So as bad as I have wanted to post it just hasn't happened this week. The antibiotics seem to have mostly crushed the strep throat although I continue to have some throat pain, maybe from the abcess. The energuy levels have not returned yet and pushing the pedals seems harder that normal. When you feel good racing is easy, the legs turn over quick and you "dance" on the pedals. It's the tough days that define you, the days when every pedal stroke is a chore and every little pebble is a boulder.

The one and only weeknight Icup was a tough one for me. No zip and even rode the DH like a pansy, no focus! Near the top of the long climb on the first lap I looked around and found myself with Alex and Mitch, I am sure riding next to those two I looked flat out stocky. My lungs and legs were on fire as I had not really ridden much since Soldier and was not used to race pace. When Alex punched it I could not go with him and I new that was the race. The frustrating thing is I didn't have much dig in me to try and hang on, maybe that's why I don't do much weeknight racing- mentally cashed by the end of the day.

So Sundance is tomorrow which is a rippin fun course and likely is in great shape after a wet spring. I don't have much confidence in my form at the moment but hope to feel a little better than Draper. Coming back to form after being sick is all about baby steps. At least I am about done with antibiotics.

looks like a good weather weekend, enjoy!

new kicks for the weekend warrior

Shoes are critical, the contact point between man and machine.

I love getting a new pair but the set up and break in can be tedious. A big thanks to Chris and Shimano for hooking me up with the new custom fit M300. I have not ridden in them yet or even cooked-em but they are stiff, comfy, and 150 grams lighter than my other ones. I hope to get them up to speed in the coming week and post my impressions.



As for riding I have not done any this week due to a case of the strep throat.

I know what you are thinking and so am I, "this guy gets sick every week!" Come to find out I have had strep throat for a while now and it has just been coming and going. It seems I get feeling better by the weekend just in time to throttle myself at a race, causing it come back full force during the week. Ever since feeling pretty good at Soldier Hollow I have been down and out with the sore throat and fatigue, I finally heeded Rosie's advice (better late than never) and made it to the Doc. Now with the appropriate intervention I hope to kick this thing for good and ride more than a day or 2 in a row.

stella's 1st race

Rosie picked Soldier Hollow to make her bottle handing debut with the new baby. Finally a race you don't have to warm up in leg warmers and good spectating not to far from home. After a fairly sketchy week I was feeling much better by Saturday.

As the race started I kept telling myself to race conservative which lasted a few minutes and then I found myself at the front. Once we hit the singletrack climb Alex punched it while I was working through some stale legs and I made a solid in race decision to ride my own pace, or maybe I was forced to because I just got drooped, either way I think it helped me save something for the end. I slowly clawed back to Alex and we rode together until the 3rd lap when I started to feel pretty good, maybe it was all the snot weight I had lost throughout the race. Anyway it felt good to have some juice at the end. When it starts to get hot I sometimes like to drink water and use more gel instead of some kind of drink mix but with the carborocket going down so smooth I think it will work all summer.

The next few weeks should be interesting as it seems Alex is getting stronger every weekend and the uphills only get longer!

stella's 1st bike race


Note Eva's pink swimsuit that is a few sizes to big, it was wedding gift from sly to Rosie but was a little small or maybe he knew we would have some girls that could one day use it, random!

little ripper

quaking

So the girls are getting healthy again but the recent lack of sleep has caused me to take a turn for the worse. Now with aches, pains, sore throat, the works. Once again I am in a scramble to heal before the weekend, this is a bad trend.

Fragile I guess...

At least the aspens are quaking!

rubber mat

At least once a week Rosie and the girls meet me at Sunnyside park by the VA for lunch and Eva and I play on the swings and slides. Underneath the swing set they have this thick soft rubber mat to protect the kids from head injuries when turfing it. When I ride my bike down to meet them I always get my speed up before hitting the rubber mat and then see how long it takes me to come to a stop without using my brakes, about 5 ft as the rolling resistance or coefficient of friction is off the charts. Yesterday at Icup #4 at Sherwood hills resort we had the opportunity to race for 2 hours on single track seemingly made from the this same rubber mat.

The mix of moisture, lack of use, and the air in the soil from the freeze thaw cycle turned normally ripping fast single track into painfully slow pedal on the downhill one track. I guess it seemed worse because I was having all sorts of stomach issues and just could not get the power going but either way it was slow. I think the worse part is without much real mud it looked like you should be going fast. During the race I was not able to eat or drink and barely got donw 3/4 of a bottle in 2hrs. I new when it was time to pick up the pace for the finish I would be in trouble, and sure enough with about 10 minutes to go I ran out of energy and Alex got a little gap on me that he held to the finish. Maybe his summer streak is starting early this year.

On the drive home I could not keep my eyes open and had a hard time eating. I went to bed early last night but have now woken up with a little cold. With all 3 of the girls battling a cold last week I figured it was only a matter of time before my turn, I am fragile you know!

"sometimes you feel like a nut and sometimes you don't", I guess that's the challenge of bike racing. Always next week!

Now it's time to make chocolate chip pancakes for mothers day!

oil futures close @ $123....

In general I don't comment much on politics but I would consider this rant bike related.


Maybe some one out there can help me understand how suspending the gas tax for the summer will help anyone other than those involved with oil production.


I am the first to admit I am not that bright but even I understand that we live in a global market that is ruled by supply and demand. The current demand for oil is what sets the market value, the demand is high thus the price has increased to keep that demand in check with what the world can supply. The world can only produce so many billion barrels/day and although we Americans have been consuming at will for years the rest of the world is starting to catch up, just wait until everyone in China and India have 2 cars.

If the federal government were to suspend the gas tax for the summer as some current presidential candidates are proposing it seems to me that one of 2 things would happen. Either the oil companies would raise prices so that demand would meet what they can supply and they continue get market value for their product or consumption will increase beyond what can be supplied and prices will be forced up. Either way the oil producers are the only ones that gain and even our poor government losses out on some precious tax dollars which will either need to be made up somewhere else, borrowed from China, or not invested into more sustainable energy. All this and we just become more inslaved to foreign oil.

The bottom line is we can only blame ourselves for high gas prices and the only way to drive the price down (other than blowing up and taking over Venezulea and the entire Middle East) is to decrease our fuel consumption. Now I am not trying to point fingers because I am to blame as much as anyone. I live up a canyon that adds a little extra drive time for Rosie and the kids, I drive to races on the weekends, and I don't have a push lawnmower. But, you will also never hear me complain and I am trying to make a little difference by riding my bike for transportation, using a motorcycle when the bike is not practical, and keeping the outside lights off at night.

I know its small patato's but what else can you do. If they want to suspend a tax, how about property?

Hopefully this price crunch, which likely is the tip of the iceburg will help us live more responsible, at least I hope it helps me!

play dirt

5 mile pass was much better than I expected. I got into a good rhythm and was able to ride my own pace for a solid effort. I seemed a little faster on the flats than in the past which I attribute to the increased girth of my skiing thighs. The dry dirt made things slower than in the past but Eva seemed to like it. More race pics and maybe some product review coming soon at Monaviecannondale.com

I don't know if the highlight of the weekend was feeling healthy again and able to push hard on the pedals or the samurai's homemade sushi. Maybe he should give up law and open up Samurai Sushi. He could hire me on as a bus boy or prep cook and we could ski and bike every morning before the lunch crowd comes begging for more spicy tuna rolls. It's in the genes!

this is nuts

No not the weather, that is expected. Last night I ate my first summer watermelon while it was dumping snow outside. Another 6 inches on the deck this morning. It has snowed at least 1 time week at my house since January! Need to get the boards back out.

No the crazy thing is this hand foot and mouth virus. I had it beat and was feeling much better, even got in a few short rides and had a little energy again. Then this am I am back to having sores in my mouth and dragging a little, not as bad, but....
Will see what the next couple days bring, I may be out for 5 mile.

The family is doing well!

Like Jared says, I must be delicate