Making up for it

I raced in 0 road races this season due to lack of interest since I wasn't able to race my key races.  Now I have done 9 CX races and looking forward to another 2 months of CX!  Hope to make a long trip out to Indiana for a December cross and possibly over to PA as well.  


For anyone that likes to ride but has never tried a Cyclocross race, try it!  I don't think it is possible to like to ride a bike and not like to race cyclocross.  Maybe next year the season will move back into August, why not?


Halloween CX
Day 1 involved me having a horrible first half of the race, I couldn't seem to stay on the bike.  I was not pedaling smartly and instead was spinning out in corners, wasting energy, and my rear brake was hanging up.  That resulted in me slipping backwards throughout the race but not completely separated.  I went from irritated to laughing:

The last 2 laps I settled down and starting thinking while I was pedaling instead of just grinding away.  That resulted in me pulling past a few riders, staying upright, and ended with a 4th place finish in a small B2 field.

My plan for Sunday was to not make the same mistakes as yesterday and instead pedal efficiently and push hard on the small bumps but get quick recoveries in the other sections.  I was feeling good and only made a few small mistakes until I crossed the bridge leading up to road and was able to pass a rider who fell in the water.  I then made the turn up by the road and felt my rear tire go flat.  With no spares in the tire pit (stupid) I rode half the field thinking about options to realize I had none so DNF for me on day 2.  When can the mental part align with good luck and the physical part to produce a good finish? 

Climbs with Character

On a group ride this Sunday around Thompson I was reminded of how much I like to climb roads with some character.  Some climbs are fun while others are just work.  To me the fun climbs are those that actually offer something besides just an road with a positive grade.  Some climbs I find not fun include Fairmount east of river road, Mentor rd, basically any climb with many cars that is out in the open and is straight.  Some of the climbs that I have been on locally on the east side that have character to them include:

Berkshire Rd. - Gates Mills: A 1 3/4 mi climb with great character.  It has a few curves, great houses lining the road, low traffic, tree cover throughout much of the climb, and changing grades throughout.  This is probably my favorite climb although it could be made better if there were a few steeper sections.

Sperry Rd - North of Arboretum: about 1/2 mile climb but has everything including steep sections (12%+), rarely any cars, narrow somewhat beat up road, full tree cover, incline hits you then lets up and then hits again, and a valley beside it that gives you an idea of how much you have climbed on the short 1/2 mile section of road. 

Durkee Rd - turn east off of 608 in Burton: short .4 mile climb but hits 10-12% briefly and climbs 200ft on dirt and gravel.  Even though it is straight and doesn't have much cool scenery it doesn't need them because it is dirt and gravel.  One of my favorites to do in the spring.

Climbs with character in PA:

Ligonier Pike then 271 - off of 985 just south of Johnstown PA: 5 mi climb with 1/2 of it in the shade, great views for most of the ride, rarely see a car until you get to 271, average grade of 4-5% but finishes with 8-9% sections.  This is by far my favorite climb but its a 3 hour drive from Chardon.

Linn Run Rd - Linn Run State Park, PA: another 5 mile climb with average around 4-5% but not the steep sections of Ligonier Pike.  Road starts with good pavement but then alternates from broken pavement to a silt surface depending on what time of year.  Follows a river throughout the duration of the hill with incredible views.  Very light traffic, narrow road, and one section around mile 4 that pitches up to 8-9% for a few hundred feet.  Not a real difficult climb but definitely a memorable one with plenty of character.

Please share any others I have missed that are around Cleveland (especially if they are riding distance from Chardon).

Lack of fitness

Its nearing the end of May and my fitness is not where it was last year and just my overall bike confidence is low.  Since it was raining this morning I decided to use the time to compare 2010 to 2011 YTD.  By this time in 2010 I had 44 rides in, 1,000 miles, and 45,000ft of climbing; 18 more rides, 400 more miles, and 20,000ft more of climbing than this year. Time for a long weekend of riding in the Laurel Highlands. Hopefully I will find some useful purpose this year for the future fitness since I am not able to ride any of the TOTV races this year *sucks*. 

Roubaix 2011

This was my 2nd year participating in the Behren's Roubaix ride.  Completely new course departing from Orwell and double the riders from last year.  We started off pretty casual as the route led us south.  Then the first section of dirt/gravel hit and the pace increased.  There were quite a few strong and already in decent shape riders in the field.  I tested my fitness by staying with the lead group on every push early on.  I started checking my HR and noticed 180-186 being displayed for sustained periods.  Amazing how riding fast on crappy roads takes your attention away from your legs screaming and your HR approaching max.  The groups would split up but then come back together throughout the ride. 

The roads were a mix of pavement with lightly graveled roads thrown in throughout.  There was no thick gravel except in a few small patches and not much mud either.  Made for fast riding and constant attention being required to miss the nasty stuff scattered throughout.  There was also a hill on Warner Hollow Rd just off of 534 that was interesting.  Road was rough and narrow, hill was curvy, and the look of the area reminded me of area of the house from Psycho. 

I was able to ignore the pain throughout most of the ride until around mile 25.  My legs started cramping and I decided enough with riding with the lead group. 

Ended up with 35.8 miles (which includes us going the wrong direction to only have riders behind us laughing as they made the right turn) no flats, no wrecks for me, only minor falls for other riders, and drawing giveaways along with beverages and fruit at the end.  What a deal for $0 to ride!  I am left with same feeling from last year, can't wait for the next Roubaix ride.

Dang it

Words that seem to flow easily off my tongue today.


Perfect day for cyclocross with temp in the high 50s, sun out, and a large participation.  I arrived at the Kirtland Park before 11 for my 12:45 race to ride the course and figure out any challenging sections.  The course was quite a bit different than last year, all for the better in my opinion.  I slapped the ground on the amphitheater on the pre-ride of the course and that seemed to set the tone for the day.  I was hoping for a decent result as I have been actually riding my bike besides races (well 1 day a week) so part of my fitness has came back over the last few weeks.


Lap 1 began and I was caught up in traffic with about 30 riders in front.  Safely down the hill, around the high speed corner, and then the slight uphill around the tree.  To the right was a concrete barrier on the side that caught my attention.  That 1 sec of fear coupled with the group bunched up caused me to oversteer and come down hard on my shoulder.  That was definitely my nastiest CX crash and one that is still causing pain.


I get back on and start working my way past riders when crash #2 happens on the amphitheater by the tree.  That combines with a chain drop and riders passing me by.  Back up and pulling pack a few positions.  I then start hearing my rear wheel bouncing around in the frame.  On the run up the steps I look to see my rear skewer bouncing around and only my brakes grasping my tire and keeping the wheel from falling out.  I stop and adjust the skewer, few more positions pass.  


Then on the 2nd to last lap I nearly fall down the steps while trying to ride up the dirt on the side.    Another dropped chain and few positions.  


Dang it to wrecking all over the place at a great course, on the last race of the series, with perfect weather, some fitness back, and the family there.  


After 2 great courses back to back, I still have the CX itch.  Will look to scratch it in PA at the 2 races in Raccoon Township coming up.

Start at the back?

My little cyclocross experience has taught me quickly that you need to start near the front to have a good chance of finishing near the front.  Going into the race in Elyria on Sunday I planned for this. Instead of just moderately clipping in and get going, I instead focused on a quick clip in and sprint to the hill.  I managed to round the 180 on the hill around 7th.  This all seemed good until my body told my mind that my fitness is 100% gone.  I couldn't make power on the road, I was slow in the soft stuff, and then I gave up climbing the hill.  I got passed, and passed, and passed by what seemed like hundreds of riders.   I continued drifting backwards and telling myself how bad I suck in the fall and am horrible at cyclocross.  I ended up not having much fun at this race.  


Now looking back, my biggest mistake was learning from experience.  I instead should have started at the back and worked my way forward.  I wouldn't of had a chance to compete with the top 10 but I probably would have finished higher than 40th or whatever and would have had more fun.  So for all those that suck like me, take my advice and start at the back and then work forward.  Much better winning small battles then losing everything.

The incline

I spent the last week in Colorado staying with a friends family that live on the base area of Pikes Peak at 8,500 ft.  It took a full day to get used to the elevation, including going to the top of Pikes Peak on the first day (14,110 ft).  
As we were driving in to the house we were told about 'the incline' .  It is a former route that use to take people part way up a mountain from Manitou Springs and now all that is left is the clearing with the old wood that supported the incline.  It starts at 6,250ft and climbs up to 8,250ft.  The guy we were staying with climbs it on a regular basis and basically said we weren't allowed to come home until we attempted it.  After doing the tackle the tower climb twice, I knew I didn't really want to attempt this.  For comparison:

• Tackle the tower: 640 steps, 500 ft elevation increase, starts at 550ft above sea level
• The incline: 2700 steps, 2000 ft elevation increase, starts at 6250ft above sea level (avg grade 40%, steepest grade 68%)

Here is a picture from the town below of the entire incline path:

 The property is actually private and every person going up is trespassing but it isn't strictly enforced so you see quite a few people attempting it including Olympians such as Apolo Ohno.  It is definitely a humbling workout as there is no way to run or even jog up the incline.  If you attempt to the hill will quickly shut that down.  The worst things about this grueling workout are:

• The railroad ties that make up the steps are not evenly spaced, so very hard to get a rhythm
• There is metal stakes that stick up about the ties that could rip open your chins if not careful
• About 2/3 the way up sits a complete false summit.  You can't see the rest of the trail until you reach this false summit so you can imagine how bad of a feeling it is to realize how much longer you have
• No water at the top and didn't attempt to try and carry water with us.  4 miles jog down a side trail to get back to the car.

Hopefully this workout will make up for the lack of bike training I have been doing in the last 2 weeks.  

Here is a pic of us taking a breather after cresting a steep section: