Hebrew-Cyclist

Like a fine whine

2011-10-19T21:50:00.000-04:00

Muddy

If you squint real hard while looking at the picture above, you might mistake it for a mountain bike photo. It looks like half of my rear wheel is gone!

I have sincerely enjoyed racing 'cross this Fall, and will be sorry when it's all over. On the other hand, I can't wait for it to be over so I can begin to focus on the 2012 mountain bike season! Here's the tentative schedule thus far:

Mellow Johnny's Classic, TX
Fontana, CA
Dominion Riverrock, VA
Ute Valley, CO
Subaru Cup, WI
Mont St. Anne, CN
Windham, NY

That should keep me busy.....

The weather as of late has brought rain mid-week, which has kept me on the trainer in order to stay sharp. Unfortunately, my will broke today and I veg'd instead of riding. I think I'll hit it hard tomorrow instead, considering I only race on Sunday this weekend.

Speaking of the trainer, I seem to go through a trainer about once every 2 years now. Poor things......
Does anyone else have this problem? And follow-up question: Has anyone used those free-motion trainers, like the Kinetics? Thoughts?

Speak Softly and Make a Big Racquet

2011-08-28T23:00:00.000-04:00

I like to make a big racquet ever now and then.

My parents used to tell me not to make a big racket, but what else was I going to do with all that string?!

The rare Backflip Derailleur Double Upchuck.

So the above picture tells the story of my last mountain bike race of 2011. The derailleur decided to do a backflip double upchuck 10 minutes into the cross-country event at the Bear Creek Triple Crown event. To say I was disappointed is an understatement, I was crushed! But this is racing, and I got over it the next day. I'll miss racing with my Giant teammates the rest of the year, but I got different fish to fry this Fall/Winter......

Making big red polka dots look cool since 10 minutes ago

I had some people ask me why I decided to end the mountain bike season early this year, and here's your answer: CYCLOCROSS. Yes, that silly sport where you get on-and-off your bike for no good reason while sprinting around a grass field with beer-swigging spectators yelling at you from 2 inches away. For the 2011 cyclocross season I will be guest racing for Adventures for the Cure (www.adventuresforthecure.com). I will be donating all my race winnings to diabetes research and having a blast doing it! And to help me in my endeavors.......

My 2012 Giant TCX 0, one of 2!

My office had a 'bring your kid to work day'. I brought my cyclocross bike instead.

So to prepare for the upcoming onslaught of barrier-induced suffering, I will be going on fun mountain bike rides and attending Wednesday 'cross practices nearby. My first race of the season will be the first 'cross race I ever attended: Charm City CX. A double dose of UCI madness, and even better I can ride to it from my house!

Whatever you choose to do this fall/winter on the bike, I hope you have fun and enjoy the ride!

Gieda and I, enjoying the ride.

Nothing is greater than something

2011-04-09T15:01:00.000-04:00

I woke up, rode my bike a little, and have since done not much of anything. It's the first Saturday in a long time that I can say this. Dang, it feels good!

Jack the Dog

I've been traveling around to the local area Giant Bicycles dealers, which has been fun. Meeting new people, nothing wrong with that.

Corey from Princeton Sports, and Mr. Craig, and some dude.

Last weekend the team got together for the M.A.S.S. team relay. It was rad! We had a great time and practiced our bicycle games in style.

Picture taking at Chipotle aids in recovery.

Tomorrow is the first official M.A.S.S. race of the year at Fairhill (Elkton, MD). Weather is supposed to be decent, so the turnout should be good. Gonna be up bright and early for a 9am start! If you go, swing by the Giant tent and say 'hi', or 'hey', or maybe even 'dude, nice shoes!'

Back to the Blog

2011-03-22T22:52:00.000-04:00

Couch Ninja

Well I feel sufficient time has passed since I've last posted to my blog, so it is time once again to tickle the chin hairs of the interweb and enlighten you all to what's what and who's why.

As you've probably already surmised, I survived the winter (and the crowd rejoices). I always make it out to be much worse that it really was, so I'll just leave it at that. Spring is now here and trainer workouts are coming to an end. That means no more dog staring at me while I suffer like a.......well you get the idea.

My cheering section.

And now time for something completely different: I have raced my bike twice this year, and it's not even April yet. I know, it's still early. But I just couldn't help myself! First race was in California, the Bonelli Pro XC Tour stop. That course was killer! But so was the start, as it killed my hopes of a solid finish. Despite finishing well down, I thought I rode respectably, passing steadily throughout the race after starting DFL. I also raced a local race, as in 15 minutes from my house, but was sick the day before and cramped halway through as I was steadily making my way towards the front of the race. Can I have some cheese for my whine please?

The new whip. Black is the new blue.

The Giant Mid-Atlantic Team is doing well, with a new addition and great support the 2011 season is looking to be a great one! Check out our schedule on www.giantmidatlantic.com, and 'like' us on Facebook to find out where we'll be for sure. Thanks to all our sponsors/partners/supporters, we couldn't be having this much fun without you!

Floating

2010-12-02T23:02:00.000-05:00

Not sure what it's been as of late, but I've been floating day-to-day, not feeling as grounded as I normally like. Working to get the team together for 2011, staying focused and on-track with my preparation for the 2011 season, staying focused while at work so I can keep paying the bills and save money for my traveling next year.

Some pretty cool news: I'll be in my good friend Chris's wedding next year in August/September. It's in Germany, so I'll be brushing up on my dialect. Germany: you're on notice, get ready!

Raging and ruined

2010-11-21T22:14:00.000-05:00

As I played wingman for my roommate at the bar last night, I kept thinking about going to sleep. I wasn't tired, but I wanted to have a good day Sunday, and not have it squandered by waking up late, eating breakfast at lunch time, and getting back from my ride in time for dinner and laundry. Ultimately, that is what happened, and instead of getting a number, I got a girl's facebook. This cracks me up!

I know a few people who have deleted their facebook, and I'm starting to think it's not a bad idea. What do you think?

Return of the blog: Drive me to the podium

2010-11-17T22:57:00.000-05:00

It's always nice to end the season on a high note!

Just for being a swell guy, the organizers of the Campmor/H2H mountain bike race series decided to let me stand on the top step of the podium at their awards banquet this past Sunday. Thanks guys!

That's a season-long smile, in case you were wondering.

I haven't made it to any 'cross races thus far. Just not feeling it after that long mtb season. I'll have my shot at cyclocross glory next year I'm sure.

Doing a little 'cross training at the range.

I've managed to keep craziness to a minimum as of late, which is helping me stay relaxed and focused on training as the weather gets colder.

As the weather gets cold, the fences get burned.

Off-season team obligations have been keeping me busy though. I definitely prefer racing over schmoozing, but the schmoozing helps the racing! Did I spell 'schmooze' right? Somebody check urban dictionary....

Speaking of, I actually added a word to that recently, check IT.

I'll come up with a more interesting post next time, just wanted to post pics of me on a podium. Dig it.

Scene From My Two Eyes: Part 2

2010-10-11T21:46:00.000-04:00

Raced my last mountain bike race of 2010 last weekend. It was the Campmor/H2H series finals, and I wrapped up the series overall with a 5th place finish. To be honest, I was finished before the race even started, and unfortunately raced that way. Now I'm entering my second full rest week, and finally starting to crave some form of exercise. Maybe I'll do some 24oz. curls tomorrow as preperation for some cyclocross races!

Prettyboy damn is pretty cool! Still have yet to walk to the bottom of those stairs....

Will be on one of these next year quite a bit. Hoping that I find some good deals on flights!

We were going 85, but still no flaming tire tracks. Bummer.

Petrified dog hides in closet during thunderstorms. Farts on my favorite shoes.

Should I or shound't I.....

I did.

The darndest things show up on my white board at work.

Warmth on a cool crisp night in the Poconos. That really was an ugly fence.

Scene from my two eyes: Part 1

2010-09-09T11:03:00.004-04:00

Have been taking a mini-break for the past few weeks since the Rattling Creek Marathon. A lot of easy rides, which means more opportunities to take pictures and capture those scenes from a memory. Enjoy visual stimulation:

Stopped during my ride briefly and noticed this little guy just chillin.

I remember the days when I didn't have a washer & dryer......

Poor stanley survived the fall, but not the impact.......

It's a fixer-upper for sure, but the location is great!

Complete with trail-side parking.......

And besides, it's in better condition than this one.

Blog Post

2010-08-25T21:47:00.004-04:00

The sport riders have pretty sweet bikes these days.

In the middle of a rest week. A REAL rest week. Normally I have about 5 hrs on the bike by now. This week, 2. And it will only be roughly 3 after Friday.

Peoples hanging out under the tent at Neshaminy.

I was pretty floored after this past weekend. Did Weav's Prettyboy ride, starting at Oregon Ridge and going around some great countryside in Maryland. I'll definitely be back to that loop soon. Sunday I drove up into Pennsyltucky for the Rattling Creek 50 miler. It was epic. I rode slow. Finished 7th out of who knows how many. Didn't get a T-shirt, but had fun.

Last weekend I raced in NY, the Taconic 909, part of the Campmor/H2H regional race series. BAD ASS course. A little long, which came as a surprise on race-day. Took second behind Super-Aaron. Made up some ground on the series leader, Maurice. I'm gunning for YOU Mo!

A well-deserved podium.

Also snuck in a race at Neshaminy, which was the site of my first ever mountain bike race back in High School. Seeing as it was the weekend after my debacle at the Bear Creek Kenda Cup, I knew I wasn't going to be super sharp. I had good speed, but the fitness was a little unsteady, and ended up battling for 6th with Harlan. Just managed to squeek it out.

Guess who..........

That's all I got for now! Next post will probably be about non-cycling related topics. Just a guess.

Records of enjoyment, sparks of life.

2010-08-13T22:19:00.004-04:00

When it comes to food and the seasons, my favorite combination is cherries in the summer. Though the odd thing is that you'll probably never see me sitting next to a bowl of cherries. But you will definitely see me sitting next to a bowl of these.......

How many times are you out and see something interesting, something that is worthy of recording, remembering, showing friends, and dare I say, posting on facebook? Hopefully the answer is too many times to count. If the answer is hardly ever, you should learn how to open your eyes properly and see the crazy shit around us. It's amazing, appalling, hilarious, and sobering. Sometimes it can drive you over the edge.....

'It' helps me understand why I love riding my bike, a sort of white-wash to the things that are going on around me. It's amazing the degree of mental relaxation that occurs amongst the physical stress I push upon myself. You have to stop sometimes to soak it all in.

But riding my bike isn't all about relaxing and fun ALL the time. Sometimes I am productive on the bike. For instance, I went house hunting the other day. My goal was to price out some fixer-uppers. What do you think of this one?

Or maybe this one?

Oh well, guess I'll keep hunting.....

Condensed.

2010-08-02T23:18:00.002-04:00

Tiger Woods ain't got nothing on this fist-pump. It was a good day......

So I spent the past week prepping and massaging my back so that I could race the Bear Creek Kenda Cup pain-free on Sunday. Goal accomplished.

I took a detour Friday up to State College to check in with Richie Rich and get a replacement for my damaged rear wheel. Mission accomplished.

I pre-rode the XC course on Saturday so I could strategize a little for the race without being too surprised with the course. Roger, 10-4.

I even got a good night's sleep Saturday evening and felt ready for the world Sunday morning.

Showed up to the race, and there was a bit of 'dead air' at the venue. Not sure if it was the weather or the seeming lack of people, but I was there to bike game. Game on.

I started the race conservatively, but this caught up to me at the top of the longer climb to the ski-lift where Double-A moved to the front and took to the tech descent first, gapping us slowly and surely. I waited patiently behind the group and made some moves into third by the end of the first lap, about a minute down on him, 20 seconds back from second. I kept it steady and reeled in second, but came unclipped in some rocks and had to chase back on. Just as I was about to hook up, I washed my front tire in some soft, loamy soil. Ooops!

back to chasing, I just about hooked up again for the pass and then noticed I was going flat. Quickly shot some CO2 in and the tire sealed. Got close to second AGAIN and then Psssssssfffff, sidewall tear. This time I had to stop, get the tire half-off and put a tube in. My tires are a little tight, so this is a process, and I got passed by a rider during this 'process'. No worries, as it was my teammate Matt. If I'm going to get passed in any situation, I always prefer it to be a teammate, especially when it's a podium spot! I finished up and got going again, reeling Matt in but for the last time on the day I lost my PSI's. I still had a few miles to go in the last lap so I ran/rode in, getting passed slowly along the way, finishing 7th on the day. Guess that's not so bad considering!

Of note, all that excitement was condensed into the final lap. Cwaaaazy!

Time to recoup, regroup, and look forward to the next few races.

Hugs and Kisses!

#120. Not too exciting

2010-07-27T23:06:00.002-04:00

Walked to the basement to look at my rear wheel again. Went to Michaux on Sunday to get some solid training miles in and just survive the day. Ended up with a taco'd rear wheel and bum shifting. I think the derrailure is ok, just slipped the cable. Gonna head up to State College and pick up another wheel from the good people at Stan's on Friday. Hopefully I'll have a pristine bike by Saturday morning. My back is pretty sore still though, and that's been my achilles heal at times. Been stretching, massaging, and reciting voodoo chants in hopes that it will be back to normal come Sunday. Pretty please....

Short Jewish Man Wins Mountain BIke Race, Details at 10.......

2010-07-13T20:51:00.002-04:00

Stay classy

.....and boy did it hurt. Literally, it hurt bad! I cramped hard 3/4 into the race and almost had to pull out. Luckily I know some slick breathing techniques that help calm me down and it helped the cramps go away. I rolled in with almost 2 minutes on the second place rider. Not too shabby.

I like this step, I think I'll revisit it again.......

Now that I've got a win in, I'm hoping to keep the momentum going until the August 1st Bear Creek Kenda Cup. Awesome course, and it's part of the regional MARC series which I have a mathematical chance of winning. Gotta be on my 'A+' game there, as I'll be fighting Double-A for that series, and probably the race win, not to mention all the other super fast guys that will no doubt be there. Should be fun! Stay tuned.......

In non-cycling related news, I'm 2 days away from paycheck #1. Yay. Also, I bought an iPhone 4 today. Well....I actually ordered one, and it will be here next week. Double-Yay! Time for Mangoe slices.

Finishing in a blaze of confusion

2010-07-06T20:47:00.003-04:00

This phrase copyright by Ricky Bobby, Inc.

As I rode the final two-thirds of the race by myself, passing sport and beginner racers and muttering slurs of encouragement, I didn't think about much other than to keep pedaling and stay focused. I know, pretty boring. Some minor leg-cramps started setting in towards the end, due to the steep hike-a-bike earlier in the day, and my pace suffered a little as a result, but I kept on chugging. Then, with what was apparently only about 250m to go, the rider that was chasing me finally caught me. Drats, I thought. We started up the final climb, and at the top, I surged to go over first, not realizing that the finish was at the top. The rider who caught me figured out the situation and just managed to come around me for the win. This rider has many names, Shaaron, Double-A, Euro-Aaron, or just plain Aaron Snyder. Either way, he made me feel like an idiot as we descended down to the road and informed me that the finish was at the top. Stupidity set in yet again, a familiar feeling.

Matt staring at the trees while Chris does his best Captain Morgan pose.

So that's two second-places in a row now. Time to step it up a notch and throw down for the first 'W' of the season. Haven't had a legitimate win for a while, so I'm fairly certain it will feel good. If it doesn't, I will quit racing immediately.

Living life on the wire...

2010-07-03T18:21:00.003-04:00

Getting ready to plow the field of life.........

It's been one week in Baltimore and I'm slowly getting used to the grind again. Not much to report on, other than roughly 40 hours of my week getting spent in a cubicle reading up on work-related topics. Rather boring, but I'm scheduled to start working on real project-related tasks this coming week, so that should help perk things up.

Bike Gaming at the Lewis Morris Challenge.

My last race was symbolic in that it represented the last gasp of a free man. But was I really free? Spending my days on my own time, but in reality I was constantly looking over my shoulder to see when the day would come when it all ended. I actually squeezed out more than my share of fun from my time off from work, so I can't complain.

Just.....one......more......step......

I did fairly well at that last race, and am hoping that my new work/training schedule hasn't hindered my fitness too much. It certainly has hindered my sleeping pattern, but I'm pretty sure I'll be back on track after this weekend. For America's Birthday, I'll be racing the Long Pine Classic in my old stomping grounds of Michaux State Forest. It's a one-lapper, so I'm reluctantly breaking out the camelback. Definitely no expectations at this one!

Hoo-Ha'd, the Aftermath Edition

2010-06-23T11:08:00.003-04:00

Still finishing up the decompression from this past weekend's spectacular racing at the Massanutten Hoo-Ha US Cup Triple Crown. All-in-all, it was a solid weekend, just squeaking in the top-10 in every race, and finishing 7th overall in the Pro Triple Crown weekend standings. Even got my pic posted on cyclingnews.com!

Straight outta cyclingnews y'all!

The course(s) was awesome, and played to my strengths, and allowed me to work on my weaknesses as well without hindering my results. What DID hinder my results was the heat and humidity, but everyone had to deal with that one.

Keeping watch on Double-A during the short-track.

One of the Giant 'Full-Timers' made the trip to Virginia, and Kelli won the short-track, cross-country, and the weekend overall. It was the first time meeting one of the Factory riders, and we were all psyched for the chance to race together.

Ahead of me, the car in it's typical mid-race-weekend state.........

....and to the right, Carolyn hanging on the sidewalk playing with her food.

Sorry for the lack of energy and emotion in this post, I've been focused on getting ready for my move to Baltimore and new job starting Monday. Gonna swing by the H2H race in Morristown, NJ this weekend to shake the rust off, see you there? OK, time to get back to it!

Hoo-HAHA!!!!

2010-06-17T19:20:00.006-04:00

This is just the beginning........

Getting the gear together for a bike game excursion down south. It's Hoo-Ha time!!

After last year's crash in the opening miles of the race, I'll have to admit I'm gunning for a good result this year. No playin! But unlike last year, there's even more fun to be had with Super-D and Short-Track thrown in the mix on Saturday. I might even break out the full-face for giggles. Oh, and I have an iPod now for the drive, AND my CD player in the car magically started working again on Monday after over 2 years of bed-shitting. Seriously, 2 years. I gathered what's left of my CD collection and plan on getting my groove on while on my way to the race this weekend. Take THAT radio!

You get the idea......

Amidst the packing and bike prepping float memories of last weekend's C3=100 century ride at Curt's Cyclery in Nazareth, PA to benefit the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. It was a huge success with over 100 riders pedaling miles for a great cause. HUGE thanks to Curt's and my teammate Matt who put this on, and here's looking forward to next year!

The gathering of the masses at Curt's. GMA front and center!

Sexy bike, sweet shop!

In more boring news, it looks as though I'm on my way to Baltimore once again. I got myself a job, one that pays even! I'll be looking for places to live next week, and will be starting work on the 28th. Let me know if you know of a bike-friendly house with a room to rent, good times will ensue.

This guy's got the right idea! But he probably won't have a job for long.....

Cold, wet, and anxious

2010-06-09T20:58:00.003-04:00

Wow, I actually look like a bike racer in this picture!

Wowee wow! After a slew of hot days on the bike, the last two were a little shock to the system, especially today. 4 hours of cool wet miles left me begging for a hot shower and a soft pillow. Starting to come back around now, while watching the Philly International Cycling Championship on TV.

While all those silly roadies were out doing laps around Philthadelphia, beating themselves to death up 'The Wall' and Lemon Hill, I was flogging myself down in Delaware at the Iron Hill Challenge. Not my favorite race, due to its lack of vertical and absence of technicality, but since I've been on good form and improving week-to-week, I was more motivated to toe the line than normal.

I'm pretty sure this is early in the race, as I don't look disheveled.......

As I alluded to at the start of this post, it had been rather warm until recently. Sunday's race day weather was no exception, and being in Delaware it added high humidity to the mix, creating a soupy feel to the atmosphere. I'm pretty darn sure everyone there felt like cold poop on a bent twig, myself included, and excitement at the race start was at a minimum. That is, until the race director told us during the instructions/announcements that the race would end early if there was lightning (there was the possibility of thunderstorms on the day). The collective field of Elite/Expert riders sent their prayers to the heavens for this to happen, but alas the weather held firm.

The beginning of the race was a blur, with lots of elbows and jockeying that made my mangina cramp and I ended up hitting the singletrack in the middle of the Elite/Open field of 30 riders. I sat in for a few as we bypassed the 'Mega Dip' and the normal mid-pack accordion affect did its job of annoying the bejeebus out of me. Once we hit the first real uphill, I saw my opportunity and took off in pursuit of the leaders, whom I unfortunately never caught. But I had a fun time trying, and ended up 4th on the day.

A rare look at my pain face. I try hard to hide it, but it was hard on Sunday!

Gonna go watch me some Flyers hockey action on the tube, hopefully the trails are dry enough tomorrow for some Belmont action.

Everything all at once

2010-06-04T20:17:00.003-04:00

The rig. Git'r'dun!

Spent last week and the holiday weekend resting. Part of this resting consisted of hopping on the tractor for some planting at the farm. It's harder than you'd think to keep the tractor straight while going 2mph over deep, soft, soil.

Not my normal perfection, but a fine first-row of the day nonetheless.

Gettin psyched for some planting action.

Driving it!

Hit some big rides over the holiday weekend, which was nice. Gotta get them in now, as I'll almost inevitably be a working man again very soon. After the rides, I picked up Matt from the airport on Sunday on his return from Texas racing the Mellow Johnny's Classic. Read the report from the race HERE.

Matt, sad to have to come home from such Lance's ranch.

On the racing front, I'll be doing the MASS series race, Iron Hill, this coming weekend, followed by the Massannutten Hoo-Ha two weeks after. Really want to kill it at Massannutten, would be great to do well there!

So as I've mentioned, I've been living the vagabond lifestyle for quite a while now. Despite valiant efforts to obtain employment during that time, I had been coming up zeros until recently. This past week, balanced with my training, I've been in the car driving around to interviews for various companies. It's an odd thing, sitting in a room with a bunch of guys, playing the interview game. Considering the economy and the balance of power sitting keenly in the lap of the employer, the game has changed considerably from last time I played. Even odder is the frequency at which I'm landing interviews after getting nothing for so long. Hopefully I can keep my current offers at bay while I continue to interview. Gotta see everything all at once in order to make the right decision for myself. If all goes well I'll be garnishing an earned paycheck by month's end. Boo-ya.

Snake Jumping & Tymor recap.

2010-05-28T23:15:00.007-04:00

Rocked 5hrs at French Creek today. It was rad. I jumped 5 snakes. R-A-D.

Seriously, it's over. Just give up.

Was on a rest week this week until today. Had some nice easy rides, last night's being the best. Something about having good company makes even the most stressful times better.

Despite a rest week, I definitely was not doing enough of this.

Man, I do NOT look cool. Fortunately, I have sweet gear to help.

Capped a strong training block last week with a XC race in Lagrangeville, NY, the Tymor Park Challenge. It's part of the Campmor/H2H race series and the course is sweet! Lots of fun climbs with nice descents and technical features. Felt the affects of the previous few weeks and wasn't on top form, but rode strong to 4th. I'll take it!

4th Place Pro, 1st Place Jew. Whatever.

Aside from racing, I've been running around doing interviews here and there. It's an understatement to say that I'm past due for employment. It was January 28th, 2009 when I got hit by my own little piece of economic downturn. I've been trying to stay in the Philthadelphia region, as I feel this is where I want to stay put for a while. Not sure if that's going to happen though, may have to do a temporary move. Hmmmmmm.......

Look forward to now.

2010-05-20T22:29:00.003-04:00

That is what I am doing at the present moment. Amidst job interviews and facing imminent change, I am trying to grasp these last precious moments of freedom. It's almost a euphoric state, yet a trance that will be ending soon. Snap back to reality.

Through it all, I have been looking for something, but did not realize I was searching for it. As if my subconscious was leading the way, keeping my conscious mind at bay so as not to be hindered in its quest. Recently, it has merged with my waking, after taking its time and coming to its conclusion. You see, my subconscious is slow and methodical, yet wise beyond the years of which I've existed. It knows that in order to make an important decision, my conscious mind must be kept busy, as it tends to be overly logical, proud, and often stubborn. However, it seems that the time it has borrowed was too great, or perhaps not needed at all. I search for my partner in crime.

So as the days pass, and change draws near, I will not look forward to the future, however it may turn out. I will look forward to now.

Wrong turn to painville

2010-05-17T23:56:00.003-04:00

Team report on the race HERE.

My 2 cents. With 30 seconds to go for the start of Saturday's Cascade Classic, one of the twins came running up asking for 5 minutes more. You see, they JUST arrived and needed time to get ready. Unfortunately, the group as a whole was not ready to oblige (Matt and I said nothing, which I'm oddly proud of).

We took off, and there was a crash on the first turn that I had to stop for and ride around. Picked off riders while on Double-A's wheel, then he took off on the first set of climbs, leaving me in 5th to reel in the group containing the front 3 on my own. No problem, got within 10 seconds of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th after Double-A blew by them on his way to victory. Then, I took a wrong turn on an unmarked junction, along with a slew of others. Boo-yah. Hoofed it back up the fire road I accidentally descended on after being scalded by Matt for talking about how we got lost (thanks for setting me straight!). I then tried to keep my focus and make up as much time and as many spots as I could.

Nearing the end of the race, I picked up two more Pro/Open racers who were pretty tired. I had some energy, but as we were in some sloppy & technical singletrack I decided to wait until the final set of climbs to make my move on them. Unfortunately, a set of straggling sport racers decided to mix it up with us, despite our rather polite request to let us pass. We kept our cool until a short road section, but I had to dismount as they stopped us over a tree-hump obstacle and briefly lost contact. Down the road, I tried to pass them before a steep descent, asking to be let through and race my race, but they again were oblivious to our pleas, so I tried to pass anyway. My mistake, as there was a skewed set of logs I didn't see that caused me to slip, my right foot unclipping and my pelvis crashing down on the back of my Fizik Antares saddle, which is not known for its padding. Pain.

Eventually I got up, the pain subsiding, and rode into the finish. Miraculously, I finished 8th and still made a few bucks. And to boot, the organiser returned my entry fee for the wrong-turn, admitting that they forgot to mark that corner in the morning. Very stand-up thing for him to do, and greatly appreciated!

In the end, super happy with the way my form is coming around. And I still feel I have a lot more gains to make! This helped dull the disappointment of missing out on a top-5, or very possible top-3 result.

This coming weekend I'll be heading up to Lagrangeville, NY for a Campmor/H2H series race that I did last year, the Tymor Park Challenge. I enjoyed this course last year, and am looking forward to racing it again. And word on the street is Martin will be coming with his pimp new Giant XTC 29er. I predict a very good dat indeed.

Sorry for the lack of pics, Toodles......

What's in my head

2010-05-12T21:35:00.005-04:00

Ketchup, mustard, relish, and a rock. That's about right.

Lately I've been a jumble of thought. Coherent thought, but too much at once. It's almost gotten me distracted a few times, but for the most part I've done a good job of keeping my focus. Today, was NOT an example of keeping my focus. Woke up, wandered about for a short bit before eating breakfast late. Actually read through my morning e-mails for once, then shuffled out the door down to the Wiss for a ride on Boy Blue. While on Forbidden Drive, I passed two women running who yelled out 'Watch out! Rabid Raccoon!', and then kept running. I wasn't sure if they were joking or not, but I didn't see any raccoons, let along rabid ones. Was actually a little dissapointed........

Yeah, I get mad when the toothpaste foams out my mouth too.

Threw in some good efforts over the course of my 3hr ride. The suspension on Boy Blue is amazing, it is smooth and plush when open on the descents, and when I put it in Pro-Pedal, it is stiff for the climbs, but still a little forgiving for the flats, which means I don't have to switch it as much. Actually, I rode a lot of the Wiss with the shock in the Pro-Pedal position. I'm sure that won't be the case at this weekend's Cascade Classic. Pretty rocky and rooty stuff up there! More so than French Creek I'm assuming, where I had fun poaching the course last weekend!

All smiles on my first lap of the day. This wasn't the case 4 laps later.

Have a job interview next Friday, and hopefully that will go well and I can start earning a real paycheck again. I've been rather disgusted at the fact I haven't found a job yet, but since I can't even get a call back from the local recruiters and headhunters once they know what I'm looking for, I guess that's just an indication of how bad it is still for my field. Also, I have a wedding that same day, so I can get snazzed up and kill two birds with one suit. Speaking of the wedding, I went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to get a gift. I asked for the registry and they printed me out a novel. Rediculousness! Thankfully I found something on the second page. Should have asked for the cliff notes......

Sac time!

My Boy Blue!

2010-05-10T22:54:00.005-04:00

You thought you had a nice bike, until you saw mine. The team Anthem's arrived last week, and after a solid training week I finally had time to build it and take it out on it's tune-up spin down the towpath and on some fine Joisey roads. The Giant crew did a fine job with the pre-assembly, as it shifted great out of the box, and only needed some minor tweaks as the housing seated. The suspension is everything and more, and those white suspension links are oh-so-very pimp. The Giant brand carbon SLR bar/stem combo is also oh-so-very pimp, as well as oh-so-very light and stiff. And I still have some more spiff parts for it (here's a hint, X, T, R). Spent the rest of the day after the ride doing chores and truing some training wheels for it's maiden voyage on the dirt later this week where I'll fine-tune the suspension settings and loosen things up for the Cascade Classic race on Saturday.

Also, the team wheels arrived from Stan's last week. My teammate Richie Rich now works for Stan's, and brought them to the French Creek race. Droooooool! Crest rims built to ZTR hubs, light and solid! Exactly what the Dr. ordered for our style of racing here in the Mid Atlantic. Waiting on some sweet stainless steel rotors to arrive for them, 79g per rotor!!! My Geax treads are screaming at me to be mounted on these things! Patience children........

MUTHA!!!!

2010-05-09T09:42:00.002-04:00

Beerfest and the Sauna of Granogue

2010-05-03T17:05:00.007-04:00

I'm still a little flat from this weekend, but will try and liven things up a bit as I write.

Cheers to beers!

Saturday brought the heat back as I found myself driving up to Quakertown with the AC on part of the way to meet up with the crew of Intercourse Brewing Company at the McCoole's Spring Beer Festival. I was pretty psyched to hang out there for a few hours and pour some delicious brews for the crowds. The weather was fantastic and everyone was good-natured and absolutely loved the beer! I did partake in a little myself, but only a little........ After a few hours, I said my goodbyes and was off to the office for a 1.5hr race prep ride. After standing around for 3+ hours, it was much needed and the legs felt better after the ride!

Nicole (owner) and Jay of Intercourse Brewing Co.

Sunday was even hotter, with a little overnight rain to help intensify the humidity. This time, I drove down to the Granogue MASS race in Wilmington, DE with the AC on the entire time. Not wanting to hang around outside too much before my start time, I got there about 2hrs early. After setting up the tent and going over the raffle sale instructions with my helper du-jour (aka my Aunt!) I checked in at registration and hung out in the shade watching the sport racers tackle one of the steeper climbs on the course. I was dressed and on the bike with about 30 minutes to start time which was perfecto on the day. I was sweating profusely at the start but wasn't too worried thanks to the fact that I had been prepping with my Elete Add-in and Tablytes. That stuff is a miracle in a bottle for warm weather!

Elete: Puppy and Hebrew Cyclist approved!

One of the more humorous moments of the day, aside from Marc's shirt and tie, was Mr. Dupont driving through the start line with 30 seconds to spare in a sweet vintage car. We all gave him a round of applause and thanks for letting us use the property for the race and we quickly got re-set with just enough time to breathe before Marc said 'GO!'.

Mr. Dupont on his solo parade lap. Sweet ride, what's it got, a hemi?

Marc lays down the rules while I check to make sure I put on clean socks.

Up the road, we bore down on the cones that directed us to the right and into the first short section of singletrack which dumped us out on the climb up to the iconic tower seen in all the pictures for the race media. From there, it was a ton of sweet flowing singletrack with plenty of slick roots and rocks and off-camber sections to keep you on your toes. The end of the course was littered with short steep rocky climbs that were still a little slick form the previous night's rain, and bit into the legs pretty good before getting out into the open for the climb up the Koppenberg to the finish. Ironically, while it's usually unbearable up that climb with the steepness and the heat, this year the winds gave you a cool breeze as you topped and went through the start/finish. Thank you mother nature!

Despite a little fatigue in the legs from standing and beer-pouring the previous day, I felt great on all the climbs, but was riding the off-camber like a sissy, and had trouble on the slick climbs at the end of the lap, where I normally excel. Went from 6th to 10th in the second half of the race, but won't complain as coming in 10th with a relatively poor performance is much better than what I would have done last year!

Big HECK YEAH to FatMarc Vanderbacon for putting on a sweet race, and to Elete for supplying an awesome product that kept me hydrated and cramp-free all weekend!

I'll be taking the next weekend off from racing, but will still be with the team at French Creek. I'll be toting around the raffle tickets so don't give me too hard a time and buy a few! $3/ticket and 2 tix/$5 gets you in for a sweet prize pack from Intercourse Brewing Co. and our other sponsors with over $200!!!! See you there!

Trust

2010-04-30T17:24:00.002-04:00

For some, trust is a warm fuzzy teddy bear to cuddle up to. It's a feeling that is always there and they are comfortable with.

For others, trust is a 500lb gorilla on their back, holding them back and making others around them uncomfortable.

Those are two examples of the extreme, and there are many in-betweens that exist in the world of trust. Personally, I feel that I am a generally trustworthy person, but not necessarily trusting. My trust is a warm fuzzy baby gorilla that occasionally hops on my back for a ride to the grocery store, but thankfully never runs amok in the produce section throwing tomatoes at soccer-mom's talking on cell phones while their kids wander around unattended. I throw the tomatoes, at both the soccer-mom's and the kids, and I blame it on the baby gorilla.

Going down to Delaware this weekend to the next stop in the Mid-Atlantic Super Series, the Escape from Granogue. Actually, I think it has another name now, but I can't seem to recall that at the moment. Drats..... This course was a mudfest last year, and my bike and I could only handle one lap before we both called it quits. This weekend is looking to be much more pleasant, with warm weather leading into the race and just the slightest chance of thundershowers on race day. Perfecto! I trust I'll see you there.

One Banana, two banana, hot banana....

2010-04-26T23:28:00.004-04:00

I'll be honest here, I don't have the energy to write, but still feel compelled to do so. SOMEBODY STOP ME!!! Must.....type.......can't.....stop......Ooooh ice cream!

This weekend was my first official epic race weekend of the season. What makes an epic race weekend you say? Well, by my definition, you need three (not 5), that's 3, key ingredients. One: you must be racing, or be at a race intending on competing in said race. Two: You must have to travel to said race, preferably staying over night somewhere along the way. Three: You must have epic weather (epic weather: Weather beyond which is normal, yet is not yet absurd. Can be awe-inspiring, daunting, and scary.). This weekend definitely had all 3, and by some huge stroke of luck, the epic weather did not coincide with the racing. Boo-ya.

The weekend started with my Saturday pre-race ride, although done on the road near home. Felt good, and after some lunch and car-packing, I was off to Frederick Maryland to stay at Anna & Jeff's. Once there, Anna made some kick-ass pasta for dinner and we enjoyed the company of others who shall not be named (because I can't remember their names now.......shameful!). After din-din we hopped in the car and made haste to the BANFF Mountain Film Festival showing in a nearby town for some big-screen watching. There were some awesome films, including my personal favorite of the night which was about a free-solo climber who climbed half-dome. SICK! After the show was over, it was back to the house and to bed. G'nite!

Slept like a baby, and got up to make some bad-momma french toast using some home-made amish country blueberry bread I got from the local farmer's market. This stuff is like race-fuel deluxe!!! Greenbrier Challenge here we come!!! In the car for the short drive to the course, we arrived and parked in the 'team parking' area where we set up the tent and set about socializing and getting prepared for the bike game of the day, which was a 5-lap 28+ mile XC race. Soon after setting up, Vegan Rob showed up with The Experience riding shotgun. Once chamoised up, I hooked up with J-West and Big Ed for a pre-ride where we found the course in primo condition. This got me psyched and after some more warming up it was time to rev the engines and remove the starting blocks. With 24 Pros on the start line, it was a solid group, and once the gate dropped (so-to-speak) I used the energy to my advantage, waiting for the first climb and passing a good number of riders before cresting the top to the first descent. I know this course too well, as I rode everything like it was my home trail, and quickly found myself a nook in the race. The 'nook' is the place where you are riding your pace and just flowing. I pushed it on the climbs and let loose on the descents. The new section of trail at the end of the lap was full of loose rocks, but was fun and challenging. I had myself in around 7th halfway through the race with 5th & 6th in sight when the legs starting tightening up. The pace started to slow and I knew I was in danger of cramping. Unfortunately, I couldn't keep things together and cramped hard on the last lap, having to dismount for a few seconds to shake the legs out. I had to let 5th & 6th place ride away and got passed by two riders to finish 9th. Not the top-5 I was aiming for, but I'll take it. Once again, a great race and still one of my favorites!

Amazingly, the thunderstorms predicted on the day held off the entire race, and the rain didn't start to fall until the drive back to the house. From there, we shot over to Brewer's Alley for some grub and afterwards I started on my way home. NOW is when the real fun was to begin. As I started on I-70 eastbound, the rain got harder and harder, and before long I was driving in a torrential downpour with strobe-light-like lightning all around me. I was pretty close to white-knuckling the steering wheel, but knowing that I had some good treads, wiper blades, and all-wheel drive, I kept up my 60mph pace and rode the left lane past all the other cars. This took up about 2 hours of the 3+ hour drive home. SUPER! I probably was more wiped from the drive home than from the race itself! And if it wasn't for that weather on the drive home, I'd still be waiting for my first epic race weekend of the season.

Thanks again to my old roomie Anna and her hubby-hubs Jeff for letting me crash, and for the crew at PVC for putting on a great event. Not sure where I'll be this weekend, but it's looking like I'll be swinging back down to Delaware for the next MASS race. See ya there!

Reflections of one's self

2010-04-22T13:01:00.002-04:00

Isn't it funny how some run around this earth feeling as if we are so unique, a total one-of-a-kind? The truth is, we are made of mirrors. Those mirrors are reflections of those who have influenced us and molded who we are. Sometimes those mirrors focus and reflect on someone else who looks up to and respects you. This is the personality of modern humanity, a chain reaction of reflections creating heterogeneous consciousness' that we perceive as wholly unique. Those enlightened to this fact may be skilled enough to remove those mirrors which have negative influence, in order to more purify their reflections, but this is a rare skill. I fear that this life is too short to perfect such a skill, but I practice never the less.

Lions & Tigers & Climbing, oh my!

2010-04-19T14:53:00.004-04:00

It was a brisk Sunday on which I found myself headed out to Danville, PA for the Tour de Tykes XC, stop #2 of the Mid-Atlantic Super Series. With a relatively early start time, I awoke at 5:30am (after getting to sleep early for once, abadabing!) to make some kick-ass french toast, pack up the bike and gear bag, and head up to D-town to pick up my travel partner for the day (Scottie W in the house!).

The drive was full of jokes, stories, and good vibes as we were both looking forward to some bike games and good trails. Arriving on time, we broke out the tent and checked in for the race. Luckily I had the foresight to pack warm-up pants and a winter jacket, as it was a titty bit nipply out, and was warm and loose for the race start. Meeting up with The Experience and B, I set out on a preview of the race's starting climb and first sections of singletrack. Very Nice (said in Borat voice)! I was happy that the trails were pretty sweet and would make up for the high volume of vertical we would be attaining on the day (roughly 4500').

Lining up in the front this time, I focused on the task at hand and when the starter called 'go', I only missed clipping in once, keeping my start position and entering the singletrack at the top of the climb around 8th. The race was relatively calm, with nobody getting in anybody's way, everyone seemed to be making clean passes, and we all knew what was ahead of us. climbs made way to quick transitions toward descents, which made way to quick transitions to climbs. Very little chance to spin your legs out on a flat section, which made it important to stay calm and focused on the trail ahead of you, not in front. My only mistake came at the end, when I was closing in on 7th place and made some mistakes that prevented me from catching the wheel and making the pass. These mistakes mostly consisted of me getting over-excited and blowing through sharp corners. Seems as though bright yellow course tape isn't visible to me until it's wrapped around me. Quickly untangling myself the final time, I made the astute decision to get my shit together and just focus on riding smooth until the end. At this I succeeded and crossed the finish 8th on the day. Matt scurried in just behind me in 13th. Solid early season race for Giant Mid-Atlantic!

Afterwards we all enjoyed some Intercourse (beer) and talked about how awesome we looked in our new team issue Custom Oakley Jawbones. Not a bad day.

Sorry for the lack of pics, if I manage to scrounge anything interesting up I'll add them later.

Whoa....

2010-04-15T22:45:00.002-04:00

Been Busy this week! Will be in Danville this weekend for the Tour de Tykes. I haven't raced this one for a while, so it should make for some extra fun! Was hoping to race the new Anthem but there seems to be a slight delay on that. One more run on the 29er it is!

Hit the Thursday night Belmont ride tonight. Good turnout, great ride, can't wait for next week!

I race bikes. No, not that kind.....

2010-04-09T22:34:00.003-04:00

The kind that you pedal, you know, with your legs? Yeah! Like when you were a kid........

The first XC race of the year is Sunday: Bike Line Spring XC @ Fair Hill. It's the first race in the Mid-Atlantic Super Series, and will be a good early-season test of the legs. Aside from a little cold I had 2 weeks ago, prep has gone well. I've worked pretty hard this off-season to make up the difference between myself and the front of the pack. But I must give credit where credit is due, and that credit belongs to my coach, Cody Waite, owner of Endurance Performance Coaching in Denver, Colorado. Where it's my job to execute the plan, it's his job to build the plan, and I must say that he knows his stuff! This being my second year under Cody's watch, I've seen how he's adapted his styles and methods to my personal self. The result has been astounding this off-season, resulting in a much stronger Hebrew Cyclist than I could have imagined!

You can visit Cody's website HERE.

Thank you Cody for putting up with me for a second year!

Scenes from a ride

2010-04-07T19:39:00.004-04:00

Rode my bike on Monday from Washington Crossing, NJ to Stockton, NJ on the Delaware Canal Tow Path trail. It was a gorgeous day, ripe for picture taking. Hopefully I'll remember to take my camera more often on my recovery days. Enjoy.

This guy was obviously getting fed by somebody, since he had no qualms about getting right next to me.

There are tons of old stone bridges along the river, here's one that's easy to miss.

The day's ride consisted mostly of cinder/gravel towpath trail, with a fun road loop added in the middle to make thing interesting.

One of the many abandoned rail cars on the old tracks along the canal.

That tower at the top of the hill in the distance is Bowman's Tower. The tower was finished in 1931 as a commemoration to George Washington. Perhaps I'll mosey on over to it for some pics next time.

BIKE FOR SALE!!! ACT FAST!!!

2010-04-04T21:11:00.002-04:00

Selling my trusty Giant TCX Rabo. Great bike equipped with Shimano 105. Comment on the post if you're interested!

Easter Tire Sale!

2010-04-04T15:25:00.009-04:00

Hope everyone is having an eggstatic easter! While your waiting for your painted easter-eggs to dry, check out some sweet Schwalbe tires I have for sale! Mountain and 'cross (scroll down towards the bottom of the post for the 'cross tires). Throw up a comment with your e-mail and if you're interested and I'll get back to you. Comments are moderated on this site, so your e-mail will only be seen by me, which is bad enough.

NOBBY NIC UST 26x1.8: One new, one very lightly used, $60/pair

NOBBY NIC UST 26x2.1: New/Unused, $80/pair

NOBBY NIC EVO 26x2.1: one very lightly used, one new/unused, $50/pair

RACING RALPH UST 26x2.1: Lightly used pair, $60/pair

RACING RALPH 700x35c: New/unused pair, $60/pair

CX PRO 700x30c: Lightly used pair, $20/pair

The Late

2010-03-21T22:50:00.002-04:00

Howdy partners! Solid week of great weather has me weak in the knees from all that fresh air!! I know you all got out and enjoyed yourselves in mother nature! I accomplished my first real mtb rides in, well, a long time! Friday in The Wiss for some fun with my roadie-convert friend JPR, then again today in French Creek. Took the XTC 29er out and it ate up the rocks and roots and probably saved me a few times from losing some skin along with pride and dignity.

Saturday was a hoot and holler as I rode the TCX in the Monkey Knife Fight. What a great ride, and some steep dirt climbs to boot! Will definitely be back for that one next year! Did I mention steep dirt road climbs??!?!

This week will keep the good times rolling with a stop in State College, followed by a job interview (GASP!), and more two-wheeled shenanigans. And I'm gonna pistol-whip the next person who says the word shenanigans!

I should probably add more pictures to these posts.......

So...I'm a bike racer....

2010-03-15T22:28:00.003-04:00

Time to ring the keg for another round of fitness prep brought to me by the one and only Cody Waite. Serve me another plate of raw self-masochistic anaerobic two-wheeled punishment please (with onions to make the eyes tear)!

I was supposed to race this weekend, but (pause for dramatic effect) the fields are FULL!!!! Wait, what? Seriously? A mtb race in the Mid-Atlantic has filled it's rider capacity? Is this the truth? Should I be maxing out my credit card on early pre-reg's for every race on my schedule? Answer: no. Turns out the field limits are pretty tiny. Bummer, so looks like I'll be lining up for the MASS Team Relay on April 3rd with my new team, Giant Mid-Atlantic. I wonder what sort of costumed gimickry we will come up with? Only time will tell.....

And now for the KOSHER SPRING CLASSIC WRAP-UP!!

We rode, we finished, I took two seconds in a row, then wimped out on the final stage. Next year baby......

Seriously, did you think I'd go into some maniacal detailed account of the events which have come to be known as the Spring Classic? How gullible you have become.

Rule #1 of Spring Classic: You don't talk about Spring Classic. Guess I broke rule #1, currently watching my back. Until next year.......

Hey Blog, how YOU doin?

2010-03-11T11:21:00.003-05:00

The past few weeks have been a combination of having nothing to write about and having too much to write about. Mix that together and you get what I present to you today. The snow that was dumped on us is almost completely gone, save for a few small patches here and there that don't catch the sun. It was fun to see so much of the white stuff again, but it really does put a damper on things and is a general nuisance the longer it sticks around. I definitely won't miss shoveling it either, like one of my elderly neighbors said, "why doesn't somebody call Al Gore and tell him to come shovel this global warming?". Actually, I heard a lot of people say that same thing, is it a quote from T.V. or something?

To help pass the time in the snow, I helped a friend move-in and paint a new house. It's a great house, about 100 years old and built solid. It's got an old cottage feel, with wood flooring throughout and small details that give the place a unique character. Doing work on the house made me want to buy a house of my own so I could have that feeling all to myself, but that's still a few years off. Until then, I'll just hang out over there and raid the fridge, boo-yah!

The latest reports from the Department of Homeland Fitness and Competition indicate that my early season form is coming along nicely and I am eager to get to the first race of the year. Unfortunately, since my previously scheduled first race has filled (that's a first!) I may be delaying my start until the first weekend in April. Not a bad thing, will actually give me a little more preperation time, and help me wrangle up my equipment for the season and get it ready to go. For the first time in a long time, I won't be on a 26" hardtail, and will be riding a 29" hardtail (Giant XTC 29er) and a 26" full suspension (Giant Anthem X). I can't count how many times last year I found myself working harder over terrain to keep up with someone on a 29er or a FS bike, regardless of line choice. Equipment truly does matter at a certain point, and I'm probably slightly beyond that point now.

OH yeah, almost forgot about the Championship Roller Racing event! This was too cool! I had always wanted to hit one of these up, in fact, I'll save that for another post......

The Spring Classic is almost complete. 'The Beginning' was an epic venture through snow and dangerous roads. 'Part Duh' was a georgeous day that teased many into staying on towards the end, only to be spit out like flavorless chewing gum on The Wall. 'The Climax' is this Sunday, and should bring more epic conditions, with rain, wet roads, and a classic finish down Forbidden Drive and up to Water Tower. I'll save the recap for next week.

Looks like rain outside, hope you were able to enjoy the weather earlier this week. Sushi Buffet tomorrow, Boo-yah!

Sick joke

2010-02-21T22:45:00.001-05:00

Someone passed a crack to me today about us getting up to 40" of snow this week. From what I can tell that is total bull, but it was an uncalled for comment nonetheless. Seriously people......

How Can You Sleep?

2010-02-15T21:18:00.002-05:00

The olympics are a grand time, are they not? Everyone is brought together beneath the solidarity of competition and sport. But let us not forget that we are not always brought together under a banner of positivity, and that some are forced to come out and change. I'm not saying to give it back, but to not turn a blind eye towards the past. It will make you appreciate what you have and where you are.

The snow it's a fallin.....

2010-02-11T20:26:00.003-05:00

Snowpocalypse has come and gone. Snowmaggedon has unleashed its wrath and left quietly in the night. In the end, the aftermath is beautiful and serene. It is worth the hardships and labor we endure as we scramble amidst it's wake so we may bask in nature's brilliance. In a way, each snowfall is an original piece of art, never to be duplicated. So before you break out the shovel and curse-words next time, remember to take time and notice an artistic genius at work.

Snow flames on the tiki torches

With Pictures

2010-02-06T18:16:00.004-05:00

The above picture was taken on a cold day (in the teens) at Fairhill. It just about sums up all the riding I did in January. Cold, with some sparks of interest. I managed to put in some solid hours on the bike and cross-training as well. I feel fit, more so than this time last year. Looks like cyclocross paid off! I also have been riding harder in training, and haven't done a ride over 4 hours yet. No need to ride too long at one time if I only race for 2 hours, right?

Now it's on to February, which has been rung in by a rest week and a bout of Snowmaggedon. Figures.....I was really looking forward to getting out a bunch this weekend, having no scheduled training on tap. Good thing the snow stopped midday Saturday, which means I can still salvage the weekend with an epic Sunday of trainer rides, wing-eating, and super-bowl watching. But don't be fooled, I'm not there for the game, I just dig the wings! Whoops, forgot to dig out the back porch.......

Reminders of Past Roommates

2010-02-05T12:44:00.002-05:00

So when I was in college, at an undisclosed location, I had a roommate that in hindsight was certifiably loony. He did these hilarious dances and songs at the most random times, often when you were relaxing in front of the TV and not expecting it. I can't even begin to explain this behavior, so I found this video to do it for me. Thank you YouTube!

See Me!

2010-01-21T22:56:00.001-05:00

For anyone reading who loves The Who and PJ....

Missed a day

2010-01-18T10:35:00.002-05:00

Question to the reader: Have you ever missed a day? Not miss as in "wow, that day was the greatest day on earth, I sure do miss it", but rather "wow, I was writing down all the things I did this past week, and I can't even recall being in existence on that day". Well, aside from one or two in college, I just recently had one myself.

Let's rewind to this past Saturday morning. I awoke early to prepare for the days festivities which included team breakfast with the Giant Mid-Atlantic crew, a group mountain bike ride with said previous crew, some lunching, then some gym work. On tap for the evening were birthday festivities at the Belgian Cafe. This was to be a spectacular day, and it was, save for 30 minutes into the ride where just after switching from my 29er to The Experience's Anthem X, I decided to fall at slow speed, giving my teammates something to giggle at. No harm, no foul, or so I thought. As is the norm with these crashes, things just start to pop up as more time goes on. In this case, these things were with me, not the bike. Upon finishing the ride, the conversation turned from our excitement about the team for this year to our immediate hunger and what to do about it. This problem was swiftly solved by our decision to hit the local burrito joint in downtown Manyunk ('twas a splendid decision). We ate, we cried, we laughed, we attempted to finish our burritos without having it spill out too much. It was a splendid time.

Upon saying our goodbyes, we all went on our separate ways, leaving the days bicycle festivities to our fond memories. Except that when I got home, the day's ride was becoming a nuisance I realized I had done a number on myself during my little tangle-up. I loosened up in the shower, and was still going to try and hit the gym for a little work-out, but the gym schedule changed and it closed at 5pm instead of 6 during January (on Saturday). No gym for me today, so I went to the basement and did a heavy core work-out instead, which was marvelous and made me feel accomplished on the day. After making some tasty food for dinner, I set out to the Belgian Cafe to toast the final days of a friend's 20's, which was a fun time. I made it home, and with a heavy heave, I tossed myself into bed. This is where the fuzziness occurs.....

I remember this to a small degree: Waking up on occasion, hobbling to the bathroom or kitchen, then hobbling back to bed to watch another movie. I thought I had done this for the good part of the morning, but it turns out it was the entire day. Whoops! I guess after having a fun-filled week of progress and accomplishment, I needed a day of rest, just didn't think it would be so static! I awoke this morning to some slight grogginess, and I can walk normally again. Maybe aliens abducted me, healed my leg, then taught me how to moonwalk? No dice there, I still can't moonwalk, selfish aliens..........

So I'm on to another week of progress and accomplishment. There's been a lot of news in regards to the new team, Giant Mid-Atlantic Cycling, so be sure to check out that blog as well! We have some awesome new sponsor announcements to make in addition to Elete and ESI, so stay tuned!

Good Stuff!

2010-01-06T23:20:00.002-05:00

Wow! The new team is really coming together nicely! If you haven't checked it out already, than do it now: Giant Mid-Atlantic Cycling Team on the web, or check out the BLOG. Are you on Facebook? We're on there too, just search for Giant Mid-Atlantic, or click HERE.

The team just announced a new sponsor, ELETE electrolyte replacement. Super Stoked! This stuff rocks and is going to be key as the temps get warmer (which hopefully happens soon!)

There are a bunch more sponsors coming on board, so be sure to keep checking back for more announcements. It's going to be an awesome season!

On the riding front, I hit the Wiss today for the first time in a few weeks. It was good stuff! I'd be posting pictures right now if I actually took them. It was too cold to stop and snap a pic, plus I was having too much fun on the 29er. I promise to post a pic when it gets a tad warmer!

Bowl-a-rama

2010-01-03T00:31:00.002-05:00

With a little booty shaking on the dancefloor at my friend's wedding on New Year's Day, I officially ended the holiday season. It's a good thing too, because I need a vacation from the holidays.

Currently I'm watching one of the gazillion college bowl games on. Or is it a bajillion? I know this is a recycled gripe, but what is the deal with these bowls? It's crazy that an 8-7 team can play in a televised bowl. Yes, it's good for the schools, but wasn't it more meaningful to appear in a bowl game, knowing that you are truly deserving of being there? That being said, I'll be watching as much of them as I can through tomorrow while I finish out my couch-surfing rest week.

On the movie front, I finally saw Paranormal Activity. Overall, I enjoyed the movie. It had a steady build-up to a truly scary ending. It was definitely easy to get wrapped up in the 'realism' of the film. I really want to see The Fourth Kind now.

2010 has begun, the year of the Giant.

IceCycles, SponsorHunt, and Pink Trees

2009-12-29T21:51:00.002-05:00

Mel Brooks is a genius. The producers give me such high anxiety when they have young frankenstein light my blazing saddles, it makes my spaceballs sweat in springtime for Hitler. But I digress.......

This winter's first ice cycle produced some quality, well, icicles (see above photo in case you couldn't wait to read this and missed it). This particular ice cycle was followed up by the annual holy daze of holidays, which when combined means I'm working more on my natural winter 'base' layer than on my winter fitness. New Years is almost here, followed by a New Year's Day wedding (which I am in), and then it's back to busi-nonsense. NYE Note: If you're going to be in Times Square, look for me. This should be a fun game.

In more important-than-me news: My new team is still looking for sponsors for the 2010 mountain bike season. Our big gap is in finances right now, so if you own or know of someone who has a business that would be interested in partnering with our team for the next season and beyond, e-mail us at giantmidatlantic@gmail.com. Also you can go to the team blog at giantmidatlantic.blogspot.com, or visit us on the web at www.giantmidatlantic.com.

So, I stopped down the shore to visit some good friends, and the first thing I find was a monstrosity of modern festive decor slapping me in the face. Yes, that is a pink christmas tree. I didn't touch up the picture to bring out the true color in fear of burning the viewer's retina and attracting many a stiff-suited lawyer bringing tidings of joy and lawsuits. Thank me later.

Have a safe and happy new year!

Snow rides!

2009-12-19T17:35:00.003-05:00

Took to the park today for some snow loops on the cross bike. The tight downhill turns were the most adventurous. The only other person I saw out there today was another crazy on a mountain bike. He was taking a pic of his bike (which I had done a few minutes prior), and as I slid by (quite literally) he snapped a pic of me. Hope it looked rad! Rad, ha, what a silly word.

Hope everyone is enjoying the snow and here's too fresh tracks!

It's ALIVE!!!!

2009-12-18T17:55:00.003-05:00

Officially announcing the Giant Mid Atlantic Cycling Team. We are a mountain bike team, based in PA, racing in the Mid-Atlantic states. Great fun will be had. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, the Interweb, and the Blogosphere. Hip-hip Hoorah!

For $300, you can make this....

2009-12-18T17:24:00.000-05:00

Structure returns

2009-12-13T23:57:00.002-05:00

Sup bloggerverse, how YOU doin?

Gettin back to the grind tomorrow, should give me more to ammo to write about. Also, the holiday party season is ramping up big time now, should be a good time. 3 month gym membership starts tomorrow, I can't wait!

First Snow......

2009-12-05T14:53:00.003-05:00

First snow of Winter came today. I had to act fast in order to snap a picture of the evidence, since it wasn't sticking around too long. Really looking forward to getting back on the bike next week and reintroducing some structure to my weeks. Suffice it to say, I've been rather bored lately. You'd think I'd be able to keep myself busy for a week or two without riding my bike, sheesh!

Breckius Epicicus

2009-12-02T20:19:00.002-05:00

I'm toying with the thought of participating in the Breck Epic this coming season. Mind you, 'toying with' is beneath 'thinking about', which is beneath 'considering'. You get the idea.

Not to say I don't think this event is great. In fact, I think it's amazing! I'm just not sure if I am willing to commit to such a venture at this moment in time.

So what do you think?

www.breckepic.com

breckepic.blogspot.com

Almost Forgot.....

2009-12-01T21:16:00.011-05:00

Had so much friggin fun at my 10yr HS reunion. OK, actually it was a little weird seeing all those people again, but I played it off well. Going into week 2 of my winter break and all I want to do is join in on the long rides everyone else is partaking in. But patience is key, and soon I will enjoy the winter chill aboard my bicycle.........

Top-10 2009 Race Pics: Taken by various photographers such as Anthony Skorochod, Dennis Smith, Tom Burrows, and Kevin Dillard. In no particular order.

ALERT!!!! If anyone has a pic of me landing on my face at the Rockburn CX race, post a comment with your e-mail address. Comments are moderated, so it won't be visible.

Taking a fast corner at the Bump'n'Grind US Cup race in 'Bama

Trying not to eat too much of the course at the Granogue M.A.S.S. race

Climbing out of the saddle at the Cowbell Challenge US Cup race

Riding a bridge at the Sewell M.A.S.S. race

Running the barriers at the Nittany Cross race

A well-timed close up in the corners at Whirly Bird Cross.

Breaking the mood at Ed Sander's Cross

Dropping off the top of Mt. Doom at the Hillbilly Hustle

At the top of Mt. Doom at the Hillbilly Hustle Cross race

Running the muck at the Granogue Cross race.

2009 in Pictures: Part 3

2009-11-30T18:36:00.012-05:00

I'm still not finished with my 2009 picture story. I plan on seeing this venture through to the end!

Next stop was Down Under, where I got to cheer on some friends at mountain bike world championships. How rad it would be to race worlds..........

And amidst all the travels, it was still important to reflect on the past and remember the sacrifices made.......

Where's Panda?

Hey baby, how YOU doin?

My final journey to the past was of a personal nature, searching for the names of my ancestors who made the journey to America through Ellis Island......

And upon exiting the past, I found myself once again in Philthadelphia.......

I was so excited at this point I just had to dump ice on SOMEbody........

Dude, where's my car?

It's at the Belmont for the Philthy Cross Clinics!

I had so much fun with 'cross this year, I even decided to ride on 700c (29") wheels off-road as well!

Next stop: Race Pics from '09, my personal favorites from the bunch.......

Congratulations Sven!

2009-11-30T13:25:00.002-05:00

50 career Superprestige wins and counting. Baaaaaaaad Aaaaaaass!

2009 in Pictures: Part 2

2009-11-29T13:52:00.012-05:00

And so the journey continues..........

And by journey I mean couch time at my friend's houses watching blockbuster Will Smith movies, yeah!

At times, things got a little weird...........

And other times the road got a little rocky...........

But always remember that when in doubt, dog drives..........

And often times the path paved leads to beautiful places.........

Though sometimes it leads to torrential downpours in the middle of hikes with the lack of raingear.........

Catching the ever elusive beer-bottle-bubble on camera: Priceless............

A scene from one of my side-journeys to the wilderness..........

A time that reminds me how fragile our civilization is and what forces are really in charge....

As I emerge from the wilderness, I find myself in the 1950's, where the couches were hip.......

Where to next?

2009 in Pictures: Part 1

2009-11-28T14:18:00.011-05:00

The year started with my return to Pennsyltucky, many boxes were used........

In order to acclimate properly, I got a few rides in with some old friends..........

Many rides and lunchbreaks later, I felt at home again and was ready to start the season........

I quickly got about with a comfortable set-up for the races, gotta at least look good, ya know....

I even threw down at a few road races in the Spring (notice how thrilled I look)........

I took the occasional weekend off to goof off in the wilderness..........

I spent some time re-acquainting with my lovely Philthadelphia................

I even spent some time at the farm on the tractor, plowing fields......at night........

And it wouldn't be a season without a lot of car time......make that a TON.........

And in between everything, I even raced my bike!

Got a call from the neighbors tonight.........

2009-11-24T22:33:00.002-05:00

THE METAL

2009-11-24T12:51:00.000-05:00

Hibernation

2009-11-23T11:07:00.004-05:00

Photo courtesy of In The Crosshairs

Hibernation: a word which has defined my race fitness over the past few weekends. Ever since DCCX, I just haven't felt the spark. The mental is high, but the physical isn't meeting me halfway. Season ended a little embarrassingly as well, with me on my head in the sandpit at the Rockburn Cross. I was actually feeling half-decent on the day, and had gone through my normal 2nd/3rd lap lull when I started to pick up the pace again. I got caught behind a rider (who had the twinkle of happy children and snowflakes in his eye) who was riding the sandpit rather slowly, and in my efforts to stay upright, I failed miserably and ended up taking myself down onto my shoulder/head. (Editor's note: Evil has been deleted, please move along, nothing to see here, just another angry jew.....I kid, I kid.....)

So my shoulder and neck are a bit sore now, but that will heal in a few days. I'm going to miss some good races the last 2 weekends, which is a real bummer. I'd go spectate, but that will just make me want to race, when I know I really need to take a load off and get ready for off-season training.

I'll throw up some pics and whatnots in the next few days, since they have been absent from this site for quite a few posts now. Maybe a group of my favorites from the season?

Double the 'Cross, Double the Fun!

2009-11-20T11:18:00.002-05:00

Howard County Double Cross is my destination this weekend. A few weeks ago, I was pretty much done with the season. A few bad results started me thinking it was time for shut-down, but instead I took a weekend off, hit some long rides, and now here I am. Whilst the Whitmore Super Cross Cup in NY is the bigger race, I think the Double Cross will be a set of courses that suit me more. Plus, they are at two totally different venues, which is great for variety. Doing Saturday's course backwards on Sunday is never as good as two different courses!

Bikes clean, now just have to eat breakfast, get out on my ride, then pack and roll. See you in Maryland!

Downloading Movie #5

2009-11-14T23:03:00.002-05:00

That's right, movie number 5. That means I've watched 4 movies so far today. Why? Well, I woke up sick that's why. Still bummed about it. Seems to have passed somewhat, but hopefully I can get on the bike tomorrow. I was supposed to get a long day in today. I know I'd feel a whole lot better if I was able to ride (obviously).

Is it just me, or does being sedentary make me feel worse than when I'm killing myself on the bike. Heck, I feel WAY better after a good workout then when i've rested for a day. Guess it's that brain chemistry doing it's work. OK, 79%, 21% to go. Never saw that last Superman movie, so I thought I'd give it a whirl. Then, maybe The Wrestler tomorrow, AFTER I ride.

So far today, I've warped through Star Trek, sliced through Wolverine, snickered my way through Angels & Demons, and enjoyed the last Bond flick, Quantum of Solace. Not a bad day so far for movies if I do say so myself, and I just did......out loud....with nobody else around. Guess I should feel lucky, or sane, that nobody answered me then.

In bike related news, I bought more tubes for the 29er. I need to be more conscious of my tire pressure out there. Too easy to flat. Will be going tubeless soon, but need to get proper tires first. Racing Ralph with Snake Skin please!

Gosh, this last 20% or so is taking a while. Time for some liquid beverage! And time for you to stop staring at the computer screen and to write a letter to your grandma, or the next best thing. Go on now, get!

Blowup

2009-11-11T13:46:00.002-05:00

So I've been taking a little rest as of late. It started last week with a full-on rest week, but I seemed to need more as I felt like poo and pulled out of Sunday's race. Back to some light training this week, but skipping the races this weekend. I'll catch you next year USGP!

Har-Har and I have been working on something great as of late. It involves Go-Kart Tracks and Bicycles in combination. Let your imagination run wild!

Dear Harry Hannukah:

2009-11-08T19:11:00.003-05:00

I know Hannukah isn't for another month, but if you could be so kind as to bring my gift early this year. I would like to have my old legs back, the ones that rode fast. And while I'm at it, my old arms too, the ones that handled the turns better and didn't turn to jello. I promise to return them after the last 'cross race for the season, For Schnuckus! Thanks Harry!

Hey Now!

2009-11-04T22:36:00.003-05:00

I'm still giddy about last night's Go-Kart track bicycle test-ride. Yes, that's right, I spent my evening doing test-runs on my TCX at an indoor go-kart track. And yes, it was AWESOME! So just in case you were wondering what I do on my rest weeks to get recharged for the end of the season, now you know. It's our little secret.........for now.

Speaking of rest weeks, I was more than ready for one. Last weekend saw a tired Jordan toe the line both days, and a tired Jordan exited early from both races. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I won't be making that mistake this weekend at Fairhill or Spring Mount. I's gots to keep this train a'rollin a little longer.

Black Death sandwhiched by greatness

2009-10-26T23:56:00.002-04:00

Today's post title is descriptive of my race Sunday at DCCX. Strong start, strong finish, HORRIBLE middle. The weather turned warm on the day, and I obviously was not hydrated properly. Of course, this was not evident until lap 3 of the race. As I dipped further into my own misery, I looked up to see 4 laps to go. At this sight, my heart sunk, and I then got passed by some riders. It was with 2 laps to go however that my magic matzah balls kicked in and I flew to the finish, passing a few riders back and ending 9th on the day out of 34 starters. Not great, but I'll take it! Trying to find pics, will post one later hopefully.

Last Wednesday was the second Kensington Triple Crown. Not a big crowd, but a good one. I managed to take the 'W' again on another fun urban 'cross course and am liking the workout I get there. If you're in the philly area, COME ON OUT! But be sure to pump the tires up high so you don't flat........

So today on the trainer, I was watching part 1 of the series 'JFK: 3 Shots That Changed America'. On Monday's I usually just do a 1hr recovery ride, and instead of dealing with traffic, or getting in the car and driving to some easy trails, I just watch TV on the trainer. Actually relaxing to a degree. But I digress...... The program was extremely informative, and revealed a lot about the assassination of President Kennedy I had not previously known or seen. I won't get into detail, but if you haven't seen it than put it on your list. Who would've thought I'd learn so much while just spinning on the trainer?!?! It's a crazy world we live in.

On tap this week: Kensington race on Wednesday, Arnold's Family Fun Center (You'll like this one, but have to keep it under wraps for now), Re-gearing the pit bike, mentally preparing for another double UCI weekend in NJ. Ampitheatre of Pain, I WILL OWN YOU! Blech......

Weekend mini-wrap.

2009-10-18T23:39:00.003-04:00

Just thought I'd throw up a quick post more out of habit, rather than out of having something to say. The weekend's racing has come and gone with quite a bit of disappointment. Saturday's race at Granogue was one where I knew I could do well so long as my bike would hold up. Well, it did. And I finished inside the top 20, just inside, as I had aimed for. But after cleaning up, I walked over to the results which had just been posted and saw that I was DNF, and that the rider whom I know finished in front of me was listed as 25th, not 18th. I protested, but this got me nowhere and the best they said they'd do is list me as DFL. Awesome. A great result wiped off the boards by an official's error.

Sunday I started with a fresh attitude, but after getting caught behind a starting line crash I had to chase back on, which I did fairly quickly. I passed some and set off just as I do about every UCI race. However, this one ended on lap #3 with my chain jammed in my cassette. No spare bike = DNF. Oh well, better a real DNF this time!

Overall, despite poor results, I am happy with my form. I feel that after starting the season outside of the top-20, that I am now fully capable of finishing in the top-20 of these UCI races. Hopefully I'll do just that again at Beacon, where I was 16th the last time I raced there. And from there, continue improving.

Next weekend: Red Cross in NY, then DCCX in D.C.

See you over the barriers!

- Jordo

Forecast is for FUN!

2009-10-15T13:41:00.003-04:00

Well, the weather finally turned for the worse and stole the last breaths from Summer's lungs. It's raining in the 40's currently and will be raining throughout the weekend. Tonight's Triple Crown of Kensington Cross Race is still on, and I'm planning on breaking out the rain gear for this one baby! Not sure who is going to show up in this weather, but I like my odds even more tonight. In order to fend off possible sickness for the weekend, I'll be taking Cold-Eeze, Vitamin C Supplements, eating well and often, and staying well hydrated. I just need to make it through the weekend without being sick, then I can focus on relaxing and recovering more next week. Oh yeah, and tearing every inch of my bike apart after 3 sloppy/wet races in a row. Yay!

Weekend Cross Wrap #4 'Enhanced' Version: Richmond & Kensington

2009-10-12T13:49:00.002-04:00

This week's Weekend Cross Wrap is going to include the Triple Crown of Kensington Race report as well, hence the 'enhanced'. Plus, I just like the word 'enhanced'. Enhance. Enhance. JUST TYPE THE DARN REPORT ALREADY!

Wednesday: Triple Crown of Kensington Cyclocross Race #1: Well well well, what do we have here? A local cross race with small entry fee and winner takes all attitude? Where do I sign up?!?! After palling around at the Belmont as a warm-up, I packed the bike back in the car and drove over to Kensington to do some cross gaming and self-heckling. Tons of familiar faces were gathered near the lighted fields waiting for the football practice to finish. Those in attendance included, but were not limited to, The Joe Reynolds Foundation, Warren H, Woody, Har-Har (on a fixie and slicks!), L Pipes (with a huge screw lodged in her tire), The QCW Posse, and The Great Pat who organized the whole shindig. The set-up was simple. Short urban 'cross course, two races running at once (men's and women's), overall winner of each race takes home 50% of the entry on the night. All clear? Ready......GO! I make sure not to hole-shot as I would rather follow and feel things out on any day than dictate the pace from the gun. Not sure if this is smart strategy or a little lack of confidence. If it's a lack of confidence, than I quickly gained it on the second lap as I took the lead and never looked back. Roughly 40 minutes later the bell lap rang and I did one more flying lap to the finish line. Looking back, I noticed a lot less people on the course than before. Turns out there were a lot of flats that took people out of the race. All of the faster riders seemed to make it through OK though, with the exception of Har-Har who's slick-tired fixie got a flat, and Woody's chain snapped. Had a great time and will definitely be back to defend my lead in the series and go for the omnium. End Result: 1st baby! Not a UCI win, but it's a start!

Saturday: Richmond Festival of Cross Day 1: Drove down with L Pipes to Grandmaster Stu's place in Richmond, VA for a low-key weekend of fun racing. With big UCI races going on in Ohio and Rhode Island, I felt like I was missing out a little, but am glad I got to see the scene down there. Despite having fun in general, the racing wasn't together. The weather was warm and muggy Friday night and Saturday. I had trouble sleeping and woke up feeling rather rough. I tried to stay positive and confident, knowing my form was coming on and improving. I figured that if I just gutted it out and finished decent in the first day's race, I could do a good TT and get some rest for Sunday's race. Well, first lap in, I got myself a flat and had to ride/run a good distance to the pit while everyone raced on ahead. I swapped the front wheel and chased as hard as I could the entire race, picking riders off steadily and finishing up 10th. OUCH! The humidity and weather took their toll on me, wrapped in my lack of sleep, I almost lost my lunch at the finish line. With my lackluster performance and bad-luck combined, I couldn't get up the motivation to do the TT. 10th place didn't seem like a good place to start a run at the overall, especially since there was no TT prizes and the omnium was winner-take-all for a custom-made cowbell. Instead, I chose to rest up and take a crack at the win the following day. End Result: 10th/20

Sunday: Richmond Festival of Cross Day 2: After napping after yesterday's race most of the evening and getting a better night's sleep, I woke up feeling normal but not spectacular. After yesterday though, normal felt amazing! I chowed down breakfast and headed over to the course with L Pipes to sign-in and pre-ride. While on my lap, I realized that this course was unlike any I've ever ridden. The best way to describe it was a 'Crit on Grit'. That meaning it was pan-flat, almost no technical sections, and had plenty of power straight-aways where sitting in and drafting was the only way to maintain position. Nothing hard, nothing to seperate things out. I got a decent start and like I figured there was just one long pace-line from the start. After the first barrier section and a short tech-section we hit a quick road section. Here a few guys started getting a gap and I knew that they were the race-makers. I went to jump across the gap so not to drag anyone with me, but I quickly realized that I was lacking my normal power. I was forced to sit down and try and slowly bridge up, but was caught by two riders who did not have the power to do so and the gap quickly started growing. Realizing I should not have been caught, I kept it together and waited for a good moment to make a move and get rid of the group I was with, as I was riding a lot smoother than most. However, when I went to make a move again, it felt like I was stuck in mid-gear. That's when the tingles hit me, the hunger tingles. Oh Snaps! I quickly realized what was happening, and although the cross race was short, it was too early to tough it out. I made my decision to pull the plug and get some food in me. Not my proudest moment of the year, but turns out it was my smartest thus far. I see no reason to dig a hole for myself at a local race when it can seriously affect upcoming races with far greater importance and stiffer competition. That being said, it's always hard watching a race go by and knowing that you could be in contention but for one reason or another are watching from the sidelines. End Result: Blah!

Looking forward to this week/weekend! The Triple Crown got moved to Thursday's now, so as not to conflict with the Wednesday night cross workouts at the plateau. I'm thinking I may do a mtb ride on Wednesday instead just to test out the new 29'er I finally got all built and tuned. I'll stop by the plateau to heckle a little of course!

The weekend brings my second duo of UCI races. Granogue and Wissahickon. Granogue was a muddy slop-fest (as opposed to a sloppy mud-fest, which is not as bad) the last time I raced it in '05, and Wissahickon was my last race that season, siting burn-out as the cause for my early departure there. I'm just going to take it easy this week, except for Kensington, and try and stay focused. Poor start positions are in the works and I need to bring my A+ game so I can race like I know how.

Toodles!

BE THERE!.....er...HERE!....wait....JUST GO!

2009-10-07T11:43:00.002-04:00

Come one, come all, to the Triple Crown of Kensington Cyclocross Races! 3 Wednesday's in October: 7th, 14th, 21st. Fun shall be had and 'cross shall be raced! Under the lights of Cione Park no less! Registration starts at 7pm, racing starts at 8'ish. Link: http://surlyrider.wordpress.com/2009/10/03/triple-crown-of-kensington-and-bike-stuff-raffle/

See you there!

HH V.4 Country Mix

2009-10-06T11:51:00.001-04:00

WEEKEND CROSS WRAP #3: A wedding and a Hustle

2009-10-05T21:55:00.003-04:00

This past weekend wrapped up a rest week for me. Friday I spent the day at the Hillbilly Hustle course staking things out and putting up course tape. The course was rad and I was happy to be able to help out in a big way with getting things ready. The weekend was to be busy for me, so after we finished I headed home to clean up and pack.

Saturday: Hillbilly Hustle Pre-ride & Clinic: I arrived fashionably late for the official course pre-ride and clinic, which was also the final installment of the Tuesday night Philthy Cross Clinics. We had a good group show up and we went through the course and detailed each section. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and I got to feel important, which is always a plus! The best thing about these clinics is seeing riders improve and have more fun. Thanks to all those who came out, I hope your learned a lot and are caught up in the cyclocross cyclone every Fall from here on out! And thank you for making me feel like I knew what I was talking about!

Saturday Night: The Marriage of Anna Kelso & Jeff Schalk: After a pit stop at my old stomping grounds in Mt. Washington for some eats, I made my way to Frederick, MD for my friends Anna & Jeff's wedding. Everything was awesome, and I got to see a ton of people I haven't seen for a while. There was such a happy & positive vibe throughout the whole ceremony and reception! I couldn't picture a happier couple! Congrats you two!

Sunday: Hillbilly Hustle V.4: After a long drive home and 2am bedtime, I awoke sans alarm at 11am and set about getting over to the Hustle in one piece. With a nice prize purse up for grabs, and an amazing trophy, I was really hoping to make the top step of the podium on the day. I felt a lot better than I thought I would, and was cautiously confident at the start, knowing that I had some stiff competition in riders like Ryan Dewald, Stephan Kincaid, and a Swiss U23 rider whose name I can't recall at this time. With a front row start, I set off and hit the fist section of twisty windy further back that I would've liked, around 9th wheel. I quickly moved up in the first lap into 4th/5th with another rider, but the front 3 had taken off before I had a chance to get on the train. I rode steady and stayed out of trouble and off the ground, chasing with the same rider until the end where I was outkicked in the final lap. I was happy and not happy at the same time, I really wanted to win, but feel the front 3 were the strongest on the day. I should have had 4th wrapped up, but just didn't have it in me after my efforts the previous two days. End Result: 5th/20

Next up is the Richmond Festival of Cross. Even though there are bigger races with more money, they are also farther away. I sort of want to keep things low key before the Granogue/Wissahickon weekend where I would like to do well in a deeper field. Hopefully this plan of mine will work out!

See you over the barriers!

Ready to Hustle!

2009-10-02T22:22:00.003-04:00

Just winding down from a long day at Sunday's course and a night of bike prep. In case you've been hiding under a rock, the Hillbilly Hustle V.4 Cyclocross Race is this Sunday in Elmer, NJ. This race is gonna be Si-i-i-i-i-ck!! Fast doubletrack abounds on the course with a few mud sections, a sweet sandy bermed turn, and tons of other crazy goodness. BikeReg signup is up tonight, but you can still register the day-of.

Tomorrow, I'll be pre-riding on the course and leading the last Philthy Cross Clinic: Jersey Edition. Then, it's off to Frederick, MD for Anna and Jeff's wedding. I'm setting myself a curfew in Frederick of 10pm, then it's back in the car and back to home to get some sleep and hopefully wake up rested and ready for the Men's Elite race at 3pm. I think things will work out, and I'm feeling confident so that always helps.

See you out there!

Whirly Bird Mix

2009-09-29T22:50:00.001-04:00

WEEKEND CROSS WRAP #2: Whirly Bird & Ed Sanders

2009-09-28T17:00:00.003-04:00

Another great weekend of 'cross racing is in the books, and another week of improvement has been accomplished. My finishing results were mixed, but my sensations out on the course both days was better than last week. Now I'm in for a week of resting before my team's race on Sunday, the Hillbilly Hustle V.4. The winner of the Men's 1/2 receives a custom trophy by Warren Holzman of Iron Studios. It's super sweet! I'm going to do what I can to make that trophy mine, no doubt! But that a week away, now for the race reports!

Saturday @ Whirly Bird Cross: After the mental and physical beating the previous weekend, I was more than ready to do some lower key local races and have more fun in the process. I clearly wasn't ready for 'cross yet, and most certainly not ready for 2 UCI races. But that being said, I felt better on course and was lucky enough to have the officials scrap call-ups and so I got a front-row start. At the gun, my front-row start turned into a front-group selection, which panned out just fine for the first 2 laps. On lap 3, after a minor mix-up in the front, I was working to close down a small gap that had formed when the crazy wind blew the course tape inward as I rode the good line on the inside of a bend, catching my bars and taking me down. Immediately, 4 riders crashed into me and we all set about checking ourselves, our bikes, and getting back to the pursuit of the 3 riders who got away clean. I was the last of the group to get back going unfortunately, so I tried to close the gaps down as quickly as possible. After catching the 2 riders that had passed me while stopped, I saw I was reeling in the tail-end of the riders I was previously with. As I caught one, we started working together to catch the rest. This proved rather difficult though, and while in hot pursuit I started feeling the effects of my crash and with 1.5 laps to go I lost contact as we caught 2 riders. My ankle was throbbing after the race, so I grabbed some arnica and made sure to ice it well once I was home. End result on the day: 8th out of 19 starters.

Sunday @ Ed Sanders Memorial Cross: This race marked my first MABRA race back, which is a series I loved to race when I was on the East Coast previously. Being the first MABRA cross race of the season, I was also hoping for a free-for-all at the line, but no such luck. The call-up process had me towards the back, and my clumsy self decided to slip a pedal at the start, leaving me pretty close to DFL into the first corners. Oh well, guess that makes the race more fun for me! The course on the day was a tiny bit sloppy, with some moderately difficult sections that required good firm-mud handling skills. Luckily, I came prepared on the day, having switched my normal Schwalbe Racing Ralph tread for the more aggressive, thinner, and classic CX Pro tread. These babies are great in mud, and they did their job as I rode by guys running their bikes through the half-dry peanut butter. I kept this up until 2 laps to go where I had 3 more riders well within my grasp. I stayed right on them, with the furthest only about 12 seconds up on me and recovered slightly so i could take one last long dig into the final lap to pass and drop all 3. BUT, just as I recovered I heard the insane laughter of the flat-tire gnomes from behind me and sure enough, PFFFFFFFFF. No more air in my rear tire as I rolled through the finish with exactly 1 lap to go. Now most elite level riders finishing in the money most weekends would have a spare bike, or at least a spare wheelset at the pit. Well, I'm not most Elite riders! I gingerly rode to the pit half of a lap in and silently prayed for someone to still be there. Luckily, when I arrived, there was a gentleman no too far away whom ran over and let me borrow their wheel to finish on. THANKS DUDE!!!! I rolled in as the last full-race finisher on the day, and set about cleaning up and thinking about what to eat on the way home. Stoked I was feeling decent both days, and can't wait to be back on all-cylinders in the coming weeks and fighting for VICTORY. End result on the day: 14th of 25 starters

So 2 weeks in, 8 to go? Ah, doesn't matter, I'm having a blast racing 'cross again and SO SHOULD U! So get a bike set up, any bike, and head on out to the races!

It looks like you need a massage!

2009-09-21T22:33:00.002-04:00

One of the recovery techniques I've been using as of late is deep tissue massage. On Monday's after most race weekend's, I head down to Stephanie's place in the City of Nutterly Love (Philly, duh). After the hello's, playing with the dog and the cat, it's 2 hours of bliss as all the little kinks and stress built up from the past week's training and racing are worked out. If you're in the Philadelphia region, don't hesitate to visit her site and call for an appointment, www.stephaniestago.com. Tell her Jordan sent you!

WEEKEND CROSS WRAP: Nittany & Charm City

2009-09-20T21:46:00.004-04:00

Well well well! Well........

Back from the opening weekend of 'cross racing in the Mid-Atlantic region. I'll admit to mixed feelings on the events that unfolded, but am optimistic for what the future holds. Please read on....

Nittany Cross (UCI Men): "I'm on a road bike. Wait, it's not a road bike, these tires are bumpy. And what kind of brakes are these? Canti-whats? Oh, I get it. I'm at a cross race!" This sort of sums up my day. A little confusion followed by the realization that I'm back racing cyclocross. The start was decent. Made up maybe 2 spots in what was a hectic but controlled start before we hit the first turns. I lacked the necessary pop and power to make my way up to the front quickly, but my handling was spot-on for the day as I made my passes on the inside about 90% of the time. Towards the end, started to feel the effects of last weeks crash at Bear Creek, but held my meager 21st position. The course was great, big thanks to the Mike Yozell who designed the course and to the whole crew on the day. Great way to start the Fall cycling season!

Charm City Cross (UCI Men): This was my first cyclocross race at the Elite level back in '05. Since then, the event has grown immensely to become one of the premier MAC UCI races. This course is fast and twisty, with challenging run-ups, sand-traps, and barrier sections that keep even the most experienced cyclocrossers on their toes. The last time I toed the line at Charm City, I was 5th on the day. Despite the lackluster performance the day prior, I took that knowledge to the start line and was determined to have a stellar day. From the gun, the start was much more hectic than the Nittany start. I had nowhere to go, and as we hit the grass I dropped my chain. Recovering quickly, I managed to stay on to the tail end of the pack as we made the first few turns and up to the sand-pits. I used these and the next few turns and punchy hills to my advantage to move back up to around 18th. I held this for the next lap as I reeled in a large group. As I caught on to them, we hit the long stair run-up and this is where things started south. My left leg, which is my lead-off leg for my dismounts AND the leg I like to jump with, started getting noticeably weaker as I went up the stairs. This opened the gap and I tried like heck to close it but couldn't do it. Stuck in no-man's land, I rode until a rider caught up to me and tried to work with them, but got dropped at the sand-pits, which I had to run most of by this point. This was the story the rest of the race as my leg got worse and worse. At the end, I was 25th, and glad to be done the first 2 UCI cross races of the season (glad in a positive way). Hopefully the next week will allow for my leg to fully recover and be back to 100% power.

Final Thoughts: With UCI points on the line, I really wanted to get at least 1 point on the weekend. I knew this would be tough, but I was hoping I could pull it off. With my limitations on the weekend, I can't be fully disappointed, but I know I'm capable of much better. Learning from the weekend and making improvements are the name of the game this week. Look for me practicing barriers before the Tuesday night clinic, and left-side dismounts. Also, I'll be starting at the back of the group during the Wednesday night workouts, as I'll definitely be starting towards the back at the big races!

Hope your cyclocross adventures have you yearning for more! Next weekend brings some new and some old again. Saturday is the new Whirly-Bird Cross at Bryn Athyn College, and is put on by the Guy's Bicycles Racing Club for the Pennsylvania Cyclocross series. Sunday is the fan-favorite Ed Sander's Cross in Buckeystown, MD, and is the first stop on the MABRA cyclocross calendar. Hope to see you out there!

- J

Bike Gamers REJOICE!

2009-09-18T15:55:00.003-04:00

A collection of cycling inspired games for rainy days when you wish you were on your bike.

Enjoy!

http://www.cyclingboardgames.net/cyclogames.htm

And it finally begins........

2009-09-17T21:59:00.002-04:00

Some of you may know this, but I have been absent from cyclocross for the last few seasons. That is about to change though, in a big way. After a somewhat disappointing mountain bike season, my debut season as a Pro, I wasn't sure what to think about a full cyclocross schedule. I took 2 weeks off after the Windham ProXC Tour race to rest, relax, travel, and see where I stood with my cycling. It was refreshing, exhilarating, everything I could ask for and more. And when it was all said and done and I straddled my bike again, I felt the feeling.

The feeling was a piece of the spark that I was missing all mtb season. I had the drive, determination, dedication, and focus all year, but the spark wasn't there. I raced with the Lupine Corporate Team at the Seven Spring 24hr Challenge and could feel the ignitors clicking. At the first Wednesday night 'cross workout, I could feel the warmth. And even when mechanical mishaps were holding me back at the last mountain bike race of 2009, I could still feel the build-up.

The full brunt of what was to come hit me this passed Monday when my 2010 Giant TCX 0 made it back home to my workstand. As I built it, adjusted it, and fine-tuned it, the symbiosis between man and machine was made complete. And the spark that I was looking for? Well, the spark came back full force during this past Wednesday's 'cross workout. Running the barriers after an off-camber sweeper, bunny hopping a branch pile, weaving through muddy grass and trees and accelerating out of the final turn. This was the feeling I had been waiting for. This was the spark. This was cyclocross.

And it finally begins, after 3 empty Fall seasons, this weekend at the Nittany 'Cross and the Charm City Cross. An East-Coast UCI Double-Header Cyclocross Kickoff weekend. If you're racing, than I'm sure I'll see you there. If you're not, than come on out with your cowbells and a bottle of your finest Belgian hops and cheer us on over barriers, over sandpits, over run-ups, over cyclocross.

Cross-ready, but not quite mother approved.

2009-09-15T10:03:00.006-04:00

Just in case you haven't heard, I'm putting on a 3-part cyclocross clinic for my team at the Belmont Plateau from 6-7pm. The first one is tonight, so if you're reading this and can make it, consider this a special invite. It's officially for Breakaway Bikes affiliated riders only, but we'll make an exception if you're reading this ;). Did I just type a wink? Excuse me while I chop a finger off as punishment.......

She sure is purdy ain't she? Hopefully the weather holds and the courses are nice for the weekend, as she's the only steed I got at the moment. I'll be using my road bike as a pit-bike until my second ride arrives. I spent a late night givin her my love and attention and she's now ready to rock'n'roll. Thank you Gary T !!!

Broken pedal misfortune turned raffle delight

2009-09-14T16:14:00.004-04:00

I'm still a little out of breath from Sunday's race. Mostly due to all the frustrations I was voicing over more than 2/3rds of the course. After we started, I knew my legs were feeling good. I moved up from my back-of-the-pack start position to just outside the top-10. In the singletrack, I made some quick passes up to about 8th or 9th. As I got on the wheel of my team-mate from last weekend, The Big Shebelsky, we hit a rocky, technical decent where I hit a pedal on a rock, causing my foot to come out. I quickly recovered, but could not clip back in. The pedal was stuck in the open position and I spent the rest of the race having to reset the pedal every time I grazed a rock or had to dismount. HUGE bummer, but that's racing. I did want to close out the mountain bike season with a bigger success, but this year I have CYCLOCROSS to look forward to. I've been feeling reeeeeeaaaallly good since my 2 week break, and with the decreased number of training hours I'm staying fresh.

But it's hard to stay frowned at the last MASS race of the year, and I spent the remainder of the time talking it up with friends and eating delicious cheeseburgers. Giant Gary was on hand to raffle off a brand new Giant 29'er 1, so I grabbed a raffle ticket and crossed my fingers. WELL, I guess I had my fingers crossed tighter than everyone else, cause I WON. Sweet, now I got a kick-ass winter training bike and race HT for next season. All it needs is some lighter components come race time. It is a medium frame, so as soon as I get a swap for a small I'll be writing up some reports on it.

GOOD LUCK to all those finishing their mountain bike seasons the next few weeks, and for all those gearing up for 'cross, See you over the barriers.........

Last gasp of the fat tire

2009-09-11T11:35:00.003-04:00

This weekend is the Mid-Atlantic Super Series finals at Bear Creek. Theoretically, it will be my final mountain bike race of 2009. Although it was a team race, I'm hoping to use my momentum from last weekend's win to propel me to another podium finish. My switch over to more cyclocross specific training is giving my legs a beating. Wednesday's are double days for me with a 30 minute run in the morning and cyclocross workouts at the belmont in the afternoon. The cyclocross workouts were more difficult than normal since I was on my mtb this week. Hopefully my 'cross bikes get here very soon...... My recovery from that wasn't ideal this week, as I worked a campus event for my Aunt on Thursday morning and was standing on my feet all morning instead of spinning a recovery ride and stretching. With the help of my SKINS and some rest, I should be back to 100% for Sunday.

Also, it's 9/11. My style isn't to provide commentary on things like this, but do ask we all remember the events of that day and those lives lost.

7 Springs, you treated us well

2009-09-08T10:37:00.013-04:00

No rain, no mud, no tears. This past weekend's course at Seven Springs was dry and fast, and was one of the best times I've had on a bike all year. Oh yeah, and we won too.

For the drive out, I had my friend from college, Champion, join me and on the way I picked up Das Schobernator in Lancaster before hitting the long stretch to Somerset. Nothing of note happened on the drive, amazingly. When we showed up at the team 'chalet', I was a bit numbed from the road, and things sort of blur together, but I'm pretty sure Gretna Bill was doing a lot of rambling about crazy things. He's the best.

After about an hour of that scenario, it was time for some shuteye. Upon walking upstairs, I was greeted with the team sleeping quarters. A large room littered with barrack-like bunks I quickly set out finding myself a top bunk and got some sleep. This would be the only time I would get real sleep for the entire weekend. yay.

Upon waking, we quickly set out to the top of the mountain in search of our number plates and registration paraphernalia. The weather was gorgeous and was a sign of things to come. Luckily, we chose to drive up, as when we arrived we found the staff had not shown up yet and so we hastily jumped back in the car to join the rest of the crew for a delicious buffet breakfast at the main lodge.

After enjoying our 3 course breakfast, there was much rejoicing and discussion on what was to come for the next 24 hours. We headed back up to the top of the mountain to sign our waivers and then back down to the chalet to get everything ready. Another pal of mine, and cyclocross nemesis, Bad Andy, was our lead off for the event. This meant that he would do the LeMans run around the lake. I did this a few years back, and I wasn't too enthralled. Second in the lineup came yours truly, followed by 3 more fast dudes then 3 solid dudes, with Gretna Bill pulling up the rear. This made for 8 total riders competing for Corporate Team Glory (which in this case turned out to be a jersey, medal, and real schwag bag, but more on that later). When it came time, I suited up for lap one and headed out on my warm-up ride before making my way up to the mountain top and our team encampment. Our said encampment was pretty impressive, consisting of team bus, multiple tents, stoves, chairs, tables, support, and a storage shed. Gretna Bill was on hand to give me some last minute instructions and I was off to the transition area to wait for Bad Andy and head out on my first lap.

My first lap went much smoother than anticipated, as I only blew a few high-speed corners. You see, I didn't pre-ride the course. Luckily for me, The Experience was on hand to guide me through the first half, which was just as good as pre-riding. Actually, no, it was better. Sadly though, I was on a mission and he was not, so he shut it down after halfway to save some energy to help his friend out who was racing solo for the weekend (solo is another word for nuts). Coming into the transition area I quickly swapped our ankle chips to our next rider and we were happily on our way to what would be a 20+ minute lead after 5 laps. Satisfied with my first performance of the weekend, I swept back over to the tents to give my brief synopsis of current events and glided back down to the chalet on the wings of sparrows to shower, eat, stretch, and get a little nappy-nap in before heading out on my night lap.

Now, I'll have to admit, I was a little nervous about the night lap. I hadn't ridden at night for quite a while, and the last time I did it was with a woefully inadequate setup. Luckily for me, I was racing on the Lupine Lights Corporate team for the weekend, one of my sponsors, and I was set up with two of their super sweet Wilma lights. One for my bars, and one for my helmet. Ladies and gentlemen, these babies are like stadium lights. Once I turned these bad-boys on and started pedaling, I completely forgot I was on a night lap. When I got to the transition area though, some of the nervousness creeped back in as I found out we had slowly lost the lead and that Bad Andy was working to pull us back. When he came in, we were still 50 seconds back. I blazed through the trails at the same pace as my first lap, and if not for a mechanical mishap I would have more than likely equalled that first lap's time. Upon finishing, I had put in a few solid minutes on second and we were back in the lead again. Whew!

With the night lap completed, I was pretty spent from my second all-out hour-long effort of the day, and was looking forward to another nappy-nap. I forced myself to stay up long enough to eat a proper recovery meal and shower, then put on my SKINS recovery tights and went to sleep. Luckily I set my alarm, otherwise I would never have gotten up in time to get out on my third and final lap Sunday morning. Getting up for a quick breakfast and to get my gear ready again was a no-fun scenario. I slowly woke up, and eventually managed to suit up again and head out. This time, I decided to skip a warm-up, and save all my energy for the course. I was feeling confident as I headed to the transition area, despite a little tiredness. I crossed my fingers as I waited with Bad Andy to see how Gretna Bill's last lap would be. Unfortunately, we again lost the lead, but this time it was REAL close, only about 15 seconds off. Bad Andy flew off the transition and went about pulling a super strong lap which started the back-breaking process for good. A quick transition and then I was off. My no-warm-up plan paid off in spades as I pulled off another strong lap consistent with my first, despite feeling tired, having furthered our back-breaking tactic on second place. Once again, it was off to the chalet for recovery and this time back up to the venue to see the finish.

Once again the weather was beautiful as we all sat on the hillside watching racers pass. We waited in nervous anticipation for Das Schobernator come through so we could determine the gap to second place. When he came through, the gap was 16+minutes. YES! It seems as though our tactics had worked in the end. With Das Schobernator in, we sent out Clinton for our last lap and with the times showing on the boards and the gap back to second place, it was a nail-biter to see whether or not they would be able to go out for their 21st lap as well.

As the clock ticked down, it was getting closer and closer to doomsday for the second placed team. I ran over to the transition area as they came around the lake, knowing that it was going to come down to seconds. They had until noon to get in, and as I ran my cell phone clock showed 11:59. I sprinted over to the tent just in time to see the look of dejection on all of their faces. Hiding my excitement, I glanced up at the official time to see that they had missed the final lap by less than 20 seconds!! VICTORY WAS OURS!!!!! After dumping Gretna Bill with his victory ice ala superbowl winning coach, we headed over to the awards to stand on the podium.

It was great to be a part of an amazing team effort for the weekend, and I'll definitely be back next year for more. We have a title to defend now! BIG THANKS to everyone at Gretna Bikes & Lupine Lights for a fantastic weekend of racing. Also thanks to SCHWALBE tires, whose Racing Ralphs and Nobby Nics graced literally EVERY BIKE we rode.

Return to 7-Springs

2009-09-02T22:52:00.003-04:00

This weekend is the 24hr Challenge at 7-Springs. I'll be competing on an 8-man corporate team for my friends and sponsors at Gretna Bikes & Lupine Lights. If you haven't had a chance to check out Lupine's amazing line-up of trail lights, check them out at www.gretnabikes.com.

I've had some epic rides at 7-Springs. Two in particular are the 2004 Collegiate National Championships and the 2006 24hr Challenge. One was epic in a good way, and one in a not-so-good way. The '04 Collegiate nationals was my last collegiate race ever, and after racing a few Collegiate National Championships on foreign turf (Georgia and Angel Fire), it was nice to only have to drive 1.5hrs to the race venue. The night before the XC, a storm came in and drenched the mountain, much to the dismay of the Mountain region and California schools. I, on the other hand, secretly was performing rain-dances all week, and was more than happy for the downpouring of delight. With a decent starting position, I managed an 11th place, which with some bad luck mixed in was a good result on the day. The race trashed my bike, and my chamois, but I was totally enthralled with my race and couldn't wait to go back to 7-Springs again.

Fast forward a little to the 2006 7-Springs 24hr race, and I was lending a hand to my buddies from Gretna Bikes on their corporate team. I was their lead-out man, getting to do the Lemans style start and the first 2 laps. The intent was to put time on the other corporate teams, enough so that we could lead comfortably for when the slower riders on the team went out on course. Instead, I ended up trashing myself and my bike, and came in after 2 laps in second. Bah!

So.....this year I'm bringing the cleaning gear and only doing 1 lap at a time. The tentative plan is to do 3 laps, fairly evenly spaced so that I can recover in between and pull the fastest laps possible. We'll see how that pans out.......

Hope to see you out there this weekend! Pray for foul weather! Muahahahahahaa!

Out of the Concrete Jungle and back in the saddle again

2009-08-30T22:13:00.005-04:00

All done with my mini east-coast tour. G-force and Muller saw a ton, and so did I. It was cool seeing the sights again in D.C. and NYC. While I've been on break, I've managed to get some running in and acclimate the legs for 'cross season, so I haven't been completely sedentary. I'll have to admit that I overdosed on 'city' though, and am really chomping at the bit to get back on the bike and rev-up for 'cross. This week is all about getting back in rhythm for this weekend's 24hr Challenge at Seven Springs. I'll be part of the Gretna Bikes/Lupine Corporate team. This team is S-T-A-C-K-E-D with talented riders such as Das Schobernator and Bad Andy. I'm really looking forward to throwing down a few blazing laps and leading the team to victory. AND I get to use some of the super-pimp lupine lights for my night lap. I'll be sure to have pics and stories from the weekend come Monday!

Today I saw......

2009-08-26T23:10:00.002-04:00

Magic Johnson. But I couldn't get my camera out fast enough, so you're just going to have to take my word for it.

Heresy!!!!!!

2009-08-25T12:16:00.006-04:00

The downward spiral of wandering continues. Today I wandered across a pair of Klipsch Heresy II speakers at a garage sale, with consecutive serial numbers. These puppies are out of production, but still sought after for their great sound. Sold new back in the early 80's or late 70's for around $500/pr. I can still get a good chunk of change for them should I decide to let them go. And I only dropped 40 bones on them! To be honest, I'll probably just sell them to help continue my rabid addiction to cycling, but am afraid that I'll think twice once I plug them in and hear the beautiful sound they make. I think it's time to get the Led out baby, yeah!

You Can Do Anything.....

2009-08-24T17:12:00.004-04:00

....But lay off of my Blue Suede Shoes.

This is what happens when I take time off the bike. I wander around aimlessly, try to avoid eating junk food, and I buy crap. Luckily, I have been doing good with the diet, and I only bought 1 item. A pair of Blue Suede Shoes baby! As for the aimless wandering..........well, I was always a sucker for that.

Combating chronic depression and a recent job loss?

2009-08-22T10:00:00.003-04:00

Get raging drunk!!!

Meet Tyler Hamilton......

Heeeeeeeeeeeere's 'cross season!

2009-08-20T20:38:00.004-04:00

Somebody out there likes me. It's such a warm feeling. Here's a sneak peek of what I'll be riding this fall. Look for me at MABRA, MAC, & USGP cyclocross races near you, on one of these......

Resting on Disappointment

2009-08-17T20:49:00.002-04:00

2 weeks of big races are over and I am going into a small block of time off before ramping up for 'cross season. After Vermont I only had one chance at redemption, and that was in New York at the Windham Pro XC Tour event. I signed up for the Cross Country and the Short Track knowing that I was sitting on good form. Helping keep the mood cheery for the week was my friend Judy who flew in from Colorado to race the women's XC and STXC (Congrats on going to Worlds!). We got on course Friday and after 1 lap I knew this was a course I could do well on. Climbs weren't too steep, and had technical portions mixed in. The descent was butter, with lots of places for style points. Unfortunately we got kicked off after 1 lap because of the start of the Cat. 2 & 3 XC races. We finished the ride on the road and called it a day, satisfied with what we had accomplished.

On race day, I slept in a little trying to get as much rest as possible. I knew that since the course was even shorter and faster than Mount Snow, I would be getting pulled at some point. My goal on the day was to prolong the inevitable as long as possible. Call-ups were confusing, as I was called up waaaaay in the back, as opposed to near the middle the weekend before. The start, like most of these races, had me on the brakes almost as much as on the gas as riders in front of me avoided other riders and tried not to hit the deck. As we passed the finish line trailers and started to climb, I realized I was going to get caught in a major bottleneck and started to settle down for the inevitable. After getting off and running through a short section of singletrack, it was back on the bike until the next section where I lost balance trackstanding after a rider pulled off and stopped in front of me and was forced to run again. On the bike once again, I made my way up the climb, passing riders steadily until the descent. This went on for laps 1 and 2 (the passing, not the stopping) and into lap 3 where a got slowed down by what must have been allergies. I blew snot rockets up the climb on the third lap and barrelled down hoping to get one more lap in at least, but alas was pulled in 52nd position out of around 75 starters. A slight improvement from last weekend, which is sad considering I broke my cleat last weekend. I'd say the difference was in the starts, as I started better and was snappier at Mount Snow due to cooler weather. The heat was on at Windham for the start, and I had to ease into the race. Even though I was getting stronger/faster each lap, I didn't stay close enough to the leaders on that first lap to give myself a 4th lap of racing. I probably would have made up another 5 to 10 places if I had kept going for another lap, as riders were blown up all over the mountain, ripe for the picking.

In conclusion, I'm disappointed in my finishes, but still confident that I am on the right track and can make this cycling thing work at the professional level (what that means exactly I'm still pondering). I'm going to take my motivation into the 'cross season and put it to good use throughout the Mid-Atlantic. If all goes well, I'll make an appearance at National Championships and then who knows what else?

Until next time, shalom!

Mount Snowed

2009-08-11T20:05:00.002-04:00

Doh!

That's how my race went on Saturday up at Mount Snow. Not to mention that they cut the course to 4.2 miles, leaving out many of my favorite sections of trail. Still, the course was classic Mount Snow. I got up to the area early and had a few days of pre-riding and inspection. Come race day, I felt I knew the course well and had the legs to cover it in a timely manner. At call-up, I was actually in the second of 3 groups. Moving up in the world!

I felt slightly nervous and confident at the start, and when the gun went off I took off smoothly, waiting until the climb proper to start making moves. This plan worked well as I made up enough spots to enter the singletrack mid-pack with riders closely packed ready for more passing. On the first technical descent though, I hit my left pedal hard on a rock which moved my cleat and broke off a portion of the plastic shim between the cleat and shoe. Now this may not seem too bad on the surface, but in fact this tiny piece of plastic not only carried the physical weight of my body upon my pedals, but also the hope of a high finish on the day. My left foot would not stay in the pedal, and with the long and rough descents on course, I had to take it much easier than intended on the downhills. Oh yeah, and I rodeo'd (one-footed) myself off the trail 6 or 7 times. After a lap of giddy fun, I came through 5 minutes down for a 25 minute first lap. The second lap went better, but not much, and got pulled after 2 laps. Ouch! If I was a proud man, this would get to me, but I'm a little slow, so I'm heading up to Windham this weekend for another ProXC Tour race to avenge my poor performance at Mt. Snow. And if that isn't enough, I'll be lining up for the Short Track on Sunday as well. Double the fun, double the excitement, hope everyone can handle it.

Sorta doubt there will be anything even close to a moosefest while I'm up there, so will have to get creative in order to entertain myself. Any ideas?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STACEY!!!!!

2009-08-08T10:01:00.007-04:00

MY SISTER IS 25 TODAY!!! SHE MADE IT!!! YEAH!!!

Moosefest!

2009-08-06T21:23:00.006-04:00

While on my way to Mount Snow on Wednesday, I passed through the town of Bennington, VT. As I drove through, I noticed a ton of painted moose on the side of the roads in town. How odd, I thought. But today, during some down time, I decided to drive down again and go on a mission to photograph all the moose in town. There were plenty of good ones, and one of my favorite was the photo collage moose. Anyway, you've probably figured out by now that I'm a little bored. The fact is, there's NOBODY up here right now. I believe there are people arriving tonight for the races finally, so tomorrow should be a little more action-packed.

The course is primo, as usual. I've just about nailed all the various lines on the descents, and have one more day of riding on course to fully dial it in. I'm psyched to race on Saturday, and happy that I race at 2pm this year as opposed to 8am last year (I didn't even wake up until after the race!). Full report to come after.

Joker of Spring

2009-08-03T20:27:00.002-04:00

Aww shucks! That's how I feel about this past weekend's racing. After braving dangerous torrential downpours to make it to the venue, I was hoping my good sensation would translate into a great result. The legs felt great, but the course was left a mess after the morning's races and proved difficult to ride 100%. After a few sections of running, the legs started feeling dead and my pace slowed leaving me to a 6th place finish. I felt I had a lot more horsepower in reserve on the day, and am hoping that the Mt. Snow and Windham courses aren't too sloppy so that I can use it all.

Saturday night, I hit up the Lehigh Valley Velodrome with Lenore for some Tandemonium track racing. It was sick! At the end, they put all 10 tandems on the track at once for one final race of the night. That's 20 riders, 10 bikes, very awesome! In my excitement I forgot my camera, so unfortunately no pictures from the night.

Blown Apart & Mocked Up

2009-07-30T21:53:00.002-04:00

Look! Pretty Mountain Flower!

Wowee wow, had a little breakdown this past week. Let things get out of hand and had to perform a forced shut-down and system reboot yesterday. Everything's better now, yay!

Starting to get really psyched for Mt. Snow & Windham Mountain. This weekend is the King of Spring race, at Spring Mountain. I pre-rode the course yesterday and it was si-i-i-ick. Thanks to the rain, the course was a little more demanding than it should be on race day, but that will only help come Sunday. After the race, I'll be sciddadling home to get everything cleaned and ready for Vermont, where I'm heading on Wednesday for Mt. Snow and the Mt. Snow Bike Festival. Word is that the course is 'improved'. Not sure how you can improve on one of the best courses ever in cross-country mountain biking history, but as long as it's just as good as the old one I'm OK with that.

The only thing on my to-do list is to re-mold my shimano mtb shoes. Somehow they managed to decustomize over the past few weeks and my feet were in serious pain after the last race. Hopefully I can get that done tomorrow, or else feet be warned!

Gold Cup, Skyline Camping, and Summer Sizzlin

2009-07-25T22:18:00.006-04:00

Well, just off a rest week and back from the race in Sewell, NJ. Man, did I have some cobwebs to contend with today. Had an OK start, then went backwards the whole race. Pitiful! Shouldn't be a problem for the next 3 weekends though, as I keep having this scenario repeat all season after a rest week. Let's recap now!

Started off the rest week with the CONCACAF Gold Cup Quarterfinal matches at the Linc. First match was Canada-vs-Honduras. This match was pretty sweet since there were a TON of Honduran fans there and they went apeshit when their team scored the only goal of the match on a penalty kick in the first half. Canada played a good match, but just couldn't finish it off at the net. After, the US played Panama in a great match where Panama rose to the occasion and played a great 2 halfs versus the US to put the match into OT with the score tied 1-1. Eventually, the fatigue of the match got to Panama and they had a costly penalty inside the box which led to a US penalty kick and subsequent goal in the 1st OT. The second OT was lively, with some great shots on goal by both squads, but the US took home the win in the end, 2-1. The picture below is all the US fans under the giant US flag after the US scored the first goal of the match. We all punched it from underneath and screamed our lungs out, must've looked pretty sweet from the other side!

SO.......next stop in our journey is down in Virginia on Skyline Drive in Shenandoah Park. The plan was to camp and relax for 4 days, which was accomplished for once. We got to the top of the park Sunday night around 12am to find we had a 51 mile jaunt south on Skyline Drive (at 35 mph) to our campsite. Sweet. During the drive we took note of the many critters roaming the night, such as: 35 raccoons, 10 deer, 10 bats (2 of which hit the windshield), 1 fox, and 3 sasquatch. Upon entering the campsite, we noticed that the cute raccoons, deer, etc. were replaced with skunks. Upon entering the restroom building we noticed signs which stated that our campground was frequented by many skunks and to be mindful of them. Great! After setting up our tents, we hit the sack with no alarm. Over the next few days, we got in some good hikes and ate some good food. The frequent rain did little to dampen our moods, and we only had our campsite flooded once. On the last night, as we sat around the campfire watching it dwindle, I noticed something moving near my tent. I directed my headlamp in the direction of the movement and out popped a skunk. Excellent! After chasing it away carefully, I sat back down and less than a minute later another skunk appeared. VAMOOSE! As I carefully chased skunk #2 away, skunk #1 reappeared and I vanquished him as well. Then along came skunk #3. This guy was a pain in my rear. He started his journey directly toward the campfire and the people sitting around it. I don't think so buddy! Upon chasing him away, he scurried to the rear of my tent and instead of coming around the other side, he remained out of sight. I aimed my light under the canopy of my rain-tarp and noticed he was at the front of my tent hiding out. Nuh-uh skunk! I got him out of there and he B-lined it to another tent where I was not to worry about him, but it made for some good laughs. Maybe he was just a lonely skunk? The last day we packed up and hit one last short hike at Bearfence Trail. This one is a rock scramble that is worth the climb up. Some great views and challenging terrain proved just the way to end the trip. On the car-ride back absolutely nothing happened so I'll end this portion there.

And now for the finale of our journey, the D & Q Summer Sizzler XC race in Sewell, NJ. This was a MASS race, and I haven't been to a MASS race since April. Not sure why, just sort of how it's worked out. I knew I'd have some cobwebs in the legs after not racing the weekend before and having a rest week prior. I got as good a warm-up in as I could in the 90+ degree heat and humidity and lined up with my fingers crossed. At the start I clipped right in and took off with the front. I knew I wasn't feeling amazing but was hoping to warm up more as the race wore on. This proved true for a bit, but then after making some aggressive accelerations to move up some spots I started to explode rather quickly and for the remaining 3 laps I went backwards and ended up 18th on the day. Blah! Next week is a slightly bigger target at Spring Mountain. A great warm-up race for Mt. Snow the weekend after. I'll be pre-riding Wednesday, as the course is supposedly S-I-C-K. Can't wait. Also, thinking of racing the Super-D's at Mt. Snow and Windham, that is if I can get my hands on a loaner bike.......

Until the next time gentle folk.........