Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Catching up on Kenosha

I will report on my Burnham results soon. Basically 2 pack finishes and plenty of gas left over. I was amazed with my form and now I have some more confidence to go with it.

I am trying to catch up on a backlog of reporting though. So....first things first...2 weeks ago at Kenosha. I was hoping to race this race, but I was laid off the Thursday before and spending $ on racing seemed somehow less important. MJH2 and JF were going up there though and I love being a superfan so I thought I would tag along and help out.

Turns out it was a lot of fun just going and prepping bikes, bottles, etc. grabbing jackets, yelling to the field time splits, etc.

The big news was the win though. That's right....win. Turns out JF was racing 5's. ABR was running both 4's and 5's together but decided to score them separately. Whatever...

This was JF's first race so I was starting to give him the whole "you're going to pop - don't let it discourage you" speach when it dawned on me that he's probably one of the most natural cyclists I have ever ridden with at this level. He's constantly exceeding my expectations so I decided I would just tell him to stay close to the front if he could, but stay out of the wind. Don't chase any breaks just go for the sprint. (did I mention he melted my trainer doing a quick sprint on my powertap. He took it easy and I stopped him when I smelled it burning, but the PT said something just shy of 1500W). Oh....and try not to hit the deck.

So I sat back and watched and took pictures. Fun.


MJH2 lined up in the 4's



JF in the red arm warmers hanging in the cat 5 starting group



"You guys are 4/5's so that means you suck. Try not to kill each other -kthx" (MJH2 is thinking "I paid for this?")"Rider'sReadyGO!!"







JF - Whatta ya doin on the FRONT!!!????









Our man J-Dub taking snappy snaps again. Check out his site and buy some pics to help support him. I would if I had an income right now...





So there was a break of 3 guys who got away and had quite a bit of time on the pack. I knew they were gone and the pack would come down to the sprint. I saw MJH2 lead JF off the front going into turn 1 of the last lap. They were hauling and I knew this was going to be good....then I saw JF come up the final straight way the freak in front of everyone.

HUGE gap. so big he just soft pedaled over the line. See for yourself.


So where was MJH2??? Well....I end up walking down the front straight to find him...


Turns out he had led out JF so hard and fast that when they came around the last corner they encountered some lapped traffic on the race line. It was hit the lapped traffic, JF or go into the grass. He chose the grass. He took one for the team and will most likely never let JF forget it. One thing is for sure...if we could ever get coordinated enough we could have a hell of a leadout. With even just the 3 of us we could rip up 1.5-2 laps of just about any race.

Although JF came in 4th overall the first 3 guys were Cat 4's so JF actually won the Cat 5's race that day. It won't be his last. In fact he's gotten medals in 3 of his first 4 races so far. There's a word for that. Awesome.


Monday, March 30, 2009

My commercial website



OK...I've been working on it for a while. Thing is I have played around with getting into the business side of the cycling world for a while. My current state of employment has allowed me to play a bit.



The idea is that I want a site that will allow me to put my thoughts and opinions about cycling and cycling related gear. I intend on expanding it to include fit, products, racing info, etc.

Obviously this is a commercial endeavor though. I am set up to get paid when visitors click on the links provided and/or buy something I have directly linked to. I also have a section on there that has my own products. Basically if you want something cycling related then just let me know and I can quote it for you.

I have to quote is because I can not advertise pricing becase of the distribution agreements in place. You can e-mail me at psimet at psimet.com for price quotes.

Hope you enjoy it. Yes it is not much to look at....but I hope I can build on it.

My commercial website



OK...I've been working on it for a while. Thing is I have played around with getting into the business side of the cycling world for a while. My current state of employment has allowed me to play a bit.



The idea is that I want a site that will allow me to put my thoughts and opinions about cycling and cycling related gear. I intend on expanding it to include fit, products, racing info, etc.

Obviously this is a commercial endeavor though. I am set up to get paid when visitors click on the links provided and/or buy something I have directly linked to. I also have a section on there that has my own products. Basically if you want something cycling related then just let me know and I can quote it for you.

I have to quote is because I can not advertise pricing becase of the distribution agreements in place. You can e-mail me at psimet at psimet.com for price quotes.

Hope you enjoy it. Yes it is not much to look at....but I hope I can build on it.

Friday, March 27, 2009

Pain

Lots of stuff has been going on. Updates coming. JF won his first Cat 5 a couple of weekends ago. Great leadout by MJH2.

Still looking for employment. Some promising leads, but I am the kind of guy that doesn't count anything until it's a done deal.

Family is amazing. Never underestimate it and take a minute to tell them you appreciate them every now and then.

First real race this season is tomorrow. 2 races actually. The weather looks to be horrid. Rain with a snow mix. Thinking of taking the cross bike.

Here's to keeping the rubber side down.

Working on a website to generate some income. I'll post a link when I think it's getting there....bet you can't guess the name....

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Looking

I'm currently looking for a job if anyone has leads. Manufacturing Operations. Mechanical Engineering Degree.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Perhaps a pillow?


I hate geese. Like really hate them. They're stupid beasts. I am sure that they'd drown if left to their own devices - that's why they have down. To save them from themselves.

Why this newly charged tirade against these silly creatures? Simply because they are the reason I went over the bars yet once again on Saturday. I say once again because that makes a cool 3 times in the last year and a half.

This time we were wrapping up the "developmental" version of the Bicycle Heaven ride when we jumped onto the Fox River Trail on the last leg back to the shop. I was following JF when I spotted a couple of the grass digesting swine of the air approaching from the side.

This is where geese are dumb. You see when you attempt to go anywhere near them on a bike they seem to think the way to get away from you is to run directly into your path. I was slowing and watching one of them when the other got in front of JF. Next thing I know I look up and I was on top of him. I started going over the bars as I heard my tire pop as it rammed his cassette. I tucked and rolled and thought for sure there was going to be others to follow.

Turns out it was just me. As usual the real damage wasn't felt until 2 days afterwards. I keep tearing up some muscle around my left shoulder. I chalk it up to my death grip as I go over the bars. JF thinks he might have done something wrong, but I have tried to assure him that kind of crap happens.

I haven't ridden since then. On top of that I ate ice cream tonight. First crit is on Sunday. ABD TT #4 is this Saturday as well. I think I might skip the TT. I have a feeling my time won't improve.

This is sad, but I remember the feeling in December right after the last race of the year. While a part of me was sad I have to admit I felt a lot of relief. Toeing the line and feeling that stress of anticipation followed by sheer pain is something that takes a strong stomach. Now that it will be happening again so quickly I am uneasy. Nervous actually.

Hope my shoulder holds out. Damn geese...

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Definitely an Improvement

Before

Image Hosted by ImageShack.us


After

Legs 002


You know you love it....

Monday, March 2, 2009

Rollers

Finally got around to posting some video I think. Background...I have ridden for something like 22 years but have never ridden rollers. Seriously. Runner Susan started riding them and I just thought to myself...nah. Not going to happen.

The thing is I just never had access to them. To top it off I had an unatural fear of them. It's not "if" but rather "when" you wreck on them. I don't know about you but I don't look forward to the idea of hitting the deck...indoors....during winter....in my basement.

Well I borrowed a set form JAnd. I tried the first time in a doorway because that's what I heard you were supposed to do. It took about 1.5 minutes to get the hang of them.

Due to comments on here I decided to get some video. This is from my second time riding rollers. I cut 90% off, but boiled it down to the interesting stuff. A little bit of smoother riding followed by more interesting stuff.



So far I like rollers. That is all.