Bringin' Sexy Back!!!

Rounds 3 & 4 of the Columbia series are in the books. Preliminary results are in (drum roll please...). 8th/14 on Saturday and 6th/14 (?) on Sunday. The two days couldn't have been more different. Saturday's course was more high-speed burn, Sunday's course had the always formidable run-up of death. You know, the kind of run-up where the blood in your head is louder than the sound of the crowd? It's that run-up.

Saturday had no pavement at all, but the frozen grassy ground more than made up for it. Temperatures were hovering in the high 20's at the start, low 30's by the end of our race. No mud, no sand, a few good chicanes and hairpins, a little climbing, and three dismounts. I didn't quite feel right, and I was a little jittery at the start. Ate oatmeal for breakfast. I dressed right with bib knickers, wind-proof base and long sleeve jersey. I ran the tires at 34 up front, 38 in the back - a little harder than normal, but it was well worth it on the frozen ground. I had another great start. I clipped in and jumped into 4th place. Next year I need to start on the front row - it's time. I rode in fourth place for about a half-lap, then realized I was going too hard. I had to back off and a couple guys passed me immediately, followed by another couple a little further on. We rode four laps, and the guys up front pushed a hard pace - they will be moving up next year. The remounts were pretty miserable - I stutter-stepped every time. Ridiculous.

Anyway, the race was good, the course was alright (though still way better than a couple years ago). They gave us an incorrect lap count, and I rode to 8th place with the guy behind me waiting to make his move. He never got the chance - 3 laps to go, 2 laps to go, oh, wait, you're done...

I went pretty hard, but I really felt early on in the race I just didn't have it in me. I was jittery, I was missing my remounts, and I figured I really needed to back off and save some for Sunday. On a better note, the photographer for the series came up to me and said I look like Justin Timberlake. Which I totally don't, but I can still bring sexy back. Really.

Sunday, now that was a better day. The course was a little muddy, a lot grassy, a little "pave-y". Three dismounts, one big run-up, and way warmer. Temps were in the mid-40's and a little windy by the time our race started. I wore my skinsuit, arm warmers, short-sleeve baselayer, and a little medium embrocation on my knees and calves. From the gun, I pinned it (as well as I can "pin it", anyway). I was sitting in fourth or fifth by the first turn, and feeling like I was on fire! I really knew, in my heart of hearts, that I was going to crush it today. And you know, I did, until that run-up. Damn, that thing has crushed the spirits of many a fine racer, I believe. In my head, I was running it with big, strong strides. In reality, people were saying "you call that running?" as I shuffled my feet up this thing. Wicked. In fairness, I did tuck away the "you call that running" comment and save it for the next race. I used it with reckless abandon along with a little cowbell and my big plastic horn. My main "rival" dropped out of the race, which really stinks, because this course would have been great for him, and it's always fun to have a direct competitor. Again, we rode 4 laps. I flubbed the first couple remounts, then got into the rhythm and starting nailing them again. Oh, yeah!

Sooooo, I finished 4th in the series, which is totally awesome! One place off the podium, I guess. Last year, same series, I finished 12th. I may be more on track than I previously thought, which gives me more confidence in my training schedule. I still need to do more running, and I still have to get that remount to be second nature, but I feel it is coming together nicely.

Now, more over-training, then a brief rest before Knoxiecross February 7th and 8th. If I can stay in the top half there, I will have had an exceptionally successful season. Who knows, maybe next season I'll change this blog to "Top of Bottom Feeder 'Cross"?

Thanks to Brian Frambach for the photo - http://frambach.smugmug.com/

In the words of Kool-Aid Man, "OH, YEAH!!!"

Well, I believe I have achieved my goal of breaking into the top half. Of 16 starters, I finished 7th. One rider dnf'd, and three got lapped. The course at Chickasaw was great, the competition fierce (the continuing rivalry between me and the guy who finished 8th, well, continued), the ground muddy and the weather unseasonably warm. Who could ask for anything more?

I had my worst start ever (don't expect a witty punchline, I just had a crappy start) when I rode into the back wheel of the guy in front of me and almost went down. We had a long starting straight, so I shook it off and passed a few guys before we swung onto the dirt (and mud!). It was really greasy today - Columbia has had a lot of rain lately. I think I was the only rider in the 4's who didn't hit the deck. There was a great series of little hairpin turns, then another greasy slick area that dropped into the mtb trails. A big log and a few more slick turns later, we came to a muddy runup which was rideable for the first couple of laps, then swung back onto the trails. More muddy, twisty singletrack before a set of barriers, then a nice long paved climb to make you wonder why you got up this morning. From there it was smooth, if not slow, sailing back into the grass and into a weird little "barrier". It was a bunch of landscaping ties, spaced unevenly, that you really couldn't ride. I saw a couple guys endo on them during warmups, and knew it was better to run them. More grass, a couple more hairpins, then threading through some trees back to the start/finish.

Tires: I ran the tubies at about 33/30. I feel like I really have this pressure thing down. Speaking of pressure, I feel like I kept even pressure today. I didn't go too hard at the start and blow up, like I sometimes do. I think I rode my own race today, and I felt really good. I ate well, dressed well, warmed up correctly, and gave it all I had. I'm still having difficulty with the stutter-step, but I'm definitely getting better with it, and can consistently nail the remount at a quick jog.

With any luck, tomorrow should be muddy again. We are expecting rain overnight, which should again work in my favor.

On to Chickasaw #2!

Holiday Training and Untraining

Happy Holidays!

The last time I raced 'Cross was December 7. It was a pretty good race, I felt really good, considering I was sick. So I've had some time off since then. I've tried to keep up with training, but work has been pretty brutal lately. Between that and the holidays, my plan to get ahead of the competition has fallen to pieces. I went out to our little practice course today, and after two hot laps, I was done. So I need to get back on it. Nothing but grains and vegetables and trainer work for me, 'til after New Year. Eyes on the prize!

I picked up a new handlebar, the Salsa Bell Lap, size 42. I had been riding a Moto Ace in a 44cm, it was way too wide. I really like the bar, the difference in size is really noticeable.

While we're on the topic of equipment, this is what I've been riding this year, with a few component highlights. She comes in just over 18 lbs:




52cm Empella Bonfire SL with Carbonfire fork (the death shimmy fork...)
Ultegra brifters, crank, BB, hubs, derailleur
Avid Shorty 6 brakes (if you have these and think they suck, check into the Salsa brake hanger)
Single-ring setup w/42t chainring
Crank Bros. Eggbeater SL pedals
Bell Lap bars
WCS stem
Terry Zero saddle
Ritchey SpeedMax pro tires mounted to Mavic Open Pro rims
*race wheels - Dura Ace w/Mavic Reflex and Vittoria XG tires

This is the steed I will ride to glorious cyclocross victory one day. Or at least to the top 50%.

Not Feeling Good...

After a crazy good Thanksgiving, a busy week at work, and lots of training, here it is: the final race before holiday break. And I'm sick. The plan was to use the first half of the season as "base", train like the dickens through New Year, then get back into the racing stronger than ever. I still think I can do it, and I'm still aiming for a top-half finish, but it will likely not be tomorrow.

Tomorrow will be about limiting loss, which is also good training. I may not win, but I can sure as hell sprint for 21st!!! As cruddy as I feel, I'm looking forward to it. It will be fun to try a new course, a new series, and see how the folks in Georgia do it. I went out today in Peachtree City, and rode the paved trails around there. I found a little church with a couple of railroad ties and a sandy volleyball court perched on a little hill - perfect for run-ups into sand! And perfect going the other way - sand into a downhill remount... actually I'm terrified of the downhill remount, but that's for another post.

Speaking of remounts, I've been practicing them too. Like, a lot. But I can't seem to get rid of the stutter-step. Something about jumping back on the saddle still frightens me, not that I've ever had anything go wrong. I'm good at a slow jog, but anything faster and my self-preservation "put-a-foot-down reflex" kicks in. It's another thing to work on during my mini-break.

I will race tomorrow in Dallas, Georgia, and probably get it handed to me again. But, phlegm and all, I'm still holding out hope. Maybe the course will be a twisty, muddy, slow slog, and work against the roadies. If so, I really believe I have a shot at 50%. Wish me luck!

"Beat the Freak"

I raced the "Beat the Freak" CX race last Saturday. I didn't do so well, but as always, I managed to have fun. I ate right, I dressed right, and I was well hydrated. I definitely ran the right tire pressure - 40 in the back, 37 up front. The course was mainly cold hard grass and pavement, and it was pretty dry. I finished 10 out of 13, but I could have sworn I DFL'd.

The race was held at a high school in Fayetteville, Tennessee. The course started with a nice flat, paved area, dropped into a slight grassy downhill, ran into a sweeping right turn, then up again onto a paved circuit around a football field. The paved portion around the ball field was deceptively steep, and by the fourth lap, was pretty punishing. Then the course ran through some more grass, over a pair of log barriers, then more grass, up a triple set of three or four stairs, more grass, a "death spiral" (seems to be prevalent this season), some grass, a pair of barriers leading to a run-up, and more grass. So, yeah, a lot of grass and pretty fast, overall a pretty good course.

We rode three laps before they told us we had another three to go. I was staying with a couple guys pretty well, and really felt like I was doing well. When we got the 3-laps-to-go count, I decided to ease up for a lap, then I was going to really lay down the law on the last two laps. The plan, of course, was to conserve a little energy, then blow it all in the final two laps. I believed at the time this was a good move, but it turned out to be a big tactical mistake for a couple of reasons, and one I will likely not make again. The officials miscounted the laps-to-go. At the end of the fourth lap, they said two laps to go and I went as hard as I could. I was doing my best to close the gap, but then they called the race after 5 laps. I couldn't have caught him anyway, but I gave it everything I had.

So what did I do wrong? One, I trusted the lap count. Two, I should have kept even pressure on the guy in front of me - I think easing up made it that much harder to get it going again. And when he looked back and saw I was easing up, it gave him the boost he needed to keep going hard.

Next weekend I'm going to Dallas, Georgia for the final race in their series. If luck is on my side, it will be wet and muddy and cold, and the course will be slow and soggy, not grassy and fast. I tend to do better in the slow slogs than the fast courses, so here's hoping. I've been doing a lot of working out off the bike, running, lunges, etc to try and get a little more endurance, we'll see how that pans out!