a training week...

that's what it's been, a good training week. it started last sunday at the winghaven race, then i rode to work on tuesday afternoon with a stop at creve coeur park to get in a few laps around the lake and then rode home the next morning. while riding through the old bridgeton neighborhood that was condemned, i got to thinking that area would make for a great circuit race. there are no homes up, but the streets are still there. i think i may ride to work more often on tuesday afternoon, which is basically my friday. it's tough to do on any other day because i've got to be back in 10 hours later and suffer through the midnight shift. anyways, myself and denny got in some good miles on thursday and then today i got in about 85 and more tomorrow. what am i training for? i don't know yet, looks like i may not be racing until superweek up in chicago and wisconsin.

now you may ask what's up with the picture? well, they've got something in common besides me sucking down a waterbottle. they were both races i really suffered in. last year at dogwood and this years winghaven. winghavens got my number, i was going pretty good last year after taking the first two kom's and about to snatch a third before flatting. hopefully they'll have it again next year. i've heard some rumors that it may not happen and some of the sponsors may pull out. we'll see, i'd like to see it because it's a great event that's local.

winghaven debacle...

well, today just wasn't a good day for me. i hadn't been sleeping well lately and so i took a tylenol pm last night thinking i had plenty of time for it to wear off. the race wasn't until 12:30. i guess i was wrong or at least i'd like to think that. my legs felt heavy from the start and i just wasn't feeling like it was going to be a good day. it was crazy fast from the start, which is hardly anything new. i periodically checked my heartrate during the first few laps and i was continuously in the 190's, high 190's. with three or four laps to go i started getting to that breaking point, mentally i just wasn't there, thinking do i go into overdrive and into the red zone and hang with the pack? well, with five laps to go, my mind got the best of me and i just popped off the back of the pack. i wasn't feeling well and i had to work tonight, so what the hell, i'll take a dnf and come back next race. so as i make it up the one short, punchy climb i start to realize that i may be able to latch back on and give it another go. instead of making a right turn i proceeded to give what i had left. they weren't too far ahead, but i just couldn't catch back up. at this point there was only four laps to go so i figured i'd work with some other stragglers and maybe reel in the pack or just finish. i ended up catching and dropping a few guys before finally working with a hub rider. we worked together until the end and he took me on the sprint up the hill. it was a rough day in the saddle, but all things considered it was a success. i ended up finishing on the same lap as the main pack although a few minutes back. oh well, back to the grind!!!

O'Fallon RR report....

There would be a report had I done this race, but since I could only manage two hours of sleep I guess my better judgement got the best of me this time. As of last night, the plan was to pick up Denny and make our way to the race. Anyways, I tossed and turned before just getting up and watching the tube. I took some tylenol pm, with no luck, and finally decided the race wasn't going to happen. I didn't feel too bad leaving Denny out to dry since he was on the fence anyways. He was at Georgia Cup the previous weekend with five days of racing and was needing a break.

The tylenol pm finally kicked in and before I knew it I was waking up at 1:30 in the afternoon so I decided to go out on my own ride. I'm not the best when it comes to a disciplined training regimine. I usually go out for about two and a half to three hours, maybe four and get my intervals in powering up some of the climbs, that's about it. Now, after having my Garmin for a couple weeks I decided to use the virtual partner. I had used it before, but this time I had to beat my last time which was pretty fast. That little blip on the screen was kicking my ass. I found myself really trying to outdo my previous ride. I was basically attacking myself. It was even funny that I found myself swearing up and down that little computer, I wasn't going to be beat that day. I've got to say that feature really adds to the dynamics of a ride. It's a pretty cool function on those days I just can't get the urge to go hard since 90% of my rides are by myself.

My next scheduled race, considering I get some sleep the night before will be Winghaven. There is Dinoseries race in Indaina the following weekend, but with the way gas prices are I'm just not too sure it would be worth it.

Saturday race prep.....

Well, it was a long week at work and an exceptionally long morning at work. I had felt good going into work last night and thought we were going to have an easy night. I figured if I got off at 6am I'd be able to get home, get some sleep and go for a ride in the afternoon. Well, the night turned upside down and ended up having a broken airplane in the morning and had me scrambling to find a fix for it. It ended up taking a one hour delay, for something really stupid, but a requirement for aircraft dispatch. If people only new the real reasons their flights were delayed. Some are warranted and some are just plain stupid. Anyways, 6am turned into 10am and needless to say I got home, went to bed, and got up too late to head on out for a ride. Now I suppose I'll go out tomorrow and Friday for a nice ride while trying not to go out too hard. I'm not quite sure what to expect for Saturdays race, I've never ridden out in that area. I'm supposing it may be a little different then the last several RR's I've done this year, meaning a lot less climbing. Sunday is also the Matson race, but don't think I'll be doing that one. What had been a goal of concentrating more on mt. bike racing this season has just not come into fruition. There are just way too many roadraces and crits within driving distance. The schedules just don't seem to work for me, so for now my mt. bike sits restless.

I grew up in Chicago and have always been a Cubs fan. Hell, along with hockey, I also grew up playing baseball. So I just happen to have it on WGN and the Cubs game has come on. I can't say I've followed baseball much this year, or for any other year for that matter. It's just not my cup of tea nowadays. I usually tune in right around October for the World Series. Anyways, I can't believe they are doing so good. They have the second best record right now and the announcers are giving them all kinds of accolades, WOW, is all I've got to say. Where the hell have I been? Maybe this will be their year..............yeah, right.

OK, gotta refill my coffee........decaf!

Hellbender State RR

Once again, rode hard on Thursday and then long and slow on Friday, not the smartest preparation. I didn't sleep well the night before and the body was pretty tired as it showed on my heartrate monitor. I procrastinated and didn't even think I was going to go until the last minute and then totally mistimed how long it takes to get there. I thought it only took about an hour, only about a half hour off. I got there 20 minutes before the start.

After getting all the prerace stuff out of the way were off. The race starts with a long ascent, although not steep, it got the heartrate up. Shawn took over the pacemaking from the start of the gun and went out hard. We all followed him up for several miles before he finally gave way. It was pretty uneventful. After the only significant climb of the day we were still mostly all together and through the feedzone at 25mph. I figured it wouldn't be neutralized so I brought four bottles with me to do away with the feed.

The second lap starts with more aggressiveness as several riders attack. They never get too far and are all brought back. Then one attack goes away with several riders and it's represented with three or four teams, I tell Casey that this might be the one and he should go. He waits and prepares to launch himself and finally goes. He bridges the group of around five or six riders. Bigshark had a guy in the break and are also in front controlling the peleton, pretty content, as was I, Casey was up there so we were good. Suddenly, Shawn O'neal attacks the left side and he's bringing another group of riders with him so we give up the control and all latch on. It was a pretty big effort to catch the lead breakaway, but now we caught it. Moments later Jim V. attacks with somebody else and they get a pretty good gap. He's a pretty dangerous guy to let go like that so I take over to lead the catch. I pulled for a while giving it all I had before giving way and now we are all back together again. Now that we are all together. Mark G, from Gateway attacks and gets a very large gap, so far that he's out of site. I don't know much about Mark, but I do know he's 50+ years old and a wiley veteran, your typical masters type guy. He's up the road for quite a while. The make or break point is upcoming on the one tough climb, although after the Hermann RR it didn't seem quite as torturous as last year. It still hurt though. I made it up with the lead group, but am in some serious pain now. Denny unfortuneately is nowhere to be seen. After several more miles we catch Mark. Then repeated attacks come and I'm falling off the back, and having a hard time recovering. I'm finally the last wheel and losing ground until none other then Denny comes barreling past me. I yell at him to pull me up, but he's only got one thing on his mind, to catch the group. Casey hears me yell and slows and pulls me up to the group. I was a little pissed at the time that he didn't pull me up, but this is the second time he had to TT to catch the group after that climb and understand his focus.

Now that I'm back on the group is being continuously attacked and doing the yoyo effect, basically me. I'm the only one it seems to me to be in real trouble. It's taking longer to recover from each attack before I'm finally shelled. I wave the wheel truck to come on through and I'm demoralized that I didn't stay with the pack. I finally do recover and am resigned to the fact that I'll have to time trial it all the way back by myself. It was shaping up to be a repeat of last year after I crashed in the gravel driveway going around the sharp right hand turn. My legs are feeling pretty good at this point and am going at a pretty good clip. Then, like a kid in a candy store, I see the pack again and I'm gaining ground on them. I eventually rejoin the pack for the run into the finish. I ask Denny if he wants to try and lead out Casey and before I know it he's in the gravel passing everybody to the front. Only a centerline rule, right? Several guys are laughing their asses off and I'm just thinking he's nuts. Oh well, that's Denny!!! As we make the run into town we pacelined it pretty hot around the last corner and several guys shot out into the gravel, unlike Denny who does it intentionally. The final sprint pretty much finishes in the same order. I couldn't make any ground on the Mesa kid in front of me and I got passed by Mark at the line for 12th. Denny placed 13th, Jeff 25th, and wonderkid Casey got an awesome finish for Dogfish for second. This kid just keeps on finding ways to get results.

As for other Dogfish guys I know Denny's brother was leading the 5's before coming to the last turn and somebody pointed right so he went right. That costly mistake cost him what could have been a fist place finish. I think he ended up 15th, tough break.