Entries from October 1, 2007 - November 1, 2007
UCI or Bust!
That is what I am going to poster to the bike box the Klugs lent me last night. Am I nervous? Yes. Am I really excited? Yes! Am I going do do well? It does not matter. Am I going to finish? Hell yes! There will not be any DNF's coming out of me. I can over analyze the results of others and how I stack up to them in local races, but it does not really matter when it comes down to it. I might do better and I might do worse. I will not know until I race one of these big races and I am doing what it takes to find out. I am very excited to race with the nations best and equally excited to race in New England. The cross scene there always sounds like it is so much bigger and more fun. I got an email from the organizers of Saturday's race with all sorts of instructions for arm and side number placement, random drug testing notifications and line up / call up procedures. It is all going to be a new and way more structured than what I am used to, it is going to be a great experience, unless they try to draw blood, because I will pass out. I HATE needles. Thanks to Cody for the shout out. 71 hours 36 minutes until the gun!
BenPopper
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V-I-C-T-O-R-Y spells "fifth place!"
technical support afterward. I really enjoy the start time because it makes for a pretty stress free race day. Living in Chicago, a race day in Milwaukee could really be a pain in the ass. With a 2:15 start time, it could not be any less pressured. After a day of doing very little on Saturday we awoke refreshed on Sunday at 8:15. I had not packed yet, so I got up and got my things together. Julie threw some muffins in the oven and went with Molly on a run. She got back, we loaded up the cart and we made our way to the car, in one trip. Ready to roll before ten the only hickup was stepping in dog shit forcing me to go back up to the unit and change shoes. Molly takes some pretty big dumps and we pick them up every time, what is so hard about picking up the little squats your piddly little dog makes? Anyway, a quick hour and a half and about sixty pee breaks later we rolled into Washington Park. This race marked a full calander year since my first cyclocross race ever and it felt really good to be racing here again. The course is rad, there were costumes everywhere (word has it there were only two at the entire day of racing in Illinois, Ted being one), and the friends and super fans were all out in full effect. We got there just in time to catch the 3's race and so Julie and I sat on the hill and took some pictures and yelled alot at Casey and Lyle pushing the front of the pack hard. Talked with Cody, who is just as excited about next season as I am. After the 1/2 women started I decided it was about time I start getting dressed and warmed up. I rode around the park for a while with Jeremy and the Riddler and ended up on the start line way early. I can not seem to stay motivated long enough to warm up properly. It is so important, yet I can't seem to stay focused and do it. Reguardless it allowed for one last pre-ride lap before the race.
straight section. Up a short steep incline around a tree riddled with roots. Weave around another washed out corner, through a half dozen scare crows and up and around another short hill tree 180 combonation brought you to the bunnyhop of death. Confronting riders after shooting out between an opening in some hedges there were two coffins and a pair of 2x4's that each rider had to get over. Totally bunnyhopable it was one of the best parts of the course, every lap I wanted to try to pedal in the air over it, but could never bring myself to try. Up and around the pavillion was almost entirely on pavement. Down and back onto the grass toward the parking lot with a ton of speed straight into another loose hairpin turn. It was slightly uphill and off camber to make it even tougher, definalty a highlight of the course. It kept us on our toes. A quick up and down before a run up with three barriers. The ground leading into the first barrier was super soft and scrubbed speed like a sponge sucking me into the ground. The run up was fun, not insanely long, but definatly longer than most, yet I felt strong every lap. Atop the hill a quick twist around some trees and through a swooping left turn that was just ever so slightly washed out and off camber. A long, stright super bumpy grass section, across the bike path and through a quick right and a left. A downhill left turn to an uphill right turn and a slow swoop to the left. A hard packed dirt climb let out onto the dragstrip of a final straight before a hard, grassy downhill right turn to the finish line.
held that position across the barriers and through the first few twisty turns. Everyone was off the line and riding hot. I was able to hold the pace, but with Jesse in front of me I was getting pressure from behind to not let the yo-yo go so far, so I was pushing my bikes handling to the limits. I had not planned to be third, it was just sort of the way it worked out. I need to make it an effort to come off the line a little further back and just ride the tail end of the train until people simmer down a little and ride less aggrsively. So going into the last loose turn before the short straight I came in a little too hot and washed out, droping nearly to the back of the pack. After getting back up and going again I was not that far off the lead group, but getting stuck behind a slower rider and the solo effort was enough to keep me from getting back on. I did however manage to make up some placing and recovered to sixth place.
of death and the four of us had our own race for forth place going on. Tom seemed to be fading a little and Cole was obviously slowing as well, while Mike wasn't showing any signs of letting up. We held a strong pace for a couple laps and Cole was the first to fall off the back after a short sprint and shortly after Tom let off as well. Mike and I pushed hard through two to go and sat up to take a breather at the end of the lap on the dragstrip. On the dragstrip once again. We were both quietly assesing eachother. He had an effort in him left and I didn't. We had made good time on 6th and 7th, so were were comfortably sitting 4th and 5th. I could have pushed it for one more lap and he probably would have edged me out and pulled away anyway. So I appologized for my lack of pulling on the last couple laps and said something to the effect of that he just had more in him than I did. He took that cue and was gone. We rode across the lap line together, but with every corner and every hill he just pulled farther and farther away. I made the point I wanted to make and I was happy with that. I had remembered my last lap at Gibbs Lake and had requested a reminder on my last lap to take a beer on the run up. So, there I was running up the hill, tired, sweaty, dehydrated and I reached for the ice cold can of Pabst. I instantly remembered why I do not drink during races and one swig was all it took. I had not recovered from it even at the finish line.Thursday. Already? Ready for the most vague update ever?
Redemption in the Form of Cyclocross
After a really hard effort atop the dump on Saturday afternoon, we went back to the lake house for the night. I had the night planned out in my head and brought DVD's and a book in anticipation of doing absolutely nothing in order to recover for the next day. We hung out for a bit around the dinner table overlooking Whitewater Lake and then retired to the couch. We then proceeded to watch Transition, Transition 2, Cyclofile #1 and one episode of the Simpson’s Season 8 before passing out. There was a whole lot of talking mixed in, since Jen and her brother were staying with us and I have not had much face time with her in a while, and I wrote up the Whitewater race report as well. Time well spent if you ask me. Slept comfortably in the dungeon and awoke around eight to take Molly out. October 21st, 8 A.M. in Southern Wisconsin and I was standing outside, only wearing shorts and I was comfortable. Where is the cyclocross weather? Anyway, we sat around for a while, had a cup of coffee and decided to go hit Southern Kettle. Dan just finished his hot new Indy Fab and wanted to test it out on some trails. I wanted to go on its' maiden voyage so I switched to my spare wheels and went with. Lesson of the last few months; do not ride 30c tubular tires on a rocky trail under pressured. For all intents and purposes I ripped the rear tire and after trying to patch it with sealant decided it is not repairable. Not the end of the world, just a mistake to learn from I guess. So after a whole lot of trail hiking with a bike on my shoulder we were in the car and headed back to the lake house. We were taking it easy since none of us needed to be at the race until after noon . We left and made it in time to watch the "3's" race finish up. Lyle is really keeping Casey on his game finishing just seconds behind him. I see wins coming from Lyle once he can figure out how to trick Casey into doing a little work. I am just kidding, sort of.
I got a pre-ride lap in as the race was finishing up and the course was incredible. And coming off of a day at the dump made it even better. A wooded course, smooth, twisty, a pretty good hill and a huge natural barrier made for laps from heaven. The lead-out was pretty short considering how fast our group rides and off road, but was really smooth considering. Around a tree of a 180 into this really neat turn that looked like this " '-, " a 90 degree left followed by a 90 degree right. The dirt was a little washed out and the trees made it so we couldn't lean too much. Down, around and back up to the first set of barriers, a triple set. They were spaced really well and could be run really fast. Up and around a
corner put you on a flat, smooth wide trail that led to the most fun part of the course. A huge tree had fallen in a storm and instead of routing the course onto the beach they changed it at the last minute so that you had to dismount and go over the tree. Of course the path of least resistance for the bike stuck you squarely in the middle of the tree, at the highest point. It was probably about 3 feet off the ground, but every lap I hopped it there, sometimes not even stepping on the tree. Flying like superman. Around a tight right turn and the start of the hill began. Not super steep, it was pretty easy to hold pace and mash up the hill. Then it had this really short steep part right before it basically leveled out for a few hundred feet. Then a left turn and up a steep section out of the woods and then another even steeper section to the top over grass. So happy we were going with the wind at that point. The top of the hill hurt, period. But alas! Off the top of the hill was immediately down a fairly straight long section giving your legs time to recover a little. And my legs were very appreciative as the race went on. At the bottom of the hill the trail swung left and rolled though some soft single track fire road type trail with both up and down sections. Out of that section was a fast hard pack short sprint along a parking lot. Around the parking lot and through a couple posts put us in a section that was hauntingly similar to Whitewater the day before. Bumpy, grassy and slow. It was all up a short incline that led to a really soft almost muddy corner that sent us back down the hill. Again more wonderfully smooth hard packed single track. Through the meadow into a right hand turn that was rutted enough that you could hit it really fast and use the rut as a burm. So fun! Twisted through the woods real quick and back out into the picnic start area. Around a wide left and up a short incline to the last set of barriers. Easy. Right turn and down through a series of switchbacks with badly washed out corners that needed to be taken pretty slow. Then rocket down towards the finish line around some trees, that with speed, you could pedal through and carve hard. It was an amazing course!
I went out and warmed up with Jeremy a little bit, drank a shit ton of water and got on the start line. I have stopped getting hand-ups in 
anticipation of UCI races and nationals where feeding is not allowed. There were familiar faces on the line from Whitewater, but a bunch of people I did not recognize. So I did not really know what to expect in terms of competition. Jesse and Kyle to my right. Brian to my left. They had a preem for the first rider through the first set of barriers so I knew the start would be fast and competitive. I didn't care about the preem so I just planned to stick with the front group. I actually had a plan for this race, which was a first. I wanted to try to stick with the front guys, but not to attack as much as I did in Whitewater. Save a little energy for the later parts of the race and be a little more consistent. Still go hard off the start line and stick with they guys up front, but not worry so much if there were a few more people ahead of me and grab them when they pop. It was nice on the start; most everyone at this level is still pretty friendly, which is really cool. Everyone could be real dick heads and try to be intimidating, but that is totally the opposite of how it is. Some of those guys know they are fast and don't need to be jerks about it.
The rules were read and the whistle was blown. The start was aggressive, but I was at the front of it. I rode cautiously into the first corner to avoid tangling up with guys. A couple riders went around me on the left going fast and choppy. For some reason, their riding style just screamed inconsistent, so I did not sweat it. After the barriers, I was sitting in 6th or 7th place. The train was tight and I wasn't worried. Kyle was right behind me and I could feel his intentions. He wanted the front and at almost the first chance he nudged his way right in front of me, which I did not mind at all. After the first hill climb we were already loosing riders and Kyle made another move to get up front, and I followed him part of the way there and got on Jesse's wheel. An aside for a moment. I would like to comment on what it feels like to ride a wheel like riding Jesse's wheel. It is strange to get behind someone and ride within inches and know that you can follow that tire where ever it leads you. I knew that he was going to pick the right line; I knew he was going at a good pace. It was just really strange to have so much confidence in someone I have never ridden with. It felt great to be riding with Brian and Jesse, whether or not they were going slower than usual. Anyway. At one point on that second lap Kyle took off. Early enough that I even thought it was too early. He was always within sight, so we were keeping a good pace on him 
and Jesse and Brian must have not been too worried either. We rode like that until just about the forth lap when Brain and Jesse decided that Kyle was getting a little too far off the front and they really turned it on. I did not catch it and slowly fell off the back, I was able to keep it within ten seconds for a while, but as soon as they caught Kyle, the three of them worked me off the back a little more. I was riding by myself again, but as opposed to yesterday, the course was enough fun and protected well enough that I was just having a good time going fast on my bike. I had Kyle within sight and well ahead of 5th place, so I was pretty comfortable. I knew Kyle was fading a little so I was concentrating on keeping a steady pace and readying myself for a 2 to go fast lap to try to catch and gap Kyle. Coming up on that two to go lap I got really close to Kyle. He noticed and got back into gear and pushed hard, putting a strong effort to hold me off. Coming into the start of the second to last lap I was feeling a little tired and rode slightly slower. The hill started to hurt pretty badly, but I made it up strong. Kyle kept the heat on and started to pull away from me again. So, I settled into 4th place and was very happy with it. I concentrated on staying upright and riding smooth. Enjoyed riding the last lap and finished strong. I am pretty sure I rode a lot of that race with a smile on my face which was in stark contrast to how I looked the day before.
So this wraps up my first year of racing cyclocross. Next weekend in Washington Park I will be in costume and am pretty excited to revisit that venue. And hell, to finish the race next weekend in the same fashion as I did last year will be pretty sweet as well, here is to giving these races everything. I am pretty excited to have the chance to earn enough upgrade points to upgrade to Cat1 this season as well. Using some of these guys as a gauge as to how I will do at the national level is good. I should not get completely destroyed, but I have my work cut out for me. I am hoping at these really large UCI races there is less of an ability gap. All of the elite races I have ridden in, I find my self sitting between the leaders and the pack behind me. Riding alone and struggling to make time on the leaders. Hopefully the UCI races will have a more solid gamut of riders so there will be people to work with. I guess we will see. The east coast races are going to be highly attended by some of the best. Julie got plane tickets for the east coast on Friday. I am in the process of reserving a room for Jingle Cross. In the last year I have gone from spending money on airfare to fly to far away cities in order to ride my bike like a brakeless speeding idiot through red lights and traffic jams to having a fancy licence, national level goals and support. Who would have thought?