Fun vs. Training

One of my favorite things about biking is getting new people involved with the sport. I enjoy it so much, and know that others will too, so always want to help them get a new bike, learn to train better, go on group rides, etc.... So it's always tough when someone says to me, "Hey, if you ever wanna just ride slow, let me know, I'd love to join you."

You see, I would love to say, ya that sounds great, let's do it (and sometimes I do.) But it's tough because of the time that I put into it and what my goals are (win races.) Especially on my training plan. I only train 6-8 hours per week, and the value is placed on quality over quantity, so there are not really any "wasted" go slow workouts. I am either going hard/all out, or resting. The system works for me to have a successful season, and works the best with my growing family, so I am not going to change that. The one day a week that there are no structured intervals is Sunday. 2 hours at a decent pace. Too bad, Sunday's don't work for a lot of people.

So there is often this dilemma: ride slow and get people more involved in the sport OR seem like a bike snob and shoot for my personal goals...

I'm sure a lot of amateur/elite level athletes face this dilemma all the time, and probably just want to say, "How about you just train a little bit more, then I don't have to ride so slow..." But that's actually pretty jerkish and insensitive. (and not like me...) :)

For now I will try my best to incorporate rides with people that want to get involved. That is after all, what I want in the big picture... you know since my chances of being a PRO cyclist are most likely past.... :-)

It has begun...

Bike training for 2012. First year racing expert category. Bring on the good guys, it's time to suffer!!! Not sure yet who I am racing for? Lots of things to figure out in the next month.

In light of Natalie's recent bout with contractions (Friday) we are trying to make a few changes in our routine so that she can come home from work and be able to sit and relax. Just simple things, like having dinner ready, having the chores done, things I can do before I leave for school. That baby needs to stay in there for as long as possible!!! Tonight we had Orzo Stuffed Green Peppers. Fantastic. I prepped the stuff this morning, and Natalie threw it in the oven when she got home.
Have been very impressed with this book so far! Easy and nutritious recipes specifically formulated for athletes/active people/anyone who just wants to eat fresh and healthy! Highly recommend this one!

Mt. Biking

Natalie gave me the opportunity to get down to Fruita with a few guys yesterday. We left Eagle about 830, and got to our destination of the day, Rabbit Valley, around 1030ish, and ready to ride about 11. Temp when we left the parking lot was about 40 and sunny, so dress code was bibs, jersey, long sleeve base layer, and knee warmers. Pretty light compared to how I have been dressing to ride around here. We hopped on some single track/quad double track right out of the parking lot. Man, it felt great to be riding on dirt!!! There were 7 of us, so we had a good crew. The first trail we did was the Western Rim. It was all up above the Colorado River Basin, on the edge of the rock cliffs. It was super sweet! The trail itself was never closer than about 10 feet from the edge, so you were never worried about falling or anything, which was nice! It wound around the edge of the cliffs for several miles, then dropped down into the Kokopelli Trail.
The picture below was staged... the trail actually headed the other direction. We were still about 6 feet or more from the edge here. We wanted a pic that looked like we were riding on the edge...
After riding on the Kokopelli Trail for a few miles, we connected with a trail leading to the Zion Curtain. The pic below is from the top of The Zion Curtain. Looking off the other side of this ledge, you could see I-70 several miles away as it streaked through Utah, and you could see a long ways after that. From the Kokopelli Trail to the top of Zion was a LOT of climbing... 3-4 miles worth of rocky technical ish climbing, with a GIANT, STEEP, hike-a-bike section at the very end. On top was kind of rolling single track, to the high point of the trail. From there is mostly downhill back to I-70 in Utah. We started the ride at Mile 2 in Colorado, and now were in Utah, almost 27 miles later. At this point we had 2 options. Continue on the trail for another hour ish to get back to the parking lot, or hop on I-70 and ride back East 3 miles to the parking lot. Because we had 2 guys who were struggling a bit, and we were all really worn out, we hopped on the road, and it took us about 10 minutes with the 25mph tailwind to climb back into Colorado. It worked out great since the interstate at that point has like 10 foot shoulders.
This was my first serious ride on the Western Slope. I did a few other rides up 18rd when we were camping, but nothing of this difficulty or length. It was really cool having the opportunity to ride in Colorado and Utah on the same ride. 30 miles, about 3,500 feet of climbing and warm sunshine made for a fantastic February day in the saddle! Thanks to Natalie for giving me the day to head west!

Learning Experiences

Natalie had a super rough day at school, only spending a very brief amount of time in her classroom. The rest of the time was spent doing AD work investigating an incident from a basketball game last night. Apparently a few of the girls decided it would be a good idea to have some "cocktails" on the bus ride home, mixed with gatorade.... Not much thought (intelligent thought) anyway was put into that decision.... Made for a long day for my wife, so when we got home I told her to go out for some appetizers with a bunch of other teachers from school at The Grand Avenue Grill. I think the Italian Nachos may have helped her unwind a bit. Weather was pretty nice earlier today. About 32 and sunny, so I took Cayle out for a little bike ride. My first ride on the "new" bike. We rode the golf course, with about an inch of snow on the ground from last night. I had my first crash of the year as well, and it happened before we were even out of the subdivision. Getting ready to turn a corner, I didn't realize that there was a sheet of ice under the snow I was riding on, and just went down, and went for a little slide... no harm done, was the least painful crash ever! Doesn't feel too bad sliding on ice. Startled myself and Cayle more than anything else. No harm done to the new bike parts though!!! Rest of the ride was great! We got first tracks on the cart path!

Done! Ready to Ride!

Done! That was quite a bit of effort, and money. But in the end, I think it looks fantastic! It also took almost 4 lbs off the total weight, which is really awesome! More than I had expected. Weight came in at 26.5 lbs, and it will be fairly easy to take it down into the 25 lb range in the future (next year) with a few more minor upgrades. This coupled with good training should help me be competitive my first year racing expert category!
Cayle wanted his bike in the pictures. He was practicing turning his bike today in the living room. He is beginning to get it.
Above it the view I have while riding, and below is the view from the front.
Pretty excited for the weather to warm up and the days to get longer so I can get out and ride some dirt! May have to head down to Fruita sometime soon!!!

Tomorrow is the day.... hopefully...

I have had several posts about the new bike parts that I have aquired, but here is a brief look back at how it all began... Decided I no longer needed my road bike wheels (despite how much I liked them!!!)
Bought them for about $600 at about half price from a buddy several years ago. Sold them for just under $600 on Ebay. Pretty good deal there.
Used that money to buy all new mountain bike parts, since that is where most/all of my racing now occurs. Needed some lighter/better parts.
New/lighter wheels were next on the agenda, along with new/lighter tubeless tires.
The above pic is most of the new parts on my mountain bike along with the wheels, but no rubber. Tomorrow I plan on picking up the bike completed, and can hopefully get out for some good rides. The weather has been pretty great for riding around here lately, and I should be able to take advantage of that! Started with all this bike stuff in the beginning of December, it will be nice to finally have it all done!

The Cycling House

Not sure what it is about getting new water bottles that is so exciting... considering that I have around 20 of them or so in the cabinet. But I got 4 of them in today from The Cycling House and it was pretty exciting! The Cycling House is a destination cycling place in Tucson, AZ that offers a completely supported training experience. All you do is go ride your bike in nice warm Arizona weather, and they take care of everything else, food, ride support, and everything else you could ever think of! So I've heard anyway... You see, I've never actually been there. I live The Cycling House lifestyle vicariously through my pops who happens to frequent the place regularly. It's actually a pretty good motivator for me to get out and ride when it's 30 degrees outside, and I think about the big miles he is getting in while having everything taken care of. Oh well, I am sure I will eventually make it out for a week sometime.

Back to the bottles.... I was reading The Cycling House blog by Andy Schultz about nutrition, and I noticed a wall of bottles in the background. I contacted the Owener of the house and he said he would get me a few straight away. I was expecting maybe one or two bottles, but today when I picked up the mail, there were 4 bottles! And to top it off, the mailing label had a nice personal touch on it as you can see in the pic below... Thanks for the bottles guys! Let me know when you get to Vail, CO and I'll take you out for a ride!

4th Day

Got out for a bike ride today! 45 degrees and sunny. Did the cart path loop on the golf course. My first actual bike ride since Oct. 23rd!!! Felt great to get out, and Cayle loved his ride in the Chariot too! Got to watch the Illini pick up the win in basketball tonight. Great day! Off to Co Springs for Thanksgiving in the morning after Natalie's ultrasound. Hoping to climb The Incline while we are down there...

Motivation

Motivation: is the driving force by which humans achieve their goals. Motivation is said to be intrinsic or extrinsic.

It's such a tricky beast! Sometimes you have it, sometimes you don't. Most of the time during the bike racing season, I have it... big time.... sometimes though, I lose it... When the mountain bike racing season was over this year (Aug. 17th,) I decided I wanted to run a sub 6 mile at school with the kids. I was able to stay extremely motivated and knocked out that goal, then when dad asked if I wanted to bike race in Missouri in October, I was able to find the motivation again to train 3 weeks for that... But even keeping the motivation for that was tricky. After my major goal of the season, the mountain bike series, I always have some down time of laziness and low motivation. I had not really had that yet this year, since I started running hard about a week after the mountain bike series.

Now what brings this topic up? It is now November 4th and I haven't ran, or done anything physical other than riding my bike the 3 miles home from work since October 23rd... I haven't done anything except eat... lots!!! And struggling to find the motivation to get started with anything.

It's a good sign though, I have been getting antsy the last couple of days to get out and do something. Run or x-country ski or something. But that's at least the first step, feeling like I should get out and do something.

Until then, I am motivated to figure out a way to get my 7th grade basketball kids to start playing better. We have the talent, but lack good game time decision making skills.

Busy Day

Went to Denver this morning to run a few errands, and see Natalie's brother and his wife Michelle. Finally made it to the "new" IKEA store. Place is HUGE and pretty cool, but very crowded! Too many people for me, but I like to look at the displays, and all the cool ideas! Then off to the Cheesecake Factory. Natalie and I both did good there because after we left we both commented how it was the first time we have ever been to that place that we didn't leave feeling absolutely bloated!!! :-) Then some shopping/browsing at Park Meadows Mall for some maternity clothes, candy, and just misc. items. Back home in the mountains about 6. Makes for a long day, but definitely necessary once in a while to get some things.

Last night I got in an awesome 30 mile 3 hour bike ride. I rode up Spring Creek road from Gypsum, then across Hardscrabble, rode catwalk west, then back east, down Abrams Ridge, and then did a loop and a half around the race course with lights, then home to Gypsum on the bike path. Great ride and the weather was awesome! My longest ride in the last couple of months, but I def. feel ready for the race next Saturday in Missouri!

Pumpkin Patch with Cayle tomorrow to wrap up this busy weekend, and then basketball practice starts on Monday at school.

Goings On

12 days till my race in Missouri. The Berryman Epic 56 miler. I'm almost ready. Sounds like my bike is coming together nicely. That would be 11 days till Cayle and I's 2nd time on an airplane together.

Parent teacher conferences are finished. Finally. That's nice to have over for sure.

So much fun watching the Cardinals in the post season. Hope they continue to play as good as they have. This could be a 2006 flashback. That would be fun!

Going to head to Denver this weekend for a bit to visit with Natalie's brother Ronnie and his wife Michelle. Looking forward to that, and getting some good food (Olive Garden) and seeing a shopping mall... some of the things we miss out on living in the mountains... not that I'd trade by any stretch of the imagination. :)


Some of my favorite pics from our trip up on Hardscrabble a couple of weeks ago...I love the contrast of the solitary pine against the bright yellows of the aspens. The yellow leave covered dirt road surrounded by the changing Aspens.

My wife and son enjoying the beautiful scenery and time together sitting on a log in the grass with the mountains in the background.

Bike Race

On August 17th I had my last bike race of the season. Since then I have been running a bunch (ran a 5:52 mile and a 20:45 5K) and mountain biking about once a week for fun. My weight has stayed down pretty good despite not eating the best and not trying to keep it at any certain weight.

Friday, Dad called and asked if I wanted to do a 56 mile mountain bike race in Southern Missouri. The Berryman Epic. I hesitated a bit because of the lack of specific training, but the few times I have been on my bike I have felt pretty good, so I said sure, I'll give it a shot.

Now I have 3 weeks to get back into race shape. Gotta get the legs used to the pain of racing, and build some endurance to finish 56 miles at a good pace. I think I can do it!

So in 3 weeks, Cayle and I are heading to STL to meet mom and dad and brothers and then south to the race for the weekend. We have a cabin to stay in near Steelville, MO at Bass River Resort.

Wonderful Day!!!

What an awesome day! This morning after Cayle finished breakfast we headed over to Yeti's Grind in Eagle for some scones and coffee. After coffee, I headed out for a mountain bike ride. Up Tick Alley and down Abrams Ridge then back to the house to get ready for school. Great weather, awesome ride! After school we (mom) took Natalie, Cayle, and I to the Dusty Boot for dinner for Natalie's birthday. Cayle loves playing on the outdoor play/patio area at Das Booten Garten. After the Boot it was time for Frosty's at Wendy's. Then home for some couch and tv time. Great day all around. Up tomorrow is time for our annual fall drive over to Aspen and Independence pass to see the Aspen trees changing colors.

Night Ride

Sunday night we went out for a great mountain bike ride. Me, Jeff and James (8th math and 7th social studies.) Went up pipeline, which is one of my favorite trails. Did the Wolverton Springs loop, and headed back down. It was Jeff's first night ride! It was awesome! We left the 3rd gulch parking lot about 730, and had to turn the lights on at just after 8, and used them the rest of the ride. Perfect night, great company, awesome ride! So much fun riding at night with lights!

Vail Rec Mountain bike series 2011

Current standings:
1. Brinton Barry 515
2. Shannon Crockford 480
3. Nicholas Brummer 470
4. Parker McDonald 245

The winner of each race gets 100 points, followed by 85 for 2nd, 80 for 3rd and down by 5 for each place.

So as you can see, the top 3 places are locked up. There are not enough points available for one of us to lose our top 3 spots in the overall.

Assuming everyone has a clean race and we all finish about how we've been finishing, Brinton has 1st place locked up. Before last race I was in 2nd. I finished 3rd and Shannon won, therefore moving him up to 2nd and me to 3rd. Brinton finished 2nd adding points to his 1st place overall.

Several different scenarios could take place, but a couple things will most likely happen. Most likely, Brinton, Shannon or myself will win the race. If I win, that would guarantee 2nd place overall with the 15 bonus points for winning. If Shannon or Brinton win and the other finishes somewhere in the top 5, the top 3 will stay the same. Basically the only way I can guarantee that I move up into 2nd overall is to win the race next Wednesday. Otherwise I will have to rely on Shannon finishing 2 or more places behind me, to make up that 10 point lead he has.

Whatever happens, it's gonna be fun!

2010 New Years Day Bike Ride with Torrelina

Torrelina and I headed out about 1130 this morning to blue skies and sunshine and temps around 20. We headed up the canyon up above the Gypsum Mine and climbed a snow covered dirt road for about an hour, then turned around and headed home. Once back at Torrelinas we reminisced about good times while having a couple of drinks. Great ride, nice day, good beginning to 0'10.



Nice over head view of the town of Gypsum, taken from above town toward the mine.




In the picture above, if you look out to the left, you can see a couple houses out to the edge of the town. If you blow up the picture you can see a blue house. Ours is the house to the right of and behind that blue house. Helps you get an idea of where our house is in relation to the rest of the town.Today I got to use my new equipment from REI and from Natalie for Christmas. In the top picture I have on my new GoLite Wisp wind jacket, and in this bottom picture, you can see my new lime green Camelbak Mule. Both worked excellently! Hope your first day of 0'10 was fantastic as well!

Crooked Creek Pass

Woke up this morning and headed back up to Sylvan Lake (ya... if you jump in it makes you a better reader.....) for a 5 mile climb up a rocky dirt road to the top of crooked creek pass from the Sylvan Lake Campground. We drove up to the campground which is 15 miles from Eagle. It was a nice steady climb that required some good power output. Natalie did an awesome job. Not sure how long it took us, but I would guess a little over an hour. Prolly about 10 minutes to get back down. While we were up there we saw lots of wild flowers and a couple of mule deer.