CXMas then On to 2010

Well, with 2009 coming to a rapid close it's now time to really finalize what 2010 might look like for me.

Wrapping up 2009..
But first, there's no better way to end the year than with Team Seagals CXmas non-race! This was an absolute blast! Over 120 riders turned out. Some wanted to "race". Others, like myself, just wanted to get a good ride in an enjoy the festivities. There's nowhere else in the world where you can ride 20+ miles on a kick-ass course, drink PBR, chug egg nog, eat bacon, and do shots of Jamison all in a 2-hour period while riding alongside Santa and a dude in a bunny suit!!

The highlight of my race was definitely the thought of winning the unofficial egg-nog chugging contest! Actually, it was so unofficial I don' t think the guys planning on having a contest until some of decided to make it one in the middle of the race!

After a big group of us got lost out on the course - and of course laughed it off - we rolled into the egg-nog checkpoint. The first nog was so good I had to have another! The second was twice as good, so I asked what the most nogs consumed so far. When I heard Drew Black had done 3, I of course had to man-up for 4! I was a little worried these 4 drinks of pure holiday cheer would be making a quick exit from my body on the next hill - especially with the shot of Jamison whiskey we all had to consume about 5 miles before!



However, my hopes and dreams of being the egg-nog champion were dashed by one guy that did 5, then by a highly competitive egg-nog'er named Bob who chose to not only beat 5 but smash it with such force that noone would even think about matching him. He did 15 egg-nogs! My hat, and gut, are off to him!



But what an amazing event it was and I'm now even more looking forward to more non-races next year!

On to 2010....
2010 looks to be an awesome year of racing. The newly formed United Federation of Dirt recently announced the following fantastic news:
"For 2010, we are promoting 17 traditional cross country mountain bike races divided into two leagues. The Eastern League is comprised of 8 races and the Western League will be hosting 9 races. The Endurance League brings together 4 races focused on long distance and the ability for the human spirit to suffer. The events will take place on some the best singletrack that the region has to offer, including the ever popular Castlewood State Park, Spanish Lake, Wilson Lake, KS and newly minted Swope Park. "

Plus, Karen and I are planning on doing more 12/24 hour endurance races. Karen is going to be racing for the Gary Fisher 29'er crew in 2010 so we're very jaz'ed about that!

I've also started running again. So thinking about doing some long trail races (Berryman Marathon), the Berryman Duathlon, as well as maybe even puttign another Adventure Race on my calendar. Unfortunately, the calf issues that stopped me from running and Adv. Racing are flaring up again. Going to the Dr. on 1/7 to hopefully get some answers.

Happy Holidays everyone!

24-hours of Pride and Disappointment

The Dino 24-hour race started at noon on Saturday. The venue was fantastic in Versailles State Park . It was a big park with a lake, campgrounds, pool, and showers. Perfect for this event.

Our TA was definitely the best one there. We were pimpin' thanks to the Ghisallo tents, Christmas lights, boat batteries, inverters, tools, bike stands, stoves, and healthy supply of chef-boy-ardee, soup, and cheetos!

Racers had to stage their bikes in front of the pool. To separate the field, racers had to do a Lemans start with either their front wheel or seatpost in their hands. Then re-assembly was required before the riding could begin.

The 13-mile course started with a 7-8 minute steady climb. Not too steep at all, but consistent with short plateaus tricking you to think you were at the top. Once you got to the top, you were treated to some awesome sweetness of single-track that knocks the socks off anything we have around St. Louis ! In fact, the rest of the course was absolutely amazing!

Now for the results…

I can not tell you how proud I am of my woman! Going into the Dino 24-hour race she was hoping for some women to race against as motivation to keep going for 24 hours. Well, she got her wish as there was one other female in the 24-hour solo division. BUT, she was a pro racer and had a 4-person support team, RV, and trailer to help her. With the pro woman putting time into the entire field of racers (men too!) Karen’s race became one of pure persistence and stamina. And if you know Karen, this is her strength! She went on to complete 10 laps over the 24-hour period taking short breaks between most laps to fuel and rest.

She did all 10 laps on her singlespeed and looked strong the whole damn time!
What a great season she’s been having. She’s got the Endurance Womens class in the Midwest Fat Tire Series locked up. She also won the womens class at Rapture and the Berryman Duathlon.

I on the other hand, I had a very disappointing experience. I performed a triple-lundy over the handlebars on a couple strategically placed logs next to the trail on lap 3. I really didn’t feel hurt at all and jumped right back on the bike to keep going. I was averaging about 1:10 on my first 4 laps and doing well to keep my avg heartrate about 142 to make sure I was in it for the long-haul. I kept taking short breaks between laps to change bottles and refill the gel flask. It wasn’t until I hit lap 7 that the pain really set in and I slowed way down. It was pure darkness by now and my neck was really bothering me with the added weight of my light on my helmet. My knees were screaming from hitting them on my bars when I went over and a good headache had set in. Mitch blew by me like I was standing still and so did many other racers. I just wasn’t having fun anymore! I finished lap #7 and sat for awhile talking with Kerry Rascher (he was there kickin’ it on the 12-hour) trying to figure out whether I should try another lap or quit. It was about 9:30pm and I made the decision to quit.

I showered then did my best to support Karen, Mitch, and Greg. But had to duck into the tent to get some sleep about 1am.

The predicted rain finally came about 8am on Sunday. It started very light for the first hour then got a little heavier between 9 – 10 when most racers were finishing their last laps. The crew fought the mud to get their last laps in before time limits made it unnecessary to start another lap.

There were 12 men in the 24-solo category:
Mitch got 2nd
Greg got 4th
I wound up 8th – not sure how that happens?!

Mitch enjoying his post-race OJ. I think he ate the McD's biscuit in one bite!

Kerry took home 4th out of 6 in the 12-hour and was very pleased with his first 12-hour race. Especially, given his 2009 injuries. Well done!

All-in-all, It was a fun weekend with everyone in an awesome atmosphere of mountain bike racing!

Here it comes..

Well, a couple races have gone by: Tall Oak 6-hour and the ICCC Castlewood race.

Tall Oak
Karen - 1st place in the solo women w/7 laps. She looked strong the whole race!
Todd - 11th place in the solo men w/9 laps. I lost a lot of time (20 mins) messing with my tube and took kit during two different stops at the tent. I had it in my back pocket but it was causing a rash on my back - just like at rapture. So I was trying to zip tie it to the bike in different places. I really need a saddle bag!!

ICCC Castlewood
Karen raced with Loreen in Expert to try something different on her singlespeed and got 2nd
Todd raced marathon as usual and got 4th behind Dwayne, Jeremy Bock, and Mitch. Eric Schunk was on my tail the whole damn time!!

But the real test is now upon us this weekend - 24 Hours of Dino!!!
Karen and I are doing it solo. We're making the trip with Dwayne, Mitch, and Greg. Dwayne and Mitch are experts at these events. Greg is about to have his cherry popped like us. It'll be first 24-hour race exclusively on the mountain bike race. We have done many 24 and 36 hour adventure races, but that's a whole different ballgame than sitting on a bike for that long!

My rear-end is already dreading the pain train that is about to travel across it!
My stomach is dreading all of the sport drinks I'm about to throw down.
My legs are shaking at the 24-hours of pedaling they're about to do.
My brain is wondering what sick twist of events caused it to think this is a good idea.

But it's going to be awesome!!

Berryman Duathlon

If any of you haven't done the Berryman Duathlon yet, put it on your calendar for 2010. Bonk Hard Racing puts it on and it's a fun race. You won't think it's fun at all while you're doing it, but afterward you'll look back and enjoy it.

I did enjoy it last year, but since I haven't been doing any running in 2009 I chose to sit out and watch Karen go round and round.

The race starts/ends at the Berryman Campground shelter. The typical format is to run the Berryman Trail in one direction from the shelter then come back in on the road, then bike the trail in the other direction and come back on the road. This year they mixed it up and really minimized the amount of time racers spent on the roads giving them more trail time.

The race also allows racers to choose whether they want to run or ride first. Teams are also allowed for those that don't want to do it solo. Karen chose to ride first along with one other guy. Everyone else ran first. She became a human spider web cleaner until the guy decided to take his turn at the front.

Karen was a little worried about her running going into the race since she's been doing so much biking but it didn't show!


Coming off her 1st place finish at Rapture the girl kicked it again and won 1st place in the womens again and also took 4th place overall. Awesome! ...and yes she did it on her single-speed again!

Along with winning some nice swag, she won a very special can of Spam. But I have my eyes (stomach) on that trophy!!

The race was a blast to be at. Team Trail Monster was out in full force in their new Segal kits passing out the PBRs. The race directors, Jason and Laura Elsenraat are always an absolute pleasure to be around. Plus, got to catch up with some old AR friends: The Sonas, Brian Greaser, Buckley, as well as make some new friends.

Don't miss it in 2010!

Well smack my a$$ and call me Sally!

.... yeah that's all I can say after seeing the below beauty!

I have found my next bike and it is still a Niner. Apparently being shipped to dealers by the end of the year. I'll be getting my order in ASAP! Hopefully, the strong relationship we've built with our Niner friends this year will help in these efforts.


Many guys on mtbr.com are complaining about the paint job, but I freaking love it!



Not sure about the brake mounts here and how reliable they will be. But I'm definitely not an engineer or someone that understands how strong carbon is!

The Pain Train

We had our own version of the pain train this weekend at the Rapture In Misery 6/12 Hour race on Saturday in Trenton, MO. I had planned to do the 6-hour but Karen was committed to the 12. So, how could I only do the 6?!?!?

We decided to do the festive thing and camp out with other racers at race HQ Friday night. Needless to say, there's a reason I don't like to camp - I like real beds!

We got into HQ about 9:30pm and setup our tent and canopy next to Mitch, Greg, and the Momentum boys. Good times were ready to be had. We got up the next morning and got the site race-ready.

Karen of course chose to ride her single-speed for the event - toughness!

The race started at noon on Sat in a Lemans start. We had to run about 100 yards up a double-track road which was very rough/rocky. I started way in the back and walked most of it. Given this was my first 12-hour mtb race, my plan was to start very slow and take it easy. The goal: Finish. I wound up walking up most of the hill with Mitch. Karen wasn't too far behind us.

After getting on the bikes and riding about 1 mile through some open grass fields we entered the singletrack. As promised by the race promoter, the next section called the "Boneyard" was heinous! It was very rocky. The kind of big rocks that stick up out of the trail causing end-o's, flats, and knock wheels out of true! I wound up riding behind Greg through the boneyard but we weren't riding much. With all the riders still so close together as one guy put his foot down it caused a ripple effect to everyone behind him.

The rest of the 9 mile loop was awesome! Plenty of flowing singletrack, nice climbs, fun downhills, and a little open field for hammering. The first lap took less than 55 mins. It was going to be a fun day!

The second lap went by quickly as I spent most of the time chatting it up with Zach Brace. He's a smooth roller through about everything! I stopped to change bottles and that was it through lap 3. I didn't know where karen was but I heard she was looking strong. I rolled through laps 4 and 5 feeling very strong! I started taking in some solid food, that helps keep me going.

Also at RIM representing the Lou were the Segal boys. I got to see Hoffmeyer and Grotthoff a few times and they were always in good spirits and looking strong.

Laps 6 & 7 were a little slower as I took an extra 5-10 mins to sit and take in more food. On lap 8 at about 7:30 it started to rain pretty good - worse than the sprinkles earlier. Half-way through the lap the trail was really starting to get wet and slick. It had gotten dark by this point and I hit a slick downhill which sent me to the mud! I quickly got back up but walked down the rest of the slick hill. I didn't realize at the time that I'd lost the battery to my main headlamp. By the time I realized it, I was at the bottom of the hill and didn't want to go back up. Figured I'd get it on the next lap.

As the rain picked up and the trail got muddier I regretted not going back to find my battery. Fortunately, one of the Momentum guys gave me his spare light before going out on lap 9. The rain really started coming down harder and most of the rocky sections were impossible to ride since the rocks were so slick. Then after 45 mins the borrowed headlamp went dead! the light on my helmet is good, but not nearly enough for those conditions. Zach Brace came by me on his 10th lap. At least he was the only one to lap me but I was keeping an eye out for Mitch to come by too.

On the final climb up to the finish I saw Karen ahead of me. It was hard to catch the girl! She was still powering up stuff with that one gear. The following section of trail was a new section so it wasn't packed down. You couldn't ride it and you couldn't even push your bike becausee the mud would get caked between your tires and frame/fork. So I practiced my cyclocross carry and kept moving.

Lap 9 took almost 2 hours! Given the trail conditions I had made the decision to call it a day. I saw no need to go back out for more of that hell. I rolled into the finish and to my delight they said the race had been called. I wasn't even tempted to change my mind. I waited there for Karen to come through a couple minutes later.

To both of our surprise, the race officials told karen and I that we'd both gotten 1st place!! She got 1st in the 12-hour solo Womens category and I got 1st in the Mens 40-49 12-hour solo.

At the awards ceremony we got some nice gifts for our efforts. Another surprise was that I placed 3rd overall in the mens 12-hour solo. Mitch took 2nd and Zach got 1st.

RIM is very well run event. They have fun with making sure you're enjoying yourself while you're out there riding the pain train!! Put it on your calendar for next year!

Womens 12-hour solo podium

Mens 40-49 12-hour solo podium

Overall mens 12-hour solo podium

Oops!

Guess I've done a really bad job at keeping all of you that read our blog up-to-date. Sorry mom!

It's a very busy racing season right now. There's been a race almost every weekend and August is one of the busiest.

If I had to highlight anything over the last couple of months it would be how awesome Casey is doing! The three of us took our Summer vacation in Colorado this year. We chose the mountains instead of the usual beach scene since Casey had never been and it gave us the opportunity to compete at the USA Cycling National Championships. All 3 of us qualified at the MO State championships just two weeks prior. I'll post some pictures from the trip at a later time.

Now back to my original point...

Since Nationals Casey has been lovin' the bike. She's been racing strong, bringing home hardware, and loving it. We're very proud of her.



Karen has continued to be super strong and consistent on her single-speed. The only race she hasn't raced on it was at Nationals. Since the race start was to climb a ski-slope I think she made a wise decision!

I had some good results in a couple races (2 - 5th place finishes) but have struggled to find my groove lately. Thinking it's a pre-race nutrition issue. Beer and eggs are good pre-race meals right!!?!?

Anyway, there's the update mom!

Training Weekend

It was a great weekend for training.
Friday:
I took half the day off and rode the St. Charles Trifecta (Lost Valley, Mattson, Klondike) with John Peiffer. It was actually the first time either of us had ridden all of Klondike (Donkey Kong) so that made it a blast! It was a tough day for me fitness-wise, but then again I was riding w/John!!

Saturday:
Even with al the rain on Fri night the upper trails in Castlewood weren’t too bad. The bottoms/flats were totally unrideable! Karen was in Castlewood helping with the Team Revolution Singletrack mtb clinic. They were having a blast doing drills, contests, and giveaways! I rode for about 60 mins: Love, Grotpeter, Rollercoaster.

Sunday:
Karen and I took advantage of a beautiful day and decided to go ride the Berryman Trail. We heard there were a lot of trees down, but that it was mostly more South of Berryman. We were also a little worried about mud but knowing how rocky that trail is didn’t think it’d be too much of an issue. We started at the Berryman Campground and rode clock-wise. I was personally surprised how muddy some parts were. We walked around some sections to avoid tearing up the trail. Even though the trail marathon the day before and recent horse traffic did that already. As far as the downed trees went, there were 5 downed trees in the first 2.5 miles that you had to climb over/under. Then there was only 5 more before we got to Brazil creek (Mile 14). Then the fun began. There were 31 trees down in the final 10 miles. The section from Brazil creek back to Berryman was hit hard. It’s going to need a lot of work!
But overall, it was a beautiful day and we spent it outside. It was also Karen’s first big ride on her new single-speed. She did an awesome job riding that trail with all of its washed-out sections and long climbs. She’s rockin’ that bike!!

After a stop at Taco Bell and Dairy Queen on the way home, we spent some time cleaning the bikes before resting the legs while watching a movie.

"Missouri mudfest"!

It's 9:40pm Sunday night and Karen and I just unloaded the car and completed the initial unpacking after seeing the state of Missouri and enough mud to last the rest of the year!
There were two races this weekend and it was a road trip. I of course obeyed the doctors orders and did not race, but Karen was on a mission!

Karen was in Columbia, MO for a work conference Thu-Fri so I rode out to KC with Mitch Johnson, Greg Ott and Dwayne Goscinski and met up with Karen at race HQ.

The weather forecast was not promising for the weekend and it did not go back on it's word!

- Sat - Bone Bender 6 hour in KC - absolute mud! Karen chose to ride her geared bike and save her single-speed for Sunday. People were dropping out within the first 30 minutes because it was nearly impossible to ride more than a few minutes without having to scoop the mud out from between you wheels and frame. Karen flatted in the first 15 minutes, came back to the start and swapped out her whole wheel from her other bike. Then the girl suffered a broken derailleur and like a pro turned into into a single-speed. But after a couple more miles the chain broke. There was just too much mud, sticks, and debris to get everything working again so she had to bail. But the girl gave an A+ for effort!! Dwayne once again proved to be inhuman taking 2nd overall and 1st on gears. Mitch got 2nd on gears. Greg was smart and stopped after the fist lap to save himself and his bike for Sunday.
- Sun - Tour de Tick in Neosho - Very wet and muddy but the trail was accommodating. Karen proved to be a force to be reconed with on her new singlespeed. As usual she was steady and strong. Three girls got a lead on her in the first lap but by the end of the race Karen locked in a solid 2nd place finish. At-a-girl!!! Congrats babe!! By the end of the race all were covered head-to-toe in mud. Dwayne got 1st, Mitch got 3rd, and Greg got 4th. The STL crew may have been small at Neosho but they represented and brought home some hardware!!

Here's some pics..

And my personal favorite... Jim taking time out of his busy day to point out to Karen that in order to ride a bike like that it requires a chain and a derailleur!

Karen's new ride

Well, this was the first weekend sitting on the bench and it sucks!!! But the shoulder is getting better each day.

Karen on the other hand was out riding her new single-speed on Sat and Sun. The girls got a new ride and she's liking it! Its the Specialized Stumpjumper Marathon. Very nice!

Ouachita 2010!

Well, Ouachita 2009 was an absolute bust for us! We (Karen, Loreen Matson, Kerry Rascher, and myself) made the 8-hour drive down to Odin, AR to race in the Ouachita Challenge. It's absolutely beautiful country down there. Karen and Lo were entered in the 60-miler. Kerry and I were stupid enough to enter into the 80-miler. We pulled into our luxurious 1970s resort The Shangri La at about 5pm, met up with Keeven and Sonja, then headed over to eat the provided pasta dinner and get our race numbers.


blah, blah, blah, we ate, registered, got bikes gear ready, went to bed, got up, and lined up to start the race.


Let's just get to the race... The race started at the local high school. We road maybe 2 miles on pavement then another 3 on gravel. Most of this was uphill but not too bad at all. Then we entered onto some double-track that was more climbing. At this point, Karen, Lo, and Kerry were somewhere behind me. I was making good time climbing up the field - maybe going too hard from where I had started - I could see the lead pack in front of me.


After more climbing on the double-track we hit a long straight section of downhill. We were finally able to let it rip a little. However, about half way down and at about 20mph the guy to the right of me hit a stick about 2" in diameter. The stick broke in two and half of it shot right into my front wheel. Yep, I immediately turned into Superman and flew over the bars, landed on my shoulder before doing a couple flips on the ground. My bike actually flew over me and landed about 6 feet down the trail! I immediately felt the pain - it f'n hurt! Everyone around me was very cool and asked if I was allright. What was I going to say, "no, I'm a wuss and I'm going to cry"! Heck no, I caught my breath and jumped up like a gymnist.


I waited for Karen to come by (she is a Nurse Practitioner) to check me out. She stopped her race for a couple minutes to look me over and confirmed that nothing was broken. She even pulled the stick out from being wedged between my fork and wheel.


After sitting there for a bit and contemplating my situation in this 80-mile race, I gathered the following facts: shoulder hurt like a #$#$, I busted my camelback bladder when I fell so I had no water, I broke 1 spoke and bent another, and I had a throbbing headache! With all of those facts, I grabbed the bike and was calling it a day.


You'd think the story would end there but it doesn't. After getting back to the high school and having the EMTs clean up my cuts I drove out to the first aid station to see other racers come through. I was hoping to catch Karen and the crew to cheer them on.


I got to see quite a few people I knew. Sonja came through, Matt Hoffmeyer came through, but where was Karen, Kerry, and Lo. Finally they call came out of the trail together. Kerry had fallen and was bleeding very bad on his arm. Karen used her nursing skills and savviness to tape up Kerry's arm with duct tape. Kerry needed stitches pretty badly.


There were two hospitals close: Hot Springs (45 mins away) and Mena (30 mins away). Since Hot Springs was on our way back to STL we all hopped in the car and headed to Hot Springs. the race was now over for all of us. Lo had already had 2 flats and was out of tubes anyway. Plu Karen and Lo had spent so much time helping me and Kerry, their race was over anyway. Kerry wound up with 10 stitches.

I went to to see the great Dr. Matava yesterday and yes, I tore a ligament in my shoulder and have a separated shoulder. Now I'm off the bike for 3 weeks and prone to arthritis when I'm old!! Fortunately, it wasn't bad enough to require surgery. That would have really sucked donkey balls!

So, Ouachita Challenge 2010 here we come for some sweet revenge!


By the way, in case you hadn't heard yet, the amazing Keeven finished the race riding on his back rim with no tire or tube for at least 4 miles after getting 3 flats. I belive he still wound up 5th in the 80-mile single-speed class. Right on Matt!

Lost Valleu Luau

So the first mtb race of the year is finally under the belt and the series is underway. The Lost Valley Luau had a huge turnout! Hopefully, this is a sign of the newly formed series and not just a fluke. Sure, it brings more competition out, but it’s good for the sport. The true indication that it was a great turnout was that Team Segal ran out of tall cold PBRs!!

The weather was great. In fact I should have dressed down one layer. The course was in good shape. They threw in a brand new 1+ mile section of single-track that was just built “yesterday” by Gorc. Many thanks to Gorc for building the trail. It looks like it’s going to be a great section – once it gets packed in. I would have preferred to not race on it yet – still way too rough and soft in some spots.

Karen and I both switched to racing in the Endurance/Marathon category this year, which is a big step for me from Beginner last year. But I hoped my endurance base from years of Adventure Racing and my recent training would pay off.

Plus Casey stepped up her game and took on a very competitive field.

So now to the results.. Overall, I was happy with my finishing place (13th out of 31). I finished right behind Eric Shuck who has historically done very well in the endurance class. He and I actually worked together for quite a bit of the race. That was fun, until I put some distance on in the rough new single-track section then decided to keep hammering. Of course he then later came past me working with one of his other teammates and I was too gased to hang-on. Lesson learned! I also got to work with Ghisallo teammate Greg Ott a little bit. Greg gave me some good advice on throttling back a little at one section in anticipation of an upcoming hill. I think I forgot his advice too quickly, because at the subsequent hill he blew by about 3 of us and I never saw him again. Great job Greg!!

The endurance format is to do as many laps as you can in 3 hours. I finished my 4th lap in 2:40 and was really starting to fatigue. The 5th lap was painful as I really started to cramp in my groin, quads, and hamstrings.

Casey was the star of the day and took home some hardware with 2nd place! I wound up 13th and Karen got 3rd. Karen was of course looking as strong as she normally does!

Here’s a link to the official results: http://mwftcs.com/images/stories/2009results/2009Race1LVLTotalResults.htm

So, next is Rim Wrecker down at council bluffs. It’s an entirely different course with 99% singletrack and more hills.

Another multi-hour effort in the saddle!

Went out to Lost Valley with Karen this morning and we rode three laps in hopefully the same direction as the race next weekend. It's always fun to get out and ride with the Mrs! I'm pretty lucky like that - she actually likes to mtb as much as I do.

After three laps with her, Peiffer came out and rode 2 with him. I have to admit that the 5th lap was hurtin'! The legs and arse were screaming! John then peeled off to head home and I was able to get more riding in. My goal was to get in 5+ hours and I hit it.

There were a few muddy spots in the typical spots but the trail is in great shape.

Christmas in March!!!

It's been like Christmas here in the Holtmann house the last few days. Karen is building up a new 29'er singlespeed (frame yet to be decided) so her "new" Reba Race came to the doorstep yesterday. Picked it up off eBay for $294. Apparently, Santa Cruz Bikes were cleaning out there garage. They sold a ton of stuff!

Also, 2 new frames showed up for me. Schweeeet!!
My new Cannondale (Ghisallo team) road frame and my new Ellsworth Cross bike. As much as I want to ride my mtb, I can't wait to ride these jellys!!





I'm guessing I have a new thing for the color "white"?!? Never really new this before. Maybe I just really like cleaning my bikes.

Finally!!

Finally got in a long ride today. John Peiffer and I set a goal of getting 50 miles in. Which I desparately needed since my season so far has been limited to 20-30 mile rides. Not good considering I'm planning to race endurance this year as well as races like Bone Bender and Ouachita (80 miler)!! Am I nuts or just happy with pain?!

Peiffer and I rode from our houses into C-wood. We rode rollercoaster, down grotpeter, then out riverscene. Just past the wash-our area I broke a spoke. We were less than 10 miles in! So we road back to Johns house via the Love trail and I put on one of his spare wheels. Thanks again John!

So we took off one more time but went straight down Ries this time. Our goal was to get to Greensfelder and back before 1pm so we needed to get out there. We headed out on Al Foster then took 109 to Melrose. After some good climbs and road work we were at the Greensfelder trailhead.

After one loop on Greensfelder we decided not to do another. The horses and weather have really taken a toll on the trail. Rough as crap! So we rode back to Castlewood.

Once back into the wood we had to take on Blue Ribbon and Lone Wolf. Then back home via Justins. Once back into the neighborhood we were about a mile shy of 50. So we did some laps in the hood, hit 50, and called it a day.

John was man enough to ski at Hidden Valley the next day. I took the day off to recover. Yes, I need more rides like this prior to Ouachita!!

Last week in Colorado

Karen, Loreen, and I went out to Colorado for the week to PLAY!!
And play we did. We called the Super 8 in Salida our home for the week because it's very close to historic downtown Salida and on the main drag for each access up to Monarch mountain. The place has a kickin' continental breakfast with some tasty pre-made french toast, bagles and powdered doughnuts! All we needed prior to a day of fun.

Salida is a blast itself being 20 minutes away from the slopes, it has pleny of bars with great CO brews and restaurants with good eats. There's even a sweet bike shop for all your needs - including the repair of my broken spoke!

Sun - got into Salida about 5am. Slept until 10'ish then took in the fantastic singletrack! (Yes, the picture to the right is a rose between two thorns!)
Mon - chose to avoid the holiday lift lines and hopped on the bikes again - more singletrack!!
Tues/Wed - Ski'd in the fresh new powder. The snow just kept coming Thu - We were back in the mountains outside Salida on the singletrack.
Fri - Pulled a double today. For the first time in my 2 years going to Salida we actually got there before the lifts started. Ski'd until 1pm. Then went back down to Salida to ride the trail again. What a day!!!

Now it's back to the real world






.

Ride vs Race

Spent the whole week in Colorado skiing and biking - yes both.
We pulled into the driveway at 2am this morning. So needless to say, Karen and I slept in until 10 am. Those sequence of events kept either of us from even considering Froze Toes. Not that I ever really considered it. My goal for today was to get a long ride in - road and mtb. Given the bitter cold temps and all the household things needing to get done after being gone for a week K and chose to do a road ride out to 6-flags and back.

Congrats to the men in yellow that raced Froze Toes. Looks like the team was well represented.

Goodbye Orbea - Hello Niner

I bought a used Orbea 29'er frame in 2008 just to try out the whole 29'er thing. It was a hard-tail Lanza. Turns out I would up consistently choosing to ride the Orbea instead of my full-suspension Ellsworth for all races, even Burnin' at the Bluffs and the BT Epic.

So even though I didn't do nearly as well as I'd hoped in the BT Epic, I survived it and loved the 29'er hardtail feel. Thanks to TK, Ghisallo is getting it's team members killer deals on Niners. So I had to upgrade and bought a Niner Air9! Fortunately, all components from the Orbea except the seatpost fit the Niner.

I took the Niner out on its first ride yesterday in Castlewood with John Peiffer and needless to say, I'm thrilled with the Niner!


I really wanted the frame in orange but they stopped making the Air9 in that color in 2009. I thought about looking for a 2008 but they also increased the rear wheel clearance on the 2009s so I had to stick with a 2009. (The Orbea had very little clearance and riding in mud was an issue.) So I went with the "Atomic Blue" color. I love the color but am not thrilled about one aspect of the color - it glows in the dark! Yep, it literally glows in the dark.

What the heck..

You know, I've been building Web sites for over 10 years and have never had a personal blog. So, what the heck, I may as well give it a try. I can't promise any highly intellectual thoughts or muses. Can't even promise it'll be entertaining or that I'll use proper syntax, grammar, or spelling.

It's MLK day so I'm sitting in the office trying to get caught up on things around the house. It's also 26 degrees out. The road ride I had planned for the day is scrapped, so I'll probably head down to castlewood for an hour or so. It's supposed to be a rest day, but on a sunny day off work it's hard not to ride!