The best time to think about goals and planning for next season is most definitely when you're loopy on cold medicine.
So, because I'm not thinking clearly even a little bit, it's time to lay out the plan for 2012.
Because of the nature of the Nebraska road calendar — done in mid-July — I'll probably split the season between road and 'cross. I do plan on traveling a bit more next summer (well, hopefully), so the road season will mostly likely end in early-to-mid August.
After that, I'll take a couple of easy weeks and focus on shorter, higher-intensity things in preparation for a 'cross campaign. It won't be a full-scale, drive-all-over-the-place affair — I still don't care that much. But it will be more focused than this year's spin around the block. I'll actually do 'crossy things outside of the once-a-week practices (skills work, etc.).
As far as events go, pencil me in for all of the Nebraska road and 'cross races. I'll do Climbing Hill, of course, and possibly the Iowa City weekend. If there's something compelling in KC — and if my schedule allows it — I'll probably do it. I'd really like to do the Clear Lake, Iowa, crit again, too. It would be pretty awesome if the Iowa and Nebraska schedules allowed that to happen.
I'll probably again put the Omaha weekend as the top objective, if only because it affords me every advantage: familiar roads, familiar food, better recovery and my own bed. If I had to choose a B race, it would be either Iowa City or the Lincoln weekend in May. We'll see.
For 'cross? We'll see what happens. Everybody is jumping on the upgrade bandwagon right now after solid seasons. But seeing as how I did 1/2/3 races anyway, I don't feel a ton of pressure to get that Cat. 2 upgrade next fall. I guess we'll see how that goes.
The same thing goes for the road Cat. 2 upgrade. It would be pretty cool — a reward for hard work. But I don't think it's necessary, considering how many of the events are combined with the 1/2 field, anyway.
Anyway, back to 'cross. I'll probably target a two- or three-week stretch of races for focus. That will probably be the November races, because I really felt like I was hitting my stride earlier this month. I would imagine that could be continued with a little bit of effort.
And that would bring us back to where we are right now: riding whenever I feel like it. I'll keep that going for a few more weeks and then get rolling for real again.
I should probably drink more coffee first, though.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Space cadet
Around Thanksgiving, Jack started getting all sniffly and boogery. Though I boiled my hands frequently and practically bathed in hand sanitizer, I started feeling the same way late Saturday night.
I'm always amazed by how quickly a cold comes on. I felt fine all day, minding my own business, playing probably far too much Arkham City on PS3, and then BAM — my nose is running like crazy. I had a headache before bedtime and spent a good chunk of yesterday wiping away all of the skin on my nose.
Man, I love colds.
Anyway, today is the kind of day where you load up on caffeine and cold meds and get to it. I'm a little bit spaced out, but somehow oddly productive. No, I don't understand it, either.
So that's today. It should be interesting.
I'm always amazed by how quickly a cold comes on. I felt fine all day, minding my own business, playing probably far too much Arkham City on PS3, and then BAM — my nose is running like crazy. I had a headache before bedtime and spent a good chunk of yesterday wiping away all of the skin on my nose.
Man, I love colds.
Anyway, today is the kind of day where you load up on caffeine and cold meds and get to it. I'm a little bit spaced out, but somehow oddly productive. No, I don't understand it, either.
So that's today. It should be interesting.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Shut up, dog
We've been in Omaha for about 7.5 years now (that long? wow.), and in that time, we've had three different neighbors in the house to the east of us.
The family living there when we first moved in was very nice, quiet and overall perfectly pleasant. The next family was also very nice and quiet and, while hampered by several unreasonable fears, was also pleasant. (One unreasonable fear? They drove to the Keystone to ride their bikes and saw a black person loitering around that scrap-yard corner. Yes, I'm serious.)
Anyway, they moved out in early June.
The new neighbor is in her, I don't know, late 40s? She works 10-hour shifts somewhere in Fremont, so she has four-day workweeks — Monday through Thursday. Hey, three-day weekend! Nice.
The problem is that while she's working, her dogs are, too. At around 5:50 every morning, Monday through Thursday, one of those yappy little bastards goes outside — through the doggy door that she cut in the side of the house and for which she also built an extension to her deck — and barks at nothing for an hour.
Every morning.
We mentioned it pretty early in the whole process. Like, "Hey, your dog is barking really early in the morning and waking us up." She was friendly, but said she didn't know what to do. How about shut your dog up? That's a start.
She put a high-frequency noise collar on the dog and that seemed to help — for a little bit. But the last two weeks have been the same as always. (It's out there right now, actually. What are you barking at, little dog? Shut up and go inside!)
Chris called her yesterday and spent 30 minutes on the phone, to no resolution. Since today is the last day of the workweek, it won't be an issue for a few days. But a nice, four-day weekend should be enough time to figure out how to keep a dog quiet, shouldn't it?
We'll find out on Monday, I guess.
The family living there when we first moved in was very nice, quiet and overall perfectly pleasant. The next family was also very nice and quiet and, while hampered by several unreasonable fears, was also pleasant. (One unreasonable fear? They drove to the Keystone to ride their bikes and saw a black person loitering around that scrap-yard corner. Yes, I'm serious.)
Anyway, they moved out in early June.
The new neighbor is in her, I don't know, late 40s? She works 10-hour shifts somewhere in Fremont, so she has four-day workweeks — Monday through Thursday. Hey, three-day weekend! Nice.
The problem is that while she's working, her dogs are, too. At around 5:50 every morning, Monday through Thursday, one of those yappy little bastards goes outside — through the doggy door that she cut in the side of the house and for which she also built an extension to her deck — and barks at nothing for an hour.
Every morning.
We mentioned it pretty early in the whole process. Like, "Hey, your dog is barking really early in the morning and waking us up." She was friendly, but said she didn't know what to do. How about shut your dog up? That's a start.
She put a high-frequency noise collar on the dog and that seemed to help — for a little bit. But the last two weeks have been the same as always. (It's out there right now, actually. What are you barking at, little dog? Shut up and go inside!)
Chris called her yesterday and spent 30 minutes on the phone, to no resolution. Since today is the last day of the workweek, it won't be an issue for a few days. But a nice, four-day weekend should be enough time to figure out how to keep a dog quiet, shouldn't it?
We'll find out on Monday, I guess.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Probably long overdue
I don't ride at night a ton. More often, low-light conditions see me heading out for an early morning ride. Leaving at 5:45 for an early ride in the summer? No problem. Flick on the rear blinkie and we're off.
Because it's not dark-dark, I haven't really needed a headlight.
Since joining Harvest in October, I've grown more fond of riding to and from work a couple of days a week. It's partially peer pressure — Ryan and Lucas ride almost daily — but it's also just a nice way to get more miles in. It's 60 to 75 minutes a day, depending on the route and how fast I'm going. Not bad for midweek miles — at least for me.
Since the time switch, though, it's been pretty dark at 5 and dark-dark not too much later. About four years ago, when I worked at the newspaper, I rode to work two or three times a week — all the way downtown. It took about an hour, and on the way home it was completely dark ... because it was 1:30 in the morning.
With the exception of the Keystone, there was plenty of light. Omaha, for all of its faults, really got that light pollution thing right. The streets were plenty bright all the way home, and the little two-AA-battery LED light I had on my handlebar was fine.
When I talked about riding to work as long as the pavement conditions allowed it, Chris asked if I had a light. Yep — the one that served me well before. And then she reminded me of the lack of traffic before, and how I didn't really need anything more than a little blinky.
Noted. (She's a smart lady.) Omaha at 5:30 is a bit busier than Omaha at 1:30 a.m. So I rode to work yesterday with no front light in tow. I ended up going with the NiteRider MiNewt 150. Why? Because it was in stock at the store. And because I'm cool with paying a fair amount for a nice light.
No, it's not wireless — there's a battery pack on my stem. No, it's not the latest and greatest and most wonderful. No, it's not as cool as some other lights that I could have ordered but didn't get around to it. But it's pretty bright, and I could see very well on the surprisingly dark Keystone and even better down Old Maple Road, which is also pretty dark.
A decent — no, nice — headlight is something I probably should have done long ago. But, as it's something that won't have a direct impact on how fast I go in a race, I've been putting it off. Well, I'm in the club now.
No, I won't go ride singletrack in the dark with you.
—
In completely unrelated news, yesterday was Algomaha's fifth birthday. And today is my mom's birthday. Happy birthday, Mom. (And thanks for reading, everybody else.)
Because it's not dark-dark, I haven't really needed a headlight.
Since joining Harvest in October, I've grown more fond of riding to and from work a couple of days a week. It's partially peer pressure — Ryan and Lucas ride almost daily — but it's also just a nice way to get more miles in. It's 60 to 75 minutes a day, depending on the route and how fast I'm going. Not bad for midweek miles — at least for me.
Since the time switch, though, it's been pretty dark at 5 and dark-dark not too much later. About four years ago, when I worked at the newspaper, I rode to work two or three times a week — all the way downtown. It took about an hour, and on the way home it was completely dark ... because it was 1:30 in the morning.
With the exception of the Keystone, there was plenty of light. Omaha, for all of its faults, really got that light pollution thing right. The streets were plenty bright all the way home, and the little two-AA-battery LED light I had on my handlebar was fine.
When I talked about riding to work as long as the pavement conditions allowed it, Chris asked if I had a light. Yep — the one that served me well before. And then she reminded me of the lack of traffic before, and how I didn't really need anything more than a little blinky.
Noted. (She's a smart lady.) Omaha at 5:30 is a bit busier than Omaha at 1:30 a.m. So I rode to work yesterday with no front light in tow. I ended up going with the NiteRider MiNewt 150. Why? Because it was in stock at the store. And because I'm cool with paying a fair amount for a nice light.
No, it's not wireless — there's a battery pack on my stem. No, it's not the latest and greatest and most wonderful. No, it's not as cool as some other lights that I could have ordered but didn't get around to it. But it's pretty bright, and I could see very well on the surprisingly dark Keystone and even better down Old Maple Road, which is also pretty dark.A decent — no, nice — headlight is something I probably should have done long ago. But, as it's something that won't have a direct impact on how fast I go in a race, I've been putting it off. Well, I'm in the club now.
No, I won't go ride singletrack in the dark with you.
—
In completely unrelated news, yesterday was Algomaha's fifth birthday. And today is my mom's birthday. Happy birthday, Mom. (And thanks for reading, everybody else.)
Monday, November 21, 2011
Annnd, we're back.
I meant to write more last week. Like, every day, actually. Things pretty quickly turned into a week's worth of the same thing every day: Jack to daycare, things around the house, nap for Chris and Maddie, a bit of PlayStation and ... repeat.
But there were some highlights (of the non-PlayStation achievement variety):
Brady and Katherine stopped by early in the week. Unfortunately, everybody was sleeping, except me. But he dropped off some goodies, which were much appreciated.
My parents came down for a day, too. They, too, brought food, including Snickers cheesecake. Yes, it's absolutely every bit as awesome as it sounds. I spent the second half of yesterday's ride thinking about nothing but cheesecake.
Speaking of riding, I have been out a few times. I spent way too much time on Wednesday getting the Ion finished. I hung most everything on Tuesday night, and planned on stopping at the store for an hour or two to run cables and finish it off. (The build, by the way, is pretty similar to a Cronus Ultimate: SRAM Force shifters and Avid Shorty Ultimate brakes. I have an Ultegra FD, and a Rival RD for now. Before cross season, the crank will go from an old Bontrager RL crank to a Force model, and the RD will be Force, too. The bar, stem and seatpost are the same as the Cronus, too.)
I got the cables set up and tuned the drivetrain pretty quickly. But when I started getting the brakes set up, they were binding. We tried spacers and different springs and all sorts of ultimately futile tweaks.
I'm gonna regret this next part, but ... gulp ... Mark saved the day. Truth be told, I almost called him earlier. He built up a few bikes with Shorty Ultimates earlier this fall and no doubt saw the same problem. He slipped a 1mm washer under one of the spring tensioning covers and it did the trick. I pulled out a couple of slightly larger washers from my random parts bucket at home and finished it off. They're nice and snappy, though it's annoying I had to do anything to them to begin with. On the Cronus, I needed no washers or spacers or anything to get them set up.
Anyway, it got done, eventually. And it weighs 18.5 pounds with reasonably lightweight wheels. Were I to add carbon tubulars or something silly like that, it would be closer to 18, which isn't too far off from the Cronus in its stock configuration.
KGil stopped by on Friday afternoon for the inaugural ride. We got about 90 minutes in, including some gravel. The initial impression is pretty much what I expected: it rides an awful lot like the Cronus. The only difference is that it's not nearly as snappy when you stand up and drill it. I'm pretty sure I can record plenty of mid-pack finishes, despite that slight difference.
Friday night, EOB stopped by with pizza. And not the easy kind of pizza. The dude set up shop, built us a pizza, tossed it in the oven and bid us adieu. Nice. Oh, and it tasted pretty great.
I got out on the Madone on Saturday morning. Remember how it was supposed to be warmish in the morning and then get cold after lunch? It got cold around 9, which means I was a little light with my glove choice. My fingers were cold, cold, cold by the end, but they warmed up pretty quick when I got home. And I'm glad they did, because Jack was waiting for me when I got there.
Based on the "get cold later" business, I told Jack we'd go ride the north part of the trail at Tranquility when I got back. We coasted down the hill and did a quick little loop on the dirt. He wiped out a couple of times, but did very well overall. Hopefully we get more decent weather this week and we can go again.
I got in another two hours on the Ion today. I put the heavy-ass Orange Crush wheels on and slogged it out into the wind. It was a tough ride, mostly because I've been trying to pedal "correctly." It ends up being a lot more work for the glutes, which then pull on my lower back, which results in a little bit of soreness. Luckily, I haven't had to spend a ton of time thinking about pedaling more efficiently, so it's already becoming second nature. Hopefully I'll be able to take full advantage of the change by spring.
And with that, it's Monday. Let's go!
But there were some highlights (of the non-PlayStation achievement variety):
Brady and Katherine stopped by early in the week. Unfortunately, everybody was sleeping, except me. But he dropped off some goodies, which were much appreciated.
My parents came down for a day, too. They, too, brought food, including Snickers cheesecake. Yes, it's absolutely every bit as awesome as it sounds. I spent the second half of yesterday's ride thinking about nothing but cheesecake.Speaking of riding, I have been out a few times. I spent way too much time on Wednesday getting the Ion finished. I hung most everything on Tuesday night, and planned on stopping at the store for an hour or two to run cables and finish it off. (The build, by the way, is pretty similar to a Cronus Ultimate: SRAM Force shifters and Avid Shorty Ultimate brakes. I have an Ultegra FD, and a Rival RD for now. Before cross season, the crank will go from an old Bontrager RL crank to a Force model, and the RD will be Force, too. The bar, stem and seatpost are the same as the Cronus, too.)
I got the cables set up and tuned the drivetrain pretty quickly. But when I started getting the brakes set up, they were binding. We tried spacers and different springs and all sorts of ultimately futile tweaks.
I'm gonna regret this next part, but ... gulp ... Mark saved the day. Truth be told, I almost called him earlier. He built up a few bikes with Shorty Ultimates earlier this fall and no doubt saw the same problem. He slipped a 1mm washer under one of the spring tensioning covers and it did the trick. I pulled out a couple of slightly larger washers from my random parts bucket at home and finished it off. They're nice and snappy, though it's annoying I had to do anything to them to begin with. On the Cronus, I needed no washers or spacers or anything to get them set up.
Anyway, it got done, eventually. And it weighs 18.5 pounds with reasonably lightweight wheels. Were I to add carbon tubulars or something silly like that, it would be closer to 18, which isn't too far off from the Cronus in its stock configuration.KGil stopped by on Friday afternoon for the inaugural ride. We got about 90 minutes in, including some gravel. The initial impression is pretty much what I expected: it rides an awful lot like the Cronus. The only difference is that it's not nearly as snappy when you stand up and drill it. I'm pretty sure I can record plenty of mid-pack finishes, despite that slight difference.
Friday night, EOB stopped by with pizza. And not the easy kind of pizza. The dude set up shop, built us a pizza, tossed it in the oven and bid us adieu. Nice. Oh, and it tasted pretty great.
I got out on the Madone on Saturday morning. Remember how it was supposed to be warmish in the morning and then get cold after lunch? It got cold around 9, which means I was a little light with my glove choice. My fingers were cold, cold, cold by the end, but they warmed up pretty quick when I got home. And I'm glad they did, because Jack was waiting for me when I got there.
Based on the "get cold later" business, I told Jack we'd go ride the north part of the trail at Tranquility when I got back. We coasted down the hill and did a quick little loop on the dirt. He wiped out a couple of times, but did very well overall. Hopefully we get more decent weather this week and we can go again.
I got in another two hours on the Ion today. I put the heavy-ass Orange Crush wheels on and slogged it out into the wind. It was a tough ride, mostly because I've been trying to pedal "correctly." It ends up being a lot more work for the glutes, which then pull on my lower back, which results in a little bit of soreness. Luckily, I haven't had to spend a ton of time thinking about pedaling more efficiently, so it's already becoming second nature. Hopefully I'll be able to take full advantage of the change by spring.
And with that, it's Monday. Let's go!
Monday, November 14, 2011
The new normal
There are days where keeping tabs on Jack feels not unlike herding cats. I've often wondered what would if I snapped at him or sprayed him with squirt bottle when he's out of control.
Keeping tabs on Jack after two nights in the hospital, far too much caffeine and not nearly enough exercise is like herding cats that are being chased by dogs. Oh, and there's also a baby squawking. This is our life.
For his part, Jack has been really sweet to Madelyn since we got home yesterday. Despite consistently avoiding all other babies that come near him, he's taken to his little sister quite quickly. That'll change at some point ... any minute now.
He also got to spend a few days with Chris' parents, who were here over the weekend. Right now, the focus is getting back to the routine. Because while grandparents rock (they do, totally), little boys get to do whatever they want. And Jack was bonkers last night. He has to do a lot to lose his bedtime books, and he was up to the task.
Today, though, he's paying quietly in the living room, just like a regular weekend morning. (Yes, I know it's not the weekend. He's staying home for a couple of days.) Hopefully a little sleep did him well.
And speaking of "a little sleep" ... Chris and I now remember what the first few days are like. In the hospital, it's not so bad — if you want to send the kid to the nursery, you can. We did that with Jack the second night. But Madelyn was quite a bit quieter, so she stayed with us both nights. And it wasn't too bad, really.
At home, though, things are different. Nurses don't come in to check on you in the middle of the night. And if the kid has a dirty diaper, it's all you. I forgot about that. Actually, I mostly forgot about the part where you rock an unreasonably angry baby for 30 minutes, fall asleep in the chair and then move just a tiny fraction of an inch and wake up the baby again.
Naptime will be mandatory today — for everybody.
And at some point in the next day or two, I'll kit up and go for a little ride. The timing was right to take a bit of time off (end of racing, new baby, etc.), but I'm ready to spin it out for an hour or two and get back into the routine — whatever that may be.
The new CX bike will be done before the snow flies ... provided the snow doesn't fly in the next two weeks. Almost there.
For now, though, more coffee. I hope I have enough.
Keeping tabs on Jack after two nights in the hospital, far too much caffeine and not nearly enough exercise is like herding cats that are being chased by dogs. Oh, and there's also a baby squawking. This is our life.
For his part, Jack has been really sweet to Madelyn since we got home yesterday. Despite consistently avoiding all other babies that come near him, he's taken to his little sister quite quickly. That'll change at some point ... any minute now.
He also got to spend a few days with Chris' parents, who were here over the weekend. Right now, the focus is getting back to the routine. Because while grandparents rock (they do, totally), little boys get to do whatever they want. And Jack was bonkers last night. He has to do a lot to lose his bedtime books, and he was up to the task.
Today, though, he's paying quietly in the living room, just like a regular weekend morning. (Yes, I know it's not the weekend. He's staying home for a couple of days.) Hopefully a little sleep did him well.
And speaking of "a little sleep" ... Chris and I now remember what the first few days are like. In the hospital, it's not so bad — if you want to send the kid to the nursery, you can. We did that with Jack the second night. But Madelyn was quite a bit quieter, so she stayed with us both nights. And it wasn't too bad, really.
At home, though, things are different. Nurses don't come in to check on you in the middle of the night. And if the kid has a dirty diaper, it's all you. I forgot about that. Actually, I mostly forgot about the part where you rock an unreasonably angry baby for 30 minutes, fall asleep in the chair and then move just a tiny fraction of an inch and wake up the baby again.
Naptime will be mandatory today — for everybody.
And at some point in the next day or two, I'll kit up and go for a little ride. The timing was right to take a bit of time off (end of racing, new baby, etc.), but I'm ready to spin it out for an hour or two and get back into the routine — whatever that may be.
The new CX bike will be done before the snow flies ... provided the snow doesn't fly in the next two weeks. Almost there.
For now, though, more coffee. I hope I have enough.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Here she is
Chris is an efficient lady. We were at the hospital for a little more than seven hours when our little girl arrived.
Meet Madelyn Mary. She was born at 2:20 and weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces — the same as her brother — and is 21 inches long (one inch longer than Jack). And, in an admittedly brief comparison (done mostly with spotty memory), I think she looks pretty much exactly like Jack.
Both Chris and Maddie are doing great so far. Thanks for all of your support and kind words!
Meet Madelyn Mary. She was born at 2:20 and weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces — the same as her brother — and is 21 inches long (one inch longer than Jack). And, in an admittedly brief comparison (done mostly with spotty memory), I think she looks pretty much exactly like Jack.
Both Chris and Maddie are doing great so far. Thanks for all of your support and kind words!
It's one louder, isn't it?
Today's the day: 11/11/11. Though it's just a fun coincidence of the calendar, it's a day to think about turning it up one louder, just like Nigel.We'll be going one louder at some point today. We're at the hospital to hatch a Stegosaurus. Though the due date is actually Nov. 19, Chris' blood pressure has been inching up over the last couple of weeks and her doctor decided today was the day.
So here we are. I'll post pictures and such later, but for right now, let Nigel take you into Friday.
All the way up, kids.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
A fitting end
As the season has worn on, I've become more and more excited about 'cross. I'm far from alone there — the Omaha and Lincoln scenes have been awesome this year. Cyclocross is on a roll for sure.
But no matter my excitement, I knew Wednesday's race would be the absolute end of the year. Why? Baby Stegosaurus is coming soon. Like, tomorrow, actually. (I'll tell you more about that tomorrow morning.)
Anyway, last night was it for racing this year. And despite the potential for a slop-fest, the course was in surprisingly great shape and really fast. Earlier in the day I wasn't sure if I'd be racing. I went out for a bit with KGil, EOB and Jeremy and had a couple of really great Belgian beers. Despite the full meal beforehand and tons of water during and afterward, I woke up yesterday feeling awful. I ended up taking a nap on my office floor in the middle of the day. But I felt better as the day wore on and ended up feeling perfectly fine come race time.
As usual, despite my desire to start a bit quicker, I was near the tail end of the bunch heading off the pavement. That's due to me lining up a minute or two later than I should have, but also because I'm just not comfortable with that elbow-to-elbow business yet. I'll put that on the list of things to work on for next year.
Anyway, I set about the business of moving up pretty quickly. The wide-open bits of the course definitely favor roadie power, and I soon found myself with last week's group again: Dave, Rafal and Jeremy, with a side order of Feagan. Hey guys!
I was near the front of the bunch when Dave bobbled just enough on a corner to slow everybody up. And from there I pinned it, hoping to establish a gap and then move up to the next group. It took a while, but I finally got away. From there I chased down one rider at a time, finally getting to Vaughn about halfway through the race.
We spent the next five laps or so trading pulls, making sure the chase groups behind us didn't come back. We each took little digs, testing each other. He was a bit faster through the corners and barriers, I was a bit faster on the straightaways.
Heading into the last lap, I knew something really painful was going to have to happen. Vaughn jumped out of the last 180 before the barriers and built a quick lead. I hit it pretty hard after the barriers to bring him back, and by the time we got to the little pavement circle thing in the middle of the course, I was back on board.
Heading into the last few corners, he probably knew what was coming when I moved back to the front. I punched it out of the last one and went full gas to the end. I ended up 7th, thanks to some absences from the really fast fasties. I always enjoy racing with Vaughn, even when he beats the hell of out me.
It was a good race. I was happy with how I rode, and in all happy about how the fall went. I felt like I made some progress, which is always nice. I'll have the Ion built up in the next week or so, and then it'll be time for a week or two off and then some nice base miles.
(And thanks to the sponsors and organizers. We we're fortunate to have a great group of people here in Nebraska. Much appreciated.)
And now, Stegosaurus. More tomorrow.
But no matter my excitement, I knew Wednesday's race would be the absolute end of the year. Why? Baby Stegosaurus is coming soon. Like, tomorrow, actually. (I'll tell you more about that tomorrow morning.)
Anyway, last night was it for racing this year. And despite the potential for a slop-fest, the course was in surprisingly great shape and really fast. Earlier in the day I wasn't sure if I'd be racing. I went out for a bit with KGil, EOB and Jeremy and had a couple of really great Belgian beers. Despite the full meal beforehand and tons of water during and afterward, I woke up yesterday feeling awful. I ended up taking a nap on my office floor in the middle of the day. But I felt better as the day wore on and ended up feeling perfectly fine come race time.
As usual, despite my desire to start a bit quicker, I was near the tail end of the bunch heading off the pavement. That's due to me lining up a minute or two later than I should have, but also because I'm just not comfortable with that elbow-to-elbow business yet. I'll put that on the list of things to work on for next year.
Anyway, I set about the business of moving up pretty quickly. The wide-open bits of the course definitely favor roadie power, and I soon found myself with last week's group again: Dave, Rafal and Jeremy, with a side order of Feagan. Hey guys!
I was near the front of the bunch when Dave bobbled just enough on a corner to slow everybody up. And from there I pinned it, hoping to establish a gap and then move up to the next group. It took a while, but I finally got away. From there I chased down one rider at a time, finally getting to Vaughn about halfway through the race.
We spent the next five laps or so trading pulls, making sure the chase groups behind us didn't come back. We each took little digs, testing each other. He was a bit faster through the corners and barriers, I was a bit faster on the straightaways.
Heading into the last lap, I knew something really painful was going to have to happen. Vaughn jumped out of the last 180 before the barriers and built a quick lead. I hit it pretty hard after the barriers to bring him back, and by the time we got to the little pavement circle thing in the middle of the course, I was back on board.
Heading into the last few corners, he probably knew what was coming when I moved back to the front. I punched it out of the last one and went full gas to the end. I ended up 7th, thanks to some absences from the really fast fasties. I always enjoy racing with Vaughn, even when he beats the hell of out me.
It was a good race. I was happy with how I rode, and in all happy about how the fall went. I felt like I made some progress, which is always nice. I'll have the Ion built up in the next week or so, and then it'll be time for a week or two off and then some nice base miles.
(And thanks to the sponsors and organizers. We we're fortunate to have a great group of people here in Nebraska. Much appreciated.)
And now, Stegosaurus. More tomorrow.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Hello ... again
Last week's rain and snow and muck was well documented — it was a mess.
Since then, it had been mostly dry, even though the Wednesday 'cross course itself was a mess.
Of course, it started raining last night and hasn't really stopped since. Today we'll get even more, followed by 3 to 5 inches of snow. Three to five inches of snow.
And then tomorrow it's going to be 45 and sunny ... except we're racing at night. Basically, all of that snow is going to melt, making a wet course wetter and muddier and ... oof. At least I know what's coming. More towels in the car this time, and then a bike overhaul when I get home.
Awesome.
Since then, it had been mostly dry, even though the Wednesday 'cross course itself was a mess.
Of course, it started raining last night and hasn't really stopped since. Today we'll get even more, followed by 3 to 5 inches of snow. Three to five inches of snow.
And then tomorrow it's going to be 45 and sunny ... except we're racing at night. Basically, all of that snow is going to melt, making a wet course wetter and muddier and ... oof. At least I know what's coming. More towels in the car this time, and then a bike overhaul when I get home.
Awesome.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Two weeks
We're just a little under two weeks away from the due date. All is calm.
Though the arrival of Stegosaurus will surely blow everything up, I've been in a nice groove the last couple of weekends. Actually having both days off results in a lot of riding, a lot of stuff getting done around the house and a lot of time spent at home. It's nice.
Saturday I rolled with Eric, Brady and Munson for a few hours of wind avoidance. We headed downtown, checked out Hickory Street — Brady won (and we also saw a dude with his car jacked up fixing a flat) — and then headed toward Bellevue Boulevard. There were signs of Evil Munson here and there, which was refreshing. I remember the early days of riding with Mike and Brady, which Mike could (and sometimes did) beat the hell out of us.
I still get the hell beaten out of me, but now it's Brady doing the damage. There were signs of life from Mr. Munson, though. That's always good to see.
After all of that, we did it again Sunday. Actually, we rode down to Seymour Smith and monkeyed around on the 'cross course for a bit. We ran it forward and back, and there's really not too much of a difference between the two directions. But, like MTB courses run backward, the tricky parts sometimes weren't so tricky and the fast parts take on a new feel run the other way.
Mostly, though, it was just wet. Really, really soft still. Considering what's on tap for later today and all day tomorrow — rain — Wednesday could be a muddy mess. Last time, it was mostly standing water. I'm thinking mud this time.
Neato.
Though the arrival of Stegosaurus will surely blow everything up, I've been in a nice groove the last couple of weekends. Actually having both days off results in a lot of riding, a lot of stuff getting done around the house and a lot of time spent at home. It's nice.
Saturday I rolled with Eric, Brady and Munson for a few hours of wind avoidance. We headed downtown, checked out Hickory Street — Brady won (and we also saw a dude with his car jacked up fixing a flat) — and then headed toward Bellevue Boulevard. There were signs of Evil Munson here and there, which was refreshing. I remember the early days of riding with Mike and Brady, which Mike could (and sometimes did) beat the hell out of us.
I still get the hell beaten out of me, but now it's Brady doing the damage. There were signs of life from Mr. Munson, though. That's always good to see.
After all of that, we did it again Sunday. Actually, we rode down to Seymour Smith and monkeyed around on the 'cross course for a bit. We ran it forward and back, and there's really not too much of a difference between the two directions. But, like MTB courses run backward, the tricky parts sometimes weren't so tricky and the fast parts take on a new feel run the other way.
Mostly, though, it was just wet. Really, really soft still. Considering what's on tap for later today and all day tomorrow — rain — Wednesday could be a muddy mess. Last time, it was mostly standing water. I'm thinking mud this time.
Neato.
Friday, November 4, 2011
Things
While I'm not really directly involved with Cranksgiving this year, I've been thinking about it lately.
If you've been at all involved in the previous four editions, it would be awesome for you to think about it again, too. The need for food and supplies at the Foodbank for the Heartland is still high, and anything you can do to help would be ... well, helpful. You can donate online — put 'cranksgiving' in the additional instructions/comments field — or bring food or funds (or both!) to the event on Nov. 12.
I may or may not be there — we're getting into that "be ready at all times and don't go very far from home" phase. But hopefully I'll be able to stop by for a little bit with Jack. We'll see.
—
I haven't shaved my face in at least two weeks. I'm not growing a beard, I just haven't had time. Well, check that — I have time, just not when I'm ready to shave. Still trying to get that morning thing figured out. I was thinking about it again this morning: How the hell am I going to get all of this done when I have two kids to worry about?
I have no idea. Maybe the beard will be a permanent thing.
—
It speaks a lot to the fun and popularity of cyclocross that I have a little list of "things to line up for next year" cooking in my head. It's mostly just little bits of gear and equipment that would make things a bit easier.
And in the meantime I'll be working on things you can't buy — like skills. Or it is skillz? I'm never sure.
—
Chris is going to hang out with a friend tonight, leaving Jack and I home for "boys night." I asked him what we should have for supper, since I have no idea what to make.
"Steak," he said.
Real manly man we're raising here.
If you've been at all involved in the previous four editions, it would be awesome for you to think about it again, too. The need for food and supplies at the Foodbank for the Heartland is still high, and anything you can do to help would be ... well, helpful. You can donate online — put 'cranksgiving' in the additional instructions/comments field — or bring food or funds (or both!) to the event on Nov. 12.
I may or may not be there — we're getting into that "be ready at all times and don't go very far from home" phase. But hopefully I'll be able to stop by for a little bit with Jack. We'll see.
—
I haven't shaved my face in at least two weeks. I'm not growing a beard, I just haven't had time. Well, check that — I have time, just not when I'm ready to shave. Still trying to get that morning thing figured out. I was thinking about it again this morning: How the hell am I going to get all of this done when I have two kids to worry about?
I have no idea. Maybe the beard will be a permanent thing.
—
It speaks a lot to the fun and popularity of cyclocross that I have a little list of "things to line up for next year" cooking in my head. It's mostly just little bits of gear and equipment that would make things a bit easier.
And in the meantime I'll be working on things you can't buy — like skills. Or it is skillz? I'm never sure.
—
Chris is going to hang out with a friend tonight, leaving Jack and I home for "boys night." I asked him what we should have for supper, since I have no idea what to make.
"Steak," he said.
Real manly man we're raising here.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Dirty work
You know what's worse than riding or racing in the rain? The anticipation of having to ride or race in the rain.It's thinking about that initial shock of cold or wet (or cold and wet) that messes with your head. And it's funny how we quickly forget how much the racing part hurts — and look back upon it fondly and call it it fun — but we remember that first splash of water soaking through our socks.
After seeing how truly bad it was likely to get on Monday, I started thinking about how racing in the yuck last night would be fine once we got going. It was the warmup and post-race parts that would be cold, not the actual racing.
And as the rain and snow fell all day yesterday, I kept reminding myself: It wouldn't be that bad.
On the way down to Seymour Smith from the office, I stopped by Canfield's to pick up some neoprene fishing gloves. When my idiot friends and I played snow football all the time in college, neoprene gloves were not only great for catching and throwing — they kept your hands warm when it was cold and wet.
Once I got kitted up and rolled a few laps of the course, I knew I'd have a good race. Mark set up a total power course, and for guys like me with no discernible technical skills, power courses are nice.
When the whistle blew, we rode pretty much straight into a giant puddle. And then we went flying into another puddle, which was edged by sketchy pea gravel. A minute later, we rode through a drainage ditch ... about four times, back and forth. (It won't be that bad, it won't be that bad, it won't be that bad.)
I started off slow and toward the back. I've noticed I tend to do that in 'cross races. Let the guys who will challenge for the win get going and I'll find my place a bit farther down. When the course opened up, I moved past a few guys. And when it opened again later, I got up where I needed to be.
I was with Randleman, Rafal and Jeremy for the bulk of the race, trading position and trying to move up to the next group. Maybe because he's old, or maybe because of the mud, Dave went off-course at least three times that I saw. Each time, I slipped past and each time he came right back and took the front again. And then he slid out a couple of times. And so did the other two.
Somehow, I didn't.
And each time when the course opened up, I cranked up the pace out of the corners and made them chase me. However, with two laps to go, they were all still there. And suddenly I had to think about changing my strategy from "don't fall down" to "try to win this bunch sprint."
In the end, I had enough of a gap that I didn't need to sprint. I ended up 12th of 29. And no, it wasn't that bad. It took forever to get cleaned up and changed, though. I think I need a little mini-Sprinter or something to change in. The Camry is good for some things, but de-kitting after a wet race isn't one of them.
On the way home, I stopped by the car wash to clean off the bike and my shoes. The bike got the light rain treatment and a more thorough cleaning and re-lubing when I got home. The shoes got the power-wash treatment and are shiny silver again.I have one week left in my racing season — for real this time. And even though it wasn't that bad, I hope to avoid the car wash on the way home next time.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Let's GO!
During the summer, long before it was even close to 'cross season, Mark put together an order for custom team side-zip tights. They're pretty much perfect for the type of weather that's on tap today: temps in the 30s, rain, snow. Warm up, roll to the start line, unzip, go.
I didn't get on board then because I had a pretty clear-cut bad-weather strategy: If it's that bad, I'm not racing. Not worth it.
The twilight race in Lincoln a few weeks ago was chilly, but not cold. And it was dry — no big deal. Had I not dinged up my back, I would have done last week's race in Lincoln and called it good. Instead, I took a week off from racing and decided to do the Omaha races today and next week. I mean, they're right here.
So I lined up the schedule and planned ahead and all of that. And then I saw today's forecast: Wet, cold, windy ... snowy? Sweet.
Suddenly, I've tossed out my bad-weather policy in favor of whatever it is that I'm chasing. Not glory — no way. I know my place. But there's some sort of draw to all of this. I have clothing and kit and my bike all ready to go. And embrocation — god, the embrocation.
What am I doing and why am I doing it? I have no idea.
I didn't get on board then because I had a pretty clear-cut bad-weather strategy: If it's that bad, I'm not racing. Not worth it.
The twilight race in Lincoln a few weeks ago was chilly, but not cold. And it was dry — no big deal. Had I not dinged up my back, I would have done last week's race in Lincoln and called it good. Instead, I took a week off from racing and decided to do the Omaha races today and next week. I mean, they're right here.
So I lined up the schedule and planned ahead and all of that. And then I saw today's forecast: Wet, cold, windy ... snowy? Sweet.
Suddenly, I've tossed out my bad-weather policy in favor of whatever it is that I'm chasing. Not glory — no way. I know my place. But there's some sort of draw to all of this. I have clothing and kit and my bike all ready to go. And embrocation — god, the embrocation.
What am I doing and why am I doing it? I have no idea.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Out in the wild
Over the weekend, Chris and I were talking about which of us would be accompanying Jack on his trick-or-treat journey on Halloween.
Jack, as he's prone to do, solved it for us: "It's OK guys, I don't need a grown-up to come with me."
Right.
Jack was Buzz Lightyear this time around — a result of good bargain shopping by Chris at the last gigantic consignment sale. In years past there's been a bit more effort undertaken to make a costume — Bob the Builder, Boots the Monkey, etc. — but this year ... that premade Buzz is just fine.
For his part, Jack didn't seem to care even a little bit. And unlike his first year or two on Halloween, his bashfulness pretty much disappeared last night. It's still a bit of work to get him to say both, "trick or treat" and "thank you" in one transaction, but he did pretty well. More often than not, he'd say, "Bye!" and wander off into the night.
And at the end of the night, he got his two pieces of candy and shuffled — or ran or jumped or whatever else — off to bed.
On the counter is a bucket filled with the spoils of last night's adventure. What was he playing with this morning? The bright-green glow stick he used as his "lantern" last night.
Apparently Halloween isn't over yet.
Jack, as he's prone to do, solved it for us: "It's OK guys, I don't need a grown-up to come with me."
Right.
Jack was Buzz Lightyear this time around — a result of good bargain shopping by Chris at the last gigantic consignment sale. In years past there's been a bit more effort undertaken to make a costume — Bob the Builder, Boots the Monkey, etc. — but this year ... that premade Buzz is just fine.
For his part, Jack didn't seem to care even a little bit. And unlike his first year or two on Halloween, his bashfulness pretty much disappeared last night. It's still a bit of work to get him to say both, "trick or treat" and "thank you" in one transaction, but he did pretty well. More often than not, he'd say, "Bye!" and wander off into the night.
And at the end of the night, he got his two pieces of candy and shuffled — or ran or jumped or whatever else — off to bed.
On the counter is a bucket filled with the spoils of last night's adventure. What was he playing with this morning? The bright-green glow stick he used as his "lantern" last night.
Apparently Halloween isn't over yet.
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