3 times a wiener!

Alright, so this is my Levis 100 recap post. First to finish off where I left off before. Cable was f'ing fun. Long rides epic rides, ton of family time, and more bear encounters than I think I can list. I was within 30 yards (or closer) of black bears more times than I care for with nothing but my clothes separating me and them. Tons of fun.

So Levis in chapters with alternative ending and smack talk for WORS racers!!

Prerace
No surprise racers arrived to compete with, unfortunately. The main adversary would be the heat for everyone. Low 90's, mid 90% humidity equaled a long day and tons of DNF's. We were scheduled to race 7 laps on a revised loop that was about 15 miles long. The course had MORE climbing and was much MORE technical in nature than the year before. This is a real mountain biker's course (which is why I like it so much)! We would be riding some super narrow technical trails with 60 degree drops on one side, crazy! I would be self supported, just as were the racers I wanted to watch for (Tim Ek and Dan Dittmer). It was too hot for my darling Abi :( and thus my smoking hot wife.



Race Time
We all took off on the Leman's start. I was second to the bike and first in the singletrack. The legs were clicking over quickly and I was soon out of sight. The first lap felt good, I got my goodies in the pit, and was off for the 2nd lap without seeing anyone else yet. This would continue until I finished off the 4th lap. The heat/humidity were making things MISERABLE and I needed to cool off. While my body went into shock from the ice cold bottles I poured on myself I found out how things were going. Turns out I was 30 minutes up on 2nd (Ek) and 35 minutes on 3rd (Dittmer) after the 3rd lap. I was consistently gaining 10 minutes per lap on my rivals!

Well, the 5th and 6th lap went as well as they could with the body wearing hard from the heat. I finished up my 6th lap at 6pm with about an hour's lead on 2nd (Ek still, Dittmer dropped from the heat) and leading ALL the other 100 miler categories. I knew the WEMS races had a time cut off of 8pm and that I would be the only one who could complete the 7th lap. I decided to pack up and head home early proud off my 3rd straight victory at this tough man competition.

Wait, there's more with a surprise
ALTERNATIVE ENDING!!
So it was 7pm. I was washed up. Most of my stuff was packed in the car. I just needed to breakdown the tent and throw the bikes on the car. That is when Jason the race director informed we that 3rd place had gone out for a 7th lap (Ek stopped at 6 laps). "Why", I said, "he'll never make it back before 8pm". "Oh, no", was the reply, "we had extended the cutoff to 9pm". After several minutes of trying to figure out if he was serious I had flipped the switch from 'I'm hungry and about to get in the car to go home', to 'I am not letting this SOB sneak by me for the win'. Like Superman I jumped into my tent and quickly emerged with my sweat soaked kit on. A volunteer had grabbed bottles and gel from my car and after chugging Jason's Powerade I was off like a prom dress. I caught my now arch enemy (I am bad with names, Karl?. His last name was Bachelor) about 1/4 into the course. We talked briefly and realized that he just needed to finish out the lap to move up to second and I needed to beat him in for 1st. I would have continued with him, but fear of the unforeseen mechanical and the worry of a bonk pushed me forward. I ended up 10 minutes in front of Karl??(nice guy) for the win (again). I posted a sub 1:30 lap my last lap which is impressive considering it was close to my fastest lap. Results will be linked here when available.

Impressions
So I am the 3 time winner of the Levis 100. My goal next year is to get you WORS hotshots out there. Seriously, are you going to let some guy from MN come over and take your best race (Well LaCrosse is the bomb as well) in the series again next year? So this is my promise. I am going to goat you guys into showing up. I don't care if I have to talk smack on your precious WORS forum. I want to see guys show up that are going to make everyone crap their pants with excitement. Bring me your best WI. The Wems races are scheduled around your series, so get your butts off the couch that weekend and try to kick my 10,000 lakes loving rear end you smelly cheeseheads. See you in 2011:)

Oh, and the Superfly 100 is simply the BEST bike that I have ever ridden. No contest.

Secret Training

Time to prep for the Levis 100 coming up in a few weeks.  That means a training camp in the Northwoods at the cabin in Cable, WI.  So far I have been riding my bike a lot, avoiding drug testers, and having blood with drawn (one mosqitoo bite at a time).  In the first 2 days I have already seen 2 "men in black" (ie. bears), one while I ate my dinner on the new deck, one was about 15 feet off the trail when I rode by (we both were surprised).  After 3 fairly close bike encounters with the furry beasts I have realized that they are indeed harmless for the most part.

Rock Lake is super fun, so is the Ojibwe, and both I can ride to from homebase.  It is like riding in the Rockies without the thin air and huge elevation changes.  Not as fun was the hour I spent on a snowmobile trail exploring with the GPS and finding out that swamps are probably easier to get through during the winter. 

Today is all about the parade, 5K/10K (currently running with my wife out there), community gathering and fireworks.  This week is all about the training.  Never mind the fact that my family will be wanting me to spend time with them.  Nope, it is all about the training and I couldn't have better trails to ride on.  I'll miss the wife and daughter....

Shout out to all the commoners stuck working at the shop while I am gone.  Especially, YDB, ODB, DRex, GDB, and Curtis2.

As a reminder the cabin is open for rental at a fairly cheap rate.

Oh, and you should probably get back to work, or play.  Whatever, but just get off the computer and do something.

Hey there.

So I have been busy.  Busy enough for many posts, but too busy to post them.  Here is the super condensed version of my life lately.  Sorry I can't satisfy your voyeuristic urges more.

-Been racing a bunch.  Buck Hill on Thursday nights.  The Woolly race last weekend.  Buck hill has been going well for such a short race course that does not favor me.  I ended up with second at the Woolly after an episode of breathing troubles on the first time up the hill in the first singletrack.  TJ W. was first and Barry T. nudged Eric O. for third.  Buck tonight, weekend at Cable.

-Sadly, my very good friends, the Carey's are moving.  Mark (Triguy) is gone already and Erin will soon follow next week.  They'll be in NC for the next 2 years, and I hope they return.  They will be greatly missed.  We already have plans to go see them.

-Abi is saying more and more.  She did her first bike race (see family blog).

-I am back working at the shop.  Beats being a fisherman in the Gulf right now.

-The Fisher 29er crew is now the Trek 29er crew.  I should be sporting new duds soon.

-I have not been in an endurance race for a long time.  Transwisconsin would have been fun, but Levis call my name again. 

-I keep getting the "your into gravel races, right?" comment.  Yes I am, when there aren't mountain bike races.  There has been some shock of my arrival at some races because there were gravel events the same day.

-We have 2 Superfly 100's (17.5" and 19") and a Hi Fi pro (17.5").  Seems not many locally are interested, but maybe folks from the cities are looking?

Tri out.

On all fours.

Once again, I found myself forced to the ground, not able to breath.  Thanks to me forgetting my inhaler and the extremely high humidity at the Sunburst Showdown in WI.  I was comfortably riding about 15th and looking to move up when the climb (very humid area) the second lap had me off the bike gasping.  I continued.  After the mowed single track (very humid area), it hit again with a vengeance; dizzy, weak, almost passing out.  After many minutes I got up and limped into the finish to DNF when I got hit again.  Forced to lay in shade, on a concrete slab, gasping uncontrollably, had me wondering if things like the Arrowhead are a good idea. 

Afton Alps

(Picture stolen after maliciously hacking into Sam Bushendorf's facebook account)

So quality blogging has been lacking lately. I'll try to catch everyone up on my super amazing life, starting with the most recent events and working back. This will take several posts.

First things first. Afton Alps and the MN series. This is the antithesis of what makes a good race course for me. Total my race contained; the climbing (an enemy of mine), the heat(another enemy), spending Saturday building a 10 foot high deck, stupid mid race moves that cost me a good chunk of time, stupid gear choices that cost me a good chunk of time (read unnecessary mid race stops), and a bad start.

Now that is all well and good and I can only point at myself to blame, but I am happy with the end result. I finished just outside the top ten (12th) after hitting the top of the first climb in the mid 20's. If you knocked out the pros I would have been in the top ten, but if you knocked out enough people I would have won the race. I guess I was first place in the 30-35 male racers on Gary Fisher bikes. It was fun out there duking it out with those around me. Good times, good times.

Oh, and the Superfly 100 is simply crazy awesome. I debated about running the hardtail for the lighter weight, sure glad I didn't.

Next big race might be the WORS race in Kewaskum. I happened to do it last year and the course was lame, but I will be in the area so who knows.

My daughter is waking up, so why don't you get back to work as well.

What is the saying?

Vote early, vote often?

Seriously, if you like shared access and well built mountain bike trails click the link and offer your vote.  Thanks!

Get your ride on.

The Trek/Fisher demo van is coming to an area near you.  Get there early as it gets busy!!

 

Saturday, May 22 at the Freewheel Frolic – MNMBS Series Opener from 9:00 – 3:00

Sunday, May 23^rd at Murphy Hanrehan from 10:00 – 3:00

Monday, May 24^th at the Human Powered Trails (HPT) in La Crosse from 2:00 – 7:00

Brendan "KC" Moore will be there Sunday kissing babies and posing for pictures.  Turns out he is feeling better after the whole Sandwich 50 meltdown. 

BTW.

LISTEN

Here that? The fan has stopped spinning after all this excrement.

Hopefully more speak out....

BTW

Update.

Picture viciously stolen from www.skinnyski.com and Jay Richards.
This is from the start of the Cable Classic (me in black on far right). I was effected quite a bit with breathing problems at the beginning, and just as I was getting my power back a mechanical took me out. Damn Obama. Only because of this Brendan was able to take a convincing win.

Cable was a blast though. Sunday was capped off with a long ride through Rock Lake and Namekagon trails. More and more new trail pops up there when I ride. It is amazing and I am spoiled.

Did I mention that you can rent my cabin that sits just off the Esker trail and is my starting point for all Rock Lake/Telemark/Namekagon rides? It currently sits open for Memorial Day weekend. Just saying.

I got stuff to do, and so do you, so let's get back to work.

Bullets

I am getting packed to head out the door, but here is my blog post in bullet points.

-Raced Buck Hill last night. Despite a very hard time breathing on the first lap I came away very happy with my proximity to the lead guys.
-Take the best riding bike you have ever owned. Multiply that experience by 10. Yeah, that is what my Superfly 100 is like. Blows me away.
-Racing Cable Classic this weekend as part of a Man trip to the cabin.
-The Office last night was absolutely hilarious.
-The Child is learning things by leaps and bounds. Really, really cool.
-Baby's Momma will be missed this weekend.
-NPR says they do membership drives twice a year. I started counting this year as it seems they are always asking for money (besides the millions they get from the government). They held one in February, and one now. I am aware of your tricks NPR. Click and Clack are not getting you out of this.

BTW

Sandwich 50 Recap.

With the eyes of the world watching, we embarked on a quest to polish off almost 50 miles of singletrack out at the famous Eastwood Park. Matt "Kuske" Kurke and I were co-directors for the race and also heavy favorites. You see, Eastwood has an extremely tight course that a rider with experience on the trail has a distinct advantage. Also, Matt and I have raced against each other here many Tuesday nights and this year we have been the most evenly matched as we have ever been. Usually we are separated by a few seconds at the finish of a time trialed lap.

A prerace meeting and a Le man's start had things kicking off our day. You can see here I was answering the question, "Where is the beach?".


The second we hopped on our bikes I realized that my body was screaming loudly that it wished I had done some type of warm up. Kuske was killing it on the front and I struggled to stay on Chris "Top Chris SL" Fisher's wheel who was on Kuske's.

About 75 feet into the singletrack I managed to bang my pedal (breaking one side of it) on a stump and burp out the air in my front tire on another well placed stump. So I limped back to the feed zone, grabbed a pump, and gave chase from the back of the pack.


After the first lap (of seven) Kuske was off the front and had already put 3 1/2 minutes into me. Knowing how closely matched we are out there I knew it would be difficult to make up, but I just kept my head down and kept going, picking off spots as we worked our way up. Eventually on lap 3 the Superfly and I made our way into 2nd place. I never felt great out there and finally realized that I simply had too much food in me from the morning and I was still trying to take more in. With 2 laps left I just stopped eating and only drank. Those two laps saw Kuske have the opposite problem and he started to slow.

You can stand just about anywhere at Eastwood and see 3 different sections of trail. So with that Matt and I knew when we saw each other we had an idea of how far apart we were. Well, on the last lap it was recognized by both of us that the gap was coming down quickly. With trail running out, Matt was able to push his calorie deprived self fast enough so I couldn't catch him. After 4 hours and 10 minutes Kuske ended up taking the win by 95 seconds with myself coming in second. In a display of home field advantage, locals Jon Finnoff and Mark "Tri Guy" Carey snagged 3rd and 4th. Chris locked in 5th place for the day.


Special shout out goes to my Baby's Momma and her Rochester BFF. Together they rode 5 laps in 6 hours to take on the 3rd place prize.
Congrats to Kuske and all the other racers out there. And a special thanks to the Homeless guy on the course that shared his lunch with the racers. Also thanks to our volunteers as well!!

Now get back to work.

Sandwich 50 in 2 days.

I am out to seek and destroy anything on a bike. This will be my theme song.

Superfly, version 2.

My mountain bike season is now here. I spent a lot of time cleaning and regreasing almost all the moving parts on the Superfly. A new chain and now a mountain cassette adorn the bike. The biggest difference is now the Reba XX suspension fork instead of the bontrager carbon rigid fork.. Last night's Eastwood race was the first time with suspension and it was oh so very nice. The bike absolutely flies now on the dirt with cush and proper fork geometry. The legs felt great even after 12 hours in the saddle Saturday.

I stole this pic off "Banjo Ted's" website from Transiowa. This pretty much sums up the roads out there. Look at the the lines we took, searching for firmer ground.

BTW, or more Internet searching for blog material.

Everybody Poops, Transiowa edition.

Crap happens. Leading up to Transiowa it was the weather. People freaking out, biting their nails, and discussing there fears with friends. Me, I just remembered what I tell the love of my life in these situations. Everybody poops. Everybody will have the same weather, same course, same opportunities for failure and success. I just wanted to hop on my bike and push myself with no regrets.

Four am in the morning and there is unexpectedly no rain. Actually, just a fog in the air and surprisingly decent temps. The roll out was good and Jason Buffington (great guy, DBD member, and fantastic Transiowa recap) warned me that the first section of gravel was nasty. Sure enough the only halfway passable lines seemed to be the deep tire tracks of our pace car. That lead out to more gravel that was just plain really soft. So off we are, at too early in the morning, on wet/soft gravel. The spray was bad and the fast track hard to see, so I spent my time on the front where it was much easier. I was actually having fun.

Soon enough the lightning could be seen in the distance, and then right next to us. Night turned into day and back into night many times over. White streaks would strike the ground all around us and across the sky. This was made only more fun with the rain. Everybody poops I thought as I rode on the front. I was really, truly having fun.

The skies subsided some and a group of about nine of us were left on the front as we passed through the first checkpoint 45 miles in. This of course was after walking my bike on some sweet Iowa mud, er 'B' roads for a mile all the while cursing "Bango Ted's" name in humor. Last year's champ flatted soon after and Gorilla (yes, that is his real last name and also a previous champ, but I don't know what year because I am not a TI historian like many at the race seem to be) waited. We backed down our pace as it was swift and we knew that the night held more of the same from that morning. The roads were mushy and slow. The tops of the slow, slow climbs were met with mashed piles of rocks and mud for some reason and they were nearly unrideable. I was still having fun.
(As we slowed with Joe and John off the back. I think Jason on the left, Eki on the right, and others hidden by my big head)

Meiser and Gorilla would join back on, but during another Iowa slip and slide road they got a gap as we stopped and took pictures. We let them go as they seemed destined to go harder than the pace we had settled into. Through attrition our group was down to Me, the DBD'rs from Duluth (Tim Ek, Jason Buffington, and Charlie Farrow), and Sean Mailen. A hearty bunch that I certainly enjoy spending time with, and I was having fun.
(Hey guys, stop pushing for a sec and smile for the camera!)

Well, about 80 miles in I had a mechanical that caused my rear wheel to lock up. The boys stopped, but continued on since it would be awhile, if at all. As soon as I remounted my body let me know it was not too happy with the fact that it was only given about 50 ounces of water in the last 5 or 6 hours. Weakness, dizziness, and confusion reigned supreme as I drank and ate while chasing my compatriots. Without a response to my knock on a rural front door, I attacked someone's garden hose with my thirst. I drank close to 50-60 ounces on the spot, filled up the bottles again, and then resumed the chase into the relentless headwind. I was in a bad way.

Almost an hour later my chase would end at a BP gas station in Pella where I was met by my previous partners. More calories and liquids were consumed in an effort to get out of my funk. Discussion revolved around the center idea that this was tough. We were getting worked over. Our departure soon happened and my funk had gotten worse. I was in a much worse way.

This is where I entered my "Dark Place". I sat on the back of our train that was joined by Lance Andre. Everything seemed to hurt, I was tired, and the legs were weak. That is when the Devil sat on my shoulder helping to figure out a way to quit and keep some self respect. I would ask the Angel on the other shoulder to intervene, but he was very quiet. So there I sat, on the back constantly telling the Devil to shut it's pie hole. You usually reach this point at some stage in a race like this. Maybe more than once. After all, everybody poops. I was in my Dark, Dark Place.

It was walking on another 'B" road that I noticed my attitude perked up and some how we lost Sean. Soon my body would respond with in kind to my mind's reversal. I was back to 100% finally and going good. I would proceed to got to the front for long periods and make up for my wheel sucking. I was having fun again.

We rode. The partly cloudy sky left and dark clouds were taking its place. The wind slowed and you could see the predicted bad weather about to hit. Lance would pull off of our group. As we rolled in to checkpoint 2, 131 miles and about 12 hours from the start, we knew the soft roads and fatiguing legs were taking their toll on our pace. Mathematically we couldn't foresee any possibility of anyone arriving at checkpoint 3 on time. The weather was going to be worse, our legs more tired, and the roads would seemingly only get slower. Meiser and Gorilla seemed also worse for wear as we pulled into checkpoint 2 just 7 minutes behind them. I was now conflicted.

The DBD'rs and I pulled the plug for fear of putting ourselves in a needlessly dangerous situation. J-No would pick us up in What Cheer (yes, that is the town's name) and we would spend much of that night together, eating and drinking. The race would be canceled very soon after we stopped for the very reasons we had given. There were some that continued past the checkpoint, but it seemed even more called for a ride back. Several stopped as the course had simply broken them. The rest just simply could not make the time check. Physically, I was glad with the fact I would have been able to continue without concern for my ability to pedal. I was happy.
(The view of checkpoint 2 from the Casey's as rain poured down and litter flowed by the window)

So that's that. I have not sworn off another run next year. I have no regrets with my race, I rode strong, and had fun. Those were my only goals going in.

Now, maybe you should get back to work. Especially you Gunnar, you must spend half your day just looking for material and then putting it on your blog.

TI V6 done

My goals were to ride to my abilities and have fun.  Check and check.  The weather won, but we gave it a long drawn out fight.

Iowa has wronged me and my people,

Now I leave to seek repercussions. Updates can be found here.

Me and the loaded 3 time undefeated Superfly will seek our revenge. Note the additional bottle cage, rear fender, homemade front fender, and a closely held secret under the bars.
BTW.

Gangsta rolling

Hmmm, what has been going on? Well, I intended to put my body into the hurt locker after Ragnarok with lots of riding and intensity and that seemed to work all too well. I took 2 much needed days off and finally have the spunk in my legs that seemed to have been missing for almost 2 weeks.

Tested 1/2 of my light set up for Transiowa and it is all systems go, but I am not sweating things like I may have in the past. It is always fun to see people going nuts with what set up for water, bags, tires, and bikes. People seriously will be sweating big decisions up until race day. I just want to ride.

Picture was blurry, but what do expect when rolling on gravel at night?
I am excited for Transiowa to be done because that signals full force into the more fun mountain bike season. TI and Ragnarok are great distractions until fat tires rule the summer days. Tonight is another Eastwood TT. Fun times.

BTW

I'm blowing up part ???

From the Northern regions, Tim Ek sent me this from the Duluth Paper:

Ek leads Duluth contingent

Tim Ek finished second in the Ragnarok 105 ultra cycling race on Saturday in Red Wing, Minn., to lead a pack of four Duluth riders.

Ek covered the 105-mile gravel road race in 6 hours, 16 minutes, and finished just 10 seconds behind the winner, Charly Tri of Rochester, Minn. Ek was awarded “King of the Mountains” for his performance in ascending eight climbs.

Fellow Duluth riders Charlie Farrow (fourth in 6:17), Rich Hendricks (16th in 7:02) and Jeremy Kershaw (20th in 7:05) joined about 100 riders who competed in the race over hilly terrain.

---------------------------------------------------------

No picture of me? No gushing about my amaziness? I didn't even get a twitter mention from Lance! At least all the new endorsement deals help settle my rage. Look for me on the GoDaddy! commercials and on "Dancing with the Stars" next season. That Wheaties box should be in supermarkets soon as well.

Oh, I have to signing to get to...btw.

Whoa doggy.

Sometimes you are the nail. Sometimes the hammer.

Ragnarok on Saturday+
Teach indoor cycling and then mountain biking Sunday+
6 mile hike Monday+
Eastwood full out time trial Tuesday
=
Being the nail on Wednesday night road ride.

Almost a whole body ache. Hills really were killer. Pulled off realizing that sometimes the body needs to take it a little more chill.

Did anyone hear the big news? A Sandwich 50 contender dropped under odd circumstances.

BTW

Next up.

So this is the next race in the plans. April 24th-25th will be spent trying to cover 300+ miles of gravel as quickly as possible. This makes me think of motivation.

Now, with the race approaching I am doing all the things that I believe are needed to do well, however my motivation does not lie with these thoughts. Three times I have registered for Transiowa. The first I was out of shape for and made it 85 miles. The second saw an injury force me to miss the start. The third a mechanical took me out 50 miles in. I averaged about 45 miles in each race.

Fed up, I am out to conquer my demons. The more I think about the race, my past follies and the smell of competition are the only things that get my motor running. There is a strong possibility if the race concludes with me finishing I will not be back. With a race like the Transwisconsin out there, Iowa gravel has really lost any luster it had.

I will be riding in Iowa with these thoughts in my mind. Pissed off by my past the past, motivated for the finish. Along that journey I hope I get to ride with the same group of guys that I saw in Ragnarok and I hope they have the best of luck.

Everyone make like they're working.

I am a 2 time weiner!

The Ragnarok 105 is a 105 mile gravel road race that takes you over many, many 400 foot climbs along the Mississippi Valley near Red Wing, MN. It is a fun race, beautiful course, and hard competition.

Last year went well for me, well mostly. The end result was great.

This year saw lots of strong guys getting ready to line up for the start. Unfortunately, my preride shake down the day before had me feeling very weak. That morning I woke and had to make an immediate entrance into the bathroom to do some reading. This would happen several more times before the start of the race. This was far more than prerace jitters.

The start was pleasant enough. Lots of talking/joking. We hit the first big climb about 4 miles in. My body was not feeling well as we went over climb after climb, but I did my best to keep two that I perceived as my main competition in sight, Joe Meiser and Tim Ek. About 20 miles in there was a split in the large front group on a big climb and our lead group of 7 was formed. This group would contain Tim, Joe, Charlie Farrow, Ryan Horkey, Sean Mailen, John Struchynski, and myself. We worked quickly to form a gap. After a quick pee break on top of a hill we noticed our gap had shrunk some, but we soon grew it more. Joe did a great job of keeping everyone on task and working on a quick pace. This pace plus myself not feeling well had me convinced that I would not stay with the front group until the finish. A little before the halfway point though Joe flatted and the pace would slow without organization. This would be to my benefit as our pace was very moderate for most of the rest of the race. Our checkpoint halfway in was uneventful except I was really wishing I had some caffeine because I was felling crummy. As the race went on I felt better and better, so I devised an attack for the finish.

I knew the last climb and I knew that the last 100 yards of that climb were very steep and then it was almost 5 miles to the finish. I set off from our group on the steep section determined to make it to the top with a gap . This panned out as I reached the top with a very narrow gap over a great climbing Horkey. The big ring was engaged and I was off like a prom dress over the mile on top of the bluff and the descent down the backside. At the bottom I saw Tim and Ryan had joined forces and were in full on chase. Through traffic and stop signs we rode our butts off. Luckily I was not held up too long by any congestion (except a very slow moving car at one point that I could not get around). I ended up holding them off by about 10 seconds for the win. Tim got second and Ryan a very close third.

This is a picture at about 80 miles in. This climb was probably the toughest of them all with it's unrelenting steep pitches. It was demoralizing for all of us to see it from the road in the background. From left to right in the pic is Ryan, Myself, Farrow, Sean, and Ek. John is around there somewhere as well.
Picture maliciously stolen from the Ragnarok blog.

EDIT: ALTHOUGH I DID NOT FEEL WELL MUCH OF THE RACE, I AM POSITIVE THE FINISH OF THE RACE WOULD HAVE BEEN EXACTLY THE SAME HAD I BEEN RIDING GREAT THROUGHOUT. THOSE WERE STRONG GUYS OUT THERE.

Time for you to return back to work.

Ragnarok 105

Defended the title, but barely.

More later.

More Carbon!!

I am extremely humbled by my bike query this year. This is the bike that I have been dreaming of before Gary Fisher even started the design work on it. The Superfly 100 knocks off a few pounds off the old Hi Fi from last year and is set to my main go to bike for all things off road.

Rode it for the first time last night and was reminded how the dial in process on full suspension bikes can take awhile. Maybe I am finicky, maybe not, but it took me several rides to dial in the Hi Fi and I am sure the same with this. So far though? Daddy likey. Daddy likey a lot.

The picture shows the Bontrager Rhythm Pro wheels, but most races will see the lighter XXX lite wheels get'n busy.

Now tomorrow is Ragnarok. Gravel, 105 miles worth. Last year went well for me, I hope for more of the same this year. The biggest hiccup at the moment is the fact I can't find my map case. The Superfly hardtail is chomping at the bit though.

BTW.

Rolling carbon

So this last weekend was spent up at the cabin in Cable, WI with the folks, the wife, the kid, a brother, and the sister. Good weather, fun times. The men ruled at Bocce Ball, we ate, I rode. It was all good.

Little tidbit I did not expect when I got up there was that many of the trails were open! I rocked out Ojibwe more than once as that was the super fun one close to me open. Rock Lake is run by the government, so we have to wait for Obama to open that. Hatchery Creek and Makwa are set to open this weekend.

The Superfly is just that. I don't know if it is the carbon wheels, carbon crank, carbon frame, carbon fork, carbon seatpost, carbon levered brakes, carbon bottomed saddle, carbon bottle cages, or the carbon bar that will go on it after Transiowa. This bike seems smoother and stiffer in all the right ways compared to my old Paragon and Rig. It has rocked out gravel, road, bike path, dirt, and rocks. A little gravel road race in Red Wing this weekend should be child's play for this bad mamma jamma.

Here I am on what I think was Helen Lake road.


What do you say Ojibwe?

Some pretraining training.

To end the weekend on a good note my 29er crew costume was waiting for me at the door! This is some high quality Bontrager threads that do a good job hiding my fat rolls. I am sure to look spiffy this weekend!

And with that, BTW.

Start'em young pt. 2

Quick, someone call social services!!!


As part of Abi's training I took her up and down the driveway once when I headed out for a ride. Well, now I can't leave without her whining for a quick trip down the block. Baby joined us. Note her big smile toward the beginning.

Last night I was accused of half wheeling on a group ride, on my mountain bike, by a person behind me, before the person on the front had even finished pulling off (the person pulling off thought he was joking). Huh? The guy that scolded me has ridden with me once before about 2 years ago. He showed up for a fast group road ride and complained the whole time about how he wanted it to be a recovery ride as he had ridden intervals the day before. Huh?

Everybody funny, now you funny too.

BTW.

Start'em young.

Eastwood trails are looking great thanks to many people chipping in with cleaning them up. Special shout out to this little girl who pushed back her nap in order to make time to work on the trail.

Carbon this, carbon that.

My Superfly stable, part 1.
So on the mountain bike side I am very spoiled this year. This Gary Fisher Superfly is all decked out in Bontrager and Sram parts. I have a nice new Reba to throw on this (controlled by my Cane Creek headset), but can you believe this is not the bike I am most excited about this year?

The first ride is today. This will be the bike attempting to defend last year's Ragnarok win and conquer my Transiowa demons (thus the rigid fork). The bull horns are attached just inside the grips and are just an experiment at the moment. Tires will be swapped out for the race as well.

I have to remind myself that the cross bike fell on it's sword to help make this possible along with the support from the Gary Fisher 29er Crew. I have been on 2 group road rides this year on the well worn "heavy" winter bike.

Group rides on the mountain bike sure made things interesting this last weekend in WI when I attended the "Drop the Doc" ride in Dousman. Two hard hours with the group, one hour mostly at the front with another rider on the way to "Transition", and an hour back to Dousman. That last hour was spent eating and riding slower as the lack of calories had their way of making themselves apparent. Four hours of tough.

I think I am riding well, but time will tell. One thing I do know is you are being extremely unproductive at a time that you are being paid to work.

Grrrrr, rant on.

d
I am a conservative.

I am not a bible thumping, Rush Limbaugh worshiping, abortion doctor killing, racist, unsympathetic, gun toting, confederate flag waving, truck driving, red meat eating wacko like the liberal media tries to paint all conservatives with.

My main belief that draws me to the conservative side is this, personal responsibility:

Health Care. Insurance company this, bloated pharmaceutical companies that. WHAT ABOUT GETTING PEOPLE OFF THEIR LARGE BUTTS? When do we focus on people being responsible for getting themselves so out of shape with such large health problems? We as a people are getting fatter and fatter, but let's ignore that.

Credit card debt. Those bastards at the credit card companies forced everyone into racking up debt and now they want people to pay for it? Yep, not your fault you overspend, it is their's. We need to clamp down on those cards and figure out how to force those companies to reduce it.
.
Education. Sure there are bad teachers and schools, but even more bad parents. You don't need a degree to become a parent. It used to be that kids would respect the teacher because their parents told them to. Now it is often the parent and kid vs. the teacher. "My kid isn't doing well in your class, what did YOU do to cause this." No, it is not the fact that your kid never turns in work and is more interested in his future pro sports career that you promote. It is the teacher's fault. And yes, the teacher is singling your kid out and picking on him. That is exactly what teachers do. Very few kids are read to anymore, parents no longer take a vested interest in their education. That is why they send them school isn't it, so the parents don't have to teach them anything?

Mortgage crisis. Yeah, some people got into bad loans. But really why are many people in over their heads? Greed. I want bigger, I want better, I want to go right up to the limits of what I can afford at this time. Yeah, yeah I could spend a little less, but then my house wouldn't be as big or new now wouldn't it?

That is what our society has become. No personal responsibility. THIS ARTICLE is what set me off. Here is a direct quote from a new Government plan to reduce mortgages amounts, "Some people simply will not be able to afford to stay in their homes because they bought more than they could afford". I say let them sell their house and downsize, but nope, it will now be all of our problems because that is not the "real issue".

Sorry about the non bike related rant, but IT IS NOT MY FAULT! Give me awhile and I'll figure out who's fault it is.

Pic dump

It's been awhile since I actually shown pics from a ride, so here are some recent ones. This is from multiple rides.


Found a good snowmobile for the cabin, just needs a little TLC.


My "candid" Kerkove shot. It totally caught me off guard.



Trying to get home before it get's too cold or dark as I roll out of Millville. Found a cool new trail to explore right before this, but water and time were not on my side. My favorite was the discussion I had with the 4 wheeling couple.

Went something like this:
Me: Where does this trail go?
Husband: Dumps out about 6 miles that way.
Me: Oh, I don't have time for that, it is getting dark and I have to get back to Rochester.
Husband: Well, where are you parked?
Me: Uh, Rochester.
Wife: Aha, ha, ha, ha. (as in that flamer on the bike is screwed).


Not sure if you can tell, but there is a tractor up there. I went on to pass him up like Paris Hilton passes up intelligent thought.



A new secret trail. A new custom modded, custom painted fork. Yeah, I am special. Gary Fisher 29er crew graphics adorn this bad mother.



Bridging the gap on my solo ride. Get it, bridging the gap?


J-No and I doing our Kerkove shots. Just another "Break the Four Horsemen" ride.


Secret training involves secret locations. I think I got about 1/2 of the windmills in the picture. Really neat in a "good for you, but I am not putting all those on my property" way.

Btw.

Holy smokes!

I no longer own a cross bike. No road bike. Only Gary Fisher mountain bikes. But man, do I own 3 mountain bikes. Except for the Gary Fisher Rig, all are under different states of assembly, but man. It is ridiculous. Carbon this, carbon that. Lots of Superfly stuff. I am intimidated.

Think in the terms of this X-Box controller. Neat, excessive, but wow.

Real pics to come, but even sooner your boss will be coming around. Get back to work. I am off to the cabin with "Pa" for man time and forest road bike domination.

Look for me on Wheaties boxes next!

I swear I am not out for attention, but the people at the paper must love me. I have never sought out to be in an article, they find me. This is the third time I am in there in 2 months. I don't think this made the front page though. It is somewhere in the sports section. Link Here

As for inaccuracies:
First off, how do you like my senior picture pose they put in? Nice eh? Second, I have 1 child, not 2. Third, I am 32, not 31. And fourth, I was 5 hours into the race (about 50 miles) NOT 5 miles when I dropped.

I knew after talking to that guy there was going to be several screw ups. He isn't exactly a Dan Gaz now is he? Dan, he is sooo dreamy.

BTW.

Chapters

Alright, so this post comes in 4 completely separate parts.

Part 1
I plan on racing Arrowhead again next year. Great people, beautiful course, and pushing it to the extremes; ie, a recipe for fun. I am not a man of deep pockets so a true winter bike will hopefully be built over the course of this summer. Closeouts will be scoured, and begging will be common place. My buddy Chris Strout (formally of World Bicycle Relief and now at Cane Creek) got me off on the right foot by hooking me up with some sweet product (and no begging needed!). Now, people go on and on about Chris King headsets while my basic Cane Creeks pound out long quiet hours without a whimper. I have always had a problem with the pedestal the the King's have been put on. To make a point, CC knocked out the 110 headset. A warranty that lasts 110 years? Sounds like the first piece in the snow bike puzzle as all my other bikes are outfitted with Cane Creek IS headsets already. Thanks Chris and Cane Creek!!


Part 2
J-No? Check. Start in the dark? Check. The XRC/DBD/ABC/LMNOP rides are back on. Meet at 6am, this time with J-No and the man that we'll call the Great Gazoo. We all plan on tackling Ragnarok and Transiowa. They roll on studded cross tires and single speed cross bikes, me on my studded 2.1's and Fisher 29er. Hills are the name, gravel was our game. Pulled up to my side door with over 6 hours in the legs and wondering how much those tires weigh as the last hour I swear they had gained 10 pounds each (they actually weigh 2.42 pounds each). Kuske made his face shown towards the end, not a true member yet of the exclusive club, but his status can be upgraded down the line with the proper paperwork and training.

+

=

Part 3
Gravel grinding. I am sick of the term and new races popping up everywhere you look. Everyone and their brother is putting on a race or is in one, two, or a dozen. My prediction is we'll see a peak here this year or next and a big decline. Seriously, sweet ribbons of dirt, or long boring roads of crushed rock? Yeah, yeah, yeah, entry costs you a postcard, but you still have to ride it. Now, some courses are worth it. Ragnarok 105 is 'da bomb' because of it's awesome terrain. Transiowa? Well, Transiowa and me have a score to settle from last year and it's first iteration. Beyond that, if it were in the summer, you probably would not see me there. Heck of the North is on my radar for similar reasons as Ragnarok.

Part 4
I watched 2 movies this weekend with the wife and I had guessed the ending of both before they even started. The Ugly Truth was a movie that the wife snuck in on our Netflix queue (note to self: change the password on Netflix). I wasn't going exactly out on a limb when I called the end of that flick. Oh, and for the Men out there, avoid if possible. Then Shutter Island was a very good movie, but again I guessed the entire premise before buying my ticket.

Am I just so amazing that I know everything or are movies too predictable? Seriously, which? No, no it is not my good looks. That was not a choice. They have nothing to do with the question. I think it is a little of both, not my good looks.

And with that, I bid you BTW and thanks for reading.

I'm blowing up!

I am in the paper AGAIN.

Nothing like trying to make Eastwood look like a den of sexual deviancy and crime. Geez Louise.

Oh, and for the record. My "quotes" were only partially accurate. Most of the meaning came through, but they are not exact quotes.

I really should run for public office with all this publicity. I could make a fortune off of bribes and kickbacks.

BTW

Inhale, exhale

What does Moab, Arrowhead, and my ride this last Sunday have in common? They were all cut short with severe breathing problems. A trip to the small, but local Mayo Clinic got me pointing in the right direction. According to Dr. Scanlon (a seasoned cyclist himself), I have borderline full blown ashma. Technically though, I have exercise induced ashma. Three prescriptions later and I have a lot of optimism. One inhaler for shorter events and attacks, one for longer lasting effects for endurance races, and one to use twice a day for several weeks to get my lungs settled down and acting properly. The latter can be used later as needed as well.

The testing is humbling as I could not breath even though I had been doing nothing but sitting for the previous hour.

He even offered to write me a Therapeutic Use Exemption for WADA. That would be pretty sweet if I ever actually need it, but then I would need to stop the EPO and HGH cycles.

Well, now you should join your working buddies in the daily grind again.

Good Eats

Got hunger?

The Sandwich 50 is now open and filling up quick!



BTW

Arrowhead, a pic

Jason (J-No) and I (back turned) chatting the night before Arrowhead. We had just filled our bellies with food and met some of the Duluth crew. I think Jason is smiling at the thought of passing me while I die on the trail.


BTW

Guest blogger.

As I sit here feeling horrible with constant trips to the porcelain bowl to relieve my stomach of it's contents I got an expected e-mail. You have heard his name mentioned here, seen him in the paper, and may remember when he took top honors at the 1991 Rochester Centurion. Please give a warm welcome to Jason "J-No" Novak...

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Arrowhead Ultra 135 Race Report
Jason Novak

I had a good time up in International Falls, although I missed my family. Andrew (my oldest) turned 8 on Monday and it was hard missing his birthday. He was counting on me to bring him a finisher’s trophy. Charly and I just kind of hung out and prepared our gear for Mon morning. Pre race check in went without a hitch and we were able to talk with old friends and make new ones in the day leading up to the race. One of the nice things about this race was how laid back and friendly everyone was. There was no sense of nervousness or competitiveness.

On Monday morning we packed up and I drove to the start. The temp was -18deg F, but I felt ready for the cold. I had trained in similar conditions and felt I had a good handle on the layers/gear necessary. The snow conditions were great. The pace was fast off the gun, but I was so far back it didn’t matter. I was in cruise control the first part of the race, just riding along and if my legs felt any burning I backed off. I had the opportunity to ride with Lindsay Gould for a while. Lindsay is 61 years old and was on the 1972 Canadian Cycling team. A true gentleman, he is pretty hardcore on the bike. We started chatting and he dropped back due to some frozen hydration issues. The first checkpoint was at the Gateway Store about 30something miles in. Just before the store I came upon Charlie Farrow. Farrow is a legend in these parts. He is the self appointed leader of a gang in Duluth known as the “DBD”. His exploits are something out of a Krakauer novel. Farrow was having some problem with frozen toes. He passed me back for good at the store. I saw Chary Tri at the store as well; he was heading out as I arrived. I grabbed a bowl of soup and some juice for a few minutes and headed out. While I was there another DBD’er, Jason Buffington, came and went (on a non fat 29er!). He would continue on to a top placing.

The second leg to Melgeorge’s is about 37 miles and is where the hills start. We are talking monster climbs, 50 yards long and as steep as a ski hill, one after another. My goal was to make the elephant lake crossing and to Melgeorge’s before dark. Temps started to drop to around zero (from a high of about 5 degF). About 15 miles from the halfway point I came across a walking Charly Tri. He was having some breathing difficulties. He withdrew soon after. Once I hit Melgeorge’s I had a soup and sandwich, chatted with the awesome volunteers, and dried out my clothes. There was a cute baby there and that made me a little homesick. No cell service. At this point I was tired, but having a really good time.

I headed out for the long stretch (about 40 miles) to the last checkpoint. The distances do not seem like a lot to a cyclist, but when you factor in an average speed of 4-7 mph, the hours add up. More hills. Initially I left with Dave Gray, Don Gabrielson, and Chris Plesko. Dennis Grelk had left a few minutes before us. Don and Dave had a faster pace so Chris and I rode together for the next few hours. I was getting pretty cold and sleepy at about 11pm. My clothes were soaked. I would overheat on the way up the hill and then flash freeze on the way down. Chris and I were entertaining the idea of breaking out the bivy’s for a couple of hours and catching a nap. A few miles later we caught up with Don and he mentioned stopping and starting a fire. He joked that we had all this expensive gear, why not use it? We stopped at about mile 100. The temperature was about -10degF. After we had some difficulty getting a fire started, I jumped in my bag and ate about 1000 calories and a bottle of water. I started shivering uncontrollably for about 10 minutes although I was not cold. I have read about this and I knew it would pass. It did and I fell asleep for 2 hours. Lindsay, Andy, Bill, and Jeremy (another crazy DBD’er on a single speed 29’er) passed us at some point while I was napping. Janice from AK rolled up at some point and crashed for a while as well. Once we got up and rolling the hills continued for the next 3 hours to the tipi, the final checkpoint. It was just Don and I at this point. Chris (on a single speed snow bike) was not far behind.

The final 18 miles are pancake flat, just a path through the trees. The sun was up, and I was getting tired, but being so close to the finish kept me going. Once I rolled in to Fortune Bay I found where I was supposed to go, congratulated the earlier finishers, and took a pull of whisky from Dave Pramann’s flask.

The race was very well organized. The scenery was spectacular. I had a disposable digital camera, but it froze and would not work. Everyone was friendly and supportive and the volunteer’s were top notch. It was the hardest event I have done. Thanks to the Ostor’s for putting on this event. The timing looks better next year and I spent the last stretch making mental notes on some changes I’ll make for next time. I look forward to seeing my new friends again soon.

Chequamegon 100

With every down there is an up. And now someone is organizing the exact race that I have been dreaming of in my mind.

Can you say excited?

EDIT:

CANCEL THAT, I WILL BE OUT OF TOWN THAT WEEKEND.

Arrowhead 135, a recap..

So J-No and I headed up to International Falls on Saturday, checked in Sunday and got to hang with some fellow racers before hand. Pretty much everyone doing this race has experience that allowed them to be more relaxed than you would typically see before a big event like this.

Jason and I headed over to the start Monday morning, him on his fatbike, me on my plump Gary Fisher (47mm wide rime, wide tires). It was dark still and dozens of bikes lined the outside of the warming house. I took a hit off my wife's albuterol inhaler as my lungs have not seemed 100% and I was worried about them for the race. Got to talk to several familiar faces and off we went at 7am. The -15 degree temps dipped down to -22ish before crawling back up. The pace on the front was fast (I'm told), and I had no intention of trying to match their pace as my only goal was to ride steady and finish the race. I followed about 100 yards back with the rest of the field a fair bit behind me. After about an hour we actually got on to the Arrowhead trail and the once perfectly straight trail finally had some turns. I rode for awhile trading places with another rider as we went about the same speed, but we both kept stopping to make small changes to our set ups.

As I kept along I came across Charlie Farrow (XRC wannabe member), Chris Plesko (great divide single speed record holder), then finally Josh Peterson (Deathrider). I rolled into the Gateway store after almost 4 hours feeling alright, chugged a Gatorade for good measure, hit the inhaler again just in case, and got on my way. I think I may have "passed" a couple of riders that spent a little longer at the store. About an hour after Gateway I started to have trouble with my breathing.

My breathing became very shallow and rapid with deep breaths impossible. I had been keeping a steady pace of 10-11mph on the flats and about 6mph on the hills. Well, now I was reduced to walking all the hills and struggling to go 6mph on the flats despite trying the inhaler again. I became very weak and dizzy. My calorie and water intake had been fine, but I took more in for good measure. I was still warm, not worried about the cold (except some problems I had been having with my feet). I spent a little over an hour like this and realized that my race was done. Even if I could get my breath back, I could not risk being in the middle of nowhere at 3am and having the same problems. I met Jerry, Dave Grey's dad, at sheepranch road and he gave me a ride to Melgeorge's where I had a hacking cough for an hour when my lungs got warm air in them. It was cool to see the top 15 or so guys come and go, but I wish I was there with them.

I am very frustrated with the end result of my race. I felt like I spent many, many hours trying to figure out how to best handle gear, the overall cost was much higher than I initially expected, I had back ups for all emergencies (I thought), and set a pace that was well within myself. it is hard to see any positives that came out of this for myself. Now the fitness that I have needs to be built upon for the summer.

I do want to note that Jason did awesome. He finished in 26:22 after spending part of the night in his bivy with some fellow racers. Look for a guest blog post from him soon. Also, Dan Dittmer rocked out a top 5 finish in his first attempt of the race. That guy is a machine! I look forward to getting his autograph soon.

So now I am trying to figure out to smoothest way to get into the clinic to get checked out. I have put off my breathing problems long enough.

BTW

Just checking in.

I'm alive.  I'm very frustrated.  I'm trying to get into the clinic to figure out my breathing problems.

No problems with cold/food/water.