Heading south

We are leaving this evening for the Cohutta 100 race. It sold out this year so there should be a good size field at the start. Last year we were fortunate to not have any rain during the four 100 mile races we attended. At least not any rain while we were riding. At Mohican there was rain out on the course but I never ran in to it.

It doesn't look as promising for this weekend. Wouldn't you know it? Every day but race day looks nice. At least it might be warm.

Thursday Apr 17
High: 74 °F RealFeel®: 79 °F
Plenty of sun; pleasant this afternoon
Thursday Night, Apr 17

Friday Apr 18
High: 76 °F RealFeel®: 76 °F
Partly sunny

Saturday Apr 19
High: 69 °F RealFeel®: 63 °F
Mostly cloudy and not as warm with a thunderstorm

Sunday Apr 20
High: 75 °F RealFeel®: 76 °F
Partly sunny and warmer

Monday Apr 21
High: 80 °F RealFeel®: 79 °F
Warm with times of clouds and sun

Lake Orion High School Spring MTB Race Series

I've been working with the school to put on more races after we had a successful winter race and we got the OK to proceed with a three race, weeknight series with separate races for school kids and adults, starting May 8th. The other two dates are May 21 and June 4. We have a reserve date of June 11 in case we need to cancel a race due to adverse trail conditions. All races will be held at Lake Orion High School and the course length will be about 2-2.2 miles.

This is a low key, fun race series being promoted as both mid-week training races and a way to get the kids (and anyone else) out on the bikes and introduce them to mountain bike racing. Don't expect a lot of fancy timing, awards, etc. We want to have fun and promote the sport, especially at the school level, and hopefully see the series grow into something larger.

The particulars (once flyers are completed and up on a website I will post a link):

School races start at 5:00 with male and female elementary, middle, and high school divisions. Race distances will be adjusted by class.

Adult races should start about 6:30 and we will have male and female Citizen, Sport, and Advanced classes, with two age groups, <35 and 35+. Advanced female will not be split by age. Again laps will be adjusted by class. Hopefully race times will be about 30, 45, and 60 minutes depending on class.

Cost is $15 per race in advance, $20 day of. But you can pre-register for all three races for $40. There is a good possibility that t-shirts may be included in the pre-registration fee. Can't beat that!

In addition, on May 1st the Cycletherapy race team will host a MTB clinic at the school at 6:30. It will be a chance to come out and find out more about racing and mountain biking in general. I should have the potential course marked so you can check it out and bring the kids to give it a try as well so they won’t be intimidated come race day.

I want to thank Paint Creek Bicycles, Rochester Bike Shop, and Cycletherapy for each agreeing to sponsor one of the races and provide bike inspection (required for registration). If you stop in one of these shops be sure to say thanks for supporting this grassroots series.

Please get the word out to anyone you know that may be interested in giving racing a try. And especially encourage the kids and/or if you have school contacts you can let them know as well.

My goal is to someday see mountain bike racing become a regular school sport here in Michigan. Not to mention that I won’t have far to drive to get in a race.

Pontiac Lake TT, Part 2

I was talking to my coach, Terry Ritter of FPTS, after the race and I commented that some of his other coached racers had done well also in the race. He remarked that he would always feel good if his athletes achieved success, whether he personally had a successful race or not.

I would say he should be happy with the way the year is starting out. In addition to my win:

The winner of the women's Expert/Elite category, Karey Collins, is also coached by Terry. It was her maiden race on her new Giant Anthem Advanced mountain bike, racing for Team Giant-Michigan.

Kevin Skipworth, racing for City Bike Shop, took second in the Men's Sport 40-44 class.

Race results of the time trial

Race Report: Pontiac Lake TT or Our Personal Hell of the North

In a fitting tribute to the famous Hell of the North road race taking place across the pond, Mother Nature saw fit to put her personal touch on the opening race of the 2008 Michigan mountain bike racing season. The first race of the year was a 19 mile time trial held as part of the Michigan USAC state championship series. Racers were prepared to face some muddy conditions based on the continual rain that fell the day before but they woke this morning to an inch of snow and temperatures hovering just above freezing. Additional snowfall during the early part of the race coated the trees and bushes, providing an almost surreal feeling while zipping through the woods and fields.

Arriving at the race I quickly registered and began my warm-up sitting on the trainer and tried to stay warm. I had prepared my Cannondale 1FG F29 especially for this race by putting on a derailleur hanger and running the bike as a 1x9. I knew the course and mud would not really allow much use of the big ring and I wouldn’t have to worry about shifting problems. Braking however was another matter.

We were mixed up in the starting order for day of registrants and I was lined up behind another racer in my class, one of the faster racers last year. I didn’t know who else was racing today since we started every 30 seconds and you didn’t know where anybody was on the course. Once the gun went off I tried to keep a steady pace since I figured it would be about 1:40 for a finishing time. The mud made some of the corners slick but the Michelin XC AT 29’er tires provided superb traction. Less than two miles in I caught the guy in my class and quickly passed him.

I continued to pass other riders that started ahead of me and was occasionally caught by others from behind. Half way through the first lap I was coming down a rough section just before a turn and as I grabbed the rear brake nothing happened except the lever went all the way to the bar. For the rest of the race I had to rely on the front brake only. I did take it easy coming into the corners after that so I had to push a little harder elsewhere. Besides, brakes only slow you down, right?

I ended up winning my class, a great way to start off the year. Maybe I should take the rear brake off for every race! Oh, and I caused the problem with the brake. In bleeding the brake last night I forgot to put the retaining screw back in and as a result actually lost a brake pad. You can bet I’ll be double checking that from now on.

Our new team kit got lots of compliments and it felt great to be standing on the top step of the podium at the first race of the year. On to Cohutta next week. From hypothermia to sunstroke.

Finally

The weather finally turned to spring like conditions this weekend and allowed me to complete my workouts as scheduled, with the exception of Friday which was rained out. So I moved Friday's workout back to the trainer.

But on Saturday I was able to get in almost 7 hours on the MTB and just over 100 miles. I rode the hills in my area during the ride so I got plenty of practice climbing in preparation for Cohutta in two weeks. Although the hills are a lot bigger down south that also means plenty of recovery on the downhills. We don't have that luxury here so you tend to attack the hills a little harder.

Today I got in another 3 hours and over 50 miles but on a somewhat flatter profile. I ended up out at Stony Creek Metropark on the road where I successfully avoided being caught by a group of three roadies. I don't know if they realized they were chasing a mountain bike with full fenders. A lot of people were out today enjoying the warm temperatures but I hope all those running around in shorts and short sleeved shirts at 55 degrees don't get sick. It was nice to finally be able to shed some of the winter riding gear though.

This week is the Pontiac Lake TT and it looks like it could be kind of sloppy. I am scheduled to race it but it may be a game time decision. For now I'm turning my SS into a 1x9 in anticipation of the nasty weather since I don't want to risk the chance of ruining my other bike a week before Cohutta. Besides, in muddy conditions the less gears the better.

The Lizard Rides Again!

Posted today on the Cannondale web site:

SoBe/Cannondale Team Reunites on Pro-Am Race Circuit. SoBe and Cannondale Bicycle Corp. are again teaming up to field approximately 50 riders on the co-ed SoBe/Cannondale mountain bike team.

“The reunion of SoBe and Cannondale lends a lot of excitement and value to the cycling scene,” says Jeff Dubiel, vice president of marketing for SoBe. “SoBe has always been about healthy, activing living, and this team helps us underscore that message. We’re thrilled to be back in the mountain biking arena, and look forward to delivering the fun and function of SoBe to mountain biking fans.”

The pro-am team is comprised of riders ranging from age 17 to 40-plus. Riders participate in all off-road events, from the Great Divide Race to short track to dual slalom races. During the three-year contract, the team will receive mechanical support from Eric Saletel, a U.S. Cycling Federation-trained mechanic with experience wrenching on the World Cup circuit. Saletel will drive a truck towing a fully stocked, 36-foot trailer emblazoned with the team’s distinctive graphics.

“We’re elated to have SoBe partnering with us once again,” says Matt Mannelly, CEO of Cannondale Bicycles Corp. “This team hits a unique sweet spot in the cycling world, giving up-and-coming riders the opportunity to hone their skills against more seasoned, professional riders. The all-inclusive nature of the team simultaneously inspires outdoor sports participation from non-racers.”

News from work, Chrysler plans big tech job cuts

Hundreds to lose their positions in outsourcing
Free Press article
Detroit News article

Many readers know that I work for Chrysler as a business consultant in the IT section. I don't normally write about work too much unless it had to do with something I did like my trips to Germany. But yesterday the Chrysler IT employees were all told officially about the changes that are coming to our area.

I have known somewhat was was coming for some time now and in fact I have been in meetings the last few days with a few others to help design how we will continue to deal with our customers in certain areas and what the new role of the business consultant will be. It is being given additional emphasis in the wake of the announcement.

I think that I, as well as most of my current Chrysler colleagues, will be safe from the cuts mentioned as our area has already been close to meeting the target reduction through other means. But it appears that a lot of our long time contractors may be replaced with the new companies. It is a shame to see them go as they are valued workers and we have developed good friendships over the years. For those in the Detroit area and the automotive industry in particular it is becoming a common occurrence. But it doesn't make it any easier.

Warmer but wet

The temperatures tried hard to finally beat the freezing mark and generally broke in to the mid 40's over the weekend. Hardly shorts weather and I was still using toe warmers. But at least I wasn't fighting snow and ice like last weekend.

Friday I was training by doing micro intervals, pushing had up the hills. I was supposed to do it on a trail if possible but we won't be riding on any trails for some time. So I used a portion of my back road route that had a lot of hills on it. I managed to see some of my highest wattage and HR numbers on this ride and was worn out when done. The intensity of the short efforts was not something I had been doing yet but is the phase I'm moving into now.

Saturday was a long ride and was intended to get used to riding at the endurance level I thought I would sustain for the 100 mile races. Trying to keep a steady pace while monitoring wattage as well as nutrition and hyrdration. Starting off in the morning my legs were definitely feeling the effects of the previous day.

I noticed that while I intentionally kept the effort in check I was only a couple of minutes off my pace of some of my faster times at the early checkpoints I use on my route for reference. I was slower by the time I hit my turn around spot but part of that was due to the roads becoming worse the farther I went into the ride.

The roads were starting to dry in spots but others were full of holes and water and mud were in quite a few spots. by the time I got home I knew my bike was going to need some parts replaced due to the constant wear of the mud and grit over the last few months. Even cleaning the bike after each ride does not prevent the wear that build up with repeated use.

The first local mountain bike race is supposed to be in two weeks but the condition of the trails is questionable. Every year the promoter has an early race and every year there is a debate on whether the race should be held, damage potential to the trails, etc. Last year the weather cooperated just in time to make the trails OK. This year we may not be as fortunate. And people may not wait for the trails to really be OK for riding so that they can practice for the race which will tear up the trails even more.

I wonder if the Cohutta race in TN will be the first time I actually get to ride off road this year? Although the dirt roads lately have made it seem like I'm on a trail :-)

Michigan Spring

Not having to work yesterday I got out for a 4+ hour ride on the roads to try and beat the snow due in later in the evening. The roads were finally clear of snow but in some of the shady areas the runoff from the previous day was frozen in the early morning temperatures. There was also a dampness in the air which seemed to work its way inside me by the time I was done.

Later in the afternoon I was reading reports of heavy snowfall to the southwest of us and hazardous road conditions. The snow started falling by us later in the evening.

This morning were were fortunate to only have about 3-4 inches. Sandy was disappointed that there wasn't more so she could go xc skiing but for me it was about the limit to navigate the back roads by bike. I was a out for a couple of hours but had to be careful in spots due to the snow on the roads, including the packed surfaces that would break apart as you rolled over them. I ran into Mike Simonson who is also getting ready for the Cohutta 100 next month. In fact, I've seen him every day the past two weekends I've been out. We train in the same area for the same reasons, relatively light traffic and some of the bigger hills around.

Later in the day I went over to Fraser bikes to check out the big sale they were having since the Cannondale rep would be there. The Cannondale demo truck was also scheduled but due to the snow they decided not to risk the drive. The store is impressive as it is pretty new and has an extensive training facility as part of their operations.

The rest of the weekend is reserved for Easter with the family although I will do an easy ride tomorrow to rest the legs. The next two weekends I will be putting in some long days to get ready for the first 100 mile race in a few weeks.

Christmas in March

I have been hearing about Christmas in March ever since I signed up with the Sobe/Cannondale team. It's the day when out new uniforms and many of our sponor's products show up. Last week we got word the boxes were shipping and today it arrived.

Inside was all sorts of goodies including team uniforms, socks, gloves, Uvex helmet, Diadora shoes, Smith Trace glasses, Marmot jacket, hoodie sweatshirt, hats, Hydrapak, wireless comoputer, Bear Naked products and more. At least I'll look good.

Weekend wonderfulness

The weather has finally cooperated in getting the roads cleared of the snow and ice buildup. But the melting snowbanks mean that rivers of muddy water are running down some of them and the roads are soft and muddy in other spots. But then there are those beautiful sections of dry, smooth dirt. But don't let let them fool you because just around the corner is a landmine of potholes, waiting to cause a flat or damage your rim.

Saturday morning my coach came out to ride and I took him on the first half of my hill route. We managed to ride down the snowmobile packed snow and parts of a rail trail that were covered with snow but also packed down from foot traffic. The road conditions ranged from great to poor, dry to very muddy. My partial fenders helped keep a lot of the mud off me but I was still covered pretty good in the front.

I hit one of the many pot holes a little too hard and flatted the front tire. It didn't take too long and we were on our way. By the time we were finished with the ride I was feeling a little tired but happy to ride outside. I was looking forward to doing it again on Sunday. But I took some full fenders off another bike in preparation for the mud.

On Sunday two of my Cannondale Midwast team members came over for a repeat of Saturday's route. They were both on single speeds while I took the easy way with gears. Hugh rode his fixed gear cyclocross bike with huge 44x16 gearing. My knees would probably be blown out if I tried that.

The roads were in better shape in spots but I managed to get a flat on the front tire again, from a hole on a different down hill than the previous day. After getting home and downloading the data from the ride I was pleased to find that the wattage output in various metrics were almost identical to Saturday's ride. It just hurt more to achieve it. But overall that is good that I could do the same work two days in a row.

I was going to relax once I got done riding but my son told me about a new TV that Circuit City had just gotten in, a 2008 model of a 2007 TV that he had been looking to buy. And he had gotten an email from CC with a discount. After I took a quick shower we went over to look at the TV. Bottom line, we now have moved into the high definition age with a 50" HD plasma TV in our living room. The picture is amazing and the HD channels are super clear, just like in the showroom. But of course it couldn't just sit on top of our old floor console TV, right?

Meijer was having a sale on TV stands and since my son works there that is another 10% off. After dinner we went over and picked one up. Or more precisely, picked up the kit. We spent the next hour and a half assembling the stand but once finished and in place it does look good. Plus the stand has shelves and drawers that will hopefully hold the video game stuff that seems to always be strewn about.

Now we just need to get another big screen for in the basement for when i'm on the trainer. I'm not holding my breath on that.

Slipping but not sliding

This time I was able to ride for a few hours outside without falling down. While the roads were generally free of snow, many of the back roads had patches of ice on them. Some roads were completely coated with ice and I don't know how cars were able to negotiate some of the hills and curves. I left the studded tires on and didn't have any problems although I was still careful to not get too aggressive in the corners.

The trails were perfect for riding early in the morning, the snowmobiles had packed them down while the snow was soft and now that everything had frozen it was almost like riding on dirt. Too soon thought we will lose the little snow that is left and then we will have to wait for the trails to dry out. Unfortunately these trails take a long time to dry but there are others close by that do drain quickly.

The first big race is now less than six weeks away and the training is ramping up with longer time on the bike and higher intensity. Hopefully I can actually ride some trails prior to travelling to Tennessee.

Exercise can help seniors avoid dreaded falls

The title of this post is also the title of an article I saw in today's paper. What timing, based on my post from yesterday. Maybe at last I could find the secret to staying upright. But then I read it and thought, exercise is WHY I fall down!

The article makes some good points about the need to continue to exercise as you age and also points out places to get more information. But I didn't see anything about how to keep from falling when riding your bike :-(

Outside and upside down

After spending the week on the trainer I was determined to get outside and ride, despite the snow that seemed to have fallen all week, including on Friday night. On Saturday I took out the bike with the PowerTap so that I would have a good feel for the effort required to ride with a group of my friends.

It was kind of discouraging when you can barely make it out of the subdivision due to the snow. Since I got a late start I headed up to Chris's house in the most direct route, along a busy 4 lane highway through town. The sidewalks weren't clear I rode in the street and through the melting slush for several miles.

By the time I got to Chris's house he had already left so I kept rolling, knowing which way he was heading. I made a turn off a subdivision street and on to a cut through path only to have the bike stop dead and throwing me off. Naturally there was a lady walking her dogs right when I did it. I assured her I was OK and that it was just a part of winter riding. A little while later I could see Chris, Mark and Bryan up ahead. It wasn't too long before I caught up.

On the generally snow covered roads their fat tires stayed on top of the surface while my skinny tires would cut down and squirm all over, requiring a lot of effort to maintain balance and forward motion. I had no problems keeping the wattage up in these sections. When we would finally come to a hard, smooth stretch I would put the hammer down to keep up the required intensity. Overall the ride accomplished what I needed from a training standpoint plus I got to ride outside and with some of my friends.

Today I had a similar ride on the schedule but on the SS. With the fatter tires I was able to stay on top of the snow but there were more icy spots and snow covered ice than yesterday, due to the partial melt and overnight refreeze. It was another day to practice bike control and pedal technique; part way up some of the hills the rear wheel would suddenly spin from hitting ice and I would have to adjust my pedalling.

Coming down one of the bigger hills in the area I was riding in a lot of churned up snow due to cars spinning their wheels on the way up or locking their wheels on the way down. I was trying to be careful but as a car passed me going the opposite way I moved over and promptly slid out while they watched. Again, I assured someone that it's part of winter riding.

I was having problems with my rear brake starting to fade but still had some use of it. As I was coming to a stop on a slight downgrade the front wheel suddenly turned 90 degrees and threw me off the bike. Of course this time there was a car behind me. I almost couldn't stand up due to the ice I was on. The driver of the car said it was a pretty cool looking crash. Hmm, three crashes and every time someone right there to watch. I'm not too sure I would be a good poster child to promote the fun of winter biking.

After arriving home with no more mishaps I went right back out to get in some xc skiing with Sandy. She's sorry that the snow will soon be gone. I don't think that I can say the same.

The race at Lake Orion High School was written up and published in our local paper last week. There were more photos in the print edition.

Oliver's getting bigger

I'm not too sure about you


And YOU! Who do you think you're fooling? (in his best Alfred Hitchcock imitation)


What?


I can stick my finger in other places now, too!

Sandy and I drove down to Indiana this weekend to spend a little time with our grandson and daughter in-law and her mom. Emily had flown in to spend some time with her mother after her mom had knee surgery. Since this was only 4.5 hours away by car we wanted to take the opportunity to see the family. It is certainly a lot closer than trying to get out to Montana for a day.

We saw Oliver back at the end of November when he was about a month old. Three months later he has changed quite a bit. Of course he's bigger but he can now support himself and seems to be pretty strong. He's also developing a personality, with giggling and facial expressions to show his moods.

We had a nice visit but way too short. Hopefully we can get to see the whole family later this year if they make a trip back this way.

I see red people

Most of the 2008 Cannondale Midwest Team members gathered at the Scurr's last Saturday to get to know each other and listen to what was in store for the coming season. While I am not officially on the team this year due to my Cannondale contract, I still try to help the team where I can.

The 2008 team has really expanded geographically as it is now a truly Midwest team, with team members from Indiana and Ohio. We represent the shops and marketing area of our Cannondale sales rep. Several of the new members from both of those states made the long drive up to the meeting. Two of them raced at Lake Orion High School earlier in the day. I'm sure seeing all that red made the Hoosier and Buckeye fans feel right at home. I would have preferred something in blue.

Race results

Here are the results from the Lake Orion Dragon Gap Winter Race

Dragon GAP Winter Race Results 2008

Great day for a race

We were fortunate to have great weather for Saturday's running and mountain bike race. Blue skies made the chilly temperatures seem a lot warmer that it really was. Overnight lows in the single digits gave way to the high teens by race time.

A lot of time was spent trying to get the course ready to ride on as the foot of snow in the week preceeding the race would have made it mostly a hike-a-bike for much of the 3.2 miles. I was fortunate enough to get the use of a 4-wheeler with a plow and I spent quite a few hours Friday night and Saturday morning plowing the course. By race time I estimated 90% could be ridden on the first lap.

After the runners got through and awards given out it was time to send off the bikes. They course wound it's way up the drive and across the parking lot where you began the first section of snow covered trail. I was not able to clear this section very well so most were forced to dismount and run. Then came the signature feature of this course, down the sledding hill. Many riders chose to get off and run down but some did ride, with varying degrees of success. Check out the youtube video to see what they faced. The runners came UP this hill near the end of their race.

As the race went on the bikes broke down some some of the snow so the course became slower. I had calculated this into the number of laps required and as a result, the races were just about the ideal length for this time of year. Everyone, from runners to riders seemed to have a good time. T-shirts that the school had made up said this was the first annual event so soon it will be time to start planning next year's race. And maybe even one in the summer, this year or next.

37 Yesterday, -1 and dropping today

What a difference a day makes. Yesterday afternoon Sandy and I were out skiing in the relatively balmy 37 degree weather but we could feel the weather front starting to move in. While we were out the wind was picking up and the temperature dropping as the trails started to get crusty.

This morning it was 7 degrees as I headed out to the MMBA annual meeting to set up the Hammer booth and spend the day there selling product, seeing everyone again, and picking up my Champinship Point Series award; the first time I've gotten one for the Expert class.

By the time we left in the afternoon it was down to one degree and the wind was still blowing. Right now it's -1 and it's supposed to drop even more. Time to button up those longjohns.

While the weather was warm yesterday I managed to get hold of a couple of snowmobilers and have them meet me at the high school where I got to drive one around most of next Saturday's race course while the other snowmobile followed. I don't know how much good it did but it may have helped some. I am meeting the school organizer tomorrow to walk the trail so I'll have a chance to check it out.

Hopefully we will have a decent turnout for the race. The school organizer was a little worried because there weren't many preregistrations yet but that is normal for a winter race. I dropped off some flyers at a few of the bike and running shops yesterday.

I wrote once before about having a bigger bullseye on my back now that I will be riding for the SoBe Cannondale team and it may be getting bigger. I was sent an email from the NUE series organizers with some questions to fill out and send back along with a couple of pictures. It seems that they are working on a race program to be distributed at all of the races which will include among other things a brief description of the contenders in each of the series' categories: Male, Female, SS and Masters. I can't be anonymous anymore.

What's wrong with a little snow?

Unfortunately we did not get the amount of snow predicted this past Friday. It's too bad as there are plenty of things to do in the snow besides trying to ride a bike.

Yesterday Sandy and I headed back up to Roscommon to the XC Ski Headquarters to see if they could get Sandy on some skis that would work for her. The previous two tries at REI were unsuccessful. Since the Ski Headquarters only does xc skiing for the most part, they have a very knowlegable staff and a great selection. They were able to find several models for Sandy and had demos of each available for her to try.

After trying the various models several times Sandy was able to select one that she felt comfortable with and the whole package was cheaper than the ones we had at REI (not factoring in the cost of driving to Roscommon). I tried a demo set myself while we went out on the trails with Sandy's new skis.

This morning I tried to do an easy hour or so on the bike outside but the back roads had not been plowed so the packed snow made it a little difficult in spots to keep the intensity low. It was a session for practicing my balance though. Later in the day Sandy and I went out to a local county park where they groom the trails for xc skiing so we could gt a little more time in before the warm temperatures ad rain may mean an ealy end to the fun on the snow.

The warmer temperatures are expected to stick around for a while so it may mean that the MTB race scheduled for Feb 16 may end up getting cancelled due to soft conditions. The run poriton will still take place.