time I visit the used bookstore.

Best of luck to all the crazy people heading to Wisco this weekend for the Planet Bike 'cross races, especially Wakes. He loves to get dirty and play in the mud - enjoy it, Mike! Can't wait to hear the post-race recap...

More Tunes

This morning's playlist for class was decidedly old school - some solid classic rock for a hard tempo session that included trips to threshold along the way and finished at or above threshold for the final 10min. Killer - it all seemed easy until the last two songs...

In the Mood - Robert Plant
In Hiding - Pearl Jam
Nice Guys Finish Last - Green Day
Baba O'Reilly - The Who
Dreams - Van Halen
Legs - ZZ Top
Have Love Will Travel - The Black Keys
Rock and Roll - Led Zeppelin
Hail Hail - Pearl Jam
Kickstart My Heart - Motley Crue
Althea - Grateful Dead (yes, really - for cool down)

I took out the 'cross bike yesterday for some easy miles and technique work. I'm surprised how much the skillz have stuck around - dismounting/remounting was pretty easy but I definitely need some new pedals. Three gnarly winter's worth of commuting have pretty much frozen the bearings which makes clip-in nearly impossible. This weekend will be the final 40K of the season and then a crit or two on Sunday.

I finished 'One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest' and loved every page - it was an excellent read. Just started 'Deliverance' by James Dickey and have 'The Rum Diary' by Hunter S. Thompson in the queue.

2009 FIAC TTT Nationals

Mike, Tom, Stan and Jim

I think the 4man team trial might be my favorite race of the season - and I don't even touch my bike that day. For the third time I chose to be the 'directeur sportif' for the PACT/DishNetwork 50+ masters team and had a blast doing it. For those of you who don't know, the DS is the person who pretty much spoils the riders all day - pins numbers, inflates tires, fills water bottles, drives the follow vehicle, and basically does whatever the riders need to make the day as stress-free as possible. After being on the receiving end of said treatment for so long, I'm happy to return the favor and I know it's appreciated.

On the start line

This year's team members included 2 PACT guys (Mike and Jim) and two guest riders, Tom Doughty and Stan Watkins - beasts, all of them. I knew that they'd have an impressive ride and be among the top teams on the day. After an hour fog delay, things rolled off the start and the guys settled in for 60K of TT bliss.

Positively machine-like...

Ladies, if you had this view for an hour and twenty minutes, would you complain? Me neither! It was a beautiful day and the guys looked great. Early on we passed by an unfortunate crash in the second turn (hey! those guys aren't even bleeding yet!) and later learned that several others had also gone down in the same place. Fortunately we made it through safely on the way out and coming back.

Post ride - waiting (forever) for the results

It always takes a long time for results to be finalized which allows for ample time to socialize and eat whatever a good DS bakes for her team (brownies and cupcakes, on this occasion). It's also when the ride post-mort happens - always an insightful discussion full of observations and commentary I'm not an audience to while in the car.

Mike, impressing us all with his massive guns. Did I mention there's a lot of post-ride self-deprecation and laughter?

In the end, the guys won their age group and had the third fastest time overall. I was completely impressed with their effort - way to go gentlemen!! For a bunch of self-proclaimed 'old dudes' you're all pretty darn fast!

IL Road Race Championship

The finish - thanks for the pic, Luke!!

I knew from the outset that things would be tough at today's IL state road race championship in Willow Springs - small field, lots of bike poker, a difficult to plan uphill sprint finish, etc. The course itself was not difficult - a three-step hill to the finish but otherwise flat to falsely flat for the remainder of the 10 mile loop. Pavement surfaces were pretty much perfect (thank you TARP funds) save a few small, well-marked potholes. On tap for the day was 5 laps - I paid a lot to race today and definitely wanted to do all 50 miles (get my money's worth). I was happy that the officials did not shorten our race due to small turnout and that the promoter was paying the prize list as published.

I knew that I had my work cut out for me with an ABD rider and 2 BH teammates to contend with. Small fields can often make for negative racing so I was hoping that wouldn't be the case. Things rolled off well enough and about 4 miles or so after going through the start/finish for the first time, Kristen from BH had a flat. I wasn't quite sure what to do - keep rolling and ride solo for nearly 50 miles? Ugh. Didn't really want to do that but that's exactly what happened. It's a race after all, right? I basically settled in, focused, and watched my power meter/speedo for the next 2+ hours as I rode alone behind the pace car. I had no idea what was going on behind me. Turns out (I think) Anne gave Kristen her wheel and Kristen chased but she wasn't able to close the gap alone. I thought for sure I'd be caught - it was still a long way to the finish.

I crossed the line solo, no one else in the picture. In a way, it wasn't a very gratifying way to win. It's a bummer when someone you respect as a racer is taken out of the action by an unfortunate mishap or a mechanical problem. On the other hand, I've had plenty of mishap-curtailed races of my own over the years and trust me, I busted my ass out there to take the win today.

Up next - maybe a time trial next Saturday and a crit in Kenosha or the first cyclocross race of the season at Jackson Park on Sunday. Cross season will be pretty mellow for me - local stuff. I'll be representing for Roscoe Village Bikes and am looking forward to the change of pace that 'cross provides. Track is over for the year - I had a pretty successful season, managing to finish 2nd in the Rider of the Year competition and taking state titles in the keirin, points race and the pursuit.

What I'm reading: 'One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest' by Ken Kesey. In a word - masterful. I'm loving it - I'm finding it difficult to put it down!

Tunes

I haven't posted a playlist for a while. Here's what we're doing at lunch time today:

Warm up followed by 5X3min VO2 intervals, short rest between efforts.

Terminal Frost - Pink Floyd
Cheap Sunglasses - ZZ Top
I Will Follow - U2
Peacemaker - Green Day
Time Bomb - Rancid
Living Well is the Best Revenge - R.E.M.
Everything Sucks - Reel Big Fish
I'd Do Anything - Simple Plan
This Charming Man - The Smiths
Juicebox - The Strokes
Form a Straight Line - Sugar Shack
Shut Your Eyes - Shout Out Louds
Angel - Jimi Hendrix