T-Man's prespective on riding and racing in Utah

I am finally jumping on the Blog bandwagon with my recollection of the weekly vacation to the pain-cave known as the Intermountain cup. Yesterday the Fun-enabler (The Throttle) and me made the epic journey to race in the Sundance Spin. The conditions could not have been better for dirt induced suffering. The temperatures were in the mid 60's at the start line, the trails were neither muddy or dusty but they were tacky. Besides the perfect trail conditions the scenery around Sundance makes it one of my favorite rides and my favorite race course by far.

Yesterday's race had the largest field of competitors in the 16-18 sport/expert division. As the race started all nine of us charged up the hell like first climb toward the first single track. I had great legs and was sitting in third place going into the single track, unfortunately the two ahead of me are a little faster in the technical stuff which led them to get a little gap entail they caught the expert and pro women that started just before us. When they caught the women I was able to catch them on the climb, unfortunately they made a good move and got ahead of the women while me and Danny were forced to tap brakes on the climbs and wave at them as they sprinted away. They were able to increase there gap on the downhill on the first lap. On the second lap I had great legs and attacked the climb and came within 10yards of Logan in second place at the top of the climb, then he got about a minuet on the decent. I had the most fun at a most fun yesterday even though it was my worst finish of the season at 3rd place. I guess I can't complain when my worst finish is still on the podium. I have really enjoyed racing this year because I am actually racing competitively instead of being happy to not finish last.

Since I am writing on a blog I feel obligated to gripe about something. I choose to gripe about cars, I HATE CARS!!!!!!!!!!! When I ride my bike to school I am often yelled at by my fellow students. Often it is incomprehensible cursing and gesturing at the sidewalk. I have also been honked at suddenly forcing me into the curb and crashing in the parking lot and clipping the rear bumper of the car ahead of me. When I rode my bike on the road to the Draper I-cup and was yelled at by a guy in a Porshe that looked like he couldn't even mount a bike. Anyway thanks for listing to my bloging rant.

Tomorrow is the last day that I have to actually go to school. Summer vacation will usher in unobstructed riding time. I currently ride everyday, but can only get in about a hour or 20 something miles a day, now I can finally start riding longer and more importantly I can start riding the dirt at least a couple times a week hopefully increasing my DH abilities.

Here are some race pics, enjoy:

Don't we look similar

Great to ride with Kim

I wish I had a pic of the team riding down the road in our new jerseys and the smile on Kim's face. GC Connection looked like a pro team hammering down the road. People (Farmers) dropped what they were doing to watch us as we road past.
Other than the jerseys looking great as a team it was nice to have big Kim back in the pack. We road from Louie's house to Fremont and back (40 miles). It wasn't the longest sat ride, but it was great to turn around and see Kim drafting off us. Before to long he'll be back at the front pounding away at the pedals.

Thrill and Spills

Question: What happens when you crash at 31 mph?

Answer: Lots of pain and road rash.

Today was the state TTT in Corvallis. We had a very strong cat 4 team, with me as the very weak link of the team. I wasn't feeling very good and the team was cranking it. The course is a 7.5 mile loop, with teams doing almost 4 loops and a total distance of 27.3 miles. Our goal was to finish the race in under an hour. Coming into the end of the third lap I finished my small pull and was on the back. After the next rider, Steven, finished his turn there was some confusion with the second in line Paul. There wheels rubbed and he went down - hard. Paul fell on his hip and hand. Rob was third and fell next. He slid out in front of me and I had no where to go. I was fourth and went right over Rob's wheel, rolling onto my left side. When I hit my legs cramped and locked up on me and I couldn't move. I was in a lot of pain. I had to scoot on my butt off the road to get out of the way of other racers. My bike suffered slight damage, but best of all no one was seriously hurt. I drove the hour home in discomfort, the shower hurt like you know what, and now I am trying to move around the house - pretty stiff. But this is the life of cycling.

Draper

The Draper race that got moved to Wednesday night was painful but fun. I suffered like crazy on the climbs and managed to finish 5th after dropping to 9th the first time up. I didn't "beat Bob" but at least kept the gap under 2 minutes. However, BK smoked us on his home turf.

Tanner had a solid ride and won the 16 - 18's. His group started last and he passed nearly all the Sport riders on the climb, including all the fast 50's. His climbing is impressive and the descending is coming.

Tomorrow is more suffering in a beautiful setting at Sundance. I've had bad days there every time I've race. Maybe tomorrow will be better. I hope so, it's a fun course.

Good job to AT and Doug at the Ogden crit. It's cool to see GC Connection represented. T-man and I will make it up for some family bonding in the B's.

Daren

FASHION SHOW!

I flatted with 3 to go, my carbon rim wasn't supporting me much. my first time with the B's. It was great to ride with the jersey's and we'll be getting the rest out to you all. Ride safe.
Doug.

Adam taking 3rd! Great race.

Adam and I at the start of the thursday night crit looking like real teammates, some guy asked me what is a GC Connection?

The new kit.

BIG MONEY!!!

The jersey almost got me a first. I took third by a bit more than a bike and missed second by a bike (Check the pics above for a better view). The guy who won came on my right (I thought I was on the inside edge of the road) and I didn't even know he was there. I won the big money with the third place finish (3 bills) and the socks were for the prim I won (I got him by a wheel). The funny thing is the guy I beat out for third was the same guy I beat for the prim (same distance I might add). Both finishes were classic Suttlemyre moves. Go EARLY and see if anybody comes and if they do let'm pass and sit on their wheel.

Doug came and road the B flight with me and we looked good in our new team jersey's. Unfortunately Doug flatted out with a few laps to go. Every once in a while he would get gaped work his tail off (with help from Bountiful Mazda) get back to the group and for some reason I would attack (not knowing this until after). Sorry Doug.

Rain

No race today due to heavy rain. It's a good call because the trails in Draper are too good to trash. The race has been postponed to Wed's night at 6pm. Should be fun.

The delay is good for me. My lower back / upper glut is super tight and pinching a nerve. The result is lots of pain and not much sleep. With some luck and lots of stretching, I should be better on Wed. I'll need it because the 40+ Experts are stacked.

Got to like Utah weather in the late spring. Tuesday night I rode home from work in 93 degrees and Thursday night I rode home in 45 degrees.

Saturday we pre-rode the Draper course and got into lots of sticky mud on the dirt road. It clogged my chain which ripped off my rear derailleur. After coasting back to the parking lot, I jumped on Eric's light hardtail for the rest of the ride. It was fun to ride and got me thinking about a hardtail again. I've toyed with building a light HT for some time. Well, Eric had another HT frame available, so I jumped off the cliff and switched over the parts from my Epic. I now have a light HT to race. I plan to use it for a while and see what I think.

Cold and wet in LV

35 miles into what was going to be 60 mile ride, the Heavens opened up and we road another 7 until we could find shelter. We came to LV to get out of the cold, but ended up freezing at a rest stop until the sag wagon came to take us home. I have never been so wet on a bike in all my life (except Lotoja 05). I hope this was not a great training ride for what could be Lotoja 08.

Here is a pic of us just before the rain a few miles past red rock.Up around 6000 feet just outside of LV
A quick photo just before the rains came down. Look in the background to the left
All in all a day on the bike (even in the Cold) beats a day on the couch, and a ride with your wife on the back......Priceless

It's Finished

Thanks to many of our GC Connection brethren the black beauty is back in action. It is now the only Specialized Tandem I know of or have ever seen (Vinyl stickers are great). It once was a purple trek, but now it has been raised to become a bike of champions (I couldn't ride a bike that wasn't Specialized).
The actual pics of the bike can be found on our family blog (Adam's Family), but just know I didn't have enough Specialized stickers to do it justice. So I will have a few more made as to make sure the "S" is visible from every possible angle. Thanks again to Doug, because he was the man that made it happen and to my wife who now get to spend more time with me.

at the Hollow

Good to see Doug, Brady and Robbie are having fun in the not so cool Northwest. I need to make the journey someday to enjoy the great riding.

Yesterday was the MTB race at Soldier Hollow. It's always cool riding at an Olympic venue. However, my prior races there have been disasters. I've completely blown and finished way back. I was determined to have a good ride this year and things turned out well. I actually enjoyed myself and finished a competitive 6th in a very good field. I faded a bit on the last lap after I closed to less than a minute to BK, but it was a fun race. Bob had a super day and led start to finish. He beat me by close to 7 minutes. I'm happy for him. He deserved a good result.

Tanner had a really good day to finish 2nd. He was the strongest climber in the 16 - 18 experts, but lost time on the descents. It is deceptively hard to go fast downhill at Soldier Hollow. The kid that won, Keegan Swenson, is very good alpine ski racer and can go fast downhill. Tanner continues to improve and is a very good climber. I think he'll give Robbie, Sut and Bubba all they want on a road climb.

It's a busy time of the year for racing. This is the 4th Saturday in a row we've raced. There's races every week through the first week of July. I'm taking it one week at a time and trying to avoid going too deep. I hope to do some mid-week races either on the road, TT or mountain bike. However, recovery is the primary factor. If I'm feeling worked, I'll just focus on Saturdays. It's a good time of year to be a bike racer in Utah.

Wolfe Creek

It is hard to see, but Doug is riding on the road in this picture.



Bicycling magazine ranking the Wolfe Creek ride as the number 1 ride in Oregon. It is absolutely beautiful. The pictures I took will not do it justice. Doug is out helping Alissa move to Portland, so he stopped by for a few days. We got to go ride Wolfe Creek on Saturday. It is a 65 mile loop with 35 miles of it on a paved logger road. We had maybe saw 2 cars for that section. It has some pretty good climbs, but the worst part is going down. It looks like it is going down, but you are actually going up. It is a weird feeling to look down and see that you are going 16 when you think you should be flying down the hill. Doug got a little dehydrated (an unheard of 95 degrees today) on this section, but we stopped at a small gas station to get a drink and were off into the head wind. I love the wind. It just slows everything down and makes it so much more enjoyable. All in all it was a beautiful day out on the bike.

HOT!!!!!!

Just a quick travel up date. I am on Brady's computer writing this update. I had nothing but fun helping Robbie and Alissa move. I drove the big U-haul pulling the car with Robbie driving their van behind. Robbie and I unloaded the U-haul and started putting things together. Alissa, Betty and the girls took the Southwest suttle to Portland and we all worked hard to get things unpacked and in some order. They live in a great area west of Portland with great riding areas everywhere. I rode all over the area and it is beautiful. We came down to Eugene today to spend the weekend with Brooke and Brady. I rode over the Brady's school and we rode home together. It is 95 degrees today here in the cool northwest. The last two days are the first riding days I haven't had to wear some kind of cool weather gear. It was nice to sweat.

I have been hammering the bike shop all day to get the Sutt's big wheels done. It is hard to motivate them. Hopefully soon. Brady and I are going on our favorite ride in the morning, I can hardly wait. I wish I could stay up with my son on the climbs, but I have learned to enjoy the solitude (as I am always left behind). I have raced two crits in the past few week and it was alot of fun to stay with the groups. In the state crit I got dropped on the last lap of the 35-45 group. I felt good about the effort. In the Ogden Crit I played the strategy right and came out of the last corner in third right on the wheel of who I thought was the best sprinter. I was right, but just not good enough to pass and was a close third.

Kim had another set back yesterday as he went back into A-Fib and was carido-converted today again,(shocked) and was off to California. He stayed in for 1 week, and was abit discouraged, but hopefully with the new meds he will stay in longer. There are other more invasive procedures they can do, but hopefully he will stay in. Betty and I will be home on Wed, and looking for some down time as we have been moving kids for months now. Hopefully Brady and I will get some pictures tomorrow and another up date to follow. Ride safe.

Doug

A never ending hope

Just imagine every day as the day that you might get a new bike. Sounds great doesn’t it. Now think of that feeling everyday for a month. We (meaning Doug, myself and Mindy) keep hoping that tomorrow will be the day that we can bring a old but rebuild new (not purple) bike back into the world. We have plans for the first ride, but it’s almost like a dream that won’t come true. I’m starting to wonder if it’s all been a dream. I can see it in my mind, so close but yet so far. The min I get the bike home I’ll post a picture of our big and some what new family bike.

Eugene TT

So I did my first TT yesterday. I have had some clip-on TT bars for almost a year with the thought of doing one, but never did, kind of sad. But I decided to clip them on and give it a try. The TT course is a 15 mile loop out on the country roads. There was a good headwind on the 2nd half of the course. I have heard many horror stories of people going out way to fast, only to die at the end, so I think I conserved a little too much. Also, towards the end my left leg started to cramp. But overall I think I did fine. I know I didn't win, far from it. I did the loop in 37 minutes, with an average speed of 24 mph. Hopefully this will help for our TTT at the end of the month. Ride on!

Reminder

Tanner and I hooked up with Tri-Geek AJ for some sweet single track in Corner Canyon rather than doing battle at RMR. It was a good reminder of why I love riding my bike. Great company, conditions and trails. I need to do this more often.

Soccer Dad

Now the snow isn't falling I have been on the bike a bit more. It's still cold, but at least no snow. We had a good group ride on sat (myself, Doug, and Russ) and then I was off to be a soccer dad. Noah is on a team that includes 4 2nd graders, 1 1st grader and Noah(K). His team is really good and great with Noah. Saturday the team wanted to let Noah play forward in hopes that he might score a goal and he DID!!! Yea, the score was already 8-0, but it was great. He went on to score one more goal and the team gave him the game ball for the week. He had a smile to light up the world. He missed a few other chances to score earlier in the game, but when he did all of the parents on our team went crazy. The parent on the other team even gave him a hand. He just never gave up. I was so happy for him. He came over and gave me five after he scored and told me he knew he was going to score.
I can't wait until he and I can ride like Tanner and Daren.
In other news...
Still no tandem and only 116 days to Lotoja.
Ride often

Sherwood

Goods times at Sherwood Hills yesterday. The course was VERY soft and muddy when we arrived at 10am. However, it dried out enough to be damp, but not muddy by the time we raced. However, it was really soft and felt like riding on a pillow most of the time. I keep looking to see if my tire was flat or something. Even though it was slow going, I really liked the course and the temperature was perfect. Much better than the heat when we've raced at Sherwood in July in past years.

Tanner was a solid 2nd but didn't feel great. He just couldn't get going but hung in there for a good finish. We was about 25 minutes better than last year. I think much of his speed increase is due to the weight savings from his recent hair cut. It was like upgrading to carbon wheels.

I felt a little better than at 5-mile pass and put in 4 solid laps. My lap times were within 35 seconds of each other. The result was being in last after the 1st lap (there were only 5 in our classes, but 5 good racers) and 2nd at the finish. Bob put the hurt on for 3 laps again, but blew a bit so I could catch him on the last lap again. This is the 3rd race in a row for this. However, I think as he gets more fit and we get to courses with more climbing, my days of catching him late in the race maybe over. The race ended up being a lot of fun and very close. All 5 of us were within sight of each other during the last lap and finished within 3 minutes.

It is always interesting to me how the various types of cycling can be so different. Mark Skarphol raced with us Saturday and he is a super fast roadie. In fact, the few times I've been in road races with him, I've not been in the same time zone. However, I was fortunate to get by him at the start of the last lap Saturday and stay away. If he ever races MTB more frequently and figures out the pacing and the technical stuff better, he'll smoke me on dirt as well. Cross is the same way. I can occasionally beat guys in cross that destroy me on the road. In the end, I'm glad there's disciplines in cycling that are more technical in nature to make up with my lack of power and speed.


Starting out on the 3rd lap.
anner heading through one of the snowbanks.

Tanner heading out for his last lap.

Before.


After.





The best news of the week was Kim's heart is back ticking normally and he was able to get out on the lunch ride. I saw him for a few minutes and I've never seen him happier on the bike. Hopefully, things will stay normal for a while.

Lastly, we got to talk with Erin today. It was a great Mother's Day gift. She's doing well in Uruguay and will be home in less than 3 months. Hard to believe. We're very excited to have her home soon.

Only in Eugene

Eugene is a very eclectic place. In the grocery store you might be standing next to one of the best surgeons in town, and he's wearing a tie-die and sandals with long hair in a ponytail. Living here you get to see some interesting things. I saw this the other day on my ride home and had to share. I guess this person doesn't like Bush to much. All I can say is, "Only in Eugene!"

What a sport?

Sometimes I wonder about this sport. Cycling is taking its anti-doping policy a little far. I was reading the velonews article about Alessandro Petacchi and that he was banned from Nov. 1 to Aug. 31, 2008, nullifying his Giro wins and any other wins during that time. Why? Because he had an elevated level of Salbutamol, an asthma inhaler. Petacchi took too many puffs and now is losing out because of it. I understand that the sport is trying to keep the riders clean, and sublatumal is a drug that helps riders, but the guy has asthma and he made a mistake. It seems pretty harsh to ban him for that.

5 Mile Pass

Another 5 mile pass MTB race is in the books. As always, it was hard and very dusty. Apparently, none of the recent rain or snow made it out to 5 mile. My bike was making very unhappy noices the last hour.

Tanner had a good day and battled a really strong junior racer to finish 2nd. Tanner is going great and enjoying riding and racing. I'm proud of him and we're just keeping it fun. He doesn't "train". He just rides everyday how he wants and races on Saturdays. The best part is we get to spend so much time together doing something we love. It reminds me of all the time my Dad and I spent on the golf course when I was Tanner's age.

I never felt good on the bike today, but battled hard. It was a fast group with Fred, Chris B, Glen, Dork Bike Brad, Bob, Doc Cross and others. Bob went out fast and Brad, Fred, Chris and Glen followed. I tried but just couldn't go with them. However, I kept at it the rest of the race and caught Bob late when he kind of blew. Sounds like Darrell and others had machanicals in the race that took them out. Too bad. It's great when we have good, competitive fields.

The good news is I was about the same time as last year with not feeling good. The bad news is last year I was a close 2nd and today I was 5th. However, I'd rather race fast guys and finish lower than win against weak competition. In addition, given my average aerobic engine, I gave up ambitions to win every race long ago. For me, it's all about giving my best effort, getting better each year and having fun. Every once in a while, I manage to pull off a win or high placing and I really appreciate it when I do. The rest of the time, I'm battling myself. I think that's why I like MTB and Cross so much. They are much more personal struggles than road racing.

Big ups to Doug today. He raced the Odgen Crit in the 55+. The 45's and 55's raced together and there are some very strong guys in these groups. Doug has only raced a few crits and never been able to hang on to a fast group. However, today he made it to the last lap with the main group. That's a big step and I'm proud of him. If you haven't done a race that requires maximum effort it is hard to explain the feeling.

Finally, congrats to my friend Reed Topham. Reed started riding MTB's a few years ago and did his first MTB race just one year ago as a 40+ sport. He's worked hard to get fit and improve as a racer and today finished 2nd in the 40+ sport class. Pretty cool.

Oh yea, the team is having a good week. Robert and Sohmy are both in the top 20 at Gila in New Mexico and Dave and Chrispy finished 2nd and 4th in Odgen today. TeamRico was 3rd at 5 mile today in the Pro class as they started the final lap before he flatted.

Racing Fun!!!!!!!

Daren cresting and ready to fly down.

T making the final crest. Great fun.

Daren killing the climb back!

Daren enjoying the cross winds trying to get back to the lead group. Good job Mr. Canyons.

Daren about to crest the steep part.

T enjoying his 1st climb of the day.

Chrispy leading out the 1,2's on the 1st climb

I enjoyed a great day of racing yesterday as I watched Daren and T suffer. It really is humbling to watch everyone working so hard. Even the pro 1,2's have the suffer face on. DH is the only one smiling, he always does. I rode up from Morgan to E. Canyon and back down after the race so I got a good work out. The wind up in that place is brutal! Even down hill it is hard. One part of me wanted to be in the cave but another part of me was quite happy to watch and enjoy. I guess I'm getting old. Here are some pictures of the event.

We have been riding hard and enjoying all my fellow riders. Sutt and Mind's tandem looks great after the paint job, gloss black. We are having a pro put it together so it should be done on Wed. So when you see the black streak go by you will know it was the Sutt's.

Brady sorry for the conflict. Oh well, there will always be another race, some time, maybe? There is always Lotoja to pull for, life doesn't get much better.

Russ really can ride. With his leg brace on he looks alittle out of place on a bike, but better there than a horse! I'm looking forward to some time on the rode with he and Sutt. Retired life is AOK!

We all love and miss big K with us, but have faith for the future. We think of you each time out. It isn't bad starting at the bottom and Chase lane though. Have a great week and ride safe.

Doug

Bitter/Sweet

By this time last year I had ridden in five different races, this year - one. Two of the Eugene races were moved this year to Sunday. I was pretty disappointed by that. Today was the Eugene Roubaix. It is a 52 mile road race that is 10 minutes from my house. Unfortunately, I was unable to race because our ward had it's temple trip in Portland. I was in charge of taking the youth to do baptisms for the dead. It was great for the youth and very enjoyable. But it still didn't make the fact that I was missing the only Eugene road race on a Saturday any easier. Driving home from Portland I saw about 30 bikes on top of cars, it was salt in the wound.

East Canyon

Another week, another couple of races. It's Saturday night and my legs are pretty worked. I mowed the lawn and did some yard work after the race today and I'm feeling it. The one benefit of the cold, wet spring is that I haven't had to do yard work. Unfortunately, I won't be able to delay it forever. Maybe I could hire Doug.

T and I both did RMR this week. There were big groups, we went fast, did lots of circles and finished in the pack of our respective groups. I actually tired in the sprint and still missed the top ten. Tanner is a little uncomfortable racing in fast in a big group, but is getting the hang of it. The highlight of RMR for me the last few weeks has been the ride over to RMR from work with Chris via Salt Air. It makes for a very good 2.5 hours of training.

Today was the East Canyon road race. It is one of the few true road races I do each year. I always struggle on the first climb, but I like the race anyway. I raced 45+ and Tanner did his first cat 5 race. Tanner did great for 45 miles and was with the lead group of about 12. However, he got gaped in the cross winds, chased hard and blew up about 10 miles out. He finished, but didn't look so good.

I managed to be the last guy dropped from the lead group on the opening climb. It is stupid to let happen, but I was giving it my all. I spent the next 2 hours chasing at first with 2 other guys and later about 10 or so more. I managed to get away with a couple guys on the climb out of Hennifer and held on to finish somewhere around 12th (I didn't stick around for results). The race was more like a MTB race because I was pretty much full gas the entire race. Good practice for next week and actually fun.

Doug was there giving support and took some pictures. It's always nice to see a friendly face when you are suffering. The team did well with Dave and Chris finishing 1-2 in the Pro 1-2 race. They did the same thing Wed at DMV and Chris won RMR Tues. The team is on a roll and riding together very well.

One other note, I was finally able to get some Easton AC90 Aero wheels a few weeks ago. I got to tell you, they rock. One of the best bike toys I've been able to secure. I can't wait to glue some knobbies on them for cross.

Bob, there were a bunch of MTB racers at East Canyon today. You should have been there. You're a climber.

Another Week

Another week has gone by with some good and bad. I was busy early in the week with meetings at work, but it mellowed out later. Tanner and I raced DMV on Wed in the cold. I haven't raced a DMV in a while due to conflicts on Weds. I know it's hard, but you kind of forget how hard. I suffered like a dog the first 15 minutes, but managed to hang on to the main chase group. I got a little better and gave KWilde a bit of a leadout for the sprint for 7th. He got it and I managed to hang on for 10th.

Tanner started at the back with a couple of other "C" riders and got gaped on the 2nd lap as we started down the hill. He rode the rest of the race alone getting within a few seconds of my group on the hill and then gaped again on the downhill. 130 pounds doesn't go great downhill into the wind. He finished about 40 seconds behind me and won the C's. I was proud of his effort and he never gave up. He'll be really good on the DMV course with some experience.

I did a good ride with Doug, Adam and Russ Saturday morning. I met them in Centerville and rode downwind to Roy. Not a bad way to ride. The new Easton wheels were flying and almost felt like cheating with a cross tail wind. In the afternoon, Tanner and I gave Alta one last shot on their last Saturday. It was surprisingly fun and strange to ski in 55 degree weather. It was also strange to basically be alone on the mountain at times. It was a good end to a very good ski year.

Skiing the crud.



T's self portrait.

Me and T suffering at DMV.





The bad news of the week was Kim's health report. His sobering news puts bike riding and other activities into perspective. Not being able to ride hard or race would be difficult to take. However, overall health and quality of life is more important. I'm sure Kim will tackle these challenges with the same tenacity he brings to everything. You are in our thoughts and prayers big guy.

61st!

Yes, I got 61st on my race yesterday, but I worked harder for it than any other race I have ever done. The weather was absolutely beautiful, 70's without a cloud in the sky. I drove out to Corvallis for the Kings Valley road race, which is a few minutes out of the city and surrounded by trees. It is a great course, hills and headwind. It just wasn't my day for racing. I didn't pre-register because Brooke had something that morning and I didn't know if we could get a babysitter, but last year I showed up and was able register. This year I got there and it was full! It had a 75 person limit and was full. I drove all the way up there and was pretty disappointed. I asked someone if I could ride with the 3's and they didn't know. I asked around until finally someone said, "fine, but go quick." I road down and quickly got in with the 3's. My first race with the three's.

The course is 3 laps for a total of 54 miles. I didn't get much chance to warm-up and up the first hill my chain pops off. The guy behind me pushed me for a minute while I kept spinning until my chain came on. 3/4 into the first lap I got a flat! I change the tire quickly and took off to try and catch up. My friend McKenzie, who kicked my butt last year in the 4's until he upgraded, was waiting for me. He had to go to the bathroom and wanted a challenge. He is pretty impressive. We took off, with me pulling the hills and him pulling the flats. I would break him every once in a while, but he pulled 2/3 the time. I was barely hanging on.

We tried to catch them for a lap and a half, around 25 miles, but were never able to catch them. We came within 30 yards on a climb, but were so tired on the downward they got 100 yards away. I road as hard as I ever did to catch them, but we were unable to get back on. So with 1/2 a lap to go we called it good, and I finished an amazing 61st! Not bad for my first race as a 3. I don't think I will upgrade any time soon.

Cholla

Doug, Tanner and I made the quick trip to St. George for the Cholla Challenge in Hurricane. Last year was hot and miserable but this year the weather was ideal, mid 70's and little wind. They changed the course this year to run the opposite direction from the past and added a new sandy, soft section. The changes turned a pretty good course into kind of a mess. It had no real flow and a bunch of slow slogs through sand and gravel. However, other than the course it was a good race and a nice time in the warm sun.

Tanner continued his solid racing and remarkable improvement. He won the 16 - 18 Expert against some good competition. He beat the kid who has dominated their age group the last few years for the first time. When Tanner passed him on the last climb, he was more than a bit surprised and couldn't respond. Tanner rode in for a comfortable win. It's really amazing to see Tanner's improvement over the last year and I'm very proud. It's going to be a lot of fun watching him this year.

Doug raced in the 57+ and was much more competitive to finish 4th. He's getting the hang of riding a mountain bike and for the first time really felt like he was racing. He's also made dramatic improvements and I'm glad he's continued to give it a go.

I had a solid race to finish 2nd in the 40+ Expert. I had a good start and led for a while but fell to 4th by the end of the first of three laps. However, the top 4 were all within a minute of each other and I could see everyone so I remained motivated. I got by Brad Keyes (only because he was on a single speed on a course that's impossible to gear for) mid lap and Bob near the end of the lap. I could see Fred Porter up a head and slowly closed to within about 15 seconds half way through the last lap. I thought I was going to catch him, but he saw me and increased the gap on the last climb. At that point, I knew I wasn't going to catch him and lost motivation the last couple of miles to finish a little over a minute back.

I was pretty happy with my fitness and my ability to ride at or above threshold the entire race. However, I didn't have any top end to pull back Brad on the last lap. It was fun to be in the mix and have a good result. I have to enjoy these races before we get to the climbing courses and I really suffer.

The team had a good day overall with Michelle dominating the women's expert and Rico taking 5th in the pro. Also, Dave won the first stage in the Triple Valley Stage Race in a sprint finish after Chrispy was in a two man break for 60 miles.

All in all, a very good trip with good company.

Jersey update

We got the final design approved and ready to roll. We got all the orders submitted today, so it is really going to happen. I'm so happy with the out come and everyone is really excited. The ladies are really coming through and should be very impressive together in the Little Red Riding Hood. Adam and Mindi's new (old part of the family) tandem has been stripped with a little help from the local bike shop, and I'm taking it to the paint shop today. Adam just couldn't deal with a purple Trek. It will now be a black frame with Specialized stickers. It will be Specialized only tandem. We are going to have to get Russ to use his mountain bike to rope those little doggies. As long as I'm along in Lotoja its not Russ we are worried about holding us back. Daren, T and I are going down South to race in the dirt. It should be fun, if racing at max heart rate for two hours is fun. Good company and warmer temps. I'm so sick of cold. I'm mowing my lawn in the snow yesterday, trying to ignore my frosty fingers.

Ride safe, Doug

Down But Not Out

I should be back in action in a few weeks. So not to crush everyones hopes for a faster LOTOJA. You will have to spend another year waiting for me. Oh, wait you guys didn't do that anyway last year, so it shouldn't be much different. Race on boys! Just kidding, once I can I will get my butt in gear so you guys don't have to wait. Peace out.

"I'm out!" for a little bit anyway.

Due to a small horse riding accident, I am temporarily out of commission on the bike. I have a 2nd degree tear in my MCL. No surgery required, just time and loving care. It has been a week and I am officially going crazy. FYI, "SPECIAL K" rode like 8-10 miles on Saturday. Said he had no numbing, but he can tell he is way out of shape. That's all for now, peace out.

Hell of the North

Tanner and I braved the wind and cold, but no rain, Saturday at the Hell of the North race. It is a 5 mile rectangle with one of the long sides of the rectangle on dirt. It was hard. Somehow I decided racing 35+ with Steve and Mitch would be a good Idea. It was for about half the race.

Mitch and The Hornet went off in the first minute and built a solid early lead. All Steve and I had to do was cover the attacks. All was good and the group had dwindled to 9 chasers until the 4th lap when my legs decided to stop working and I let a small gap open on the dirt. Game over. I almost got back on with the Hornet and his teammate after they flatted and I hitched a ride. However, I couldn't hold them so I rode the last 3 laps alone to finish 11th. I still struggle to respond to all the accelerations of road racing. I'm doing OK then all the sudden the lights go out and I'm done. I do much better with the steady efforts of MTB and Cross. I guess that's why road racing is just training for me. I still had fun and got to mix it up with some fast guys. Mitch and Steve battled to the end and finished 6th and 8th I think.

Tanner had a much better time of it. He and 2 other strong juniors, Ski Utah teammates, rode together for the entire race. They attacked Tanner a few times, but decided to wait until the end. Tanner was smart and didn't go the front and just followed. The attack of the strongest kid , Chase Pinkham, shed his teammate on the last dirt section and he and Tanner sprinted for the win. Chase beat him by a couple of bike lengths, but Tanner did well. Chase is a solid cat 3 and a very strong finisher. It was good to see Tanner do well in his first road race. He's going to race cat 5's at East Canyon and should do really well.

Kevin Wilde on our team did very well in his first road race to solo to a 2nd place finish in the 5's. Good job Kev.



My last lap was pretty painful and lonely.

Mitch and the Hornet on front

Me before the lights went out.

Tanner and his friends.

T coming into the finish.

The tune up, and the weather

Well it's been 5 months since I rode something other than a stationary or spin bike...and it looks like I have to wait a few more days. I took my bike in for a tune up on Tuesday, got it back yesterday, and was hoping to ride that afternoon, since we had no wind and it was above 35 degrees: two meteorological events that rarely coincide in Laramie, even in the summer. By the time I got home that afternoon, to my chagrin, it was snowing, and it is still snowing today.
So, I'm off to the gym to have my time with the spin bike once again....oh well, I guess I can hope for next week...or next month.

gc connection jersey

let me know what you think. Suggestions welcome.

Bubba

Trip to Utah

I had a great trip to Utah, but was a little bummed that I didn't get to race with everyone on Saturday. It was nice to get some rides in with Doug, the man can still move. I even saw A.T. before he shaved, looks better with the goatie. I ended up playing more basketball than riding. Thursday & Friday we had a double header, then Saturday we played for 3rd place. We would have won, but the first game we only had 4 guys (but still only lost by 5). The team we lost too ended up winning.

I did manage to discover a great pre-ride warm-up - Guitar Hero. It is pretty fun! Doug wasn't much into it, but it got me pumped up before our ride. Doug and I had a run in with a student driver on South Weber Highway. He pulled out in front of us and I had to slow down from 24-25 mph to 18 so we wouldn't run into him. He finally pulled over to the center so we, yes bike riders, could go by him. The funny thing is the speed limit was 35 mph. So Doug and I road in front of him for a few miles, until he got enough courage to speed up. I got a good laugh out of it.

Circles in the cold

Well, winter doesn't want to give up just yet and I'm getting tired of riding in the cold. I'm grateful for the snow pack and the water we'll have this summer. However, a little spring would be nice.

I raced RMR in the oval last night and actually had fun. As always, it was fast and hard. My garmin recorded 49 laps in 36 minutes. Pretty much full gas all but a few laps. I got in one move that had a chance, but only lasted a couple of laps. As I was trying to recover, the winning break went. I pulled the chase a couple of times and just about dropped myself. Nothing like blowing up and watching about 50 guys roll by one at a time praying that there's at least one more coming to get onto. I did manage to get back on and recovered enough to battle for position at the end only to finish my traditional 2oth or so.

T and I are racing Hell of the North Saturday. If it doesn't rain, should be a good time. Steve Warsocki convinced me that he and I should race in the 35+ so we can race with Mitch. I don't think the 45's are any slower, so it shouldn't be a big deal. I can struggle to hang on in either group. (Bob, I'm with you buddy!) With any luck, I can help get Steve or Mitch in a good position.