January

Since I've recently discovered the world of Facebook, the blog has been neglected since October. For now the plan is to do a monthly update on the blog. More posts in the summer with reports on races, trips, and photos. Cross season is over(for me) and it is was fun. Looking forward to another go at it this Fall. December was mostly rest with some freelance training.

Stina and me ran down to the Polar Plunge on New Years Day. It was snowing, so we stuck to the road since the sidewalk was too icy. It's a 6 mile run round trip. Which is good for me since I don't really run that much. I also managed to do the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. Something about running on holidays I guess.

Today was the first road ride outdoors for me. Weather and work schedule have put me into the gym and on the trainer. I am back on board with coach Sean Gilbert for 2010. So far my training has been consistent and coming along well. Hopefully I can get out to ride with my friends and teammates this weekend.

One last thing, this past friday was a return to snowboarding after a nearly four year break. Just never really felt like going I guess. Jeff McN and me talked about going back in the Fall. So we thought we'd give it a go. I started snowboarding at the age of twelve back in the winter of 1987. So aside from the last few years, I've been doing it for a long time. Even managing a couple trips to Colorado for some real terrain. Riding the lift at Brandywine the first time on Friday, I admit was nervous that I may have lost my touch. Up came the unload platform and off I went smoothly without fumbling. The rest of the night was great! It was like I didn't miss a beat. Funny how that works sometimes. Once you learn, you never really forget.

Just like riding a bicycle.

It's alive!

Blog is still alive! I've been in the Facebook world recently so I've been neglecting the blog. Looking forward to Halloween and the Chagrin River CX on Sunday. Not happy about the time change!

Leroy CX

Photo taken by Robert Sroka

Photo taken by Julie Sroka.

Not a good day for me. Had a front row starting position, but was quickly swallowed up by the cross gods. Slogged my way to the finish. That's about how it felt in a nutshell. Start, slog, finish.

Training is going well and coach Sean Gilbert has me on a great routine. So hopefully it will all pay off later in the series.

Next up is more training and cheering on Christina at the Columbus Marathon in two weeks.

Wendy Park Cross

Did the first cross race this season at Wendy Park. The first race in the BA/TLE series. My plan going into it was to get some training data and hopefully some series points. Instead I flatted the rear tubular and crashed hard a lap later. I did manage to crawl to the finish, but only earned a handful of points. Bad day for me, oh well that's cross racing for ya. Rudy with his Zen Master talent is going to repair the tire. Much like last year's front tire. I'm very thankful because those tires weren't cheap.

I loved the course and it's fast and flowy design. My favorite part was the uphill/downhill sections just before the pier. It was great working with Bill, Tony, Nick, and Kevin during morning course set-up. Wish I could've helped out on Saturday. Stina came to watch the race only to see me bruised and battered. After course breakdown, we all went to the marina outdoor patio for some beer and food. Fun times as always with the whole gang. We had 140 racers, which is our best turnout ever in the 11 years of the series. Great day for the team!

Next race is Stark Velo's cross at Kent State Stark campus. Round #2 in the series.

Cross Practice

Today was some cross practice in Bay Village. Matt, Nate, and myself mapped out a lap. We practiced dismount/remount to warm-up and then did laps. I did them in intervals, some fast and some slow. Focusing on skills was my main objective today. Total for me was a little over two hours. Bike set-up is decent. Got a couple tweaks to make and probably switch a couple parts.
More cross practice on Tuesday.

Tomorrow is a fun group ride starting at Lock 29 in the CVNP. We'll be doing about 45 miles at a comfortable pace. The ride goes at 12pm. We'll be dining at Winking Lizard following the ride. All weclome to join if you are looking for a fun ride.

See you out there!

Pictures

Here is a few pictures from our adventures in Colorado this past week. Hiking to the crest of Pahnee Pass.

About to throw a snowball to Stina.

Standing at the top of Pahnee Pass.

Riding the lower slopes of Mt.Evans hillclimb. The start is located in Idaho Springs. Approx 14 miles to the pay station.

Riding past Echo Lake at 10,000 feet.

We paid our $3 fee and began the next 14 miles to the summit of Mt. Evans.

Pacing Stina about 4 miles to the summit.

Working together with one to go!

We made it! My third time up, Stina's second and Steve's millionth or so. The conditions could not have been better. Clear blue skies, low wind, and mild temps. It's usually cloudy, windy, and cold. Mt. Evans is open to traffic June 1st through Labor Day. Otherwise it's under tons of snow. 14er baby!!!!!

Good times at the New Belgium brewery in Fort Collins. Mmmmm beer!

On the road again...

Today is our last day in Colorado. The plan is one more ride up Lookout Mtn followed by some lunch in downtown Golden. After that we will be resting up for the long drive back home. We had a great time and many many thanks to Robyn and Steve for having us.

Day Five

Saturday was a fun day in Fort Collins. Steve, Robyn, Stina, and myself all went up north for the day. We toured the Odell Brewery and the New Belgium Brewery. The New Belgium Brewery was spectacular. The theme is centered around fat tire cruiser bicycles. You may recognize their Fat Tire beer at the grocery store back home. After the tours we walked around downtown Fort Collins and checked some of the stores. The evening ended at a fun place called Rasta Pasta.

Day Four

Friday was the climb up Mt. Evans. Steve, Stina, and myself headed off about at 9am for the 55 mile ride. The ride starts in Idaho Springs and climbs to the Echo Lake pay station which sits at 10,ooo feet. There you pay your fee to continue on up to the 14,000 foot summit. The weather was absolutely perfect. Not a cloud in the sky. The traffic was a little high for a weekday though. I'm told the weather conditions were pretty rare and may be awhile before it comes again. Mt. Evans closes in three weeks for the season. Snow will start to come down by the end of September at that altitude. Anyway, everyone made it to the summit and we took a bunch of pictures. The view is really amazing from that high up. You can't see the town that we started from! We put on our cold weather gear for the long descent back to the car. It's funny how it works, 3 hours up and 45 minutes back. Once back, we drove over to the Tommy Knocker's Brewery in Idaho Springs for some well deserved beer and food. Pictures and video are coming.

Day Three

Not much to report today. We had lunch in downtown Golden. Spent most of the afternoon just chilling out. Took a ride up Lookout Mountain with Stina tonight. Mostly to open the legs up for tomorrow's ride up Mt. Evans. The ride is 30 miles up and 30 miles down! The weather is supposed to be 0% chance of any precipitation. We are going up a little later in the morning mostly because of the temperature at the top. Should be some amazing photos if the weather stays clear. Feeling much better acclimated. I think mostly from the hike up to 12,000 feet yesterday. The ride tonight felt a ton easier for both us. Until tomorrow......

Day Two

After some coffee at the Windy Saddle in downtown Gloden, Stina and I headed out for a hike at Long Lake. The drive is about an hour along Canyon Rd outside of Boulder and over rt 72 into Nederland. After about a billion twisty turns(many cyclists out riding), we arrived at the Brainerd Lake recreation area which sits at 10,000 feet.

This hike is along the Pawhnee Pass/Isabelle Glacier trail. You can hike 4-5 miles out and end up right in the middle of the Indian Peaks. It's a valley of several 12,000 foot mountain peaks. The Isabelle Glacier Trail is 15 miles and goes over the Continental Divide. Our plan was to hike the Pawhnee Pass trail. We gathered our gear and headed out. The first mile the trail is relatively flat with lost of rocks and roots. After that you make a right and it's all uphill from there. The trail becomes very rocky and off camber. Lot's of man made creek crossings, basically logs cut in half and bolted in place. We stopped after 3.5 miles for a snack and a break to take in the scenery. There is also some snow still left, so I threw a few snow balls for fun! The 1.5 miles were very windy as we went above the treeline. The view is literally breathtaking! We'll have some pictures up shortly. We turned around and headed back down the trail. Not sure which was harder, going up or coming back down. The trail is super rocky and you have to concentrate so you don't lose your footing. Made it back safe, but definitely a little tired.

Today most likely a chill day. Maybe an afternoon ride or a trip to Wheatridge Cyclery.(Owned by Ron Kiefel of Team 7 Eleven fame)

Day One

We spent most of the day in and around Boulder. Hiked up to the Flatirons off of Baseline Rd. Super fun hike that is perfect to start getting acclimated. We ended up cutting the hike short due to a thunderstorm approaching the mountain. Not a good idea to be on a high mountain during a thunderstorm. The lightning strikes are what you have to worry about. The funny part was, as we were coming down, many we're going up. Mostly tourist type who seem to have no idea the dangers of high mountain sudden weather change.

Anyway, after that we wound up in downtown Boulder. Checked out the stores on Pearl St. There is an awesome bike shop in Boulder called Vecchios. It's like walking into a museum for road racing. The walls are lined with collector bikes and memorabilia. It would have taken me all day to look at it all. The funniest thing they had on dislpay was a Campagnolo folding razor blade!

In the evening, we suited up and rode Lookout Mountain. The climb is officially 5 miles and goes up to 7500 feet. An additional 6 miles can be added once you go over the top. Lot's of people were on the mountain and I'm told it's one of the many evening rides. Tom Danileson has the TT record of approx 16 minutes. Believe me, that is super fast!

We're there!

After 20 straight hours of driving, we have arrived in Golden Colorado on Monday night. We are staying with our dear friends Steve and Robyn. The drive was pretty easy, all accept for the last couple hours. By then, all you want to do is get out of the car! I drove the first 5 hours through Ohio, Indiana and part of Illinois. Christina took over and drove through a vicious lightning/rainstorm! She did awesome and I was able to get some sleep, believe it or not. The rest of the trip was us trading back and forth every two hours or so. In much better weather conditions thankfully.

Cool photo

Here is a picture of Lance Armstrong racing at Snowmass in Colorado this past weekend. Taken by my friend and teammate Steve Heibel. He and some buddies were out riding and had planned to pass over the mountain before the racers came through. Only to be held up by some mechanicals and ended up seeing some of the race. Pretty amazing shot if you ask me!

Ok, that's it!

My 2009 road racing season has come to a close. Although I might make an appearance at the last Westlake World's in two weeks. That will be after my vacation in the high altitude of Colorado.

Today at the Orville Milk Race for me could only be described as "sucked". Bike racing is a sport that can be brutely honest and I should've known better. The past 4-5 weeks I have been racing tired. Could be the way I train, work stress, health, who knows. This whole season has personally been frustrating. So, enough of that!

I am looking forward to cross racing this Fall. So with a little rest and refocus, things should turn around for some dirty ol' cross suffering!

On another note, this season I went coachless. Why, I don't know. Last year with some coaching I was able to stay on track and focused. Maybe this season I thought I could do that on my own. Don't get me wrong. I'm a pretty self motivated person, always have been. I do make the efforts to put the time in with a full time job and other high priorities. Next year will be my 20th year racing, so believe me I know the routine. But, knowing the routine doesn't seem to cut it these days. Which is why I called upon coaching last year. I needed help organizing a plan, making the right training decisions and the motivation to stick to it! So for 2010, I will be in search of that guidance and motivation again. If you are a coach, you may be getting a call. After that, there is no more excuses. ;)