Ouch..Church Creek TT and Peaking.

Ouch is right.  I think I was about the only guy who couldn't sit or stand properly after the TT.  I have to say, my strength is not time trialing or hill climbing. Get me in a sprint, and that's what I like. It's even better when I have a decent train to follow.  

The first 10km I was hammering it (probably averaging about 28 MPH or more).  Unfortunately for me I caught my 30 second guy within about 30 seconds. Then it left me with my minute guy which I could see in the far distance.  For a while, I thought I was catching him.  I was humming and it felt great. I knew that I would probably blow up later on, however I really didn't care, cause I don't think I would be able to hold 25.5  or 25 mph later on even if I did go slower in the first 10km.  Myron had told me that on the back side the wind would change and be helping push me from the back.  I never did find that happening.  What helped was when it got smooth on the road.  I blew up somewhere around 25km to go.   Grant Soma decked out in his long sleve skin suit passed me.  I looked down at my computer to see how fast I was going, and it was on pause! Crap!  The stupid speedo stopped registering for some reason, probably because of the rough roads.   I didn't dare try to fix it while riding, so I just continued on.  Trying not to lose so much time to Grant.  It was a good thing that he passed me as I could figure out that I was going too slowly before.  I had him in my sights, however he was pulling away slowly but surely. I passed another 2 guys however it wasn't my one minute man.   With about 8 km to go, I decided to go all out.  Well, it lasted about 30 seconds and boom.. I couldn't hold that effort.   I originally planned to go with 4-5K as an all out effort.  When I got to 4K, I couldn't muster any effort.  Well, all good plans fail.   I was so toasted by the end that I couldn't even give it any extra effort, even with 500 meters to go, unlike the TT which I did at Tour of Lancaster County, which I had lots of strength to put in a sprint when I saw the officials tent. 

After I crossed the finish line, my hips were feeling that they had gone out of place. There was lots of pain both in my ass and in my hips.  My positioning must have been wrong, especially because I didn't have anyone actually fit me for the TT.   I just swapped out my seatpost and saddle for my old seatpost and saddle which I moved forwards a bit.  I rode maybe three times with the clip on bars which I got from my teammate John Myrick.  And in those times, I adjusted my seat every time.  Actually on one of the rides, I got saddle sores...so something was definitely wrong. Luckily this time I did not, which was a miracle in itself. 

So for the future, I'll need to make sure that I'm positioned properly, mark those positions, probably replace my old saddle as it's totally too pliable now. (Selle Italia SLR Gelflow) .

I rolled around for a bit and then my ass started seizing up.  I could no longer sit and standing wasn't too much better.  I started my trek back to the parking lot which was 5 miles away.  Ugh.. I could barely pedal as the pain was so bad. Even the women who finished later passed me on my way.  Kay, 7 times National Champion, rode by me asking me how I was... All I could mutter was that my ass was killing me.  I finally arrived back having John Myrick load my bike in to his truck as I couldn't even think about performing that task.  Then it was the waiting period.. We waited around for a couple of hours for the results to finally be posted.  Crazy!  Well, it gave me the courage to ask this kind massage therapist whether a massage would help relieve the pain or at least help it heal quicker.  I also did that to spend my time wisely instead of waiting for the results.  As soon as I asked to sign up to be her next patient, the results went up for the Cat4's.  I was thinking that if I did sign up the Masters 35+ would be up.  Well, about 10 minutes later in to my nice massage, they finally got put up.  I really didn't care as the stretching and massage was actually helping me.  She kept saying how I was really tight and I should get massages more often. Don't I wish I could!! However money is a factor and time.   Maybe I'll have my wife get trained into doing massages.. then I could get it free and that I could get it more often.  Plus it would help her stay involved with my cycling.... Not! I don't think she would go for it.  Who knows.  I'll ask her.  Anyway, the massage went well, I hobbled off the table feeling more relieved, but still in pain,  glanced at the results and left.  I have to say I wasn't too disappointed, however not breaking an hour kind of sucks.  Doing it without a TT bike and not having my positioning tuned, makes me think I can go under an hour in the future, if I train at it.  At least I wasn't in the range of 1 hour and 4 minutes or more as I've done this just on my regular drops 15 years ago and got that time. 

I got home took a bunch of ibuprofen and tried to relax in front of the TV.  The next morning I woke up feeling okay, a bit sore on my ass still with hard knots and I still have them today, however much less painful.  I went out on the Sunday 8:30 Bicycle Place ride, thinking of doing a relatively long recovery ride.  Up Mass Ave. the lead pack started hammering away. I didn't think I would chase as this was supposed to be a recovery ride.  However, I looked back and there was only a small group of about 6 riders with me and they wanted to chase. Well, that was the end of my recovery ride.  I pulled several long stints, the A group was long gone.  We however caught a smaller group who fell off of the A group.  Then came up on several more, I got up the Mountain Gate first, and then proceeded to keep going, then passing the left turn I was supposed to go on (it's been a while since I've gone on this route.).  So everyone took the left and I turned around chasing again.  I caught back on after getting back on MacArthur Blvd. and climbed with everyone up the hill towards Great Falls Park, by the time we went down into the park, a bunch of the A group was climbing back up.  I turned around after Chuck Hutch pass ed us going the other way.  Good... no more climbing for me. During the sprint on Democracy, I followed in the back moving up gradually till the sprint started to appear.  Crazy fast, as I was already in my 53 x 11 and spinning as fast as my legs could take me.  A bunch of cars passed us on the left and I caught some of their draft, however I couldn't spin any faster.  I was waiting for SuperDave to pass me however he never came around.  I don't know how fast we were going, but I have to say it was probably the fastest I've gone, however not able to put more power into it as my legs were spinning so fast. 

So anyway.. probably a stupid thing to do to go so hard after the tiring, painful TT.  I was drained after the ride as it totaled about 50+ miles. However, I have to say, I felt that I could chase hard and recover quickly.  There's nothing like being in shape and feeling that you're peaking.  Though there aren't many races left.  So anyway, I'm feeling pretty good for nothing.  Back to the fall and resting and not training much.  I am hoping to keep my fitness, do more base mileage, and hopefully next year will be a better year for me. 

Page Valley RR Championship HOT!

I decided to go to Page Valley after a discussion with " Hot"Chuck "two speed" Hutcheson on our ride yesterday. He recommended to me that I should just do it and fake it till I couldn't fake it again. I told him that I wasn't thinking about going because it's a very hilly course. Last year it was very hot as well and I cramped up after the 4th lap and decided to call it quits after the start finish line as I was dropped and had nothing left except for bad cramping and heat exhaustion. I told Chuck that I know my limits and hill climbing is not one traits which I can relate to. He just said smile and fake it and if I do get dropped, just use it as training. Well, it was after the Saturday DC Velo 7:15 morning ride and a spirited ride back in the Rock Creek Park. I guess since I was hanging on during the ride, I decided that I had a chance to finish Page Valley with the pack. NOT!

It was a hot one today, I carried an extra frozen bottle in my jersey pocket. The first lap was a good warm up lap as we rode at an easy pace. The first hill was at accomplished at a good pace, I felt a bit tired after that as I was riding at the pack's pace and not mine. My legs were feeling tired for some reason. I was thinking it was from yesterday. The second lap was much faster and actually rode up the first hill at a brisk steady pace and was surprised that I wasn't hurting. The 2nd hill was more difficult though as the hills were starting to wear on me. 3rd lap, I was starting to think I may make it. The hills started to hurt and I was feeling low on power, however I was still with the pack. Every hill started with myself up within the top 20 riders... by the time I went over the hill I typically dropped back 5 to 10 spots on the first hill. The second hill was the killer as I would be in the top 20 spots then fell back to the back every time. On the 3rd lap, I ended in the back and Jorge of Artemis told me to hop on as we came over the top. Luckily there were a few others behind we all were able to bridge up. The forth lap, was about hanging on, which I found out I couldn't. A Bike Rack guy drilled it by himself to catch a breakaway which looked like it would stay away. Those guys are strong! I was exerting myself pretty good and I was really hoping I could stay with the pack when it came to the climb. Same results, start towards the front and go backwards on the second climb. However this time I had no acceleration in my legs up the 2nd hill and I was dropped finally. I saw Rayman ride around me and continue to bridge to the back of the pack and I couldn't. I finally made it over the top losing about 15 seconds to the pack. I tried to bridge back, however, the pack was going at a good pace and it didn't seem like I was gaining at all. Then the wind hit me and it was all over, they rode away. I rode back by myself with another rider a bit behind me. I waited for him a bit, as he seemed like he was catching me. Unfortunately he didn't come up, so I just pedaled on, finally finishing. The last climb was a killer and I had no power to push the pedals to get up the hill. I smiled at the Jim Wilson taking the picture of me in pain, then gave it a 10 second burst to get over the line.

A few thoughts:
1) Don't let Chuck talk you into something you had decided not to do.

2) I only drank 3 bottles of water, had about 3 gu's, ate about 3/4 of a Cliff Bar, I rode with two frozen bottles of water and one bottle of tonic water. This was the first race which was hot and long and I didn't even feel cramping coming up. I'm wondering if it was the tonic water, the gu mixed with water which I took a couple of swigs twice a lap. My mother told me yesterday to drink tonic water for cramps, as I read recently on one of the blogs that quinine works wonders for cramps. By the way, the insulated,with the foil inside the lining of bottle which I won from Turkey Day race works really well, it stayed cold and for the entire race till it was tapped out on the 5th lap, I think I'll be buying a couple more of them soon.

3) I know my limits... No more Page Valley for me, unless I turn into a climber some how, which is never. Over the past couple of years, I have ridden more hilly rides than ever, thinking I could train myself to survive and finish a very hilly race with the pack and I still can't. I used to avoid road races because of the understanding that eventually I would get dropped. What has happened is that I've now lost my crit racing ability and sprinting and have become a very mediocre road racer. Guess, I'll have to switch back again to focus on the crits and circuit races. (flat ones are best for me).

4) I didn't feel too exhausted this evening and recovery (heart/lungs) for me during the race was fairly quick, so I'm obviously getting back into my prime, however there aren't many races anywhere to prove to myself I'm back. Oh well... next year maybe... or retirement.

By the way... hot... yes, the weather was, however watching the finish of "hot" Chuck Hutcheson was pretty amusing. Chuck powered his pedal and clipped out, almost looking like he was going to crash, however he caught himself and reclipped in as Nate Wilson took advantage and kept moving. Chuck recouped and went after Nate and passed him several feet before the finish. Unbelievable! Chuck was just a cool character! Doing what he had to do to win. Congrats Chuck and Congrats Nate as well! Thanks for making it entertaining!

Tour of Lancaster 40+

Photo credit: Joe Hess, pictures can be found here:

Day 1. Road Race: I decided to make a go of it as I was on Bikereg.com looking for races this weekend. I wanted to see how my fitness is coming along and I thought Page Valley was this weekend. I found out that it wasn't and was next week. I looked at the flyer and thought it said that there only 200 ft of climbing and the TT was mostly flat. So I decided to go. Well, I arrived and spoke to one of my teammates Andy Shaw about the course and why I came. He laughed and said that I need to see the hill for myself as I said it wasn't supposed to be hilly. We'll I misread the flyer. It actually said 696 feet of climbing instead of mostly flat.
I was in for a big surprise. The first lap was performed at a very leisurely pace, one which I enjoyed including the scenery along the creek. The hill started after a right hand turn and immediately it sloped steeply upwards, then merged into another longer hill. I danced out of the saddle and was within the first 5 riders over the hill, however at that point I needed some recovery time. Not many of the others, they hit it afterwards on the false flat. Oh well, I hung on for dear life at that point. Every lap it continued, though on the 2nd lap, 5 or 6 guys got away at the hill. I could do nothing except to hang on and on the downhill section, I was able to recover. I tried to stay towards the front knowing that I would have the best chance of not getting dropped. Art Brown who missed the break was at the front working trying to bring the break back. I was behind him on the 3rd lap and he turned around yelling at others to work...I just shook my head and told him I was already tapped out. He of course probably didn't believe it. However based upon my training this year, I have such a limited base with most of my rides lasting only 20-25 miles at the most (a couple times a week). He bridged up later in the race, as did Randy Thrasher as well. Ray Manyoky who was up in the break dropped back into our pack. I didn't think he would have as he's a strong climber and has been looking really strong this year. Funny thing this guy Andrew Melnychenko, kept remarking that I was still there after the hill, I chuckled saying that I was lucky. On the last lap, I asked him if it was the last lap and he gave me the affirmative and I remarked good because I wouldn't be able to take another hill climb. That was the truth, the last time up the hill, taxed me, I dropped back as my legs were cramping and I soft pedaled for a while trying to recover. Two riders behind me passed me and I tried to work with one guy for a while, though he was much stronger and continued to pull away. My teammate Mark Klein, was nowhere in sight as he dropped back behind me on the climb. The climb to the finish was insult to injury. I basically soft pedaled to the finish as originally I thought the finish was before the hill. As I went up the hill I saw the 200m sign, oh well.. just continue to ride to the finish. Ouch, my legs were definitely cramping as I got in my car for the drive home.

I got back and went to the The Bicycle Shop to pick up my Polar cycling computer as I would need it for tomorrow for the Time Trial. I put my leg over a bike at the shop to check it out and immediately my hamstring cramped up badly. I quickly dismounted and rubbed it out. I got home and ate a chicken dinner with some pasta trying to refuel and recover for the next day.

Photo credit: Michael L. Kirk; pictures can be found here

Day 2: Time Trial
I got up at 5:30 am, took a shower and got in the car to leave at 6am so I could arrive with plenty of time before my 8:57 start time. It seemed to be a bit longer in distance than I originally expected. It was raining and I was not going to like the TT. I arrived with about 30 minutes before my start time and didn't have much of a time to warm up as I didn't want to get too wet. I've been riding without my Polar CS200 for about a month and a half. I actually forgot how to read it and didn't use it except for the Speed guage. Even that, I didn't take a look at it for much of the TT. I was totally paralyzed by fear because of the wet roads. I took some of the corners at good speeds, till the technical part of the course with the curves. I ended up on one turn into the farmer's corn field because I didn't want to panic as I took the wrong line as a truck was in front of me and slowing. No hitting the brakes for me, I took the line into the field and for about 10 seconds I came back on making sure that I took a place on the asphalt which didn't have a large difference in height with the corn field. The girl watching the corner probably had a great view and good thing she didn't have a camera out, otherwise I'd be on that infamous web site. After that I took most of the corners pretty slow. On the back section, I kept my pace at a decent level, as I didn't know how much further I had. Then I saw the officials tent... oh no, so I buried myself and sprinted to the finish. I had plenty of energy left. I should have put in 120% of the effort when I turned on to the back stretch. Next time I will, now that I know the course. I finished up pretty disappointed with myself with the 20th place. Kind of like yesterday, though I was actually happy yesterday that I finished not so far back.

Crit:
Fast and furious for the first five laps. George Opria was the instigator and Art Brown hung on to George as they were battling for the GC. I was around forth wheel for the first five laps. I was over the redline and needed to fall back and drop the pace down a bit. That's when the break happened and I had nothing in me to chase on. The rest is history. Every time Ray, Randy, Mark would attack the Spinners Cycling and Swashbuckler Brewing guys would jump on and prevent anyone from working. Yes, they did a good job on teamwork, however after the break got out of eyesight, they shouldn't have kept that tactic up. I went on a two lap flyer, got a little gap going however I had a guy on my tail who wouldn't pull through to help. I finally made him do some work, but by then, we were starting to get caught and I was pretty toasted. The last couple of laps Ray was up front pulling everyone along, then the jump came and went, I was blocked out on a turn, then tried to give it a good last sprint at the end but there just wasn't enough runway as I was catching the three guys ahead of me but the finish line was just after the final turn. Oh well, such is racing. No lead out train for me. I was pleased with this weekend as I didn't give up or get dropped in the criterium. So over all my fitness is getting better, however who knows what my training will be in the next few weeks.

Great event in my opinion and maybe I'll be better prepared next year. 

One other point to the promoter, Rich Ruoff,  on how to improve it.  Don't give omnium points for those who do not register for all events or complete all events.  They can win money for the individual events, however they aren't in it for the GC.