Winter Racing and Unfortunate News

It's 1:00 am and I've been watching the uncut version of "Comedy Central Roast of Pam Anderson" with half of my head clogged full of snot. I've been getting my winter racing schedule wrapped up a 21k xc ski race, 5k snowshoe, and the quadrathon (which is a 5k run,5k bike,5k snowshoe and 5k xc ski) this makes the xterra look one weekend and a 5k trail run the week after and 12k xc ski race the week before all of it.

It also looks as though the sea otter is a go this year. I've been really wanting to get out west and do this race since I bought my first mountain bike...a mongoose sycamore complete with RST front fork and chromoly frame....technology has come a long way hasn't it? Anyway I made the attempt to get out and ride the trails across redbud at nine mile that i've tried to create but still too soft I may just scrap the idea and focus on skiing as I am going to have plenty of time on the bike with all the racing I've got lined up during the 2009 season on the EVOMO team.

On a saddening note a fellow racer had passed away recently and while I did not know him personally, Kyle was a great competitor and just by chatting in passing from point a to b I can honestly say he was a stand up guy and represented the sport well. We were in the same age group so I got know him a little bit, but never the less, Thoughts and prayers go out to him and his closest friends and family.

Workin in a Coal Mine

So with the last two weeks worth of snow I was able to make it out to 9 mile for some winter snowshoe fun across redbud road for more of a marking run through the woods so that I can lay down a good base for some mtb riding.

Not much for racing plans until January in a 12k XC ski race.

Check Ergon for the contest of all contests.  Send a pic of your haggard grips and you may win a grip of your choice.

Merry Christmas to all.

Back to the basics

Okay so after the experiment with the mac had me scratching my head, I think it may have been a little to busy for the blogger folk out there.  So I made the executive decision to bring it on back to the blogger world.  Simple, easy and to the point. 

Thoughts of Trans Iowa occupy my mind on a daily basis.  I already am training and getting lists of things needed to conquer the course.  I am not going to Iowa to make a half assed effort I am going to ride strong from start to finish if it kills me.  Tim Ek-zilla will be joining the Rukus that of Trans Iowa.  I am really looking forward to this and am counting down the days to May 2nd.

100th post a good way to end the blogger experience

Well now that I've got the new site done to my liking until I learn a few more tricks in the HTML Code world.  I will be leaving this site behind and leaving you this link to the new one.  Stop by leave a comment, say hi, or whatever.  I've got a few more things I want to add but really wanted the guts done first.  

Save this on your blogs.

12 Hours of Blue Mounds is cancelled due to the large amount of rain during the overnight hours.

Firecracker was fun.  I really do like that course, but man do I have some work to do.  I had no start speed, but climbed very very well and stayed in the Big Ring during the whole ride.  I can't complain too much about that consider how friggin tanked I got over the fourth of July!!!  It was nice to see the familiar faces again, but I should have kept my focus oh well...at least it wasn't 2 days before 24/9.

Looks like I'll be on superfan detail at Cheqfat this year as the 50 ways didn't pan out (I need costume ideas people).....what a bummer I feel I've been hosed this year on the lottery side of things no go to Iceman and Cheqfat.  Yeah you could say I am a little bitter, sure, why wouldn't I be.  At least 24/9 doesn't have a limit and lottery.  

Levis 100

Since about last wednesday I've been battling a nasty stomach bug that really knocked me out and even missed a day and a half of work, but that wasn't going to stop me from riding Levis. Eric picked me up at around 5 am.....yuck!!! my stomach grumbling all the way there and still extremely tired, hell I was tired all the way up to the start, during the first lap, while sleeping in the back of the car, you get the story. I couldn't seem to get the sick feeling in my gut to go away and after talking with Lee about what happened out there and talking to Darko Marko and Creepyfriendly Esquire, I got pissed off enough to stop acting like a pussy and get out there and try it again and in a way I am glad I did as for one thing I didn't finish DFL and for another I got a good traning ride in. The downside was I couldn't keep NOTHING down which is hard to do a race like this with no stabilization of incoming to expended calories not good for endurance racing. Point is listen to your body take a break if you need to it's a long season. Anyway, I finished 4 laps, Jesse and Marko rocked the SS championship and now I get to do a WORS race this weekend in my favorite course in which causes me more injuries than I care to mention...Eau Claire.

Slimfast is good for endurance racing? I learned that this weekend, but kind of curious as I am still looking for something I can take down quickly and not choke...Ideas?

Secret Secret training session tonight has my confidence back to normal....no I wasn't at nine mile and we'll leave it at that.

As Scott listed, 33 days till nationals....YIPPEEE! It's going to be FAST this year and Chris...don't worry about the second log pile in the flower trail as it's already gone. The right hander in Ho Chi Minh got me I think I've been jinxed.

Lumberjack 100 Report

I had left for the lumberjack and thought it'd be best to take the carferry across as it was quicker???? What I didn't know at the time was that with the flooding up towards Manistee and the huge detour around the national forest I didn't arrive to registration till 8pm and to the hotel around 9 and I still had to eat yet and make up my lap goody bags and bottles and before you know it, it's 4 am on race day time to eat stretch and head out to the venue. I got to there and immediately searched out a pit area and got situated next to the niner/sho-air singlespeeders deejay and fuzzy.

Lap 1:
I was suprised at the road start, but not dissapointed because I was the first rider trailing behind the lead group knowing that I didn't want to blow up trying to keep up with those guys before the clock even started. I started catching people right off the bat at the long, sandy, almost endless first climb and was moving quite well for the majority of the lap and then along came the river created by local flooding easily hub deep and got worse with every rider going through it and was quite long as well. The next suprise was the climbing on the later portion of the lap. I was thinking that with the course being 100% singletrack maybe the first series of climbs was all there would be.....WRONG. Granted I love climbing and I expect it in most cases but I was suprised when I saw the final product of the Garmin registering 31000+ feet of elevation over the course of the roughly 100 miles. I felt pretty good and stopped to pop another gel, payday, cliffbar, swig of coke and off I go again.
2:08 was my lap time.

Lap 2:
Again climbed like a mad man feeling no build up of lactic acid and still making passes, but decided to shut er down after the river again to make sure I had enough left in the tank so I did latch onto Scott's wheel for the remainder of lap 2. When I arrived to the pit area I felt like I had to take a deuce so bad so off to the portajohn I went that took way too much time and bad timing at that, but I did feel a little better and continued on to lap 3. 4:27 through 2 laps this included my time on the john.

Lap 3:
I felt okay on the climbs and carried the bike through the river once again to save it from serious harm as I can't afford to replace anymore wheels, hubs, forks, etc...At this point going into the climbs I felt like puking hell I almost did like three time including in the pits going into my final 25 miles and I was already in a terrible place on the third lap already eating my "Cracked Cereal with Bonkberries" and ready to call it quits in the pit area as my lunch was on its way up to say hello I told Scott that I didn't feel so hot all of a sudden and he knew what was up and said I should get back out there quick then and finish it up (Thanks Scott) 2:37 for lap time.....ouch!

Lap 4:
I felt like crap wrists were numb, stomach was screwed up, legs were gone and if you ride you know the feeling. I kept wanting it to end be done with and so on with every corner that I went around I was looking for the cars in the parking lot. I was glad it was over, happy I finished, dissapointed with the final half of the ride, but proud that I held it together despite the events towards the end. I mustered a 2:54 final lap and I wasn't at all thrilled with it knowing full well that I can ride much better than that. But hey you don't learn anything by going half-assed only wondering what if I went balls deep and gave it my all. With that being said lesson learned and even with bonking finishing mid-pack overall is a small victory in days and weeks of ups and downs. The important thing is to keep my eyes on the prize for 24 hour nats.

Congrats to the World Bicycle Relief guys (Chris and Brad) for strong races respectively.

No more racing due to family functions until Levis 100 in which I am extremly excited about as I love this course I'll be interested in seeing what parts they use for the course and granted there is a map but it doesn't say nothing unless you've been more than the one time I was luck enough to visit

I have to thank the guys at EVOMO for all of their support this season and great threads, Rudy project for keeping my vision and melon in check, Nuun for electrolyte replenishment, Monster for giving me that little extra boost when I am feeling sluggish, SixSixOne for keeping the blister demons at bay and thanks to manitou for keeping the Turner glued to the track. Also, I would like to welcome aboard Fluid specializing in recovery drinks that get me back up and riding again right where I left off.

Lumberjack Short Format

1st lap and 2nd lap doing great riding split times I had envisioned prior to this on the 3rd I cracked like an egg...humpty dumpty to be exact. I wasn't about to spend all of the funds to go to such a race to DNF especially since this is the furthest i'll be away from home this so I stuck it out and finished I don't know what place but I do know the time and it was disgusting. I'll leave it at that for now.

Off to the Lumberjack Baby!

Countdown Is On!

The countdown is on to the..........

The countdown is also on to getting my new stans wheel built dt spokes/nipples and american classic disc hub. This is what's left of the old one.

After this is taken care of it's off to Michigan for 100 miles of fun. No worries about work, housework, or any other work for that matter just me and the bike. Does the top 20 sound like a lofty goal in this race?

After the lumberjack it's right back at it with the Levis 100 and no WORS until the firecracker! Normal ride tonight looming thunderstorms were not going deter me from riding the trails at nine mile into the dark. Happy Riding!

EVOMO @ Big Ring Classic '08

A race on the home course was to be somewhat of a turning point for the 2008 season and while my legs had that snap I needed to convince me that I was ready to have my first breakthrough ride of the year. I would find out later that the course had other plans for me and many many others as well.

All week long I was feeling pretty sluggish and felt no power after the WEMS opener 12 solo last weekend, but after pre-riding on Saturday and Sundays warm up I had no idea and when this happens I am usually on top of my game. The start went as planned got to the outside and hammered until I started to feel lactic and heavy legged and settled into a rhythm from there. As the mad dash wore off I began to pick up riders on the climb and continued on to lap number two where I really started to pick up the pace some 2 minutes faster than the first lap and on lap 3 as things were going just as well I cut the sidewall and along the bead. The stans sealed both enough to make it just in time to cross the finish but with riding gingerly through ho chi minh to keep what air I had left in it on laps 3 and 4 I had managed to lose the group I worked so hard to drop earlier on and with that 8 minutes as well. I did catch some of the bunch but some were just out of reach. I did have my best WORS overall placing and have a good amount of confidence going into the Lumberjack.

I am a little dissapointed that they didn't use the trail across redbud or the pines between the start finish or even the flower trail, but thats okay I live 10 minutes away. I do plan on riding Saturday at the Underdown trails towards Tomahawk and maybe Smokin Spoke on Sunday if the weather cooperates.

You Know You're a Cyclist When....

You know when you're a cyclist when....(feel free to add to the list and I'll start)

1. You can effectively pronounce the last name Eatough (as in eat off a plate)
2. You have become a full fledged meteorologist overnight.
3. Minivans and import station wagons become more appealing based solely on the amount of gear and bikes they can hold.

Continue on...leave a comment
See you all at nine mile and yes I am still a little sore from the 12 hour.

EVOMO 4th and 5th at WEMS Opener

What a way to spend Memorial Day weekend than on the trails racing for 12 hours. Friday night brought me up to Green Bay to stay with Jesse and Steve from Performa Racing prior to meeting Brando at the roadhouse. Getting up at the butt crack of dawn isn't always in my best interest as I am night person, but with 12 hour on the bike ahead of me there is no way I could do any wrong today as I jammed to Rise Against over and over again all the way down to Kewaskum.

We didn't arrive with too much time to spare as I had barely enough time to say hi to fellow EVOMO Teammate Tim Ek. I ran my bike to the start, grabbed my camelback and gloves and by the time I turned around they started the race and I was instantly dfl and stawicki comes screaming by as well just before the trail narrowed I couldn't latch on to him as he was long gone before it opened up and there I was fighting an up hill battle. At this point on my 4th or 5th lap knowing that our times were all within a minute of each other and no letting up it would be extremely hard to catch up before the 6 hour started. I was feeling okay on the first pit to switch camelbacks and bottles and it wasn't until about 7 1/2 hours into it that I started to lose some substantial power and not riding the big ring in places on the course that I normally would and the climbs were starting to not feel effortless anymore. I think this was a case of lack of calories coming in and relying on hammer gel and pay day bars to get by not as planned...I really needed more time to get setup correctly...lesson learned.

So here's the deal
I did 25 laps 117 miles and a 5th place finish (this is only 60 or so less than at 24/9 last year what a difference a year makes)

EVOMO:
Tim Ek 4th place 27 laps @11:46
Justin 5th Place 25 laps @11:24

Treadfest 2008

I wasn't sure what the weather was going to bring to the Lake Geneva area, but as luck would have it, the rain held off on race day.

I didn't know what to make of the race as I was still sore from the weeks workouts and felt lazy rolling up to the start, but on the plus side I was claritin clear as I continued to fight off the allergies and lung issues stemming from it.

Anyway, I actually got off to a decent start but fell back on the climb as the lactic acid built up fast. I had time to recover on the first drop as there was a logjam and by that time the lead group was gone and by the time I got to the colorado heartbreaker I was already 3 minutes or so back and not riding in the big ring to make a long story short the first lap was the worst of the five. I finished in about the same placing once again but I know my better rides are ahead of me and this weekend in kewaskum and rhinelander will tell a different story.

Lost and Found = Iola Recap

Photo Courtesy of Rusty

I gave it a crack and rolled up to the line for my first WORS expert race and I really didn't know what to expect, but that was fine since I didn't have any large lofty goals going into this one considering the fact this course hasn't always been nice to me and there were so many unknowns about starting, pacing, and so on, but as usual I end up losing focus on all of that as quickly as I lost focus in my contacts so after 20+ seconds of screwing around that I am off again and chasing the five guys that went by and caught 2 in which one I think Jerrod was his name wanted to trade me lungs for tech...sometimes I would definitely take that in a second as I am still trying to improve those skills and appreciated the comment to be honest. Second and third laps were uneventful as my lower back started to act up. Fourth lap brought caffeine which set up for a great fifth lap and finished with fresh legs which should not have happened lets just say I need a good dose of learning how to deal with the pain train for the entire duration of the race or maybe I am just a slacker...who knows.

So with that being said I know I could have done better than 17th in my group, but hey I went through this very same thing 4 years ago and bounced back to a 4th place finish so we'll see what happens as it's the start of an exciting year.

The next stop on the WORS dirt circuit is Treadfest in Lake Geneva. Hope to see ya there!

EVOMOVISION

Evomo has stepped it up a notch once again transforming to 3D technology in which I would like to call Evomovision. I should have mine soon and they even come complete with the glasses to get the full effect (hardy har har).

This week has been kinda up and down, cold and warm, rain and sunshine, I am sure you get the deal. A nice hard effort on Tuesday taking the singlespeed up Rib Mountain 5 times and nice tempo ride on Wednesday with some sign sprints had me feeling a little bit on the low side today so just a good stretch and light spin was all that she wrote today. Iola is the race of choice this weekend and am quite excited to be riding on hopefully some stable trails.

Rockcut, Spring, and More Riding Etc....

With the amount of riding I have been doing lately it's been really hard to waste time in blogosphere, but with a huge project in the works and research needing to be done, I figure I could get some sort of update out just to solidify that I am still alive and kickin.

To start with, I made a stop into Point to pick up Nate, hung out for the night, and headed off to the Rockford area for 30+ miles of racing. All intel gained to this point was that the course was 99% perfect and only a "few" muddy sections. We arrived in what I thought was plenty of time and I don't even think the RC Trailcrew were ready for the amount of people looking for a race to do and consequently enough we stood in line for what seemed like hours and had just enough time to get on the bike and head to the start.

The start was more or less annoying with no real wheel to latch onto since I was the very last person to line up but before I got to the entrance to the singletrack, I had caught Russell and began to reel in another small group of chase riders and then all hell broke loose with me forgeting how to ride in axle-deep mud and going down within the first 10 minutes. So when I thought I got that out of the way I began to have cleat problems and realized I needed an earlier release angle only after I smashed into a tree and even after falling I still wasn't unclipped. I was quite pleased with my Rudy helmet and glasses not getting destroyed during impact so I'll get to use them again at Iola for the WORS opener. Regardless of the conditions and pulling the plug after the first lap, I was able to gather information on what I did well and not so well. I felt rock solid on climbing, great on the logpiles and singletrack speed and did well on speed on flats and false flats. I do need to work on my descending speed and skills. Nate had a smokin race and so did the Lalonde bros...again.

A month from today I will be embarking on my first laps into first 12 hour solo event of the year and I haven't even put more than an hour on the MTB and this fact is just sickening. Sorry there are not any pictures as I am sure the mud kept the photographers from noticing my stellar kit and boyish good looks.

Secondly, Wisconsin strikes again with it's lovely forecast of rain everyday and if that's not forecasted it's snow. Now I am sure everybody is sick of hearing about snow, cold, and people like me whinning about snow, but it just doesn't want to let up....at all. I am dangerously close to asking the EVOMO guys when I can move in since I may just go over for the Sea Otter next year and chill at their killer race lounge as it sounds like they had a hell of a good time last week. makes me proud to be affiliated with such an awesome group. Speaking of which, I need to go and pick up their latest hoody.

Finally, Good luck to everyone braving the conditions at Trans Iowa. Judging from the pictures it looks like a mess out there and I hope to see you all at Iola.

Turner Nitrous = 24.9 (I Think It's a Sign)

I finally finished the Nitrous after stans installation and new drivetrain. I took it out here in hood and stop at Rib Mountain Cycles to say hi and out of curiousity (spelling) we threw the nitrous up on the scale in which read 24.9 I think it's a sign of things to come 24/9 is my biggest race of the year and I am getting very sick of waiting for the long overdue spring temperatures and I need to race and ride on the dirt again and I will get that chance this weekend at Rockcut. Finally, after months of skiing and riding in the basement it's finally time to leave a wake of destruction or at least that's what I hope to accomplish. Anyway in what's already the strangest of weeks I am going out for ride in 20+ mph winds. I love Wisconsin!

Back to the Blogophere

After days and weeks of the same routine wake up, ride, work, ride eat and sleep...repeat. I've fallen off the map of sorts, but that just means i've been getting in some killer ride time. Winter weight is just about gone and the EVOMO kit enured it's maiden voyage since the weather was oh so nice. Traffic in the area kind of sucks but once you get past Wausau school forest on KK it's not bad you always have those one or two suv's that don't give a flying fu
Anyway, I've got racing on the brain although I didn't get into the chequamegon, I'll figure out a way to get in....something huge....

Random Thoughts:
I wonder what the 24/9 course is going to be like this year and who is coming? Worlds Conflict?
Who is all jumping to expert?
Lalondes vs Kabush Who wins?
I need more Nuun
I need to finish lyrics and tracks
All Nirvana CD's are mine

Well off to dream land visions of 4 hours of riding dancing in my head

Sold Out

The field is set for the 2008 Lumberjack 100 as registration is sold out. Plenty of familiar faces and names will be in the field such as Eatough, the O'Dea's, Simonster, Mr Scoletrain, Musto, the list goes on but what a field. No Landis is shown though. He's scared of me as much of a monster I am and I can respect that (i'm kidding). It would be nice to have seen more of the Wisconsin folk make it out there, but with the Subaru Cup taking place, it's understandable considering how much I enjoyed it last year...yes even the Jameson that Gen-X Justin was so gracious to share with many of us.

Right now, many, including myself, have motivation and spring on the brain. I did like Scott's list of motivation as it got me to think of what has been keeping me going all winter with the skiing and biking on the snowshoe trails in single digit temperatures with Nirvana's "In Bloom" rockin out on the IPod. There is just this satisfaction of knowing that at 10pm on a Saturday night most people my age are either playing Warcraft on the computer or at the bar doing the 12 oz bicep curl and looking for their baby mamma. Nope not me I am just one guy out on a bike and in this case with only one fricken speed. Only car in the parking lot is mine but you would never know it's me even if you parked next to me, however, it's safe to assume. I am really looking forward to the 2008 season to begin as I know at least one thing will happen for sure and that's simply the fact that the snow will be history....finally! Happy Trails and I look forward to seeing you all at either Rock Cut or Iola.

Time to Ride

Last night back to nine mile for some night riding on the snowshoe trails. The rain that welcomed us back to wisconsin last sunday followed by colder temperatures set the trails up perfectly for riding. Same rules still apply in regards to staying on the trail or go over the bars as I had one close call and the 2nd time I did hit the eject button and over I went. Snow is much more forgiving than pavement or Honda CR-V's but of course getting snow in your shoes is something I could do without. I would have liked to have gone longer but my right foot went completely numb and my eyes were starting to freeze shut. Dude I love wisconsin! I am more than likely going to go out again tonight since all next week the temps are going to be too warm and the trails will get too soft unless you have a pugsley. So skiing again all next week with the warm temps.

New Kit

And Things Are Back To Normal

Well I am back from florida and back to 6 days a week of riding and skiing. I finally have most of the goodies I need for the year and just a few things here and there and I'll be all set for 08. Unfortunately I didn't get into the iceman. Oh well I don't stand a chance to win a single dollar on a scratch off why should getting into a race via lottery be any different I guess I'll keep my fingers crossed for chequamegon, but wont hold my breath. Things in Florida went awesome, visit downtown disney and the Virgin Megastore to pick up a copy of the kurt cobain journals (very interesting stuff) did the seaworld thing (shamu doesn't smell very good, but fun experience) rode some rollercoasters at universal studios and drinks at the city walk. Florida was a great place to visit but now it's time to get ready to do some racing and prepare for a trip possibly out to the southwest.

Evomo is everywhere including Universal Studios.

After some beverages at Bob Marley's Tribute to Freedom!

Then partying with Orange Avenue these guys can cut some good tracks

The Walrus is a huge animal but very cool. Speaking of Walrus it's time to freeze and ski.

See Ya

I am off to Florida. Updates to come later! Enjoy to snow.

Englewood Always Up To No Good

What better use for uncle sam's money? Vote EVOMO 2008....or just buy some stuff.

Anyway these guys have some cool stuff on the way...take a look.

Yesterday was press check day on the 1st of many new 2008 Evomo designs. "Its a fact that it takes about two weeks and anywhere from 4-12 revisions on a design before it even goes to production." Said Evomo Special Agent Bryan. They also spend an hour or two carefully selecting ink colors and supervising the first few shirts that come off the presses. At Evomo I am proud to say they have a tack-on sense of design and an attention to detail that make the shirts or hoodies something you will want to wear. Plus they are just so friggen cool!

This particular design called “VENOM” they are using water based inks for the red and grey colors and a soft plastisol ink for the black (technically dark grey).

And shirt #1 comes off the press…

These shirts are going to be up for sale early next week… msrp: $20 USD. Do us all a favor and buy one hell buy two cause EVOMO is simply explosive.

Down Wit Da Sickness

Q: What do you get when you are surrounded in cubes by 200+ people 5 days per week most of which having kids and a Wisconsin winter?
A: A nasty flu and a migrane in addition to no training for this week


Okay, now that my whinning is done I hit the trails again tomorrow and I've done some registering and buying goods from many and awaiting the new stuff from others. Lets see I've got the EVOMO kit straight outta the hands of those completing the firearms training and GTA (grand theft auto) training sessions...the hardwork paid off guys. Rudy glasses and helmets are on their way as is my sixsixone gear.





Registration for the Lumberjack 100 is in same goes for cheqfat and iceman (keeping fingers crossed on the triple crown). Registration is half full so if you want in better do it soon.
One week left in cube hell before going to Orlando, FL for some much needed fun and relaxation. I may sneak away for a jog or some weight training.

Are We Respected as Cyclists or Lambs Awaiting the Slaughter?

http://www.velonews.com/article/71866

Rudy Project

Now to add Rudy Project to the list of sponsors for 2008. For starters, I'm kinda addicted to eyewear in which I've owned my fair share of other brands and spent tons of money on them, but this is one complete line I like from top to bottom for sport and casual wear. Also, they carry some cool looking and cutting edge helmets and very nice packs as well. Stop by their site...totally rad!!!!

www.rudyprojectusa.com

It's Never 2 Cold 2 Race in Wisconsin

This winter I was looking for something to get my competition fix. Birkie was out of the question as I was not that great on the skate skis yet and arrowhead just isn't on my plate yet either, so I did what was the next best thing and close to home, the Badger State Games. Here's how it shook out.

Saturday: 10k XC Ski

I couldn't have been more confused on how this whole ski racing thing works. They started the classical (my class) and freestyle at the same time. This was such a mess once we hit the course in full stride as classic skiers searched for the track and the freestylers were looking to get by us and pick up some speed. I got tangled in this and lost a good 40 seconds or so trying to get my skis and poles untangled and back on my feet. I took on the challenge of catching up to the main group of classic skiers but with the clear track ahead of them and my navigating around the slower skiers they checked out and just continued to put on a huge gap. I was climbing super strong on a very aerobically challenging course. All in all I was very happy with the completion of my first ski race and look forward to the Birkie next year. Gold medal #1 completed 1st in class and 6th overall in the 10k classic.

Sunday: Quadrathalon (5k run, 5k bike, 5k snowshoe, 5k xc ski)

I was obviously sore and it was noticeable prior to the start of this one, but I had no clue what I was in for. After a confusing pre race meeting in which I trailed off in wondering what gearing I should have put on the singlespeed after finding out there was no single track. I immediately knew that 32x16 wasn't going to cut it. I took off from the start line in a comfortable pace for about 200 meters and then we hit the snowmobile trail. The trail was way to soft and was like beach running....we don't do this in Wisconsin so we don't understand how difficult it can be. After being gassed on the first stage I took to the bike. I wish I would have carried my cadence sensor on me today cause I was well under geared for this probably guessing around 120+ rpm this was mistake number two as the first was picking this day as the first time I ran since July 4th. I was obviously cashed out at this point and I still had two stages to go and out on the snowshoes I got out there and while it was a wild workout it was cool cruising through some of the singletrack. Finally I got out on the skis and at this point I'm at that stage where my focus isn't there and running on fumes I crashed before I even hit the tracks and once more on a sharp right hander which was the third mistake as I should have used the skate skis for more control when the focus wasn't there. I finished strong and gained a spot or two but I think I nabbed a top twenty overall and another gold in my class. Not bad for part timer. Bring on the heat, dirt, and mountain bikes.

More Skiing - Little Biking

Well Sunday I made yet another attempt at the double (24k of xc skiing and 24k of mtb on the snowshoe trails), but for the sake of not digging up the trails cause of the soft base again I went down red bud for an out and back after I was done with the 24 kilometers of skiing. I can definitely notice the improvement in my stride and my climbing stride seems to be above average or at least I feel that way while climbing the alps of nine mile. Tonight I did another 24k of classic xc skiing but in the form of 6k time trials on the iced up classic tracks. Felt good and am really looking forward to competing in my first xc ski race and the quadrathon this weekend.

I had a chance to test out a lot of the Nuun hydration products and what i've found was the Kona Cola is almost identical to flat coke this being my favorite. I also like the lemon lime and the fruit punch.

2 bowls of cheerios

2 bowls of honey nut cheerios early in the morning and no lunch was not a good idea if I wanted to follow up my 2 hour xc ski friday with a 3 hour today... It's been a while since I bonked this bad. What was I thinking? Well I was thinking I needed to get out and do something since it has been the warmest day at 23 degrees for over a week. I mean roughly a full week or more of negative temperatures sometimes with the wind chill hitting -40, needless to say I watched a few movies on the trainer. I am going to try to sneek out on the snowshoe trails if they properly freeze after the 30 plus degrees tomorrow, I'll be sure to ski again tommorow as well but I'll try this great thing called lunch before I go.

On another note, I will soon have my snowshoes and Garmin. I love the fact that I have yet another method of cross training during the winter plus I got my own equipment to use at bsg quadrathon...5k run to 5k bike to 5k snowshoe and wrapping it up with the 5k xc ski. my drawbacks in this race will be the fact that the xc ski portion i've decided to go classic and rockin the single speed in addition to never being on a pair of snowshoes.....this will be interesting. Wait I'll be doing the classical xc ski race on saturday as well. I'll keep you posted on the results.

keep on keepin on

Thursday Motivation - Frustration

6-8 inches of fresh powder and single digit temperatures. I wasn't sure what I was thinking but I was already in the parking lot. I strectched and put my newly arrived bottle of NUUN in my pocket of the citrus variety (almost a grapefruit like taste in my oppinion and pretty good) Anyway, I got to the trailhead looked for the burried classic trails and began my expedition in the middle of the snow storm. During the 30k adventure the wind would blow sheets of snow right in front you. The beard grows icecicles and sticks to the fabric in your jacket and your eyelashes freezing to each other.

Speed and effort were the products of powertripping managers that like to step on your toes and take your ideas as if they are their own and interupts you while speaking...I need to move on and do something else. Remember it's not who you know it's who you blo...I think you get it. The joint draws so many parallels to the movie officespace. What's so hard about treating co-workers with respect?

Snekkevik for me is cancelled as I am not skiing with -23 windchills and risk getting sick for the Quadrathon. Can't wait to get out on the bike again.

Can't Stay Away From It

So I decided to not go to the swap and do some xc skiing and some singletrack riding later last night. As long as the temps stay in the 20's or lower the snowshoe trails are a great way to get some fun riding in during the winter. 4 hours of riding and skiing on saturday and about an hour on the hockey skates today before watching the cowboys get whipped. If you guys want to go for a night ride let me know and we'll set it up heck maybe even make a small event out of sounds like a fun way to break up the winter months.

Here's whats up

Wednesday was my 27th birthday and celebration was inevitable yet fun. The food and drinks were great and I enjoyed the company.

I didn't really didn't ride much this week an hour here an there but nothing really exciting. I did attempt my weekly ride at nine mile but the light wasn't as charged as I would have liked so I had to cut my workout short at 2 1/2 hours. Today I plan on taking the wife out on her first xc ski expedition on the classic skis while I go along side on the skate skis and later tongiht it's another double except probably an hour on skis and 2 hours on the bike so total workout today is roughly 4 hours.

I ordered my first 6 tubes of Nuun hydration tablets. This is going to be the greatest thing during the long races or rides. Just drop one in your bottle and it dissolves on it's own. Definitely cool stuff. You can get some at http://www.nuun.com/

Also i've once again joined forces with sixsixone protection. They have great gloves, shoes, and other protective items to keep you comfortable and safe on the trails. http://www.sixsixone.com/.

Singletrack in January

I've been able to get my trail pass some time back and felt the need to do something other than skiing so after doing that for an hour. I unloaded the bike and took to the snowshoe trails. The toughest thing about riding at this time of the year is how you can't ride off the side cause you will go over your bars, but at least it's not painful. Anyway, base training has begun and am looking forward to 2008. All I need is my EVOMO kit and some flashy green Ergon grips.