A new hope....

a cramp on both your houses

2008-08-09T16:07:00.000-07:00

Been a while, I know.

While suffering through another Thursday night offering, I finally experienced something I never had before. Something that I had heard of but never had the, uh how should I say, good fortune to not experience. Cramps. I have had the stomach cramp, I may have invented them. This was a muscular cramp that started in my left calve. I had to come off the front of our group (and dammit I was feeling good) and figure out what the hell was going on. As soon as the left leg felt ok the right calve acted up. I was able to hang in there until the top of the second to last hill when BOOM my left calve felt like it exploded. 10 times worse than before. It was enough for me to quit the ride and hobble home. It seems maybe I went to hard on one of the previous climbs and that may have led to the cramping. I hope I don't get visited by these nasty suckers again. I now understand the severity of them.

Mothballs wrap-up

2008-02-05T11:03:00.000-08:00

Well, Mothballs has come and gone and this year I was finally able to race it. The first year I went out for the race my field had reached its limit. The second year I was sick. This year I pre-registered, then I got sick. I was able to get well enough to get a weeks worth of riding in and race in the CAT 5.

This being my first race on pavement, I was out there just trying to finish and not crash. Two goals I figured I could achieve. I have to say the field did not want me to achieve those goals. As expected, CAT 5 is a mix of good riders that don’t race very often and beginners that are strong but obviously don’t ride in a group on a regular basis. I counted at least 4 crashes and a slurry of other incidents.

The pace was high from the start and never did the field relax for a lap or two. My average speed was 26.1 mph, not slow. I started out on the outside so as to avoid any chaos of the first turn and I drifted towards the back of the pack and got my bearings. After 3 or 4 laps I decided to test myself and move up a bit. I ended up on the front for a lap but as we crossed the start/finish, my lack of endurance and training time caught up with me and I drifted back to the rear. I moved to the middle and stayed a while. About 20 minutes in I moved towards the front again as an attack was trying to take shape. I got back on the front for a lap and half and repeat my retreat to the rear. At this point I tried to rest a bit and draft to save some energy for the sprint.

When the 5 laps to go warning came I started trying to gain a portion of the field every lap to get into good position. By the final lap I was almost where I wanted to be, then a large crash on the back stretch split the field into 2. I narrowly avoid a bouncing bike and got on the gas to bridge to the lead group. Once there I rested as best I could for a moment and we came to the final turn. I had notice (and not liked) that people were coming into the turns tight, slamming on the brakes and then standing up to regain their momentum. I was sitting nicely on the outside and chose to swing very wide, carry more speed and gain more positions. This calculation worked and I moved from the back of the lead group to the middle. I made and initial sprint gaining more spots, rested a second and then made a final effort for the last 30 meters or so. The effort paid off with a 7th place finish and a 36 mph sprint.

Overall, I am very pleased with my result. I figured I was going out there to get my ass handed to me and in many ways I did. I know what I need to work on and I think I know how I am going to do it. I just have to get rid of this cough. Good show.

Christmas Review

2007-12-27T15:00:00.000-08:00

I hope you all enjoyed Christmas. I did. Even without my bike. My girlfriend and I traveled up to Cambria to see my family with a day trip to Hollister to meet my new born nephew Ryan. Lots of family time. As is tradition, we lost a family member over the holidays. I wasn't very close to him but nonetheless, the holidays always have that feeling in my family. I noticed a lot of flu and cold going around before I left and hoped to steer clear of it by leaving town. No such luck. Out of 11 people, me and one other were not sick for Christmas. I am now though. I guess I knew that was coming. My advice to anyone who is starting to feel even the slightest bit sick is to take ZICAM nasal gel. I have used this many times before and it cuts the cold's duration in half. A great little product I must say. Use it as directed and it won't come back. Stop early and you're on your own.
I hope to get on my bike soon. I am leaving town again this weekend as I do a lot this time of year. I guess I will need the rest to battle this cold. So next week I have a date with my titanium steed and the open road. Until then, stay warm and safe.

Getting it off my chest

2007-12-01T14:21:00.000-08:00

It seems like common sense to me. I am both a cyclist and a driver. To be honest, I love both of the activities (really loved driving when I had my Audi S4 but thats another story)
so I feel like I can empathize with both sides of the argument that persists between the two factions. My first concern when driving near bikes is the bike. My first concern when riding my bike is my safety and that of those around me. So you could say that I am very concerned about the safety of the cyclist. I feel like I should be, after all bikes don't have airbags and they generally lose out in a bike/car conflict. But, and this is my frustration, as a cyclist we have a responsibility to minimize the risk of an accident while we ride.

This argument can around in circles forever, I know. I just notice there is some pretty stupid behavior out there that will end up with somebody being very badly hurt. My point is why can't we all ride in a manner that minimizes the risk of an accident. I'll concede that I roll through stop signs, we all do. What I see is people who blow through them without looking. Today on our club ride we were having a bit of red-light bad luck on Foothill. Nothing more frustrating. As we approached a yellow, we were well strung-out and sitting mid pack I knew we weren't going to make the light. Not the end of the world. You stop, regroup and work together to catch the lead group. Good training and good fun really. Instead I watched a bunch of people blow a very RED light putting themselves at risk. Luckily none of the drivers had itchy gas pedals and waited patiently for the guys to get through the intersection (by the way they ran it from behind where I was). I watched as drivers shook there head and muttered under there breath. Just stupid really. We all know better.

This all has a domino effect. These drivers are out there now bitching about those stupid cyclists in their flashy clothes riding like the law doesn't apply to them. This gets spread around and next thing you know, the worlds worst local reporter, John "the Mustache" Palminteri files a very one-sided report on KEYT painting a pretty embarrassing picture of cyclists in general. The attitude of the average Joe is affected by this like it or not.

I'll get off my soapbox now. But before I go lets all take that extra second when we're out there and ride safe and smart. It may save a life and at the very least you may just change the perception of that average Joe when you don't blow through a stop while they slam their brake on and curse you.

Oh yeah, the ride was great today.

Be careful out there, ride hard and smile. Its supposed to fun you know.

Time Off

2007-11-26T15:51:00.000-08:00

I've taken some time off, from riding and this here blog. A previous post explains the blogging. I got on my bike for the first time in a couple of weeks. It was odd to not be riding but needed I guess. Burning the candle at more than both ends had me so tired I was afraid of getting sick and decided to get some sleep where I could which meant cutting out cycling for a little while. Anyway, heavy legs and and overactive heart-rate greeted me this afternoon as I pedaled my way around my usual Hope Ranch loop. It was great to be out there and listen to some tunes and sweat. See you out there, I may be the guy at the back, but I'll be there.

Ramblings

2007-09-11T11:23:00.001-07:00

Well, I have discovered that I am not the best at keeping up with my little blog here. I blame scheduling. I actually think of things to write, then run out of time.

I get to disappear for a while. A much needed vacation on the East Coast. As much as I hate it, it is a good thing to be off my bike. Between sitting all day at one job, lifting heavy stuff at another job all night and pushing myself harder everyday on my bike, I can hardly move today. Good timing (except for sitting on planes across country) to let my body heal a bit. Back pain and knee pain have plagued me this season. An flats, my god the flats. I've never gone through tubes and tires like I have this year. Vittoria should be paying me at this point. As Scott put it, I am due for 5000 miles of good luck with my tires. The latest incident ruined my day 12 miles into the Echelon Saturday ride. Oh well, such is life.

I look forward to the rest I will be getting this week, although I will try to get a jog or walk in everyday. I can't sit still. I also look forward to returning and getting some work done on the Echelon kit and late season riding. Its a nice time of year. The pace slows ever so slightly and the rides take on a whole new attitude and head towards the holidays and colder weather. I can look forward to all that and more. Stay safe!

Clean Air

2007-08-20T16:20:00.000-07:00

I ran away this past weekend. The smoke was to much to bare. I headed north to my parents home in Cambria and spent a nice weekend relaxing and getting fat. I did get off my ass on Saturday morning for a nice ride up Hwy 1. Everything started fine except for the ridiculous climb over the hill to get to Hwy 1. I rode up to Piedras Blanca Lighthouse all the while keeping a nice pace and felling good. On the return trip my body just got mad at me. You know those days that your legs feel like cement? I was there. I made it back without to much suffering and glad that I was able to get out and get some fresh, smoke-free air.

Upon returning home, I was happy to see the air had cleaned up significantly and got on the bike monday for some fast climbs during lunch. Feels good to ride here again. Last week was rough with the smoke and insane work deadlines. I look forward to a time where I can commit more to riding/racing and less to work. Alas, now is not the time. I will still fight to get every mile in though, its just to much fun.

A Certain Structure...

2007-07-23T14:45:00.000-07:00

Intervals....

I know they're good for me, but today I hate them. I guess that is the result of too much time off the bike. I have enjoyed my travel this month, but I am ready to getting my form back. One more vacation/weekend and it'll all be back to normal. There was an editorial in Bicycling this month about the structure and pattern that cycling brings to our lives and I whole-heartedly believe in it. Here's to a normal month.

s

Off I Go

2007-07-20T12:55:00.000-07:00

I will miss my bike this weekend, but I must leave the "two-wheeled 1/4 HP" scene for the "two-wheeled 250+ HP" scene. MotoGP here we go! All this crazy work will be worth it when I hear the roar of these monsters.

See you all soon

s

Alarm cat

2007-07-18T12:12:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of my ferocious alarm/guard cat. I mention him below and thought I would share.

A day to rest

2007-07-18T12:03:00.000-07:00

After a nice ride on Monday and another good Tuesday ride, I woke up with a fair amount of soreness. I was pushed hard at my second job last night (I will spare you of the politics) and I think that really put me over the top.

Yesterdays ride was really fun. Steve and I started off at pace, deciding to relax a bit and just get some mileage in. Of course Chester shows up, or I should say blows by us and we are instantly chasing. We regrouped and let Chester make several leaps off the front but our pace was elevated from the agreed upon level. I chased Chester up the Montecito climbs and caught him several times. I was trying not to jump out and reel him in, but keep a steady quick pace as is more my style. I like to attack at the end of climbs if at all. Anyway, Chester peeled off to get back to work so Steve and I set up the climb to Mtn Dr. Once at the top we settled back into a steady pace and made our ways back to work.

I was 50/50 on riding with the Wed OSM group until I spent 5 straight hours lifting heavy boxes at work. Couple that with my alarm cat waking me up at 5am netting me 4 hours of sleep and I decided it was a needed day off the bike. Tomorrows another day and the bike will always be there. So on that note, I'll see you tomorrow!

s

Back, again.

2007-07-16T13:57:00.000-07:00

I got out today after spending the weekend (since friday) off the bike. I intentionally took friday off with plans to join the Echelon Saturday ride for a bit but my plans changed at the hands of sleep. So I slept in as the group rode past my house. I felt a little guilty but it felt nice to not get up at 630 on a Saturday. I promptly left town and began eating all the stuff I avoid when I am home. Oh well, thats the bonus of riding I guess.

I rode a nice little lunch loop today. Up La Cumbre, over foothill, climb Mission Ridge, El Cielito to Mountain drive. Down Cold Spring through Montecito (dodging the fleet of Range Rovers) around the stinky lagoon and back up State to work. A persistent little headwind seemed to be in my face almost the entire route. One of those days I guess. My legs felt good, they should after three days rest. My heart rate was a little spiky I think due to my morning coffee. All in all a decent ride.

I'm looking forward to getting some rides in this week but I head out Friday night again to see the MotoGP up in Monterey. I'd feel bad about missing my bike but I'll be at the MotoGP. Nuff said.

Go Nicky!