The Good And Bad

It was nice to finally have a good race last weekend at the Hilly Billy Roubaix. Good for me that is. Top 10s, 5s and podium spots are no longer on my radar. Racing for me now is holding on to my last shreds of fitness, pushing myself out of my comfort zone, covering events for work and just enjoying the "experience" of mountain bike racing is what I look for now. Maybe that will change in the coming years, but for now that is the way it is. That is not a bad thing and I am by no means crying in my beer about my racing. Just sayin'. 

Like I said it was nice to come away from a race not feeling like a total douche bag for once this season.

It was also nice to come back from my trip to Pennsylvania feeling good about riding. My rides on Tuesday and Wednesday were the tits in every sense of the word (except for the sense of the word were it means heaving female mammary glands). In fact Tuesday was downright pleasurable; no wind (can you believe that shit??), sun, nice temps and dirt and gravel roads out my flabby, 40 year old yin-yang (that's code for my ass). I was happy to be home.

Wednesday was a bit more of the same, with a bit more wind, a bit more pavement and a bit more heat. But it was still good. Nothing to complain about (GASP!).

That shit is alllll good. But now here we are on Thursday and a pre-ride for the MMCC Sweat Shaker coming up on Saturday. Hmmmm.... Well, today it sort of went pear shaped. 

My back has been stiffer than a Viagra addicts crotch on the porch of a college campus whore house (not that such a thing exists) since the 14 hour round trip to PA and back. I mean it's STIFF and even a trip to the chiro couldn't help it today. Stiff.

 

So my back (BACK!!!), combined with heat that was roughly the same temperature as that of the sun (if the sun was located betweenst the buttocks of a 500 pound bedridden man in the middle of a Mississippi heat wave) and legs that were deader than Betty White (she is dead, right?) made for a ride that I am anxious to forget. In fact... What ride?? 

OK, I remember now.... I just didn't have it. The race is a nugget hair under 30 miles (2 laps with the new MMCC shit I believe) and I had planned on riding at least 1.5 laps. As it is (was) I rode less than one full lap. Yep, just 10.5 miles and headed home. I believe the term "fuck it" was used 2 to 6 times during the ride and the car trip home. I will use it again for dramatic effect- FUCK IT!

So what does all this mean? Nothing really (especially to you). I would normally have taken today off the bike having ridden 2 days in heat back to back and coming off of a race, but I got greedy... That and that it's "from-un-dah fat man balls" hot don't forget that. I just didn't want to ride tomorrow with the race on Saturday. 

Oh yeah the race. Ah.... no? It's going to be 95 degrees or some such shit on Saturday and the Expert 40+ races doesn't start until 1 PM. Fucking brilliant. I believe a wise man (me?) once said- "Fuck it." I might try to get up early and head out for a nice dirt and gravel ride before the sun starts baking shit up.

Damn I HATE the cold, but my fattening ass can't take this heat shit either. "Fuck it."

Oh yeah, it looks like the Tour de France starts this weekend. What was that phrase again?

Later.

Hilly Billy Roubaix Recap

Las week I headed back home to PA and then on to WV for the 2012 Hilly Billy Roubaix. My recap to the race is up over on xxcmag.com.

Later.

Rides x Three

I could blather at length about how I have enjoyed this week's rides and how even though the heat was roughly the same temp as the sun I had fun. But I won't. Each day was basically the same. About 60% dirt and gravel roads, about 40% pavement and a pain in the ballz wind. The wind was a bitch, but for ONCE it actually helped to keep me a LITTLE cool, rather than being so cold that I wanted to bite my tongue off in rage. It was still mind numbingly slow. But then again... so am I.

The plan was to ride my hardtail. Turns out the new chain and the 50% worn cassette weren't playing well. Fuck. So it was back to the CX bike and a plan to go BACK to Terry's later for a new cassette. Did I say fuck? If not, well... Fuck!!!

I am off to PA on Friday. The plan is to hang with my Dad for a couple days and do the Hill Billy Roubaix on Saturday. Originally I was going to do it on the Jake, but as of today I changed my mind and will be riding it on my hardtail. Having JUST recovered from and injury I am in NO mood to deal with another from crashing on a steep gravel descent. Truthfully, more than the handling issues, it comes down to my CX bike running tubes. Tubes suck. The HBR has a high potential for flatting and I do NOT want to deal with it. I'll be just as bad on the HT.

I was also thinking of racing clydesdale. Then Ben and Zandr made fun of me and I realized that if I race the big boned class it would sort of be like giving up. I'm not ready yet. Ha! So 40+ old guys it is.

Time to get shit ready to head south...

Later..

Another Day Another Ride, Another Bike Part

I have fucked up just about every part I can fuck up on my mountain bikes in the past month or so (fork(s), derailleur, hanger, rear shock, crank, rings, chain, etc.,, . Such is life. This is why God created credit cards: so sub par mountain bike racers/riders can buy parts they fuck up and can't afford on a semi weekly basis.

Along with the myriad of other bike issues I've had, I have had ENDLESS issues with my (insert major tubeless wheel MFG here) wheels. I am too heavy, the wheels are too light, so therefore they are next to useless after more than a month or so.

Enter the Easton EA90 XC wheel set.

I  had not planned on buying these wheels. To tell you the truth they were not on my radar, but the idea of yet ANOTHER needed rebuild of my current wheels sort of made me sick. So with a great price from my fave LBS and the fact that a good friend, who is a strong (normal to large sized) rider has gone out of his way to buy TWO sets of these wheels for his bikes in the past year I was sold well enough.

Normally I would not even THINK of buying 24 spoke wheels. I mean that is SICK for someone like me. BUT like I said my buddy has reported no major issue in a year of hard racing and riding. I also thought it was a good sign when I talked to a few other local riders and they said that they were really lusting these wheels. Does that make them good? Nope. But the fact that they were on the radar of people I respect does.

Like any product there are those who will say "you should have got this!" or "you should have got that!" Well, until those people start paying for my shit or ride the way I do I just have to go with what feels right for me. I hope to post some more info on these wheels in the coming months on xxcmag.com's Gear page. The wheels may be crap, OR they may be the best thing I've rolled since my 2nd year of art school. I don't know.

Later.

After It

Time since the Lumberjack debacle has mostly been spent off the bike. Sunday was a day of travel (Thank God it was only 2 hours, not the 9+ that Brad had to travel) and sloth. Monday was back to work, full time Dad duty, getting my bike to the shop and thus preparing to start juggling credit cards to pay for all the shit wrong with my bikes.


But Tuesday, ah Tuesday I was back one of the few bikes that as of yet has nothing major wrong with it.... YET!


With temps forecasted to be in the mid-90s and a heat index into the 100s I thought it best to get out riding ASAP during the small ride widow that summer childcare allows. 

It seems like it has been ages since I was out on the dirt roads and it was nice to be back. It's been long enough that the las time I was on gravel the corn was ankle high, now it's knee high or better. 


4ish miles of pavement and I was on blessed virtually car free rolling dirt. In fact of the 30 miles I rode yesterday 22 of them were on gravel  roads and I saw ONE car. That alone is reason enough to ride gravel.


That was pretty much it. Rode dirt roads, saw corn, saw cows, didn't break anything on my bike, enjoyed a nice S/W tail wind home.


Look forward to another short ride on gravel Wednesday, then later in the day B-Man and I will head to Terry's to pick up the El Mariachi.


Later.

Yet Another Non Racer Race Report

I had no intention of racing the 2012 Lumberjack 100. A nagging injury sucked the last remaining shreds of race fitness out of my ever widening body. A few crap, semi pain free race performances and the fact that I never sold my entry made me think that I could at least ATTEMPT to race ride the LJ100 and try to salvage something from this crap year on the bike.

Even with no intentions of racing the LJ and most likely not finishing it, I was happy to be heading to Manistee, MI to hang out with my good friend Brad and his wife (currently carrying "Little Shmalz" #1). Sometimes there is more to racing than the race. Sometimes it's just an excuse to get together with friends.

In any of event, it was odd to be lining up on Udell Hills Road on Saturday morning with 400 or so other lycra clad bike geeks.

I could have cared less where I lined up and put my self right in the middle. The start siren sounded and I spun along watching racer after racer doing everything they could to get to the singletrack first so they could stand in line and wait. I just smiled and people watched. I also took the opportunity to catch up to a dude sporting a full XXC kit. I pulled up along side of him and thanked him for sporting the kit and supporting the mag. He in turn thanked me for doing the mag and my work. Win!

As expected there was a cattle line of racers entering the singletrack. "No big deal, we have alllll day" I thought. Soon enough there was a long train of us rolling buff, dusty, fun and dusty (did I say dusty??) Michigan singletrack. Good times.

Entering certain corners I was hearing a rubbing. "What the hell is that?" I thought. I pulled off when a space presented itself and checked things over. Wheel was fine, frame was fine, etc., Hmm.... Off I went. The rubbing continued.

Eventually I looked down and noticed that when I entered corners and off the gas the chain was bunching up, maybe due to the amount of dust and dirt that was now on the chain OR from some sort of free hub issue. Not sure. Either way I JUST wanted to get to the Aid Station at mile 17 to see if they had any chain lube. I made it and they didn't. Frig. While there I DID notice that my rear wheel was BARELY in the drop outs. Dear God that could have been bad. REAL BAD.

OK, now I just need my chain NOT to jam before the finish of Lap #1 of 3. I was doing OK with that, drinking a ton of water and taking in nutrition whenever I could.  Even though I knew I had another 80 miles to go I allowed myself to think that I JUST might pull this off.

I didn't.

At about mile 25 of Lap #1 I saw the dude in front of me hit a 2 inch thick stick. It bounced, it rolled, I missed it with my front wheel, it careened into my rear wheel and brought me to a stop.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh..... fffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck."

I looked down saw a stick the size of small club in my wheel and my derailleur hanging flaccid and useless like a 70 year old's penis just millimeters from the ground.

DONE.

I always imagine that I will react violently and stupidly when shit like this happens. Sort of like when a bulldog chews an iPhone. But I never do. I guess I know that mechanicals, even catastrophic multi hundred dollar mechanicals are part of racing. I also know that while a torn and broken SRAM X.O derailleur sucks, there were plenty of other folks who's day would end due to heat exhaustion and broken bones.

 C'est la vie.

At this point thought of turning the El Mariachi into a single speed entered my mind to get out of the woods. But for me that would take so long to do and cause so much grief I thought it better to just turn it into a $3,000 scooter.

Eventually I made it to a gravel road, as I walked along a Subaru sped towards me and slamed on the brakes in front of me. It was an EMT and LJ100 promoter Sir Rick Plite

"Are you the guy with the broken collar bone??"

"No, I'm the guy with the broken derailleur!"

"Get in and we'll go look for the other guy"

"WHHHHAT?? NOOO! Go find him, I'll keep walking if you have time later come get me!!"

"Cool, OK, stay on the road, we'll be back."

And with that they went off to find broken collar bone guy.

Another half mile or so of walking and scooting and Rick came speeding back. Collar Bone Guy could not be found. He went back into the singletrack. DOH!

So I threw the bike in the back of the Soob and hung on for my life as Rick drove 50 MPH on narrow forest roads back to the Start line.

I had lots of scenarios going through my head for how this day would go. From me standing in the woods taking video to me racing and bailing after 1 or 2 laps, to me finishing the whole fucking thing. A race ending mechanical was not on my list.

I walked up to Kristin (Brad's wife) said something about my bad luck, sat down and soon saw my friend Wayne walking in to the pit beside us having just DNFed due to having a suck day on the bike. Cool, someone to commiserated with.

We got cleaned up, which was no easy task due to the amount of dust, and then cracked a few PBRs. I then walked over to the Start/Finish to let them know that I was "officially" done. Cuss!

For the rest of the afternoon I shot a few pics, talked with Kristin and Wayne and supported Brad and other friends as best as I could from the seat of my camp chair.

I had no REAL plan to finish the race, but I had no REAL plan for a race ending mechanical. I just wanted to ride some singletrack and have few laughs. Which I guess I DID do. I just wish I wouldn't have cost me $500 in parts, hotels and race entries.

DNFs are part of racing. "You can't finish them all" Mike Simonson said to me after the race. Very true. I have to admit it would be nice to finish SOMETHING this year, or at least feel good about my performance.

There is still plenty of racing left in 2012, including a trip south to race the Hilly Billy Roubaix this coming Saturday. What could go wrong???

Lots... I'm SURE!

Later.

Pre Lumberjackingoff

I rode some singletrack today. Loving the Thudbuster post more and more. I can't believe more people don't use these things. Tomorrow I leave for Manistee, MI and the Lumberjack 100. I will get to see my friend Brad, his wife K., some out of state friends and my Mount Peezy friends. I may take some pics, I  may take some video, I may ride a lap Saturday, I may ride 2 laps, I may ride 3 laps.  Don't know. Don't care.

I am just happy that my shoulder is feeling better(ish) and that even though my fitness is NO where it was last year, I can at least ride and enjoy some fine singletrack.

Later.

Another Non Racer Race Report

Racing the 30 mile Hanson Hills XC race last week got my shoulder feeling much better. Well, that combined with a series of stretches has it feeling much better. Being able to scrub my left arm pit in the shower pain free is pretty damn sweet, I must say! Racing virtually pain free is just a bonus.

With this new level of pain free living, I thought it would be a good idea to stuff myself back in my kit and do the 8 Hour of Cannonsburg. Not sure what I was thinking, other than I was tired of not racing or riding singletrack and figured I could kill two birds with one stone by doing the race.

Did a quick drive down, kitted up and got ready for the 10 a.m. start. It was going to be a hot one for sure with temps rising to the high 80s. I wasn't sure how my ever fattening body would react to the heat. It turns out I just sweat more and my face starts to resemble a baking Christmas ham.

I had never ridden at Cannonsburg before, so the first lap would serve as an introduction. All I knew was that each 5.5+ mile lap was mostly singletrack and there was a climb at the start of each lap.

For the race I was using my Salsa Ti El Mariachi with the newly installed Reba and Thudbuster seat post. I was also using a new bar. A MUCH wider bar. Like 3 inches wider.

Since I knew that I was out to "ride" rather than race, I positioned myself at the back of the Solos. I was really only racing riding against 6 other people in my age class and had 8 hours to go, so who cares?

3,2,1 go!....  We started up the hill. We were all pretty together for most of the first lap. I really wasn't digging this since I was trying to scope out the trail and not being able to see in front of me was not all that helpful.

For some reason when we hit a long-ish gradual climb things started slowing down.  For some reason people kept slamming on their brakes, going UP hill. What the fuck? It prompted the guy behind me to yell out "braking up hill, seriously!!!?" I felt like this was directed at me, and said "don't blame me dude,  it's those guys in up front!" It sort of pisses me off when people yell out shit like that. I knew it wasn't at me and he said as much later, but it just doesn't seem helpful. Of course neither was the dud yelling "ON YOUR RIGH!" right at the top of the most technical climb in the race. But such is racing...

The lap went fast with a lot of twists, turns, little climbs, some really nice flowing singletrack sections and more sand that I was counting on. Sand is the nemesis of my shoulder. It just requires a lot of little muscle movements, etc., that causes some pain. I must say I was NOT happy with my bars. I felt like I was steering a ship not a bike. Not a fan.

Lap 1 was done and I was soon out on the climb again for lap 2. This lap was better and I was starting to settle in and have some fun riding in the woods. It was on this lap that I started to appreciate the Thudbuster. I really couldn't believe how well it was working. It was providing all the comfort of my FS bike but with the total and complete efficiency of hard tail.  More on that later.

I wasn't thrilled with my bike handling or how I was doing on the singletrack, but the more I rode the better it got.

With lap 2 done I stopped at the xB to fill up my "mini" Camelback, take a swig of some Hammer Sustained Energy (not my normal choice) and head out again for lap 3.

Lap 3. Hmm... not sure what to say about lap 3. It was fine, the trail was the trail. Here's that turn, there's that turn, here's that sand pit, here's that climb, etc.,  I was having a mental moment. The whole thing just seemed stupid. I wasn't in contention, I was riding in the woods yeah, but  the thought of riding this course for another 6+ hours pretty much alone just seemed dumb.

I completed my 3rd lap and sat on the back of the xB drinking some S.E. and grabbing a bite of bread (seriously, I was eating a plain piece of whole grain bread). I saw my iPhone and sent Wifey a text.

Me: This was a bad idea.
Wifey: You OK?
Me: Fine, just not having fun. If I can get my car out of here, I will probably be home early.
Wifey: You don't want to do that, plus I have the gigolos coming. Plus are you sure you want to quit?
Me: I'll probably do a few more.

Then I continued to just sit and stare at riders heading out for their laps. What the fuck is wrong with me?

I eventually headed back out for lap 4. I believe it was #4 that I used my granny to get up the steeper part of the first climb and heard my tire rub my chainstay. My Stan's wheel is way out of true.... AGAIN. BIG surprise. I swear I have had my Stan's rear wheel(s) repaired, fixed, replaced, and built in about 3 different bikes shops in 2 different states. Oh well, I guess it's back to the middle ring and hoping that the wheel doesn't explode later.

Testing the shoulder on the lop pile. Not sure why I look like I am 

grunting out a fart. Note 40 year old honey-baked ham sized head.

It was also about this time that my right knee started hurting. A buddy of mine warned me to be prepared for some possible knee issues during the initial switch to the Thudbuster. The arc in which the saddle moves can monkey slightly with your bike position. It takes a few rides to get it dialed. An 8 hour race was probably not the place. So I started trying to use my left leg as my "good leg" and soft pedal with the right. Standing also helped and that was helped more by my use of the hardtail.

4 laps in and I am super tired of this course. Blah!  I stop at the car for more water and staring off into space. My phone rings. It's a photo of B-Man at the start of the kid's race at the Tour de Mt. Plesant. And it says--

Dear Daddy,
I really had fun at the Tour de Mt. Pleasant!
Sorry, got to go Jake (or dog) is being bad.
Love you,
Brennan

(B's the one looking at the camera with his nuggets riding the top tube).

OK, some extra motivation found.

I headed back out for laps 5 and 6. More of the same trail, the same aches, the same sand, the same pain.

As I came in from lap 6, Brent (the race promoter) announced that I won a set of Velocity 29er rims. Cool.

I spied some of the folks from Terry's Cycle, including my friend Chris, chilling under their tent, so I went and plopped my ass along side them. We were all sweaty, salt encrusted messes. With still more than 3 hours to go I was done. Just no motivation left.

I sat, hydrated, stared off into space again, longing for the days when I was younger, fitter, thinner and did not have what now seems to be an endless list of aches pains and body dis-functions.

I went out for another lap.

I rolled one more, just cruising along, trying not to dwell on the negatives. Trying not to think of the money I would have saved by not racing and just going out for "soul ride" in the woods

After lap 7 I stopped. I was mentally done. Plus I didn't want to make my knee worse.

My goal for the race was 10 to 12 laps. 7 is a far cry from that and pretty lame. I made some mistakes and I learned a bit...

A. I think I am done with racing solo at (short lap) endurance races. I thought this would be a good fit for me since if my shoulder did bother me I could rest it often. Turns out that for the most part (barring all the sand) the shoulder was great and I longed for longer lap or to be on a Duo team to keep my motivation up.

B. I should have cut my bars down before the race. I was convinced by others that I would dig a wider bar. I don't. I hate the way it steers. I will be cutting the bars ASAP.

C. The Thudbuster rocks (so far). There is no bouncing around or pogoing like I envision. But it is awesome to smooth out the trail. I'm thinking it could be just the ticket for many of the trails here in Michigan. A FS has it's advantages on the bikes handing in the roots and rocks, but for me it's mostly about comfort. Note: I ONLY have 2 rides and about 50 miles on it, so there is much more to ride. I also need to adjust that for/aft position to rid myself of the potential knee issues. I will say that my back did not hurt once during the race, but that could have been from frequent breaks.

D. I need new wheels. Going back to a heavier more reliable tubeless set up.

E. The Reba is good, but can feel a little harsh at its current air pressure. Need to make some adjustments.

F. While I was just doing the race for shits and giggles, it was still a mistake to try out a new fork, wider bars and a new seat post at an 8 hour race. It was also a mistake to not take a back up bike. It would have way better to approach the race like I was racing it not riding it. I know better, but it's hard to take yourself seriously when you look down and see your lycra clad gut sticking out.

But hey, there are worse ways to spend a Saturday.

Later.

Back Racing

As I mentioned in this post over on XXC's Tumblr site, I somehow committed to racing the 30+ mile XC race at Hanson Hills on Sunday. I am in no real shape to race; fitness is down, weight is up, pain is steady, but who cares? I had the chance to race my bike in the woods and hang out with my friends.

I raced the Expert 40-49 class and hoped for the best. Well you need more than hope when you go up against a bunch of old, fast Michigan race dudes. Damn!

I pretty much rode the whole race by myself. Not sure where I finished, but I am almost certain it was DFL. My friend Chris, a pretty fast racer, finished 18th of 21 in our class, so I pretty much have to believe I was last. Ha! Oh well, 30+ miles of singletrack isn't a shabby way to spend a day.

______________

A last minute change of plans has the new Reba on the Ti El Mariachi. The E.M. is too goof of a bike to be the "B" bike. So to add some comfort I will be adding a Thudbuster L.T. to it. I've heard some real good things about the post, so I am anxious to try it out. Hope to get it in time to get a couple rides on before the 8 Hours of Canonsburg this Saturday. I can not believe I am doing that race given my current state. I am an idiot.

Or am I  f*cking genius??? Let's find out this Saturday, eh.

Later.