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Monday, March 29, 2010

Mediocrity



For seem reason this season has started off at an uncanny level of mediocrity. From January Nats., through performance testing to last weekend’s races in Greenville, NC. Nothing has gone badly but nothing has been outstanding either. I always do well enough to come away with my chin up but not satisfied and thus motivated to improve.

Fresh off two crits in Greenville it is all the more apparent. Training is going well and my form is solid. I’m stronger than I’ve ever been even though I lack the top end that comes from a solid block of racing. So if I can improve like I did last year from this point I’m definitely on track for a solid year. However, with the legs I have I still feel like I could be getting better results. The fields in Greenville are usually small but strong and this year was no different. I expected moves to go both days, which happened, except I wasn’t in them. Saturday I just missed it, I waited too long to play my cards and that was it. Sunday I was more upset. It was really windy but I still didn’t expect the race to be hard enough to shatter. So I sat back and waited for everyone to get tired, sit up to take a breath and then I was going to punch it. Too bad the race completely split apart. I was only two or three people too far back but the gap opened quickly. I chased for about two laps by myself but couldn’t bring it back. The good news was I had enough energy left to fight in the sprints, but what good is it when you’re sprinting for 7th? Last in the break is always better than first in the bunch. However, if there was a prize for top finisher on a cross bike I would be straight kickin’ ass.

The positive that comes out of this is that I know results are close and within my reach. It’s actually way more motivating than getting my ass handed to me since I know every little thing could make the difference. It could be that last pound I lose, the extra nap I take or the extra interval I do. The four or five pounds I’m about to shave with my new team bike certainly won’t hurt either. I’ve grown fond of my cross bike over the last several months but the road is calling and she just can’t answer. And yes, the only reason I haven’t won every race I’ve done this year has been because I was on the cross bike. Oh, and my cleat was 2mm off, and my chain is kind of heavy, and I only had one carbon bottle cage on. Sorry, I hate excuses, even more so when it’s me making them.

Moving on, another busy week lies ahead with dollars to be made, bikes to be obtained, built and raced, training to be done, etc. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. With Boone-Roubaix this weekend and me and Trav’s joint birthday party afterwords, it’s going to be amazing. One last blowout before racing really gets for serious. Wait, crap, that also means I’m turning 24, when do I officially have to become an adult again?

Quote of the Week: (Done in an exaggerated southern accent) “All the money’s up the road. I’m blown.” -Eoin McDonnell’s impersonation of Curtis Staples

Monday, March 22, 2010

O.S.F.

So my master plan to post throughout team camp didn’t quite work out. Between work, team meetings, taking care of the Specialized fit technicians and almost 23 hrs. on the bike it was a full week. Stressful, exhausting and awesome are the adjectives immediately coming to mind. Looking back, it’s amazing that I was able to do so much in one week. It was a great experience and I had a good time meeting the new guys and catching up with some others I hadn’t seen in a while.

Having said that, the stress hasn’t subsided much. There’s still some logistical loose ends I’m trying to tie up so I can fully focus on racing. Sometimes the hardest part of being an amateur bike racer is tuning out all of the noise around you so you can simply focus on what’s important, performing on the bike. Regardless of what wheels I’m on, what shoes I’m wearing or how light my cranks are, I’m going to leave everything out on the road in a blaze of “old school fury.” Every race I do this year is going to be hard as shit. If I walk away from a race thinking it was easy I didn’t do my job. One thing my teammates can be assured of is that I will always give everything I’ve got. Sometimes it won’t be enough, it’s that simple. But I can promise it won’t be for a lack of effort. I’m not just talking about the race itself. When I step up to the start line I want to feel like I’ve done everything possible to be ready for that moment.

Whew, I’m trying to step away from the passionate rants and I almost got caught up there. Anywho, the weather has been good, the time change is here and Dixie starts tomorrow so all in all I can’t complain. Especially since I’m surrounded by litany of amazing people. Big thanks to Chris and T from the shop. I couldn’t ask to work with better people, enough said.

Quote of the Week: “Wicked tiger. He looks proud.” –Paulie Bleeker

Friday, March 5, 2010

I'm Late I'm Late I'm Late!!!


No, I'm not pregnant. It was reference to the rabbit in Alice In Wonderland. It seems to sum up the state of my life right now. It seems like I always have multiple things that I should be doing and I can never get caught up. Things are definitely starting to get busy. We’re now in the final days leading up to team camp and the stress of balancing cycling and the real world is bearing down. There are a lot of things on my mind but while these things are constantly swirling around in my head I have to remain focused on the bike. Having said that, it’s also a very exciting time.

On Wednesday, Joe, Neil, Isaac and myself piled in the team van and made the trek to the human performance lab at Eastern Carolina University. Our good friend Dr. Tim Gavin had a new protocol he wanted to run on some cyclists and we jumped at the chance for some free testing. The Dexa scan was beneficial because now I know how much weight I can drop without losing muscle mass. I was always paranoid that I was going to focus too much on being light and lose power. In general it was good to get some baseline numbers for the year. It was also the first time I had been tested so I was a bit nervous about seeing my VO2 max which is more or less unchangeable. I was legitimately scared that I was going to be told I could never be a pro bike racer. I kept preparing myself for the worst. I imagined being told I would never be good and using that as motivation to win bike races so I could throw it in their faces. Luckily I don’t have to do that. My VO2 was not amazing by any means but it wasn’t low enough for me to be seriously concerned. My body fat % and lactate threshold were not bad for the beginning of March but there is definitely room for improvement. So I walked away feeling ok about were I’m at but definitely motivated to see how much I can improve before we go back and get tested this summer. Thanks to Tim and all the others at the lab who helped out, we sincerely appreciate it and can’t wait to get back this summer.

Moving on, I’ll get another race in my legs this Saturday before team camp which begins Tuesday. I’m so glad the season is starting. It’s time to do work. Look for updates on team camp throughout the next week.