Week two of the season was a good one. I was able to get in a workout and also solidify a training plan for the rest of the season. My schedule is set and I'm excited to put in the work. Even with just one week of full training, I could feel it pay real dividends.

After a nice tribute and moment of silence for Ed Sander, we started the race. I was lined up probably three quarters of the way back in the scrum for starting spots. That meant not so much of a sprint off the line but rather a follow the leader approach which continued through the first set of barriers and on the maze side of the lilypons. As soon as we hit the gravel power section the race was on and I started to get as aggressive as I could muster at that point.

I tried to slot in behind Chad Totaro and follow him through that section, but somehow I got he and his teammate confused. So when a gap opened up in front of him, I was surprised I had to go around only to realize that Totaro was up the road. I started looking for other riders in my "realm" and I tried to pass as many as I could before the U-turn hill and the mountain bike like section.

Last year, this course was quite muddy and so these sections absolutely killed me. They were so technical and I lost ground each time through. This year, after practicing some in the warm-up, I wasn't nearly as worried. The ground was dry as a bone and I made a good remount at the top of the hill. I wasn't gaining ground, but I don't think I was losing any either.

The biggest difference this week was that I felt like I had lots more power and I could actually race rather than just look to survive and finish. The corners weren't as slippery in this one either so my cornering improved dramatically. Basically I did just about everything better this time. My mounts and dismounts were more polished and I had a lot more fun out there.

One thing that I notice is the difference in what I remember when I'm in a B race near the front versus an A race towards the back. Blogging a race report last year, I felt like I remembered every pass and misstep since it literally meant the difference between winning and finishing somewhere in the top 5 or so. But now that I'm nowhere near the front, all I remember is slugging it out for an hour with a few competitors that I end up trading places with.

This week it was Brian Fouche for a bit, then Adam Fung for less than a lap, then I spent the remainder of the race attempting to catch Greg Lindstrom. Fung passed me somewhere around the mid point of the race after I'd led him through the lilypons maze and I tried to stick on him through the gravel, but failed miserably. If I'd stayed on him, I could have made up several places and I would have caught Lindstrom who I was very close to catching going into the U-turn hill on the final lap. He distanced me somewhere before we started heading downhill towards the store and I never had a real chance to beat him.

I have no idea how many laps we did, or when exactly I started each of these battles during the race. But I remember those riders and struggling like heck to beat them. Never before can I remember suffering so much for so little reward in the results. Finishing 24th sounds terrible for a 'cross race, but I keep looking above my name at who I have to start beating and at least the top end is pretty much untouchable. I've got to focus my efforts on the guys just ahead of me and see if I can't start making some progress. Already this week it was nice to make up some ground. Unfortunately, I won't be racing MABRA for a while and when I do return, the fields are likely to be smaller and less top heavy. So my real focus will be on those who decide to race the MAC B's. I have no idea who those will be and some will come from the MABRA B ranks too. So until Granogue, I won't know who my real competition is this year. I guess I'll just have to put in the miles and the time at LT and race my race so to speak.

Pictures by Dennis Smith and Michael Kirk:
Early in the race, riding next to Totaro.
The first time through the lilypons.
A bit later, still finding my groove.
Strung out on the gravel road.
First time through the unrideable gravel pit.
My favorite shot, not sure who's in my draft.
Here's Fung dropping me, and Fouche still hanging tough behind.

Since it's almost time for race #2 of the cyclocross season, I figured I'd better at least take a stab at a race report for #1. It was last Sunday at Druid Hill Park in Baltimore and it was the third annual and third time I've raced at Charm City Cross. As always, the event was one of the finest around and the course is usually one that suits me well--fast and dry. I knew that this time would be a lot different than the previous two, however.

The first time I raced at Charm City, it was my first time ever racing a bike. That's right, I lined up on my Specialized Sirrus with knobby tires and clipless pedals literally purchased a day before and gave it my all. It was a rude awakening. Last season, my second go at the race, was equally exciting and I was lucky enough to come away with the Men's B victory--easily the highlight of my brief cyclocross career. I followed that up with a solid season and a second place in the B series, which brings me to this year . . .

Somehow, early registration I guess, I ended up with #7 in the race, which put me on the front row--of the A race. Insane. I lined up on the far left, next to Andrew Wulfkuhle of C3. But more scary was that a few riders over from him were Davide Frattini and Luca Damiani. They're both Italian pros. Needless to say I was a bit intimidated, especially since I knew I was out of shape and hadn't been expecting to do much other than get my feet wet with 'cross again.

Anyhow, the officials gave us the whistle and we were off. I clipped in quickly and smoothly and started sprinting for the first turn. I didn't sprint all out because I was worried about taking the first turn at full speed, but I made it there soon enough and the race was on. Dust was flying everywhere and it was the epic chaos that cyclocross brings.

I don't remember much about the first lap other than I was getting passed a lot. Considering my fitness level, I knew this was going to be a theme of the day, but even so, it's depressing to feel like you're going backwards so early in the race. Halfway through that lap, when we hit the barriers out in the field, I found myself somewhere in the mid-twenties. The bleeding continued through the remainder of the lap, but after that I tried to settle in to my pace and race against the guys around me.

The rest of the race was a blur. I did battle with Erik Leaver, Chad Totaro, and Adam Szczepanski, which put me in fine company, but certainly I don't think any of them were in top form. I thought I'd finished ahead of all three, but the results are a bit funky and so is my memory, so who knows? What I do remember was the incredible encouragement I got from the Coppis on the course and how that sustained me each lap as I started to wonder how in the world I was going to finish. I was reminded that racing an hour is a lot longer than racing 45 minutes. It hurts so much in that final quarter of racing and my pace was pretty slow. My dismounts and remounts were surprisingly good for having done more during this race than I did total in preparation. Mainly it felt good to suffer again and to be a part of another 'cross season. My passions were renewed.

Things to note from the results? Wes Schempf is going to be awesome this year it appears. Props go to Todd Hesel (last year's B champ, hence the sweet skinsuit) and Jared Nieters (another B) for finishing a lot higher than I did.



The more interesting thing (at least for mechanic wannabes) were the problems I had pre-race. It had to do with my single ring setup and I have no idea as to the real cause of the problem. Last season, I raced on the Javelin Primitivo and this year I switched to the Kona Major Major. On both rigs I was running a single ring setup which consists of a 42t chain ring surrounded by double guards and chained to a 12-27 cassette in the rear.

All of last season, there was rattling from the chain guards. They were slightly too thin and so when I tightened down the long chainring bolts, they bottomed out rather on themselves rather than flush against the guards. Well, this season, I bought some small washers to add that missing thickness. Putting them on was a challenge because of all the Loctite I'd used to keep the bolts tight. But eventually, with Jess' help, I got the bolts off. I soaked them overnight in Acetone and then installed the washers on the crank along with the chainring, guards, and bolts. By all accounts, it was an immediate success. The rattling was gone and it looked quite sturdy.

That was until last Wednesday morning when I met the guys at Bluemont for morning 'cross practice. As I was descending a hill and applying full gas (42x12) to my horror the chain became lodged on the outside of the chainring to the inside of the guard. Basically the chain wedged itself and bent the Carbon guards enough to get in there. It was a catastrophic problem that I was very worried about.

Luckily, when I took time to check it out once I got home, I found that the chainring bolts had all loosened up a lot. I figured that I hadn't used enough Loctite this time or that I hadn't let it dry and so because the bolts loosened up that's why the chain had lodged in the now-bigger gap. I tightened the bolts back down and liberally applied Loctite.

That theory lasted until I was warming up in Baltimore and it happened again. At this point, I trying to get some time on on the actual course and I started freaking out. How could this happen? I'd have to forgo the race if I couldn't find a solution. So I coasted back to the car and started talking it over as calmly as I could with Jess. Neither one of us could figure out why it was happening since none of the bolts seemed all that loose. Worse yet, Jess noticed that the Carbon guards had hairline fractures now from being bent.

My only solution was to make my 10 speed 12-27 into a 9 speed 13-27 and hope that the chain wouldn't find its way off the chainring. So I tightened down the H limit screw and said a quick prayer. I rode it around once and it seemed like it might work, so I hopped on the trainer and spent the rest of the time warming up.

So, solution? Well, I don't know yet, but I've placed an order for the Spot Brand 42t guards in the hopes that a metal guard won't flex and allow the chain in. I'm not 100% sure that will save the day, but at this point it's my only hope. We'll see, the order should be in from Bikeman on Friday--just in time to hopefully get things right for Sunday's race. If all goes well, I'll need to do another 'My Ride' post to document all the changes to this years race rig.

Well, I once again haven't posted in a while. And with it being only 2 days until cyclocross gets started, you might wonder why? Well, after racing in the MIT Alumni Meet (that's running) and riding in the Wilmington Grand Prix (another DNF), a funny thing happened. I'm not sure when or exactly why, but I developed a nasty case of rash/saddle sore. I've been battling that for a little more than two weeks now and I finally had to give up and stay off the bike cold turkey this week. You can imagine what that does to my preparation for Sunday.

I had planned to spend this week getting fully reacquainted with my 'cross bike, but the only time I got was maybe thirty minutes of riding with the boys Wednesday morning at Bluemont. I had trouble with the bike, and remounting on my sore crotch did not make me feel good about riding. I gave up on that and headed for the house.

Writing this post also has me feeling closer than ever to the Bush administration. I feel like I've got to dampen expectations for the start of the season and really move all the benchmarks I'd hope to meet--if not change them entirely. In short, Sunday may be quite embarrassing (not Gonzo-like, I hope). Looking at the start list I can't help but feel out of my element. A few guys from the B's have moved up--so if I was in shape I could take solace in that. But otherwise the start list reads like a Who's Who of elite 'cross racing in our area. It's motivating to be sure, but I can't work miracles. To further complicate matters, I'll be spending Friday evening and Saturday helping with the youth on a church retreat. No biking there either.

So what's the plan? I need to practice dismounts and remounts a lot on raceday and also make sure I get ample rounds on the course. Not only that but I've got to pray that nothing goes wrong with the bike. I've done all the maintenance I know to do, so now we'll have to wait for things to settle out. The bike does look sweet though. I'm also extremely happy with the change in geometry. This bike fits me perfectly.

Whadya know? I can finish a race on the road. I was down in NC visiting family this weekend and stopped over in Salisbury, NC to race the High Rock Lake Road Race. This time out I managed to do a lot better.

The course was a 13 mile nearly-pancake flat loop on immaculate tarmac. Apparently it had just been paved and boy could you tell. It was silky smooth and clean. Chances of getting a flat today were way down. The field in my Cat. 3 only race was rather small with no team really having more than about five guys. Franklin Street Cycles, Salisbury's team, and Pfeiffer University were the main groups. The rest of us were on our own.

We did five laps plus a finishing section of about a mile--the total listed was 68 miles. I can say that I raced this one tactically very smart but just got a bit unlucky in my final decisions. I spent the entire race sitting in the back and avoiding taking a pull at all costs. It was really amazing to me how many times people tried breakaways when it was obvious they weren't going to work without happening very close to the finish line. So there I sat. Many times I would look back and find myself completely in the rear. That doesn't work so well in a crit, but in a RR like this one, it's not such an issue.

It was without question the most boring race I've ever done. Each time we came through the feed zone I could casually chat with Jess while exchanging a bottle and wave at my parents. The pace wasn't all that slow, but when you never find yourself on the front, it isn't that hard. My biggest concern most of the time was that I really needed to pee. Not being confident enough to do that on the bike, I had to try and focus on other things.

Heading into the final lap, I was poised to see what I could do. My bet was that it was all going to end in a bunch sprint so I continued to ignore the breakaways. But somewhere in the last four miles or so a group of 7 or 8 made it off the front and there wasn't the usual push to bring them back. Either everyone was thinking like me and not wanting to waste energy or they were tired already. I'm not totally sure. I tried to surf between a few of the guys that were trying to bridge across and they didn't like that at all! Shocking ;-) I was still thinking that the break would come back so I didn't want to work at all--just cover my bases if it didn't.


Well, we never bridged up far enough and that group never came back, so I retreated to the peloton just before the entered the finishing mile and tried to get ready for the sprint. I was able to bully my way into a line of riders once the finish line came into sight and once the sprint started I gave it all I had. I finished 3rd in the field sprint and somewhere around 10th or 11th on the race I think. Not bad for 'cross training. Good base miles. Considering that I got 3rd in the sprint, I think the field may have been more tired than I anticipated. Had I tried to take off and bridge on my own, it may have worked. Who knows? That's road racing I guess.

I finally got some pain in my legs today. It came via basically derny pacing on the trail home from work. Pat rode his electric hub motor powered bike in front of me and gave it full gas. I sat in his slipstream and held on for dear life. The stops to cross roads and slow down to pass folks on the trail served to make this a blend of tempo and intervals. In short, I think it was a perfect workout for a crit or for 'cross. I'm thinking if Pat's willing that I'll make it a fixture of my workout routine.

The legs felt good, but I'm glad I'm finding the holes in my fitness real quick. I don't have much of a sustained top end power push. The few accelerations I did were solid and overall I'm in good shape--meaning I'm not dying right now writing this. So more work this weekend in the High Rock Lake Road Race at home in NC and then we'll see what I've got after another week of training.

2007 Cyclocross Schedule

Looking back at last season, I raced only eight times. I raced every MABRA race (Charm City, Ed Sander, AVC, IC Lite, Coppi, Race Pace, and the Championships). I only raced once in the MAC, my home turf of Lake Fairfax Park for the Captial Cross Classic. Most of that season schedule was determined by splitting time between Arlington and Jefferson Hills, PA where Jess was living.

This year, there shouldn't be any restrictions on travel, so I'm set to race a full slate. The plan now is to race sixteen times. I'll race all but two of the MABRA (AVC and the Championships), all but one of the MAC (Highland Park), as well as Whitmore's early in the season, the new DC race, the NJ stops of the USGP, and the late season Rockburn 'Cross. IC Lite was dropped from MABRA and is now part of the PA series.


It's possible, depending on how I fare during the early MAC races that I could end up going to Highland Park. But the drive is awfully daunting when there's a race so close in Sykesville, MD. It's also possible that I could end up racing the MABRA Championships if we don't travel for Thanksgiving. With a schedule so full (10 out of 12 weeks racing) I think I'll be challenged to keep races rather than to add more.

Highlights of the season:

1. Charm City. This is one of the most enjoyable racing experiences around. It's the first week of the season here in the Mid Atlantic and everyone is jazzed up for 'cross. The course is well designed and fast. Not to mention that I pulled off a B-series win last year.

2. Whitmore's. I've heard great things about the course design here and with family on Long Island this trip should be fun. I figure a weekend experiencing the big time racing scene will get me better prepared for . . .

3. Granogue. The MAC opener. I've raced it only once, back in 2005 and I loved it. Hopefully it hasn't changed much because the course was epic and seeing the Kona boys roll was the highlight of my first year in 'cross. Reviews from last year were more than enough to make me feel bad about missing this one. I won't make the same mistake again this year.

4. DCCX. To have a real cyclocross race inside the district will be a unique experience. In its first year, there's very little info out there about this one, so it's anyone's guess at to the venue and course layout. But knowing a few of the CityBikes crew, they'll pull off a great race.

5. Tacchino. This is Squadra Coppi's race and the one course that I get to play a hand in setup. Last year the course was a good blend of technique and power. The hill in the middle helped me shed some of the competition and I do more than hope that this year's course will again play to my strengths.

6. Beacon. I've never been to this one, but every picture I see of the sand and the stairs reminds me of the action across the pond. I'm very much looking forward to a race that requires a good bit of running. Hopefully by this point in the season I'll be battle hardened.

7. USGP. I don't always hear good things about the USGP series, but there's no denying that it always draws out the big boys. It's too bad we lose 2 races out of the MAC series because of it. I can't wait to see the action after I'm done racing. It'll be my first time in attendance at a USGP race. I'm not sure what to expect from the racing at my level at an even like this. My guess is MAC+, so a very high level.

8. Cap Cross. I can't say that I truly enjoy this course because every time I've raced here I've performed below my expectations. But this year, if I can stay focused on racing for the entire season, this race will be a grand way to finish things off. It's my home course, so I think it's about time that I did something here that I was proud of.


One topic that's been very interesting to me this year has been budgeting. Jess and I are detailed about our budget and so I figured I'd come up with an estimate of exactly what it will cost to race this season of 'cross. I figure the cost of just racing comes in three ways: fuel, hotels, and entry fees. With the cost of the races being $25 plus a $2.80 BikeReg.com service charge, the grand total for waging war on two wheels comes in at $27.80 per race. My estimate of fuel is based on the roundtrip mileage in the car listed above. Conservatively (at least right now) I'm estimating gas to be $3.00/gallon and the Honda CR-V to get 26 mpg. That works out to $0.12/mile. Planning ahead, it looks like I'll only need 3 night in hotels. Staying in a HoJo and a Days Inn keeps the costs low there. Grand total: $976.45 for a season of 'cross.

Of course, this calculation doesn't include things like some of the inevitable eating out on the road rather than cooking at home. Nor does it include equipment costs in the case that something breaks. But I think $1K for the season isn't a bad estimate of what this hobby truly costs.

Raceday! Wake Up Call! I traveled up North to Williamsport, MD for the River City Classic. It was again this year, the Age Graded Criterium Championships, but they also held a 3/4 race. Last year I led this race solo for quite a while before being reeled in to setup for the sprint. This year, well, things didn't exactly go the same way.

I've made it no secret that I haven't raced much this road season and that any racing I do at this point is with the intention of getting ready for cyclocross. It's a good thing that I did get out to race today, because I got the wake up call and additional motivation to train that I have needed for months. This was quite a quality field on a moderately technical course and I was no match.

I lined up near the back, intent on being passive the entire race. Once the gun went off I found a spot 3/4ths back from the front in the peloton and settled in. The first several rounds, the turns were pretty slow as folks figured things out, but after that we got crankin'. I never really found my way up towards the front as I should have, and instead I started losing ground.


The final turn before the finish was just slightly more than a 90 degree turn, and I really never figured out how to make this one at any speed. It's been my MO in crits that I can't corner well enough to be a factor, but I've never had it cost me the way it did today. Each time we came to that critical juncture on course, I lost maybe five yards. And every time I did that, I had to get out of the saddle and sprint up the slight incline to catch back on. It was a classic case of the criterium accordion--except that I didn't do the contracting part for too long. I'm not sure exactly when it happened, but at some point, a group of three of us lost contact with the peloton and that was all she wrote.

We were toast. But silly me, never having been dropped before, I got more and more frustrated at myself for sucking in the turn and not having enough power to catch back on. I didn't start working with the other two until after a few laps and by that point it was painfully obvious we weren't going to finish the race. The peloton eventually was out of sight on the straightaways, then out of sight through the alleys and then, with ten laps to go, the official blew the whistle. I sat up, unzipped my skinsuit and coasted uphill to the car.


Probably the most embarrassing thing was that I had enough time to change into my street clothes and jog back to the finish in time to see the winners sprint to victory. Ouch.

So why did I suck so much today? Well, I've got three reasons er excuses. The first is that I think the quality of the Category 3 group this year is a lot better than it was last year in my first season on the road. Back then, I was continually frustrated with the lack of aggressive pace and that's why I was out solo. This year, there were some major players in the race and they made this one the hammerfest that I've always been looking for. Congrats to all the racers who finished in the main field. You guys raced hard and should be proud. Especially the three juniors who were in there battling right up to the finish.

The second is one that's already been discussed: I can't corner worth a crap. I did improve some as the race wore on, but I never mastered that final turn. I think I could have masked the third reason a lot more if I had been good at riding the corners fast.

The final reason is of course the reason that I'm glad I showed up today: I'm out of shape--or I'm at least I'm out of top end speed and raw power. I have a decent amount of fitness. My legs are used to lots of aerobic mileage, so I've got some base to work with. They have not, however turned a stroke in oxygen debt in quite a while and today showed that. The speed of the race was a shock to the system and my legs were screaming.

Between now and September 23, when cyclocross kicks into gear, I've got to get some speed back. It's going to take some tempo workouts and some racing. I need to spend some time in agony, some time remembering what it's like to pedal in anger, and some time riding with the motivation of not embarrassing myself. In short, I've got a lot of work to do and not a lot of time to do it in. But I've got motivation now, and this year, that's been half the battle.

It's time for me to start blogging again. Charm City is only 39 days away and 'cross season will soon be upon us. Let's see if I can make some regular posts as a sign of the cyclocross season.



I've dropped off the racing map since the Poolesville Road Race back in May. My motivation for racing on the road completely deserted me and so I deserted the racing scene. Since then I've only raced once--a lap at the Pleasant Valley Road Race--and I flatted. But there's something about 'cross season that I knew would stoke my competitive fires again.

I'm now riding every weekday and trying to regain my form. I think I'm nearly back to having a reasonable base and since 'cross isn't as reliant on lots of mileage, I'm hopeful that this season can be a full success. I'll start throwing in some tempo eventually and next week I should have my 'cross bike setup to start skills work. "Racing" at MIT's alumni meet should be a shock to the running system. Maybe by then I can get enough miles on my new shoes to make the purchase worthwhile.

If nothing else, I'm motivated by the fact that I'll be a step above the MABRA B's this year. Since I finished second in the MABRA B series last year to Todd Hesel and won two races (bookends), I think several of us are due to take a step up. I'm planning on racing the MAC B's and MABRA A's. MAC B's are a lot more competitive than the MABRA B races, so that will be halfway between where I came from and fully making an A leap.

I raced last year's MABRA Championship with the A's and that's what I've remembered all off-season. It was Thanksgiving weekend, I wasn't training well, the course was awesome--though muddy, and I sucked bigtime. I remember that racing for an hour was a long time and I remember the lonely feeling of knowing only one man was behind me in the race. I had no speed and no control and I felt like I had no business being in the race. So this year, I'm hoping to erase some of those memories and find some success at a level above MABRA B's.



Since my first exposure to the MAC scene at Granogue two years ago, I've been hooked on 'cross. I can't wait to finally get in a full season of MAC racing--though I'm not especially looking forward to all the cash I'll have to spend on gas and hotels. It will be intense and a little less laid back than the MABRA races, but I think it will be a lot of fun and I can't help but get better.

One of the toughest parts about getting up at 6a to ride in to work is dealing with my stomach. A lot of times I wake up with an upset stomach and I have to spend time just hanging around until it calms down. It's usually worse when I haven't slept all that well, but the good news is that if I have a little bit to eat and maybe a trip to the toilet, things settle down.

The other tough thing is when it's either bitterly cold or rainy. Lately, it hasn't been much of either, but today it was rainy. I left the house in my Coppi windbreaker (ie not waterproof) and just after crossing 7, the rain got worse. So I pulled over and put on my raincoat and booties--along with my new neoprene gloves. From there on, I was feeling pretty good. Since it was so warm out, I didn't put on my rain pants. My legs didn't mind the dampness one bit. Coming over the rise just after the stretch in Vienna, I was all alone and hearing The Bruch in my ears what just what I needed. It doesn't get much more beautiful than that.

Today was only a half day since I use Fridays to catch up on work hours. Jess drops by and picks me up on her way home from Pittsburgh, so it's nice to have at least half a day off once in a while. Overall, my legs feel terrific. If I could just sleep a little better, I'd be perfect.

Well, it's that time of year again . . . the time after all the seasons are over and I'm building up a base that I become completely enamored with the sport all over again. I'm happy to report that my enthusiasm for the bike is at it's annual winter peak. Seeing as I'm now at week 18 of living without a car during the week, that's good timing. Right now I'm spending my time building up a base as big as I can handle. I'm back home after spending the holidays with Jess in Pittsburgh, so I'm seeing 2.5 hours of riding each weekday, split up of course into 1.25 hour segments in the AM and PM. That's the 40 mile roundtrip to work everyday. I'm hoping to make it out the DC Velo 7am ride or a Coppi jaunt this weekend, which should add at least 50 miles and 3-4 hours to the total--not to mention some climbing, a bump up of the pace, and some friendly competition. My goal, I think, is to settle at 300 mi/week, which should be about 18 hours in the saddle. Because the volume is so high for me, I'm not really hammering much these days. Waking up at 6a every morning is tough, but I'm getting in the miles and so far I'm not sick or really feeling all that tired. Of course, I haven't done much on the weekends up to this point, so it's possible that once I start doing rides on Saturday and Sunday, I could feel it a bit.

With all of my hunger and desire to be racing a week ago, the Thanksgiving holiday kind of took some of that away--as did finishing off the MABRA series with a win. So it was no surprise that I wasn't as up as I should have been for my first go at an 'A' race. That's really a shame, because the course for this one was probably the best I've seen all year. It was set up in Taneytown, MD by Tracy Lea. This course really had everything: mud, run ups, off cambers, gravel, pavement, and lots of turns. It didn't really suit my style, but I had to admire how well laid out it was. It reminded me a lot of courses I've seen on cycling.tv.

So, since I wasn't planning for this one as well as I should have been, Jess and I went to church at our normal hour and didn't make it to the racecourse until thirty minutes before the gun. I did almost no warmup--consisting only of a few minutes on the trainer and then riding around nervously near the start line. When it was time to go, I found myself on the line with oldies but goodies, Gunnar Shogren and Kris Auer as well as junior phenom Nick Bax and Evan Ellicott, also making the upgrade from the B's. Since there were only about 10-12 racers, we all had a front row position. I got a good start and found myself in third place behind Shogren and Auer at the first turn. But that's where the positives would end for the day.

Having not preridden the course, I immediately found myself in trouble. I had absolutely no clue what was coming and I messed up nearly every feature on the first lap. I took turns too fast, too slow, and even had to dab my foot a few times where I shouldn't have. By the end of the first lap, I'd dropped every single spot except for a couple. I was really frustrated, but not so much as I might have been had I known what was on the course.

Judd, another Coppi in the race, eventually came up to me and passed. I tried to go with him, but my horrendous technical skills gave him a gap and I never could make it up. I tried really hard for a few laps, but his lead got bigger and bigger. I soon realized that I was only one spot out of dead last. I started looking for the guy behind me as well as trying to make sure I wouldn't get lapped. When I realized that neither was likely to happen, I got my head back to riding the course and started trying to learn from what I was doing.

To be sure, I was exhausted. Racing for an hour was difficult, especially when I had no one to race with and nothing to strive for in the last few laps. Most of all, I realized that pre-riding isn't just a good idea, it's a necessity. I had not forseen how impossible it was to ride a muddied and technical course like this without knowing what was coming. I found myself taking the wrong lines with all the wrong gearing and it cost me bigtime.

I guess one positive is that Ellicott did pretty darn well and I've beaten him and Bax in the past. Though I know they are superiot to me in technical skills and endurance respectively, I can reasonably expect that with more focus, desire, and a preride, I would have done much better. Next time, I'll have a chance to test that theory. I'll race once more, this time the final MAC race of the season this Sunday in Reston, VA. Hopefully I can go out on a little bit of a high note.

I finally decided to do something other than just put the miles in. I warmed up for a couple miles, then hit it hard, doing six minute intervals with three minutes rest. I did five sets and managed to avoid any long stops at intersections. My legs felt pretty strong and I was able to use one rider as bait. We'll see how I respond in the next few days. I hope I'm strong enough now to keep the mileage up and add just a tad bit of quality.

I haven't updated in two weeks and I never finished a race summary for IC Lite, but rest assured that I haven't been nearly as lazy with riding. Today marks my sixth consecutive day of total bike commuting (i.e. 40 miles/day no car). I even used my new rain gear to navigate through the storm this past Friday. I took the weekend off and this morning, my legs felt amazing. I'm building a massive base and in doing so I'm as hungry as ever to get out and race this weekend when the MABRA series resumes.

Hunger really doesn't do my feelings justice. I'm flat out anxious to get back on the 'cross bike and race. It's unbearable to read and look and photos of the MAC series and the World Cup races over in Europe. This is going to be a long week, I'm sure of that. I'm planning on at least riding some barriers soon and probably throwing in a tempo ride before this weekend of racing on Saturday and Sunday. Logging upwards of thirteen hours on the bike a week is starting to feel more natural. We'll see how I do as the weather gets colder, but so far, I'm holding up.

As for my training as a whole, since I don't have a car (nine weeks now) I haven't been able to really do much planning of workouts. In the past few weeks, I've been tired from commuting everyday and didn't feel like I could handle any extra load. The only real hard efforts I've done have been the random times I've felt up to catching folks on the trail. But I'm hoping that I'm now handling things better and can add some quality to the quantity in time to get some benefit this 'cross season.

I'm thinking right now that I'd like to keep riding this much through the winter. That means, I doubt I'll be taking the break I took last season to train for the Alumni track meet. Should make for an interesting mile time come January, but hopefully it'll pay dividends when road season starts up.

Here's an interesting tidbit from Pez' interview with Greg Lemond. It's very encouraging to hear such an established road racer recommend cyclocross racing in the winter.

Pez: Cyclo-cross has always been popular in Europe and is now booming in the United States with the Crank Brothers U.S. Grand Prix of Cyclo-Cross, Verge events, and others. What was your experience with cross as a competitor and did this influence the design of the highly popular LeMond Poprad cyclo-cross bike?

GL: If you go back to when I first started cycling, cyclo-cross was a mainstay of my winter training. Cyrille Guimard was the coach and each year I was on Renault that team won the French National Cyclo-Cross Championships. Each week from October until January riders would race a minimum of once a week and train 12-14 hours per week with two of those days doing cyclo-cross, very intense, kind of like a time trial. If you think about the physiology of it you maintained a high level of fitness, what you gained all summer. Guimard was really forward in his training regimens by saying you don’t gain all this fitness only to take three months off in the winter and have to start from scratch. That’s what was happening. Back in the 1970’s that’s what riders did, except Merckx. Merckx was racing year round and it showed in his performance in the early season.

It's also noteworthy that he says they were training only 12-14 hours a week. That's about what I'm doing now. Hearing that Saul Raisin was riding 28 hours in a week while he starts his comeback from a brain injury is stunning. That's nearly twice what Lemond was doing.

Another interesting note was what he had to say about young racers starting out. I'm not as young as he's speaking about, but I think it applies to anyone starting out in the sport, regardless of age:

Pez: What advice do you have for juniors and young racers starting out?’

GL: First, get a good coach and especially get connected with a local club or team that has some ex, older, good racers who they can learn from. Bike racing has, in the last 10 to 15 years, become so much about physiology, training, how you do intervals, but bicycle racing isn’t just a physical sport, it’s a tactical sport. You have to learn tactics from other racers and also from racing. As a young racer the more you can race the better. All types of racing, road, track, and criteriums. If you want to be a winner you have to do it all. Even mountain bike races should be included in a young person’s repertoire. Riders should not focus on the quantity of riding but on the quality of their rides, they should learn how to sprint properly and how to do an echelon. I am shocked sometimes when I ride with experienced racers who do not know instinctively to switch an echelon when the wind changes. They should also develop a very good pedal stroke and an ability to rapidly change cadence from low RPMs to high RPMs, where you’re able to use the high pedal speed to accelerate.

Cool to hear such good advice from the first professional cyclist I ever heard of growing up.

I was back up front, where I want to be . . . finishing 2nd at IC Lite. Race Summary to come.

Photo by James R. Wilson

Wow, the cold weather came in a hurry. Just last night I was riding home in a jersey and shorts. I woke up this morning to temperatures in the high thirties and low forties. I didn't think it'd be as cold as it was outside and I left the house in my thermal jacket, leg warmers, and gloves. I originally thought the jacket would be too much, but after about five minutes, I was wishing I had my hat, booties, and bigger gloves. It was darn cold. Needless to say, traffic along the trail was down significantly. The same troopers I saw throughout the winter last year were out there, but there's never anyone headed in my direction once the weather gets chilly.

The skies looked like they might get anrgy, so I was more than happy to hitch a ride behind Pat's electric bike to get home. Riding behind him is just like motor pacing and it's a lot of fun to fly by folks on the trail. We can ride at 26-27 mph consistently and it can be hard work when we hit a long but slight uphill.

Once we hit the gravel on the way to Vienna, I attacked Pat just to see what his bike could do. I got a gap and then settled in to work and try and maintain it. I was tucked and cranking a huge gear TT style and I just held him off to the depot. What a blast! I got back behind him and chilled out the rest of the way home--with the exception of the obligatory KOM point before Hwy. 66.

I had to do a few things around the apartment before I left for work this morning, so the commute started a bit late. But I finally got on the bike and started pedaling. My legs felt like garbage, which is a little bit surprising since I've only ridden three of the last four days. Maybe they're just complaining about the lack of work. Well, I put 'em back to work but really didn't enjoy a single bit of this trip. I was glad when I finally got to my destination and I took a long shower.

Coming home was a lot more interesting because I had the new light to play with. I even stayed a little bit late at work so I'd get a chance to use the light in the conditions I'll face once the time changes. I have to say that the light performed wonderfully. It's incredibly bright. I was blocking it with my hand to keep from blinding people. It was shining on street signs at least 200 yards away. It is without question brighter than my 10W halogen. I'd like to see how it compares to the Cateye Triple Shot Pro or the Niterider MiNewt. If anyone's got one, I'd like to give them a try. Pat certainly got this one built for a lot less than they're asking for those lights.

To round out my day off, I finally made it down the road to check out Pat's new light. It's been a small project of ours to get a bright, yet cheap LED light for commuting once the time changes in a couple of weeks. This is the first go round and it looks pretty good. I didn't get a chance to see it shine after the sun went down, but I think it may work out. It definitely seemed as bright as my 10W Halogen.


The light is about as simple as it gets. It's four Luxeon K2 LED's mounted with lenses to a piece of Aluminum. They're wired in series and connected to 12 AA NiMH batteries that are housed in the water bottle. Running them in series is about as simple as it gets and for now, that's the goal.


The backside looks a bit more complex that it actually is. Being the aerospace engineer that he is, he's doubled the connections coming into the lights. The connections are made with PC jumpers and pins.


And just to speak on the first picture. Pat's big into electric bikes and the wheel covers on the front are hiding a hub motor. So, please, if you see a middle aged dude who's probably not as fit as you and he's taking you to the shed on the trail, think! It's hilarious how many folks have been riding with Pat on the way to work that think he's a freak of nature with incredible acceleration and stamina. He's no freak, just a crafty veteran.

One of the most interesting things about this cyclocross season has been being both racer and mechanic. I've done every single bit of mechanic work on my rig this season, and with that has also come some mistakes. Fortunately, none of those mistakes have cost me in a race--or at least not noticeably.

The first mistake, I made two days before Charm City and I'm hoping it'll be the most expensive one I make this season. The left rear brake boss on my Javelin isn't aligned properly. That's a manufacturing error/QC issue, but the result is that my rear brake pads weren't contacting the rim at the right angle. In trying to bend the brakes to overcome this error, I bent the bolt that holds the smooth shaft brake pad. In doing that, I damaged the threads to lock it in place and when I tried to screw it shut, I sheared the bolt! This bolt is unique to Empella brakes and since Cyclocrossworld.com is the only company selling them in the US, I had to shell out for next day air and a replacement sent of bolts. I have since learned how to properly bend the brakes and now they're at the right angle.
Cost: $40.49

The second mistake I made was beyond a rookie mistake. It was purely a stupid one and so far it was the most dangerous to my race hopes. I lost a bolt out of my seatpost during Charm City and upon examination, it was because I had the top part of the clamp oriented backwards. Basically, I didn't read the piece to see the 'FRONT' stamped on well, the front and I had it in there backwards. That meant it was tough to get the angle I wanted and so I had the back bolt just barely screwed in. One race on the dirt, and it worked its way loose.
Cost: $4.95

The third mistake, I didn't notice until late last week. I lost the crank arm cap/washer on my Dura Ace FC-7700 drive side crank. I didn't think it was much more than a cosmetic error until I noticed the crank bolt was loose moments before the start of my race on Saturday. A new one should keep that bolt tight.
Cost: $8.95

Unfortunately it wasn't the cause of the most perplexing of all problems . . . Moments before the start of my race on Saturday, I started hearing an awful cracking/creaking noise coming either from my bottom bracket or somewhere in the hub/rear derailleur area. I wasn't sure which and I had no idea how to fix the problem, so I had to race with the noise. I did get a little bit better during the race, but never the way it should sound.

So today, I set off on a quest to determine what in the world this noise was. It never happened on the stand. So shifting up and down without any real pressure on the crank sounded just fine and the shifting was normal. So I took it outside and confirmed that the only way to make the noise was to put a lot of resistance against the crank. That meant the noise was heard when starting from a dead stop in just about any gear, but worse when starting in the 42x12.

I first wanted to rule out the hub. That would be the worst case since the Mavic Cosmos I've been riding on have seen very little 'cross action so far. I switched the rear wheel with my road bike's rear wheel. I took it outside again and was actually thrilled to hear that the problem persisted. That ruled out the hub! Or did it? My rear hub on the road bike actually seemed to have some play in it. I tightened it up to take out the play and fortunately, the sound continued. I checked the tightness of the hub on my cross wheel and it was fine.

The remaining possibilites were the BB and either the rear derailleur or chain. It was hard for me to determine where the noise was coming from since I had to ride the bike to hear it. But on Saturday Jess seemed convinced it wasn't the BB. So I went with her recommendation and turned my attention to the rear derailluer and chain.

The more I looked at the problem, the more I became convinced that the chain was somehow slipping to make the noise. And that was consistent with my thought that the chain was one link too long. In my quest to improve the shifting last week, I hadsd finally concluded that the chain was just barely too long. But when I went to shorten it, I realized that the one reason I loved SRAM chains was not a feature in their 10 speed chains!

The link that I thought was a PowerLink is actually called a PowerLOCK on the new chains. That means that you can install the chain without a chain tool, but to remove the chain, it's back to the same old of using a tool. And once you remove the PowerLock, you have to get a new one to reconnect the chain! Ugh. I'm no longer excited about SRAM 10 speed chains. But that's the reason that I decided to leave the chain at its current length. And that one extra link, it turns out, was the cause of this horrible noise.

I had to ride over to Big Wheel Bikes, the closest LBS and snag a Shimano CN-5600 (105 Chain). I checked the length with the SRAM chain I removed, then installed it and voila! The problem was gone. So until I get another PowerLock, I've got a useless SRAM 10 Speed chain laying around.
Cost $27.95


I should comment also that so far the shifting does seem to be better with a Shimano chain the Shimano drivetrain. Go figure! Shifting it more precise also without so much slack in the chain. In the 27 cog, the cage is at about 45 degrees with the horizontal, which in my opinion is about as far as you should go. In the 12 cog, things look exactly as they should, with the two pulleys nearly inline vertically.