Racing Post - Crazy Water

Transcription

T H E R AC I NG PO S T
for Cycling Enthusiasts
Complete Coverage
November 2011
of the
Fort Hood Challenge
State Championships
with Winner’s Circle
(Circulo de Ganadores)
Junior Spotlight
Robert Archer
Plan Your Road Trip
Calendar
Page 2
R o a d R a c e s , C r i t s , T T ’s &
Cross
November
5
Maple CX
6
Waylon CX
5-6
Tour de Gruene ITT
12-13 King CX
19
Cowtown CX
20
Escalara Loco
26
TRP Winter Criteriums
Austin, TX
Austin, TX
New Braunfels, TX
Dallas, TX
Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth, TX
December
3
GCCA Cross State
Houston, TX
4
Cross Houston State
Houston, TX
10
Fort Worth, TX
10
Cyclocross Scuffle State
Austin, TX
11
Webberville CX State
Webberville, TX
17
Skill-Based State CX Championship State Houston, TX
18 Age-Based State CX Championship State The Woodlands
January
14
November
1,8,15,22,29 Tuesday Night Cyclocorss
3,10,17 Thursday CycloCross Series
Irving, TX
Plano, TX
December
6,12 Tuesday Night Cyclocorss
Irving, TX
January
TBD
Tr a c k R a c e s
December
No Events Scheduled
January
No Events Scheduled
November
5-6
Bicycles Outback Fallout
5
6 Hours of LOCO
6
McMurtry Madness
12-13 The Tyler Race
19
Pain in the Plain Marathon
Waco, TX
Doyline, LA
Stillwater, OK
Tyler, TX
Palo Dura, TX
December
3
Holidaze Marathon
18
Rocky Hill Fat Chuck’s Revenge
Palo Duro, TX
Smithville, TX
January
7
E2
14
El Paso Puzzler
28
STORM Miles of Dis-Comfort
Warda, TX
El Paso, TX
Comfort, TX
February
4
The Dirty Dozen
11-12 The Warda
25-26 STORM Hill Country Challenge
Warda, TX
Warda, TX
Comfort, TX
Multi-Sport & Adventure
November
5
WWIII.5 Adventure Mud Race
5
Harvest Hop Off-Road Duathlon
19
The Dirty Duathlon Weekend
20
Natural Bridge Caverns Duathlon
Winnie, TX
Tyler, TX
Smithville, TX
San Antonio, TX
December
3
The Survival Race
3
Spartan Race Super Dallas
3
Jingle Through The Woods
Forney, TX
Glen Rose, TX
Ruston, TX
January
No Events Schedules
February
19
Calaveras Duathlon
20
TMS Duathlon
San Antonio, TX
Ft. Worth, TX
Fort Worth, TX
M i d - We e k C r i t
&
Cyclocross Series
November
No Events Scheduled
Mountain Bike Races
With Bicycles From
Trek, Specialized,
Gary Fisher, Felt,
Orbea, Seven and
LeMond,
We Can Fill All Of
Your
Cycling Needs
To u r s & R o a d R i d e s
November
5
NovemberFest Metric Century
5
Tour de Gruene
6
Tour de Donut
12
Wurst Ride
19
Tour de Nac
19
Turkey Roll Bicycle Rally
Houston, TX
Gruene, TX
Katy, TX
New Braunfels, TX
Nacogdoches, TX
Denton, TX
December
3
Mission to Mission
San Antonio, TX
January
1
Happy New Rear
Dallas, TX
28
Bike Through the Forest and the Hills Coldspring, TX
TBD Frost Bike 50
Cypress, TX
February
4
Freeze Your Fanny
Longview, TX
T HE R ACING P OST
PO Box 210066, Bedford, TX 76095
817.282.2994
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Contents
Vol. 11, No. 11
November 2011
Features
4
6
9
10
14
16
18
19
24
26
28
29
30
31
35
39
40
Product Review: Look Keo Blades
Knobbies in Paradise
Texas Forts Tour
2011 Texas State RR Championships
Interbike Run Down
2011 Inaugural Gainesville Disco Bike Tour
The House of Pain
Winner’s Circle (Circulo de Ganadores): David Almanzan
A Sponsor’s Look at Bike Racing
Junior 17-18 Recap: State RR Championships
A Texan in College in North Carolina
State Championships - Skill-Based Cat 2’s
State Championship Road Race: Cat 2 Men - Another View
Crazy Water Cyclocross
Introducing Claire Routledge
Train Hard, Live Easy
The Watt Posse
Regulars
2
8
11
12
13
20
22
23
32
34
36
38
Plan Your Road Trip
RBM Rally Report
Tri Talk
The View From Back Here
B&B Mechanic’s Corner
Love Your Ride
Coach Speak
Sports Nutrition
West Texas Wind
RBM What’s New At The Shop
Junior Spotlight
On the Road, Close to Home
On The Cover: Cat 2 Men at the State Championship Road Race (The Fort
Hood Challenge) in Copperas Cove, TX. Stories on pages 29 & 30
Photo by: Lee McDaniel
Product Review: Look Keo Blade Pedals
By TRP Staff
Let’s face it. One of
the coolest aspects
about writing for The
Racing Post is that
every once in a while
somebody gives you
something – usually
expensive – and says,
“Whaddaya
think?”
Most often, the stuff is
between pretty good
and great. When the
folks at Look handed
me a box of their chromo Blades pedals, I
was not really thinking I
would have my socks
knocked off. Frankly, I
was a bit worried about
what I’d say; I mean
they’re pedals. I needn’t
have
worried.
These are beyond
great – they’re incredible.
In the beginning,
there were Suntour
Supurbes attached to my Detto 74s using Christophe clips and Binda
straps. Eventually there were Duegi shoes (solid wood sole, you
know) and Campy everything else. But then, Bernard Hinault’s 1985
tour victory changed everything. Like everyone else I knew, I purchased a set of Look “clip-less” pedals. From there I went to the
Campy version of Looks which made sense, as they had better bearings and looked better. They lasted till about a decade ago, when I
went to Speedplay. Late last year, a fitting specialist I was consulting,
told me I was spending too much energy holding my feet straight and
suggested Look. Full circle.
I picked up a pair of Look Keo 2 Max and then a pair of Keo 2 Max
Carbons for my two bikes. So, the box of Blades was seen as a follow-on design of the technology I had been using for about a year. I
knew these pedals were lighter, but I really don’t count grams too
much … I mean, I am 190 lbs!
Installing the pedals took a trip to the shop to pick up an 8mm
allen wrench. But soon enough, I had the old ones off and the new
ones on the Moots. I went out for a set of neighborhood loops, just to
see if I noticed any difference from the KEO 2 Max Carbons.
Wow!!! Let me explain. When I first made the switch from using
Speedplays, I found myself searching for my pedal when leaving
lights or at the starting line, but other than this entry issue and shoe
restriction, I noticed no differences in my move from the Speedplays
to the Keo. A pedal was, after all, a pedal, right? But the Blades,
apparent on the very first ride, were big deals.
The redesign of the pedal shape somehow makes a difference –
a big difference. I have yet to miss entry. Now, to be sure, I am more
accustomed to the Looks with every ride. But these are easier to
enter. Using the plain or “walking friendly” Keo cleats doesn’t seem
to make a difference. The pedal is where my foot thinks it should be,
and then “snap”, you’re in. There is no wondering (kind of like a
SRAM downshift), if you’ve engaged. The new Carbon Clip is tight
and positive. This, to me, is a “Wow.”
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THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
More “Wows” ensued
Saturday. The bearings
and the new oversize
spindle are beautifully
matched. I have never felt
a smoother pedal - ever.
I am not saying that my
previous
pedals
felt
rough. If they had, they’d
have been replaced. The
difference was only evident upon riding the Look
Blades.
It’s something
you just realize. They feel
smoother – or maybe the
pedals disappear more is
a better way of saying it.
To get a sense of what
I mean, take a good front
wheel.
Take out the
quick-release and mount
it on a workbench or
somewhere it can spin
freely. Spin it and see
how long it moves. When
it no longer rotates fully,
watch how the stem rocks
back and forth as its weight settles to the bottom. Now, take a “great”
front wheel … maybe those old Campy Record Hubs (loose bearings)
or maybe your Zipp 303 front wheel. Do the same thing. (I used to
do this to see how well I’d serviced my hubs) The difference should
be astounding. THAT’S smooth. This is how the Look Blades felt on
that first ride and still feel today, 200 miles later.
They are light and you’d expect that. The marketing people say
it’s the lightest there is when considering both cleat and pedal. Okay.
I guess this does matter when you think you’re spending energy 100
times a minute. Another feature is the wide surface area of contact
with the cleat. The wider the platform, the more dispersed the pressure is. This should resist “hot spots” better than the normal Look,
which was already an improvement over the old Speedplays.
The Blades are a bit pricey - $289 MSRP for the Chromoly steel
and $329 for the Titanium – but in the grand scheme of things, I would
find it worth it. Pedals, like saddles, are things that move from bike to
bike. I’ve kept the previous decision almost a decade, I can’t see why
I’d change these. Net: The Look Keo Blade is simply “Pedals done
Right.”
Your Bike, Your City
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Knobbies in Paradise
By Kathy Hudson
I didn’t know where I was headed, but I knew I needed to
ride. My options on my girls trip were a day of shopping with the
gals, or a day with my best friend I hadn’t seen since April when
I was here last ~ my bike. The choice was not easy, but I had
already spent most of my W.A.M. (walking around money), so I
opted to slip a $10 bill in my jersey pocket, a credit card in the
event of a breakdown, and a last minute granola bar from the
depths of the pantry.
I headed down my favorite route, through the Carmel 1 gate
and the beginning of 17-mile drive, straight up the first climb in
the Del Monte forest toward Pebble Beach. My hybrid
Cannondale FatBoy decked out with disc brakes and front shock
can take me anywhere I want to go. Today, one of the most
beautiful days of the trip, had me keeping my arm & knee warmers tucked away in my back pockets. The eucalyptus tree aroma
filled my nose. I sped past the pebble beach golf club resort and
stuck to the bike route that actually provided a nice shoulder to
ride on. This dropped me off at the ocean, at which point there
is nothing to do but ride and enjoy the beauty of the wind-swept
rock, sand and ice plants. Tourists are everywhere, cars are
pulling in and out of scenic checkpoints, and I am just on cruise
control for Pacific Grove and Monterey. There, a nice coastal
trail begins and you no longer have to dodge the car dwelling tourists, but it quickly becomes a game in itself to dodge the pedestrian tourists and
bike buggies that line the trail. Most folks make room for the faster moving bikes, but
there is the ever so often stray kid or dog that ventures out at the last possible second to
test your brakes.
Monterey passes quickly, and I enter the newer section of trail through the coastal
sand dunes as I head toward Castroville. I see a sign that reads, “No hang-gliding”.
However, I see plenty of interesting chutes gliding along, hanging out in the wind the
ocean brings in just off the top of the sand dunes. The man in a swing appears to hang
effortlessly in the sky as I ride by on the now empty dune trail. I am passing through an
old section of Fort Ord, which is now being used for public trails, and there aren’t many
tourists here, in fact, mostly locals out for a run or bike ride.
As I roll up and down each dune, I begin to zone out and check my watch and see
that I am an hour and a half into my ride. I start thinking of when I should turn around,
and then I hear the common biker lingo, “On your left”. I bend my head to the left, to see
3 roadies in a pace line, and subconsciously I have already decided to jump on the last
wheel for a draft as they blow by. The riders keep their heads down for a minute or two,
and take turns pulling
through, while I rotate
around off the back,
careful not to interfere.
After a few minutes of
this, the seemingly
leader of the group tells
me that I can take a
pull if I want. I jokingly
tell him I’m not so sure
I want to, but he leaves
the
offer
open.
Instinctively, I pull
through, take my turn
at the front, and we
continue to rotate. A
few rotations later they are introducing themselves, and I find out I am riding with
Dino, John, and Steve (I think). They are out of Watsonville and are on their return
trip home. We talk and ride and the time passes by quickly. Next thing I know
Dino is telling me we are at the end of the trail. The options now are to get on Highway 1 for a short time on the shoulder before finishing the ride
in Watsonville. I tell them this is where I must turn around, now 2 hours into my ride.
I notice 3 people setting up an aid station with coolers and bananas, so I stop to ask if there is a bike race or ride coming through. They confirm that the Bridge to Bridge (from San Francisco bridge to Pacific Grove is coming through, and they are setting up a food & water break for the
riders). They offer me a banana (I must have looked hungry), and water, so I refill my water bottle that I have sucked dry a while ago. Dino had
said I should have a great tail wind heading home, but like most things on the coast do over the course of the day, the wind changed. Instead, I
had a brisk crosswind, so I put my head down and pedaled. I started feeling pretty hungry, so I ate the granola bar that was packed away in my
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THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
back pocket.
By the time I got back into Monterey, my bottle was empty again, and I was feeling the effects of 3 hours on the bike. The wonderful smells of
Fisherman’s Wharf and the other shops overtook me. Plus, I was already jealous of the burger and beer that Dino and his buddies had eaten in
Pacific Grove earlier that he had told me about, so my mouth was watering. I found the last possible stop on the trail before it drops you out on
17-mile drive, and I stopped for fish and chips. I ordered up a coke to go with my feast, and then smiled when some tourists thought I was a local
and asked me for directions to the closest surfing spot they could see from Lover’s Point. I pretended to know what I was talking about, and directed them just down the road. I threw a few of my mega-size order of chips to the seagull that was patiently eyeballing me at the table. The sweet
lady at the counter refilled my water bottle one more time. I donned my arm warmers and leg warmers, and was off again. The fog was starting
to roll in, which helped get some great pictures of the gorgeous coastline along 17-mile drive. I stuck to the scenic route all the way home, even
when the bike route left the road to take a safer way up through the neighborhood. I remembered Diane chanting, “Those dang cyclists” for riding
on the narrow area of 17-mile drive; but it didn’t stop me. The temptation of the beauty on the coastline kept me on route, and I wound my way
back home through all the amazing views and smells of the ocean, trees, succulents, and flowers.
I am blessed to be on my hybrid knobby today, in such a wonderful place as paradise.
VOL.11, NO. 11 THE RACING POST
7
Kiwanis Crazy Kicker
Rally
By TRP Staff
Here we are, in the middle of October, just coming off one of the
hottest summers on record, and I am on fire. The stamina is there for
a 4:40 100-miler, the strength is there for some of Palo Pinto County’s
hills, and the speed is coming from that combination of cooler, calmer
air, good comrades out on the course, and of course, my beloved bike,
wheels, and kit. So, with hope in my heart, confidence in my gut, and
experience in my head, my newly-returned-to-cycling-from-injury wife
and I drove out from Dallas on Friday evening, spent a quiet evening
in Mineral Wells, and drove the 2 miles to the American Legion Post
and City Park for the 8:00am start of the Kiwanis Crazy Kicker.
The Crazy Kicker offers the option for a 65-miler as well as a
100-miler, and knowing how important the hills, the tempo, and the volume can be when applied appropriately, I opted for the 100-miler with
a handful of folks, including Michael Brown. The ride began with just
over 300 riders, and within a mile, the entire team of studs from
Colavita, including newly-crowned Cat 2 State Champ Bryan Reid,
rolled to the front and set a solid pace to try and shell any early stragglers.
The absolute beauty of this course comes from the relentlessness of its rolling, 2-3 minute hills at 2-6%. Three of my favorite race
courses are out here, and over the course of the next 5 hours, we hit
elements of all three. The road to Graford was the first challenge, with
three fantastic 2-3 minute hills at ~4% incline. By the time we reached
Graford, we were down to <30 riders total, but the pace had been pretty hard, and several people were just hanging on.
About 14 miles in, a TON of riders at the front, including the
entire Colavita squad, opted to head left and do the 65 miler. This left
me with 6 or 7 riders. One was on a TT bike and one had aero bars on
a road bike, but looking around, I saw that this could be a decent group
of people with which we could attempt a solid sub-5 100-miler.
We quickly made friends and headed out, rolling along at a
steady pace, not really rotating or pulling through, definitely getting a
little separated on the hills, but regrouping on the crests somewhat.
We started to see evidence of the two incredibly damaging and scary
fires that started out there this summer, and commented on how lucky
we were to still be able to even get out on these roads, since they can
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THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
Report
actually melt in the intense heat.
At mile 28, either two or four riders went on ahead, while the rest
of us pulled in to a famous traditional rest stop – the Home Made
Cookie Stop above the Dam at Possum Kingdom Lake. The on-site
resident Manager of the lake and family makes HUNDREDS of awesome cookies for the cyclists coming through, and they are YUMMY! I
figured I really should stop and eat, because, well, we were going to
ride 100 miles and, well, as good as Clif Bars are, they’re NOTHING
like fresh homemade cookies!
Having forfeited our place with the leaders, the goal now, at least
for me, was to attempt to catch them before the end. That would make
for an incredible challenge.
The hills over by “The Cliffs” resort were charred black from the
fires, and the road was Grade 1 (worst) Chip Seal, but we did make
good time as we did what I call the “Lake Palo Pinto” loop. We began
to overlap the 65 mile course, catching and passing slower cyclists,
and just before the infamous “Cherry Pie Hill”, we that we learned that
there were only two riders in front of us, one of whom I could occasionally get a glimpse of. I pedaled as steadily as I could, finishing in a ride
time of 4:37, maybe 2 minutes behind the lone rider I could see ahead.
I never found him in the park, but I think it was the TT rider, as he was
always visible on the climbs, but outpaced me on the descents and
straightaways at the end.
When I rolled in, I found my wife under the shade of a tree
stretching on a yoga mat, and she proclaimed excitedly that she’d just
finished her longest ride in about a year and half, doing 55 miles solo
and enjoying every minute of it. Amy and I departed with some strong
feelings of accomplishment, love for cycling, the outdoors, the friends
made out on the course, and a sense of appreciation for the work
required to put these events on. We celebrated with a stop at the
Mineral Wells Dairy Queen, and drove back to Dallas, where we both
promptly sacked out, exhausted (but in that oh-so-great way), for a
two-hour nap.
Get out to Mineral Wells and support this rally. There were just
300 people, but it is on par with Muenster and Glen Rose for its beauty, its challenges, and the course variety.
The Texas Forts Tour 2011
By Iris Stagner
Another
memorable Texas
Forts Tour goes
down in the history books, and, as
in previous years,
this tour will be a
topic of discussion for a long
time! The Texas
Forts Tour-A Ride
through History is
a 3-day, 3-fort
ride through small
Texas towns on
beautiful country
roads. You may
choose the distance you would
like to ride, with options between 108-276
miles. There are stops at three forts, as
well as other historical locations along the
way, all of which are open for cyclist to
tour.
The fun kicked off Friday evening
with a dinner and packet pick-up at the
Halliburton Building adjacent to Fort
Richardson State Park in Jacksboro. Fort
Richardson was established in 1868 to
restore order after the war. Today, they
still maintain seven restored structures
including barracks, a hospital and
Commander’s house, and they were all
open for us to tour.
Saturday, we began our ride with a
blast - a real cannon blast - fired by soldiers from the Fort. The heavens chose
this particular weekend to unload a summer’s worth of stored up rain, but we made
it to Fort Belknap with nothing but sprinkles. We had a long wet ride to Fort
Griffin, though. It was just a few miles further to Albany, our stop for the night, so I
decided to pass it up in favor of a hot
shower and dry clothes.
Albany is a beautiful small artsy kind
of town and they welcomed us with open
arms. We stayed in the field house and
had access to showers and even a washer and dryer for our wet clothes. We spent
the evening touring places such as the
Icehouse, the Beehive, and my favorite,
the Old Jail Art Center. After dinner at the
historic Aztec Theater, everyone set up
their air mattresses, cots and sleeping
bags in the gym. This was probably one of
my favorite times of the whole weekend.
As tired as we were, no one was ready to
go to call it a night, so we sat around and
shared experiences of a tough day on the
bike.
It rained all night Saturday night, and
Sunday morning it was still raining, with a
forecast that called for 90% chance of rain
all day with some
flooding. There was
a lot of discussion
about whether or not
to ride, but I had
made up my mind to
ride if at all possible.
At the first sign the
skies were letting up,
I hit the road for the
89 mile route with
some great riding
companions. I was
glad I did, because
this turned out to be
my favorite day. The
route from Albany to
Breckenridge
was
beautiful, with very little traffic, lots of rural
country roads and
NO RAIN!
Bank fell through. The
next
town
was
Eastland, where we
had been told there
was a “bandit stop” at
the Old Eastland
Hotel. The Eastland
Hotel has been beautifully restored and now
operates as a bed and
breakfast, with the historic Majestic Theater
right next door. Mike
and Anne Zoellick,
owners of the hotel,
greeted everyone with
a big washtub full of
ice cold beer and I
was sure glad I didn’t
miss it!
Breckenridge was our last overnight
stop. We
(Continued on page 33)
We
rode
through Cisco, with a
rest stop located at
the historic 1916
Mobley Hotel, which
was later purchased
by a young entrepreneur named Conrad
Hilton when his deal
to buy the Cisco
9
2011 Texas State Road Race Championship
The Fort Hood Challenge
By Jack Mott
For the past few years the The Racing Post Texas State
Championship has been held at Ford Hood, a military base that provides
a course completely closed to traffic. Negotiating this race location is
not always easy, as security measures are very strict, but the payoff is
huge. A closed course means no center-line rule is required, which
improves safety and also prevents many controversial penalties.
Additionally, the race raises money for the Association of the United
States Army.
The course at Fort Davis is a 33-mile loop, which is traversed
between 1 and 3 times depending on the race category. It is among the
hillier routes in the area, which makes for tough, exciting races.
Women's Cat 1/2, and Cat 3 Races
As often happens in women's racing, due to low numbers, the Cat 3
women were started along with the Cat 1/2 race (though the races were
still scored separately). This has the downside of suddenly changing the
tactics and nature of the race. On the bright side, it means that a handful of women don't have to suffer through 66 miles by themselves. The
only perfect solution to this dilemma, of course, is to get more women
out there racing next time. And there's plenty of incentive, ladies! Money
and fame to be won, beautiful pictures to be had, great scenery, a killer
workout, drama, glory, and pain! What more could you want?
Another surprise was in store - pro triathlete stud (http://desireeficker.com/" )Desiree Ficker was in attendance for the Cat 3 race. She
would certainly be an outlier in power production for the category, so the
other girls would need to be clever to get to the finish ahead of her.
What they did not know, was that Desiree had run in a 16-mile running
race that morning, and won it!
The 1/2/3 race was 66 miles, two laps of the hilly Fort Hood course.
The temperatures were already over 100 degrees, with no shade available to escape the heat of the sun. One would think this would cause the
race
to
start
conservative
and
slow,
but
(http://www.fcsteam.com/dev/roster/lauren-robertson/"
)Lauren
Robertson and Kaelly Simpson of the (http://www.fcsteam.com" )Metro
Volkswagen Cycling Team had other plans. From the gun the two were
taking turns launching attacks up nearly every hill on the course. Power
file data from the race shows sustained 500+ watt efforts with peaks
over 800 watts just to hang on to the lead pack on the first lap!
The aggressive tactics of the Dallas Metro team shelled almost the
entire race off the back. Eventually only Sheri Rothe of the
(http://www.austinflyerswomenscycling.com/" )Austin Flyers, Kat Hunter
of
(http://www.snappletriteam.com/athlete-blogs/snapplecycling/item/snapple-atc-racing?category_id=44" )Austin Tri-Cyclist
Women's Racing, Desiree Ficker, and the two Metro girls remained, with
a $100 prime awaiting at the end of the first lap.
When they neared the line, Lauren pulled up in front of her teammate, perhaps to help lead her out, but Kat pulled to the left (the wrong
side it turns out, as it was windward) and shot ahead to take the Cat 3
prime, while Lauren collected the Cat 1 prime ahead of Sheri. The girls
all grabbed a bottle or two in the feed zone, staffed by an enthusiastic
crew
from
(http://www.facebook.com/pages/ComancheRacing/124224024326266" ) Comanche Racing, but it would not be
enough water to deal with the extreme heat.
If the story of lap 1 was huge attacks, the story of lap 2 was surely
unexploded bombs and cyclocross racing! The power peaks were down
this lap but the drama surely was not. In the middle of lap 2, the leading women encountered a military police officer who told them they
could <i>not</i> continue down the road. An "unexploded ordnance"
had been sighted near the race course by one of the police officers manning the corner. The whole race stopped there for a moment as the lead
car negotiated with the MP. The options were to turn around (confusing
given that the rest of the field behind were able to use both lanes of the
10
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
road) or take a dirt road detour around the danger radius. The lead
women were starting to get anxious at the delay, worried that they would
lose their lead. The women made the call to head down what was
referred to as the "tank road," about a mile of dirt and rocks. No doubt
many racers had picked their lightest, most aerodynamic wheels, and
most supple, fast tires for this big race. Fortunately everyone made it
through the dirt without incident. Nobody fell, nobody flatted, and nobody
was exploded by any bombs at all.
Back at the finish line, spectators were hearing the news about the
bombs, and military helicopters were flying overhead. Like typical bike
racers, most of us were more concerned about the race being interrupted than anyone's safety. Everyone was relieved to hear that the lead
pack had made it through. We began congregating at the finish line
where we would pick up bits of news overheard from the officials race
radio. At one point, we heard, "We need two Gatorades at the Iraqi
Village ASAP!" News trickled in that it was Desiree Ficker, who was now
on the way back in one of the race vehicles, suffering from severe dehydration and/or heat stroke. We also learned that Sheri Rothe had lost
contact with the lead group, leaving only Kat (Cat 3), Kaelly (Cat 3), and
Lauren (Cat 1) at the front. Lauren now had her own victory all but
assured, and she was working hard to get her teammate a win as well.
Finally, in the distance we saw the three girls approaching. Lauren
went to the front, setting a strong pace to lead out her teammate, with
Kat having to hold 250 watts in the draft for a minute and half to stay on
the train. Around the 200m sign, Kat moved left and threw down a 650watt surge to come around the Metro girls and get the Cat 3 win, just a
few bike lengths ahead of Kaelly. Lauren eased up, a hard day's work
completed, the new Cat 1/2 State Champ, and well deserved!
Men's P/1
On the men's side a small breakaway group survived to the end,
consisting of (http://www.rothetraining.com/" )Stefan Rothe,
(http://teamhotelsanjose.com/posts/881/logan-hutchings/"
)Logan
Hutchings, Gray Skinner, and (http://787racing.org/" )Brant Speed.
Logan Hutchings would be first across the line, but not being a permanent resident was not eligible for the award of Texas State Champion,
which went to Stefan Rothe. Brant Speed followed in 2nd place with
Gray Skinner in 3rd for (http://www.austinbikes.com/community.php"
)Team Austinbikes, making for a complete podium sweep by the city of
Austin!
Other exciting news
The men's 4 race was won in dominant fashion by Kevin Girkins of
Team Concept Racing. However, as he crossed the line he was so excited with his performance he let loose a primal scream which included a
four letter word - right in front of the officials. Profanity is against USAC
rules and the officials decided that the punishment would be relegating
Kevin to 6th place. Let the record reflect, however, that while Kevin's situational awareness needs development, he crushed that race, and won
it. Kevin has since apologized publicly and accepted his relegation with
class. Good work Kevin, you will be back!
Sir Christoph Trickey of (http://teamwoolymammoth.com/" )Team
Wooly Mammoth recovered from a tough day in the Cat 2 race on
Saturday by consuming two beers, and returned on Sunday to take 2nd
in the 35-39 age-based championship.
Newcomer Ash Duban, sporting the Desiree Ficker kit she designed,
fought off an aggressive ATC Women's team to win the Women's Cat 4
championship for Comanche Racing. The ATC women were all present
at the front of the race, taking 3rd, 4th, 6th, and 7th place in their first
season racing together.
Thank you to Fort Hood, Copperas Cove, and everyone who helped
make the race happen!
Tri Talk - November 2011
Case Study - Off Season Focus
Here are two race results for a certain athlete. The 1st race was at the
start of the year, the 2nd at the end. The last race had a much larger, more
competitive field, so although the result is the same, it’s more impressive
and shows improvement over the course of the season.
The off-season is a great time to focus on improving an athlete’s
weaknesses. It’s very difficult to make significant gains in any one area
without a significant focus on that area. With a race coming up, it’s necessary to stay sharp in all three disciplines, but during the winter we can
afford to put one or even two disciplines into maintenance mode.
Using the above results as a case study, where would you suggest
this athlete place his or her focus this winter?
More importantly, where should you put your focus this winter? Are
you analyzing your results like this? Is your coach? If not, why not?
There’s actually a lot of information missing here. How much time is
the athlete giving up in each part of the race? What is the athlete’s history in each discipline? What challenges and opportunities does the athlete
have with regard to time, weather, and equipment?
By Steen Rose
Head Coach - Athletes On Track
srose@trainingbible.com
If you’re following along at home, making notes (and you should be!)
I’ll give you the first answer. Transitions. We can all improve our T-times.
It’s simple, free, easy, and even fun if you do it right.
That leaves S-B-R. Rank-order the three disciplines with 1 being the
weakest, and 3 being the strongest. Bingo, you now have a priority list for
your focus this winter. However, before you start writing your training plan,
make sure that your life will allow you to commit to that focus. If swimming
is your #1 priority, but you can only make it to the pool once a week, you’re
either going to need to buy a VASA Trainer or put your focus somewhere
else.
Likewise, if you live in northern Missouri and hate riding the trainer,
winter might not be the time to focus on improving your cycling, no matter
how bad it may be.
The next thing to consider is your current training schedule. If your
running needs improvement, and you’re currently only running 3 days a
week, your focus block is going to look much different than if you’re
already running 5 days a week.
In general, each focus block should be 10-14 days, and include 7-12
days of the focus activity, probably including two-a-days. The actual nuts
and bolts of what this should look like is going to vary from person to person. You’ll need to decide this for yourself, and I’d recommend enlisting
the aid of an experienced coach. Even if you don’t want a full-time coach,
consider doing a consult, for about the cost of a new bike tire you can get
expert advice and maximize your training time this winter.
Steen Rose is the owner and Head Coach of Athletes On Track and
an Elite Coach for Training Bible Coaching. He has been competing in
cycling and multisport events for 16 years with 13 state titles and 3 national medals to his name. He has been coaching since 2003 and works with
all ages and abilities of athletes locally, nationally, and abroad. He can be
reached at srose@trainingbible.com
11
The View From Back Here
You meet the nicest people on a bicycle. From local club rides
to well publicized tours, chance meetings of interesting and like
minded people is a hallmark of our sport. For The View From Back
Here, Cyclefest is no exception and actually has become the rule.
For a number of years, we have shared motels in Fort Davis
with a crew from Fort Worth. Our stay this year was abbreviated
and we were unable to exchange pleasantries. In fact, we do not
even know who those guys are. They do exhibit the ability to have
a good time wherever they are, and are more than willing to share
their attitude and hospitality with others from wherever. Basically,
they are just good guys with a common interest.
Three years ago, we met and rode with a new friend from
Abilene. In much the same physical condition and age, our ride
with Larry Ford is a fun time to remember. Due to distances and life
in general, we were not able to stay in touch with Larry, and did not
see him the following year. Last year, though, there was Larry. We
are able to visit and catch up with each other.
We looked for Larry but did not see him this year. Not knowing
exactly who I would be riding with this September at Cyclefest
added to the adventure. The first few miles were kind of riding
alone and not having much luck finding someone riding the same
pace with similar attitudes toward getting to the next rest station.
As luck would have it, or inevitably, that rider appeared. With
common ground already established (we were both cyclists and
were both embarking on a day of riding in the Davis Mountains), we
struck up a conversation.
Cathy Howard is from the Dallas area. I did not get too much
12
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
By Russell Livingston
more specific or at least do not recall all of the details. We both
enjoy cycling and are heavily invested in our children. Her son, a
teen ager, and mine, young adults, were not present for the weekend. We are both sports fans, with Cathy having the advantage of
living in the Metroplex and ready access to major league sports,
while I leaned more toward high school football.
This was Cathy’s first trip to the Big Bend area and she was
struck by the scenic beauty. Being a veteran of the ride and multiple trips to the area, I was able to share some of the history of the
Ft. Davis area. Cathy had already attended the star party at the
McDonald Observatory and was struck with the beauty the remote
location could support.
Bloys Encampment, The Republic of Texas uprising,and
Landsat were topics of discussion as the miles passed. All too
soon, we reached the 54 mile turnaround and established that we
were half tired and ready to head back. We marveled at and
enjoyed the lack of wind and the generally downhill descent back
to Fort Davis. The vistas were different when approached from the
opposite direction and generally speaking it was a great ride.
A friendship has been established with little more than a common denominator called a bicycle. These one on one encounters
with like minded people repeat themselves across the spectrum. If
we get to ride together in the future, that is a bonus. On that day,
at that time, through our bicycles, we had a good day and ride.
Actually, I am not alone. Looking around at Cyclefest and the
other rides I have made, something stands out. It is hard not to
smile when one is doing what one likes to do. Granted, conditions
may warrant a grimace from time to time, but we do have a commonality that binds us as cyclists.
The View From Back Here is not a racer. I lack the physique,
the single minded drive and the funding to ever consider racing on
a scale that many Racing Post readers do. However, since my
association with the Racing Post, I have observed racers. On a
small, research driven scale, I have even participated in small
races. None of those adventures were positive experiences in the
sense that I wanted to continue any semblance of a racing career.
In a fit of creativity last December, a self inflicted challenge was
made to attempt the Mt. Locke Hill Climb. Thankfully, the hill climb
will not be changed to the Russell Livingston Memorial Hill Climb
next year. We were wondering if that was not going to be the case
though. Suffice it to say though, I have now retired from competitive hill climbing, as well as crits and time trials.
In my misery, I was able to make a few observations. I
observed friendships renewed and initiated throughout the field. I
am sure the only time certain riders from El Paso see certain folks
from Longview or Beaumont is during the Mt. Locke Hill Climb.
They greeted each other as old friends and relived past races and
rides.
I was able to watch many of the seven mile hill climbers flog
each other up that mountain, only to shake hands or hug and congratulate each other. This friendship thing even works on the racing side of cycling!
Face it, we are special. We represent the top percentage of our
society in fitness and attitude. We are fit, we are friendly and every
ride affords us the possibility of making new friends.
To our new friends in Dallas, Ft. Worth, Beaumont, Corpus
Christi and El Paso, thank you for a good ride and weekend. We
can all afford to broaden our horizons a little and meet someone
with a common interest. We can enjoy that friendship for a chance
weekend ride, for a single weekend a year, or for the rest of our
lives.
Everyone - make a friend, have fun and ride safe.
Any Questions?
By Jeremy Morris
I've had a lot of requests recently for a
question and answer format covering a broad
amount of material. I wanted to address a few
popular ones that I hear on a weekly basis.
Q. I'm planning on taking my bike out of
state for a ride with a lot of climbing, what
are my options for gearing down my drivetrain without replacing expensive parts?
A. The best way to add a significant amount of
range for not a lot of money is to replace the
cassette, chain, and rear derailleur. On Sram
drivetrains, any 10 speed mountain cassette
works just fine, and I recommend a long cage
10 speed mountain derailleur mated to that 34
or 36 tooth cassette. You will need a longer
chain as well, to compensate for the larger cassette. For Shimano drivetrains, the note to
remember is that DynaSys ten speed
derailleurs do not operate with the same cable
pull ratio that the road shifters do, so you will
need a Shimano 9 speed mountain derailleur
(which works fine with 10 speed drivetrains) to
make the setup work.
Q. I use that carbon friction paste on my
seatpost/seat tube interface and it seems to
work really well, should I be using it on all
carbon interfaces?
A. No. One interface to avoid using carbon
paste is the stem/steerer tube interface. On
most carbon steerer tube/stem junctions, there
is a small amount of flex that occurs and the
small particles in the paste can slowly cut
through the structural carbon of the steerer.
Q. I seem to have a problem with flats more
than anyone else I ride with. My tires are in
great shape and my rim tape is covering
everything inside, what could be causing
this?
A. A few tube manufacturers are boxing tubes
with large size ranges, such as 700x 18-25c.
The problem with this is the tube starts out so
small that when used with a 23mm or 25mm tire
it has to stretch to fill it out. As the tube stretches it becomes thinner and more prone to punctures. I recommend using tubes with small size
ranges (such as 23-25c) as it allows for a larger
un-inflated size keeping the tube from expanding so much and consequently keeping it thicker.
Q. I've got the newest generation Shimano
shifters and my shifting just never seems
crisp and I am always adjusting the cable
tension it seems, what could be causing
this?
A. Newer generation Shimano shifters put more
force on the cables and housing, which allows
for easier shifts (pulley placement has more
leverage), but because this pressure is put on
the housing it can cause excess flex and movement and in turn sloppier shifting. Replacing the
housing with a stiffer 5mm option will drastically
improve shifting accuracy.
13
Interbike Run-Down:
By: TRP Staff
The Good, the Bad, and the Recycled
I did my first race in 1996, and I started riding on down-tube shifters, so
I’ve been around long enough to see some ideas come and go. I’ve also
seen enough new ideas to mostly know what makes sense and what is
kinda dumb.
Let’s start with the kinda dumb. First up is a wheel that slows you down,
the PowerWheel. Yep, you read that correctly. For the low price of $1200,
you too, can ride slower. It’s advertised as a way to make it easier to ride
with people who are slower than you. As opposed, to you know, letting
them draft, pushing them up the hills, or just riding really crappy tires.
In the Dumb, Dorky, and Recycled category, we have the Saddle In. It’s a
strap that goes around your back and attaches to the top tube. It’s supposed to alleviate back pain and let you produce more power. The idea
isn’t too dumb; it’s just really old. This was used in the 70’s to win the team
time trial world championships, and then promptly banned. But then again,
they are doing a remake of Footloose; so maybe what’s old is new? If your
back hurts, get a better bike fit. If you really just want to look dorky, wrap
your bibs around the nose of your saddle [ ed: ouch!] and accomplish the
same thing, for free.
Electronics is one area where there is a lot of fun, new development going
on. 3 pedal-based power meters are set to hit the market and the watch
wars are heating up among Polar, Garmin, and Timex. I saw three new
cameras, the Cateye Inou, the Pivothead, which looks to be the coolest
and most functional offering, and the Cervellum, which we’ll talk more
about later.
The general trends in electronics are new offerings with even more features, like the Garmin 910XT, and entry-level or price-point electronics to
get more people in the door, like the Kindle Fire or the Garmin Edge 200.
So while it’s a great time to be a tech nerd, it’s also a time of trickle down
for you folks who are intrigued by all the fancy new gadgets, but might
want something that lowers the barrier and lets you just dip your toes into
14
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
the brave new world.
On the road side of things, everything is about aero. The Scott Foil. The
Specialized Venge. The you-can’t-afford-one-but-that’s-okay-because-wedon’t-actually-have-them-ready-to-sell-yet Cervelo S-5. Oh, and there’s
that new Shimano electronic road kit that’s simpler, cheaper, and works
better: the Ultegra Di-2. Now where have I read about trickle-down technology?
Getting dirty for a second, 29 is everywhere. 29 this, that, and the other.
More tires. More wheels. More bikes. More suspension. We are definitely
past the fad phase, and you now have lots of options. For full-bounce
bikes, everyone is still trying to catch up to Specialized, and new and
redesigned linkages are everywhere. Only a little more saddle time will
tell, but they finally seem to be getting close to catching up.
Some fun new dirt products to keep an eye on are the PowerTap mtb hub,
the Quarq mtb power meter, and the new Speedplay Syzr pedal, which
promises more float, more mud-shedding ability, and a better cleat-pedal
interface. Since I ride Speedplays for road, track, and tri, I’m looking forward to trying these out when they hit shelves in January.
The clothing market is also heating up – lots of brands are upgrading their
offerings. Like the technology sector, there are some amazing new products out (that are also pretty spendy) but there are also some new entrylevel items that blow away high-end stuff from just a few years ago; you
can now be comfortable and stylish at any price point.
Let’s finish this up with my favorite product, the Cerevellum Hindsight
Camera. It’s a rear-facing camera, it’s a fully functional ANT+ cycle computer, it’s a remote control taillight, and it’s a black box in case of an accident.
If you’ve got a question about any of the new products mentioned here, or
maybe about one we missed, drop us a line.
2011 Inaugural Gainesville Disco Bike
Rally Review
By Richard Wharton
About midweek, I contacted the father of
one of my juniors, and asked him if Steven
could join me at the Inaugural Gainesville
Disco Bike Rally. With his permission, I met
Steven at his house around 5:15am, where
we loaded up his bike and started the 90
minute drive toward the Oklahoma state line.
Now, if you’ve ever been to North Texas, you
know that it’s basically carved out of the
prairie. I’m always reminded of the last lines
in Steven Spielberg’s “Cast Away”, where
Tom Hanks finally meets his Angel…
Bettina Peterson: You look lost.
Chuck Noland: I do?
Bettina Peterson: Where’re you headed?
Chuck Noland: Well, I was just about to figure that out.
Bettina Peterson: Well, that’s 83 South. And
this road here will hook you up with I-40 East.
If you turn right, that’ll take you to Amarillo,
Flagstaff, California. And if you head back
that direction, you’ll find a whole lot of nothing all the way to Canada.
Chuck Noland: I got it.
Bettina Peterson: All right, then. Good luck,
cowboy.
Chuck Noland: Thank you.
And that’s just it – there is plenty of nothing, and there are small, perfectly black and
tan ribbons of road laid out all over this country to connect the dots. They’re really nothing
more than wagon trails paved with chipseal,
and for this weekend’s rally, that was just
fine.
We rolled out on time with roughly 300
other riders. Immediately, a group of State
Farm cyclists, all from Gainesville, went to
the front and rolled away. I really didn’t pay
them much attention, but stayed within about
50′, when they abruptly left the course and
went on the TEN MILE route. I think the
whole thing was staged for a photo shoot, but
it was distracting, and we never saw them
again. By the fourth mile or so, there were
roughly 11 riders in the lead pack, including
Steven and another client of mine, Marc.
Steven picked up the pacelining really
quickly, and after the first hour, we just rolled
west, then north, and ended up going over
the course from the Muensterfest. We got
into some scattered spats of rain, so we cautioned each other on road conditions, but by
roughly the 90 minute mark, I had enough of
the slinkies and the risk that members were
creating in this groupette. So, prior to a hill I
knew rather well, I told everyone that Steven
and I were going to power up it, and that we’d
try to regroup with them at the top. Well, the
top plateaued on to a BEAUTIFUL false flat,
and, looking over my shoulder, the only jersey I could see was Steven, roughly 15 seconds back. I waited for him and him alone,
and then told him to hang on.
For the next 30+ miles, it was just the two
of us, as we rolled over fresh pavement, flirted with two girls in a red Jeep Wrangler who
were shooting photos, took solid pulls, and
just enjoyed the moments of living and doing
something we both enjoy. We left familiar terrain when we turned right to head back to
Gainesville, leaving the Forestburg-St. Jo
road, and it was at the top of the second or
third hill, when we left the cover of some
trees, that we ended up with the winds now
coming off our right shoulders at a much
stronger velocity.
This part of the course – the last 20-25
miles – had to be one of the most absolute
challenging portions of road I’ve ever experienced. The terrain featured numerous 1minute rollers at 2-3% incline, and the headwinds prevented much of a recovery on the
back sides. Steven’s legs starting to feel the
shred of the previous rollers, so we both
agreed that I would do the majority of the
work, and we would ride at his tempo
wattage and comfort level. We continued on
together, him protected on my left shoulder,
and talked about bikes, wheels, the terrain,
different rallies, school, family, etc. It was
spectacular.
Way back in the 1990′s, right after I
decided I wanted to make a career out of
cycling, I ran a Junior Development Team out
of Bozeman, Montana. I was young, they
were younger, and we had about five years
of incredible adventures, driving all over the
Western United States, attending mountain
bike events and building more than just racing resumes. I still keep up with about half of
them, and have attended weddings as they
grew up. They’re almost all still involved in
cycling and outdoor activities, which also
makes me proud. I did it again in the early
2000′s, at the Frisco Velodrome, but it wasn’t
the same. I really missed that feeling of mentorship and camaraderie; the joy of being on
the road or singletrack, just living that whole
gypsy lifestyle. Here, with Steven, out in the
middle of nowhere, it all came flooding back,
and it really spurred some fantastic feelings
of respect, success, responsibility, and that
mantra by which I try to live every day:
“To know that ONE LIFE has breathed
easier, because you have lived. That is to
have succeeded.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
Steven never once complained; he kept
the smile and concentration on his face the
whole time. We were both pretty ecstatic to
see that final left-hand turn back onto the
highway, signaling an end to the crosswind,
and the gentle push downhill and back to the
Start/Finish. We completed it in 3 hours
even, and were rewarded with medals,
Muscle Milk, and fresh pancakes & sausage!
After dropping Steven off, I sent his dad a
text telling him what a great kid he had, talent
and otherwise, and he responded that
Steven was absolutely shelled the rest of the
day. That’s not a bad thing. You have to see
just how hard these practice events are, and
learn how to respond to challenges, and see
where your strengths lie in relation to others
around you, in order to best achieve your
goals, both intrinsic and material.
Steven, it meant a lot to have you ride
with me, and to finish with me. You’re on your
way to bigger and better things, and I will be
there to help as long as you want or need.
There is NO doubt in my mind, that you won’t
need my draft in the near future – it’ll be me
turning my lungs inside out to hang with you!
Proven,
Professional,
Tested;
10 Year Warranty
Since 2003; Over 5,500 Frames Repaired
Before
After
Contact: repairs@calfeedesign.com
16
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
The House of Pain
By Tom Rodgers
Photo by Tuula Rodgers
There are two kinds of pain: sweet
running, back into the house of pain I
pain and sour pain.
went with more cramps.
--Lance Armstrong
This continued for another five
No one finishes the Ironman course
miles: cramping, walking, then running,
on the Big Island without going through
then repeat. About mile six, I decided to
some pain. Almost everyone thinks
stop and stretch, thinking maybe it
about quitting at some point; some say
would go away for good, but that was
many times. Even Craig "Crowie"
stupid, because when stretched, the
Alexander’s seemingly perfect world
left leg seized up entirely so that I could
record of 8:03:56 had moments of
not even walk. I stood there on one leg
doubt and suffering.
holding a canopy pole for balance. I
Crowie reported: "I ran out of salt
decided that if this continued to mile
tablets and started cramping on the run.
eight, which was by my hotel, I would
I had some extra in my special needs
just walk up to my room, shower, and
bag, but felt pretty good in the Energy
let the race people I know I had withLab, so [I] just left them there. Then
drawn.
about mile 23 my legs started feeling
DNF - the most dreaded three lettighter and tighter . . . I had a six-minute
ters in the alphabet for any racer. The
gap, so realistically I was okay . . . Then Chrissie Wellington displays the agony and ecstasy of winning
psychological pain brought on just by
I had to stop and have a stretch, and I
thinking about quitting was an internal
wondered then . . . . If Paula Newby-Fraser can collapse on Ali'i drive, any- hell. Thankfully, after walking the aid stations, drinking a lot of water and
one can."
coke, and taking a 4x sodium PowerBar gel, the cramps did seem to be
Crowie recovered well enough to maintain pace and even grab an miraculously subsiding. I said to myself, "If you can just make it to mile 10
Aussie flag to wave around. Momentarily oblivious to his approaching and run, however slowly, you can finish this marathon and avoid the humilrecord time, he heard Mike Reiley announcing he was about the break the iation of being a quitter." That's just what I did. From then on, it was more
record, and then "had a little sprint to finish line" to make it within 12 sec- the "sweet pain" of the regular Kona course, the kind that all racers go
onds.
through here.
Women's world champion Chrissie Wellington's pain had been locked
I did learn an interesting lesson: the difference between sweet and
in the cellar of her mind for over a year, aging like a fine wine. A tough bike sour pain is perhaps greater than the gap to no pain at all. And the emocrash just two weeks prior to Kona changed "mind into matter," augment- tional satisfaction of conquering the pain just to finish, even in a much slowing a foggy psychological barrier with one quite sharp and tangible. The er time of 10:31, was worth the effort. When I heard the stories of pro pain
pain resulted in a slow swim for her of 1:01, but did not seem to affect her an hour later at the press conference, I had a special empathy for them not
cycling as she had a decent split to come off the bike competitively.
obtainable any other way.
I saw Chrissie running back at me on Ali'i drive around mile 8, looking
hot and salted up, but with a confident face. I saw her again at about mile
Tom Rodgers is an elite coach and the author of The Perfect
23, running back into town with about a 2:30 gap on Mirinda Carfrae.
Distance: Triathlete’s Guide to Long-Course Training from Velo Press.
I asked Chrissie at the press conference, "Even though this was not Born in Hawaii, this year will mark his eleventh race in Kona since 1999.
your fastest time, was this perhaps the most soul-satisfying victory of the He coaches world champions, beginners and everyone in between at
four here, knowing what you went through last year and then the pain this Endurathon.com. Before becoming a full-time coach, he designed extreme
year to get it?"
physiology experiments and trained astronauts for the International Space
"I don't race just for a time," Wellington answered, "butI know I gave it Station at NASA in Houston, Texas.
my all. This race took more out of me emotionally and physically then any
I've ever run, so yes, it was the most meaningful."
The pain of pro athletes is quickly soothed by victory. Yet many agegroupers with high hopes of breaking 10 hours, making the podium, or perhaps winning their division, end up struggling to finish the race at all. Case
in point, yours truly. After a very strong ride up to Hawi, where I was seven
minutes ahead of my race plan, they “lost” my bag at the special needs staCoaching, power training, time-trial aero fit,
tion. This contained key nutrition and a special water bottle for my Cervelo
P4 that actually makes the bike faster in the wind.
custom-frame buildups, run analysis, swim video.
I ended up doing the whole remaining 52 miles on coke and water and
Road Racing Clients include: Pro/Cat 1, 40/50/60+ and
some remaining gel packs in my behind-the-stem minipack. I tried to be
Senior Games Champions, Collegiate National Champions, Track
conscientious about duplicating the calories and sodium I would have
taken in from my own complex fluids, but this is hard when you trying to
Sprinters, and Ultracycling (RAAM and Randoneuring).
think about race strategies, avoid penalties, and fight the tougher winds
Triathlon Clients include: Ironman Hawaii Age-Group World
coming home.
Champion (2008), Hawaii qualifiers (2000-2011), IM Pro Podium
By mile 105, my left hamstring cramped severely, so much so I had to
pull off the road and unclip the foot to let it rest; the first time I had ever
(2006-2008); USAT NATIONAL: Top-10 rankings and INSIDE
stopped the bike in eight races in Kona. The pain was so sharp I was
TRIATHLON Top-10 All-American (2004-2010);
screaming, but after wasting a few minutes, I finally I got the foot back into
WORLDS: Ultraman Hawaii Age-Group and ITU Qualifiers.
the pedal and made it the last seven miles back to Kailua Pier.
For about the first three miles of the marathon, I was running well with
Former NASA Biomedical Engineer & Physiologist
a friend I knew from Texas. Then the left leg cramped again, this time much
Best-selling author of The Perfect Distance
more severely. I could barely even walk, which I did for about a hundred
meters. I had cramped in the early run in Kona before and still broken 10
hours, so I figured I could do that this time, but in only a half mile of uphill
Tom
Rodgers
“Where Science Meets Peformance”
Endurathon.com 817 561-6707
18
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
Winner’s Circle (Circulo de Ganadores): David Almanzan
Fort Hood Challenge~ 35+ 4/5
By TRP Staff
TRP: give us the basics:
Name, David Almanzan (Cat 4)
team,
BNW / Karancho’s Team
event, Fort Hood Challenge – Men’s 35+
4/5
date:
September 25th 2011
TRP: Bio including Race history and
resume
Mi nombre es David Almanzan. Tengo 42
años de edad. Soy ciclista desde los 12 años.
Tomé un pequeño descanso de 15 años a la
edad de 24. En el año 2009, regresé al ciclismo. Desde entonces, me divierto compitiendo
en carreras de ruta al igual que de montaña.
DA: My name is David Almanzan. I’m 42 years
young. I have been racing since age 12. I took
a small 15 year break at 24. Then, I got back
into cycling in 2009. I am currently having fun
racing road and mountain as well.
TRP: Why did you go to the event?
Tomé esta carrera como mí objetivo principal
de la temporada. También, fue un gran reto
los pasados dos años, así que tenía una idea
de como iba a ser.
DA: I considered this race my main goal of the
cycling season. Also, it
was a great challenge
the last two years I
raced it, so I had an
idea what I was getting
my self into.
TRP: What had you
heard
about
the
event?
Mis compañeros me
hacían caras raras al
mencionar esta carrera. Eso me asustaba
un poco, pero por eso
era un gran reto para
mí.
DA: Fellow riders
would make weird
faces when I mentioned the race. It always scared me a bit, but
that’s what made it a great challenge.
TRP: How did you prepare?
El terreno y las colinas del centro de Texas se
convirtieron en un destino de rutina para mí, y
mi equipo. Al igual, nunca falto a los paseos
de “West End Bicycles” los Martes y Jueves
por la tarde.
DA: The rolling hills of central Texas became a
common destination for me and my team as a
weekend training getaway. Also, I never miss
the “West End Bicycles” evening ride on
Tuesdays and Thursdays.
TRP: Tell me about getting to the start line
(Continued on page 42)
…
Presented by:
Bicycles Outback Racing
p/b Jubilee Mitsubishi
Ian Moore is no stranger to bikes. In fact, his love of bicycles led him from his hometown of Claremont, CA into the world
of professional racing at the age of 21. Ian worked as the pro
team mechanic for the Bontrager Working Women’s
Professional Mountain Biking Team in 1996, and learned firsthand what it took to keep four women rolling on two wheels. Ian
explains, “We traveled across the county focusing on the
NORBA circuit and US World Cup races on a shoestring budget. This was at a time when women did not receive equal pay at
UCI races, and women’s teams really struggled to get support
from sponsors.”
Ian later went on to wrench for other pro teams and traveled the World Cup circuit with Team Ritchey, RLX Polo Sport,
and Subaru Gary Fisher. What did Ian take away from these
awesome experiences? A wonderful wife and professional
racer, Catherine, and a growing need to support women’s racing. His main goals when taking full ownership of Bicycles
Outback in 2010 were to support women in cycling and to give
back to the cycling community.
“Often, women’s teams have a harder time securing sponsorship, and they are a supplement to an existing men’s or
master’s team. We want to change this. The A Team is the
ladies team at Bicycles Outback,” Ian stated. He went on to further explain the ladies team will be supported by a group of biking misfits fondly known as the Minions. The Minions will race
anything with wheels and will support the team at road races as
well as help with community projects, rides, and clinics.
“We want the team to offer a fresh perspective so we can
give our sponsors a unique opportunity to showcase their products,” Ian exclaimed. “The ladies will ride custom road bike
frames from Calfee Designs out of CA equipped with electronic
drive trains. We could have gone with a more mainline brand,
but we want the team to stand out all the way from their kits to
their bikes. In an effort to enhance the experience and connect
with other riders, these ladies will make use of social media, just
one more way to showcase this team’s unique spirit and commitment to the ride.”
20
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
By Kim Jennings
The team roster for 2012 has a well balanced squad of
elite road racers: Kathleen Hattaway, Kim Jennings, Claire
McKenna, Michelle Montoya, Catherine Moore, and Sheri
Rothe. While all of these women are professionals by day,
working full-time as a software engineer, park ranger, forensic
scientist, electrical engineer, Montessori teacher, and trophy
wife gone bad, each has maintained an insatiable drive to race
bikes and will compete in a full calendar of Texas and regional
road races this upcoming 2012 season.
The team is focused on racing, but a parallel goal is to
highlight cycling in a positive light. Ian explains, “We wanted
women that were good representatives of the sport, both on
and off the bike. It’s very important for us to give back to the
community.” The team will promote cycling in a healthy light by
hosting clinics, rides, and helping with projects such as the
Texas High School Mountain Biking League and JAM. The Judy
Austin Memorial will be displayed on the teams’ jerseys as a tiedyed armband honoring her heroic battle with cancer. Judy was
a dearly loved USA Cycling National Commissaire and was
most happy when she could be of service to others.
Ian further explains, “We have a lot of talented women who
have experience both on and off road, and we want to pass it
on. There are just not enough young ladies entering cycling,
and we want to be positive role models for these younger riders. Judy would have been proud.”
Bicycles Outback was founded in 1987 by Keith Powell at
his home in Waco, TX. Keith would often tell his wife, “I’m going
outback to work on bikes,” hence the name Bicycles Outback.
Larry Lenamon later took over, and Ian worked as the shop’s
manager until he gained full ownership of the shop in November
2010. Bicycles Outback offers professional sales and service
and has a mini-coffee-bar-local-old school hangout kind of vibe.
Stop by Waco on your next drive from Austin to Dallas, and
check out what all the fuss is about.
Many thanks to our awesome sponsors, and please follow
us as we debut for 2012. You are gonna love this ride!
http://bicyclesoutbackracing.net
Coach Speak
The Myth of LSD
By Steen Rose
Head Coach - Athletes On Track
Last month I promised you that we’d talk about the myth of LSD, or
long, slow distance training. So let’s jump right in.
It’s common knowledge that you have to ride easy during the winter.
Talk to an old-timer, read an online forum or a book, or look at a pro’s schedule, and it’s easy to see that you have to go easy during the winter.
Here is where I call BS. First off, all old cycling knowledge should be
considered with a grain mountain of salt. Let’s look at a few examples of old
cycling knowledge, shall we?
# Riding a trainer for 3 hours, staring at a brick wall, is good for building mental toughness. (From the 1970’s)
# Drinking a glass of chocolate milk after a 200kilometer road race will
make you fat. (From the 1990’s)
# Climbing hills at a low cadence will make you stronger. (Current)
Oh, I bet I ruffled a few feathers with that last one. And, I’m sure I’ll ruffle a few feathers with this article. But that’s okay. The Europeans, keepers of
the old school cycling stone tablets, laughed at Lemond and his aerobars.
They laughed at Lance and his singular focus on the Tour. And they’re still
laughing as savvy teams and countries embrace technology and science and
kick their asses.
As a coach and an athlete, I’ll gladly accept ridicule if that is the price
22
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
for being the vanguard, and for having a legal edge for my athletes and
myself.
For starters, while LSD is not a half-bad plan for pros living in certain
climates, you’re not a pro. You didn’t just race over 100 days this season, and
none of your races is anywhere near as long as theirs. In fact, you’re longest
race is probably still shorter than their shortest race. Ergo, you don’t have a
ton of accumulated fatigue you need to shed.
Next, you don’t have the time to train like a pro, and you probably don’t
have the luxury of wintering someplace temperate like they do.
Shall we go on? I bet you don’t have two team training camps in
Solvang or Mallorca at the start of the season, do you? Or nice leisurely races
in sunny places like Jakarta or Dubai to ease your way into the season? No,
I didn’t think so.
The point is that you are a time-constrained amateur cyclist, and you
need to train in a way that maximizes your time and options. How do you do
that? First, keep one hard group ride a week in your schedule; whether it’s the
Saturday shop ride or the local weeknight cross race. You will maintain racespecific fitness and not have to start over next spring.
Next, ride the dirt. It’s fun and will improve your handling skills. This can
be a simple as 25c tires on your road bike and a gravel road, as intense as a
‘cross race, or as laid back as mountain biking the local state park.
Take advantage of nice weather to build endurance. Living in the
Southern US, we’ve got our fair share of beautiful winter days. If it’s 60 and
sunny, screw what the training plan says and go ride 4 hours.
Also take advantage of those dark, dreary nights on the trainer to do
focused workouts. Intervals and the trainer were made for each other. You
can knock out a quality interval workout in the space of two tivo’d sitcoms, and
the trainer is the safest, most effective place to crank out the types of intervals that will raise your threshold.
Finally, do appropriate cross training to stay mentally fresh, address
functional weaknesses and build general fitness. I’m about out of space, but
suffice it to say that if you’re just going to the gym and moving a barbell, you
are missing out.
Steen Rose is the owner and Head Coach of Athletes On Track and an
Elite Coach for Training Bible Coaching. He has been competing in cycling
and multisport events for 16 years with 13 state titles and 3 national medals
to his name. He has been coaching since 2003 and works with all ages and
abilities of athletes locally, nationally, and abroad. He can be reached at
Sports Nutrition: Your Fueling Questions Answered
Written by: Amy Kubal MS, RD, LN, Paleo and Sports Dietitian
Q: What types of foods best fuel optimum
performance; solids vs. liquids; certain
types of carbohydrate or sugars?
-Joris, Tempe AZ
A: The best foods for performance and health
are “real foods” – unprocessed and as close to
their natural state as possible. A good rule of
thumb is, “if it lives, rots, grows and dies” it’s real
food. The optimal performance diet includes a
large variety of vegetables, lean or grass-fed
proteins, good fats, starchy carbs at key times
(sweet potatoes, winter squash, roots and
tubers), and some fruit. Solids are almost
always preferable to liquids with the exceptions
of during training and events; a sports drink or
coconut water work well here. Additionally,
immediately following a long, intense workout a
recovery drink can be used for quick convenient
replenishment of carbohydrate and protein.
Optimal carbohydrate choices in the pre and
during workout phases will be easily and quickly
digested. Sports drinks, chews, and gels, applesauce, banana, etc. Post workout starchy carbs
are the best choices these include sweet potatoes, winter squash, beets, white potatoes, roots
and tubers. Corn and rice are also acceptable
choices following a long, intense training session or race.
Q: When in ‘hard-core’ training mode are
there certain foods I should embrace and
others I should avoid? -Sarah, via email
A: The foods selected during hard training
should be the same foods focused on for general health! Make sure to include a large variety of
vegetables, lean protein, and good fats. When
training at a higher level the major differences in
diet lie in overall caloric intake and pre/during
and post workout fueling. It is important to incorporate plenty of starchy carbohydrate from
roots, tubers, and winter squash for muscle
glycogen replenishment as well as high-quality
protein to ensure optimal muscle recovery.
Focus primarily on getting the nutrients you
need through “real foods” as opposed to
processed, packaged foods. Avoid filling up on
“empty calories” or foods with little nutrient value
other than calories. Limit or avoid processed,
packaged foods, alcohol, soda, candy, cookies,
etc. and fill up on natural, “real food” and you will
be well prepared to tackle workouts and races!
Q: What are some easy pantry staples that I
can eat while in training mode to help get
through the day without compromising energy? -Justin, Houston TX
A: It is important to have quick, convenient,
healthy choices available in order to prevent opt-
ing for the ‘other stuff’! Let’s start with the freezer – frozen unsweetened fruits and bags of
frozen vegetables are great and can be
microwaved in minutes. Pre-cooked frozen
shrimp, meats cooked in bulk and frozen, preportioned fish and chicken breasts are terrific
protein options. The refrigerator should be full of
pre-cut fresh vegetables, bags of salad and
spinach, fruit, natural deli-meats, pre-cooked
meats, hard-boiled eggs, eggs, pre-cooked
sweet potatoes and squash, avocado, salsa,
mustard, and your favorite low-sugar condiments. Fill the pantry with packages of tuna,
natural jerky, sweet potatoes, canned pumpkin,
squash, onions, walnuts, almonds, pecans,
macadamia nuts, olives, unsweetened coconut
flakes, natural sports bars and workout foods,
dried fruit, olive oil, coconut oil and a variety of
spices and seasonings.
About the Author:
Amy Kubal is a Registered "Paleo" Dietitian.
She specializes in working with endurance and
performance based athletes. Additionally, Amy
is the consultant dietitian for The TrainingBible
Coaching team. If you are interested in working
with Amy
send
her
an
email
at
amyk.rd@gmail.com and check out her blog at
www.fuelasrx.blogspot.com
A Sponsor’s Look
At Bike Racing
By Carol Elder
Photo by Sarah Holt Photography
Crazy Water was honored to have Bryan Fawley, a professional
cyclist and crazed Crazy Water advocate based in Dallas, bring cyclo-cross
to Mineral Wells during the 33rd annual Crazy Water Festival.
The partnership between Crazy Water and Bryan began a couple of
years ago when Brian called to tell us how the Crazy Water mineral waters
were helping his body perform at a higher level and recover faster after grueling races. Bryan has since become one of Crazy Water’s best advocates,
helping educate other riders on the benefits of Crazy Water over traditional performance beverages. We admire Bryan’s love of racing and enthusiasm for his sport, and invited Bryan to bring a race to Mineral Wells.
Cyclists are a great fit with not only Crazy Water’s products, but also our
company philosophy. In line with our company slogan: “Making people feel
good inside and out since 1881,” we at Crazy Water strive to continue producing the best mineral waters available, while having fun and helping others along the way.
We have just begun to learn about cycling and the many different
kinds of races, thanks to the help of not only Bryan, but also Steve Dodge
with Park Place Team, Steen Rose, and of course Andy Hollinger. We have
been amazed with the high level of character exhibited by each rider we
have met, the level of respect they have for each other, and their eagerness
to share their love of the sport.
The Crazy Cross was the first cyclo-cross race we have experienced.
Many advised us how exceptional the courses were that Bryan Fawley
designs, combining speed with technical ability, and always a little crazy
mix in. Bryan did not let us down. He turned Pollard Park into what racers
said on Saturday was a fast and challenging course. For Sunday races,
Bryan somehow brought in over 8 inches of rain, which not only helped to
bring an end to our drought, but also gave the Texas racers their first raindrenched, mud-laden course in 2 years. It was amazing.
It was a great weekend of racing and the perfect fit for the Crazy
Water Festival, where our community gathers together to celebrate not only
our past heritage but our future. The Crazy Water Festival in Mineral Wells,
Texas was started in 1979 to celebrate the crazy history of Mineral Wells
and its acclaimed mineral water. The festival brings together the entire
community for the CRAZIEST weekend of the year.
The Crazy Water Festival is organized different than any other festival in Texas. We not only feature the craziest activities around, but we partner with area civic and church groups so the profits from the festival go
back into the community. The more the Crazy Water Festival grows, the
more the community benefits. Now that is the only non-crazy part of our festival! This year’s festival had over 10,000 in attendance, and while we are
still gathering numbers, it looks to have raised over $20,000 for area
groups.
We were excited to share our craziness with a new group of folks and
hope that the riders enjoyed coming to our crazy little town. Thank you all
for coming and we hope to make this an annual race. We look forward to
challenging Bryan to get crazier each time.
24
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
Junior 17-18 Recap: State RR Championships
By Michael Pincus
Photo by Lee McDaniel
I always have mixed feelings about junior races. They can be a lot of fun since all the racers are friends I have known for
years, but other times they can be quite nerve wrecking, due to the broad range of skill and experience. The fields can consist of
experienced CAT 1 and 2 racers all the way to CAT 5s wearing helmet mirrors (not that there’s anything wrong that). This mix of
talent can lead to disaster if the wrong type of racer goes somewhere their experience does not support.
The race started off with a slow rollout; the field was already dreading 33 miles in the heat with a 12:45 start. As the pack slowly started to gain momentum, I moved towards the front and took a light pull, just to get the legs moving. I made a special note to
myself to not let anything off the front. That would be too risky for such a short race, and I also knew there were no teams that
would put any type of organized chase at the front to bring splits back.
As we approached the first steep climb of the race, I sat near the front and let all the other racers attack each other. I didn’t
know how my legs were going to feel after the high intensity of the skill based championships the day before. Once we crested the
top, I put in a small counter attack to keep the pressure going. I was quickly caught on the decent, so I sat up and moved back into
the draft. Coming into the second steep climb on the front side, I noticed that the wind was blowing hard on my left shoulder.
Remembering how the winds yesterday damaged the pack more then any climb, I moved up on the front. I took a hard pull, only
leaving room for three racers. The racers on my right picked up on the echelon I was trying to form, and worked well with me. I
looked back after a few rotations and saw the damage that was happening in the pack. The peloton was already split into several
chase groups in the crosswinds, and we had yet to hit the steepest climb on the front side.
As we approached the big climb, several racers who had missed the split on the run-in to the climb caught back on. John
Ryan put in a hard dig about half way up; I quickly jumped to his wheel without hesitation. Once we crested, I could see some guys
still trying to get on to the back of the lead group after being left out in the crosswinds. Knowing they had been chasing hard on
the flats and up the climb, I put in a hard jump over the top to make sure no one behind was going to get back on. This worked
well and the field had now dwindled down to a more select group of close to 12 riders.
We stayed together at a fairly good rotation with everyone working until we hit the wall on the backside. Once we got on the
steeper slopes, John Ryan and I started attacking each other again. We were both trying to make the group smaller and more
select, while also trying to drop each other.
We stayed together at a fairly good
rotation with everyone working until we hit
the wall on the backside. Once we got on
the steeper slopes, John Ryan and I started
attacking each other again. We were both
trying to make the group smaller and more
select, while also trying to drop each other.
As we continued fighting the gradual
climbs and constant headwind of the backside, I started to feel the heat taking a toll on
me, but the attacks did not slow down. Kyle
Parrot put in a hard acceleration on flats
from behind. I instinctively jumped on his
wheel and followed. I saw we had a gap, and
started to work with him. Soon, John and
Carson bridged across to us. The four of us
worked together, and we were pulling away
from the remainder of the pack. We stayed
together until the final right hand turn
toward the finish. The cat and mouse
games began as we slowly inched towards
the line. All of us were very cautious in our
pulls. No one would take his eyes off each
other as we got closer to the gold medal at
the end. Going into the final kilometer, I was
sitting on John’s wheel and Kyle was on my
wheel. John then made a hard jump while
moving to the right, starting the sprint. He
got a gap on me and I was giving it all I
could to nail him back. Once I got back
behind him, I could hear Kyle start his
sprint. I jumped as hard as my legs could go
to match Kyle’s jump, but Kyle had too
much momentum and he slowly pulled
away from me in the final 150 meters. I
rolled in for second.
Not a bad way to end my last race as a
junior cyclist. Next year I will be moving farther in the sport and making great things
happen.
A Texan in College in North Carolina
by Megan Baab
College life is the
best time for a young
and thriving adult in
America,
especially
when you go to college
on a cycling scholarship and get to ride in
one of the most beautiful places in the country. I am currently
28
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
attending Lees Mcrae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina. Banner
Elk is a very small town in North Carolina, and I say this because
there is only one stop sign, no Target, one bike shop, and really nothing to do but ride your bike around. So why did I pick this place to go
to school? Well the answer is a simple Lees Mcrae College is a ten
time national championship school and has produced cycling pros
like Brent Brookwalter, Carla Swart and Ally Stacher. It is also at the
base of the Appalachian Mountains. Lees Mcrae College is a very
small school, with about seven hundred students attending. The
small school was very cool when I came in for orientation in early
August. I walked in to my dorm
room and suddenly realized there is
no air conditioning in the whole
building! WHAT! I wondered how I
was going to survive without air
conditioning, but then my resident
advisor came in and said “Well
Megan, you’re no longer in Texas.”
This is when I proceeded to sigh in
relief when I realized I would not
have to put up with hundred degree
weather anymore. Instead, I will
have snow, ice, and really, really
cold weather.
The first ride of the school
year was epic - four hours in the
mountains with no flat roads, a lot of
dirt and gravel, and some very
steep climbs. The bad luck started
to happen, with a slew of mechanicals on my part, and I got to sit on
the side of the road in the middle of
nowhere waiting to be picked up my
one of the coaches. It was a great
ride though, with lots of climbing,
awesome descents, and some
technical dirt roads. The riding in
North Carolina definitely differs
from Texas, because you are
always climbing or descending;
there really are no flat roads here.
The riding is super awesome
here, and I always have somebody
to ride with because there are more
than 60 members on the team. To
all junior cyclists who are looking for
a cycling school, Lees Mcrae is the
way to go. The campus has a
national level mountain bike
course, a cyclocross course, and if
you really feel like climbing, Beech
Mountain is a kilometer away from
the campus. Lees Mcrae College is
very supportive of cyclist because
cyclists make up about 20 percent
of the school. If you want more
information on Lees Mcrae, go to
www.lmc.edu then pick the athletics
link and you can read all about the
team’s adventures and races.
State Championships ~ Skill Based Cat 2s
by Michael Pincus
I have yet to start a 100-mile road race were everyone pegs it from
the start. State road race was no different. As we rolled along the first couple of miles, no one was interested in setting a fast pace and a few riders
rolled off the front to form the early break. As I watched ones and twos roll
off the front to get up to the early move, I sat patiently waiting to see if any
of the riders I had marked before the start were going to go across. After a
handful of riders got up the road, I was thinking about going across with the
next rider just to be safe, but after the initial bunch went up the road, the
pack decided to lock it down and no one else was able to roll off.
I sat comfortably in the pack, staying near the front, to make sure no
one else was going to bridge across. I was feeling a bit skeptical about the
move up the road, since almost every team had a man up ahead. Once we
crested the “wall” on the backside of the course, there was a bit more of
chase coming from the pack. This was good for me as I sat in and conserved some energy and just made sure I was attentive towards the front
following any attacks that went.
As we approached the final couple
miles into the first lap, I was sitting near
the back. The front of the group was
starting to pick up the pace into the
strong cross winds. I sensed a catastrophe about to happen, and before the field
started splintering from the winds I
moved into the left lane, bringing over the
five riders behind me creating a second
echelon. This was a very smart move as
the five of us in the rotation were sharing
the work equal amongst our selves; we
could see the field was starting to get
blown apart in the winds. Once we turned
right out of the crosswind we gently integrated our selves back into the pack. It
was nice to see all the other racers huffing and puffing from sitting in the gutter,
especially since the riders in the second
echelon with me were not even showing
a sign of fatigue.
On the second lap, the break had
stopped increasing its lead and was sitting steady near 2.5 minutes. I moved up
near the front but didn’t want to work on
the flats. Being without teammates, I had
to be very careful with where I expended
my energy. The break was now down to
a two-minute lead where it stayed for
several miles, but once we got back onto
the crosswind section, the break was just
a minute in front of us. I moved towards
the front and started putting the pressure
on. Soon, four other racers got in a rotation with me at the front as the wind tore
at our left shoulders. After a few minutes
I looked back to see the peloton split into
several chase groups. At this point, I
started to catch the remnants of the
break. We ended up catching the leaders
close to mile 75 and were together for
the first time in almost 3½ hours. As we
took the turn towards “the wall”, I made a
special note not to do more work than the
guy who was doing the least amount of
work.
Once over the climb, we were
down to a select group of around 15. I
could see the fatigue starting to set in the
riders’ legs and bodies as we
approached mile 85. I put in a few light
attacks from across the road to try to
sneak away. This worked very well, since the field reacted very violently to
this and we dropped a few more riders. We made the final right hand turn
in a small group of six. All six of us continued to cautiously rotate through
heading into the final few kilometers, waiting to get closer to the line before
we started our sprint for the line. At about 600 meters to the line, I opened
up the sprint from 5th wheel putting in a weaker jump just to get the sprint
going. This worked well as the group jumped around me and I got comfortably in 3rd position. I got as low as I could and waited till about 190 meters
to go before I opened it up one last time. I moved out of the slipstream and
gave it all I could for the line. On my right, however, Bryan Reid started to
slowly inch around me with about 75 meters to go. By the time we crossed
the line, he got me by a bike length. Nothing is wrong with silver on such a
tough and challenging course. I could not have been able to do this without the constant support of my family, team, friends, and my coach.
State Championship Road Race : Cat 2 Men - Another View
By Ryan Dromgoole
The Cat 2 State Road Race rolled out at
8:15am with 99 hard miles in front of us. A few
guys slipped away early, and there were a few
riders up the road before we hit the big hill. My
teammate Jesse attacked and everyone was
on his wheel instantly. Unfortunately, they were
marking the wrong guy. We went through the
rotation once or twice, with Jesse behind me.
When I got to the front, he told me to go and
proceeded to let me roll off the front. I jumped
and made it up to the leaders in time to recover before we hit the climb. Most of the major
teams were represented except for Dallas
Racing/Park Place and Credo Racing. We
headed up the large hill keeping it steady. We
all rotated well through the first two laps, and
our gap stayed between 1:30 to 2:45.
There were two $100 dollar primes on
each lap finish. The first lap through, no one
mentioned it, so I figured it was best to just
make sure I was near the front so I could snag
it. That plan worked out pretty well as I was at
the front and pulled through with a little more
effort to make sure I got it. Some of my fellow
racers wondered what I was doing and told me
to not surge as much. Second lap, we had a new addition to the group,
so I was watching him as he seemed more observant. He certainly was;
he pulled through and kept at the front so I moved onto his wheel. He
ramped it up a bit and I snuck by him at the line to get my second $100
prime. Again, a few were wondering why we sprinted.
On the third lap, the shenanigans started. People started to sit out
of the rotation, trying to save something for the end or just trying to hang
on, you can never be sure, but the rotation just seemed to go a little less
smooth. The first rise before the major hill, Bryan Reid was keeping a
good pace up the hill, and I just got behind and kept the same cadence
to give me something to focus on other than the cramps in my hamstrings. We managed to drop the other three remaining members of the
break. We looked back to see what was left of the peleton coming over
the crest of the hill. Bryan and I kept pace to the top of the longer climb
and got back into the group. We knew we wouldn't survive the backside
cross wind section alone. There were more shenanigans as we were
now a group of 20-25. People would keep going up the road in pairs or
triples but nothing stuck.
Over the last few major hills, we dwindled down to 12 or so, and
eventually whittled it down to seven. The last few miles were rife with
attacks and fakers sitting on the back. When we hit the last corner,
everyone was on there own as no one had any teammates with them.
Inside the 1k, a Dallas racer attacked, and I hopped on his wheel and
30
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
Photo by Lee McDaniel
jumped him, getting a gap on the group. I was still a little bit too far out,
though. Three came around me with 300 meters remaining and I had no
jump left. They didn't have much either, as they seemed to almost stop
and lean on each other as they neared the line. I held my position for
fourth.
Crazy Water Cyclocross
By: Fred Vincent
A mile north and a
quarter mile west of
Mineral Wells, deep in
the woods at the north
end of the watershed
which feeds Lake Pinto,
lies Lion Park. Inside
the park, hundreds of
towering oak, elm and
pecan trees draw from
the watershed to grow
to heights not seemingly
normal for this part of
the country. A thick,
leafy, green canopy
overhead would have
blocked out any sunlight
if there had been any
sunlight
to
shine
through, but there was
no sun in the sky on this
Saturday in October,
only thick gray clouds. It
was about to rain...and
rain hard. A perfect
storm
of
Belgian
cyclocross weather was
brewing right here in Texas.
We got to Lion Park
about 10 o'clock that
Saturday morning, ready for
two days of cross racing.
We arrived well before our
respective start times, but
well after the Master's race
had gone off. A fine mist fell
through the canopy, and my
three sons and my wife and
I were becoming more than
mildly concerned that the
skies would open at any
moment soaking us to the
bone with the kind of chilly
rain that only comes in Fall.
On the racecourse, a
long-haired master's racer,
wearing a sinister black
skinsuit (but also wearing a
not so sinister black ballet tutu), piloted his
two wheeled rocket recklessly, but effortlessly, between the red plastic tape strung
through the oversized trees that served to
mark the trail. A 9 year-old boy enthusiastically heckled another passing racer, "My
grandma could do that section faster in her
BATHROBE!" A group at the finish line signaled each approaching racer with the ringing of cowbells. Clang, clang, CLANG,
CLANG, CLANG, CLANGACLANGACLANGA. A small crowd erupted in cheers in the
distance as Mr. Tutu shot past them on the
other side of the course. Smoke from the
food vendor's cooker hung heavy in the air,
along with the rich smells of sausage and
brisket.
After taking in the sights and sounds of
the Master's race, it was time to suit up. No
tutus for us, but in typical 'cross fashion, we
wore what we brought, and we brought
what we had on hand at home. An old
Bike's Inc. jersey for one kiddo, a
Performance jersey for another, and an old
purple Arlington Velo Club jersey for me.
And then we raced. We raced
hard. And then it rained.
Saturday afternoon and
evening brought drenching
rains, and the course on
Sunday had transformed into
a cyclocross racer's truly perverse dream.
Dry culverts
magically became raging
rivers. Low dusty corners in
the woods had become mud
wallows overnight. Perhaps in
response to the plummeting
temperatures
and
rain,
Sunday's field was half the
size of the previous day's
races, but Sunday's field was
twice as eager. Ever wonder
why 'cross bikes have mud
clearance? Cantilever brakes?
Well, after Sunday at Lion
Park, those of us who were
there don't wonder any more.
My sons brought home a
3rd and a 6th on Saturday,
and a 1st and a 2nd on
Sunday. PAYDIRT! Dallas Bike
Works socks and schwag!
They won a bag of Crazy Water
soaps and bath goodies for
Mom. Upgrade points, too!
What about your results,
Fred, you may ask? What
about my schwag, you ask? My
points? It's nice of you to ask
an old washed up roadie about
his Cat 3 CX performance, but
let's just say I was feeling plenty flush just to be a teammate to
my boys. Teaching my twins
the fine art of the CX mount and
dismount was reward enough.
Watching them conquer that
first set of uphill barricades was
truly priceless. Let's say, too,
that I accomplished my training
goals. And I wasn't brutalized
by my bike saddle…too badly.
A big muddy thanks to organizer
Bryan Fawley, in cooperation with the Crazy
Water Festival and the City of Mineral
Wells. You guys put on one hell of a good
cyclocross event, and we had a great time.
A well planned and well executed course,
great support, great food vendors, great T
shirts for all, and enthusiastic fans (and a
few bewildered locals, too). We're standing
by to pre-reg for next year!
31
West Texas Wind
Presented by
By Richar d McLamor e
Dear West Texas Wind:
I’ve been cheating on you a little bit with a friend of yours. I know
you’ve been saying for the last ten years that I needed to watch out for
that red-headed fiend what hangs out past some of the fences, but, I
think there’s room in my life for both of you.
See, sometimes, you just come on a little too strong, even for me.
That’s not to say, dearest Wind, that your bothersome class-mate,
the red-dirt diva is always smooth and forgiving. Indeed, there have
been a few rocky moments in our short relationship. Those encounters,
though, even if they can be intense, are always relatively brief. Dear
Wind, you, on the other hand . . . well . . . sometimes, the only way to
put up with you is to just turn around and head the other way.
Ok, enough. I’m sure you’ve figured it out: I’ve been riding a
mountain bike again, and indeed there was a day recently when getting
laps in at the Buck Creek trails was way more appealing than slogging
into a stiff breeze that was really only making the wind turbines happy.
And, when I say “rocky moments” and that dirt is not always forgiving, I refer to a few wonderful moments in a section of the trails that
is lovingly prefaced with a sign reading something to the effect of “Watch
out fool. It’s about to get tough for almost 50-year-old over-confident
doofuses who think they know how to ride a mountain-bike because
they bounced off of lots of trees on a trail in Connecticut sometime
before the introduction of shock-forks.” Except that the folks who work
their tails off volunteering to keep the trails ride-able didn’t have enough
space to paint that on the sign. I know it’s what they meant though.
I made the first section. Of course I did. Total humiliation requires
unearned over-confidence. I made it through “Rattlesnake Den.” (Not
really that hard: fear of pit-vipers has always been a great motivator for
me. The section is also downhill, with a ramp). Beginning to think “I
can do this,” I pedaled into “Rock Garden” with an eye to what I thought
was the best line. And by “pedaled into Rock Garden,” what I really
mean is “I pedaled into a rock.” You can’t really call it a boulder,
32
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
because it’s about 18” by 3 feet, and I slammed my left pedal right on
top of it. Simultaneously, I lodged my front wheel against a much smaller, but equally effective lithic braking mechanism. The result? A dance
routine you will never see on “Dancing with the Stars” that I like to call
the “Pas de Doh.” It combines elements of the classic “endo” with
another dance routine that I’ve developed out at Buck Creek that
involves hopping around madly while crashing so as to minimize just
how many cacti spines I’ll be duct-taping out of various regions of my
carcass.
However the judges might have scored my routine, I count myself
lucky that I didn’t break or sprain an ankle since that whole “hopping on
uneven rocky surfaces” thing has always caused rock dancers problems. So, I fell. Like Chumbawumba, I got back up, only to be knocked
down again in the next section. Only, no hopping this time, just a classic slow-motion endo onto my right elbow with a side-helping of torque
lower-back. Which hurt. A lot. So I just lay there a bit, not sure whether
to curse, cry, or laugh.
Laugh? Yes. What else can you do sometimes when you get in
over your head? And especially since that right elbow was just beginning to feel decent again (after a month) after an even stupider decision
in which I decided—at nearly 48 years old and without having really
jumped a bike in, oh, twenty years—to try the “Well Jump” on our second lap around it on one of the Tuesday Night beginner rides.
“Break your collarbone?”
When those are the first words you hear, you know you made an
impression. I reassured Jim (and my 8-year-old son) that I hadn’t. But
as we finished the ride that night, I could tell that my back and that elbow
weren’t happy. That was in September. Here it was October and I was
dinging myself up again.
Like I typed above: cry, curse, and laugh.
Sometimes, though, you need to watch out about that laughter,
because you might get it wrong, or, better, you might get better cause to
laugh, and maybe even smile.
Later in that lap on that Friday when I was
avoiding the West Texas Wind, I’d regained some
rhythm and reached a part of the trail that I’d ridden
more often than the rocky sections. Let’s be honest,
here, though—having a little bit of familiarity with
some of these sections doesn’t mean I ride them with
anything like grace and certainly not efficiency or
speed. Just like a good friend once told me that I
played basketball like a linebacker, I’m sure I ride
technical swoopy rocky single-track . . . like . . . like .
. . like . . . a . . . triathlete.
Anyway, after sliding way too slowly down a
couple of the downhills, I hit the entrance to the “Atrail.” The “A-trail” is really just an excuse to sneak a
good whoop-de-do into the trail. Ordinarily I slow
down way too much on the downhill, which means
that I actually have to pedal up the other side.
Roadies climb climbs, right? Not this time. I let the
bike roll . . . and (I’m smiling as I even think about typing this sentence) caught some decent air over the
top.
I have no idea what my normalized power for
that day’s ride was, couldn’t tell you what my average
heart-rate was, and the total distance and average
speed are appallingly low for someone used to “roadie” figures. But it was worth another two weeks of not
being able to bend over (the lower back) and sliding
ice packs into arm-warmers (the elbow tendons or ligaments or whatever) to catch some air and land it.
(in Sesame Street fashion, this month’s column
brought to you by ctrl+i)
(Continued from page 9)
have always enjoyed our stay at the Breckenridge Baptist Church. They served us a great dinner
and everyone enjoyed another night of bonding over bike stories. Jarvis Polvado of Texoma
Cycling Center in Wichita Falls was one of our awesome bike tech guys, and he gave us a great
clinic on how to clean a
bike, which was especially helpful considering what we had ridden
through on Saturday.
Bryan McKendry and
Gibby from
Trinity Cycles in
Fort Worth were also
with us all weekend to
handle any mechanical
issues that came up.
These guys all did a
great job keeping us
rolling down the road.
Our third and last
day was by far the
toughest day in terms
of climbing because we
were riding through my
home county of Palo
Pinto, well known for
the rolling Palo Pinto Mountains, Brazos River and beautiful lakes. We left Breckenridge under
cloudy skies and headed towards Palo Pinto, with our first stop at the Old Jail Museum with its
hangman’s noose and the best brownies this side of the Brazos. The next stop was a small one
about 10 miles down the road in Mineral Wells. I typically would have passed this up, but since
my husband was providing this stop and I had not seen him all weekend, I decided it was best to
stop and say hi! After a few cookies and kisses, I headed down the road towards the Three
Amigos. If you have ever ridden in Palo Pinto County, you know we have a few hills. They are
very scenic, but they do make for a challenging ride.
From Graford, it’s just 28 miles to Jacksboro and the end of the journey, but one should not
relax too much, because those miles are the toughest ones of the whole weekend. I was really
struggling by this time, so my riding buddy, Neil, stuck with me and offered words of encouragement like, “I think this
is the last hill”; and,
“No, this is the last
one”; then, “I’m sure
this is it”. By this time,
I was gritting my teeth
and thinking of finding
a new riding buddy, but
not until we got to
Jacksboro of course!
Jacksboro and the
Halliburton Building
were a welcome sight.
Pink Ladies (a frozen
pink concoction) awaited us, along with a
wonderful fajita lunch.
This amazing 3day ride is hosted by
The Wichita Falls
Streams and Valleys
(the same folks that
host HH100), The Texas Forts Trail, Fort Richardson, Fort Griffin, Fort Belknap, and all the towns
who put us up and provided rest stops. These guys really know how to organize a ride; they are
always prepared to handle changing weather conditions, finicky appetites or anything else that gets
thrown at them. This is the event I look forward to all year, so come out and ride with us next year
and enjoy some real Texas Country and real Texas History!
What’s New At
The Shop
Bike Lights
By Wes Currier
Lighting The Night
Serfas True 500
Now that summer is over and the days are getting shorter, it is harder to ride in the light of day regardless of whether your training is in
the morning or evening. Lighting can extend your day by providing
enough illumination for you to see and by allowing others to see you
coming.
Lets discuss three different 500+ Lumen LED based lights that are
small, powerful, and bright.
Serfas
True 500
Light & Motion Urban 500
NiteRider
MiNewt 600
150g
113g
190g
1 piece
1 piece
1 piece
$150.00
$159.99
$150.00
Technology Overview
Lighting has gone through many iterations from bulky, heavy batteries to halogen bulb models with short bulb lives. Many lights were
not reliable and barely put enough light on the road to let others
know you were there, much less enough light to see where you were
riding.
LED-based models have changed things. The solid state units have
improved greatly in reliability and bulb life is through the roof. LED
lights now shine 3 to 5 hours, with charge times from 3 to 8 hours,
while providing enough light that others think you are a car or motorcycle.
Choose your Model
All three models are single piece integrated units that provide multiple light outputs including flash, USB charging simplicity, water
resistance, quick helmet or bar mounts, and are in the middle of the
light output from their respective vendors. Charge times are approximately 5 hours from any USB-based charger. 500 lumens allows
you to foresee a potential problem and have extended reaction time
before reaching it, even if riding at 20 MPH; e.g., moving over to
avoid a pothole or stick in the road.
Serfas True 500:
The True 500 is a great utility light for training or commuting. It has
a good beam spread and a soft transition from the center to the edge
of the beam. Various lumen outputs can be 500, 325, 200, 100, or
flashing. Holding the button down for 3 seconds turns the light off
from any brightness. Battery run time is 1.75 hours at 500 and 2.5
hours at 325 lumens. These times seem to be pretty accurate in
actual use.
Light & Motion Urban 500:
All Light & Motion lights are Made-In-America! Right in Monterey,
California.
This is a true commuter light with a fantastic beam pattern and
amber side lights. This well-made unit is the lightest and cleanest
looking. (It only has with a bar mount.) Run times are 1.30, 3.0, 6.0,
and 18-hour flash.
NiteRider MiNewt 600:
The MiNewt 600 offers 100 more lumens for the same price as the
others. Although the unit is somewhat heavier, more light is always
better. Similar to the others is its 5.5 hour charge time Li-Ion battery.
There are four light levels, the main two being 1.30 at 600 and 3.0 at
300 lumens.
Conclusion
These LED models are all similar and any would
be a great addition to extend your riding time
whether commuting or training. The 500+ lumen
output will provide the ability to see obstacles at
speed and allow you to be seen sooner. The run
times are good for most training rides, but have
lower lumen output on longer rides.
The Serfas is a good reliable all around workhorse. The Light & Motion has a great beam pattern and is Made-In-America. The Nite Rider
offers brighter output for the same amount of
money. You can't go wrong with any of them, so
choose one or two and extend you riding time.
34
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
Introducing Claire Routledge
Story and Photo by Richard Carter
A native of New Zealand, track racer Claire Routledge represented
her country as a junior at the Oceania games and from the ages of 15 to
18, won several national titles. Wanting a change and to take her riding
to another level, she transferred from the University of Auckland in New
Zealand after her freshman year, and is now a Women’s A rider at
Midwestern State University.
“I was looking at schools in the states that had a good cycling program and my major geology, which narrowed it down quite a lot,” she
laughed. “I talked to the coach (Julie Carter) and straight away it was a
good fit.”
She’s been at MSU for a year and a half and ridden in two Hotter’N
Hell Hundreds. “Last year I was 11th in the road race. This year I just
came back from home and was sick and was dying from the heat, so I didn’t do as well. The MSU team just returned from the 2011 USA Cycling
Collegiate Track Nationals in Madison where she finished 9th overall in
the omnium. “As a team we raced well, and I was part of the co-ed Team
Sprint where we came in second and were just narrowly beaten. It was a
good race, she said, and they came in fourth in the Team Pursuit.
In 2010 Track Nationals in Indianapolis, Routledge had won a
bronze medal in the Sprint. In Team Sprint and Team Pursuit, the MSU
team she road on finished second in both events.
While Wichita Falls doesn’t have track, she and teammates Matt
Fox and Danny Robertson go to Frisco to ride as often as they can and to
race on Fridays.
She enjoys the tactical quality of Track Racing. “It’s one person
against the other one, and it’s not always a question of how fast you are
but how well you race against your opponent. “You always have to think
on the go. Everyone is different and you watch them ride to see how they
race.
Routledge has been a track sprinter since she started cycling in
high school at the age of 12. “A friend and I signed up for it and we started going to the track at home for a month, and after that someone asked
me if I wanted to carry on and they would look after me and start coaching me. I raced in nationals when I was 13 and fell in love with it and never
stopped since.”
Her father first taught her to ride in a field when she was 4 or 5. “I
always loved to ride, and my dad and I would go riding. My dad was an
avid sportsman and did triathlons. Rutledge was born on the Isle of Man,
between England and Ireland, and her family moved around quite a lot.
When she was 6, they emigrated to New Zealand.
“Both my parents are English, but I consider myself a New
Zealander. I have dual citizenship, but I am a Kiwi. “That’s who I choose
to race for.”
Rutledge tries to ride six days a week but with schooling it doesn’t
always work out that way, she said. “We have a group ride several days
week from Texoma Cycling Center, and at the end there is a bit of a race.
“There are certain goals I want to reach when I train. This is how I
need to be feeling after a ride and this is what I have to do to get there,”
she explained.
She has another two years riding at MSU before she graduates. “I’d
like to represent New Zealand again at an elite level on a world competition level. Right now, I want to get through school. Next year I hope to do
better at track nationals and I want to represent the MSU team well.”
For the long term, her goals depend. “If I race internationally, I would
like to race for New Zealand. To some extent, I would like to go professional. But she does want to complete her geology degree at MSU and
go on to get a masters degree and a PhD. “I am taking a variety of subjects in geology to discover exactly what it is I want to study. I am still looking.”
Riding for Julie Carter and the MSU has had a big impact on
how she approaches cycling. “I came to MSU thinking riding was an individual sport and now and I am on a team and do team races. I’ve learned
so much here. We have a really good program and people at MSU and
the community really cares about us.
“Everyone looks out for you. I have some really good friends and I
am really happy. It is a big change from home, but I am adjustable and feel
I have adjusted here well. She paused a moment and added “ We don’t
get this level of heat or for this long … but, you know, We are big barbecue people in New Zealand as well.”
Monthly Coaching • Coaching Consultations
Threshold Testing • CompuTrainer Classes
Power Meter Consultations
www.athletesontrack.com
35
Junior Spotlight: Robert Archer
Presented by:
By TRP Staff
Photo by Mike Gladu
TRP: Give us your full name and your
nick-name.
RA: Robert Archer
TRP: Have you tried other two-wheeled
sports?
RA: I have done one mountain bike race
and one cross race, I definitely plan on
doing more.
TRP: Where do you live and how long
have you lived there?
RA: I have lived in Richmond (Houston) all
my life.
TRP: Do you participate in other sports?
RA: No, I gave up soccer (which I played for
11 years) to race bikes
TRP: Do you have brothers and sisters –
if so, who are they and what ages are
they? Do they ride?
RA: I have one awesome sister who does not
ride.
TRP: Where do you go to school?
RA: I go to Strake Jesuit College
Preparatory in Houston Texas
TRP: What grade are you in and what’s
your favorite subject?
RA: 10th, and I would have to say that other
than lunch, Geometry is my favorite subject.
TRP: Does anyone in your family race – if
so, who and for whom at what level?
RA: Both of my parents did an ironman, but
that is as far as anyone in my family has
gone.
TRP: What do you think of school?
RA: It is definitely hard to keep a healthy
balance between school and the bike, but
no matter what you gotta do it.
TRP: What team do you ride for and for
how long?
RA: Have ridden for about a year on
Southern Elite.
TRP: What do you see as your future …
what would you like to do after graduating from school?
RA: I definitely want to go pro, it just
depends if I make it to a UCI team or not
TRP: What were your last three events
and your placing in those events?
RA: Memorial Park Wednesday Night Crits
3/4s (7th) Hotter than Hell Junior 4/5 road
race (1st) Hotter than Hell Junior Crit (2nd)
TRP: When did you start riding? Can you
tell the story?
RA: I had always noticed that I was better than
all my friends on a bike, there was a 5 mile race
in my neighborhood that got really competitive
between my friends and I, and yes I always
won.
TRP: When did you start racing? Why?
36
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
RA: I started July 21st of last year because I
had always watched the Tour de France and
thought it looked awesome.
TRP: What kind of bike do you ride? Any
interesting equipment on it?
RA: I ride a 2011 Scott Addict R2 with DuraAce, a Garmin and Zipp wheels.
TRP: How many days a week do you ride
and how many hours do you put in?
RA: I ride 6 days a week and put in about 8-12
hours a week
TRP: Do you have a formal coach? If so,
who is it and why do you have one?
RA: I have a team coach Richard Lamb and a
work out coach Kyle Davenport, Richard is
pretty much my role model and team coach
because he is the “Chuck Norris of cycling”. I have Kyle because he is
someone that I often ride with and he has really helped me get a plan for
this season.
TRP: As a Junior Racer, what do you think could be done to
increase the sport’s popularity among young people?
RA: I think that there needs to be an expansion of high school cycling and
an expansion of cycling in general. About 14 months ago, I had no idea
any of this existed.
TRP :Tell us about your first Race?
RA: My first race was a Memorial Park Crit, I showed up with an Under
Armour shirt and a $200 Schwinn from Academy. My Schwinn always
tried to change gears whenever I got out of the saddle which meant that
I hit my crotch in about every corner, so I pulled out of the race. Through
that mechanical I met Richard Lamb who is still my coach today, and
joined my team Southern Elite.
TRP: Tell us about your worst Race?
RA: My worst race was Lago Vista on Saturday. It pretty much sucked
because it was 40 degrees to start with and of course I didn’t bring arm
warmers or any cold weather gear. We were 5 minutes into our junior
race when it started hailing and raining, which wasn’t fun because Lago
Vista is famous for a descent that gets you up to 50 miles an hour. I got
into a breakaway of 3 people on the first lap, but on the second lap I got
dropped by them because my hand was too cold to switch gear to big
chain ring (which I couldn’t do until mile 30 of our 35 mile race). All in all,
I got third so I can’t really complain, but it was still a pretty eventful race.
TRP: Tell us about your favorite Race?
RA: My favorite race was Ronde Von Manor, I had a good 4/5s race, but
after that I did the Juniors. In the Junior race I broke away at about 6
miles to go and soloed for the win. It was my first win, but I loved it so
much because I had worked so hard for it and also because my team
went 1,2,3,4 and 1 in the combined women race.
TRP: Favorite food?
RA: Well my favorite restaurant would definitely have to be Fogo de Chao
TRP: Training food?
RA: penne pasta with just butter and parmesan for the night before, cliff
bars or the hotel breakfast to eat before a race and gu’s while your racing.
TRP: Other than that?
RA: Whatever I won’t throw up
TRP: Okay. What are the top five on your Ipod?
RA: Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Eric Church, Foreigner, and Keith Urban
(in that order)
TRP: What do you use as a ring-tone?
RA: To be honest I don’t really know but it is the one that is least annoying
TRP: Campy, SRAM or Shimano?
RA: Shimano because it is more practical, but I like SRAM because it is
just sort of clicky, but I still need to ride both Campy and SRAM
TRP: Favorite pro bike racer?
RA: It would have to come down to 3- Fabian Cancellara- because he’s
just insanely fast; Peter Sagan- because he is an insane sprinter who
also wins mountain stages if he feels like it and he’s 21; Philippe Gilbertbecause he is climber who just randomly decided he was gonna be a
sprinter for this year’s Tour de France, and got 3rd in the points standings
to Cavendish and Rojas
TRP: Anybody you’d like to thank or mention?
RA: I would like to thank my coaches Richard Lamb and Kyle Davenport
for helping me get to the level that I am at. I would also like to thank my
family for supporting me and giving up their weekends for me to race.
37
On The Road,
Close to Home
By Zac Ford ~ The Pondering Cyclist
to create the right
environment where
a budding cyclist can
grow. Teams and clubs are a great example. When I first got hooked on
bikes back in ’99, I was just 15 years old, and had it not been for several people at the shop and from the local club, I wouldn’t be the cyclist I
am today. For our sport to grow, there must be people out there helping
newcomers along. Fortunately for us, this is something that cyclists do
very well.
We’ve reached a point in cycling where bicycle technology is at its
best and cheapest form (hydraulic disc-brakes and an air-sprung fork on
a $1000 MTB?), and society is embracing it. Think about just how many
more bikes you see on the roads these days. Even if she’s on a beach
cruiser wearing a skirt and heels, at least she’s thinking of that as a
viable means of transportation! That’s where it starts. Get them hooked
and they’ll be back for more.
Check out my blog, ThePonderingCyclist.Com. I’ve got more posts
about gear, events and bike tripping as well as new guest bloggers! See
you on the road.
The next generation is here! Over the past year, I have been witness
to a whole new group of cyclists being born, and it’s testament to what a
budding cycling community can achieve.
I currently live in Arlington, home to the Cowboy’s stadium, the Texas
Rangers and the largest city in America without public transportation.
About a year and a half ago, the city began looking into ways to improve
its transportation system and started researching bike lanes. From that,
a small community organization was born with the goal to help cyclists
ride their bikes and get on the roads. The cyclists that we focused on
were not the one’s you’d peg to ride a century, go on 40-mile loaded
overnight bike-camping trips or ride a velodrome, but that’s who they
became.
My friend Darrell and I rode 120 miles to Wichita Falls to ride the
Hotter than Hell century the next day. Jeremy Jonathan and I rode 22
miles into a 35mph headwind loaded down with camping gear to take
part in a joint Bike-Camping trip put on between two shops from opposite sides of the Metroplex. In October, a group of Bike Friendly Arlington
cyclists made the daunting trek to Frisco to ride on the velodrome.
They’re hooked on bikes, they want to race, tour, commute, and live
bikes, and it makes me incredibly happy.
While this group won’t always be together, I know each and every
one of them will keep riding. Jonathan keeps talking about touring
across Italy next summer: “I want to ride the Strade Bianche and eat
olives.” Jordan, on the other hand, seems to have found his place in life,
turning left around a track and going really fast. And Piyush? Well, he’s
looking like more of a road racer every day.
The bikes have improved, too, as the riders have made their ways
from old 10 speeds to $1200 CX rigs and road bikes, all while upping
their mileage along the way. We started with 10 mile rides in January,
then upped to 15 miles with our Tuesday night ride in February, and by
May, we were kicking out 50-milers like it was no big deal. They got fast,
too!
I can no longer go out with the BUFALOs (the Tuesday Knights’
moniker), and expect an easy cruise. I have to be on my toes now, and
I love it!
This doesn’t just happen, though. Like I mentioned before, you have
38
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
Welcome to
Bike Friendly Central Texas
Copperas Cove, Texas is located in the middle of miles
of scenic, maintained paved roads in the foothills of the
Texas Hill Country- with several routes ranging in
distance from 10 miles up 100 miles.
Contact the Copperas Cove Chamber of Commerce
& Visitors Bureau at
254-547-7571 or www.copperascove.com
For cycling maps, local accommodations
and restaurants
“Train Hard, Live Easy” –
By Corey Ray
The story behind the photo
During my freshman year of college I was blessed to have a roommate
by the name of Thomas Johansson. He was fresh off of the plane from
Sweden and I was in a new world myself for the first time. We were both distance runners for Sam Houston State University where we both shared a
deep passion for training and racing. We were both super cocky and thought
we could beat anyone in a race where we would push our bodies to the limit.
In a way, we were both outcasts. Thomas wore tight pants and had long blond
hair and I wore short shorts and had a little fro. We would get up at 4 AM to
watch the Swedes play hockey in the Olympics and wake up the whole dorm
with our cheers. Thomas would always get frustrated at “lazy Americans” and
I shared his same frustration.
We were also both injury prone runners. I actually had to stop running
due to a deterioration of cartilage in my right knee, and Thomas always had
an achilles problems. It was this twist of fate, being together, and believing in
each other that grew our relationship deeper then I could have ever asked for.
It was these times, when Thomas and I would go cross train, which
grew our relationship as we both endured unfavorable training conditions,
because let’s face it, we would have much rather gone running. We would
pool run outside in December or sneak into any pool we could find and get
kicked out of gyms for not having memberships. We would ride the stationary
bikes and leave puddles of sweat on the floor. We would listen to Matisyahu
and Kent, a Swedish band to get pumped up for any workout we had lined up.
Thomas Johansson
We would push each other on workouts and yell at each
other. The Swedish language sounds really angry, so in
turn, we would talk like that to each other outside of training. Thomas was the perfect roommate for this crazy
American.
After the second surgery on my knee, the doctor told
me I would not be able to run again. In my mind, I heard
this how I wanted to – that there was only a small chance
I would not be able to run again. So, after three months of
being on crutches and playing ping pong one legged
against Thomas, who always beat me, it was time to test
the limits of my knee.
When it was finally time to try to put weight bearing
pressure on my knee, I started to run slowly. I ran with a
limp and my running ended that year. Luckily, I had a crazy
European Swede who was there to lift me up when I was
down. Living with Thomas, there was no other option or
excuse for not training hard. I was just starting to accept
that I could not run, but Thomas put it in my head that I
could still train.
Thomas had this idea that I would ride my bike and
become a professional cyclist. So much so, that is what I
set out to do. Starting out my riding career at 21, it was off
to the races to train hard and learn the cycling culture.
Thomas and I stayed in contact over the years, chatting
and every once in a while talking. He eventually switched
to the bike, where now I was the expert and gave him any
advice I could.
After not talking for half a year or so back in 2010, I
noticed he had changed his characteristic Facebook profile picture of him
pointing to the sky gazing up at the heavens. The next day I messaged him.
A few days later, one of our good friends notified me that Thomas has passed
away. Thomas had a brain tumor for the past year and never mentioned it to
me. I was broken for the next week as I listened to songs we used to listen to,
looking at pictures of him, and remember all the good times we had. God it
hurt, but how beautiful it is just to have known the man and having had the
honor of being his roommate.
A year later, working full time while obtaining a master’s degree, it was
time for the State Road Race at Fort Hood. I just so happened to get the
weekend off and everything fell into place with the support of my team PACC.
With a few criteriums under my belt, support from friends and family, and a
few hours a week of riding over the past few months, I couldn’t help but think
of Thomas and his dream for me to race. It had been a year since Thomas
passed away. I quickly notified my team to sign me up and I would do whatever I could to help them out.
Every time I ride or race it reminds me of how much of a joy it can be
and who it was that taught me to embrace it. The picture from the Fort Hood
Road race is in remembrance of Thomas Johansson and a prayer for Brandi
Lafleur. I kissed my hand, looked to the sky, pointed my finger at them, and
felt them looking back at me. I did not win this race, but I raced remembering
what it feels like to compete, train, sacrifice, and believe.
39
The Watt Posse
By Jesse Moran
PACC Elite Team, also known as The Watt Posse (with credit to
Michael Wilder), was started as a vision based on my experience in collegiate cycling. Stephen F. Austin had a small team that fluctuated in
membership between 6 and 12 active members. I had the honor of running the team for 2 years, and it was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. One of the great things about collegiate cycling is
that the school spirit gives the team an immediate sense of camaraderie. There were far fewer ego's, it seemed, in the world of collegiate
cycling. The other thing we accomplished was a full year of racing on a
minimal budget. This meant that we traveled together, packed as many
guys into the hotel rooms as possible, and stayed in some questionable
places. This may not seem great or glamorous, but it led to some stories and memories that will stay with me for a lifetime. These are stories that I'm sure anyone who went through the collegiate cycling program could tell you.
So how do you replicate this in Texas regional racing? Well, I would recommend a fall trip to Durango that is heavy on the beer and wine! This
is where The Watt Posse was born two years ago. I pitched the story
40
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
to my good friends and now sponsors, Michael
and Cindy Young of Aspen Equity Partners and
Maplewood Investment Advisors, and they gave
me an inspirational push and a little financial
help as well.
There are definitely some challenges that a
regional team faces that a collegiate team does
not. For one, the Dallas Metroplex is much larger than a college campus. Also, how do you instill
the loyalty and team unity that you get with a college team? Then consider that each person on
the team balances lots of other things pulling
them in different directions. We also wanted to
make sure we maintained very good relationships with our sponsors, whether it was Plano
Cycling or a financial sponsor, we wanted them
to feel rewarded by their partnership with the
team.
We have accomplished this by selecting the
highest quality people racing in North Texas, and
not just basing our selection on their racing ability. I wanted to make sure that anyone I brought
on the team was racing for the team and not for
just themselves, I feel like one of the biggest
things that can destroy a team is an ego. The
other thing we have tried to do is keep everyone
on the team as involved as possible, we choose
our races together, talk about the future of the
team together and even talk about what new members we want to add,
as a team. I don't keep our budget a secret or play favorites with who
gets what support from the team.
All of these steps have really helped the team mature. Like any young
team, we have had our struggles this year, but I think anyone in the P12
field would tell you that we have made major strides in the past two
years ago. I know I could really feel the team aligning as the year progressed, and what a way to finish the year with winning the team competition over the Cotton Patch/State Champion weekend. I expect that
we will carry that momentum into next year. Many of our riders are making leaps and bounds in fitness and race experience and I feel like we
will be fierce competitors next year. I look forward to it!
I feel like we will have the best group of guys racing next year; we all
have a blast together and race pretty well, too! I would like to thank our
sponsors for giving us the opportunity to execute this vision, Michael
and Cindy Young for giving me the inspiration and freedom, Plano
Cycling for believing that we were different, and PACC's other riders for
giving us everything from moral support to hand-ups during the races.
M a r k e t p l a c e
November
TXBRA.org
No Events Scheduled
TeXas
Bicycle
Racing
Association
Contact info@houstoncycling.org
Hill Country
Bicycle Works
141 West Water St.
Kerrville, TX
830-896-6864
702 East Main
Fredericksburg, TX
830-990-2609
www.hillcountrybicycle.com
41
(Continued from page 19)
Desde el momento que mi alarma sonó en mi
cuarto de hotel, mis nervios no se contenían
por la paliza que me esperaba por venir. El
tiempo corría muy lento mientras miraba a
mis compañeros competir en la carrera antes
que llegara mi turno. Luego como si nada,
llego mi hora de formarme y enseñar a lo que
vine.
DA: From the moment my alarm rang in the
hotel room, my nerves were shaky for the
upcoming beating I was going to take. Time
seemed to roll by so slowly as I watched my
teammates take their turn at the race prior to
mine. Then out of nowhere, it was my time to
line up and show what I came for.
TRP: Who did you watch for?
Me asegure de mantener la vista en los corredores que hicieran algún movimiento en las
primeras subidas. Después de eso, el grupo
se desparramó. Cualquier corredor del primer
grupo era una amenaza.
DA: I made sure to keep an eye on the guys
to jump in the first few up hills. After that, the
group started to spread. Anyone in the first
group was a potential threat.
TRP: What were the early miles like?
Las primeras 8 millas eran criticas, ya que era
el “punto decisivo”. Yo tenía la oportunidad de
tomar el podio, ó me dejaban por muerto.
Hubo un momento en el que perdí un poco la
concentración y me quedé estancado al
momento que iniciaron el ataque. Con suerte,
tomé la oportunidad y finalmente alcancé al
grupo a las dos millas adelante.
DA: The first 8 miles were critical since it was
the “make it or break it” point. I either had a
chance at taking a podium finish, or I would be
left for dead. There was a slight moment
where I lost focus and got blocked in as they
started an attack. Luckily, I took my chances
and finally caught up about 2 miles ahead.
TRP: What led up to the successful break?
Al alcanzar el grupo de la escapada, fue una
lucha constante para mantenermé con ellos
porque le estaban dando con todo lo que
traían. Noté que varios de los corredores
tenían piernas monstruosas que parecían no
rendirse. Eso me intimidó un poco. Ha-ha.
DA: As I caught up to the breakaway, it was a
constant struggle to keep up as they were giving it all they had. I noticed a few guys had
monstrous legs that seemed to never give up.
That kind of intimidated me a bit. Ha-ha.
TRP: What happened inside the break?
Los ataques nunca paraban durante el resto
de la carrera. Cualquier oportunidad que se
daba para hacer nuestro grupo más chico, la
tomaban estos gigantescos corredores que
no parecían agotarse. Yo mido 5’8” de estatura, y ellos de 6’+ traían hasta pa’ llevar.
DA: The attacks never stopped through out
the rest of the race. Any chance that was
given to make the breakaway smaller was
taken by these huge guys that never looked
exhausted. I’m 5’8”,
and these 6’+ guys
had enough to pass
around.
TRP: Where there
any moments of real
risk or questions of
your survival?
Claro que sí. Cada
ataque se realizó a las
orillas de la carretera
donde tenía un mínimo
de
espacio
para
engancharme. Había
dos opciones: o me
mantenía
en
el
camino, o terminaba
comiéndolo. Yo no
tenía hambre por
grava. Al igual, todo lo
que sube, debe bajar.
Descensos de 45mph
dan un poco de miedo.
DA: Definitely. Every
attack was made on
the shoulder of the
road where I had minimum play area to draft.
There
were
two
options: stay on the
road, or end up eating
it. I wasn’t hungry for
gravel. Also, everything that goes up
42
THE RACING POST
VOL.11, NO. 11
must come down, and 45mph descents are a
bit intimidating.
TRP: Who seemed the strongest in the
break?
Panayiotis Sotiriades del equipo Proactive fue
un contrincante muy fuerte. También, Frisco
Cycling Club trajo sus barajas a la mesa
.DA: Team Proactive’s Panayiotis Sotiriades
was a strong opponent. Also, Frisco Cycling
Club brought some game to the race.
TRP: How did you get away?
A mitad de la carrera, un promedio de doce
corredores quedaban en la escapada. Poco a
poco, se empezaron a quedar atrás hasta que
éramos solo siete. De ahí, trabajamos juntos
durante las próximas diez millas para acercarnos más hacia la victoria.
DA: Half way through the race, about a dozen
riders were left in the breakaway. Slowly but
surely, we started thinning down the group to
about seven. We then worked together for the
next ten miles to bring us closer to a victory.
TRP: How did the finish go down?
Faltando solo 3 millas, era de sálvese quien
pueda. Trabajamos de esa manera hasta que
reconocí el marcador de 200 metros. En ese
momento, era todo o nada hasta la meta. No
veía corredores por delante, así que tenía que
permanecer fuerte. Mi plan trabajó (al igual
que mis piernas), y crucé la meta cinco
segundos adelante del segundo lugar.
DA: With about 3 miles to go, it was every
man for him self. We worked it that way until
I recognized the 200 meter mark. At that point,
it was all or nothing for the finish line. There
were no riders ahead which meant I needed to
hold on strong. My plan worked (and so did
my legs) as I crossed the finish line first place
about 5 seconds ahead of second place.
TRP: Words of wisdom?
No existe enemigo pequeño en el ciclismo.
Entrenamiento constante y dedicación son la
llave para una Victoria.
DA: There are no short cuts in cycling.
Constant training and dedication hold the key
for a victory.
TRP: Anybody you’d like to thank?
Le quiero dar gracias a Dios por llevarme
hasta la meta en una pieza, y a mi familia por
apoyarme y aguantarme al igual que a mi
bicicleta. Especialmente a mi esposa Eloisa
por asegurarse que me despierte temprano
en las mañanas para los entrenamientos.
Otras gracias salen para mis patrocinadores,
BNW Auto y Karancho’s. La gasolina te traga,
pedalea en tu bicicleta!
DA: I would like to thank God for taking me to
the finish line in one piece, and my family for
supporting me and putting up with me and my
bike. Especially my wife Eloisa for making
sure I get up early in the morning for my weekend rides. Another thanks goes out to my
sponsors, BNW Auto and Karancho’s. Gas
sucks, Ride a Bike!

Racing Post - Crazy Water

Transcription

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