SLACKER

Well, it has been awhile. Maybe I’ll write more often. Maybe I’ll write about Wall-E and Politics still. Maybe I’ll write about races.

I did get some new tires, Conti Vertical Pros (or something like that). They seem pretty sweet, especially on tight corners, hook up and give some much needed confidence. Rode them twice and will race them on Saturday. Maybe a full report on the tires later.

OK, Wall-e; it’s a movie about mega corporation and lazy ass Americans. Everyone communicates through video screens, lives in space, doesn’t walk/exercise or even look at each other. Strange, but since seeing the movie I got a blackberry and now it is even more striking. It is really nice to actually talk to people. Today, through various electronic forms of communication I was talking to three people at work not getting anything solved. Picked up the phone (it was a day off so I couldn’t just walk over and talk to them face to face) and figured out the problems. The moral (and not very hidden) of Wall-e is that our culture is becoming very unaware of its own actions/inactions and doesn’t know how to communicate without electronic intervention (this blog for example).

Lay down the drugs kids. Try picking up the phone and talking to someone. Comments on todays blog will only be taken in person or via phone. Give me a call 303 357 0872.

Kids

I’ve got three topics I want to blog about, but who knows what we’ll get covered before I get bored. Parenting, Wall-E the movie, and politics. Somehow they are all interrelated to me right now, but here goes nothing.

For those of you who know Seamus this may not come as a surprise, but he is not a very athletic kid. The truth is he has my genetic make-up, not the athletic skills of his mother’s family. He’s kind of slow, not the most coordinated and at this point in his life not overly interested in sports. Sure I ride and race bikes all the time, but the honest truth is I’m not very athletic either. Welcome to the reality that nature plays a huge part in ones life Seamus.

So anyway the other day at the summer camp he is going to they had the Olympics. Not surprising Seamus didn’t do well compared to other kids, someone called him a loser and last night he was saying “I’m going to Loserville tomorrow”. As a parent this is a pretty tough thing to hear and try to tell a 7 year old he is not a loser just because of where he finished in a race. I’m not going to lie to him either and say it doesn’t matter, or we’re all winners (I hate teams/organizations where everyone is a winner/MVP), but I also don’t want my son thinking he is a loser. At 7 my son will go to a zoo and sketch animals in a notebook, capturing details most people would miss. He spends hours building and creating items he’s seen at museums or read about and has now started cooking dinners. Trying to draw a connection between these activities and not being a loser is nearly impossible in the mind of a 7 year old.

I also tried to explain that while I don’t win bike races and frequently finish near the back I don’t consider myself a loser, nor do most of the people I race against. At the last race I did the first person to come up to me was the winner of the race, asking me how I felt, how I did etc. He came up to me before Ade and Seamus. I tried to tell Seamus that a true winner doesn’t make fun of anybody who competes, anybody who is trying as really anybody but the winner is a loser.

Put Seamus in a cook-off against those kids he’ll add some cumin, cayenne pepper and a little cilantro and out-cook most of those kid’s mothers. Does that make them losers? Well no it just means they have a different area of talent.

Signing up to be a parent is tough. Dealing with my kid thinking he is a loser sucks, just because he runs a little slower. Some of the happiest memories I’ll ever have will be of Seamus on a chair adding spices to a meal and testing the flavor, sticking his big toes and thumbs up when the flavor is just right, giving the meal four thumbs up. Now I just need to figure out how to convince Seamus that his cooking makes him a winner.

Road Trip

Man I’ve been in hiding for a little bit. Took off on a family vacation on the 29th with the first stop a race in Winter Park. I’m not going to say the race went bad, but you can google results if you want and understand why there is no need for a race report.

Hoped in the car right after and headed to Steamboat for two days. Great weather a cool hike to Fish Creek Falls, way to much good food and relaxing. Got in the car Tuesday morning to head to SLC. Got to town in late afternoon and punched out a 2:00 ride up Mill Creek Canyon. This is one of the best rides around, 10 miles of climbing on a great road, minimal traffic and a sweet downhill as a reward. Special props on Mill Creek, I got married at a place about ½ way up 11 years ago so I always like the ride. Drank some drinks back at the family’s house after and was up at 6:00 riding Mill Creek again.

Family reunion started the next day at Snowbird, calling for more hours on the bike this time all dirt and hard rides. The big news though; riding the mechanical bull at Snowbird. PBR here I come. That big bull has nothing on this city boy.

After 10 days out of work I’m back to the real world and ready for more time off. Damn, maybe I should train so I don’t have to be embarrassed by my results.

Gas

I've been thinking a lot about gas (and of course the price). Today the formerly elusive $50 tank hit me. I remember in 2000 when I had my first $25 fill-up, just after buying a new car (with a much larger tank than the old) and freaking out. Now a $30 fill-up would be nice.

I'm pretty lucky as we clearly don't fill-up as much as many people. During the week I ride to work (or sometimes in the morning carpool in with Ade) but nearly always ride home. Sure there are those days I have to drive, or want to drive (like to go mountain biking before/after work), but those are about once every 2-3 weeks. But still our primary car gets filled-up about every 10-14 days and the cost sucks.

When I've been thinking about gas, I start to blame us, collectively; the U.S. In 2001 my company looked into "outsourcing" jobs to India, as did many others. We ended up with our own staff in Bangkok, but the fact is big businesses desire to cut labor costs has come back to bite us again. India (and other places, China, Thailand etc.) have had huge economic influxes; creating a middle class that can afford cars and therefore needs gas. This money flowing into developing nations in many cases is the direct result of job cuts in the U.S. and causes a double economic problem in the U.S., job loss and now increased gas/food/materials prices because of the supply and demand of oil/gas.

I've had the opportunity and privilege to work with many people in India over the past three years and know that the jobs they have are great for the individuals and extended families. I would never dismiss or do away with the benefits of a global economy as the benefits out-weigh the negatives (gas prices, employment concerns) in my mind. I do think that big business does need to look beyond the short term cost savings (labor) and look at long term cost implications (gas prices) before making moves. We do live in a global economy and a choice here affects the world economy on many levels.

So for now I'll keep riding my bike to work (as many friends and co-workers in India do) to help reduce the demand for gas.

Rock Racing

No, not the team (though those kits are by far the best) I'm talking Rock and Roll and racing. The first race of the Winter Park series was on Saturday, the local hill climb, 5.5 miles from the bast to the top of Mary Jane - 9,000 feet to 11,000+ feet all on service road, parts of it pretty steep.

We went off with 21+ guys (there were 21 finishers and at least one DNF). Per the script Kelly took off at the start, only this year he only finished 4th (unlike last year where he won damn near everything). I settled in towards the middle and was feeling good. Passed some people, got passed, passed some people, got passed but overall stayed pretty good position. Coming to the top I knew I was having (for me) a good day...I could see three guys within striking distance and wanted to make the effort to pass. I made it past one with about 3/4 mile to go and had two more in my sights when I was done. The guy I passed caught me and the other two pulled away. Finished in 14th less than a minute out of 11th and less than 2 minutes out of a top 10. All in all I was happy, feeling like I'm making progress and can pull out a "competative top 10" this year (versus a top 10 against a small/weak field).

Rode for another hour after the race with Kelly, some dirt/mud mostly road. After headed back to Denver for some Rock...The Drive by Truckers and some PBR...nothing like finishing off a day with load rock and roll live. First we saw a local band The Knew (drummer for the band works for me). They were solid and fun, drew a good crowd and played at a place with $2 PBR. Headed over to the main stage to catch DBT. I've never seen them live and gotta say it was fun. Southern Rock, the band drinking Jack on stage, chain smoking and dropping F Bombs; rock and roll the way it was suppose to be. After seeing DBT live I can only say I like them more

Remember the Ride

As a cyclist I've ridden close to, if not more then,100,000 miles. I've been on thousands of rides and ridden with hundreds (or more) of people. Most of my rides have been focused on racing or training for racing. Yet, being very honest there are very few races or rides I remember. Sure I can look back in training logs and see where I rode, how far and with who; but what rides do I remember?

The rides I remember are the unexpected rides with friends, people who don't race, people who I slow down to ride with. I've spent a lot of time riding over nearly 25 years (I got addicted to this sport young) and over that time there are only a few rides I really remember. A cold ride in the fall, probably in 83 with my dad to Morrison. At the time it seemed epic, now just an ordinary ride. But I remember it was cold, windy and the hill on Old Kipling was huge.

I also remember a ride on Easter of 85, with an old friend, a friend of my parents, who took me out to Cherry Creek after a neighborhood Easter brunch. I found out today he has Leukemia, and that ride and many others with him stick out in my mind. At 14 going on a ride with a family friend was fun. Over the years I'd unexpectedly bump into him and ride. Always I'd slow down. Always he'd tell me to go ahead and do my "planned ride". But always I'd slow down and ride. Somewhere along the way this person stopped being my parents friend and became mine. He gave me a job when it was needed (more than once), he (and his wife) bought Ade and I a great wedding present, they hosted a wedding party for us in Denver after being married in SLC because not everyone from Denver could make it, they bought us a present (I still know exactly what it was) when Seamus was born. The rides didn't make us friends, but I'll always remember laps in Washington Park, talking, enjoying a slower pace, enjoying riding with a friend, enjoying riding.

Riding a bike has always been part of me, but now I look back and wonder why? Was it because so many people I knew rode and enjoyed it? Was it because of the friendships? Was it because people like this rode and were/are important in other parts of my life. Where does the bike riding end and life begin?

All I know was upon hearing he had leukemia I was happy. Happy for every unexpected ride with him. Happy for always knowing riding with a friend was more important than the plan. Happy to remember all his bikes (a black Eddy, a titanium Sampson) and his yellow Skid Lid. Happy for showing me (and many others) how to make the world a better place through activism and day to day actions. Happy for my "uncle".

Disease may have him now, but I'll never forget any of the rides with him.

Growing

I planted a vegtable garden earlier this year. There were a couple of reasons I decided to try, one was the environmental benefit of growing my own organic food, locally. The average fruit or vegtable consumed in the US travels 1500 miles. That is a lot of carbon put off into the environment. The second reason was growing a garden seemed like a fun little project. If it works fresh tomatoes, lettuce etc. any night of the week.

Some of the food I planted had already been started; tomatoes and peppers; everything else was from seed; carrot ts,broccoli, squash, pumpkin (for carving in the fall), lettuce, onions and mint. Today we were checking out the garden and surprisingly things are actually growing. Small tomatoes are forming, mini-peppers are appearing and the lettuce, squash, broccoli and carrots are taking off. I guess now it is a sit and wait time with the garden. Hope for some rain (and sprinkler water), no hail, good sunlight, no rabbits or other pests and in a few weeks I can pick a salad 10 minutes before eating.

It seems so simple, plant some seeds and a few months later you have food. But there is a lot of luck in growing food too. We've had a few hard and heavy rain storms over the past few weeks. Luckily no hail at this point. You can plan, plant, organize and prepare for the garden, a bike race, protecting the environment or whatever you wish, but without a little luck the hard work isn't going to matter.

But it is the challenges, the things that don't work that are fun and cause personal growth. My onions really aren't doing anything. Not sure why. Maybe they don't have enough water, maybe not enough sun, maybe the soil in the far corner of the garden isn't very good. It is just like racing, why haven't I been fast, will training/riding a different way help or hurt, have I hit my limit or can I go further. For riding I can try switching the plan mid-season (as I just have done) and check the results. The onions may have to wait until next year. But taking what I have now and keeping track of it and analysing it will let me change and improve going forward. Because the onions don't grow this year I'll learn and grow for next year.

Why?

Sometimes you have to ask why? Why do I get up at strange hours to ride my bike? Why do I carry wet wipes in my backpack? Do they really help reduce the sweat smell after riding in to work? Why do I update my blog? Why are most of my blogs about riding? Why do I care about global warming and the environment? Why do I think Hillary has handled her defeat like a 2 year old?

Sometimes you have to answer the why's as well. I love riding, and know early is the time to ride. Don't really care much if I smell after riding, but I do think the wet wipes help. The blog, I don't know on that. The environment, well because we do have an impact and even little changes can make a difference ( a quick example, shipping of goods. The heavier the shipment the more fuel it takes to ship; therefore the more carbon released. Consider buying goods that have taken this into account. One of my new favorite brands of drinks is Honest Tea, great tasting, all organic (less methane and carbon in growing the ingredients) and shipped in lighter weight easily recyclable plastic bottles. Check them out at www.honesttea.com)so look for companies making the small changes.

Why do I think Hillary is acting like a 2 year old, well she lost. Maybe she has more popular votes, maybe not (caucus states are impossible to accurately count, Michigan was a debacle)but either way she doesn't have the delegates. Admit defeat, step aside and work to help Obama win. We don't need more time in a war that was suppose to protect us from weapons of mass destruction that didn't exist.

I strongly supported Hillary until last night. I voted for Nader in 2000, maybe I will again.

City Park

I raced yesterday at the closest race of the year (well tied for since I raced there earlier), the famed City Park Crit. This race has been held at City Park in Denver for 37 years, gotta be one of the longest running races in the country. I don't hit up road races much, and crits (especially dead flat ones) are even more rare; however, I couldn't pass up the race this year.

The course is 5 blocks from where I grew up (and my parents still live) and a 15 minute ride from the house. And for whatever reason this season I've been riding a lot of miles at City Park. It isn't the greastest place to put in laps, but it works. So Sunday morning I got ready and rode over to the race. Left the house 70 minutes before the start which is super nice. We had a huge field of 92 racers on a tight, technical and fast course. For a guy who doesn't spend a lot of time on crit courses this was not ideal, but I wanted a hard effort so got ready to start.

From the gun the race was fast, single file most of the time. Every time I looked at my computer I saw 26+mph, sections of the park I ride at 22-23 were being ridden at 30 in the race. Given my technical skills on the road I hung towards the back and clawed my way on to the field every time someone got dropped. I kept expecting the pace to slow, as usually after 5-10 minutes of racing the pace slows. Yesterday though there was no slowing down, just a fast course all day. Hanging in the pack was fun though and the speed on the road can't be matched. I hung in till the last lap when I took it easy through the last couple of corners, no reason to crash going for 30th. Ended up 49th, middle of the pack (kinda, since only 52 finished without being lapped). Through the race riders were falling off by ones and twos until just over half the field finished.

After the race I saw we averaged 26.3 mph for 45 minutes, I guess I got the hard work in I wanted.

I'd vote for a cyclist any day

To build on the last post, we often vote for a person/people with charm, charisma, money, and a personality that is interesting in two minute sound bites. But do those characteristics really prove a person is capable of leading? Sometimes yes; sometimes no. In my mind, disagree if you like, there are two types of leaders: those who lead by inspiring; those who lead by example.

I think those who lead by inspiring, someone like Obama, have charm, charisma, and an interesting two minute personality. This is not to say Obama doesn't have more substance; just that given what we know of him (a speech at the 2004 convention as a rookie senate candidate and this campaign) it really is a two minute sound bite.

Hillary (and McCain and Dodd for that matter) have a little more history and move from the sound bite candidate to leading by example a little more with each person. So what does this have to do with voting for a cyclist? Well there really are no flash in the pan, sound bite cyclists. It takes years of training, suffering, work, failure and training to reach the highest levels. Each racing cyclist has a different highest level. I will never be a pro or even a semi-pro, with some luck and a lot of hard work maybe a middle of the pack expert. Others will be a sport rider for ever, others a top level pro. What I know though is at any of these levels, if a person has worked to reach their potential as a cyclist they know how to work hard, lead by example, dedicate themselves to a cause they believe in.

Riding four hours in a Colorado winter, four hours in 100 degree heat, racing full out for 2+ hours isn't easy. Cyclists know (to quote Phil Levine) What Work Is.

Each time I go out on the bike I feel refreshed, I solve problems, I work hard and dedicate myself for the pure enjoyment of riding. Cycling is to hard to particpate in for only the money and fame (even if you are Lance), I just wish politics had that same problem.

Today was Work

Most times, for me, riding the bike isn't work. Today it was. Just a short ride home, an easy spin, not hard riding, not training. Using the bike for a very utilitarian purpose was all, but the entire ride was work.

It could have been the cold, wet weather; it could have been being tired after some fun, fast riding on the weekend; it could have been work actually carried over onto the bike; it could have been music I listened to during the day; it could have been articles I read today. I'm not sure but it was work.

I bought the new James McMurtry album, Just Us Kids, today. JM is a working man. A singer/songwriter who writes from the heart, from the earth. To paraphrase he's not an overly friendly outgoing guy and there isn't a lot of love in his life. But the stores he tells are real and make you think about how life isn't as easy as we might like. So anyway I bought the album and was listening all day at work (five listens already) and checked out his website. I found a couple articles JM wrote on the election process. One of the articles really got to me (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-mcmurty/obama-euphoria_b_90724.html) not because of his choice to vote for Hillary, but for his take on Obama and Hillary.

I don't care what either candidate would do in the event of an emergency phone call in the White House at 3 a.m. They might do right, they might do wrong. No head of state can keep his or her population safe, if they could, there'd be no bus bombings in Israel. I'm concerned with the average. Which one of them is going to make the right decision, on a full range of issues, most of the time? Which one of them is better at making deals, which one of them is going to work harder?

I've stayed away from overt politics, but it is getting to a point where each of us must voice our thoughts. I've supported Hillary for awhile (since Chris Dodd dropped out) and I've decided I don't give a shit about pledged delegates or who has won what state. I care about "the average". I care about who can do the best for me, for Ade, for you, and mostly for Seamus. The Democrats have built a process with "super delegates" to help decide. Really this is no different than the Electoral College. Give the people some voice, but allow an educated/elite few power to override fools. As JM said, "I kept remembering a quote, "Euphoria spreads across the face of our nation like the broad grin of an idiot." well I want to make sure the super delegates stem the tide of euphoria with Obama and stop the idiots votes from counting.

This all was surfacing on the ride home, no wonder it was work today. But riding the bike is like that sometime. Some days the bike is just average, it's about taking care of getting home from work; it's about saving a few bucks on gas; it's about knowing your transportation is reliable and will get you to and from where you need to go; it's about knowing how to fix the problem with your transportation, not needing to take it to someone else to fix the problem; it's about the utilitarian purposes of the bike. Today the bike was like politics. I didn't want or need the flashy, expensive bike that people look at; ask questions about; are impressed with; I need the bike for the simple average purposes. Was I glad to have a nice bike to do the average with? Hell yes, the bike was the super delegate, doing it's job to take care of the average and to make sure we don't make another huge mistake.

Think about why you support your candidate. If it is more than hype, great stay with it. If not think about taking care of the day to day, making sure we are looking at issues and taking care of today and tomorrow. If after thinking about it your mind has changed from February (or whenever your primary was) let the super delegates know so they can vote accordingly.

And should our next president be awaken at 3:00am because of an emergancy I hope they have James McMurtry's number at hand. I have a feeling he has made a few hard life choices at 3:00am and lives up to them every day. I just hope our next president can do the same.

Daddy's an Idiot

Daddy's an Idiot,Daddy's an Idiot,Daddy's an Idiot,Daddy's an Idiot. No better way to walk into the house than to have your six your old screaming that, to bad in this case it was true. Got up this morning before Seamus was awake, left the house to ride the mountain bike. Stop, get coffee, drive, pull into the parking lot, pull out bag, grab jersey, hat helmet, shorts, shoes. Oh no we have a problem here. Left shoe, good. Right shoe, shit! Old road shoe. Ok maybe this can still work, right? At least I have a left and right shoe. Nope, this won't work. Remember idiot you switched all pedals this winter that shoe is at least three years old. It will fit an old bike but not this one.

Pack every up and drive home. Walk in, Ade and Seamus still in PJ's wondering what I'm doing home. Well, daddy's an idiot.

Colorado

Why has Colorado, or at least the front range, decided to part with the rest of the nation when it comes to bike to work day? Most (if not all) of the rest of the country held bike to work day last week. Not here in good old Colorado, ours is June 25, a full six weeks later.

Sure there is the weather excuse (it can, and does, snow in May) but that is lame since we have afternoon thunderstorms all June. I guess we just want to be different. Why do I bring this up? Well for a hippie bike rider, bike to work day is a big event. You get praised (once a year) for riding your bike and maybe (if you are lucky) you can get a few other people to ride and help the environment.

This year I am coordinating BTWD at my work and helping promote multiple events in the neighborhood. Why put this much time into BTWD when chances are it won't create more commuters? I really don't know, but if we reduce our collective carbon footprint one day by getting people to ride or get one more regular commuter out of the work than my hippie side is happy. No need to mention the fact I like riding my bike (ok love would be more accurate) and want to have other people participate and enjoy the benefits of riding.

If you're in Denver check out the team website www.racinggreenmtb.com in the next few days for details on our events. One will be June 15, a planning session and Q&A on how and why to take part in BTWD and the second event will be on June 25, BTWD, with a guided ride to downtown from Stapleton and Happy Hour for BTWD participants at SouthEnders.

15th

That's where I finished up on Saturday, not a good result at all. After every race there is a period of evaluation. What did I do good (finished, consistent), what did I do bad (slow start, cramping) what can I improve (general speed, ability to stick with leaders early). Based on those evaluations, as a racer, you make choices. I've been using a coach for almost a year again. Following the program and making strides in some fitness area, but overall not a huge gain when it comes to speed in racing.

This is not to say the program doesn't work, just to say I need to get faster and the program is more about metered changes. The two people I know who have had the best results the past two seasons (and in reality great results on an very large scale basis) don't use coaches, don't use power meters, don't use heart rate monitors, hell they don't even have computers on their bikes. One of these two took the overall last year at WP in expert with 3 or 4 wins, the other has won 4 race as a cat 3 this year (including 2 in a row). What does this mean? Not sure, but they both go out and ride on feel. Ride hard and fast if that is how they feel. Slow and steady if that is how they feel. Drink a 6 pack if that is how they feel. Enjoy riding and racing, cause that is how they feel.

I got rid of my coach yesterday. Rode for 2 hours, mostly hard. Rode for 2 hours today, every time I saw another rider, no matter where or their skill level, I pegged it to catch them. I'm giving this ride by feel a try for a period. Train hard, train easy? No, just ride how I feel. Tomorrow I'm going out in the morning. It may be big ring the entire time, may be small ring, probably around 2 hours before work. But if I don't feel like it I'll take it easy and just ride to work. I can always ride hard another day.

A Real Race

Battle the Bear, my least favorite race of the year. Why? Well the course is fairly flat (though a new climb this year made for a more interesting course), no trees and somehow always hot. The good news about the race is that it is nearly in Denver, only about 20 minutes from home so BTB always is on the calendar.

Thus far this season, training or racing I havdn't ridden in any weather with temps above the mid-60's; however, all week prior the weather promised high 70's+ for the race. With no hot miles, no tan and a course that has no shade and radiates heat I was ready for BTB. They started nearly all the Experts at one time so there was no telling who I was actually racing, but the pace seemed high so I let myself fall back and ride my own temp. For the first two laps I saw very few people, nobody passed me and I didn't really pass until the end of the second lap. On the third lap the heat and distance started to show and people begin to appear in front of me. I passed 4-5 people prior to the climb. On the bottom of the climb I saw Rob 200 meters in front and yelled at him. See we had a 6 pack on the line so I figured harassment might help. "Hey Rob you want that beer pretty bad?" He looked back and kept pedaling, passed two guys and looked strong. I kept my pace and passed the same two guys, Rob was still close. As we neared the 2nd to last rise Rob was within 50 meters and I thought I'd grab him. We rolled along very close, passing one more person. On the last rise Hank (from Nathrop) and a teammate of his were in front of Rob and I. Rob passed at the top of the last climb and took off. I cramped at the top of the climb and couldn't pass. Trying to stay up with those three for the last mile or so was hard, and no distance was made up or lost after the downhill from the last climb.

Tally for the race: 2:15 minutes; 3 laps all at 45 minutes even; 4 water bottles; 4 gels, cramps at the end; lost 6 pack to Rob. Now I just need to find out where I finished.

Racing (Kinda0

I was leaving the office yesterday to ride home, right as I was getting on the bike in front of the office a guy I work with who lives a block from me was walking out of the office. He offered a 6 pack to the winner, I took him up on the bet. It's just over 7 miles straight home, take into account walking to a parking lot, lights etc. and my ability to always see a green light (or maybe I just don't understand how lights work) it was an easy race.

About 20 minutes later I was on the phone...tonight I have beer. Another benefit of commuting by bike.

My Mind

I've had a lot going on recently, causing my mind to jump, wander and forget. I put together a community fun ride for my team. Time was spent figuring out routes, putting together information on bike safety, bike riding tips for commuting and (cause I'm a hippy) how riding the bike and other simple changes can lessen environmental impact. Add to that working with my sponsors on the ride (helping to prompt them), getting people to help (huge thanks to those that did) and getting prizes to people who showed up (and yes, some actually did) I spent most of my free time for three weeks on the ride.

Oh yea, did I mention I was still training 12+ hours a week. I also added some time to that 12 hours by making an effort to actually ride the mountain bike on a mountain since in the first race I sucked, due in large part to no (ok three) mountain bike rides since September of 2007. Hopefully the riding in the dirt helps, though this morning I stacked it up good, going through a section with a 1.5 then 3 foot drop in(s) I decided to crash off the side of the trail, down an embankment about 10 feet. The rear wheel somehow came out of the bike, der hanger bent, knee swollen and bruised and in general sore. The good news is tomorrow is a road ride, the bad news is 4:30 am wake up call if I want to get in my miles. Sly Fox is giving DH lessons now, I think I'll sign up when I'm in SLC in July. I can't think of a better way to spend a day then riding trails with Sly Fox.

Oh yea, did I mention work? Well I can't say very much, mostly I avoid work on the blog. Right now though there is a lot going on...all I can say here is glad I'm only being requested to provide information cause dealing with lawyers all day is a pain.

Oh yea, did I mention I got lucky? No, not that way (ok kinda), yesterday was Mother's Day and I'm lucky cause my wife (ade) and mother to my son (again ade) is great. The community ride, it was on Mother's day...she went out, rode the course, helped me put together stuff, watched our son, and was great about it all. Another bike ride on Mother's Day and she had fun. I've been married 10+ years and a father 6+ years and am lucky every day that I have a wife (and more importantly a friend) who supports me and lets me have my passions too. Not sure what having a family means to you, but to me a wife who is there to help me and support me and let me have my own passions and times is great. Thanks Ade.

Nathrop

I'm not going to say much about the race in Nathrop today other than sand and hard. It was my first mountain bike race of the year and I feel it now. Results will come later, mostly because the only thing I know is I finished and beat Hank from RMR. Don't know Hank at all and the only reason I know I beat him is because for 4 laps we were close at the start/finish and I heard people cheering for him.

Hank, if you're out there good race, had I a literal minute to spare I would have talked with you. However, the reality is I never even stopped after the race. I crossed the finish line, filled a bottle with water and hammered back to the car. Why? well somethings are more important than bike races and today my older sister (finally) graduated from college. So what does this have to do with racing? Well what was going to be a relaxing weekend with the family turned into a 8 hour speed run for a race. I left Denver at 8:30, hit Nathrop in time to register at 11, lined up at 12:06, finished at 2:30, got to the car at 2:43, was on the road by 2:50, home by 5:10 and at my sisters graduation 1/2 way across town at 6. She was thinking I was still going to be in Nathrop for the race weekend and broke down in tears when I showed up. Like I said, sometime racing isn't the most important thing.

I will say I felt strong, especially on the flats and climbs. The downhill sucked, maybe I should ride in dirt once in a while. But (and this is without knowing results) for the first time in expert I felt like I was racing. There were a few people passing me, I passed a few people. A lot of back and forth. Maybe we were battling for the last few places (I really don't know) but at least we were battling. In the past I haven't had a lot of action around me in expert, so it was nice to have Hank and a few others near.

At this point it has been a long, hard day. I'm going to bed.

New Link

So those of us who blog all have ways to track who hits our site and from where. There is always a sense of pride when a new site provides a link, so thanks to Flahute Steve in Utah. For those in the know I have a special spot in my heart for Utah (and cycling), my wife was raised in Sandy and is the older sister to one of the most famous retired racers ever from Utah (first person besides Sly Fox who knows the racer will get a prize next time I hit Utah).

I'm embarking on a strange trip this year as I am running a team for the first time. But unlike many others I'm not limiting myself to just getting money for a few racers; I'm working to let people know about their environmental impact (yea you can call it global warming if you want) and how riding the bike can reduce that impact.

I don't want to change your politics, just provide a little background and start some thoughts on changing each of our lifestyles (and yes I'm trying to change mine every day).

Kick back and enjoy the site. Thanks for stopping by and thanks to Flahute for the link.

I'm Back

Really I haven't been missing, just not blogging. Maybe people will come back to the site if I actually have something new posted. Lots of news...Racing Green MTB (the team) is ready for action. Kits are in and being distributed, roster is full of a good group of guys (and riders), and we (ok mostly me) are preparing our first community outreach (www.racinggreenmtb.com for more info). The community outreach is rides for all abilities in the Stapleton neighborhood. The rides have a two-fold purpose: get people riding and enjoying bikes and teach people about how to lessen their environmental impact through riding and other changes. I'm hoping we get a few people to turn out for the ride (May 11).

The local monthly newspaper is putting in a blurb about the ride and even took some pictures to go along with the announcement. Since the ride is on Mother's day it is being billed as a Mother's Day ride. The newspaper wanted to know if I knew any mother/kids who would particpate and use them for the photos. Good thing I have a built in modeling crew with Ade and Shay. I'll post a link when the paper comes out.

Rolling a lot of miles on the bike, which I must say got a lot easier as I picked up a new Cannondale road bike (from www.pedalpusherscyclery.com of course). Jason, Gavin and Chandler have me on two sweet new rides for the year, now I just hope I can do them justice. For once I can thank George W for something, since I'm spending the tax rebate early for the new road bike. One good thing in eight years isn't bad (right?). Ok, we'll forget why I was able to get the bike and just ride.