Recaping Cross Season first… champ races to follow..

Promptness while always appreciated, ain’t always possible…. I’m lucky to get to the start line on time for a race so posting updates on may take time getting there.

With two years of hosting rights for the US National Cyclocross Championships occurring in the Midwest (Verona, WI) this year, along with the World Championship Cyclocross race happening in Kentucky rather than Europe.  If  person from the Midwest wanted to opportune time to race in the Big Shows this would be season to do it. 

As such, that was the plan starting last year to make a focused effort on cyclo-cross and see where I could go with it.  As with many things in life, the plans & outcomes can differ.  Despite purposeful  efforts, I had at times the same fortune of getting the traction of a file tread clincher in a muddy cross race. 

First gotta make a point about cyclocross competition – for anyone that gets serious about and this applies for the vast majority of racers.   It’s ALL about the POINTS.  Whatdda talkin’ about Swanson?  For the uninitiated, think of it in terms of Preferred Starts or “call ups”. 

Get enough people in a race (25+) that isn’t too long (like ‘cross, being only an hour), limit the width of the starting line to 8 riders wide and you can start to visualize the problem of showing up at races of 40, 60, 80 or even 100 racers.   An attempt to solve who starts where instead of a free for all of who can plant their butt & bike on the front row first is done by a “points” system.  USA Cycling which acts a unifying body for rules, etc for many cycling races has created a not too simple but nonetheless a reasonably effective ranking system. 

Everyone racing gets a score/points based on how they place, it’s adjusted for the caliber of competitors & the level of importance the race is given.

In 2011 I learned the ropes of this system on the fly.  In 2012 it was intended to be a more purposeful effort to ultimately get in the most favorable position possible going into US Nationals & the masters World Championships. 

Here’s the problem I faced… cyclocross while growing in popularity… in certain areas of the country still doesn’t measure up to MTB or road bike racing opportunities.  All summer long there’s almost never a problem picking up a MTB race  several weekends each month,  most of which one doesn’t have to travel more than an hour or two.   In ‘cross racing, well… there’s races that close but not ones running under USA Cycling, so it meant strategically mapping out treks of 4hr & 5hrs drives to races in Southern WI or the Twin Cities. 

I don’t know how many cycling enthusiasts, even the die hard ones like to travel a lot.  It’s not even just the economics & logistics, it’s the time.  When you like to ride a bike, it more enjoyable to spend time racing your bike than driving the car. 

The first effort for points came at round one of the US Grand Prix of Cyclocross.  That was strike #1 of sorts.  The rules set in place favored starting positions the first day of racing to previous years participants,  point leaders in local cross races secondly & lastly to order of registration.  So with 70+ position start, 9 rows back,  in a 45min race didn’t lend itself to having the opportunity to place well, get the necessary points & move up in ranks. 

Now despite a very professional setup, where I will openly criticize the USGP organization is not restructuring the starting order after the first days results.  So if  even if  a  talented racer moves up significantly day one, he’s gonna start in the back row again the second day, instead of being moved up to a more appropriate starting position & getting to race closer to the front as is done in other two race formats. 

I happened to move thru 40+ riders and ended up in the twenties day one.  But day two it was back to the rear of the field.  An significant injury took place to one of the racers shortly after the start & it ultimately halted the race.  However decision #2 I don’t agree with is USGP, instead of shifting races back 15-30min & restarting, they cancel the race altogether.  People may agree or disagree with me and that’s fine.  But I think a huge majority of guys/gals that race bikes, if they are the ones that get injured will say if asked say “Yes, the race should go on.  Don’t stop it on my account.”  Never haven been in that position in a bike race, but having been seriously injured in other sports at one point or another – those games were never stopped.  I’d of been P.O.’d if a game/race was ever stopped because my sorry ass got hurt.  Get me off the course or field, get me the necessarily medical help and let the games/races proceed!!  So promoters -- think like the athlete, no one wants the race stopped on their account,  the athletes are the ones who are supporting your event, there’s a respect in carrying on & not going soft.  That’s just my feelings.

So trek # 1 was foiled.  Next step, scour the multitude of websites & USA cycling’s website to find the next best place to invest time, energy and effort for possible points. 

The next stop, a Saturday MN Cyclocross series race at ElmCreek, a good field, with Bjorn Selander, Jessie Reints & Josh Roeser, but for some reason not the ideal caliber of points in play & an untimely roll of the tire in the first lap never present an opportunity to mix it up at the finish.

By mid Oct, after enough research of previous results, the best chance for points I would need for a decent call up at Nationals wouldn’t be at the Sat MN Cross races, it would from their MN Tues night ‘cross series…great, a 4 hr drive on a weekday.    Ok, not ideal but it was the last week of those races, so I gave it a go.  Again another mechanical in the first race, but a rescue & sacrifice from Jeremy Ames (thanks!!) lent itself to a reasonable result in race #2.

Had sorta started feeling this sense of disillusionment coming over me in trying to get this “Operation ‘Cross Nationals” to take flight.  I went back to square one & tossed all my eggs into two sets of races in December.  MN Cross Championships & the WI/Midwest Cross Championships.

In both cases it would be last row starts, & require a big effort & plenty of luck to get to the front in the first 1/4 to 1/2 mile of the races….. recaps to come…

December…

As this post finds me I’m back on the bike last nite for the first time in 13 days.  Got alittle catching up to do. 

This past month was filled with quite a few ‘cross races… that is until one gets influenza… ouch, tends to puts a crimp in anyone’s racing & training plans.

In another post I’ll catch up on the MN State Cyclocross Championship races, then the WI state & Midwest Regional Cyclocross Championships.  Great races & even some good ‘ole sloppy weather for one of them.

Have some things in the works for 2013to share but not before posting my annual commentary on the Best of 2012 Season!  Stay tuned….

In the meantime…..

 

 

Trust me that’s my saddle…. I’m NOT that excited to be mounting a cyclo-cross bike…

The Conspiracy or the Equalizer….Why does everyone get a head start? Princeton Valley Cyclo-cross race…

Guess rumor got out to the folks at Overdrive Cycling that I’d be attending this years Princeton Valley Cyclo-cross race in Eau Claire on the Sat after Thanksgiving.

Figured if Smithers , Trevor Koss & the rest of crew doing the 60minute race got a good margin from the get go, I’d be out of the running.  Guess what!?  They were right!!   

In something that may only come as a small surprise, I wasn’t on the start line when they said go.  Got there a nice half hour before the race just enough time to register & warm up on the cold 30 degree day.

It was a short course with laps only 5+ minutes long, I wanted to get in one good solid pre race lap before the start.  No one was at the start line when I took off.  As I rounded the back side of the course up on the hill I could see people starting to line up.  And about 3/4 thru the lap, I heard a bunch of loud cheers.  I thought, boy I hope that was just a rousing pre-start cheer.  To my dismay in short order I see a string of racers leading it out across the pavement & onto the golf course. 

No need to imagine the expletive that escaped my lips without a filter.  Quickly you adjust your expectations from contending to just getting back out of the DFL place.

So hence the chase began, when I crossed the timer, it had me some 80 to 90 seconds back.  So it took 2 laps to start reeling in & passing guys,  it usually came in groups of two or three. 

Outside a few bad choices on the twisty corners & chicanes that make the Princeton Valley course a very good cyclocross course I was able to keep up a strong effort for 8 of the 11 laps.  I’d regularly see Smithers where the course would cut back on itself, not falling further back or gaining anything on him either.

Finally the effort of chasing caught up to me in the final 3 laps & wasn’t able to finish on the same level that I started.   Had the powertap in play so it made for some good analytics to diagnose after the race.  If someone says racing with a a power meter doesn’t makes sense?  Take a look at the power file afterwards & see if there’s not some clues as to what specific training you could be doing to make improvements. 

Despite having next to zero cyclo-cross specific efforts (on/off type intervals – sprinting for short distances & then coasting, sprinting than coasting, etc.) because of working on increasing my 60min threshold output lately.  My legs felt fantastic for the race.  Much to my surprise building up my threshold even alittle bit over the months of Oct/Nov paid dividends in making the harder efforts much more manageable.

As the race finished I was able to move up to 6th, just a few seconds short on the 5th place guy.  The always speedy Trevor Koss took the win as he threw down a really hard race from the get go to put distance on 2nd place Chris “Smithers” Smith.   On the final time sheets from what I could assess – without the deficit I’d started with I’d of landed in 3rd, or maybe been able to give Chris a run for 2nd.   Still all in all a really good fun race, a great course and it’s put on for charitable reasons. 

Keep it on the radar & considering doing it in the years to come.  Great excuse to burn off Thanksgiving calories & get a race level effort in the legs before the MN & WI state cyclo-cross championship races the following two weekends.

60min of pain & perseverance… a true Threshold Test….

On of the joys of cycling (or just about any sport) is the chance to challenge one’s limits.  At least that’s my own personality & mental make-up.  For good, bad or otherwise, I seem to be stuck with it.  It’s not for everybody and that’s good too cause who wants everyone to be the same anyways.  Some do it for fun, some for the bliss that MTB or road biking brings.  Me?  Well, in the words of Count Rugen from the cult classic the Princess Bride.. when you have a deep & abiding interest in pain…

Thanks to some suggestions & guidance from a fellow competitor who’s come a long way in their own personal development as a cyclist over the years, which I’ve come to admire, I went to my coach with a question about how to better change my performance & potential in racing. 

I’ve gone the traditional route of interval training for close to 8yrs always working on trying to increase that gold standard of power training “the 20min threshold test”.  Not familiar with it?  It’s beating your brains, lungs & legs all out for 20minutes to produce the highest level of power in watts you can sustain for that period of time.  Whether you’re initiated in it or not, it’s about as fun as rolling a boulder uphill.  Heart rate is thru the roof & every fiber in your body is strained. 

The idea is the 20minute effort is an adequate enough duration to estimate what a person can theoretically do over longer periods.  In most cases that’s true… in some others, it’s not.

Over the years?  I kinda got pretty good at the 20min nut buster. I could find the “pain cave” and bury myself in it. Producing results that by most standards far exceed the comparable results I’ve achieved in actual race performances.  My coach repeatedly would tell me, “Aaron, really you’ve got nothing to worry about.  Your 20minute numbers are nothing you have to be shy about.  It’s every bit as good & better than most of the very top regional guys”.  But when you have high standards for yourself & you don’t quite have the results to match. You question “what’s wrong with yourself or is your coach blowing motivational smoke up your bum”.

Interesting enough, talking to other athletes you find that the coach isn’t wrong.  On one hand that feels good… on the other it stills leaves you with a  WTF feeling.

Well, as soon as we think everyone is created the same & a given academic theory of training that is supposed to force certain desired physical adaptations… only it doesn’t.    It’s time to go back to the drawing board. 

For myself, that meant turning some conventional training wisdom on it’s head.  Without a lot of boring details, it basically meant that although I had a decently developed short term power output (less than 30minutes).  I’d have a greater “drop-off” in power than what is normally expected for someone once I went into longer distances of races going an 1 to 2hrs. 

Seeing as you’re not gonna find a lot (or any) 20minute MTB or ‘cross races.  The only option is to figure out a way to trick the body into stretching out the power output over a longer period of time & not drop off a cliff.

So begins the experiment…. and the blog title.

Going over to a full 60minute Threshold test is not necessarily a treat.  Take that above described painful 20minute test and now apply for a full 60minutes… it spells O-U-C-H times three.

Needless to say, with any luck & unearthly fortitude anyone can persevere it.  Getting them to sign up again?… is probably akin to asking a women to give birth a second time…. wait until the memory is distant & very faded.  And somehow it’ll get done.

So tackled that 60minute effort tonite, with both good & bad results.  Required some unplanned biking maneuvering to dodge a car that pulled out in front of me & some big ring shifting issues aside.  Even so the first 20minutes were actually not too bad trying to find a decent sustainable pace.  Approaching 40minutes, it feels like that relative ease of the first 20minutes abandons you altogether & any space you have in your heartrate to maximize your power output is no longer there & at it’s limits.  The final 20minutes leaves you on guts & mental fortitude to try & find a way to hold on.  I don’t know if it was my guts or mental state that gave up first but the final 5 or 6 minutes wattage was dropping like free falling skydiver. 

The results were just short of what I expected, but better than anything I did previously.  And though still a statistically significant drop in power from my best 20min efforts, it’s improvement.  It’ll be interesting to find out how much or what kind of progress can be made between now & next spring. 

The long & short of it all?  We’re all made differently, our bodies have natural tendencies be it from genetics or environmental factors.  One theoretical training approach doesn’t equate to the same results for everyone.  If you’re looking at training, give the conventional wisdom training theories a try and certainly try them for a good long time, but if you hit up against a wall enough times and all the other markers of your potential point to being able to do even better.   Consider a change in approach & find a resource that’ll help you with it.  You’ll be glad you did.

Bay Cross 2012–story & results….

Nice weather despite the temps today.  Another near perfect BayCross weekend.  Things warmed up though and so did the racing.  A three race event.  It kicked off with a kids race at 10:30 – it was really fun to watch & actually close one right up to the finish.

The action followed with a good sized 45 minute “B” race.   Who’s become a regular traveler to the annual BayCross events, Jeff Staloch, pushed it from the get go & eventually distanced himself for 1st & from a close finish between Jim Metry & Dave Cismas who took 2nd & 3rd. 

For an event that is regularly growing, it was great to see the all the racers that made the trip from the Eau Claire area & Duluth/Superior mix it up with our local riders.   To name a few, we had big time EC area cycling supporter Bob Schwartz make the venture up.  The newest local Doc formerly of the U.P., Ryan Brang, was initiated into local racing by showing up & giving it a go.  In addition, James Sajdak, Dennis Liphart, Chris Bulovsky & Scott Armstrong (until his race was cut short) to mention a few other friends.

The B race was also the Women’s open race.  It was treat to meet my coach’s (Gordy Paulson) daughter Aimee Zabrowski (btw, she’s got a sweet looking cross bike).  Apparently she knows how to ride it as well, has some good gene’s or hard work ethic passed down from her dad as she won the Women’s event.  Followed by the Lisa Weisphenning in 2nd & in 3rd my dear wife, Kate, who thought to jump in even after her 6 mile run at 7am this morning… (w.t.h. is with that?  Must be something in the well water at the Swanson house – encourages inane amount of physical activity?  And along along I thought it was just me?)  Personally?  Being the financial guy I am, I’m thanking her for coming thru, getting on the podium & bringing home the prize money.  She claims to have had fun & enjoyed herself…but I thinking it was a ploy to have a fantastic reason to go out with the girlfriends tonite for some pampering.  Can’t blame her… I’m thinking a 6 mile run woulda killed me.

That’s finally brings up the big pony race, the 60+ minutes of searing lungs & ripping-off-legs kinda racing… the “A” race.  Starting at 1 it was all fun & jokes til the metaphorical gloves came off (the real ones…, they were gonna stay on cuz it was still pretty chilly) at the starting siren. 

Jack Zabrowski, showed no hesitation in getting things rolling, followed by Jon Jurek & Scott Nesvold.  Me? I’m happy to let some else take charge cause everytime I lead out the first lap of that damn race – it’s tends to be alittle hot, thereby giving the officials an exaggerated unsustainable speed to calculate the remaining number of laps… always put us at WELL over an hour.  I’m not happy with it and usually neither is the rest of the racers.

The course designed by Mike Weisphenning, quickly strung things out into a long train of riders on the initial out & back starting loop.  Putting you directly in the line of sight of the other racers-- so you could peer back into the eyes of those behind you.  There’s this thing about not looking certain animals in the eyes, it’s dangerous…. I’d say the same thing goes for cyclo-cross racers.  Especially the ones with drool coming out of their mouths…anyways…

Yeah, so back to the race, Jack leads things through the first set of triple barriers with Jon following close as I pass Scott Nesvold & move into 3rd.  Again, happy to be there.  The course was sorta like a partial irregular starfish pattern.  It put you out on fingers/tentacles only to wind you back into the center of things.  Great for spectators!

I made a move mid lap to go to the front only to have my rear brakes fail me on the 180 degree turn & send me into the toolies & put Jack, Jon & Scott back in front of me.   On the gravel road section that lead through the old Prentice Park deer park  (think of that for a second– there used to be a day & age when they fenced in deer so people could view them – now it’s just a work of art to dodge them on a drive home day or night.)  I worked my way back to the front & was content leading things for a while & still holding the first lap time in check. 

Lap 2 of the 8 lap race I felt the need to go for a go old fashion beat down workout with or without company.  It got me an ever increasing gap….until that is – the earlier mentioned 180 degree corner decided to rip air out of my front tire –ugh.  The tubeless Michelin Mud2’s burped some & put me in that place no one in a cross race likes to be.  Coaxing along a near flat tire to the pit area.  Fortunately I shouted out to a friend/spectator three quarters of the way thru the lap & it allowed them to notify Kate to bring over my spare front tire.  I’ve never had the misfortune to had to pit in a ‘cross race, do some mechanical & try to get back into the race.  I knew I had a gap to work with… I just didn’t know for how long.  I was able to stop the bike, unskewer the wheel & watch 1,2, 3 guys go by before I could spin in the new wheel, adjust the brakes & get back to chasing. 

Fortunately or not, this made for the biggest effort lap of the race.  The guys in front weren’t showing me any mercy… a bunch of piranha’s smelling blood I tell ya!   So I went about my merry way of trying to reel them in.   I’d count the seconds of when they’d pass a point until I got there.  It wasn’t looking good for awhile.  In the open sections I noticed I was closing more but some of the technical stuff which I was riding well, but they were riding just as good.  Wasn’t until Kit Cischke found that same air-ripping-from-ones-wheel 180 degree corner and went completely flat did it slow those guys up for me to pass them again. 

Confident in my equipment, I tried to pour it on the rest of the race.  I have this mixed feeling about shooting for lapping any racers.  Some appreciate it (because they have 1 less lap to do), others…well, it’s also not fun to get lapped or pulled early from a race.  I get that.

As it would go, I manage to continue a similar pace the remainder of the race & keep the lead into the finish.  It was a hard but good workout.  I raced with a G3 powertap so I could take a look at the effort afterwards.  Not quite on par to where I wanted it, but given the recent hard week of training, it’s not something to be bummed about.

It was great watching the finishes behind me at the end as they had a few close ones at the line of guys that went back & forth during the race.   The Brian Hammond, Scott Nesvold & Kelly Mcknight one especially.  Brian put the hammer down that Scottie couldn’t come around on. 

The lowdown on the results below…  pics probably up at Skinnyski or another site later.   Big great tasting potluck after, along with awards and nice swag/give-aways.  

Local event or not, it’s a great friendly race & festivity that I strongly encourage any person put on their calendar.  It’s always been a good time before, during and after the race.  Be on the lookout for it again next year!  Til then ride hard & keep the wheel down…

BayCross*

Putting the word out there…..

One of the best keep cyclo-cross secrets out there!  Check your schedule.  Make the drive, come check it out.  You won’t be disappointed that you did.  I promise.  Great event.

Thinking of catching up…. & Tues Night Cross Racing in Twin Cities

Bummer to have a season full of stories & race recaps some of which go untold…battles waged, crashes witnessed, spectacular racing at times….yet, not always enough time to catch up & express it.

Maybe with something more than a half hearted effort those stories & tales will yet come forth. 

In fast forwarding to the present, with finish of the always awesome DeerFly Chase MTB race at Hickory Ridge trails 30 min north of Eau Claire, it’s almost always the end of MTB racing for me.  Sure there’s one last really good WORS race in Sheboygan this coming weekend.  And if one can endure a 8hr drive to Traverse City, MI – there’s always the Iceman Cometh in November.  But with the growing popularity of cyclo-cross, racing activities start to tilt in that direction.

Now despite being incredibly fortunate of having miles of single track in my backyard (literally) & being relatively close to the Cable/Hayward “CAMBA” trail systems.  With really no shortage of MTB racing opportunities within a 1-2hr drive all summer long.  However my opportunities for ‘cross racing get squeezed due to geography & it seems like everyone that’s turning wheels & pedals in the summer around here is picking up guns & shooting forest chickens in the fall.  Needless to say I digress…

So to get into some more frequent ‘cross racing it takes a bit of effort.  Generally it’s 3+hr drive to the U.P. of Michigan or the 3 1/2-4hrs to the Twin Cities.  Head east or head west… toss a coin.

The U.P. has got a super great weekend series and community like no other for cycling.  Dedicated folks that I very much admire.  The MN series…ah, plenty of good there too – they run under USA cycling rules & regs so -- their races trump others because valuable sanctioned point systems are needed IF a person plans on racing the big State/Regional/National races.

So far I’ve taken in the Lowes Creek Cyclo-cross race in Eau Claire in early Sept.  A stab at the Madison USGP of cyclo-cross right the weekend after Chequamegon Fat tire.   Then a MN series ‘cross race the EC3 at Elm Creek. 

Tuesday night, opportunity presented itself to be in the Twin Cities and take in the Tues Night Cross races.  Nice point possibilities & two races in a night.

Got there with plenty of time to spare, with a questionable rear tubeless Michelin Mud 2 tire, I swapped it out for file tread Bontrager CXO.   It began the start of good going bad…

After some warmups, it was time to line up in first race of Masters 35+ race.  At the “go” Doug Swanson, in his like only 3rd time on the bike in… over 3 months, took to the front like only he knows how.  All heart… even without the legs.  Gotta love it.  I found a reasonable place in between 2nd & 5th with Jesse Reints following. 

All is going well & probably 2 laps in Jesse decides to go to the front when Doug falls off the pace.  Jesse grabbed a decent lead & I was left to follow with Oliver V. &  two others.  About the 3rd lap I feel my newly place Bontrager getting low & one bump on the course later it’s rim riding time for me.   Ugh. 

I go to the pit area, grab my pump try to re-inflate. It won’t take & no tubes with me.  So mid race I walk to my car to get my questionable Michelin 2 which I knew would at least inflate so I could finish & then be ready for race #2 -- the Cat 1/2/3 race that started immediately afterwards.  As I re-enter the course… only a half lap into that, the Michelin blows off the rim entirely.  Crap!! 

So besides blowing a good opportunity in a the first race, I’m in a pickle to even be able to do the 2nd race.  Get to the pit area & see the other guys finishing when my savior of the night comes along.  Jeremy Ames – Angry Catfish racing, tells me to check with the support area for a spare wheel, but to no avail.  He then says  “Hey, you can’t have driven all this way & not get in a race.  Here I’ll pas son racing, take my wheel.”  How friggin’ cool is that!!   Thanks a million Jeremy!  Now not only is it a rear wheel… it’s a tubular with a Challenge Griffo tire.  My first time ever riding a tubular. 

I can almost say I had an epiphany – wow!!  I had no idea skinny tires could grab & go around a tight corner like that!  I was a kid in candy store.  The course had plenty of twists, turns & cornering so it was a great opportunity to experience the benefits of tubulars.   Amazing considering what my experience had been previously on regular tires.  On certain courses those tires or tubulars can make all the difference….. I gotta get me some!!

Though a back row start on the race, I got a nice welcome from Pete of the Crossniacs & moved into the top 10 quickly into the start.  Sorta got stuck in with Brian B. & Owen T (nice SS MTB effort).  We traded things back & forth, but a mistake or slip here & there & gaps would open up.  We caught up & passed two riders a 2nd or 3rd lap in on a race course that was quickly disappearing due to the daylight waning.  I had a barrier & clip in issue & it gave them the gap to get away on me.  I think I finished 7th or 8th?

All in all, for the night the bad luck turned into good opportunity thanks to the generosity of a friend.  Given the situation, happy to have tried the TNC races, a real nice thing you guys in MN have going there.  Great to see.

Once we all coughed the cold air out of lungs it was onto Pizza Luce with Jeremy & later catching up with Chris Ames of Freewheel.  Sure nice to finally meet Chris, a great guy & good conversations we had.  Hope opportunity presents itself again in future seasons to do some more TNC!!

DeerFly Chase 2012

 

It what could soon become a favorite for MTB racers not yet ready to hang up the bike after the Chequamegon Fat Tire or ride circles & jump cyclo-cross barriers, the 2nd annual 2012 DeerFly Chase at the Hickory Ride Trails this past weekend was held under weather & trail conditions nearly unequivocally to anything else this season. 

The trails located  just north of Eau Claire in the New Auburn/Bloomer area hold great variety, challenge & fun.

As those of you who know me, it’s not out of the norm for this father of four, that getting to a race on time presents it own challenges.  But I actually rolled into the parking area with 15 minutes to spare before the 10am start.

Without anything more than a ride through the parking lot & accepting the good natured razing from the race director, Noah Michaelsen, about my timeliness & from racing c0hort Nate Lillie.   It was onto the start line.   Taking a survey racers, notably missing was last years champ Chad Sova, having moved further down state.  Leadout train machine Mike Johnson, not to mention Nate Lillie down & out due to crash earlier in the week and the vastly improved Matt O’Meara, who so graciously took over child care duties so his better half could give the race a go. 

Even so as I lined up I was  greeted by expert racer & top 40 Chequamegon finisher Mike Wenzel.  With Mark Foslien, and Kevin “I didn’t know he had a bike with more than one gear” Roytek  not far behind among many others.

A 4 wheeler rollout on pavement couldn’t be long enough for legs that’d been idle in a car for the previous 2+hrs.  Must have been just over a mile when the course finally turned a corner onto gravel & the racing hammer got dropped.  Mike Wenzel quickly jumped up to the front to lead up a climb that started to separate everyone.  Mark F. followed and I turned over to Kevin R. to basically ask if that’s something we should be catching up to.  His response to speed up was my sentiments exactly & shortly after the top of the hill it was down to a group of four of us. 

Mike leading followed by Mark, Kevin and me bringing up the tail. 

It continued on this way with Mike mostly staying at the front & Mark going ahead from time to time.  I was still waiting for my legs to feel better & was more than content sitting in for a while longer.

When we hit a couple small rolling climbs I felt modestly comfortable going to the front, to do my part & knew the first section of single track couldn’t be too much further away.

 

Knowing how strong Mike was at the Chequamegon 40 burying me on the Fire Tower climb at that race.  I was hoping his technical skills were rusty.  And seeing him struggle just a bit to take a few of the gravel corners it gave me added incentive to get into the single track first & maybe start getting a gap before the race came back out into the open sections.  I wasn’t sure what Mark was capable of …..& Kevin?  Well, I think his momma must of given birth to him on the trails so it was gonna be wishful thinking if it was the last time I’d see him in the race.

Sure enough, upon hitting the single track, it’s said how fast gaps can open up and it’s true.  I accelerated quickly and not far in I soon had a nice 6 or 7 second gap on Mike and it was growing -- so I settled in at a more comfortable pace.  However minutes later an opening in the trail later allowed for Kevin to pass Mike & Mark and the hunt & chase began. 

I rounded a 180 degree turning section the course to look back and see Kevin steaming up the trail.  Ok, decision time…. ease up and work together or hammer down again and make him work hard to catch up.  I foolishly choose the later.  I don’t know what I was thinking.  It wasn’t like this early in the raceI was gonna ride him off my wheel.  The only guy I was gonna wear out in the process was myself.

Even so, I pressed on.  At times he’d sound closer, and then it’d be silent or on some turns and corners I catch a glimpse of him.  Seemed like a constant 7-10 second gap.  He was a both a shadow and a mechanical sounding demon bearing down after me.

I was doing my best to ride smoothly and not take chances, at one point I thought I was able to finally get rid of him… uh, not the case, he later told me it’s just that he dropped a chain & that what delayed him.  Ugh.  Finally after a few more miles he eventually climbed onto the back of my wheel. 

Far be it from me to hold back a superior technical rider so I gave him the pass & he lived up to what everyone told me about him.  He took to the front like a man possessed…. I’m mean, seriously…. look at this picture below, can you honestly disagree with me?  The look in the dude’s eyes?  He’s hell bent on ripping my legs off & only then content after beating me with them.

Kevin’s got a style of riding that is effortless, subtle and smooth.  He’s carves a trail like a hot knife through butter… and yet flows along it like that same stick of butter melting on popcorn.  One minute you see him, the next he’s gone. 

Disappearing in the shadows of the trees, with the only hint of his presence?  The particles of dust lingering in the air as he’d power out of the corners.

 

Chasing… & chasing…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was like one of those old Looney Tune cartoons with the skunk chasing the cat, except the other way around.  I was the the Cat scrambling for dear life to hang onto the easy going Pepe Le Pew.

 

Uh…What is this dude’s kryptonite? …cause I gotta find it & find it soon…

 

 

 

The course had changes from the previous year and while it was single track intensive in the first half I wasn’t sure what to expect in the second half.  More of the same & I might be checking out & saying adios to Kevin.  However the course is broken up nicely and has ski trails & some gravel roads in the middle of the race before getting into some last remaining sections of single track. 

On the open sections Kevin & I figured we were probably clear of any chasing racers and got to chatting a bit while still trying to keep up the pace.  For a guy who mostly rides a single speed, he didn’t forget when & how to shift gears.   He pulled a lot of the open sections & where I could I tried to trade off & go to the front.

When we entered the last sections of single track some of it was old & some newly built.  At a particular tight section I had to joke with him as it was definitely made for 26” wheeled bikes as even his superb skills were being put to the test.  He was on a 29er hardtail, I on the full suspension 29er.

On the newly created single track, my full suspension helped a lot to soak up the bumps while Kevin was bouncing around abit more.  At one point he took an alternate path & told me to go to the front. 

It wasn’t shortly after that I could of sworn on a switchback we’d just come through, I’d seen a rider, probably Mark F. behind us clear as day not more than 20 seconds behind.   Again Ugh.  It’s never fun racing, thinking you’ve got an “out of sight, out of mind” gap only to find out it’s not the case.  So whether it true that Mark was that close or just where the different sections of trails come together I’m not sure.  But it gave me all the motivation I needed to keep the hammer down & I told Kevin I wasn’t gonna let us blow the lead we had. 

When we finally came out of the final single track it was a few more miles to the finish but in mostly open ski trails.  I figured Kevin would be plenty ready to go -- after all I was fully convinced he could have been whistling Dixie & filing his nails all the while following me in the previous sections of single track in how easy he makes it look when he rides it.

I asked him if he wanted to trade off taking turns at the front every 30 seconds or so, but sorta rolled his eyes & gave me the you’ve gotta be kidding look.  Nonetheless, I went to the front, did the ‘ole “making friends with the pain-cave” and began to turn over the cranks with what I had left.  Kevin did a big share of work in the race so I wasn’t gonna mind taking over now & just let the chips fall where they would at the finish. 

With 2 miles to go I looked back and Kevin had fallen alittle bit back.  I was just looking forward to getting to the finish line, so I pressed on and slowly the lead increased to about 20 seconds.  With a mile to go, I saw the smiles & cheers of Nate Lillie & Matt O’Meara at the top of hill yelling at us.  Quite amusing when I used to seeing them grimace in the races with me.

Anyways, I was also getting some slight cramps & backed off alittle to save myself in case Kevin mustered a come back.   But it wound up that I could enjoy the final mile cruise  into the finish line.  Seeing my wife, Kate & the kids cheering.  Also getting to appreciate the far from easy win with how hard Kevin pushed it throughout.   

Kevin followed in with 2nd, followed by Mark, Mike & a really good ride by Adam Tripp.  Lot’s of racers came through with smiles on their faces so I gotta assume it was enjoyable to all regardless of results.

After a quick cool down & catching up with some of the other racers, it was off to the post race gathering for food & beverages.  I don’t know the formula as to why, but some races/event, just really “have it”.  The DeerFly Chase is one of them.  A really great event with a low key friendly atmosphere.  Consider putting it on your calendar for next year, I pretty sure you won’t be disappointed.   Lot’s of thanks for the people and sponsors that worked so hard to make it come together.  Noah Michaelsen & co, my appreciation goes out to you for making a great event that so many people could enjoy. 

How many racers can pass you in….37 seconds?

Let’s say you’re racing the Chequamegon 40 and 15+ minutes (or 5miles) into the race going up one of the first hills on the birkie trail, you drop a chain?  It takes approximately 37 seconds to render it free from the derailleur jockey pulleys, shift the front derailleur so it can be re-worked onto the chainring in front, and run the bike up the hill to jump back on & start pedaling. 

Answer?  Way toooo many.  But for quantitative purposes?  Approximately just over 100.

It wasn’t the kindest start to a super fast Chequamegon 40 this year, but a card that can easily be dealt to anyone.  You jump back on, find your pace and move up as far as you can given the freight train of 30 super fast guys you were part of is long, long gone. 

Ah well, the self imposed pressure to perform well sorta gets tossed out the door and it liberates you to have a little more fun with the race. 

That’s what I did & for the first time ever I didn’t precipitously bonk out in the Chequamegon 40 – even road up into the top 40 before finish 50th overall.  Racing feels a lot better when you’re not completely dead at the end.  I gotta try that strategy more often.

Hope to have more of recap & a few good stories along the way later.  Plus for the newbies to power training or numbers geeks(myself included) – got some wattage & power numbers to share from this race & comparisons to some others…. now just to find the time to write it up….

Great seeing so many of you out there today!  Thanks for making big events like the Chequamegon Fat tire festival as special as they are.

Chewing the “Post” Fat, on the Pre Fat…

I think many of us have our favorites when it comes racing…  PreFat MTB race held in Seeley is probably mine. 

Seems like more than a full week just about flies by before getting around to writing about it.

So how did the day go from the viewpoint I saw?  Well for once I was way early for a race—I know most of you can now fall down & drop dead upon hearing that, the Apocalypse must be upon us.  I know, I know.

Got to catch up with Dennis Liphart at registration, great guy our area who’s a huge supporter & encouraging of all things biking.  Any community would benefit from his enthusiasm.  He was looking to tackle the Pre-Fat Expert race – but not on his new geared bike, a mishap of sorts had him on his Single speed wondering if he brought the right knife to the gun fight.

Later, caught up with & did my pre-ride warm up with the notorious & well liked former Pro road racer, Garret Peltonen.  Growing a beard & going to school these days in the medical field.  It was really great to catch up with him.

The 10:30 start time was actually 10:45, so the 40minute warmup was probably more pre-race riding than I’ve done in all my races in the last 3 yrs… combined.  The ride fortunately calmed down the nerves I normally don’t have at any race.  Been struggling with some low level health issues in August that have been alittle bit of an Achilles heel in racing & training but was hopefully they’d be passing through by now & I could get back to racing as capable as I am at it.

The line up at the start, had a good share of familiar faces one expects to see, some from the Twin Cities, others from Seeley/Haward,  & Duluth.   But also from the Eau Claire central WI area had some good representation with Nate Lillie, Matt O’Meara, Aaron Sturgis, to name a few.  Noteably missing two regulars & favorites, in Scottie Kylander Johnson (opting out this year) & 2nd place finisher last year Todd McFadden (out with torn ligament/tendon in his thumb from a crash in last weeks Duluth DirtSpanker). 

So with Hollywood Henderson & Tim Swift leading the charge at the front with the sound of the horn the race began.  It’s a pavement rollout with one sharp corner, but seems to go smoothly each year, as people settle in & start a moderate climb up old OO.  It’s a great way to start a race… in fact if I had my wish, every MTB race should start with a hill (& every road race should end with on – give me an “Amen” if that’s true?) 

Stuck in the middle of the pack swallowed up by riders moving up on the sides, I finally back out to the left side due to some kindness & generosity of two other riders.  It was just in time as we neared the last section of pavement that included the final incline.  It’s then I followed up (I think) Lonnie Sauber before passing him & leading things to the top & onto the gravel.  I looked back expecting TJ Woodruff, Chad Sova or Pat Lemiux to come around & start pushing but everyone seemed content with the pace & following me the next few hundred yards to the super fun, crazy fast downhill ski trail sections!  Seriously, there’s no other race I’ve been in that has stuff like this, it’s sorta double track wide but ridiculously fast if you drill the pace.  The past two years I’ve taken the opportunity to get to the front just to lead it through that section.  I know the hills & corners well & feel safest doing it that way.  And on a full suspension 29er you can point the machine & just drill it.  Each time it’s rewarded me with a 20-40 yard gap & gotten me there safely. 

Once the crazy fast downhills are out of the way,  I’m hoping someone else come around to help out.  TJ Woodruff eventually showed up with Pat Lemiux glue to his wheel & lead a good a majority of the next section of the race.  I suppose depending on where a person was in the race the pace was right on.. or right on the hurt-o-meter.  I was even with a few hard digs really comfortable.  To the point I had to keep holding back from going around Pat & TJ to get to the front.  It was a long race still & though I wanted to up the speed at the beginning.  The other front guys appeared content keeping the pace modest & let the future single track sections determine when the real racing starts.

I looked over my shoulder only once or or twice after we crossed Old OO & took on the long winding steep climb at this point to guess at maybe there being 8-10 in the front group.  I never road any further back than 4th & trading time at the front with TJ on & off.   Pat sat in patiently which I respect for the smart riding he was doing, I presume that’s what it was, because I couldn’t believe it was taxing him too much.  I was only alittle bummed at this point as I felt if everyone  in the lead group pitched in, provided they could.  We’d of shed everyone else & had a very comfortable gap the rest of the race.  As it stood though, outside of a few digs by TJ, my wish wasn’t being granted at a consistent speed I would have liked.   A couple digs followed by easing up.  So it was out to Thannum Fire lane road with a dirty half dozen racers.   Myself, TJ, Chad, Pat, followed by Dan “I almost got in a fight with Todd McFadden last year at the Pre-fat” Schuetz, & to be expected Garret Peltonen. 

I took my case to TJ riding next to him on Thannum & asked him for a favor to pick up the pace, as I would very much enjoy a bigger gap at the beginning of the race -- but he just seemed to contently smiled back at me, confident in his race that things would be settled out in the single track to come. 

Through Thannum we road & a quick peek back had no one in sight behind us, Kate would later tell me the first lap we had 20-30seconds on the next group.  We would cross back into ski trails & water handoffs before finally getting to the single track. 

It was here I heard voices in my head echoing what every racer should do before an important race… if you’re bike is “starting” to have problems a few days before the race – they’re not going to go away during the race.  Even if it’s a little thing, don’t try to work around it & milk those parts for alittle more wear.  Fix it.  My chain & rear derailleur had been shifting hard in the previous pre-rides of the course.   Not dropping but not sounding right.  XTR cables & less than 6 weeks of riding on a brand new bike in mostly good weather… how the hell could the cable need replacing?  Sometimes…. they just do. 

So that leads into what happens next, as we push into the single track with TJ & Chad in the lead, Pat following & me just behind.  After a quick dip down, a steep incline ensued & in shifting to easier gears by chain gets lost between gears & I have to stop & run up the hill after letting Dan & Garret by.  Funny I could run the twisty hill trail as fast as they could bike through it.  So I got back on to them only to have Garrett crash on the two narrow tree section I’d warned him about in the pre-ride… guess he was swearing “Damn Swanson!”

I worked to catch back onto Dan but he got just enough of gap that grew from 7 seconds to 15seconds,  to out of sight.  But never more than 30 seconds according to Kate. 

Whether I had to or not, I decided to put it in conserve mode & ride my own race at the point.  Hoping to keep just out of Garrett’s sight & maybe catch back up with Dan.  Well….

That went on for like  50+minutes – riding solo in 5th place.  Once in a great while I’d hear Garrett’s howling brakes but for the most part I was riding comfortably trying to stay smart & not blow up.

With about 3 or 4 miles to go & entering more single track, I first heard the shifting of gears behind me as Adam Swank in Swankster style was making his crazy hard push for the finish, pulling along Matt O’Meara…. Great, just great! 

Riding that long solo you start making plans for the finish you might have.  Though it’s undoubtedly a goal of mine to win the Pre-Fat, I’d never seen a 5th place finish before so that in itself was rather alluring given the struggles I’d been feeling in training & my previous races this month.

Eventually Adam catches me & ever so politely asks for the pass which I willingly provide at least he’d give me a wheel to follow as long as I could hold it.  Matt would then catch onto the back of me.  After a brief bike mishap by Adam that slowed us up, he got back on the turbo boost & was 10 seconds up  on us.  Matt whether he had the gas in the tank or not to chase Adam stayed glued to my wheel.  Matt’s come along way this year (Scottie Kylander Johnson were talking about it later at Rivers) really upping his game & results.  I knew with him sitting behind me it could be a tough one to the finish. 

So I worked to keep the pace reasonably high & called out spots on the trail to use momentum & for tight corners in case we had the opportunity to catch back up to Adam.

Finally with under a mile to go, Matt graciously asks from behind, “So… any idea of how you want to finish this?”   Ah, a voice of reason!  We don’t have to keep up this nut kicking contest all the way to the end.  Nice.

To which I responded “Well…. a sprint on the long gravel section to the finish?”  And there it was agreed.  Garrett too far back to catch us we eased up the final hill & coasted down the winding section that lead to the old gravel railroad grade.  With me taking the left & Matt taking the right we got everything on the bikes locked out, forks, suspensions, then we talked over a starting point, .... that “women in red” standing on the left side.  Get to her, then it’s “go time”. 

Ramped up the speed, staying even til we got to here & then we both laid it out there.  I initially pulled up about a foot ahead of Matt & was holding it.  I was mushing around in the sand more than I would have liked, it was the only point where I got to thinking “Shit, I should have remember what Gaier told me & the pre-rides showed me, stay to the right where the ground was more firm.” 

Whether that really mattered or not,  I was giving everything I had in the moment when Matt pulled even again & then just started to pull away like he had another gear.   Either way at least we were giving the crowd a show.  I didn’t feel my power coming back so I eased up & watched Matt finish a very fine race getting 6th on the day & myself 7th, bittersweet considering where I was most of the race, but still a best ever result in the Pre-Fat.

Crossing the line, I was glad to be done & cheered in the other guys as they came rolling in Kevin Roytek, Nik Anikin, Nate Lillie, Tom Gaier, Aaron Sturgis, Tom Meyer & more.

Caught up with the leaders to see how their races finished out, outside of TJ, Chad & the rest of us weren’t really that far apart.  Those two have some great single track skills to go along with big engines.

Thanks to the kids for cheering for me & Kate for some well timed water bottle handoffs & counting out the time gaps.  Many & much appreciation!

Afterwards it was off to the kids races, & at the same time seeing my friends that did the 15 mile sport race & hearing their stories.  Good stuff.  With my two oldest competing --  Marshall was in the 8 & under category, he got 1st which was pretty cool, edging out a classmate he knows from school.  And Hope in her first real bike race did pretty well herself. 

Went to the awards, collected some prize money & a raffle item or two.  Which I gotta say they do very well in that department.  I don’t think it’s often a person doesn’t come away with something of equal or greater value to what they paid for an entry fee.  Plus it’s a charity/fund raising race.  How great is that?  Win-win for everyone, great sponsor & donors.

So with another Pre-fat in the books, it’s time to consider Copper Harbor for racing over Labor day weekend but that’s sorta up in the air.  Otherwise getting a jump start on Cross racing at Lowe’s Creek Sept 8th as a warm up before lining up for another nut busting installment of the Chequamegon 40 Sept 15th. 

I’ve got power files to share & yet untold stories of races this year I hope to get around to.  Been busy with work, life, kids, not to mention building some addition miles of custom single track here in Ashland.   Ever in the area?  Get in touch, Come check it out.  Might just pleasantly surprise you.

Duluth Dirt Spanker

Jumped back in the singletrack MTB racing this weekend.  Passing on the always fun & flat U.P./Calumet Great Deer Chase on Sat.  I went the other direction with MN MTB Series for the MTB-ing Duluth style – the climbing & narly-ness that makes up the Duluth Dirt Spanker on the recently Mother Nature landscaped hills of Mont Du Lac. 

Great weather & good to see so many familiar faces.  The five lap race primarily tested ones ability to climb & to descend.   Took a brake check filled first lap which put one’s life if not health & well being in jeopardy on a few occasions and tuned it into 3 solid laps to follow with Adam Swank & Nicoli Anikin in tow.

Don’t get me wrong the Dirt Spanker is a fun course, just a different kinda fun, in terms of the skills & abilities one brings for it.  Flow sorta gets thrown out the window in places & it’s a dance of sheer finesse with raw power. 

After riding for so long you note that many trails just develop their own identity.  Whether it’s the U.P of MI, or CAMBA or Seeley or Duluth or Lowe’s Creek in Eau Claire or  9 mile in Wausau.  I’m partial to my own back 40 trails here at home & what CAMBA & Seeley bring but could also hang out a sign “Have single track?  Will ride.”  So when you talk to others who’ve experienced the different trail systems they just “get” what you are talking about.

I work on a play by play later, whether’s Mike Bushey’s vote of confidence at the beginning, seeing Charlie Farrow barrel up the crazy steep climbs on single speed (how the hell do ones go about picking a gear for a race that’s all up & all down??  Charlie, help me with that one?)  or finally catching up to Matt O’Meara for the first time this season. 

Though for a race I put on the calendar to have fun with, it came out pretty descent(pun intended).  9th in the Elite men’s field despite running outta gas on the 5th lap.  

Up Next… the Seeley Pre Fat

Ore to Shore Road kill….

I’m not sure if that title references that poor chipmunk who’s demise was sealed when he scampered into the paved road shortly before the half way mark of the O2S as Ryan Krayer, myself, Todd McFadden & Matt Colligan road past….. or what I felt like after that race was done.

Oh don’t get me wrong I feel bad for the chipmunk, in fact I believe McFadden later commented I had gotten him flatter than a pancake, quick death via Bontrager 29-1’s… there could be worse ways to go.

For a race I know & love very well, it had to be my hardest effort there. 

With accommodations from Tom C. & Marie the evening before & a shortcut to the race start, it was looking like a good day – I don’t think I’ve ever got to a race 45minutes before the start.  The warmup went smoothly, the preferred start area is large enough not to have to fight for position or get there too early.  Seeing a great number of familiar faces it was go time in short order.

The first couple miles went pretty smooth, did see & avoid a crash.  Just wanted to keep pushing towards the front.  Did a modest job of being in the top 40 or so before things got squeezed into a tighter group, not ideal but something I figured I could work thru. 

Up what’s referred to as the Luge hill, the heartrate maxes out but for the most part the body absorbs that effort well enough.  Bummer part though when I got to the top a split to the top 13 or so had formed with two guy in front of me falling back.  I had one of those I’d better put catch that kaboose efforts.  I knew it was catchable the hard part was deciding to kill all those matches getting too it.  Probably a half to 3/4’s of a mile later I was on it.  And man, was it going on fast.  I don’t remember the front group going that hard every opportunity they had.  In fact at the 3 mile mark of the race… I’m like “shit, this might be a hard, hard day”.   I think 6 or so had gapped off the front & so I was in 2nd group of 9. 

The first  fast guys I knew & recognized were Tyler Jenema & Kyle Sarasin from the U.P.   Impressive as it’s course for power & generally kinder to the larger riders, but they were hauling really good.  What I didn’t know was Todd McFadden was in that group & Tom Carpenter as well.   Content to have held on I stayed at the back of group, moving up was tough, not impossible but I always felt I could move up if I had to.

Get to Ishpeming & the two group are still pretty close to each other & then it’s back through & around dirt 4 wheeler trails & over railroad tracks.  Strange seeing guys wipe out in the weirdest sections.  Tyler Jenema had an impressive flip of his bike when his crank arm stuck a rock or dirt mound.  Not much later Kyle went down in the sand… funny thing, I’m looking at him while it happened & thinking bummer, guess I gotta be careful on that corner & it isn’t a second that I pass Kyle I’m down to, scrambling to get back on the bike.  It was like some sand monster kicked the tires out from underneath the bikes.

Anyways, the three of us had to hoof it pretty hard over next to a long railroad grade to get back to that main group & work our way to the rocky power line sections of the course.  Again gaps would seem to open & close as some riders would have the juice, go hard, then pay the price & have to slow down to recover as others were just recovering & then pushing hard.  It was at this point another one or two riders joined from behind, but also I caught up to Tom Carpenter & saw he was staying determined but having a rough time of it.  The guy was gritting it out pretty darn good though. 

It’s always hard to remember the exact sequence of things with these races in the early stages.  So I always reserve the right to have things alittle out of order in my story telling. 

At some point for the second time in the race a significant gap opened up in that group of 9, probably 15 seconds or more.  I was at the back, Tom C was there Matt Colligan too as I recall.   It’s one of those calls you have to make to close it or conserve & roll with what you got.  I usually opt for the close down when conditions are even remotely in my favor for doing it.  This happened shortly before Misery Hill, which in hindsight, maybe I should have or not have tried to do it. 

At Misery Hill everyone walks up a pretty steep climb for maybe a minute or more.  It’s funny because the race goes into slow motion at that point.  All these fast bikers all of sudden looking pokey & slow walking bikes up a hill, not running, walking – looks like it’s a coffee break.  Now don’t get me wrong everyone’s hurting & it’s hard to do it’s just an observation.

I went up the hill fine as did everyone with me, only it’s still pretty nasty rocks & trails once your over the top.  It’s important to get to the top of the hill still with decent energy & be able to work thru the technical riding that follows. 

I didn’t jump back on the bike fast enough, forgetting that the trail over the hill is nasty & the two guys in front of me got a good gap & rejoined the 5 in front.  The trail got worse & my movement through it wasn’t doing me any favors to close the ground.  Once you’re through it, it’s back to flatter faster stuff, but the gap as I counted down was like 15 seconds.  I had only Matt C. my tail & no one else that I saw.  Hoping we could work together I asked him to come thru to pull & help but he kept saying he was at his limit & couldn’t help. 

There’s some 22-25 miles or more left still at this point I think – & not I’m isolated & the guy I’m with isn’t willing or can’t really share any of the work load.  Sitting in 20th. Ugh.  The last money spot & trying to hold off whatever group big or small might be chasing from behind. 

We down swoop down on Nate Guerra as he falls back from that front group that we keep within site at times.  But the poor guy looks like he’s hit the Mother of All Walls & had nothing left in his tank. 

We get out to pavement again, Matt comes through to pull alittle but just doesn’t feel he can put out the juice we need.  Eventually from behind we have Ryan Krayer latch on, he recovery for a bit & then goes to the front & does a big share of the pulling, trading off with me.  Eventually we bear down on another guy… low & behold it’s Todd McFadden… only with a low & wobbly rear tire!

Not much later that chipmunk episode occurs… I think at least we all got a much needed laugh & “Oooowww, got him!” at that point. 

At 21 miles to go the course move to new pavement & some longer climbs, Ryan & I trade off a bit until roaring from behind comes Mr.-I-could-ride-my-bike-a-million-miles-a-day-&-still-love-it Chris Peariso.  Go figure, I’d last seen him drop of the pace 10 miles previously, but with his 100miler racing background if you slow down at all, there’s a good chance he’ll be back. 

Chris pulls us up some hills & does some really great work.  I think I said on one hill “Gee, Chris must be nice being 139lbs climbing this hill!”

Just before that last pavement climb, I led into it at the bottom & didn’t have the effort left me to hang with Ryan, Chris & Matt to the top & let them go.  Todd had stopped to air up & was no where in sight & so started the final 17-18 mile march likely solo to the finish. 

Keep thinking stay steady & in control & hopefully a big train of riders won’t catch up before the end.   With 13 miles or less to go the along comes a guy I hadn’t seen in years Tom Bender back from out west, he along with 2 others.   I thought to try & ride with them but it was still more of pace that I could handle.

Finally finally with 8 miles towards the top of rolling climb, yet just after I passed a Kyle Sarisan who was taking his sweet time changing a flat tire.  I heard from behind Todd McFadden, Adam Swank & 3 other guys.  With some encouragement from Todd & Adam I gave it another effort to stick with them & fortunately it worked I was able to hang on & later after the final water hand off from Kate & the kids, pull the 6 of us into the “sand dunes” & just before the last significant steep pitch in the course, Kurbie’s climb or woodchip hill.   5 of us made it up the climb, but over the top Adam, Todd & one other guy were able to surge ahead, another guy slipped, fell over & cramped.   It left me & a bigger tattooed guy in pink bibs shorts (interesting combo) to finish out the ride.  He must have been over the limit as I was at the front the entire time & he held my wheel when he could until we hit the pavement & the final 1+mile to the finish.  I quickly put on 20 yd gap & by the finish no one was around me.  Todd & Adam had caught a fading Tyler Jenema. 

Done, finished, well worked over in that race, coming 30th overall.  Not the smartest race from a tactical standpoint for me -- having been both too much at the front of a group at times & too much of the time at the back.    Maybe Matt C. had it right, knowing what he couldn’t do & just drafting the final 20+ miles  It worked for him riding tails to a 22nd place finish. 

With more & more riders these days working with power meters – one might wonder or try to translate.. what kinda power does it possibly take to finish in the top 30 at O2S hard rock 48 mile race.  Well, just so happens that I raced with my Cycleops Powertap & I’ll be posting up some numbers & breaking them down…. if you’re interested stay tuned…. more to come.

Summer oh, summer where are u going….race recaps

What I tell my clients, I should heed the same advice… in America you can have anything you want… just not everything.  That probably can be said of for one’s time even more so than their material wants. 

Family, some racing, alotta good training, not too mention work & travel have been consuming my days.  Would have loved to put out some good recaps on the races since the Chaindrive.  Some great stories on how the races played out & catching up with so many good friends and fellow competitors.

A quick recap, the ChainDrive back in June was one of those days that shoulda gone well but was just a nut-kicker the whole time.  Still was in a building phase of training so my racing legs didn’t really show up & I struggled to race like I’m usually capable of.  Also, note to self… don’t switch out bikes two days before the race.  Handling single track on a bike you’ve not riding in 10 months isn’t doing you any favors.  Especially if it’s going from a 29er to a 26” model (wanted the full suspension on a chaindrive course that’s prone to being bumpy).

Great time racing with the guys I did however.  A second group formed behind the lead group of 5 guys(Matter, Todd McFadden, Tom Carpenter, TG & Ryan Baumann), we were as many as 6 but widdled down with Ryan Tervo & another guy dropped off after pushing it.  Tervo reminds me so much of me back in the day… lot’s of gas off & early in the race but if he’s like me, he’s prays the race isn’t too long.  Genetic coding?  I don’t know but with time & effort it can be worked on.  Colby L., Kyle S. & Justin Weber was our crew, it split up later on as Justin who’d lead at the front a big part of the time dropped off, I had a front wheel malfunction & we all stumbled in at different time with Nik Anikin coming up from behind to grab a couple spots.

Brought along a great friend for support with the family out of town.  It was really appreciated.

Next up at the end of June was the Eau Claire Firecracker WORS race…more of the same when it came to the results, not having the racing legs and a first lap crash didn’t help matters dropping 20 places trying to shake out the cobwebs of the shaking I took to the old brainbox.  I pulled back a few spots & by lap 3 was back to racing decent but it came at cost at lap 4.  With a rejuvenated Nate Lillie coming around with a Adventure 212 racer Myles Beach passing me back.

Ok… disappointing results often lead to motivation to work harder (hopefully smarter too) and June’s races hadn’t exactly given me the confidence builders I was looking for.   It was onto 3 weeks of lot’s of hard training efforts building on the weakness & tossing in some lower key less performance/result important races. 

Coach Gordy has repeated told me my power #’s in training clearly show I’ve got some top end power to match the top end guys, it’s just being able to extract it during the races, even top end guys have told me with my #’s they don’t understand how I’ve not had some better results. 

Call it blind confidence, having the abilities, not the results… how to pull it together.  With any luck July has been pulling that together for what starts the part of the MTB race season I put the most emphasis on.  The 6 weeks of racing from Ore to Shore to the Chequamegon 40. 

The 3 weeks of training I really hiked up, something Training Peaks  calls a Training Stress Score.  Really cool metric that sorta quantifies your training effort whether is due to shorter interval rides or longer endurance rides.   I tossed in 3 races & a triathlon for good measure.

More on those stories… when time allows and I’d like to get a review out there on the crankbased Quarq MTB power meter & the Cycle-Ops hub based power meter…

In the meantime… gotta get on the bike & work on peaking into the Ore to Shore…

What the Blog?

How time flies between entries sometime… 3 races since & no recaps, lot’s of interesting power data too.  Maybe in this week will the all elusive “Time” will reveal itself in plentitude & allow for some proper writing…

Let this suffice for some recap material for the moment… the Fantastic Four at the Keweenaw Chain Drive….

Colby “The Thing” Lash, Justin “Mr. Fantastic” Weber, Kyle “Human Torch” Sarasin & ……me - The Invisible Woman – as I kept disappearing yo-yoing off the back most of the day.  (That’s what swapping bikes 29'” for 26” the two days before the race will get you.)

Too bad they didn’t get a picture of Kyle & his show-boating on the Aunt Flo’s jump.  The dude was catching some crazy air & kicking out his rear tire!!  Awesome stuff, if I could have only had on a Go Hero camera! 

Nice racing guys!!

Cable Off Road Classic…

…just getting back from a hot May morning of MTB racing.  While there are WORS & MNSCS races on the backside of the weekend, most people I talk too will say it’s hard to pass up the Cable Off Road Classic.  It’s got a mix of everything and amazing terrain to work with.

Maybe a better race recap later, managed an 8th place overall finish today.   A few questionable race choices otherwise came in on respectable terms for the first race of the season. 

So great to see so many friends & familiar faces.  I remember 10 yrs ago going to these races and thinking… damn, I don’t know a soul here.  Now it’s the other way around, like who I don’t know to say Hi to or catch up.  It’s a great sport in that regard, many great friendships you get to build.  Today.. let’s see, saw…Nate (I’m-the-sucker-who-didn’t-race -today) Lille, Nate Klump, Tom Carpenter (& Marie), Chad Sova, Mike Bushey, Todd  & Di McFadden, Scottie & Sara Kylander Johnson, TG, Charlie Tri, Marcy Madson, Jamie Sajdak,  Brian Hammond, CJ Faulkner, Barry Tungseth, Tom Gaier, Mike Gregor, Steve Spangle, Cam Wilcox, Bob & Tony Ferrara, Matt Hudson, Bart Rodberg, Kevin(to-big-of-a-single-speed-gear-today)Roytek, Aaron Sturgis, Matt Dale, the Endersbe’s(thanks for the helmets!) and I know I’m still missing a bunch of others.

Interesting for some perhaps in that I had two power meters running on the bike today!  The Saris Cycle-ops SL+ MTB disc brake hub power meter & the Quarq Quatro crankset power meter, each running a separate cycling computer, the Cycle-Ops using the Joule, and the Quarq using a Garmin 500.  The Garmin & the Quarq are recent additions, so I wanted to see how they stack up against each other.  I’ll try to post more on it later but in short, they should have near identical readouts when it comes to distance, altitude, & most importantly power.  However I found the Quarq to be 3-5% higher in the numbers it recorded than the Cycle-ops.  In the 1:46 hr race I  had average power of 243watts & Normalized power of 279 watts with the Quarq -- but 237 & 272 respectively with the Cycle-Ops… next time I’m doing a 20min threshold test… I’m using the the Quarq…bigger numbers.  Only wish that was true & made a guy faster.  Better bragging numbers I guess.

A quick summary or assessment I have about the various Power meter tools/devices.  I like the Cycleops Joule 2.0 head unit quite a bit better than the Garmin 500.   Primarily because one screen carries ever bit of info you want, Garmin 500 doesn’t have the same amount.  A lot of times preference what you are used to.  Previously I didn’t like the Joule because the readout was smaller than the previous Cycleops Powertap computer head unit.  But again you adjust.  Also I like to use the Cycleops Power Agent Software for it’s simplicity, though WKO+ & TrainingPeaks.com are very good once you get around to figuring out how it works.

I like the fact the Quarq is a crankset application vs. wheel/hub application but until the reliability of it’s power numbers is better.  I gotta give the edge to the Cycleops. 

Question?  So is the powertap wheel/hub all the much heavier?  Why would I race it?  Well some would say first it’s not the overall wheel weight that matter most but the moment of inertia of the wheel,  (google or wikipedia it, if you want to know more).  Boils down more to rim weight & what’s rotating.  I’ve got some light Stan’s Crest rims & compared to stock Bontrager RXL’s so I didn’t feel on a course with more rolling hills than outright climbs it would matter that much.   Got the same place as last year… so couldn’t matter that much.  This year on a hard tail 29er (Gary Fisher Superfly), last year on a full suspension 29er (Gary Fisher Superfly 100).   Anyways I’m digressing.

More on the race later…. more on power meters & comparisons later… Gotta get out & enjoy the evening with family & friends, great to see so many of you racing today!!!

Strada Fango recap…

…more than a week later, I’ve finally recovered from all that was the 60 mile spring classic the Strada Fango.

The race organized just a month or more out out from the Apr 29th start went off seemingly without a hitch.  Headed up by Noah Michaelsen & crew of volunteers, through & around the New Auburn forests, countryside.  Rolling hills, rocky 4 wheeler trails, single track, gravel roads & a climb up “Mt Flambeau”?

A late start from home, after our dogs had a run in with a porcupine carcass, a had me making the 130mile drive in record time.  (More on the porcupine carcass story later…)

After a phone call & some txt messages, the host was gracious enough to hold things up an extra 5-10minutes, enough for me to unpack the bike, strap on the camel back & get to the start line.   What appeared to be over 50 riders on Mt bikes and ‘cross bikes rolled off the start for what would be a 4+hr effort.

Being a somewhat informal event, course markings where of ribbon  tapings at critical junctions (& a backup map).   While this made the event manageable in setup, it was effective enough in getting riders navigated through unfamiliar terrain & surroundings.

The initial miles with Noah taking the lead was a moderate, which having no warmup I really appreciated.   It wasn’t until Todd Mcfadden, who we left at the start had caught up and went to the front did things pick up and the parts of the group started to break apart like a meteor entering the earth’s atmosphere.  With myself, Nate Lillie adding in some pulls, it was soon it was down to 8, then ultimately five, with Kevin Roytek and Trevor Koss making the cut. 

It continued that way for the first half hour of the race.  Todd continued to push things especially when the rocky terrain of the 4 wheeler trails gave the advantage to his full suspension 26” Trek Top Fuel.  Trevor would stay pretty close, with Nate & I following.  Kevin would drop just a bit off the pace after a few climbs. 

An hour into the race, Nate had dropped back to Kevin and it was just Trevor, myself & Todd with a minute or more lead.  My day was quickly set to change… after a sandy downhill, I shifted on a rocky section and somehow my chain dropped.  Ugh!  In disbelief initially I see Trevor & Todd roll away, thinking “Man!  I do not want to expend the energy necessary right now to catch those guys.”   The chain didn’t hook up as I was rolling up the hill, so I came to a dead stop, had to dismount and put it on. 

So the chase was on to the two rabbits that had disappear into the forests, around each corner & turn I kept hoping I start to see them.  After 5 or 10 minutes of this I finally caught sight of them & pushed it over a large rocky section and being less than  30yds back, I heard the unmistakable “psssssst”, my rear tire had taken a hit & it was losing air. 

It was then I was lamenting not getting around to putting a followup cup of Stan’s sealant.   Generally I like to do the initial tubeless sealing of tires with CaffeLatex sealant (I like better how it takes care of the small air leaks), but then followup with Stans which does a better job of sealing puncture. 

Within a 100 yards I knew the sealant wasn’t taking.  I’d caught up to Trevor & Todd by then & told them I’d flatted.  That pretty much “sealed” my fate for the day.  I got off the bike started to use the hand pump, in hopes the hole would eventually seal.  (I really dislike putting in tubes if there’s anyway I can without doing it I will)  So 20minutes & a lot of racers go buy, Brian Kelley, Noah, and many other each offer up some help, before I finally decide to pull out the tube and get going again.  Thanks to two guys in particular as I needed an extra patch and a better working pump to finish the job (thanks again, good trail karma out to you).

After that I was on a mission to make it a good hard training effort and see if I could catch anyone as I think every last person had passed me by then.

Though I did catch a few guys from time time to time, there wasn’t going to be a chance of seeing Trevor, Todd, Nate or Kevin again.

The hours and scenery went by not without challenges or frustration that comes from a race that doesn’t go your way and I rolled into the finish about 4 1/2hrs after starting.

After the race, was probably the best part of it to catch up with a lot of guys I’d not seen in several months & get to meet some new faces.  Not to mention hearing other stories of how the race played out for  some of the other racers. 

Definitely a good time had, sure appreciate Noah & all the parties involved in putting it together.  Looking forward to give it a go again next year.

Strada Fango Spring Classic!

60miles…

29 mi Gravel
15 mi ATV
3 mi Singletrack
4 mi Paved
7 mi Ski trail/doubletrack

Right up my alley… I mean dirt road..

Can’t help but love it.  Feeling the groove of the SuperFly & putting on the new Quarq physics to work Sunday 4/29… New Auburn, WI

First race of the season.

Must have morrrre Power!!!

So let’s see where are we these days..…  busted tooth & crown that costs that of a ‘cross bike (dangit!), major wattage increases, and sick every other week… it all ain’t making much sense but it’s appears to be working.  Coach Gordy must be pulling rainbows out of my butt.

So after being a long time PowerTap user, I made the leap over to another power meter device – adding it to the line up.  The Quarq S2275 MTB Power meter… hey, look if it’s good enough for Julian, Jose & Jaroslav, why don’t I give it a try?

I wanted to try a power measuring device for both MTB racing & Cyclocross racing that didn’t involve wheels and a bikes rotating weight.   The crankset based Quark power meter weighs in very competitively with their non powermeter cranksets.  So thanks to many efforts of Whitey at The Ski Hut I’m giving it a go!  Looking forward to it. 

 

Also recently, I had the need & opportunity to deck out an old bike with all new drive train parts.  Don’t think I’ve ever done a full replacement before.   Considering my 2012 MTB is on backorder and may not be in til June it was sorta necessary.  So the ‘08 Gary Fisher Superfly took on a new look… along with the 39/26 Quark chainrings/crankset, I trying out a KMC chain, with new Shimano XT 10 speed derailleur, rear shifter & cassette… From a 3x9, to a 2x10.  It wasn’t bad before but now it feels like new!  I like the 2x10 but for gravel & fire lane roads, just a slightly bigger chainring would be nice.  But considering even the best in the country only use a 39 chainring on single track it should be plenty adequate for that application.