Metal filled trainer

Little P and Mrs. P got sick of me spending so much time on the phone talking business instead of training that they decided to "hide" my bicycle using the plethora of packaging material I have in the shop now.

After that I threw a leg over and had an amazing interval session. It was perfect for cross. Long "high" sweet spot intervals. Training with power rocks.

So does the music. With the fan going and the trainer, etc....it's impossible tohear my crappy TV while training without turning it up load enough to make it's casing resonate and waking up the neighbors....so I resorted back to an iPod. Metal, punk, heavy...turning pedals in anger. It's been a while since I've done that. It is sooooooooooooooo theraputic.

That said...trainers suck.

Off week

Once again I find myself in the redneck rivieria - Ft Morgan/Gulf Shores area of Alabama. A week of family at the beach. Basically that means little riding, lots of eating and lots of drinking.

Luckily this year it fell on a "rest week" - bwahahahahahaha! I have rideen once. It sucked. It is sooooooooo boring down here. I mean Chicago is flat but this is beyond that....and it's hot....and boring.... yuck.

Anyway....the beach and the hanging out is a blast. Pics from the week:

Little P and his cousin - near aged partner in crime. These two are dangerous together. Smart and beefy. You turn around and they are cracking up as they tackle each other and play chicken. Mrs. P and her sister (Little P's Aunt) in the background.


Learning from an elder cousin.


Bliss. I have identified this moment as one of the moments I truly love in my life. I finally caught it in a picture.


Gulf shrimp, beer, rice, avacado, awesomeness on the side.


We went fishing on a charter again. 6 hours in the gulf and all we really caught was the bait. MMMmmmmm....tasty.

A weekend of failure

Where do I start……

This last weekend was a weekend from hell as far as racing goes. Just 1 week ago we were shivering through mid 50’s temperatures with bone soaking rain. A mere 7 days later it’s as if the gravitational pull from my poor performance brought the sun closer ensuring a miserable weekend of racing as far as conditions go.

Setting up for the weekend I wasn’t going to have the opportunity to race both days so I registered for Cobb Park. Cobb Park had 2 races I could do….and it was only $10 for the second race. Guess what I did….yup.

Then Mrs. P says she no longer has to work on Sunday and that I can race – it is Father’s day after all. To top it off Fox River Grove is pretty close to the Psimet compound. Oh and look….they have two races I can do. Excellent. Guess I will sign up for both.

So it was some time later when it dawned on me that I was going into a 4 race in 2 days weekend. On top of that we were looking at record heat and humidity. Oh, and somehow I didn’t know but there was this thing called a “hill” on the course for Sunday. How big can it really be right? The directions to the course said, “at the corner of School and SKI HILL RD. That should have been my first indication.

So I was feeling good on Saturday. The race was too early for the family to embrace the idea of getting up and going with. No one needed a ride so I was on my own to the race. It was weird to drive to a race with no one else. I got in some good alone time. It was kind of nice.

Once there I quickly found the usual suspects all milling around. I felt strong and thought I might have a chance at a really good result. I hit the trainer and “warmed up” for a long time beforehand. I felt great as the race started. Chatting it up, floating around at will, felt like I had a ton in reserve. Then something happened.

There was an acceleration and it was like someone opened a drain plug on my tank and emptied it. The accelerations weren’t hard. The race was fast but manageable, but something in me just went limp. I got shelled.

I felt a little better as I ran into a lot of other riders I am usually contending with who also got shelled, but in general it wasn’t pleasant. Then I got lapped. Then I got chills and goosebumps….and then got lapped again. I was dehydrated. Bad. I finished the race but it was torture. A lot of people dropped so I finished up on a lot of guys but I was dead last in the field of riders that were placed.

I figured I should drink and do my best to get my temp down in between the races. I only had 6 bottles for the whole day and I was down to only 2 left for in between the races and the next race. I am sure I could have found more water but I didn’t push it.

For the Masters race I felt much better. The pace was slower and I found it pretty easy to hang where I wanted to. I even contemplated going for the prime when it was announced. Then with 3 or so laps to go I got a leg freezing cramp along my inner thigh. It locked up my leg completely. I was done. I tried another lap but I couldn’t push any gear so I just pulled off. I felt the pity look from the officials piercing me as I called it a day.

So needless to say after the poor performance on Saturday I was not hoping for much on Sunday. I was not disappointed by that. I got yanked twice on Sunday. So did a lot of other guys but still….it sucks. I found I got better each time up the hill and found I could descend and hold the corners in the mid 30’s – taking them without braking.

I knew I was in trouble for sure when I realized I didn’t know nearly as many guys on the line and started seeing jerseys from all over. That combined with the fact that the front of the grid looked like a forest of saplings made it sink in that the fat fast flat crit rider was going to embarrass himself very quickly.

In better news Little P almost won his race. He was kicking butt. Everyone was cheering him on and he was making a bee-line for me at the finish and then suddenly swerved at the last minute into the crowd. He then spent the next 45 minutes crying that he wasn’t allowed to finish riding the whole course, that he didn’t win, and that he might have hurt someone else or their bike. He didn’t even want his 3rd place medal.

Well….he has as much hardware as I have now.

Next up – vacation. 1 week spent in Gulf Shores, AL again. Yay. After this it’s Superweek. I have already signed up for Blue Island (2 races), Elgin (2 races), Arlington Heights (2 races), and Bensenville (2 races). Still thinking about Evanston for 1 race.

Then it’s the Chicago crit….maybe a Soldiers field race…..it just doesn’t end.

What the flu?

So...Mrs. P is sick and odds are she has some form of the flu. Had to happen. She's a nurse and all that swine flu panic had her seeing a ton of patients daily. Now she has a fever and feels like "poop" - her words. Little P is in and out of a fever and I have had chest congestion starting to creep in while riding.

So...I hope everyone gets better soon. Being sick sucks.

This weekend is Monsters and Wheels on Willy (Madison). We have a solid 5's crew going for Monsters. They are hungry. They know who to mark and what to do. They're strong and a little crazy. You'd have to be in order to toe the line with 100 cat 5's in 1 pack. Everyone is going to be so afraid of wrecks that they'll all be pushing to get to the front....leading to wrecks....

Kind of glad I'm a 4 at this point.

Thanks to some great name dropping over at Bike Forums I have been SLAMMED with quotes for bike parts from my commercial site. I've got some great pricing on some niche stuff but I think some people are thinking I am going to like sell stuff below cost. I think everyone is just so used to getting great deals they have no appreciation for how good the deals really are sometimes. Some of the sales are coming through though. Good thing this is just a hobby for me.

Tueesday's group ride out of Penny rd was crazy. It was just weird. We have always passed a lot of team and club riders while riding out there but this week everyone ended up along the same path at the same time going in the same direction. There ended up being about 20-40 riders at different times representing: Village Cyclesport, Verdigris, BBC, Wheel Werks, Spin Doctors, Our precious Bicycle Heaven, Project 5, Chronometro (I think), xXx, ABD, and even a Mack rider I believe. Our shop rides in Geneva/St Charles are pretty well known for drawing a crowd but this was on par. Slower but on par. It was like an underground crit were everyone just met up and decided that it was time to race.

It was fun.

Keep the rubber side down and keep hammering.

2009 Muskego Park Crit

OK....Being mothers day weekend it meant, of course, that Mrs. P had to work. That means it was me and little P for the whole weekend. Fatherhood bliss.

Then Joel pointed out that there was a crit in Wisconsin on Saturday. That started with, "no I am spending time with little P.", moved to "he and I can go up there with you guys and cheer you on", to "OK so if someone watches little P I can race the first race but that means we'll have to leave at 5:30am."

Yeah. Father of the year....right here.

Matt, Riccio and I rolled out of my house at 5:40ish with little P along for comic relief. The trip was long and we just barely made it there in time to register, gear up and put in two laps for "warmup". The course had what those cheeseheads call "hills". There was about 100 ft of climbing per lap. The grades weren't steep but they got to you after a while.

It was raining and FREEZING. I came up there with shorts and mostly summer gear. I had thin socks and no toe covers. No long finger glooves, etc. It sucked. I was freezing and soaking wett within a few minutes.

In general the race was really slow but grinding. There was only really one corner and it could have been taken at speed but there was standing water in the middle of it. Everyone took it slow and then accelerated out of the corner then into the hill. It got old quick.

I feel like I have chest congestion - let's face it Mrs. P has been exposed to all sorts of stuff including swine flu (I am sure) at work. I am feeling the effects of something. The cold and wet conditions didn't help. I ended up coming unhooked on the last lap. I struggled back up and finished on the back of the pack for 20th place out of 25. Boo, but I'll take it. I wasn't even sure I was going to be able to race until I pinned my number on.



Can't see it too well in that pic, but we and the bikes were just coated with sand and crap.

After that Matt raced the 3/4 masters. I Opted out of this one. I was beat and really not feeling it. That and I didn't want to wait around in soaking wet clothes for an hour between races.





Matt looked like he was done about half way through the race but ended up finding something inside to keep going. He said the race was much smoother and faster than the first one. He did great and tied for 17th.

After that Joel showed up. The last race of the day was the one that Riccio, Joel and Matt were doing. We went out in full spandex wonder to a local hole int he wall diner for lunch. Matt talked Joel into trying the Chedderwurst - Ugh.

Back in time for these guys to warm up and get ready to race. Joel held his own. There were a couple of early attacks and just like a dog looking to run outside through a screen door he went after them. He got into one only 16 minutes into the race. It was a 45 minute hilly crit. Too early.

They got caught a couple of laps later. I started yelling at him every lap. Nothing very helpful but stuff like, "great position", "too early", "3 laps left - follow your gut", etc...

He ended up sprinting in the end and his position wasn't great but he had an open line to the finish. He was hurting. He has a dead elvis face. Saw it this race for the first time really. I started yelling and he came up with some more kick. He ended up in 2nd place. Nice.

....time for an upgrade.

Before the race.


Joel's dead elvis.


Little P having a blast. "I wanna watch the bike race!!!"

ABD TT#3 Report

Another round of beating your head into a wall is over. I am happy to say I have made no gains over the last couple of months. That said I have found that have made no losses either. Meh...here's the pics. That's all any of you care about anyway...


Showed up early enough to see JAnd do his run.


Cheering section - L to R - JF, Little P, Mrs. P


GO JAND GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Time for us to go. Clipping in for torture....


"Hi...I'm f'n nuts!"


Reset the computer....and.......3.....2......1.....GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I burried my head for the first 5 minutes. I didn't look at the screen because I knew I would go too hard if I saw I was behind in order to catch up....or if I was ahead in order to maintain position. So I didn't look.


I was rocking out to a mix of punk and metal. Total "kill everyone" kind of stuff.

I hit my normal wall about 4-5 mintes in, but pushed through. I looked up to see I was behind...by a lot. JF was in front of me. Honestly he's got the chops even though he's new so I really didn't let that bother me too much, but I was at least gpong to try to pull him back.

Up until now I had been running about 270W. I shifted and started bringing around 300W in the second 5 minutes.

"OOooooo"

With a During the last set of 5 minutes I started to crack. I made myself take it easy for 1.5 minutes. Rode easier than I could just in hopes of recovering to finish strong. It kind of worked, but not really. I tried with about 2.5-3 minutes left to stand and go at it. I was within "50 or 60 feet" of JF when I did. When I stood...so did he. That just told me he wasn't going to just hand anything over.

At first I felt bad because I figured he thought I was standing to sprint to the end, but it was way too early for that. I was just hoping to get a quick jump to turn over the distance between us. Turns out when I stood I didn't upshift so my power dropped. Ooops. I sat back down to compensate, but by then JF had taken the opportunity to lay down some power.

I tried to stand and sprint at the end, but I didn't have much. Not the usual punch I have. When done...I felt like puking. So...I did it right. I definitely left some out there though. Just couldn't tap into the deep well if that makes sense.


Shoot me.


Seriously...shoot me.


JF took the win in style. The guy is a naturl athlete that will accel at this cycling thing with no problem. I keep telling him the only thing that will limit how far he goes is how much time he wants to spend on it. He won't be a 5 long and will be a 4 even shorter.

This time he won the CM 19-29. He also got to pick up his medal from the previous TT


To top it off I still owe him a beer to make up for the last $5 from registration I owe him. Will it never end?

So...I ended up 13th out of 28 who took the start out of Cat 4. Furthest up in the field so far, but 2 seconds slower than my last one on the "Flat" course. I did beat Rob Jungels...by like 7 seconds...which just means there is a story there. I'm guessing he had something go wrong or he was doing it as a recovery in street shoes and blue jeans.

Tuesday night at the shop we're doing the mother of all indoor trainer sessions. We're down to 1x45' at threshold. Those sessions have made it easier to race already. They have convinced me that I can ride at an intense effort for much longer than I thought I could.

Congrats to JAnd, JF and everyone else who went out there (MRIDan). Nothing like paying $25 so you can sit in one place and turn yourself inside out for 16 minutes.

Almost time to shave the legs. Mrs. P is thrilled.

Uh...yeah...

Just heard the funniest quote and had to share it: "You can't pull down your pants while you're holding a popcicle!" - said Mrs.P to little P

10 years ago this would have meant something totally different and the context would have been a whole lot more interesting.

Rollin.

I'm cathing up on a lot of overdue stuff right now. I am off work for the week (except for Friday) and have been busy straightening out my home office, financials, cycling, etc.

In good news I went through my cycling gear and I put approximately 80% of my clothing into either deep storage or e-bay piles. It is now way too f'n big for me.

I always approach time off at the end of the year with the idea that I will ride every day and get a jump on everyone else....not. End of the year is for resting. That said I have still alid down some decent 1:30hr blocks good work. Today I got outside and put in an hour on the cross bike. Crazy thing is I pulled a speed that I used to average during the summer using a road bike....and it was deep winter I was wearing all my gear and on a cross bike with 38psi tires. .....and I felt like I had a lot more in me. Yummy

Then I hit the trainer class at Bicycle Heaven and laid down another 1-1 1/2 hrs there. Yesterday I was at the gym - 5k on the dreadmill followed by about an hour of weights.

Weights are crazy. I have the weight lifter genetics. I don't have to do much and my body REALLY responds to lifting. I just don't want to throw on a ton of muscle and just end up heavier.

Just when Mrs. P and little P came back from Nana's they turned around and headed into downtown. They're doign a sleep study on little P. *sniffle*. My dad has sleep apnea, I have been told that I have sleep apnea by more than one person but haven't been tested. Little P has it for sure. I have heard him.

He had his adnoids (?) out a while back which did wonders for a while, but he has slowly gotten back to where he was before. They most likely grew back. Don't know why we're doing the study. We know he has it. So what. He's 2 1/2 so it's not like he'll wear a mask to bed. I don't feel like putting him through another surgery.....

Oh well. Now I am up late and thinking of them. Poo.

Hmmm..

Rode 34 miles on the cross bike with MJH2 this morning. Cold, raining and very windy. Perfect cross weather. We did an easy pace so I should be adequately prepped for tomorrow's race.

aham ran an awesome 10K (kudos man), CyLowe put 15 minutes...err...an hour on the dreadmill...all is well.

Powetap is laced and amazingly tensioned and true. It was really easy. I can only say it must be the beefy flanges than helped. Amazing really. This should be the most stout wheel I have ever ridden.

It's super heavy as well though...1220 g ....just for the rear wheel. OOoof.

Going to a movie with little P and Mrs. P. Madagascar 2 I think. This will be his first movie. He's 2 1/2 BTW. This should be fun........

Awesome

Awesome race. Robert Kelley and Matt Stewart from my team (Bicycle Heaven) set up the course and all I have to say is....OMG!!! Actually more like OMFG!!

MJH2 and I ended up getting out there early to pre-ride. I have pre-ridden every course and only put in 1 lap or 2. This time I put in at least 4 and maybe 5. On top of that we rode one section with some off-camber cut-backs at least 8 or 9 times trying to find a line.

After that we hung around to watch the start of the 30+, 40+ and 50+ groups. I hope to post a video later of the carnage that ensued in the off-camber pits of despair.

Around 12 I came in and volunteered at registration. That was pretty cool. For the first time I had an idea of how many were in my field before we started. I also got to meet a lot of riders and connect names with faces in some instances.

"Where is your license? No license? NO SOUP FOR YOU! NEXT!"

When we got to about 2pm I made a bee line to the car to get ready for my race at 3. The weather had steadily warmed up throughout the day so I ended up ditching the arm warmers, etc.

I'm too sexy for these arm warmers....well...too hot at least.

Before the race we got a few minutes to have an impromtu team meeting near the "off-cambers of death" section on the course.

Imagine that...I'm telling a story...

"So...like...this is the part I alwasy mess up..." Justin is all, "Ooooo...look.........racers..." MJH2 is all "Psimet....you suck"

Practicing my "you're not getting around me" move.

Lined up at the start: MJH2, myself, and our targets...Jorge and Bob from Beverly Bike Veepak.

Right after that they did call-ups....which is where they call up the top 10 riders in the series. because the whole thing comes down to your start and your starting position this is where they give these guys a reward for showing to the start late. Sometimes it's annoying, but I understand why they do it. If it were me I would be all over it myself.

I got a great line right out of the start. I was, hooked up, and putting power down before the first turn. I got some good looks at lines and took what I could. MJH2 and I were top 7 or 8 heading into the woods.

In the woods there were landscape timbers/railroad ties that were used to both help prevent errosion and to create steps along the hill. So...we rode around, over, across them up to a barrier where we dismounted, jumped, and ran about 4-5 more steps before being abel to remount. At this point the pack was already starting to settle down, but the guys near me were still thumping.

MJH2 was in front of me I believe, and Jorge and Bob from Beverly were just behind me (at least that's what it looks like in some of the pictures). I was still getting the engine going. I know myself well enough to know that I have to go hard early and get that feeling that I am going to pop....and then realize that it is only a temporary feeling....hold on and push and next thing you know I am through it and feeling......stable.

The pain in cross is horrendous. It is as intense as a time trial with the combined effort of having to think. For you runners I would liken it to trying to do differential equations in your head at mile 18 on a marathon while upping your pace to a 5k pace....I think. Of course that could have been like saying, "No yo soy puede, pero no hay de que"....which, if I am correct, makes no sense at all.

Anyway...CyLowe97 showed up and got some killer shots of the action in the "off-cambers of death".

All in all a good race. Jay from Tati grabbed my wheel and pulled me back while climbing the stairs after the barrier in the woods....to get by...which was funny, but I couldn't laugh at the time. He disentigrated a lap later and became trail fodder though.

Jorge from Beverly got around me early on. Bob was well seated behind me though. Each lap was painful and we ended up doing 5 of them I think. I saw 3 to go at the end fo the second lap I did so that would make sense.....see....you like have to do simple math and stuff when you're on the limit....no fair. That's more laps than we have done since I have been in the series. I was not ready for that. It hurt bad.

I have discovered that when I hit my threshold I breath very loudly - which everyone around me takes as a signal that I am about to pop. Funny thing is I am not. It's weird. It makes for some people taking chances passing me and then me just passing them up shortly thereafter.

Had one guy go around me at the same place Jay from tati did only to then eat it on the loose sand by the ballpark. He blocked the whole course, but I wiggled between him and the fence to get around. At least I didn't run right over him...

During prerides I kept thinking that I needed to drop the pressure in the tires. So I did....then when racing it dawned on me that all I did was make it worse. Boo. Lesson learned. As a result I kept sliding out in places. I recovered, but I need to get that stuff under control.

I was following MJH2 on the steep downhill with the soft gravel down the center....so we were staying tight to the inside. I got it a little too tight and the pole at the corner caught the inside of my handlebars. That bike did stuff I never knew a bike could do. .....and I stayed upright. A spectator at the bottom of the hill gave me a look like "OMG I can't believe that just happened AND you stayed upright". I gave him the "OMG I KNOW RIGHT??!!" look.

This race was competitive. More so than the others so far. I was really riding off some contenders and feeling pressure all the time. There was no where on the course to really rest. Some of the stuff that normally you would coast on to recover was where the pressure was coming. You just couldn't let off.

At some point (lap 4 I think) MJH2 was in front of me going into the last barrier on the back side. This was the one that was followed by the drainage ditch you had to jump before remounting. Well...he hit that barrier....literally. I didn't see it happen, but when I looked up he was on the ground at it's base. I think I yelled for him to get up. He got over it at the same time as me and said "I dropped my chain." I think I told him one of the pieces of advice I figured out in Carpentersville when I did it. I think I said, "Just relax and take your time and fix it right."...as I was hopping on and pedaling away.

Last lap I had at least one guy on me all the way through the technical stuff. I think he thought he was going to get by me either on the uphill or in the off cambers of death, but I kep edging him out (getting in his way). I laid on the power on the flat section and just kept him off going into the last barrier. I could hear him breathing down my neck into that barrier and knew it was all going to come down to how well I did.

I cleared it and got back on and started pedaling before him. I could hear him groan in disgust. From there I hit the big ring and floored it. I had more speed and gas then I thought I did for that last section. When I crossed the line I was beyond my limits. I was in total sugar shock with shaking, I was disoriented, etc. I left it out there at least at the end.

Results came in late, but they have me down at 14th out of 55. Mrs. P was pretty sure I was closer to in the top 10, and so was I when I was getting word I was in 11th while I was out on the course, but things happen and it's hard to keep track. To be honest I didn't even know if MJH2 had finished in front or behind me. When I saw him I asked. He reminded me that I passed him when he hit the barrier. I had already forgotten. That's how violent this stuff is...

Bottom line is I keep getting better....

They say that up to 90% of all "mechanicals" (guys dropping out of the event because of a mechanical failure of the bike) during Time Trials (TTs) really aren't mechanicals, but guys throwing in the towell because they aren't ready to physically handle the pain.... I know I am at my limit when I find myself actually hoping for a flat tire. I did that yesterday.

Again...thanks to everyone who helped put on the race. Thanks to Mrs P and Little P and Nana for enduring. Thanks to Mr and Mrs CyLowe and the inquisitors for joining in the fun and cheering me on. Thanks to Half Acre for the intense aroma of digesting beer coming off their breath as they screamed at us through the corner. Thanks to the dude with the lit cigarette who filled the course with smoke on the last lap...ugh....

Thanks to all the cow bell ringing physchos and families. It felt like a real race. you guys are awesome.

Next week......Northbrook....or the "Save Ferris" cross event!

Proud papa

We had a great day hauling around on the bike. Little P got to see:

• Bugs
• Ants (different from bugs somehow)
• Spiders (see above)
• Diggers (daddy makes parts for diggers)
• Caterpillers (the big yellow ones that daddy makes parts for)
• Train tracks
• Trains
• Hot Dog
• Bread
• Pop (that's what he calls a Coke)
• Bikes (when asked about a tandem he saw he said "TWO!" proceeded to hold out his hand and finger by finger went, "One, Two. TWO!" I just about popped.

I lost count of the unsolicited hugs and kisses I got today not to mention the smiles and "uh...YEAH!" responses to questions like "did you have fun today?" and "Do you want to go on a bike ride?"

To top it off as Mrs. P and I were cleaning up - generally not paying attention - Mrs. P stopped, starred and then told me, "Get your camera." He had leaned how to pedal (finally) on his bike.

It was a good day.

Chicago

So...after the race I took Mrs. P out to celebrate her 30th in downtown Chicago. I made a reservation at the Omni on Michigan Ave (where Oprah put up her guests I hear) and made a reservation at a local fondue establishment.

We made it into town without a hitch and found time to walk a section of the Miracle Mile before heading over to Navy Pier to bask in the other tourists and beer garden. Before I knew it we were eating and trying to pick the perfect wine.

Neither of us is much of a wine follower, but I appreciate a nice wine and know one when I drink one. We ordered what we thought we would like (hard to do when you just don't know) and then headed to the wine tasting this place has on the weekends in their wine cellar.

Luckily we got some time alone with the sommelier (?) to discuss our likes and dislikes and got to sample a wide array of selections. Pretty soon our server came in and informed us the bottle we selected was no longer available. Holy bait and switch batman!

After thinking for a moment our sommelier recommended a Pinot Noir from Failla. Following is my take on a "Runner Susan" wine shot.

It was a great bottle. Finally convinced my wife that Pinot Noir is OK, and that there are other wines outside of Pinot Grigio.

Still....could have used a good Belgian Wheat Ale.

The meal was great and we had time to catch a quick cab back to Navy Pier to watch the fireworks. Good trip. I do love Chicago. There just isn't any other place like it in the midwest.

It was nice to get some time away from little p, but we both started feeling guilty. Who could blame us....

BTW - check out those thighs! He'll be dropping pousers before he can do math. He'll be calling every "Fred" before the 1st grade.

Then again....maybe he lacks that "killer instinct"....