Inside the box was an animal day care. You HAD to come pet the animals.
Kailee even put out the hand sanitizer just like any petting zoo.
It was a good rest and recovery day.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Christmas Toys
The kids received a lot of great toys for Christmas. Today we spent some time resting and playing with our new toys. This was one of the top hits for the day. A box.
Inside the box was an animal day care. You HAD to come pet the animals.
Kailee even put out the hand sanitizer just like any petting zoo.
It was a good rest and recovery day.
Inside the box was an animal day care. You HAD to come pet the animals.
Kailee even put out the hand sanitizer just like any petting zoo.
It was a good rest and recovery day.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
After Christmas Hike
exploring the snow, foot prints, dog tracks etc. Short but fun.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Brewing up some goodness
ahead. It was looking good and we had fun.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Bar Week
So this past week I got back to the gym to lift some weights. If you've ever taken an extended break from lifting weights you know when you return, there is no way your picking up were you left of. If you did, you know, you paid for it dearly the next day and the next day too!
So, I've been going easy. It looks funny but I can get out of bed the next day! In other words, I have just been lifting the bar. Just letting the muscles know what's coming. You know, foreplay.
Maybe I'll add weights next week.
So, I've been going easy. It looks funny but I can get out of bed the next day! In other words, I have just been lifting the bar. Just letting the muscles know what's coming. You know, foreplay.
Maybe I'll add weights next week.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Video of my last race.
Did you see me?
It'll be on Altitude TV! Check it out.
Thursday, December 17, 2009 7:00 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Sunday, December 20, 2009 1:00 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Friday, December 25, 2009 4:00 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Sunday, December 27, 2009 2:30 AM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Monday, December 28, 2009 1:00 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Thursday, December 31, 2009 2:30 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Saturday, January 02, 2010 2:30 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 4:30 PM Colorado State Cyclocross Championships
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Making Changes
So a few days ago I wrote about how the 2009 race season had gone. I believe there is room to improve for next year but I would like to be smart about it. This time of year is not about logging the miles or getting in the hard intervals. So I’ve been trying to clean up one of the areas that’s needed some help, diet.
I don’t feel like my diet has been bad but it could certainly be better. As to how much better, we’ll see. My goal is to improve my diet and get down to racing weight before the start of the road and mountain bike season.
To accomplish this task, I have enlisted the help of my wife. She’s really the family cook and controls all things food at our house. Thankfully we’ve both been interested in improving our diet so the adventure begins. It’s always exciting to make changes in your established diet, your favorite meals and existing habbits.
For the past week and a half I’ve been on basically on Vegan diet. For those of you that know me your probably surprised, hell I’m surprised. But I gave it a try and I’ve felt great! It’s a bit of a struggle but things have been going well so far.
We’ll have to see if it sticks and has the intended results but so far things are going in the right direction.
I don’t feel like my diet has been bad but it could certainly be better. As to how much better, we’ll see. My goal is to improve my diet and get down to racing weight before the start of the road and mountain bike season.
To accomplish this task, I have enlisted the help of my wife. She’s really the family cook and controls all things food at our house. Thankfully we’ve both been interested in improving our diet so the adventure begins. It’s always exciting to make changes in your established diet, your favorite meals and existing habbits.
For the past week and a half I’ve been on basically on Vegan diet. For those of you that know me your probably surprised, hell I’m surprised. But I gave it a try and I’ve felt great! It’s a bit of a struggle but things have been going well so far.We’ll have to see if it sticks and has the intended results but so far things are going in the right direction.
Monday, December 14, 2009
A sign....
Bicycle racing (in the U.S.) has really come to an end after this past weekend. The Cyclocross National Championships were this past weekend. This video shows it must be time to hang up the cleats til spring. I had a lot of fun keeping up with race updates and seeing how well local Colorado racers and friends had done. Great Job! I'll have to make it to one of these sometime.
As for me, this past weekend was about family time! Ice skating, Santa Claus, food and family. Refreshes the soul!
If you can't see the video click here
As for me, this past weekend was about family time! Ice skating, Santa Claus, food and family. Refreshes the soul!
If you can't see the video click here
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Time to Reflect
The 2009 race season is over. Before diving into 2010, lets first talk about what just happened.
I got in somewhere around 4 road/crit races, 6 cross country mountain bike races and 13 cyclocross races. Totaling 23 races… not bad. On the Road my average placing was 28th out of and average of 74 racers, finishing in the top 37%. Mountain bike races I averaged 32nd place out of 42 racers, finishing in bottom 25% (I did upgrade to sport this year). In cyclocross races I averaged 12th place out of 59 racers finishing in the top 24%.
Road racing was not my focus this year and I used the races to build some fitness for the later races. That being said, results were not all that bad. I even raced in the 30+ open practice crits and had a lot of fun. They were fast and much safer. The cat 4 practice crits were a little scary.
Mountain biking was where I wanted to do better but I sucked. I haven’t raced many mountain bike races but it felt like there was one issue after another. I didn’t have the correct fitness, skills, equipment or anything else. People I was hoping to be competitive with killed me. It was sad and discouraging. I did manage to always finish and not come in DFL…. so there’s that.
During cyclocross I had my most consistent season ever. I occasionally surprised myself but I generally finished in the low teens. Even though people ahead of me were getting moved up, I never seemed to improve my finish. Every race appeared the same, started good or maybe a little too hard; then I faded at the end of the race. First few laps were good, and then it was damage control/survival mode.
As for season goals:
I did improve my Lookout HC time but only by a few seconds, missing my goal by about 20 seconds.
I didn’t get as many upgrade points as I wanted in cyclocross, but I did have two top 10 finishes.
I never did hit my desired race weight and by the end of the season I was going the wrong way.
mmmmmm…… looks like room for improvement. But were and what?
I got in somewhere around 4 road/crit races, 6 cross country mountain bike races and 13 cyclocross races. Totaling 23 races… not bad. On the Road my average placing was 28th out of and average of 74 racers, finishing in the top 37%. Mountain bike races I averaged 32nd place out of 42 racers, finishing in bottom 25% (I did upgrade to sport this year). In cyclocross races I averaged 12th place out of 59 racers finishing in the top 24%.
Road racing was not my focus this year and I used the races to build some fitness for the later races. That being said, results were not all that bad. I even raced in the 30+ open practice crits and had a lot of fun. They were fast and much safer. The cat 4 practice crits were a little scary.Mountain biking was where I wanted to do better but I sucked. I haven’t raced many mountain bike races but it felt like there was one issue after another. I didn’t have the correct fitness, skills, equipment or anything else. People I was hoping to be competitive with killed me. It was sad and discouraging. I did manage to always finish and not come in DFL…. so there’s that.
During cyclocross I had my most consistent season ever. I occasionally surprised myself but I generally finished in the low teens. Even though people ahead of me were getting moved up, I never seemed to improve my finish. Every race appeared the same, started good or maybe a little too hard; then I faded at the end of the race. First few laps were good, and then it was damage control/survival mode.As for season goals:
I did improve my Lookout HC time but only by a few seconds, missing my goal by about 20 seconds.
I didn’t get as many upgrade points as I wanted in cyclocross, but I did have two top 10 finishes.
I never did hit my desired race weight and by the end of the season I was going the wrong way.
mmmmmm…… looks like room for improvement. But were and what?
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Colorado CX State Championship
This past Saturday I was able to race the Colorado Cyclocross State Championship race. My wife was still out of town for her marathon in Vegas, my sister-in-law, Michele, and her daughter, Rose, totally kicked in big time to bail me out and let me mix it up one last time. Without their help, I would have missed out… Thanks!!
Going into the race, I knew it was going to be cold! I’ve raced a few times below freezing but not many, so getting the right clothing selection would be important. There were a couple of inches of snow on the ground but it was pretty dry and wouldn’t be too much of an issue unless it started to melt. I arrived early to give myself time to figure out the clothing issue, pre-ride the coarse and get a good warm-up. During my first lap I came across an ominous sign of things to come. A junior racer had crashed and an ambulance had been called to take them to the hospital. I don’t know the details of the incident but I really hope they are ok.
The coarse had a little bit of everything, flat power sections, off camber, barriers, steep hills both up and down and a fun little “spiral of death”. With the temperatures slowly rising the conditions of the coarse were quickly changing. I felt like a racer with pure speed wasn’t going to have a huge advantage during this race. Staying upright would be very important. The person with the fewest mistakes would have a big advantage. I was confident because I’ve had little to no issue with the technical stuff this year but you aren’t alone on during the race. Anything can happen.
Last year I was called up to the second row, this year I was in the front row. With 80 people lined up behind me it’s nice to know they have to come around to beat you; however, if something goes wrong, they aren’t stopping for nothing! Once we were all lined up we had a few minutes to “relax” before the start. It’s always awkward, racers are focused and nervous, I try to relax and think about other things. What is getting all worked up at the start line going to do besides get your heart rate up?
We got the whistle and were off. I tried to stay near the front but not on the front, driving yourself like a dog into the slippery mush could quickly result in beating your head against the wall as your crash, chase and crash. So steady was the name of the game. It was going to be hard so I conserved and tried to stay upright. I figured the early leaders would quickly come back. I was right, an example of this, a friend of mine went off the front on the first lap, his technical skills aren’t that strong and finished in the 50’s. Another strong racer would pass me, crash in front of me, chase and pass, then crash again. Finally he succumbed to the effort and finished a few positions back.
I had a few bobbles but no crashes. In cyclocross you’re always going to have a few bobbles, you have to let them go. The mental aspect can mess up your race if you dwell on them. Just worry about hitting the next obstacle correctly and quickly.
I was on the first chase group for the first couple of laps but had a series of bobbles on the slippery off camber backside section. After that I couldn’t close the gap. So I raced my own race and tried to limit the damage. I finished 12th, better than my customary 14th this year. More importantly I felt pretty good and had a great time! It was a great season, now it's time to relax and start dreaming about next year.
Going into the race, I knew it was going to be cold! I’ve raced a few times below freezing but not many, so getting the right clothing selection would be important. There were a couple of inches of snow on the ground but it was pretty dry and wouldn’t be too much of an issue unless it started to melt. I arrived early to give myself time to figure out the clothing issue, pre-ride the coarse and get a good warm-up. During my first lap I came across an ominous sign of things to come. A junior racer had crashed and an ambulance had been called to take them to the hospital. I don’t know the details of the incident but I really hope they are ok.
The coarse had a little bit of everything, flat power sections, off camber, barriers, steep hills both up and down and a fun little “spiral of death”. With the temperatures slowly rising the conditions of the coarse were quickly changing. I felt like a racer with pure speed wasn’t going to have a huge advantage during this race. Staying upright would be very important. The person with the fewest mistakes would have a big advantage. I was confident because I’ve had little to no issue with the technical stuff this year but you aren’t alone on during the race. Anything can happen.
Last year I was called up to the second row, this year I was in the front row. With 80 people lined up behind me it’s nice to know they have to come around to beat you; however, if something goes wrong, they aren’t stopping for nothing! Once we were all lined up we had a few minutes to “relax” before the start. It’s always awkward, racers are focused and nervous, I try to relax and think about other things. What is getting all worked up at the start line going to do besides get your heart rate up?
We got the whistle and were off. I tried to stay near the front but not on the front, driving yourself like a dog into the slippery mush could quickly result in beating your head against the wall as your crash, chase and crash. So steady was the name of the game. It was going to be hard so I conserved and tried to stay upright. I figured the early leaders would quickly come back. I was right, an example of this, a friend of mine went off the front on the first lap, his technical skills aren’t that strong and finished in the 50’s. Another strong racer would pass me, crash in front of me, chase and pass, then crash again. Finally he succumbed to the effort and finished a few positions back.
I had a few bobbles but no crashes. In cyclocross you’re always going to have a few bobbles, you have to let them go. The mental aspect can mess up your race if you dwell on them. Just worry about hitting the next obstacle correctly and quickly.
I was on the first chase group for the first couple of laps but had a series of bobbles on the slippery off camber backside section. After that I couldn’t close the gap. So I raced my own race and tried to limit the damage. I finished 12th, better than my customary 14th this year. More importantly I felt pretty good and had a great time! It was a great season, now it's time to relax and start dreaming about next year.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Breakfast
"Birthday Cake". We sang happy birthday and ate almost the entire
"Cake".
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Mr Mom
Exciting times at my house. My wife flew out to Vegas this morning to take part in the Rock n' Roll Marathon. She's been training throughout this fall to get ready. I believe we've worked well together, she has gotten all her runs in for the Marathon and I've been allowed to race a full cyclocross season. We've made compromises, I've missed some races and she has even had to do some of her longer runs on a treadmill (OUCH, mind numbing!). I would like to add in my defense, her treadmill runs were due to the weather. Anyway, wish her luck on Sunday. She's been looking to improve her on her last Marathon time, I think she'll do great.
So I've taken the next couple of days off work to watch the kids, through Monday. So far, ~12 hours in, things have been pretty good. I made all the appointments (preschool, gym and gymnastics) and managed to get home with everyone and everything. No major injuries or anything. Hell, I even got some work done around the house. (With all the activities going on this fall, there's a lot of need in that department.)
I have a sitter all lined up so I can hit the last cyclocross race of the season this Saturday, the Colorado State Championship. The weather has been very cold and there's snow on the ground. It's not going to warm up before Saturday so this will be an interesting race. Whatever, I don't even care, I'll be there! My team is still in Third place and I want to make sure we keep it.
Once this weekend is over, I wonder what the hell I'm going to do next weekend. Both of us finishing our athletic endeavors on the same weekend. Maybe I'll stay in my PJ's all weekend, eat bacon, watch the 100 channels of TV I get (even thou there never seems to be anything worth watching) and surf the web.
So I've taken the next couple of days off work to watch the kids, through Monday. So far, ~12 hours in, things have been pretty good. I made all the appointments (preschool, gym and gymnastics) and managed to get home with everyone and everything. No major injuries or anything. Hell, I even got some work done around the house. (With all the activities going on this fall, there's a lot of need in that department.)
I have a sitter all lined up so I can hit the last cyclocross race of the season this Saturday, the Colorado State Championship. The weather has been very cold and there's snow on the ground. It's not going to warm up before Saturday so this will be an interesting race. Whatever, I don't even care, I'll be there! My team is still in Third place and I want to make sure we keep it.
Once this weekend is over, I wonder what the hell I'm going to do next weekend. Both of us finishing our athletic endeavors on the same weekend. Maybe I'll stay in my PJ's all weekend, eat bacon, watch the 100 channels of TV I get (even thou there never seems to be anything worth watching) and surf the web.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Most Careers Pay Money
Another good one. I feel like I've had some of these discussions before. Especially since I had to miss some family Thanksgiving activities to hit this past Saturday's race.
Link here if you can't see it below.
Link here if you can't see it below.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Red Rock Velo CX #2
Sunday I was back at the races. The weatherman called for snow and cold temperatures but it ended up being a beautiful day! Sun and perfect temperatures for racing cyclocross. I woke up feeling pretty good and headed out to the venue early to get in a nice easy longer warm-up. The park is only a couple of miles from my work so I was really looking forward to this race. I wasn’t let down, the coarse was spectacular. Short power climbs, dirt, pavement, stairs, sand, grass, flat power drags and sweeping descents for a short recovery.
The team had another good turnout. We had five racers in a much larger field, compared to Saturday. Our goal, finish high enough to get more points for the team classification. I got a nice call up since I’m still in the mix with all the BCR points. The whistle blew and we were off. It was a short drag up the hill then onto some pretty bumpy stuff. The coarse ended up being very difficult to pass on. There were a lot of turns forcing the field to be stretched out quickly. I grabbed onto the first chase group and road defensively, trying to keep things strung out and difficult to pass. I wasn’t in a terrible position and no one racing from the teams just behind us in the point’s classification was ahead of me.
I was good for the first half of the race then, per the norm this year, I started to fade. A guy from a marked team passed me and I tried to give chase but it wasn’t in me. So my goal became limit the damage. I road the coarse cleanly but by the end of the race, when your pretty spent, things were getting sloppy.
In the end I finished right were I’ve been finishing all year, 14th. Sadly none of my other teammates made it into the points. We have one more race this coming Saturday, the State Championship. Between the two races this past weekend we really made a leap in the team points classification and are now about 20 points a head of the chasing team. We should be safe for 3rd place in the team competition as long as we get someone in the top 20 on Saturday and they don’t win or get more racers to score.
The team had another good turnout. We had five racers in a much larger field, compared to Saturday. Our goal, finish high enough to get more points for the team classification. I got a nice call up since I’m still in the mix with all the BCR points. The whistle blew and we were off. It was a short drag up the hill then onto some pretty bumpy stuff. The coarse ended up being very difficult to pass on. There were a lot of turns forcing the field to be stretched out quickly. I grabbed onto the first chase group and road defensively, trying to keep things strung out and difficult to pass. I wasn’t in a terrible position and no one racing from the teams just behind us in the point’s classification was ahead of me.I was good for the first half of the race then, per the norm this year, I started to fade. A guy from a marked team passed me and I tried to give chase but it wasn’t in me. So my goal became limit the damage. I road the coarse cleanly but by the end of the race, when your pretty spent, things were getting sloppy.
In the end I finished right were I’ve been finishing all year, 14th. Sadly none of my other teammates made it into the points. We have one more race this coming Saturday, the State Championship. Between the two races this past weekend we really made a leap in the team points classification and are now about 20 points a head of the chasing team. We should be safe for 3rd place in the team competition as long as we get someone in the top 20 on Saturday and they don’t win or get more racers to score.Photo's by Six Degrees to Slush
Monday, November 30, 2009
Photos from Saturday's Grass Race
The Alpha Cross #2 race this past Saturday was a super fun grass coarse. Fast! Here are a couple of photos I came across on the web.
Photographer: Dan Rieber
Photographer: Dan RieberSaturday, November 28, 2009
And there was Grass!
With a new venue for today's race (Alpha Cross #2) I wasn't sure what to expect. To my surprise we had a beautiful grass coarse. It was fast and a lot of fun. Very well laid out, two sand pits and one double barrier with numerous short punchy climbs.
My team needed points. We're currently in 3rd place in the team points classification. There are two big teams ahead of us so moving up wasn't going to happen but there are about 5 teams within 20 points behind us. So loosing 3rd place is a real possibility. I put out the call to the team, to see if we can save this podium spot.
Four teammates showed up and the field wasn't huge. A good sign since only the top 20 get points. I took it a little easy at the start to see if I could ramp it up during the race. After the start, things got strung out pretty quickly. The grass and hills made closing gaps nearly impossible. My front wheel slipped out during the first run through the steep chicanes and had to run the remaining section, only loosing one place. Afterward, a group of about 6-8 racers formed. I caught the express until it started coming apart. Later I crashed in that same chicane and was caught by a two man chase group.
I finished 12th and had teammates in 13th and 18th! 20 points to add to the team total. In addition, the other teams behind us miss out on toady's race. So sad. Two more races in the series. Hopefully we can keep hold of this one.
My team needed points. We're currently in 3rd place in the team points classification. There are two big teams ahead of us so moving up wasn't going to happen but there are about 5 teams within 20 points behind us. So loosing 3rd place is a real possibility. I put out the call to the team, to see if we can save this podium spot.
Four teammates showed up and the field wasn't huge. A good sign since only the top 20 get points. I took it a little easy at the start to see if I could ramp it up during the race. After the start, things got strung out pretty quickly. The grass and hills made closing gaps nearly impossible. My front wheel slipped out during the first run through the steep chicanes and had to run the remaining section, only loosing one place. Afterward, a group of about 6-8 racers formed. I caught the express until it started coming apart. Later I crashed in that same chicane and was caught by a two man chase group.
I finished 12th and had teammates in 13th and 18th! 20 points to add to the team total. In addition, the other teams behind us miss out on toady's race. So sad. Two more races in the series. Hopefully we can keep hold of this one.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Insanity
a Christmas tree up before thanksgiving.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Sunday's Race - The movie
My friend Larry was in my race this past Sunday. He raced with his video camera. It was fun to race with him, he's been doing a great job announcing at many of the cyclocross races lately.
Check out the video, this is what the first lap of a cyclocross races is like.
Check out the video, this is what the first lap of a cyclocross races is like.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Sunday's Race
Found a couple of photos from yesterdays race from Dan Rieber
In the first one I'm doing ok. The second has me deep in hurt locker.
In the first one I'm doing ok. The second has me deep in hurt locker.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
"You are a Nazi-Jankie-Wack-Ass"
If your a race promoter or even worked registration you'll love this. The story is hilarious! The sad part, it's true. I've seen too many people not far off from this.
Click here if it doesn't show up below.
Click here if it doesn't show up below.
Back in the Action
How can something that hurts this bad feel so good.
After getting back home Friday evening I felt like it was time to get life back to normal. I took a pass on the Saturday race to spend time with the kids. The kids wanted to play and I need my dad fix. We accomplished that!
Sunday, it was time to get back out and hit the races. I knew it was going to be a sad state of affairs. After missing last weekend due to being sick and having a lot of work to finish, then spending a stressed out week in Dallas, it was going to hurt!! I hadn't been on the bike in over a week. It was calling me... the pain cave awaited!
The Green Mountain Sports Velo coarse in Golden was long, muddy and hard! I am still sitting pretty good in the 'Best Cyclocross Rider' points, due to my early season performance. So I got a good starting position. We took off through a snow covered field then onto the coarse. After having a second position call-up I was sitting in about 4-5 position on the first lap. Then the guy in second totally screwed up a remount after a short run up and stacked 3 guys behind him. I quickly ran around and boom, I was in second. The lead guy was taking off. It took the group behind me a little while to get moving and I had a surprisingly big gap. But it was hard going and I didn't last too long. I gave it all I had sadly there wasn't much. People were crashing all over the place. I managed to keep it up right and finish 15th. Melissa said she had never seen me race so empty. I hurt so bad at the end, a lot more then normal. Once I caught my breath it felt so good.
I don't have any photos of the race and I'm not sure I want to see how bad it was. There were a lot of photographers on the coarse so maybe I'll come across some online. If I do, I put them up for your entertainment. For now enjoy the clean up I had awaiting me after the race. The bike was still shifting well but it was a lot heavier.
Two more weeks of racing then it's time for a break. I feel a little burned out but its just so fun!
After getting back home Friday evening I felt like it was time to get life back to normal. I took a pass on the Saturday race to spend time with the kids. The kids wanted to play and I need my dad fix. We accomplished that!
Sunday, it was time to get back out and hit the races. I knew it was going to be a sad state of affairs. After missing last weekend due to being sick and having a lot of work to finish, then spending a stressed out week in Dallas, it was going to hurt!! I hadn't been on the bike in over a week. It was calling me... the pain cave awaited!
The Green Mountain Sports Velo coarse in Golden was long, muddy and hard! I am still sitting pretty good in the 'Best Cyclocross Rider' points, due to my early season performance. So I got a good starting position. We took off through a snow covered field then onto the coarse. After having a second position call-up I was sitting in about 4-5 position on the first lap. Then the guy in second totally screwed up a remount after a short run up and stacked 3 guys behind him. I quickly ran around and boom, I was in second. The lead guy was taking off. It took the group behind me a little while to get moving and I had a surprisingly big gap. But it was hard going and I didn't last too long. I gave it all I had sadly there wasn't much. People were crashing all over the place. I managed to keep it up right and finish 15th. Melissa said she had never seen me race so empty. I hurt so bad at the end, a lot more then normal. Once I caught my breath it felt so good.
I don't have any photos of the race and I'm not sure I want to see how bad it was. There were a lot of photographers on the coarse so maybe I'll come across some online. If I do, I put them up for your entertainment. For now enjoy the clean up I had awaiting me after the race. The bike was still shifting well but it was a lot heavier.
Two more weeks of racing then it's time for a break. I feel a little burned out but its just so fun!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
I’ve missed you
Things have been really busy lately. I would say my life balance has been a bit out of whack.
I’ve gone into hiding to write a research/funding proposal for work. This isn’t the first proposal I’ve written, I’ve even gotten a few funded. It has come at a very busy time with many other projects having deadlines. Looking back at my history I find it pretty amazing that I have a job where I can write these kinds of things. In school I never excelled at reading and writing. Since you’re reading this blog, your probably not surprised. Anyway, it ends up being a ton of work to make sure all the writing is correct, that there’s a story, budget and all the other minutia is covered.
What else has happened during this time? A lot, I’ll try to have updates in the coming days to bring you up to speed
So where am I now, at a work conference in Dallas. Not too exciting but it is fun to see all the folks I typically communicate with over the phone or email. I don’t have a lot of free time but I am hoping it will give me a chance to relax a little and recharge the batteries. You know, hit the “reset button” after a stressful few weeks.
Thanks for reading
I’ve gone into hiding to write a research/funding proposal for work. This isn’t the first proposal I’ve written, I’ve even gotten a few funded. It has come at a very busy time with many other projects having deadlines. Looking back at my history I find it pretty amazing that I have a job where I can write these kinds of things. In school I never excelled at reading and writing. Since you’re reading this blog, your probably not surprised. Anyway, it ends up being a ton of work to make sure all the writing is correct, that there’s a story, budget and all the other minutia is covered.
What else has happened during this time? A lot, I’ll try to have updates in the coming days to bring you up to speed
So where am I now, at a work conference in Dallas. Not too exciting but it is fun to see all the folks I typically communicate with over the phone or email. I don’t have a lot of free time but I am hoping it will give me a chance to relax a little and recharge the batteries. You know, hit the “reset button” after a stressful few weeks.
Thanks for reading
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Blue Sky Velo Cup Photos
Wow, this has been a busy week. Lots to tell you about but that will have to wait. For now I will post the photos from my Halloween race. My friend Adam was the only other racer in my category to get dressed up. Kinda sad but we had a lot of fun.
Enjoy
For you Facebook users, you might have to click here. Then just push the slide show button.
Enjoy
For you Facebook users, you might have to click here. Then just push the slide show button.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Blue sky velo cup
Boom!! To my surprise I got 5th out of 84 finishers/ 91 starters. Dressed as a beer
can!!
can!!
More later
Sent from my iPhone
Friday, October 30, 2009
Snow Day Events
It's been a while since I had a snow day. While I didn't have to have a snow day, with the Monster Truck and all, it was an unexpected pleasure!
- We cleaned up the play room
- Setup and jumped in the jump castle
- Played loud music and danced.. all over the house
- Got dressed up and went out in the snow. Shoveled the driveway and tossed each other in the snow
- Took the monster truck out for a little recreational drive in the snow "Kailee reminded me we should've gotten the bigger tires because we were sliding all over" - I didn't tell her that was the goal.
- Went back in for hot chocolate
- Cleaned out the hallway closets
- Cleaned out and re-organized my bed room closet! (needed that)
- Took the wife and kids to the Y so they could workout and play (thanks Amy for watching Kailee)
- I went to work for a couple of hours
- Picked up the family and went home
- Helped (that may be too strong of a word) cook dinner
- Went back outside to play - everyone was out
- Pulled the kids on sled and shoveled some more (only seriously crashed the boys once)
- Back inside for more hot chocolate and TV (our only TV of the day)
- Off to bed
It's how everyday should be.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Still Snowing
They say we should get a few more inches.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
The Calm Before the Storm
Got out for an early morning ride this morning before the "storm" moves in. Beautiful, peacefull, refreshing, cool ... good to be alive!
Lookout has some snow and ice on the road on the upper north facing switch backs but other than that it's good.
I feel great but the watts are dropping. Once it gets dark in November, training hours will likely drop.
Lookout has some snow and ice on the road on the upper north facing switch backs but other than that it's good.
I feel great but the watts are dropping. Once it gets dark in November, training hours will likely drop.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Castle Cross Photos
The Start
I was on the right side of the pack
I pulled through on the corner
Boom, I was leading the pack
Descending the slippery off camber "mud slide"!
One of the muddy run ups, I was falling back into traffic - and catching lapped riders
Ouch.... The Finish
It was very cloudy when we arrived. But look at the clear blue sky. Nice day to play in the mud.
I was on the right side of the pack
I pulled through on the corner
Boom, I was leading the pack
Descending the slippery off camber "mud slide"!
One of the muddy run ups, I was falling back into traffic - and catching lapped riders
Ouch.... The Finish
It was very cloudy when we arrived. But look at the clear blue sky. Nice day to play in the mud.
Holy Smoke..... Hole Shot
the lead for the entire first lap. It was down hill from there,
finished 11th! (Not bad) Muddy race, photos to follow.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Stressed
Sorry for the lack of posts. Things have been crazy busy!
This past weekend we had some family friends visit from out of town. (by they way, I have the Lego's) It was great to see them. We all had a great time. As part of the activities for the weekend I got to race the Valmont Park Cross Race. I finished 12h on that crazy bumpy coarse. I was really set back by a poor warm up. Our race went off at 8 am, since the sun didn't come up until 7:15, it was hard to get the pre-race routine in. My legs were hurting those first couple of laps.
Sunday had everyone catching a plane, including me. I was off on a three day, three city whorl wind tour. Basically the outcome of those meeting was not what I was hoping for. Not bad but I came back needing to get a lot of work done. Missing 3 days around the house (not counting the past month and a half of weekends that we've been gone) has really put me behind there too.
So, needless to say I have been working a lot. First at work then rushing home to try and squeeze in family time....... "Squeezing in family time" - that doesn't really work, forcing the issue can make things worse. I just need to be there.
So, I'm looking forward to a slower weekend ..... yea right. Things aren't going to ease up just yet. Activities already planned for both days.
This past weekend we had some family friends visit from out of town. (by they way, I have the Lego's) It was great to see them. We all had a great time. As part of the activities for the weekend I got to race the Valmont Park Cross Race. I finished 12h on that crazy bumpy coarse. I was really set back by a poor warm up. Our race went off at 8 am, since the sun didn't come up until 7:15, it was hard to get the pre-race routine in. My legs were hurting those first couple of laps.
Sunday had everyone catching a plane, including me. I was off on a three day, three city whorl wind tour. Basically the outcome of those meeting was not what I was hoping for. Not bad but I came back needing to get a lot of work done. Missing 3 days around the house (not counting the past month and a half of weekends that we've been gone) has really put me behind there too.
So, needless to say I have been working a lot. First at work then rushing home to try and squeeze in family time....... "Squeezing in family time" - that doesn't really work, forcing the issue can make things worse. I just need to be there.
So, I'm looking forward to a slower weekend ..... yea right. Things aren't going to ease up just yet. Activities already planned for both days.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
I Think I've Figured it Out
I make decisions/changes in such a strange way. I may not even know I'm working on making a decision, it just grinds away in the back of my head, running in the background. It makes life interesting, strange things seem to happen.. I'm forgetful, irritated, absent minded, under a cloud.. whatever you want to call it. I guess my bandwidth is all used up chewing on the decision I don't know I'm working on. Well I think I finally figured out what my brain has been working on, it's something I've been thinking about for awhile and needs closure before too long.
It's a should I stay or should I go kind of question. No, not with work. It's more serious because it's my only hobby, something I enjoy doing and do for free, the bike team. I have spent a lot of time trying to mold this group into what I think a race team should be. As a member of the Board of Directors I have grown our cyclocross team by x10+ times (still not that big). I have helped/suggested bringing in sponsors that I thought would benefit the racers. I've helped design clothing, plan and run training clinics, lead group rides, raced and generally helped improve the team anyway I thought appropriate. I've made a lot of friends on the team, I know what to expect and how to get things done. I've made a lot of contacts that could help with any issues.
But there have been many let downs. Racing alone, leading team rides that no one shows to for, a clinic that was embarrassingly under attended (including the board director for that discipline!), a clinic for a discipline that didn't happen because the organizers were afraid no one would show up (even though the majority of racers on the team race this discipline), this is a large team that has only a small number of actual racers (half the people that sign-up we never see again!), attendance is generally poor.
I guess it feels like I'm a member of a club that has some racers. A majority of the racers on this team are beginners because few race enough to get moved up. I feel like I want to be apart of a race team. Were members are a little more like minded.
So my options appear to be.
1. Stick with my current team. Don't give up, continue to move things forward and see if I can build a team. But I don't want to get stuck in the middle of the season frustrated and burned out wondering why the hell I did that.
2. Stick it out with my current team but don't be as concerned with the big picture. Work more with the people that I race with and build a smaller team within the big team consisting of the people I race with.
3. Find another team that is a little smaller (maybe) and more race oriented. There are a lot of unknowns with this option and another team is not necessarily a better team.
My plan:
Well, at least I know the question (that will help). Should I stay or should I go?
For now, I believe I will leave the question unanswered. There are some critical decisions and deadlines ahead. I think I'll see how those pan out before making my final decision.
If you have any suggestions, feel free to leave a comment or drop me an email.
It's a should I stay or should I go kind of question. No, not with work. It's more serious because it's my only hobby, something I enjoy doing and do for free, the bike team. I have spent a lot of time trying to mold this group into what I think a race team should be. As a member of the Board of Directors I have grown our cyclocross team by x10+ times (still not that big). I have helped/suggested bringing in sponsors that I thought would benefit the racers. I've helped design clothing, plan and run training clinics, lead group rides, raced and generally helped improve the team anyway I thought appropriate. I've made a lot of friends on the team, I know what to expect and how to get things done. I've made a lot of contacts that could help with any issues.
But there have been many let downs. Racing alone, leading team rides that no one shows to for, a clinic that was embarrassingly under attended (including the board director for that discipline!), a clinic for a discipline that didn't happen because the organizers were afraid no one would show up (even though the majority of racers on the team race this discipline), this is a large team that has only a small number of actual racers (half the people that sign-up we never see again!), attendance is generally poor.
I guess it feels like I'm a member of a club that has some racers. A majority of the racers on this team are beginners because few race enough to get moved up. I feel like I want to be apart of a race team. Were members are a little more like minded.
So my options appear to be.
1. Stick with my current team. Don't give up, continue to move things forward and see if I can build a team. But I don't want to get stuck in the middle of the season frustrated and burned out wondering why the hell I did that.
2. Stick it out with my current team but don't be as concerned with the big picture. Work more with the people that I race with and build a smaller team within the big team consisting of the people I race with.
3. Find another team that is a little smaller (maybe) and more race oriented. There are a lot of unknowns with this option and another team is not necessarily a better team.
My plan:
Well, at least I know the question (that will help). Should I stay or should I go?
For now, I believe I will leave the question unanswered. There are some critical decisions and deadlines ahead. I think I'll see how those pan out before making my final decision.
If you have any suggestions, feel free to leave a comment or drop me an email.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Fall
Blaaah..
I know, I like cyclocross but I hate fall. It's dark in the morning, dark sooner in the evening (pretty soon we'll be going home in the dark). Days are cold and sometimes snowy/rainy. But my fitness is still pretty good. It's really hard to get on the trainer after all those beautiful days of summer. Let's face it, my modivation is low.
I feel like I need a new hobby. In reality, I really don't need a new hobby. I do need something to keep myself busy and constructive.
I'll let you know what I find.
I know, I like cyclocross but I hate fall. It's dark in the morning, dark sooner in the evening (pretty soon we'll be going home in the dark). Days are cold and sometimes snowy/rainy. But my fitness is still pretty good. It's really hard to get on the trainer after all those beautiful days of summer. Let's face it, my modivation is low.
I feel like I need a new hobby. In reality, I really don't need a new hobby. I do need something to keep myself busy and constructive.
I'll let you know what I find.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Frisco Cyclocross #2
The Frisco Cyclocross extravaganza continued on Sunday. After a restless night in a condo up near Copper Mountain (I never sleep that well in a hotel) I awoke with legs that certainly felt the effort from Saturday. I hopped on the trainer for about 15 minutes turning the pedals very easily. Just wanted to get the blood flowing, flush out the legs and hope for the best. I have to admit, I felt better after the short ride.
We had a little family pancake breakfast and some morning cartoons before packing the car and heading to the race. Just before we left I got a text from Josh “Hand looks like a Belgian Waffle.” I was bummed and assumed he was out of the race for the day, I knew he wouldn’t be happy about it either.
I got ready to head out on the coarse for a warm-up and to check out the new route. Just before I left, Josh shows up all kitted out. He said, “I’m here, I can’t not race,” that’s one dedicated dude. After a couple of laps it was time to line up. Again I was called up and had a front row start. The whistle blew and we were away. After the performance in the lead group yesterday, I was happy to sit in a chase group. Unfortunately the lead group didn’t really come apart this time. Most of the chase group had raced the day before and didn’t have power to pull them back. After a few laps I fell out of the first chase group only to find there weren’t many people behind us, the race had really come apart. I was determined not to fade as badly as I did the day before.
In the end I had a clean race. No crashes and no big mistakes. I finished exactly the same position as I did the day before, 14th. Since my legs felt so much worse, I was happy. Josh came in 20th despite the injured hand.
I found out Monday morning that Josh had broken his hand in the fall on Saturday. He had raced a 45-minute race on Sunday with a broken pinky finger, in-the-hand bone! I know cross is hard but it must have been excruciating over that bumpy ground. That’s one tuff mofo. I think the cast is going to slow down the rest of his season. He’ll be missed.
Pics below. My wife did a great job.
We had a little family pancake breakfast and some morning cartoons before packing the car and heading to the race. Just before we left I got a text from Josh “Hand looks like a Belgian Waffle.” I was bummed and assumed he was out of the race for the day, I knew he wouldn’t be happy about it either.
I got ready to head out on the coarse for a warm-up and to check out the new route. Just before I left, Josh shows up all kitted out. He said, “I’m here, I can’t not race,” that’s one dedicated dude. After a couple of laps it was time to line up. Again I was called up and had a front row start. The whistle blew and we were away. After the performance in the lead group yesterday, I was happy to sit in a chase group. Unfortunately the lead group didn’t really come apart this time. Most of the chase group had raced the day before and didn’t have power to pull them back. After a few laps I fell out of the first chase group only to find there weren’t many people behind us, the race had really come apart. I was determined not to fade as badly as I did the day before.
In the end I had a clean race. No crashes and no big mistakes. I finished exactly the same position as I did the day before, 14th. Since my legs felt so much worse, I was happy. Josh came in 20th despite the injured hand.
I found out Monday morning that Josh had broken his hand in the fall on Saturday. He had raced a 45-minute race on Sunday with a broken pinky finger, in-the-hand bone! I know cross is hard but it must have been excruciating over that bumpy ground. That’s one tuff mofo. I think the cast is going to slow down the rest of his season. He’ll be missed.
Pics below. My wife did a great job.
Frisco Cyclocross #1
This weekend was a cyclocross extravaganza! The last weekend of racing in the mountains, both days at Frisco. A great excuse to stay in the mountains and hang out with good friends. I brought the ladies (Kailee and Melissa) while Nate hung out with Grandma.
We were expecting cool temperatures, possible rain and snow. Instead we received a beautiful day, warm and sunny! The coarse was fantastic. Paved climb with a quick descent and some fun technical sections. The best part was I had 3 other teammates in my category. That doesn't happen very often. It's always fun to know you wont suffer alone.
I received a call up and was starting in the front row, nice when there are 60 racers. The whistle blew and we were away. A small group shot off the front and I was content to get in a chase group. After about a lap the lead group shattered and most of them starting coming back. There were a lot of mistakes and crashes out on the coarse. I kept my head in the game, focused on the next obstacle and road clean laps. A couple of laps in I felt good. Then they said "four to go" my mental clock said that seams like a lot. I kept pushing but soon felt the body start to fade. I lost about 5 places in those last four laps. Wish I could have held on but it didn't happen. I road the last lap glued to my teammates wheel. We finished 13th and 14th.
After the race I found out my teammate Josh crashed in the steep little meat grinder with a sharp right at the bottom. His hand was all swollen and his race on Sunday was in doubt. Noooo!
After the race all the families got together and Josh (despite his injured hand) made us a fantastic meal. The kids had a good time and the wives got to know each other. After we were all fat and happy it was off to rest up and repeat tomorrow. My goal for the entire afternoon was stay hydrated, keep moving so the legs don't lock up and enjoy.
We were expecting cool temperatures, possible rain and snow. Instead we received a beautiful day, warm and sunny! The coarse was fantastic. Paved climb with a quick descent and some fun technical sections. The best part was I had 3 other teammates in my category. That doesn't happen very often. It's always fun to know you wont suffer alone.
I received a call up and was starting in the front row, nice when there are 60 racers. The whistle blew and we were away. A small group shot off the front and I was content to get in a chase group. After about a lap the lead group shattered and most of them starting coming back. There were a lot of mistakes and crashes out on the coarse. I kept my head in the game, focused on the next obstacle and road clean laps. A couple of laps in I felt good. Then they said "four to go" my mental clock said that seams like a lot. I kept pushing but soon felt the body start to fade. I lost about 5 places in those last four laps. Wish I could have held on but it didn't happen. I road the last lap glued to my teammates wheel. We finished 13th and 14th.
After the race I found out my teammate Josh crashed in the steep little meat grinder with a sharp right at the bottom. His hand was all swollen and his race on Sunday was in doubt. Noooo!
After the race all the families got together and Josh (despite his injured hand) made us a fantastic meal. The kids had a good time and the wives got to know each other. After we were all fat and happy it was off to rest up and repeat tomorrow. My goal for the entire afternoon was stay hydrated, keep moving so the legs don't lock up and enjoy.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
My New Ride
I have only ever owned two cars, with the exception of the cars my wife has been through. Both of them hatchback Honda Civics. Yes, my first was a 1983 and the car I've been driving for the past 16 (yes - SIXTEEN) years is a 1993 Honda Civic. They've both been great cars, hell the 93 is still good (I still gets nearly 40 mph)- you almost can't buy a car with that high miles per gallon and it's sixteen years later! Sad really
Back when I was single, a small "sporty" (or at least that's how I felt driving it) car was perfect. Once I got married, it was still mostly ok. Now that I have two kids, it's just a sad, "Dad's former glory" - "get Dad to work car."
Well, that has all come to an end. I introduce to you my new green car a (the 93 was green too... and we called it the green car) 2000 Toyota 4 Runner. I can seat the family comfortably and I can tow stuff, if I had anything to tow. Since I can't call it "the green car" I have elected to let the children name it. They have selected "monster truck" - based on them recently watching a monster truck crush cars on TV the other night while preparing for bed.
Last week, while getting tires of the new car , my daughter asked me to get the big tires.... so we could drive over all the other cars. To that I replied, with a daydream smile, "That would be sweet!"
Now.... I'm broke but I'm looking good doing it (or at least that's how I feel driving it).
Back when I was single, a small "sporty" (or at least that's how I felt driving it) car was perfect. Once I got married, it was still mostly ok. Now that I have two kids, it's just a sad, "Dad's former glory" - "get Dad to work car."
Well, that has all come to an end. I introduce to you my new green car a (the 93 was green too... and we called it the green car) 2000 Toyota 4 Runner. I can seat the family comfortably and I can tow stuff, if I had anything to tow. Since I can't call it "the green car" I have elected to let the children name it. They have selected "monster truck" - based on them recently watching a monster truck crush cars on TV the other night while preparing for bed.
Last week, while getting tires of the new car , my daughter asked me to get the big tires.... so we could drive over all the other cars. To that I replied, with a daydream smile, "That would be sweet!"
Now.... I'm broke but I'm looking good doing it (or at least that's how I feel driving it).
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
The Weather is Changing
I happened to be watching the weather last night (or at least checking it on my iphone), which is important as we roll into fall. Sounds like a good front is going to blow in this evening. I decided to be a little pro-active and get in a ride this morning. Out to my favorite workout hill, Lookout Mountain.
My legs felt... trashed. Actually, I would say they hurt. Not a good sign. I've been trying to work on some cyclocross specific workouts and since a cross race is typically a time trail with other people on the coarse at the same time, I had planned to just TT to the top. But the thought made me cringe. Instead I bumped up the intensity a little and backed down on the time... intervals. It's actually a good workout for me, above threshold to strain the body and hopefully adapt. Had I time trialed to the top it would have taken 23-25 minutes. With intervals I get an average power output higher than what I would have put out in a TT and the total intervals time is ~25 minutes (I went to the mansion). Not bad.
Now, it's time to rest and get ready for this weekends Frisco adventure.
A photo from the top this morning, pretty clear air. Nice morning. Quiet.
My legs felt... trashed. Actually, I would say they hurt. Not a good sign. I've been trying to work on some cyclocross specific workouts and since a cross race is typically a time trail with other people on the coarse at the same time, I had planned to just TT to the top. But the thought made me cringe. Instead I bumped up the intensity a little and backed down on the time... intervals. It's actually a good workout for me, above threshold to strain the body and hopefully adapt. Had I time trialed to the top it would have taken 23-25 minutes. With intervals I get an average power output higher than what I would have put out in a TT and the total intervals time is ~25 minutes (I went to the mansion). Not bad.
Now, it's time to rest and get ready for this weekends Frisco adventure.
A photo from the top this morning, pretty clear air. Nice morning. Quiet.
Chasing Points with the Team
This past weekend the only points race was Sunday, up in the Mountains, in Buena Vista - Cross at the River. It was a no brainer, this would be a great place to do well. The non-points race was the first Boulder Cyclocross Race (on Saturday). Boulder Racing always does a great job and their races are top notch so I was expecting turnout for their race to be crazy, making the Sunday race... less attended and a potential opportunity for me to catchup and earn some BCR points.
My guess was right, 93 racers toed the line for the Boulder race in my category! 93! Wow. The ACA had so many problems with lapped riders they had to take extra time to get the results out. I'm sure it was a lot of fun but it's hard to get good results in a race like that.
Sunday, two other teammates and I made the drive to Buena Vista. Yes it was a long drive, almost silly for a cyclocross race, but it was great to ride with friends I don't get to see enough. All of us have active families making extra time hard to find. It was a great coarse, right next to the Arkansas river. It had everything, run ups, grass, pavement, barriers, sand, wind and low humidity. Only 24 racers showed up in my category, sad but when your looking for points the odds are in your favor.
The three of us were nervous for the start but all of us got 1st and 2nd row starting positions. The first lap I just tried to be patient (see previous race posts). I actually didn't want to be alone because there were some long drags into the wind. Having someone to race with would be helpful. It felt like people were just dropping off the pace. By half way through the second lap I was spit out the front in third place. The first two were working together and gone. I had a big gap but it felt like no mans land, and it was, I hit it. Maybe I could help my teammates by allowing them to sit on others wheels. Maybe I could hold it?
In the end I was caught by a few people but I still finished in 6th place. To cap things off my teammates were in 9th and 14th! Great results for all of us! We got in a nice cool down and enjoyed a beer while laughing and telling stores about the race.
All in all, I had a great time. Fun suffering with friends and enjoying the conversation during the drive. Next year I hope more people go to this race. It was well done and deserves more attendance.
ACA hasn't updated the BCR/BCT points yet but we should move up a little.
Sorry I didn't get any pictures, but here is a little video someone put together of the race.
My guess was right, 93 racers toed the line for the Boulder race in my category! 93! Wow. The ACA had so many problems with lapped riders they had to take extra time to get the results out. I'm sure it was a lot of fun but it's hard to get good results in a race like that.
Sunday, two other teammates and I made the drive to Buena Vista. Yes it was a long drive, almost silly for a cyclocross race, but it was great to ride with friends I don't get to see enough. All of us have active families making extra time hard to find. It was a great coarse, right next to the Arkansas river. It had everything, run ups, grass, pavement, barriers, sand, wind and low humidity. Only 24 racers showed up in my category, sad but when your looking for points the odds are in your favor.
The three of us were nervous for the start but all of us got 1st and 2nd row starting positions. The first lap I just tried to be patient (see previous race posts). I actually didn't want to be alone because there were some long drags into the wind. Having someone to race with would be helpful. It felt like people were just dropping off the pace. By half way through the second lap I was spit out the front in third place. The first two were working together and gone. I had a big gap but it felt like no mans land, and it was, I hit it. Maybe I could help my teammates by allowing them to sit on others wheels. Maybe I could hold it?
In the end I was caught by a few people but I still finished in 6th place. To cap things off my teammates were in 9th and 14th! Great results for all of us! We got in a nice cool down and enjoyed a beer while laughing and telling stores about the race.
All in all, I had a great time. Fun suffering with friends and enjoying the conversation during the drive. Next year I hope more people go to this race. It was well done and deserves more attendance.
ACA hasn't updated the BCR/BCT points yet but we should move up a little.
Sorry I didn't get any pictures, but here is a little video someone put together of the race.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Brecktober CX
This was a fun traditional start to the Colorado Cyclocross season. This has been the first race I've done the past two years. This year however, it was the second. Sounds like the ACA will be moving it back to opening weekend next year. It's a good race up at the Breckenridge Nordic center. It's a fun mix of single track, neighborhood roads and hills. It's different than most of the races we do because there are trees, its not some mowed down field.
I was starting this race two races behind with no points. So no call ups for me. I got lined up early and ended up starting in about the 5th row, in the front 3rd of the pack. The start had us all sprinting into a section of recently scattered (1-3 inch deep) wood chips. It was like riding through sand, people were all over the place. Fortunately no one laid it down in front of me.
The rest of the first lap I just tried to remain patient. I did until we got to the first big climb. People were stacked up and moving slow. So I jumped and passed about 10 of them. It was a big effort but I made it to get past ten. Then I just had to hold them off. Through out the race we caught a few more racers and I was only caught by one guy, Josh my teammate. He bridged up without bringing anyone else and was finishing strong. In the end, Josh was tenth and I was 12th (one better than last year). That puts Josh in 20th for BCR and me in 23rd. The team is now in 9th place.
If we can repeat this in the coming weeks we'll be in good shape when the races move back down out of the mountains.
I was starting this race two races behind with no points. So no call ups for me. I got lined up early and ended up starting in about the 5th row, in the front 3rd of the pack. The start had us all sprinting into a section of recently scattered (1-3 inch deep) wood chips. It was like riding through sand, people were all over the place. Fortunately no one laid it down in front of me.
The rest of the first lap I just tried to remain patient. I did until we got to the first big climb. People were stacked up and moving slow. So I jumped and passed about 10 of them. It was a big effort but I made it to get past ten. Then I just had to hold them off. Through out the race we caught a few more racers and I was only caught by one guy, Josh my teammate. He bridged up without bringing anyone else and was finishing strong. In the end, Josh was tenth and I was 12th (one better than last year). That puts Josh in 20th for BCR and me in 23rd. The team is now in 9th place.
If we can repeat this in the coming weeks we'll be in good shape when the races move back down out of the mountains.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Young Firefighters
This past weekend in a park near our house, there was a firefighter appreciation event. (We didn't know about it until I happened to pass by while out for a ride). We took the kids and the new neighbors. They had loads of fun, got their faces painted, ate snow cones, sprayed the fire hose, jumped in the fire truck jump castle..... but when the flight for life helicopter landed in the park... it blew the boy's minds. Here are some photos.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Preschool Everyday!?
Last Friday, after returning from my short notice work travel, I was the volunteer at Kailee's preschool. Typically this is a role my wife fills but this time Kailee specifically requested that I come to her school so she so she could be the special helper (children of parent volunteers are the special helper). Since I'm not typically chosen like that, I made every effort to attend.
Kailee and I arrived early to help set things up. We started off with recess time, then we sat around and explained what we were going to do. Then it was activity time, puzzles, art, water table and making apple pie. We were off to wash our hands then it was snack time. We ate cheese, grapes (cut in half) and the apple pie we made. Then we read some books and soon it was over.
I had a great time and all the kids were very helpful. It was funny how they would correct me and tell me what I should be doing.
It felt good and I had a great time. It's fun to see how many fundamentals a child learns in preschool. After school I brought Kailee to work for about an hour... but thats another story. You'll have to ask her what she thought.
Kailee and I arrived early to help set things up. We started off with recess time, then we sat around and explained what we were going to do. Then it was activity time, puzzles, art, water table and making apple pie. We were off to wash our hands then it was snack time. We ate cheese, grapes (cut in half) and the apple pie we made. Then we read some books and soon it was over.
I had a great time and all the kids were very helpful. It was funny how they would correct me and tell me what I should be doing.
It felt good and I had a great time. It's fun to see how many fundamentals a child learns in preschool. After school I brought Kailee to work for about an hour... but thats another story. You'll have to ask her what she thought.
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