Too Old to Race Bicycles?

Cat 4 Upgrade

2006-03-04T13:05:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday's criterium in Ontario gave me my official 10th mass start race and an upgrade to Category IV. This is a milestone for me as I come back to racing after a taking a 20 year break. As a review for you bike racing newbies...all beginning male racers start out at Cat 5,(females at Cat 4) the lowest category in USCF racing. The categories progress from 5 to 4, to 3, 2, 1, and pro. Fours are basically advanced beginners with threes being intermediate racers. The advance from 5 to 4 is pretty much a no brainer, requiring the racer to merely start 10 mass start races.

How do I make it to Cat 3? Right from the web pages of USA Cycling: 20 points in any 12-month period; or experience in 25 qualifying races with a minimum of 10 top ten finishes. 30 points in 12 months is an automatic upgrade.

Cat 3 to 2: 25 points in any 12-month period
60 points in 12 months is an automatic upgrade

Cat 2 to 1: 30 points in any 12-month period
60 points in 12 months is an automatic upgrade

Check all this out at USACycling.

Here are a few pics from last week's Ontario #1 Crit, where I competed in Masters 30+ 4,5:

Riding at the front

It was a big field (I took 30th out of 65 or so)

Near the front

One lap to go and in 5th. I dropped back after watching two horrendous crashes happen directly in front of me

Find complete results at SCNCA.

I'm off to Central California and the town of Merced for the Mclane Pacific Cycling Classic. I'm going to compete in the Masters 45+ Cat 1,2,3,4 road race - hope to see you there.

Roger Millikan Memorial Criterium, Feb. 12, 2006

2006-02-13T17:29:00.000-08:00

My second criterium of 2006 (my first crit of the season was Nelson's Landing, see pics in a past post)is now under my belt…and I’m thankful that I finished it with the pack. This was the fastest race of my renewed career in bicycle racing. It was Sunday morning in the city of Brea. Brea is found in Orange County, California. Hundreds of racers gathered here for the Roger Millikan Memorial Criterium.

I'm in Black (2nd from right) Wearing "Team Block" kit

I decided to enter the Masters’ 50+ category, knowing that I would be up against Cat 1, 2, and 3 riders. I’m still a Cat 5 but only have 1 more mass start race to upgrade to Cat 4. I thought about taking the easy way out and entering the Cat 5 race but decided a fast criterium is no place to be with a bunch of raw beginners, especially if you value your skin. Good thing too, as the over 30, Cat 5s had at least 3 crashes during their race.

It was a big field, 65 or 75 very fit riders 49 years old up to 54 years of age. I knew I was in trouble when the race announcer said, “there are riders in this race with more than 35 years of racing experience.” Darn, if I hadn’t stopped racing back in the mid 1980s…

The race started and a fast pace was set right at the beginning – common to crits, so I just ignored my heart rate monitor and waited for the pace to settle, and I waited. Lap after lap went by and the pace seemed to just get faster. I knew I was in for a tough crit. The course was mildly technical, with three 90 degree right turns, and two sweeping right turns. The road was wide though and handled the big field well. The tough part was the slight elevation gain at the back of the loop. My average speed at the end of the race was 26 mph and I only finished 32! My heart rate monitor showed an average HR of 165 for the race but I never saw a HR below 170 whenever I looked down at the display. You can take a look at the data via motionbased.com.

I tried riding on the inside, I tried the middle of the field, and was happiest on the outside. The guys in this race handled their bikes well. There was much bumping of the handlebars but not a single accident occurred during this race. Finally, the race announcer called out 5 laps to go and the pace settled down…for about ¾ of a lap. I tried to move up through the draft and position myself within the top 20 riders but my bike handling skills are still not quite there and the raw speed to the group made it tough for me to change my position. Not to mention that I was beat and was glad to just to finish in the middle of the field. Check out the results at SoCalCycling.com. Unfortunately, I’m listed as the unknown rider as I crossed the line on the outside, and inside riders blocked my number from the camera. You have 15 minutes to fix the results but I missed that time. The SCNCA has me listed though, and you can view those results at scnca.org.

I've got one more mass start race and I can upgrade to Cat 4. My plans are to ride the Anger Management Crit in Dominguez Hills (Los Angeles)this Sunday (Feb. 19,2006.) I'll be with the Masters 45+, Cat 4/5. See you there.

Roger Millikan Memorial Criterium Race Pics Below

Roger Millikan Memorial Criterium Pics

2006-02-13T16:42:00.000-08:00

Pictures of the Masters' 50+ Race in Brea, California

2006-02-13T16:41:00.000-08:00

Starting Line; It's a Big Field

2006-02-13T16:39:00.000-08:00

Good Shot of the Leaders

2006-02-13T16:37:00.000-08:00

Sitting in the Middle (#290)

2006-02-13T16:35:00.000-08:00

Sitting on the Outside

2006-02-13T16:32:00.001-08:00

I'm Sitting on the Inside (#290)

2006-02-13T16:32:00.000-08:00

Sprint Finish (I'm back 31 places)

2006-02-13T16:29:00.000-08:00

After the Race; Tired & Sweaty

Nelson Landing Pics

2006-02-11T20:42:00.000-08:00

I'm in blue.

Get complete race results at HERE.

2006-02-11T20:39:00.000-08:00

Road Race

Can't Talk Now

2006-02-11T20:38:00.000-08:00

Road Race

Road Race; Still With the Lead Group After the 1st of 2 Big Climbs

2006-02-11T20:37:00.000-08:00

Criterium

In 3rd Position (Crit)

2006-02-11T20:36:00.001-08:00

Criterium

Wide View of Crit

2006-02-11T20:36:00.000-08:00

Criterium

Starting the Crit (I'm in blue)

Nelson's Landing Stage Race Results

2006-02-07T06:12:00.000-08:00

I had a great 3 days of racing. I'm now racing for Rich Bartlett's - Team Block. Check out the team, racing results from Las Vegas, and more at Block Alternatives. Go down to the 2006 Road Team Link.

My next post, this Thursday, I'll give details on Nelson's Landing. This Sunday I'll be at the Roger Millikan Memorial Saint Valentine's Day Criterium in Brea. See you there.

Welcome to a New Season!

2006-01-23T14:58:00.000-08:00

I'm back. To my many fans, all three of you, I'm back for another season of bike racing. It's the middle of winter, as my morning ride of 26 degrees reminds me (you tend to forget that the Antelope Valley may be in Southern California but it definitely has it's own unique weather.) This winter we have not had the torrential rains that slowed training last year. It's been a pretty dry off season and now my first race of the season is just next week. Just like last year I'm going to face off with the Nelson's Landing Stage Race in Las Vegas, Nevada. Unlike last year, I'm going to give the criterium a shot, my first criterium in over 19 years. Friday, January 27 is the time trial. Saturday, the 28th is the crit., and Sunday, the 29th is the road race.

A couple of things are different this year. I'm 49 now, so by USAcycling rules I'm racing as a 50 year old. The second difference is that I now have a full year plus of training under my belt and feel strong. I just completed a week of training that covered 209 miles, and 12 hours and 30 minutes of work. My training goal this year is to cover at least 500 hours of training. I'm already pushing 6,000 miles of road work for the year.

My goals are pretty simple this year. Finish another four mass start races allowing me to upgrade to Cat 4 and then actually place in the top 10 in a Masters 45+, Cat 4 level race. You really don't need the Cat designation in a Masters race, as any category could be in a Master's race but I also plan to ride a couple of Elite races at the Cat 4 level. My other goal is to get under 190 friggin pounds. All winter I've flirted with the high 180s but I always seem to level off at 190. My climbing is much better this year as I logged a lot of training time in the hills. One of my "favorite" hill workouts that I do with my training partner, Tim, is to ride Godde Road three times at a HR of 155-165. This workout has me climb around 3500' and is pretty tough.

That's it for my first post of 2006. Look for my Nelson's Landing Race Results in my next post.

Three Canyons Ride

2005-10-30T23:11:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite rides in the Antelope Valley is what the local bike riders call the “Three Canyons Ride.” The three canyons are Bouquet, Spunky, and San Fransquito Canyon. The way I like to go involves over 2900’ of elevation gain in 44 miles. Check out the profile of the ride below:

3 Canyons

If you’re familiar with my blog than you already know that I’m not exactly a superb hill climber by any stretch of the imagination. All the more reason to throw in a tough hill climb workout and the Three Canyons fits the bill. The hard way to ride the ride is in the clockwise directions, and to get to the first canyon you need to get yourself on Elizabeth Lake Road. This morning I choose to take 25th street, past Highland High School, and make the “long” approach. At other times, I might travel over Godde Road, and toss in another hill. But this approach also places me on Elizabeth Lake Road, around 11 miles up the road from 25th street. Elizabeth Lake is a great country road that climbs steadily until you reach Bouquet Canyon Road which branches off to your left. Bouquet Canyon will take you 24 miles south to the city of Santa Clarita, where the 14 freeway and the 5 freeway meet, home to Valencia and Magic Mountain. The only thing that mars Elizabeth Lake Road is the traffic. At times, on this road, you would swear you’re on a road in a suburb of Los Angeles – 50 miles to the south.

You turn left onto Bouquet Canyon Road and after a short down-hill stretch, you start your first of three climbs. It’s not a killer climb, 650’ in 5 miles; just enough to get your heart rate up to zone 3. After the climb you have a great downhill that almost makes you wish you’re going to continue to Santa Clarita but soon, on your right, Spunky Canyon road branches off – I swing right. With Bouquet Reservoir on your left you ride a relatively level stretch of a mile or two but soon see the steep switchbacks that await you. Spunky is short but steep with several switchbacks climbing up through the chaparral type vegetation. The climb is pure 7-10% and 11-12% briefly flickers across my Garmin’s display. But again, the climb is short and you’re now faced with a fast descent with a couple of hairpin turns. I love the descent but it is technical and not a time to completely relax after the 2nd main climb. Gravel and rocks on the road also keep you on “your toes” as you dive through the steep turns. The final turn to the left puts you right on top of the town of Green Valley but it hardly registers as you sweep through town at the speed limit of 35 mph. Even if I didn’t have my Garmin or my computer, I know my speed as local law enforcement has set up one of those radar displays that tells me, from the side of the road, just how fast I’m traveling.

You exit town and again turn right onto San Fransquito Canyon Road – the last of the Three Canyons. And this is the tough one – you don’t have to tell that to the many riders I’ve seen walking their bikes to the top of this climb. This climb actually sneaks up on you as the ride is very straight, due north. It starts pretty easy and then becomes an 8-9% steady climb for a couple of miles. The slight jag to the East keeps the top of the climb just out of sight and the route flirts with a 11-13% grade in short sections. Couple this with a headwind and you’ve got yourself with a pretty good climb and workout. I’ve never had to walk my bike up this section and today I’m riding it very well – holding at least 8-10 mph all the way to the top. I crest over the top and set up for the short screaming downhill that quickly drops you back to Elizabeth Lake Road. Now it’s 18 miles down the rolling hill road and back to Quartz Hill via either Godde Road or 25th street – today I choose 25th street and back the way I entered.

You can’t ask for a better training ride. You get 44 miles of climbs, descents, and rolling hills. You get a lake, mountains, and even a stream – in fact during the winter rains you get to cross about 5 streams on this ride. Check out the ride at MotionBased.com.

Garmin Forerunner 301 and MotionBased.com

2005-10-19T23:05:00.000-07:00

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any cooler with the GPS based 301 unit I discover MotionBased.com, a web site that really puts the functionality into the Forerunner 301. From the web site, “MotionBased is a web application that translates GPS data into functional analysis and online mapping for endurance and outdoor athletes… MotionBased automatically calculates time, distance, speed, elevation, and heart rate metrics and displays this information through meaningful charts, illustrations, reports, and maps. Take the second-guessing out of your training routine and make it more fun at the same time.”

Sound dry? Not a chance. You’ve got to see what the Garmin and this web site can do together. Below are screen shots taken from one of my recent training rides. This ride takes me over Godde Hill, a local 8-9% bump in the relatively flat Antelope Valley.

Map Player Page

Check out dot racing on the map player page; "The "player" aspect of this section allows you to simulate the activity along the map and the elevation profile with a moving "dot" indicator. The "dot" is controlled with standard media controls (Play, Pause, Forward, Reverse, and Speed). You may also interact with the map and elevation profile by zooming in, zooming out, panning, and displaying roll-overs on key sections of the illustration."

Or how about...

"The Dashboard"

The MotionBased Dashboard allows you to analyze core training metrics for a specific activity. The Dashboard is broken out into 8 sections: summary, elevation, time, workout, distance, lap, speed, and weather.

And I especially love...

Heart Rate Analysis

Man, if you love data, and who doesn't, you’ve got to love the Garmin and this web site. I’ve just given you the tip of the ice berg here – go see it for yourself.

Click this link My Godde Hill Ride it should allow you to explore all the data associated with my 1 hour training ride - you know you're going to want to upload all your rides!

A Cool Training Tool

2005-09-30T18:56:00.000-07:00

The 2005 racing season is now history and I’m already contemplating the 2006 season. With this in mind, I’m always looking out for a training tool to help me squeeze out some more speed and crank up my endurance to the next level, and I think I’ve found one – the Forerunner 301 by Garmin.

The Garmin Forerunner 301

Tim, one of my training partners, has the Forerunner and I always thought it was pretty cool; this wrist mounted device displays training time, pace, distance, lap pace, lap time, lap distance, average and best pace, elevation and calories – what you would expect in a quality training tool. But as you are biking along, have you ever wondered what the percent grade is for the hill you’ve been busting your ass on for the last 20 minutes? The Garmin, Forerunner 301 will give you this! I found this little piece of information as Tim and I were riding home from a workout and we had to do the usual slog up 70th street West on the Western fringe of Lancaster to get home and end the workout. To the eye, the slope is not that discernable, as you crank your way South from Ave. L to Ave. M-8, but your legs and heart sure notice the climb. I’ve always thought it started out at around 2% and made it to 5 or 6% or so. I started my usual bitching of the slog to Tim giving him my latest speculation of the percent grade of 70th, and Tim says, “let me check.” He punches a couple of buttons on his wrist mounted Garmin and replies, “were at 3%, oh it just went to 4%.” I’m now thinking, “way cool,” and I’m a complete pain in the butt as I continue to ask him every 20 seconds, “what’s the grade now?” As we closed in on M-8 the grade made it to 7% - I’ve got to get me one of these!

If that doesn’t peak your interest, check out these graphs of our latest hill repeats. Tim and I did a hill workout where you do 4 X 90 second repeats with a 3 minute recovery in between each hill. The idea is to start the hill seated and blast up it for 60 seconds and then drive out of the saddle for the last 30 seconds. Tim does great for the first two repeats beating me by 10 meters. On the 3rd repeat he fades and I shoot past him, by the 4th repeat he literally “blows-up” and I don’t even hear him behind me. The cool thing is, you can see the blow-up on the data graph from his Garmin…again, way cool. Look for the heart rate above 180 bpm on the last hill. Tim’s LT is similar to mine, around 161-165, his maximum HR is higher than mine but Tim’s also several years younger than me so his MHR is a little over 180 to my 176. The 4th repeat spikes his HR right to his red line. Of course, Tim doesn’t need a fancy tool to tell him he’s about to blow a gasket but if you’re a gadget freak like him and me you've got to love this toy.

Check out the Garmin Forerunner 301 at the Garmin site. I’m either going to buy this tool or wait for the new Garmin Edge 305 to come out in November. I haven’t decided yet as I’m still comparing the features of both.

Elevation profile of our hill repeat workout. Of the 7 "bumps" at the beginning of the graph, the actual hill repeats were done on the last 4 bumps.

This is so cool! An over lay of heart rate on elevation - notice the "red line" spike on hill repeat number 4 (the 7th bump at the beginning of the graph.)

Do you have experience with a tool like this? I would love to hear about it, especially before I lay down cold green cash for my new toy. Please drop me an email or make a comment to this posting.

San Ardo Road Race, San Ardo California

2005-08-28T14:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning, August 27, 2005, and the temperature is a mere 53 degrees in the Monterey County town of King City. I’ve headed back to where I started bicycle racing 19 years ago. Those many years ago, I competed in the first annual San Ardo Road Race. San Ardo is a little town, located right next to the Salinas River in the Southern end of the Salinas Valley. I left the Antelope Valley the day before and put several hours, and over 100 degree temperatures behind me. By the end of my race the temperature had gotten all the way up to 85 degrees and had many of the racers commenting on how hot it is. Hot? I was kicking myself for not bringing along my arm warmers. Hell, I’m lucky if it’s not 85 degrees at 7:00 in the morning, when I start my training rides here in the high desert.

Pre-race With Jade

King City is a small town with a big name, located about 20 miles North of San Ardo. We left the motel at 7:00 am to be ready for the 8:47 start time. You head down the 101 freeway and get off at the San Ardo off ramp. Cross the bridge over the Salinas River and enter the tiny town of San Ardo. Today though, the tiny town has more bike racers than inhabitants. Racers are everywhere. I’m here with my wife, Esmeralda, and our four year old daughter Jade. I last raced here in the 1980s when they had the first road race in this town. It turned out to be my last road race of that season, and my last for over 18 years. Esmeralda was at that race too but I had just recently met her and she, and her young, 2 year-old, son Alex were my two fans. A road race is not much of a spectator sport, as the peloton whizzes by you in seconds and the riders disappear into the distance, only to return tired and sweaty an hour or so later. To pass the time, Esmeralda played with Alex in the local elementary school playground. Now 19 years later, Esmeralda played with Jade in the local elementary school playground. And the sport still hasn’t become much of a spectator sport, as the peloton still whizzes by in seconds, only to have you return an hour later hot and sweaty…

Masters 45 Completing Lap 1

I’ve stuck to my web blog address and I’m racing Masters 45. But once again, the Masters’ are a tough race. I take stock of the “old guys” with me and can tell that they are a dedicated lot. Northern California turns out some great racers and I’m sure a lot of these guys have not stopped since they started racing in their twenties. I listen to the announcer going over the rules of the road but only with half a brain. The other half is thinking I’m in for a tough, fast race. The course is perfect for me, a 188lb racer (lost another two pounds some how.) It is relatively flat with a few rollers scattered about. Similar to Merced but the rollers here in San Ardo have a little more bite to them; longer and steeper than their Central California cousins. This will also be the first test for my now Campy equipped racing bike. About a month back, I paid Bicycle Johns of Acton much money to trade out my worn Ultegra group with the cool Campy Chorus group. My relatively new C40 Colnago frame was just crying out for Campy gear anyway. My rear cassette is a 12-26, and this is more than adequate for the rollers in San Ardo. I actually never left the big chain ring anyway, as I just stood up and powered over the steepest of the rollers in the big gears.

My Face on the Far Left

I started my warm-up at about 8:00 am. For a road race I prefer to warm-up on the road instead of using a trainer. I find some out of the way back stretch and do build-ups for about 7-10 miles. I start really slow and then increase my cadence until I’m warm enough to use the big ring up front. I do a lot of sprinting out of the saddle and keep an eye on my heart rate monitor. At about 10 minutes to go I head over to the starting area. After the pre-race instructions, we’re off. We start out immediately up a small grade that leads to the bridge over the Salinas River and our speed settles in at around 20 mph. I actually start out at the very back of the pack but as soon as we cross the bridge I move up to the top ten of our 30+ member field. This being my last road race of the season I decide to ride very aggressively and ride the whole race in the top 10. I go a step further than that after a few miles and move up to the top 5. Before I know it, I’m at the top 1 and pulling the peloton. Another Colnago framed bike pulls up besides me and comments on how two Colnagos are in the lead. The first big attack comes, like all attacks, quickly from somewhere in the rear of the pack. A group of riders’ flies past me and the other Colnago and I immediately increase my cadence and speed and jump on the 4th rider accelerating past me. This will be the first of probably 20 attacks I covered during the race. We, the attack group, start a quickly rotating pace line but the attack fails and the peloton regroups. I settle back into the top 5 and quickly find myself back pulling the peloton again. The other Colnago takes his turn at the front with a quick pull and he pulls out. I take my turn and look back to see a guy in a blue jersey right behind me. I pull a reasonable time and pull to the left – blue jersey stays glued to my rear wheel. I move sharply to the right, the same thing happens. I even turn around and say, “take a pull.” Nothing happens. The guy is actually doing the smart thing as he’ll still have his legs at the end of this race – I won’t.

I’m just about to slow things down and let someone else come up from the rear or just wait for the next attack to come along when I notice the biggest hill on the course about 1 mile in front. I give the wheel sucker another chance to take his turn – he doesn’t, so I shoot off the front at 28 mph and head for the hill. Anyone reading these postings should know that I can’t climb hills worth beans so I decide to get a jump on the hill. The wheel sucker stays glued to my wheel and the rest of the peloton reacts as if I’ve attacked. I hit the base of the hill at 30 mph with the peloton in hot pursuit. I quickly drop two gears in the rear and stand-up to attack the hill as much lighter racers pour past me on both sides. I crest the hill near the back of the pack and glance at my heart rate monitor – 176 bpm. This is a new high. By using the age method, my max heart rate is around 172 bpm – I’ve bested this on a couple of races and one training ride but 176 is a new one. My lactate threshold has not been measured lately but was 161 bpm. It turns out that I averaged 161 bpm for the complete race and that my heart stayed at 165 bpm for 1 hour and 35 minutes of the 2 hour race! I’m thinking I should redo my lactate threshold test and I’ll probably find that it is now around 165 bpm. LT is trainable and my interval workouts must have done their job. A race like San Ardo is very intense. We averaged 23.5 mph over the 48 miles and had many attacks that jumped speeds well into the 30 mph range and above.

As we move into lap two and cross the Salinas River for the 3rd time (twice during each lap) I realize I’ve ridden the most aggressive race of the year. I’ve covered every attack, sprinted up every hill, initiated several attacks of my own, and pulled the peloton around by myself far too many times. Aggressive riding yes, riding smart – no. As we climb the last hill with only a few miles left before the finish I realize my quads are starting to cramp when I climb out of the saddle – very bad sign when one thinks of them self as a sprinter and relies on powerful quadriceps. The high school comes into view and that means the finish is just 2 miles ahead, right behind the Salinas River crossing. The peloton starts to get jumpy as no attack has succeeded and we’re still very bunched together. We’ve passed many “shelled” riders from categories that left before we did and I presume that some of our group has been shelled too – but at this writing I don’t know how many have been dropped – still waiting for the results to be posted on the web. We fly past the starting line at 25 mph and begin to move across the bridge. The turn-off for the finish line is just ahead and on the left, and also up the slight grade – the peloton jumps. It is a massive field sprint to make the left turn first and fly to the finish. I gear up and jump out of the saddle to stay with the peloton and both quads scream in protest and hardly a watt of power seems to be generated. I realize I’m out and sit back down and coast in with the back 10% of the peloton.

Warming Down

Did I learn anything from the way I rode this race – yes. I was over aggressive and covered every attack. Not a single attack was successful so I could have just sat in the middle of the peloton and been pulled back into the failed attacking group. Should I have pulled the peloton around so much? – No. I should have pulled out sooner and drifted back in the group. Should I have sprinted up every hill? – No. My descending skills, and larger body mass would have brought me back to the peloton without the quad wasting energy that I exerted on every hill. On the other hand, I was aggressive and stayed at the front the entire race so this should help my confidence next year. The fact that I was found wanting at the end of the race underscores the strategy involved in a good road race. A good road race involves endurance (possibly more anaerobic than aerobic), bike handling skill, and brains. I pushed the envelope and failed by using poor race tactics. I did not get dropped from the group, even on the small hill climbs – a moral victory at the least. Perhaps next year, no more group fodder for me.

CBR (California Bicycle Racing) Team Time Trial (TTT) Championships

2005-08-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

From left, Steve, Dave, Doug, Bob

It is 0600 hours and 58 degrees on this August morning, and Doug Short, Dave Cooley, Steve Caldwell and I are warming up on Division Street just south of Ave. E. The four of us are going to compete in our first team time trial (see my December 2004 post on time trials.) The CBR TTT is put on by Uncle Tren Race Productions and Tren himself is manning the megaphone alerting all racers to their start times. The TT starts on Ave. E, right at Division Street. The riders race directly East for 20 k and then turn around a pylon in the road, before heading back West for the last 20 k. The finish line is about 200 m west of Division on Ave. E.

The TT Starts (Bob on the left, Doug on the right)

We are competing in the 180+ category; our combined ages must be 180 or above but not over 220 and we can’t have any racer under 30. I’m the oldest at 48, followed by Doug at 47, Dave 45, and Steve 44. Of the four of us, I have the most experience in racing bicycles in general and time trialing in particular. Doug also has some racing experience and has completed one individual time trial this year. Steve has only 1 individual time trial to his credit, while Dave has never competed on the bike in either a time trial or bicycle race (though he’s completed several century rides.) Our goal, like any TT, is to beat the clock. In this instance, we would like to be below 60 minutes for the TT.

I'm Charging

As we are warming up on this surprisingly cool desert morning, we can’t help but be somewhat intimidated by the other racers and their gear. Almost every other team is in “full aero” gear. This means skin tight racing uniform, shoe covers, TT helmets, but especially the bikes. Almost all the bikes are TT or Tri bikes with the extreme geometry these bikes possess. Most of the bikes are outfitted with a 3 bladed front wheel and full disk rear wheel. We take stock of our “team bike.” I am actually riding a full TT bike, my beautiful Felt S22. It slices through the air with ease and is tough to draft off of. I do have very aero, deep dish Spinergy wheels for this bike and a Renn carbon fiber rear disk wheel but the consensus of the group is that I’m hard enough to draft behind as it is without the very aero wheels under the bike. The other guys, with the exception of Doug, have regular “slack” bikes and no aero bars. Doug has a set of clip-on aero bars on his regular geometry road bike. So we know we’re a little out-classed in the equipment area before the race even starts. But that’s time trialing; you compete against yourself and the clock, not against other racers riding superior or inferior racing equipment.

Doug is right behind

We move to the starting point and volunteers come out and hold our bikes up as we clip in. I hear the counter start with, “10 seconds, 9, 8, 7, …) and we’re off. I’m the lead rider and I quickly accelerate to 22 mph and wait to hear that our pace line has formed behind me. Doug is right behind me, followed by Dave, with Steve taking up the rear. As soon as I hear that Steve is “attached” I pick-up the pace to 24 mph and then 25 mph. My 1 minute pull is up and I peel off to the left and watch Doug smoothly pull through. I ease up enough to allow me to drift back to the end of the line and I swing to the right into a position right on Steve’s six. Doug takes his turn holding our speed at around 24 – 25 mph, and now it’s Dave’s turn. Dave is a strong rider and he picks up the pace to around 26 mph. I realize that with a 25 mile TT we need to average over 25 mph to finish under 60 minutes and I know we need to stay at 26 mph or above. Steve now takes his turn and we come back to around 24 – 25 mph. This cycle repeats itself for several revolutions and then the humbling thing happens; our “minute man,” the team that started 1 minute behind us catches us. They happen to pass us as Dave is pulling the line. Dave is an ex-fighter pilot and is currently employed as a civilian test pilot out at Edwards Air Force Base. He has “The Right Stuff” and getting passed so early in the TT doesn’t stick well with him. He immediately jumps our pace to 27 – 28 mph. His jump in speed is so great that for a moment it looks like we are going to join the pace line of the group that just passed us, which you can’t do. In any case, his increase in speed is keeping us with the team that passed us. This causes some grumbling from Doug who is finding the pace to be a little too fast. Doug is a good rider but still needs more training time to find his “racing legs.” Dave pulls out and of the line and Steve jumps in and our pace falls back to 24 – 25 mph and we watch the other team pull away. Steve is a lot like Doug, a strong recreational rider that will become a strong racer with more practice. Right now he is also training to run a marathon in the winter and is thinking he’ll have to back off on the bike training. It is now my turn again, and like Dave, I bring the pace back up to 27 – 28 mph but I’m told to back it off a little by Doug. With Dave and I the strongest two of the team we try a new strategy; We will pull for 2 – 3 minutes at around 26 – 27 mph, while Steve and Doug pull for 1 minute or less at around 24 – 25 mph.

The Pace Line is Forming - Steve Stands to Form Up

This strategy works well and we are now a good 8 miles into the 25 mile TT. At this point another “full aero” team passes us. They started a good 2 minutes behind us, so even though it’s not a race it is still a bummer. I yell to Steve, who was pulling at the time, “don’t worry, they’re a full aero team.” He told me after the race that he didn’t mind us getting passed, he was just having a great time. This is definitely the right attitude to have in a time trial race. We reach the pylon and the halfway point of the race. I’m feeling great. My lactate threshold is around 161 and I’m now reaching that when I’m pulling the line. But my HR drops to a nice 148 when I’m sitting in the line. Though with the increased pulling time I’m starting to see my HR not recover as much and as the second half of the race continues, my HR is only dropping into the mid 150s when I’m not at the front.

The Author - I'm Tired but Happy

We get to about mile 20 and we’ve finally passed a team. A full women team is our victim and we sail past them. But the toll of averaging 25.3 mph is starting to tell on our team. Dave and I are still maintaining 27 mph during our pulls but our pulls are becoming longer as Doug and Steve have to shorten their pulls. Doug is starting to labor and his speed drops to 23 mph as he pulls off the front. In his attempt to latch on to the back, a 10’ gap opens up and he starts to fall off. He yells for us and then realizes we are within 5 miles of the finish so he yells, “go!” at the top of his lungs. I was just getting ready to slow down and pull him back in when I hear the “go.” I stay silent and the team, now only three strong, pulls away from Doug. I’ve been “shelled” off the back many times in my bicycle racing career. It is never fun and you get strange feelings of being alone even though many other riders are around you. It is a very helpless feeling to be working at full capacity and still watch the pace line move away from you.

The Gang is Animated After the Finish

We are now a team of three, and in a four man TTT you must finish with the third guy. The race organizers do not stop the clock on a team until the 3rd guy’s wheel crosses the line. If we lose another rider we’re out. Now with only three riders our pulls come much faster. Steve is tiring faster than Dave and I and his pulls become quicker; only lasting a few seconds in some cases. My heart rate is now going into the high 160s and I’m not recovering at the back of the line but a cool thing is happening. The 2nd team that passed us in the first half of the race is now “coming back” to us. With less than a mile to go we are only 50 or so meters behind them and closing fast. It is my turn and I’m pulling as fast as I can, around 28 – 29 mph but I’ve been pulling for 3.5 minutes and with 100 m to go I pull out and let Dave take over. The other team senses our presence and they accelerate to cross the line, with us almost fully abreast of them. Even if we had passed them we are still 2 minutes behind them but it is a moral victory to us that we can catch up with a team that passed us early in the race and probably got as much as a mile ahead of us at one time.

"We've Got to do it Again!"

I cross the line and quickly press stop on my watch; 58:55.80. I realize that we’ve broken 1 hour and the three of us congratulate ourselves. Dave is pumped. He has never competed on the bike like this and can’t wait to do it again. We slowly pedal back to Division Street and pick-up Doug. My wife takes a bunch of pics as we animatedly talk about the race. For those of you thinking about starting out in racing, TTs are the way to go. It gives you a taste of racing without the dangers of large pace lines and zooming turns. But don’t underestimate the difficulty of a time trail. They don’t call it the “race of truth” for nothing.

Finishing the Season

2005-08-01T08:52:00.000-07:00

So what are my plans for finishing out the season? Here they are:

California State Team Time Trial Championships on August 21, 2005.

CBR Racing

This will be the first time I’ve ever tried a team TT. I’ve got 3 other riders from the A.V. High Desert Cyclists Club as my team mates. Doug, Dave, and Steve. We’ve entered the 180+ age category – this means that our cumulative ages must be over 180 and no rider is under the age of 30. This is no problem as our youngest rider, Steve, is in his early 40s. The other cool thing about this race is that it is in our own backyard. The CBR TTT race is held in the city of Lancaster, check out the link above to go to the race web site.

San Ardo Road Race on August 27, 2005

This will be my last road race of the 2005 season. It has a special meaning for me as almost 20 years ago, when I was a young racer, I competed in this race. It was to be the last race I would ever do until my rebirth in racing this year. My wife, Esmeralda, was my girl friend way back then and was at this race as one of my two only fans. She had her young son, Alex, with her and they cheered me on from the side of the road. Esmeralda has been my wife for over 18 years now and Alex is a young man of 20 years in the United States Coast Guard. I can’t wait to see how San Ardo has changed…or not.

Like last year, I’ll finish out this year with some winter time trialing. Fiesta Island, in San Diego got it started, so I would like to return this October. I’m hoping to see how a strong year of training has improved my time trial time. Piru is also an excellent TT venue and I’ll do a few TTs there as well. The Nelson Landing Stage Race in Las Vegas will get here fast in 2006 – I need to be ready!

2004 - 2005 Race Results

2005-07-31T08:26:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since my last post but a lot has been happening this summer. The only problem is what’s been happening has not been racing. Summer is a happy time for most people and certainly for teachers. But this summer is special for me as I am taking a leave of absence from my teaching job of 21 years to become part owner of my brother’s home improvement company called California Exteriors. We opened a branch office here in Lancaster in July and I am the Vice-President and General Manager of the A.V. Branch. If this new career works out I will not return to teaching. Obviously this career opening has kept me pretty busy and bicycle racing was placed on the backburner. Strangely enough, I didn’t miss any training time just races. So I feel I’m in pretty good shape and am looking forward to finishing the season with a few more races.

I thought this might be a good time to look at my season thus far. I actually started the season last October by racing my first time trial in San Diego. My last road race was also in San Diego. Here are my results (click on them to enlarge):

2004 - 2005 Race Results

Kind of a mixed bag, but I’m generally pleased with them. This was my first full year of racing after only getting back onto the bike in April of 2004. I can’t wait to finish out the 2005 season and start the 2006. I’ll have to change the name of this blog as I will turn 49 this December and will be considered a Masters 50 for the 2006 racing season.

A Bicycle Built for Two

2005-06-27T15:52:00.000-07:00

Tandem Riding

In April of 2004, my wife and I decided to buy a tandem bicycle. This was not a decision to be made lightly as good tandem bikes are pricey, not to mention the possible strain on our marriage, i.e. I can’t get away from my wife when she pisses me off as she’s literally riding right behind me.

Our Cannondale Tandem

As my type A personality dictates, I spent a good month and a half researching tandem bicycles on the ‘net and trying to find a used one for sale. I decided on a used tandem to be our first tandem bike. I didn’t want to spend too much on a bike that may never be used again by us if the experience is not to our liking. By the month of May I had found a used 1999 Cannondale RT 1000 owned by a couple in Houston, Texas. They claimed to have put in only 500 miles on it and that it was in great condition – the price, about $1400. It was a good deal so we picked it up. The bike was as advertised; pearl white with a mixed bag of Shimano components on it. Ultegra shifters, 105 front derailleur, XT Deore rear derailleur, with a 9 speed cassette.

Club Ride

One of your first considerations when getting ready to ride a tandem for the first time is who is the captain and who is the stoker? The captain sits up front and steers the bike, applies the brakes, and shift the gears. The stoker sits in the back and pedals. In our case this was an easy decision, as my wife has never learned how to ride a bicycle. She comes from a tiny village in Mexico with dirt roads and never owned a bike.

Club Ride

Your next consideration is to understand the Primary Rule of Tandeming as put forth by Bill McCready of Santana Bicycles, a noted tandem bicycle company. This rule states:

The Stoker makes no mistakes

In other words, my wife can make no mistake on the tandem that can cause us any problems. It is my responsibility to ensure the bike stays upright and we follow the correct line while taking a turn. The primary rule does not say that the stoker has no responsibility. The stoker should do nothing that causes the bike to become unstable or something unnatural on the back of the bike, etc. The primary rule does not say that the stoker must not berate the captain for going too fast down hill, for not applying the brakes when the stoker says so. Pretty much, the stoker has a lot of control over the bike. If my wife feels we’re going to fast and asks for the brakes I must comply (safety considerations always apply however.) Our Cannondale even has a drum brake that is controlled by a lever at the stoker position. So my wife has control over that brake but I have asked her to let me know when she plans to use it as I don’t want to try to accelerate out of a dicey situation only to find my rear wheel is being braked. This of course does not stop her from yelling out, “brake,” whenever we’re screaming down an 8% grade. She’s asking me if she’s got permission to activate her drum brake. And that’s another thing you will learn about your tandem; it will really scream going down-hill. You’ve got a real heavy bike, what with two riders and all, so it doesn’t take much of a down-grade for the bike to really pick-up speed. On the other hand, the bike can be shear torture on the slightest up-grade. Our front crank is a triple and we did use the “granny” gear in the beginning but that was long ago. We’ve put in nearly 3000 miles on the tandem in the little over a year we’ve owned the bike. We now pride ourselves on never using the smallest gear on our triple.

Drum Brake and Rear Derailleur

Our tandem has Look pedals for both the captain and stoker. So getting the bike going can be a challenge and there is a right way to do it. We use the method where I, the captain, straddle the top tube and apply both brakes. My wife than steps on the left pedal and “clips in.” She uses this pedal as a step to mount the bike. My wife now clips in with the right pedal. At this time I am completely holding up the bike as my wife is clipped in. If I stupidly drop the bike, she’s going with it. Remember the Primary Rule, if the bike falls over, my wife, the stoker, is not at fault at all. My legs are spread fairly wide apart so that my stoker can back pedal the front crank into the right position for me - I like to have the left pedal in about the 2:00 position. If I didn’t keep my legs spread the pedal would whack me in the shin. I now clip into the left pedal and say, “push.” This lets my wife know that we are starting out. As I push down on the left pedal that pedal “lifts” me up and I sit down on the saddle. I then clip in my right pedal and off we go. Stopping is pretty much the reverse of the above. My wife never unclips from the pedals unless she is going to exit the bike. When we stop at traffic signals I am the only one that unclips and keeps the bike upright, my wife never unclips. I don’t recommend you ride in towns or cities with a lot of traffic and traffic stops until you and your stoker get real comfortable starting and stopping the bike.

In the beginning, communication between the captain and the stoker can be a problem. I always communicated with my wife when I planned to shift up and especially when I planned to shift down. You need to build in time to coast and ease the stress on your butts, and I would call out when I was going to stop pedaling and start coasting. But after a month or so, my wife could “feel” when I was going to shift and when I was going to ease up on the pedals. After a year of riding I rarely have to say anything about shifting or pedaling, she just senses it and complies. When we are climbing a steep hill we’ve learned to “honk” the bike one at a time. We tried to climb out of the saddle together but could never get the timing down. So our method involves only one of us climbing out of the saddle or standing on the pedals at a time. It’s actually kind of neat when we start on a steep climb. I’ll jump out of the saddle first and take the first half of the hill, and as I sit down my wife jumps up and takes the rest. We’ve even started riding with the local bike club, The A.V. High Desert Cyclists, on their Sunday ride. My wife is a strong rider and with all the training I do for solo bike racing we make a formidable tandem team. Everyone wants to draft the tandem but there are only a handful of riders in the club that can stay in our draft without getting dropped. Give us a slight down-grade, like heading East on Ave K between 110th St. West and 70th St. West in Lancaster, and there is not a single rider in the club that can stay in our tandem's draft. My wife and me have actually hit a speed of 52 mph in that stretch of road with its 2% down-grade and the ever constant West wind of the A.V. at our backs.

My wife and I are hoping to upgrade and purchase a lighter tandem for time trials and century riding. I’m thinking about the Co-Motion or a Santana tandem. But with prices starting above $5,000 we’ve got to save our pennies first. In the mean time, we’ll both jump on our Cannondale at 0530 on a summer morning, strap on a backpack filled with a picnic lunch, and head off for a 70 mile ride.

TrainingPeaks.com for Self Coached Athletes

2005-06-15T11:23:00.001-07:00

I’ve been a Track and Field coach for most of my 21 years in education. So I’m comfortable being a self-coached athlete. My specialty in Track & Field is coaching middle distance and distance runners and a lot of the techniques I use in coaching these athletes carry over well to cycling. But only to a point, so I did a lot of research on coaching techniques specific to cycling. During my research I came up with Joe Friel's "Training Bible" books and the wealth of information they provide. His book discusses an on-line coaching service called TrainingPeaks.com. I looked it up on the ‘net, studied it carefully and subscribed. I started in October of 2004 and believe the program has given me a focus in my cycling training that I lacked before I started.

Training Peaks Title Page

There are a lot of components to the TrainingPeaks experience, Annual Training Plan, Race Tracker, Workout planner, Daily log, and much more.

Keeping a journal or daily log is important to all athletes. I always encouraged my athletes to maintain a log. TrainingPeaks takes the difficulty of formatting a log for you. The log keeps track of many biometrics and has a cool graph function. You can also upload data from many heart rate monitors as well as GPS unit data. Here is a couple of screen shots from my daily log as well as graphed data from my Timex Heart Rate Monitor and GPS system.

Daily Log

Graph of Interval Hill Workout

The core of Joe Friel’s program, and any program that uses periodization, is an annual training plan or ATP. The ATP allows you to build your whole program for the whole year. In other words you can see the “big picture” in regards to your racing and training plans. Here is a screen shot from the TrainingPeaks web site.

Here is a screen shot from the weekly workout planner. I love this part of the system, it gives you recommendations for your workout but easily allows you to edit and reconfigure your workout.

Workout planner

Payment for this service runs anywhere from $16.99/month to $119/year.

It can be pretty tough to coach yourself and this program can really help the “self coached” athlete. I know there are other programs on the ‘net out there. I just recently heard of a service set up by Lance Armstrong’s coach, Chris Carmichael, and I’m eager to check out this service too. It is called Trainright.

If you want to race bicycles you need coaching – by you or others. Check out the services available on the internet and get going.

L & 20th's Own Kevin Walsh in RAAM

2005-06-10T09:35:00.000-07:00

CyclingNews.com has an article on Kevin's 1st attempt in Race Across America or RAAM. Here is a copy of the article but you can read the original post in CyclingNews' lastest news.

NASA engineer to compete in RAAM
47 year-old NASA aerospace engineer Kevin Walsh will be one of 26 solo competitors in the Race Across America (RAAM), which begins on June 19. Walsh is an aeronautical propulsion engineer at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, and is aiming to complete the 3,000 mile (4800 km) course in 10 days.

Kevin Walsh

"I am competing in the Race Across America because it is the ultimate endurance bicycle race," said Walsh. "RAAM has been one of my life goals since the first one was held in 1982 when it was called the Great American Bike Race. I want to compete before I get too much older. I believe I'm ready.

"I have been averaging over 450 miles of riding per week since February to prepare for the race. I have competed in a number of cycling competitions, including multiple double centuries (200 miles). I won an event during which I rode 410 miles in 24 hours, and cycled 360 miles during a recent weekend in the heat near Las Vegas."

"I believe my chance of completing the race is very good. Training has been excellent and I have an exceptional crew of six who are very motivated to get me to Atlantic City."

Training for this race has Walsh in the best physical condition of his life. He is 6'2" (188cm) tall and weighs 170 pounds (77 kg). He hopes to gain four or five pounds before the RAAM, when he expects to lose a pound each day. Walsh hopes to maintain his energy during the race with a special diet of liquid foods, supplements, fruit and light solid food. His long hours on the bike have also helped him adapt to the sleep deprivation that will occur during the race.

The Race Across America begins in San Diego. The competitors will cross 13 states, climbing and descending 109,880 feet (33,500 m) before reaching Atlantic City, N.J. That means riding up to 22 hours per day, with no designated rest stops and no drafting behind other cyclists or vehicles. The route is shared with normal traffic on secondary roads with an occasional venture onto a freeway.

Read more about Kevin in a previous post on the L & 20th boys (L & 20th Part II)

L & 20th Group Ride, Part II

2005-06-05T20:17:00.000-07:00

I discovered the X-Box and Halo late and I'm having a great time kicking the Covenant and the Flood’s butt – when I’m not riding my bike, that is. So I haven’t been posting as much as I should. A while back (see the L & 20th post) I said I would discuss the L/20th boys so here goes.

There are three Bobs. I’m one of the Bobs the other two Bobs are actually a Bob and a Bobby. Bobby is a 43 year-old mountain bike racer that hasn’t discovered road bike racing yet. He should, he is blazingly fast and at about 140 lbs a great hill climber. I chased his butt up all the nasty grades going out to the Devil’s Punch Bowl. And after I hung with him on the last grade he said, “you’re a pretty strong climber for such a big guy.” Ah, there it goes again; a good climber for such a big guy…He’s riding a beautiful Look frame with a compact crank. As I said, he climbs like the dickens but does not descend as well at speed. Partly due to his 140 lbs, and partly due to the compact crank but I find I can out descend him and have had to catch up with him after a nasty climb. He would be a placer in road races. Mountain biking has left him with excellent bike handling skills and tremendous endurance. He is very close to being the fasted L/20th boy.

The other Bob is in his late 40’s or early 50’s and owns a furniture store here in Lancaster. He rides a nice Colnago, C40 and is tall and thin. He loves the ultra distance stuff and has “won” double century rides. If I did anything over 100 miles I would just fall off my bike at the end and convulse. I haven’t talked him into road racing yet but he would do very well. He has no problem keeping up when the group is averaging 25 mph +, in fact, he’s probably leading the group out. He climbs very well, perhaps the 2nd best overall climber in the group. So that leads us to the number one climber…

He’s a 53 year-old man that looks older than his age. Off the bike you might think you need to help him around but looks are very deceiving. Eric has a titanium rod in his left leg and rides with a funny left knee out position. He is easily recognizable by his riding style. He has a number of bikes but his beauty is his carbon fiber Calfee. But I actually rode with him while he was using a fixed gear Russian bike…and he stayed with the whole group at speeds of over 25 mph on the 50-mile ride. Eric may actually be the finest rider in the whole Antelope Valley. He’s an ultra marathon guy who kicks butt in double centuries. He climbs like an angel, as if gravity means nothing to him. I believe he was a Cat 2 racer back in the early 80’s. Eric is an inspiration to many riders in the L and 20th group and throughout the Antelope Valley. The first time I ever rode with him we had just both finished a 50 plus mile day (he coming back from 3 Points, and me coming back from 3 Canyons) and we were in the wind down phase of the ride. This phase has damn 70th street to deal with. 70th street is a gradual 4-6% grade for several miles before you can turn off it and head home. I’m used to just grinding away on 70th at around 13 mph or so. It is within 4 miles of my home so it’s a good place to slow down anyway. To make matters worse the constant wind in the Antelope Valley is always in your face on this grade. As Eric and I moved up 70th he never slowed down. He would have pulled away from me had I kept up my usual 70th street cadence – this would have been unacceptable of course so I pedaled faster to match his speed. He easily kept up a conversation with me, and I happened to glance at my heart rate monitor and saw that it was sitting right at my LT and getting ready to push beyond. A quick glance at the computer showed that we were making 20+ mph up this damn grade and the “old man” wasn’t even breathing hard. With about a half mile to go I “blew-up.” I dropped into his draft and said I had had it. He looks back at me and says, “I feel a little bonked myself.” He actually says this without a hint of breathing difficulty but he did drop the speed down to around 15 mph. Eric is incredible.

Randy…Randy is the source of a lot of conversations about the L and 20th group. Randy is a Masters 45, Cat 2 racer and very fast. He is tall and slender but with the powerful legs of a sprinter. No one, and I mean no one in the group, if not the whole Antelope Valley, can challenge Randy in a sprint. I’ve seen Bobby try but Randy always pulls it out. Randy is a very traditional road racer, an in your face road racer. He is not happy unless he’s kicked your butt and he has a way of letting you know that he is happy about kicking your butt. When I rode with the Santa Cruz guys 20 years ago almost all of them were like Randy. He is good and knows it and some others find him very abrasive. I just find him good and someone to ride with if you want to get better. In my book if you’re not chasing someone you’re not going to get any better. Getting dropped by a better rider is a right of passage for a road racer – Randy can drop a lot of riders.

As you ride around the good ride spots in the A.V. you’ll notice that someone took the time to figure out the percent of the road grade and spray painted it on the right hand side of the road, right where a cyclist would see it. I always thought this was pretty cool and I enjoyed writing in my journal that I climbed a 13% grade today, thanks to the unknown “grade analyzer.” It turns out that the guy measuring inclines is a late 50’s rider called Don. Don is an engineer out at Edward Air Force base and must be in his late 50’s or early 60’s. I’ve asked in discrete ways like, “Hey Don, what masters category would you be in if you decided to race?” He replied, “Masters 90.” Don can ride. Don is never dropped in an L/20th ride unless we’re ascending a steep grade. If the group is eating up the road at 25 mph plus, Don is right there taking his turn at the front. Don has been with L/20th since its inception. I like hearing Don grouse about how it used to be when the group would actually stop and wait for someone that had been shelled off the back of the pack.

Watch the Race Across America this year and you’ll se an L and 20th boy. Kevin is in his late 40’s and loves the long stuff. He loves to compete in the double centuries and even likes to compete in 24-hour events. I believe he is going to be California’s only representative in RAMM this year. He is a heck of nice guy and very easy to talk to. Like Don, he’s an engineer out at the base, though I’m not sure if he works for Edwards or NASA. He routinely rides his bike from his home in Lancaster out to Edwards Air Force Base, a distance of 25 miles or more. Going out in the morning to work is one thing but he also has to get back home and that means he’s got to head west. The A.V. almost always has a 20 – 30 mph West wind blowing in the afternoon. Sometimes it’s a lot worse; 30 – 40 mph with gusts to 50 +, and Kevin is right there plodding through it. Kevin will not usually out climb you and he definitely can’t out sprint you but if you’re riding for distance he’ll wear you down.

Other riders come and go with the group but these are the top personalities. We also have a 26 year-old second lieutenant in the Air Force that rides with us. He’s a Cat 4 racer and easily stays with the group. But even Kyle, at age 26, can’t get over how he can’t out sprint Randy, he can’t out climb Eric, and he would probably have trouble keeping up with Kevin after 100 miles have gone past his tires. We haven’t seen Kyle in awhile, so I guess the Air Force “deployed him.” They are a unique bunch and should be an inspiration to riders of any age. When you’re in town and want a fast ride come over to the corner of L and 20th and you’ll find it. Now that it’s getting hot we leave at 0700 hours – sharp.

San Diego Omnium Road Race

2005-05-23T18:53:00.000-07:00

May 21, 2005

If I have another 140 lb racer tell me what a great climber I am for being such a big guy, I’ll become Darth Vader. I know it is meant as a compliment but I can’t stop thinking that if I was a good climber I wouldn’t be in the chase group having a discussion on climbing in the first place. Funny, when I was a body builder and weighed in at 210 lbs I always felt pretty small next to the “real” body builders. Now I’m a skinny 190 lbs and looked at by other racers as a giant – must be some irony in there somewhere.

Photos from "The Digital Photo Guy"

May 21 and I’m in San Diego to compete in the Cyclo-Vets Omni Road Race. I couldn’t make it down early enough to compete in Friday’s time trial and I’m still too chicken to compete in the crit to be held on Sunday. So at 0700 hours I’m at the head of the line waiting for our chance to enter the 50-mile course. I signed up for Masters 40+ and here in San Diego this means guys from age 39 to 53 (there was a category Masters 55+.) There are 40 guys in line and since this is a relatively small group all categories are represented. What I mean is that some of us are Cat 2, 3, and 4, with a bunch of 5s tossed in. This always makes the Masters 40 a tough group, you may be up against a guy who has been racing for 20 plus years and joined masters as a Cat 2. But this is also a good thing as their bike handling skills are superb and you have a much less chance of bouncing off the road.

Photos from "The Digital Photo Guy"

We really are not in San Diego but 40 or more miles to the East off of I-8 in the Buckman Springs area. It is dry and hot, with end of the race temperatures in the low 90s. Seems like we are out in the middle of nowhere and I noticed an INS checkpoint (or as my wife says, “La Migra") just a couple of miles away on the San Diego bound side of I-8. I know it’s going to be hot so I fill both my water bottles. Bottle one has my complex carbohydrate drink that should stop me from bonking and bottle two I decided to put Gatorade in it instead of water. I finished both bottles during the race and still drank a Hansen’s soda and a full bottle of Gatorade right after the race.

Photos from "The Digital Photo Guy"

The lady blows the whistle and we are off. It’s a neutral start for the first ¼ mile or so. This means that the actual start of the race is ¼ mile away and we are just to roll easily until we hit the actual start and finish line. I punch my heart rate monitor and settle in about 5 places from the front of the line. A center rule is in effect for this race so we are not to cross the yellow line in the center of the road and only to ride on the right side. I don’t know this course so I ask the guy next to me where the 1200’ elevation gains are and how tough they are. We are doing 2 laps of 25 miles each and each lap has a series of small gains and then one long grade toward the end of the lap. After listening to him I realize I’m back in the Devil’s Punch Bowl seat again (see my other May race post) and in for a hard morning of climbing. I decide right then and there that I must be aggressive and get to the front of the peloton before any big climbs. In the first two miles I find myself next to another racer about 40 meters in front of the Peloton. He makes a comment about how we’re the “snake patrol,” riding so far out in front of the group but I use this time to quiz him on the course.

Photos from "The Digital Photo Guy"

There are a lot of strong riders in this group and a couple of guys shoot past us with the peloton in hot pursuit. Our stay at the front is short as both of us settle in with the top 10 guys at the front of the chase group. Speeds are pretty high and the peloton is content with keeping the two guys off the front in view at about 60 meters in front of us. We hit the first roller hills and I have sufficient power to stay with the group. I did drop to the back of the pack on the last roller but easily moved up to the top 5 and even handled a couple of pulls at the front – definitely riding a lot more aggressively in this race. One of the toughest parts for beginning racers is just trying to get a drink from your water bottle. You really have to judge when the peloton is sitting in and grab a quick one before someone takes a flyer off the front and the whole group takes off. This group was jumpy and I was in on several “attacks” while I was riding near the front. Not knowing the course is a true disadvantage and I really didn’t have the slightest idea when the course was going to get series with the vertical. I looked at my computer and saw that we were at mile 11 and knew the hill must be coming soon - so I did something I’ve never really done before, I attacked. I actually took off chasing after the two riders in front of the peloton, and I took off like I meant business. Bad move. I looked like I really knew what I was doing and the lead elements of the peloton had to take me seriously so they were off after me to bring me back. My only reason for taking the flyer was to get out in front and start the uphill grade with a good lead on the group so that I could drop right into their draft at the top of the hill. I had tried this tactic at the Sea Otter Classic but there I made my jump within site of the hill and it was pretty obvious what I was doing. Here, I misjudged the distance to the grade and fought off the peloton until we reached the base of the grade. My move was gutsy but it was too soon. The peloton enveloped me at the base of the long 5-8% grade. I was working as hard as I could up the grade but I was slowly moving back through the group and at mile 18, I was spit off the back. I had plenty of company as other riders went off before me and I was passing other big guys that had shot their wad, trying to hang with the group. They were successful in hanging on longer than me but at a high price. Such a high price that I was now easily passing them up to form my own chase group of one. At about mile 20 I saw two more guys get shelled off the back a good ¼ mile ahead of me. I made it my goal to “time trial” and catch these two guys and make a 3-man chase group.

Photos from "The Digital Photo Guy"

I could no longer see the lead group but I could still see the two guys that had lasted longer than me on the hill. Each downhill I poured on the coals and could tell I was gaining on them. The first lap came to an end so I still had 25 miles to go. Within the next 4 miles I caught the two guys in front of me. We discussed what happened and how tough it was to stay with the lead group – we were now the official chase group. We set up a pace line to give chase but it was pretty obvious by this time that the lead group was out of site and out of range. I was the stronger rider in the flats and descents but Eric, a grade school teacher in San Diego, was the stronger rider on the hills. I started pouring on the speed and we soon dropped the 3rd racer. I never did catch his name but learned that he was a new Cat 5 racer with this race being only his second race ever. Eric and me made a deal to sprint against each other at the 200 m mark but both of us found our quadriceps to be “fried” when we had occasion, on a small hill, to rise up out of the saddle and stand up on the bike. We agreed to not sprint but just finish the race as strong as we could. With about ½ a mile to go I told Eric to take charge and jump out in front of me as he deserved to finish ahead of me, since he was dropped by the peloton last and that he had given me a focal point to keep going strong in the race. He shot around me at this time and started driving for the line. In all honesty, I doubt I could have challenged him anyway. Eric is new to the Masters 40+ having just become 40 years old this year. He only weighs 140 lbs and is an excellent climber. As I was driving along for the finish a few yards behind him I couldn’t help feel a bit jealous of his seemingly weightless “dancing on the pedals” finish.

I ended up finishing in 25th place. 40 guys started the race and 8 guys dropped out and received the DNS or “did not finish” prefix in the results. My computer gave me a time of 2:25 for the 50 miles, which is about a 20.7 mph, good on such a hilly course. Check out the complete results at http:///www.Cyclo-Vets.org.

Devil's Punch Bowl Road Race

2005-05-05T14:26:00.000-07:00

SEE POST BELOW PICS OF THE EVENT

2005-05-04T18:27:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for the Devil's Punch Bowl Road Race with my wife, Esmeralda and daughter, Jade

2005-05-04T18:25:00.000-07:00

Putting holes in the jersey

2005-05-04T18:24:00.001-07:00

Start of the Masters 40 race

2005-05-04T18:23:00.000-07:00

My 2nd time around after 1 lap of 16 miles and 1500' elevation gain. All pictures by my daughter, Maya Grove

April 30, 2005; Devil's Punch Bowl Road Race

2005-05-04T14:20:00.000-07:00

Devil’s Punch Bowl Road Race, the name says it all. This was a devil of a course with two laps of 16 miles each. Doesn’t sound bad until you factor in the 1500’ climb each lap. The pros had to do 5 laps and 80 miles of racing – ouch.

I knew my 190+ lbs of body weight didn’t bode well for racing this type of race. But on the other had, this race is right in my own backyard. The Punch Bowl is a cool outcropping of sedimentary rock on the North side of the San Gabriel Mountain Range. The mighty San Andreas Earth quake fault runs right by so the sedimentary rock layers have been tossed up at a very acute angle. Many T.V. viewers have seen the sister formation to the Punch Bowl in the pushed up rocks of the Vasquez Rock formation just outside of Agua Dulce, 25 miles or so to the West. I can still picture Captain Kirk fighting the Gorn with the rock formation in the background.

It was warm and very dry as I pedaled around the starting area waiting for the Masters 40+ race to get going. We started at 12:32, an unusual late starting time for a race, this also meant that it was late enough for the usual Antelope Valley winds to start blowing – oh well. About 40 of us lined up for the start of the race and we were off. The beginning of the race heads West on a slight upgrade of around 2% for about 2 miles or so then we take a left and begin heading up the road that branches off to the Devil’s Punch Bowl Park proper. The pack was a bit jumpy and a few ripples passed through the peloton. Someone said to take it easy as the upcoming climb would separate the pack anyway. After a couple of miles we passed the turnoff to the Punch Bowl on our left and continued heading South toward the town of Juniper Hills. The 2% grade began to change to an 8% plus grade and the climb was on. I was too focused to actually check it out but I could swear the first 6 miles of this race were all uphill. I knew we would climb 1500’ before the lap was done, I just didn’t think we would do it all at once.

I was bound and determined to stay with the pack regardless of the elevation gain but it wasn’t going to happen. We continued to climb until the road turns toward the West and a small descent presented itself. The descent was very short and we were soon climbing again. My heart rate monitor was showing 177! I’ve never been above 176 in my year of training – a new high. Riders were being shelled off the back and I was still in contact with the lead 20 plus riders but with my heart at redline I knew I couldn’t hold it. The road now started to turn to the North and the final rolling set of hills. I finally began to shift down the gears, my first time out of the 26-tooth sprocket of my cassette since the hills started in earnest 6 miles ago. I was definitely falling off the back of the pack now but with my heart rate still in the 170s I couldn’t possibly go any faster. My goal now was to maintain visual contact with the lead pack and rely on my downhill speed to catch up. The flip-side to being a heavy racer is that I go downhill very quickly. When I was a young sprinter on a team up in Santa Cruz I was known as a “descender” or someone that could maintain bicycle control when bombing down a steep descent at 60 plus mph. This strategy worked somewhat well. I wasn’t losing any more ground to the lead pack on the descent but I wasn’t gaining either. The famous desert wind had definitely sprung up and it was right in my face, slowing my descent to only 50 mph. The pack, with its superior aerodynamic characteristics was having an easier time with the wind. I slowed to make a sharp right turn to head East and breathed a sigh of relief that the road ahead was relatively flat. The only problem now was that the wind had a slight “Santa Ana” characteristic to it and was coming out of the North-East. So as usual, it seemed to be in my face again. Riders in the Antelope Valley swear that no matter what direction you ride the wind is always a head wind. (The wind here can change direction in a heart beat and I’ve actually had it change 180 degrees in a single ride to actually be in my face in both directions.)

I was now a single rider caught in no mans’ land. I was coming up on riders that started in other categories but you can’t work with these riders. The pack was now pulling away because they could work together in the wind. I did the only thing I could, I actually slowed down and waited for a “chase pack” to come up on me. I didn’t have to wait long, a pack of 4 masters 40 riders came up on me quickly using a fast rotation. I dropped right into them and we had a pack of 5 doing a tight rotation and not losing ground to the lead pack. This was great but the road started to go uphill again, not much but at the speed we were putting out, definitely noticeable. The other problem was that we were only a pack of 5 and the high-speed rotation was putting a lot of strain on us. As I took my turn at the front and then quickly rotated off to the right I couldn’t find the 4th rider – he had started to drop off the back. It was now a rotation of only 4 riders so there was very little rest at the back of the “pack.” A quick glance at my HR monitor told the story my body was already telling me – I was tired. The monitor was showing numbers back in the 170s again (my average HR for the 32 mile race ended up at 165 and my lactate threshold is supposed to be around 161.) and to make matters worse we were coming up a 5% upgrade again. I took my pull and as I dropped to the back I couldn’t maintain speed and was dropped from the chase pack. The chase pack was now only three guys. I looked back over my shoulder and saw the 5th guy, the one that had dropped off before me, so I slowed up and we started working together – we were now the official chase group of the chase group. We were working pretty good together but I needed to drop down to my small chain ring. I hit my left shifter to move the front derailleur and move my chain from the big chain ring to the small ring. At the same time I started up a steep hill and had too much pressure on the chain and I throw the chain right past the small ring. I yelled to my “partner” that I had thrown my chain. As I watched him speed away I brought the bike to a stop and remounted the chain. This was a bummer. I had to start up again with the two chase groups riding off into the distance and no one to work with to catch up. I finished the first lap and smiled at my 14-year old daughter as she took my picture. She thought I was just out enjoying myself without a care in the world. My heart rate monitor said otherwise as it was still registering a number in the high 160s. I started up the hill again only to see the first two chase groups a few hundred meters ahead of me. I gritted my teeth and accelerated until I bridged the distance between us. We were now officially the chase group again – which lasted about 20 seconds as we were again starting up the 8% plus grade. The group was once again shredded and I can’t tell you which one of us fell behind first. Forget the lead group, it was now time to just get over the top of the hill and finish the race. The temperature was in the low 80s and my sweat was just pouring off me as I slogged to the top of the hill. I was moving so slowly that I could watch my sweat drop vertically to the asphalt below me. Even though I had a sweat-band on under my helmet, the sweat was pouring into my eyes blinding me. My sunglasses had so much dried up sweat on the lenses that I could barely see in any case. With about 6 miles left in the race I rode up on a Masters rider and we gamely started to work together, just to get to the finish line faster. We wondered how many of the 40 riders were ahead or behind us. As we hit the last major incline he dropped off and I was again by myself. I passed a few riders from other divisions and with 200 m to go I got passed by my old partner – he was smelling the barn. I didn’t have the energy to sprint with him but I crossed the finish line in 1 hour and 40 minutes. I ended up #24 out of 29 finishers. 40 started the race but at least 11 dropped out for various reasons. (See complete results here)This was a tough race, the toughest I’ve had all year. I was pleased with my 19.2 mph average over the hilly 32 mile race. This was also my first race with my new Colnago frame. But the new Colnago, and how I built it up, is fodder for another post.

2005 Sea Otter Classic

2005-04-19T20:26:00.000-07:00

2005 Sea Otter Classic, Monterey, California

Sea Otter Road Race

I was excited about this race. Not only would I be going back to where I started bicycle racing in the first place but I would be in one of the prettiest places in California too. I’m writing about the Sea Otter Bicycle Classic held at Laguna Seca Recreation Area in Monterey, California.

Wednesday afternoon, April 13 my wife and I packed up the truck and headed for Salinas. Salinas is a small agricultural town 20 miles away from Monterey. I not only lived in Salinas for a number of years in the 1980s but I met my wife, Esmeralda, there as well. The cool coastal town of Santa Cruz is located just 35 miles up the coast from Salinas and Monterey, and it was in Santa Cruz that I first started racing bicycles after getting my ass handed to me on the Saturday group ride with the Santa Cruz Cycling Club. The Sea Otter Classic is a big event here, drawing thousands of riders for several days of racing; from mountain biking to road racing. My race was Friday morning and I was looking forward to riding with 100, Masters 40+ Cat 5 riders in my division.

Friday morning dawned clear and cool with temperatures in the high 40s but it looked like it would warm nicely during the day, and in fact, temps did go to about 78 degrees by the end of racing. I put on my leg and arm warmers, filled my water bottles (one with a complex carbohydrate drink, the other with water) and set out for the Laguna Seca Race Track. The 49-mile road race actually starts on the Laguna Seca Motorcycle track – a pretty cool way to start the race. After a lap on the track the race heads down a canyon to a hilly 11-mile loop through what used to be an Army base called Fort Ord. My racing packet had my number and a “chip.” The chip attaches to your ankle and sends a signal to the timing device on the course so the race director can get an accurate time for you. I placed the chip on my left ankle and had my wife center my race number on my lower back. Of course, there was no directions as to where to put the race number and racers could be heard all over the parking area asking where exactly to put the number on. The number was big so most put in right in the center of their back like me. We all got to the starting line only to find that the race directors wanted the number on our left side running vertically up our jerseys. This caused a lot of grumbling and consternation but we all helped each other change the numbers to their right position. The Sea Otter Classic is definitely a National event, drawing racers from all over the United States but it also had an international flavor too. Two riders in my group hailed from London, England. They made the long flight out just for this race, and to enjoy the beauty of California’s Central Coast.

We sat on the starting line just back from the regular Cat 5 guys and watched them depart. We were to start in 5 minutes. The announcers joked about how we didn’t look like guys in our 40s. They asked how many had kids – most of us, how many had one, how many had 2, etc. I started thinking that I’ll be in the Masters 50+ next year and that I must actually be one of the oldest in my group – I also started thinking that I may even do better next year but shut that down as “negative” thinking and to get my mind wrapped around the start of this year’s race. The start came and we were off – and I mean off. The group took off at over 25 mph as the excitement of the riding the race track must have gotten the best of us. I did not have time to really warm-up before this race and the quick start was tough. I heard a lot of grumbling about our fast start coming from the group. I breathed a sigh of relief when we exited the track and started down the canyon road for the race loop. The canyon road made a descent and I was able to catch my breath. We made a left turn onto the race loop and right away I was looking at what has to be a 10% or greater climb for 300-400 meters – crap! I knew the race would be hilly as the profile shows a 930’ elevation gain for every lap. I had noticed the nasty little hill on the profile weeks before the race but you’re never really ready for it when you come screaming around a turn with a hundred guys and the damn thing is right in front of you. I geared down and started driving to the top of this hill. Thoughts of, “I’ve got to do this sucker 3 more times,” and “maybe I can just quit now and watch the rest of the race” went through my mind. I quickly dismissed the quitting as I’m not that much of a wuss but the thought that I had to face this hill 3 more times would not leave my mind. My thoughts were interrupted as a racer right behind me just fell over, taking a few riders with him. I don’t really know what happened to him but I think I heard his chain break just before he tipped over. Unbelievably, I was climbing this hill in the top third of the group but taking a quick look behind me, it was obvious that this hill was “shredding” the group as weaker riders were already falling off the back. As already stated in this blog, I am not a climber. My 190lbs makes for a lot of weight to carry up a steep hill – I had reason to be concerned.

We crested the hill and I geared up and dropped into the draft of the group. We thankfully started a short descent and our speed really went up. I can’t say how fast we went in this race. My stupid computer failed during my brief warm-up before the race when the fork sensor clipped one of my spokes and flew off my fork - so I had to ride this race with no electronics. (I later figured out that I averaged 19.6 mph over the course of the race.) Like most masters race groups this one was no exception; we called out sharp turns, whenever we hit the brakes we yelled out slowing, slowing…I’m sure all divisions do this but the Masters group is very good about this as they usually have a lot of experience in racing, if not lately, years before. We move over to the left side of the road as we went through the “feed station.” The feed station in this race was a spot on the course where volunteers were providing water bottles. It’s pretty much water bottle in and water bottle out as we tossed our empty bottles to the right side of the road right after we picked one up from the station. As we were finishing up lap one the rear motorcycle (a CHP motorcycle led the race) with a rider wearing a zebra shirt, obviously an official, came up and started yelling at some of the riders. There was no center-line rule in effect so at first I wasn’t sure what was bothering the official. I had assumed he was bothered by riders crossing the yellow center line of the road but without the center-line rule that couldn’t be the case. It turns out he was yelling at riders wearing numbers that showed they were in the regular Cat 5 race, the same race that started 5 minutes before our race. These riders had been dropped off their race group and were attempting to get back into the action by riding in our draft. This is a no-no. You can’t work with another group in most races and these riders were forced to slow down and drop out of our draft.

We finished the 1st lap with a quick downhill and made the sharp left turn right into the damn 10+% hill again. I tried to take this hill sitting down but I was losing too much ground to the fitter or at least lighter riders. I stood on the pedals and “honked” my way over the crest but noticed that I had dropped to the rear of the main group this time – the hill was making me pay a price. Lap two was pretty uneventful and I was successful in staying with the lead group, sometimes at the rear but a few times in the top 15. But once again, I didn’t have the nerve to go to the front and take my turn pulling the group. By the start of lap 3, and the hill, I was starting to feel the effort of maintaining a high speed over the hilly terrain. The 10+% grade was murder this time. I didn’t have the legs to stand on the pedals so I was just grinding out the grade…and losing ground too. By the time I was almost to the top I fell off the lead group. I had plenty of company, as at least 50 plus riders had been shelled by this hill. I crested the grade and saw the rear motorcycle almost 200 meters ahead of me – damn, I had been dropped! I put my head down and just started pedaling like mad. I used other dropped riders when I could but they didn’t seem or couldn’t maintain the pace we needed to catch up with the pack and I left them behind. It took almost half the lap but I was able pull myself back into the draft of the group at around the feeding zone. I relaxed and tried to recover but deep down I knew I had expended reserves that I was going to need for the finish of this race, let alone lap 4, and that stupid hill.

Sea Otter Road Race

About a kilometer or so before the start of lap 4 I knew I was going to have to do something different or be dropped for sure this time, so I did something different. I shot to the front of the group and even went off the front. The group leaders looked at me strangely, and why not? I had never been to the front of the group the whole race, let alone in the last 10 miles of it. I told one of the leaders that my weighing 190+lbs means that I would need all the lead I could get going into the teeth of the hill. His response was, “Man, you’re a fit 190lbs.” I took the last turn of lap 3 as the leader in the Sea Otter Classic…and it lasted about 3 seconds. The moment I started up the hill the other front riders started blowing past me, I might as well have been standing still. I even warned riders not to ride my wheel as I’m going to be going backwards. One rider was so tired that he literally stopped pedaling and just went over on his left side, and by the sounds of it a couple of riders behind him went down when they ran into him. I survived this crash too but it was obvious that I wasn’t going to make it to the top of the hill before all of the lead riders had passed me by – my strategy had failed. I plodded up the rest of the hill next to another large racer and I heard him mutter, “I wish I was a billy goat.” He was referring to the guys weighing a “buck twenty five” soaking wet and climbing the hill as if to defy gravity. I made it to the top of this killer hill and I couldn’t see any sign of a motorcycle or large group of riders. I tried putting my head down and pedal like mad again but I was just too tired to pull it off. I gave it my best effort over the last 10 mile lap and caught a few stragglers from all groups. I made the turn off for the finish line a mile ahead or so. Damn if they didn’t make the finish uphill, with a 5-8% grade (it was probably only a 2% grade but in my state of mind I might as well have been climbing Mt. Everest.) I finally saw the finish line a few hundred meters ahead and pedaled as hard as I could – I think I was probably making about 4 mph. There was a large crowd at the finish line and they were cheering for me. It actually made me feel pretty foolish as I’m sure my speed had now fallen below walking speed. I even made a comment that I could cross the finish line faster if I got off my bike and walked it across. I heard the little beep as the chip on my left ankle responded to the sensor map. I heard a guy yell out my race number and my time. I had finished in 35th place out of 79 finishers. I believe over 100 started the race but I can’t be sure. The chip worked well; it reported a time of 2:31.22.3 and that I was 7:49 behind the winner. Check out the full results here.

All in all I was very happy with this race. The pageantry of a few thousand racers, vendors, tourist, and families made it a race to remember. The beauty of the area made me wonder why we left the Monterey area in the first place. Of course it might have had something to do with the million dollar houses and the high cost of living but that’s a story for a different type of blog. I now have two weeks to get ready for a race literally in my own backyard – The Devil’s Punchbowl Road Race. This race has even more climbing than the Sea Otter but heck, I’ve got two weeks to lose 20lbs and become a climbing machine.

L & 20th Group Ride

2005-04-02T11:52:00.000-08:00

The infamous L & 20th Street riders; every weekend they meet at the corner of L and 20th street in the city of Lancaster, California. They leave at 8:00 am sharp for rides that range from 50 to 100 plus miles, and they do it fast!

A few months into my rebirth in riding, I started feeling cocky about my riding ability or more accurately, my fitness level. I started believing there was no one in the Antelope Valley that I couldn’t keep up with. So I began to ask questions at my LBS as to whom I could ride with and actually have a challenge. Lancaster is located in the high desert or Antelope Valley, the Western portion of the great Mojave Desert. It is only 50 miles North of Los Angeles but the mountain range in between the two almost makes L.A. a world away. I don’t think we got our first Starbucks until just a few years ago, came at the same time as our first Barnes and Noble but I digress. My point in this rambling is that there is no organized bicycle club within 30 miles of here (there is now – The High Desert Cyclist is just getting organized, yours truly is the vice-president.) On any given day there are a lot of riders riding around but not together. Everyone is doing their own thing and if you have aspirations to be a racer you need a fast group or pack to ride in. I needed to find this group.

I started hearing that a small group leaves a park in Palmdale, another group starts at Highland High School, etc. I would also hear that a small group of riders meets at the Ralph’s grocery store on weekends at the corner of L & 20th street. But almost everyone that gave me this information would then go on to say, “but you don’t want to ride with them – they have a bad reputation for dumping riders and generally trying to humiliate anyone that thinks they can stay with them.” I put the last sentence in quotes but that’s not accurate – no one ever said it in just those terms but everyone who mentioned the L/20th boys said something like it or worse…assholes, jerks, etc. Seemed like a perfect group to ride with but maybe I need to be in better shape…months went by and I pretty much forgot about the L/20th group. Racing season was getting closer and I still had not been “tested” by riding with a fast club group. In mid January, in between rainstorms, I decided to go out and do a 50 mile hill ride. As I was finishing the ride I noticed 5 or so riders that were approaching the same intersection that I was. I got to the intersection first and turned east with the group of riders about 300 m behind me. I’m used to riding down other riders and usually don’t have any problems riding away from them either but this group was coming fast. What’s more, they knew what they were doing and were in a pace line. I quickly abandoned the idea of riding away from this group as a pace line group is too fast and efficient compared to a single rider. I was also tired from my own ride, the “Three Canyons” ride that has a lot of climbing with several 8% grades involved. So I slowed up and moved out toward the center of the traffic lane and waited for their approach. As they pulled up along side we exchanged greetings and I asked them where they were coming from. They replied that they were finishing the “3 Points” ride. This impressed me, as the 3 Points ride was a good 60+ mile ride with some moderate steep grades involved. I joined the group’s pace line and as I approached my turnoff to head home they wanted to know if I wanted to join them in the morning. I asked where and they said, meet us at L & 20th, we leave at 8:00 sharp. The L & 20th group and me had finally come together.

The next morning I got up early and made the 6-mile ride from my house to L & 20th. There were about 5 or 6 guys waiting around for 8:00. Most were friendly but a couple of the guys were pretty reserved. The ride started and we headed west at about a nice warm-up speed of around 18 mph or so. When we got to the edge of town it was a different story…the pace line formed and the leader took off at 25 mph and the “race” was on. We set up a slow rotating pace line that was just eating up the miles. A couple of miles of this and I knew I was with an intense group. My heart rate was approaching LT and I started wondering if I was going to hang on to this pack…would I be the next “newbie” to be shelled off the back? It didn’t happen, I kept up with the group for the complete 50 or so miles. Due to the rains we couldn’t go into the hills so we were forced to stay in the flats – a big plus for me, and my 190+ pounds. I didn’t get dropped but that doesn’t mean I didn’t have to work hard. I was certainly tired by the end of the ride but I knew this was the group I needed to ride with each weekend to prepare for races. I’ve been riding with this group for a few months now and I think I’ve been accepted. They are a fierce group and do not have any problems dropping a weaker rider but that’s a right of passage that every, would be racer must endure when riding with a competitive group. What’s really amazing though is their age; most of the time I’m the youngest rider in the group at the age of 48! In my next post I’ll talk about the other riders and their abilities in more detail. But for now I will say the strongest rider in the group or at least the best climber is a 53 year-old man with a titanium rod in his left leg!

Today, April 2, 2005 we finished the 67 mile 3 Points ride with an average speed of over 18 mph and that included several tough climbs and stopping for a couple of mechanical problems. This was the toughest workout I’ve had in years. The Merced race of 48 miles, completed at an average speed of 25 mph, was child’s play compared to this. I walked around like a zombie for the rest of the day after this ride. For you lovers of technical info; this was a 4 hour workout and I spent 49 minutes at level 5 according to my heart rate monitor – a tough day.

McLane Pacific Foothills Road Race

2005-03-13T13:04:00.000-08:00

Saturday, March 5, I took the long drive North through California’s Great Central Valley. My destination, the town of Merced, and the McLane Pacific Foothills Road Race. It had rained all Friday night and I figured El Nino had done it again – but Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny and temperatures were warm. I pointed the car West, traveled 45 minutes through the Antelope Valley and entered the North bound traffic of Interstate 5. The traffic was surprisingly light and I shot past the Grapevine and started the descent into the Central Valley and State Highway 99. For the next 3 hours, I marveled at the flat landscape and the miles of agriculture that surround me. To the West I could barely make out the rise of the Coast range mountains, to the East, the mighty flank of the Sierra Nevada Mountains were not visible due to haze.

McLane Classic

“Food Grows Where Water Flows,” were the signs located just off the freeway placed, I assume, by farmers reminding motorist that without the Central Valley and the mountain water there would be no food for California. Heck, I believe I’ve read that the Central Valley grows more food than several European Nations combined – and my destination, Merced, was part of the heart of this valley.

I arrived at my small motel in Merced around sunset. Almost all the parking stalls were full of cars or trucks with mounting brackets for bicycles. A large truck was in the lot with T-Mobile Bicycle Team on its sides. This was an exciting reminder that the McLane Classic was a big event in this Central Valley town. I had missed the criterium, held just today, that ran through the city streets of Merced. I was here to race the 48 mile road race on Sunday, March 6.

I got up early and left the motel timed to arrive at the race start at least 1.5 hours before my start. The location of the race was a good 45 minutes North of Merced. The torrential rains the weeks before had wiped out a bridge and travelers to the race now had to go further, through the little town of Snelling to reach the start. The morning was cool but bright and sunny. As I drove toward the course I couldn’t get over all the green grass and rolling hills. The large trees were beautiful and I wondered what it would be like to train here everyday. I passed a road cut and almost forgot why I was here. The desire to stop the truck and check out the layers in the rock face was almost irresistible. I drove a long way with not a single car on the road. I started to worry that I had misread the directions some how and was lost. But I rounded a bend and caught up with a virtual caravan of vehicles – almost all with bikes on them. I just followed them on the winding road until we reached a straight-away in the road where a couple of guys in red shirts were directing traffic to the sides of the roads. Boy, they needed the guys in the red shirts. There were already hundreds of cars along the side of the road. I parked and gathered my stuff together. Unhooked my bike from its docking point in the back of my truck. Cars continued to stream in – this was a big event. I would say over 1500 riders showed up and about half as many cars and trucks.

I walked the quarter mile up the road to the registration area. Waited 10 minutes or so in the pre-registered line. I decided to register as a cat 5 as opposed to my usual masters 45 designation. The race director in an email advised against it – for reasons that I’ve already stated in a previous post; Cat 5s can be dangerous. Turns out I was one of 113 Cat 5 riders for the day. I picked up my number and walked back to my truck. The first excitement was deciding what side of your jersey the number should be on. I was told by the lady, who gave me my number, to put in on the left side of my jersey. But some people were told to put it on the right side. I took the officials word and pinned it to my left side – turned out to be the right spot for it.

The race was due to start at 9:00 am but it turns out the farmers that live along the roads of the race course were not as happy as the town’s people to be hosting the event. The night before a farmer or two spread manure on the road. The manure clean up delayed the race by at least a half hour. Manure on the road? Better than having beer cans thrown at me, which has happened during training rides in Los Angeles County.

At around 8:00 or so I started warming up by pedaling around the race route. The course seemed perfect for a 190lb rider – pretty flat with rolling hills, ideal for my 11-21 cassette. I spent around 45 minutes warming up, sprinting, standing on the bike, etc. By 9:00 I felt pretty good. The weather promised to be hot during the race – 78 degrees F. I left off my leg and arm warmers and realized I needed to add sun screen to my pre-race check list. When I got to the starting area the 1500 riders were massed on the street. Try to picture all these riders and bikes jammed onto a two lane farm road with nothing but mud along the edges of the road. Each group was trying to squeeze to the front to get started; the Pro/Cat 1 & 2 guys and gals, the Cat 3s, the Cat 4/5, etc. You could tell which group was which by checking out their race number. My number was 759, the 700 numbers marking the large Cat 4/5 group. We were such a big group that our numbers had to go into the 800s. Finally, after waiting like cattle on the street it was our turn to follow a car and “promenade” ¼ of a mile to the actual start point of the race.

We turned on to the course and the race started for us. 113 guys all lumped together on the two lane road. We started slow, around 20 mph but the group was jumpy. Any false move by anyone in the pack and it rippled all the way to the back. Passing anyone to move closer to the front was nearly impossible. I didn’t like my position in the group as I was in the back 2/3 of the pack. This is a bad spot as far as accidents are concerned. The group speeded up then suddenly slowed with yells of, “slowing, slowing!” ringing out from the group. I heard someone remark that if we are this unstable now how are we going to be when we hit our first turn? This was hardly said when I noticed some commotion up in the middle of the group. A rider swerved and went down hard. The chain reaction immediately started and riders began to go down with the terrible sound of metal on metal. Riders to my immediate left swerved to the left side of the road, I was on the very right side of the road and the accident was heading diagonally my way. I had no place to go but to throw my bike off the road and into the mud on my right. I swerved, and narrowly missed a rider that went down in the mud. My swerving was so violent that my right foot unclipped from the pedal and I came to a complete stop. I didn’t go down but I now had to wrestle the bike back onto the street, with the carnage of several bikes and riders laying on the road and in the mud next to me. I heard someone in the pelaton say they would slow up and wait but from my vantage point, trying to clip back in to my bike, at the side of the road it seemed the group was actually speeding up and trying to place as much distance from the accident scene as possible.

A picture from AbbiOrca Photography. Check out their incredible race pics at their web site: AbbiOrca.com

I got back on top of my gear and speeded after the group, I picked up a few more stragglers who grabbed my wheel as we raced into the back of the pack. My heart was pounding – well over my lactate threshold of 161 but I was back in the draft of the group. The first accident occurred only 6 miles into the race. We pedaled on for another 12 miles or so and came on a chilling sight. Women pros were scattered all over the road. They must have had a terrific accident, as at least 20 or more women were down. I noticed their motorcycle escort was even stopped at the side of the road. Many of us yelled words of encouragement to the women as we rode on. Our race continued. The pace was fast but no faster than the “L and 20th Street” riders I ride with on training rides on the weekend. Nobody wanted to break away from the main pack. There were still so many riders that it was tough to move up to front of the pack. It was unnerving to have so many cyclists pressing in on all sides. With no big hills on the course, this would be a tough race to have a break away. After every turn, the pack would jump up and drive out of the turn standing on their pedals. I would use these turns to move up in the group. For much of the race I was in the top 15 but never did I have a chance to take a pull at the front. Just as soon as I was in the top 15 another surge would come from the back of the group and 20 riders would slide ahead of me but they were just content to stay at the front and not attack or try to break off the front. I didn’t have a team, so a solo break away from me would have been pointless – and that’s assuming I would have had the strength to break away from the group anyway.

The race was two, 24-mile laps around the countryside. We completed the two laps without further incident. I’m not sure how many people dropped off the back or quit due to flat tires or other mechanical problems. The road was rough with quite a few rain caused potholes. As we came close to the finish, I was firmly placed in the middle of the pack. I could see no way to move forward and try to challenge the front of the group. I listened to one rider say that we are in the middle and not in contention so no use, this early in the season, to try to risk life and limb by attempting to move up and challenge the leaders. This made sense to me so I continued to the finish in the middle of the group. I was given 64th place out of the 113 riders that started the race. Check out the results on the McLane web site.

I was pleased with my finish in this race. I was not “dropped” by the group, and it was a fast group. My bike computer showed a 25 mph average over the 48 miles. I finished in 1 hour and 52 minutes – not bad. I was tired but not shot. I felt I could have gone faster but the large size of the group was intimidating and my bike handling skills were suspect, as this was the first large group I had rode in after almost 20 years. A look at the results shows that only 82 riders finished the race. How many dropped out due to accidents? How many couldn’t handle the pace and slowly dropped off the back of the pack? I do remember 20 years ago, the humbling feeling of riding in the “sweep” truck because I couldn’t keep up with the pack or a flat tire happened at a bad moment. I wanted to skip this experience and I did. But 64th place leaves a lot of room for improvement – back to Southern California, and more training.

Weight Lifting?

2005-03-10T10:29:00.000-08:00

DOES GYM WORK MAKE YOU A STRONGER CYCLIST?

I'm an ex bodybuilder and not working with weights is tough for me. It was somewhat hard to watch my 210 lb muscle sculpted body (the smirk is mine) drop down to a 190 lb cyclist body type. But I still find room in my workouts for weights. Here's what Active.com has to say on the matter: "Mention gym work on cycling forums and many will either turn off or look for the flame key. The controversy is about whether lifting weights in the gym will transfer directly to strength and/or endurance on the bike." Read more Active.com.

Another Race Canceled

2005-02-26T18:48:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Mother N, I'm writing this with only one road race under my tires. Unprecedented rain in Southern California. Los Angeles is sitting at 33" or 84 cm. Hell, the record was set in 1884 at 38" and the winter is not even over. What does this mean to a racer - washed out races, that's what. I should have been riding in the Valencia Road Race today but the 68 mile raced was called on a mud slide in the middle of the road. European racers would have just sneered at the mud and the race would have been on - but we have lawyers, and heck, the Valencia Road Race is no Paris-Roubaix. At least that's what I'm assuming stopped the race. I biked over the course yesterday and it looked pretty good. I did have to grit my teeth a bit as I squished over the mud, and my skinny tires threatened to wash me out and send me to the pavement, er mud. Went over the course again this morning with my wife - the tandem handled the race course easily but I did notice that a road grader was busy on the bad muddy section and the tandem was able to find a path through the mud.

I was supposed to race in Phoenix last week but family matters took front and center and I had to cancel - I wasn't too concerned as I knew I had the Valencia race this weekend. Then the rain started again...and five days later it finally stopped. That was a couple of days ago and here I sit typing on my desk top. My high school students will be disappointed as they wanted to watch their teacher race. Of course, I didn't see a single one at the race start point when I went out on the tandem this morning - I'm sure they must have gotten the word the race was off...

So I rescheduled another race - I need something to write about in this blog. I presumably do want to race at 48 years of age. So next Saturday I'm going to travel 4.5 hours to Northern California and race in Merced. Merced has the McLane Pacific Cycling Classic with the Foothills Road Race on Sunday, March 6. The Merced area was my racing "stomping grounds" 20 years ago - I'm looking forward to my return. So look for a post on how my 2nd road race of the season went. Speaking of races, I need to update my post on my racing schedule. I've added new races and took off some. Talk to you in the next post.

Just checked the weather; a new storm due in tonight or tomorrow. I live in a fricken desert but it might as well be Hawaii. I'm moving to El Paso...

Training in the Rain

2005-02-26T17:49:00.000-08:00

What a pussy - a little rain and I'm crying foul. Back in the summer, I was reading a posting on the "slowtwitch" web site. The writer was complaining about not being able to ride what with all the hurricanes that were blasting Florida and the South Eastern U.S. I posted back that I would give anything to ride in the rain. Hell, I had just finished a typical summer desert ride; 105 degrees F and dry as a bone. We hadn't seen rain in 7 months. Now I would give anything to see a little sunshine. If you read my post on the latest road race cancellation then you already know what I'm writing about. Southern California is about to set a record that has been around since 1884. I live in the high desert of Los Angeles County, we're lucky if we see 9" of rain all season. I think we're going on 20" right now. So what is a rider to do with all this rain.

First of all, any rider worth his rubber is going to ride in the rain. But that's not the problem. The problem in the desert is that the ground here can't handle 20" of rain. Streets just disappear or appear to be moving. It takes me forever to get home from work in my car because of all the street closures around here. Most of the great riding areas like "3 canyons, 3 Points, etc. have been wiped out - no roads anymore. This last week, it started raining on Friday and didn't end until Thursday, two days ago. So what do I do?

I usually set up my trainer and hook my bike up to it. But I lack the patience to deal with the trainer. So on Sunday, during a downpour, I got in my truck and headed over to "24 Hour Fitness" one of the local gyms in town. I like to use the "Lifecycle" as I can program it to be a pretty tough ride. I can also look at the "scenery" in the gym. I find looking at women with tight tops give me another 15 minutes on a trainer. At home, with Laura Diaz - my favorite news lady, I can last about 35 minutes. At the gym I can make it 45 to 50 minutes (I'm glad my wife thinks this blog is a waste of my time, "don't you have better things to do.", and doesn't read this thing.) Anyway, I set the life cycle for a hill workout, put it at level 12, the maximum and then sweat all over the floor. I'm sure other gym members think I'm a bit strange with my tight black shorts and the diaper that appears to be in my crotch. But they usually have the life cycle set to level 2 and are reading a People magazine or the like.

On Monday, during a downpour, I just lifted weights in my garage - no bike, no trainer.

On Tuesday, during a lull in the downpour, I did some hill repeats about 4 miles from my house. My workout called for 8 repeats on a 3-5% grade, at full speed. I got about half way through them and the skies opened up again. I finished the workout with 7 repeats and biked the 4 miles home with sweat and rain in my eyes.

On Wednesday, during another lull in the downpour, I set out on 23 mile easy ride - the sun was actually shining. I got about as far away as I could get in the ride, when I noticed some real nasty looking dark clouds heading my way. Lightning was lighting them up and the wind just came out of the blue. It looked like I had ridden into Kansas, and I was waiting for the twister to drop out of the clouds. The next lightning strike reminded me that I was rolling around on a bunch of aluminum and would probably make a tempting target for the rain gods - I did a quick U-turn and started back home at full speed. The rain was right on my heels. By the time I was 3 miles away from home, it hit me with a vengeance. But I was literally laughing with the storm. It actually felt good to be drenched by the downpour until the hail started...with about a 1/2 mile to go the hail came down - damn, that hurts. I raced into my garage just as a tremendous hail storm started. It seemed like 4 inches of hail came down in 10 minutes. Too bad I wasn't 20 miles out in the middle of nowhere - what a story that would be for the blog.

Racing Categories

2005-02-11T09:04:00.000-08:00

My race posting on the Nelson Stage Race in Las Vegas talked about categories; I caught up with a “Cat 4”, we started behind the Cat 5s, etc. The title of my blog is Masters 45…what does all this mean?

I’m sitting at my computer in a driving rainstorm. I live in the high desert of Los Angeles County and rain is usually a rare thing here. But this has been a long winter for rainstorms and associated road washouts and closings. In short, I’m sitting on my butt instead of riding my bike – a good time to post to the blog. So let’s talk about how categories work in bike racing.

The current system is set up to allow all levels of ability access to road racing. By having categories you can be reasonably sure your riding with other riders that are at your level of ability. The system uses numbers, 5 being the lowest, and 1 is the highest. If you’re a beginner you will start out as a “Cat 5” or “Cat 4” for women. The difference between the cats for men and women only reflect the relative numbers of racers for both groups. There usually are more male novice racers out there than novice female racers. As your ability progresses you move down the categories until you reach Cat 1. So it pretty much works like this:

Cat 5: beginner or novice
Cat 4: beginner (women) or novice with at least 10 races under their bike tires (men)
Cat 3: Expert
Cat 2: Expert or semi-pro
Cat 1: Semi-pro
Pro (There is also a category for professional riders)

I’m a Masters 45, this means that I’m 45 or older. It can get a little strange here, in that all categories can exist in the Masters group. Master racers can start after age 30. So that means there is a category called Masters 30. So if you were a Cat 3 when you were racing in your twenties and you joined the Masters 30, you are really a Masters 30 “Cat 3” racer. In my case, I was out of bicycle racing for 20 years, so when I restarted this year, I went in as a Masters 45, Cat 5.

Just to make it more confusing…I can also enter races as a “regular” Cat 5 and skip using my Masters designation. Why would I do this? Because I would know that I was riding with novice racers instead of a bunch of “old guys” that have Cat 1-3 ability. In fact, Cat 40 or higher racers tend to be pretty tough, which makes the Masters categories a difficult category to race in. Though I haven’t raced in 20 years, I’ve chosen to stay with the Masters group because of their bike handling skills. Cat 5 racers tend to spend some time on the ground, as accidents seem to be much higher in this group. I’ve made the choice to get my ass kicked with the Master riders than add to my scars that I collected 20 years ago when I started out as a Cat 5.

Try out the USA Cycling web site for more information on categories.

My 1st Big Race

2005-01-30T16:55:00.000-08:00

It’s been 10 months since I restarted training on my bike. In those 10 months, I’ve logged 4,132 miles, lost 18 pounds, and completed two time trial races. 6 months ago I got the idea to start racing time trails and 4 months ago I decided to get my racing license again and compete in “mass start” road races. But all this has been mentioned in previous posts at this site. So on January 29, I competed in my first road race in almost 20 years. At the age of 48, I got my first road race under my belt. Here’s the story…

Nelson Landing Stage Race, Las Vegas Nevada, January 28, 29, and 30. Nelson Landing is a stage race (see posts below for a complete description of the different types of bicycle races) so I had a time trial to complete on Friday, January 28, and a road race on Saturday. There is a criterium race on Sunday but I couldn’t stay to compete in that event.

My wife and I drove the 3.5 hours from Lancaster to Vegas on Thursday, spending the night at the Stratosphere Hotel. Friday morning I went to Pro Cyclery, the bike shop hosting the event to pick up my race packet. My start for the time trial would be that same day at 3:18 in the afternoon. My start in the road race would be 9:15 am the next day. Right after I picked up my packet I decided to drive out to the road race venue and check out tomorrow’s course. It took about an hour to drive toward Boulder City and then South to the road that leads to the little community of Nelson where the road race would be contested. I drove the whole 36 miles of the road race course; 9 miles up a 4% grade to a pass, then 9 miles down to Lake Mead to the turn around. Now it was another 9 miles back to the pass on what looked like a 4 – 8% grade – ouch. I was now starting to think that the 12-23 cassette I put on my rear wheel was not going to be much better than the 11-21 cassette it replaced. I may have lost 18 pounds in 10 months but I still weigh 192 lbs, a lot for a road racer, and too much for a hill climber. Oh well, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, yada, yada. Time to get back to the hotel and get ready for my time trial at 3:18.

I like to arrive at least 1.5 hours before my race start so I pulled up to the time trail venue at around 1:45 or so. This allows me to fiddle with equipment for about 0.5 hours and then start a one-hour warm-up before my race. And I like to talk to other racers and hear where they came in from and their thoughts on the upcoming race. It is also neat to see so many fit people in one place, with not a cigarette smoker in sight. I start my warm-up on my stationary trainer. I put in 20 minutes of easy pedaling on my Felt S22 Time Trial bike. Drink a lot of water and sport drinks then I put in another 20 minutes with race pace pedaling and sprints. Drink some more water, go to the bathroom for the 5^th time, take my bike off the trainer and start doing light “pick-ups” on the road. I got in line for my race with about 5 minutes to spare and wait for the start – Just in time for the rain to arrive.

A 2005 Felt S22 Time Trial Bike

The starter started his count down; 20 seconds, 10 seconds, 5 seconds and I’m off. This is my 3^rd time trail race but the first on my new 2005 Felt bike. The bike is beautiful and only weighs 19.5lbs. I’ve put a Renn 5-7-5 disc on the back, with a Spinergy PBO spoke front wheel. The Felt, and me, blast off the line. The first kilometer or two of this 20 K TT is slightly down hill. I accelerate to 32 miles per hour and I noticed my heart rate is at 164, four notches over my “lactate threshold (LT).” But that’s acceptable. The problem with downhill or down wind starts in a time trial is that the rider tends to loose focus and forget that what goes down must go up, as most or all TTs have a turn around. So a rider may start to relax with the easy going at the start. I was determined not to make this mistake so I pressed the start from the beginning and never let my heart rate drop from about 105% LT. I could barely see the rider that started 1 minute ahead of me. In this race, a rider starts every 30 seconds but the rider that was supposed to start just ahead of me didn’t show, so I had a “ghost rider” in front of me. I like to focus on the rider in front and try to catch him but now I had a whole minute to make up instead of 30 seconds.

Spinergy wheels in action

A Renn disk wheel in action

But I realized I was gaining on my “minute-man.” The course leveled out and my speed dropped to around 24-26 mph. There was no wind but the rain was coming down harder and I could imagine how much time I was loosing to the wet asphalt – nothing I could do about that. The man in front of me made the turn around with me only a few hundred meters back – I knew I would catch him. I completed the turn around and saw the man behind me, with the same idea as mine, much too close – he was going to catch me! But that’s how TTs work; you bust ass to compete against the clock and you can’t let a faster rider demoralize you when he or she flies past you. I catch up to my minute-man and shoot past him on his left but a few minutes later I’m passed on my left. I passed by Ron Skarin who ends up beating me by 37 seconds. I’m impressed with Ron who tells me, when we are both cooling down after the race, that he competed in the ’72 and ’76 Olympics for the U.S. pursuit bicycle team. He’s now an old guy like me, in fact he’s a few years older than me but it sure didn’t stop him from flying past me.

At about 11 miles or so, I hit the upgrade that had previously allowed me to travel at 32 mph at the start of the race - but now I'm heading up not down. I’ve got 2 plus miles to go in the TT and I’m slowing down a lot. My legs are feeling the pain of completing a race on an uphill grade – my heart rate monitor shows that I’m at about 110% LT and I’m getting close to exploding. Just need to hang on for a couple more klicks. Finally the finish is there and I cross at 31:55 a new personal record (PR) for me. I’ve nearly knocked 1 minute off my previous best of 32:48. I’m really pleased. The new bike and wheels had to help, and in the driving rain no less. But this is a stage race so I head back to the hotel to rest up for the road race tomorrow.

The Road Race - Nelson Landing

2005-01-30T15:50:00.000-08:00

The Next Day

Saturday, January 29 and it’s time for the 36 mile road race. Normally, 36 miles is a short course. Most road races will be around 60 – 70 miles in length but it is still early in the race season and the 4 to 8% grade will make up for the shorter course.

Esmeralda and I arrive at the site at about 7:30. I’m due to start with the other 20 Masters 45+ racers at 9:15. I do the same routine I used for the TT and get in line with the rest of the “old guys” at around 9:05. I watch the younger racers take off, the pros, the Cat 1 and 2, the 3s, the Cat 4/5 and now it’s our turn. We get our start, and immediately begin to climb a 4% grade. I’m thankful for the easy pace the leaders set for the first couple of miles but I know that we have 9 miles to get to the top of the grade where the steep downhill will start and my 192 lbs of weight will actually be an advantage – but I must stay with the group for this advantage to mean anything. Everyone is talking about how glad they are to have a 26 toothed cog lower gear, I nervously look down at my 23 toothed cog and realize I’m going to have to be very strong to finish this race any where in the hunt. The pace increases and the first break away is attempted. We all jump and increase our cadence and meet the challenge of this first attempt. A few minutes later there is another break, and another…each time I’ve made the grade and stayed with the group. I look back and see 4 riders or so dropping off the back. Another break is made and this time I can’t make it, I drop off the back and realize I’m in “no mans’ land.” I’m between the lead and successful break-away riders, and the group that dropped off before this latest attempt. I actually imagine the scene from “Animal House” where the little devil appears on your left shoulder and a little angel version of yourself appears on your right. The devil on my left shoulder says, “You still have 4 miles of uphill riding to go before you hit the top of the grade, this is real hard, look at your heart rate monitor. Just turn around and go back.” At that moment, some rider in front of me does just that; he turns around and quits the course. I now listen to the angel on my right that says, “You came all this way, you can’t quit now.” I pay attention to the angel and decide to gut it out, and both the devil and the angel leave. I put my head down and drive for the summit, I need to keep that lead group in sight and hope I can catch them on the long 9 mile, 8% down-grade. I try not to think about the fact that I have to turn around and go right back up that 9 mile 8% grade.

I finally crest the pass and scream down the grade at around 50 mph, aware that the road is slick with last night's rain and the drizzle that is still falling every few minutes or so. I watch all the riders that left before our group passing me in the other direction as they wrestle with the uphill version of the hill I’m descending. They don’t look like they’re having a lot of fun as they struggle with the 8% grade. I actually close on my lead group at the turn around. It’s now time to struggle up the 9 miles back to the pass. For some reason I feel stronger, the long down hill at speed has rejuvenated me. I’m actually passing slower riders that are having trouble with the uphill battle - none however, are in my group though. I do catch a couple of stragglers from my group that got away from me on the other side of the pass but realize I’ll never catch the top dozen or so riders from my group – they are just riding up the hill too good. I catch up to a cat 4 rider, who like me is a pilot. We talk about flying airplanes for about 5 minutes and I look at my heart rate monitor and see my pulse has finally lowered to 153 beats, 7 beats below my LT. It’s time to go. I thank the cat 4 rider for the conversation and pick up the pace and leave him behind. I struggle over the pass with the encouragement of a race fan at the side of the road. He screams, “Keep it up, just over that hill, it’s right in front of you.” I crest the hill with another Cat 4 rider and him and me set up a rotating pace line at 31 mph all the way down to the finish. With 200 meters to go I say, “let’s go for it.” But my legs are tired and the cat 4 rider pulls away and crosses the line 10 meters ahead of me. I’ve lost the sprint but “won the race” as the Cat 4 started the race 10 minutes before I did, so I know I have a better time than him.

I finish the 36-mile race in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I’m 13^th overall for the Masters 45+ race. There are only 17 of us so it’s not the greatest finish in the world but I’m not a hill climber and this was a hill climber’s race. Remember Ron Skarin, past member of the ’72 and ’76 Olympics? He finished with the lead group, with a time of 2:03, so I’m not that far from the front. I also look at the Cat 4/5 guys and see that I would have taken 27^th place out of about 50 guys if I would have rode in that category. I leave the course feeling pretty happy. Ron’s 15-year old son competed with the Cat 5 group and took 3^rd place with a great time of 1:56:14! Ron is pretty proud that his young son kicked his butt.

Look for complete race results via Pro Cyclery’s web site.

Too Old?

2005-01-06T11:41:00.000-08:00

Don’t want to take my word for it that you’re not too old to race? Read what Coach Carl has to say on his web site. Here is an excerpt from Coach Carl’s page:

I get this question all the time: "Am I too old to start racing?" What I want to do is help you to analyze bike racing and age, and then let you answer that question for yourself. First, we know that the average person loses approximately one percent of their muscle mass by the time they are about 50 years of age which means that they don't have more than about 99% of their maximum strength potential of when they were in their early to mid 20's. That is on the negative side. On the positive side, we know that you can keep increasing your aerobic development long into life depending on when you get close to your top aerobic potential.

Read the full story…

My Racing Schedule 2005

2005-01-06T09:32:00.000-08:00

I live in the Antelope Valley of Los Angeles County. This kind of puts me in the very top half of Southern California and the very bottom half of Central California. This makes it easier for me to race in both Northern and Southern California. It makes training tougher though...the Antelope Valley is in the high desert or Mojave Desert. It's butt ass cold in the winter and searing hot in the summer...what doesn't kill you makes you stronger-yada, yada.

Here is my tentative schedule of racing for the 2005. I'll add more races, especially later in the season as more race information comes on line. See my links on finding a race in a post below.

Date / Race
1/23 Tom’s Farm 10 mile time trial
1/28 Nelson’s Landing Stage Race in Las Vegas
2/07 Piru TT
2/18 Valley of the Sun Stage Race in Arizona
2/25 Vuelta a Valencia
3/18 Pomona Valley Stage Race (not confirmed)
4/15 Sea Otter Classic in Monterey
4/25 Devil’s Punch Bowl
5/29 Sisquoc (Santa Maria) (not confirmed)
6/05 Vandenburg Road Race (not confirmed)
6/19 State Time Trial
9/04 San Ardo Road Race (not confirmed)

It is still very early in season so most sites don't have their 2005 race information up yet. I'll update my list as they do. Happy racing!

A Typical Training Week

2005-01-05T19:58:00.000-08:00

A Typical Training Week

So what is a typical week for this 48 year-old guy like on a bicycle – how do I train?

I try to put in anywhere from 7 to 11 hours a week on my bike. It really depends on if I’m in a base period or a build period – more on base/build periods in a future post. This posting is just to give you an idea of a typical week, so let’s go.

Because of job commitments I save my long rides for the weekend. I try to ride a minimum of 2.5 to 3 hours on both days. Depending on the terrain, this could be anywhere from 45 to 55 miles. Now that I’m getting closer to my racing season, I’ll start bumping these long rides up to 50 – 70 miles.

I train six days per week and usually take Friday off (TGIF with my co-workers.) Monday and Wednesday is usually a weight lifting workout; these run about an hour. Sometimes I’ll do an easy 23-mile ride on one of those days instead. On Tuesday, I usually do either hill repeats; 4 X 90 seconds up a 6-8% incline. I stay in the saddle (my seat) for 60 seconds than gear down and stand up for the last 30 seconds. I take a 3 minute break, riding easily then do it again. Or I do sprint intervals; 4 X 2:00 minutes at high speed with a 3 minute break after the speed workout. Both of these workouts usually run about 1 hour and can cover anywhere from 18 to 20 miles.

On Thursday I usually do a 23-mile ride that has some mixed terrain in it. I tend to ride it fast, usually covering the distance with an average speed of 19-21 mph.

How much ground does this week cover? About 90 – 200 miles. In the summer, with the long days and the fact that I’m a high school teacher (don’t work in the summer) I would put in closer to 200 miles. In the winter, like now, I have to teach, and it gets dark so early, so I only put in 90 to 140 miles/week.

Of course, family life, weather, etc. can play havoc with this schedule and you have to be flexible. I have a Blackburn Trackstand Mag Trainer, a device that turns my road bike into a stationary bike. This is good when the weather goes to hell and there is no way I’m going to get my bike on the road. But I hate these workouts and just try to gut out anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes on the trainer.

So there you go. I actually use a coaching service that I access via the Internet. This will make for a future post too - so I'll write about this service, I use TrainingPeaks, in a later article. For now, just get on your bike and start putting in mileage - you'll be ready for intervals and hill repeats in no time.

Finding a Race

2005-01-05T10:53:00.000-08:00

I use several web sites for race information. Here is a partial list of links that should you give you a lot of information about racing and bicycles.

Bikecal.com
USA Cycling
Southern California Time Trial Association
SoCalCycling.com
Northern California/Nevada 2005 Road Events

Racing Bicycles at age 48

2004-12-12T20:19:00.000-08:00

Last April I jumped on my old Cannondale R-900, an ultegra equipped road bike, and put 17 miles under my butt. My bicycle journal (my first entry) says the trip took me a long 1 hour and 20 minutes. It actually says, "My 1st ride in years, tired at the end - no wind." Quite a reality check for a guy who raced bicycles in his mid twenties, and rode every training ride with an 18 mph average or higher.

That was 10 months ago, and since then I've put in over 3,200 miles on a bike. My weight has gone from a muscular 210 (well I though so) to a relatively skinny 193 pounds. I've raced two time trials and have an ambitious calendar of future road races for the coming new year. I bought a tandem bicycle and got my wife into the act - best way to save a marriage when you plan to spend a lot of time on a bike or a great way to end a marriage if the two of you can't get along on a bike.

I would like to use this blog to journal my attempts at racing at age 48. To talk about what bikes to buy, what equipment is cool to either look at or own, and what tandem riding can be like - in short, provide an outlet for my newfound passion for bicycles.

Buying a Bike

2004-12-11T11:34:00.000-08:00

So what does it take to get into bicycle racing? Well a bike for starters. I have three bikes in my garage, four if you count my wife’s road bike. My racing bike is a late 90s Cannondale R-900. I have a 2005 Felt Tri-bike I use for time trials (more on this bike, and bike races later in this blog) and a Cannondale tandem bicycle, when my wife and me prefer to take our arguments on the road.

When my wife is not looking I’ll replace my racing bike with a modern, read 2005 bicycle. Since you may just be starting out in your racing career and need a bike let’s look at what you might spend and what your hard earned money might buy.

There is a good chance that your new racing machine will have an aluminum frame. It doesn’t have to. You can find frames made out of aluminum, carbon fiber, and titanium. And you can still find frames made out of good old fashion steel. All my bikes are made out of aluminum. Hang around a group of racers or just fast group riders and you’ll hear all kinds of arguments like, “carbon bikes are more comfortable, the carbon makes a smoother ride.” You’ll hear them talk about the merits of titanium, it doesn’t rust, it’s hard to dent, you just can’t beat the durability of titanium. Steel seems to provide a great ride but it weighs…well it weighs like steel. And that is another thing to consider about your racing bike – how much will it weigh?

“Parts is Parts.” Your bike is going to be made out of components. All my bikes have Shimano components other bikes will have “Campy” or components made from the Italian company Campagnolo. The same group of riders who are arguing about frames have a lot to say about parts. They will discuss at length the hierarchy of Shimano or Campy components. For example, the pecking order of Shimano (from lowest price to highest) is Tiagra, 105, Ultegra, and Dura Ace.

The bottom line is you’re going to buy a lightweight frame that has 18 to 30 speeds; 700C wheels (about 27-inch); smooth, narrow tires; drop handlebars; and a narrow saddle. You should expect to pay $500 to more than $3000. So let’s get started.

$500 - $700
You’ll have a non-specified aluminum frame with carbon fiber forks. The bike probably have Shimano Tiagra components and an average wheel set. It will be relatively heavy.

$700 - $900
An aluminum frame again but with Shimano 105 components. At the higher end of this range you’ll start to see Easton Ultralite frames. What does this mean? The frame will be lighter, around 3lbs, which will give you a complete bike that weighs around 19lbs. You could easily start racing with a bike like this.

$900 - $1200
You will start seeing Shimano Ultegra components now. Usually a mix of 105 and Ultegra but I’ve seen a full Ultegra gruppo at bike stores in this price range. You might even start seeing a few carbon fiber frames in this range. I personally would be leery of carbon fiber at this price – riding on plastic seems scary to me – but that’s just me.

$1200 - $2000
Dura Ace, the flagship line of the Shimano chain, will start showing up in this range. But most bikes will probably be Ultegra. Carbon fiber makes a bigger appearance in this range.

$2000 and up
Full Ultegra and full Dura Ace all the way. You’ll be able to find full Dura Ace bikes at the lower end of this range but you will probably be giving up something else, like a truly high end wheel set. So expect the full Dura Ace bikes with other equally good components to be at the $3000 and up range.

Start shopping around today – the internet is a good place to start. My racing bike is getting a “little long in the tooth” so I’ll be shopping soon too. I think I’m going to buy a frame without the components and build up the bike myself. But that is, what they say, another story.

What is a Time Trial and How Should I Do One?

2004-12-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

Adapted from Bicycling Magazine’s Complete Guide to Riding and Racing Techniques, by Fred Matheny. This article comes from the Southern California Cycling Time Trial Association - click the link to read more on time trials.

Time Trials

If you haven’t tried a time trial before, but you are thinking about it, this is the "nuts and spokes" of time trialing. Time trials are a safe way for the recreational cyclist to measure their fitness level and progress. It’s also a great way for triathletes to sharpen their bike skills. If you enjoy riding and want to set your own personal record, you'll probably be tempted to give time trialing a try. The following is some information that describes tactics you'll need to make your first attempt into time trailing rewarding and fun.

Racing Against the Clock

At first glance, time trials are the simplest form of cycling competition. Cyclists start at intervals, usually 1 minute apart, and ride the course as fast as possible alone. The object is to complete the distance in the least amount of time. No drafting is allowed. It’s one rider against the clock. Often called the "race of truth," the time trial is perceived as the ultimate test of a cyclist’s ability. You ride as hard as you can from start to finish.

One major advantage of time trialing is safety. Because each cyclist starts alone, one minute apart from the next cyclist, you are on the course without the crowd that characterizes mass-start bicycle races. No drafting is allowed. Therefore, the emphasis is on sheer riding ability and fitness, instead of esoteric skills like following 6 inches behind a speeding wheel or cornering in a tight pack.

At speeds greater than 20 mph, almost all the cyclist's power output is used to overcome wind resistance. Obviously, the cyclist who best slices through that invisible wall of air has an advantage. As a result, time trialing has become an equipment-oriented sector of cycling. Aero-bars is a significant means for a cyclists to cheat the wind.

Time trialing is a demanding event. It involves determination, self-discipline, and persistence. Good time trialists can push themselves to the absolute limit for the duration of the course. In physiological terms, they hover on the very brink of their anaerobic threshold where the slightest increase in speed would drive them into irrevocable oxygen debt and a lost race. Psychologically, top time trialists must learn to overcome pain and blot out all other distractions in their quest for speed. But the difficulty-and ultimately the fascination-of the sport arises out of this perilous quest for human limits, both mental and physical.

The Race of Truth

Piru TT
If time trailing is so demanding, why do it? The answer lies in both the nature of the sport and the advantages it offers for competitors and fitness cyclists alike.

A major appeal is the event's absolute purity. The Europeans call it "the race of truth" because you cover the distance alone, with no one else to break the wind, relying on your own strength, talent, and determination to get to the finish. And although it is natural for everyone to compare times after the last cyclist streaks across the line, the real competition is always you. Time trials are an excellent opportunity to assess your fitness level on a bike.

Time trialing also happens to be a good way to sample competitive cycling, regardless of age or sex. For starters, it's convenient. There are numerous time trials throughout the spring and summer in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, including the Mid-America Time Trial Series (MATTS). And you do not have to disrupt your training schedule to race. You can train through time trials instead of tapering all week for one big effort. The race becomes one of your weekly hard workouts.

Time trialing is fun, too. Like a running race, people gather around after everyone has come in off the course to compare times and talk about the head wind or what gears they used. Time trialing also seems to encourage more camaraderie than road racing, perhaps because so many cyclists see it as a way to improve their own performance rather than as a serious competition with other cyclists.

For the beginning competitive cyclist, time trials are the best way to sample the thrill of speed and competition without major hazards found in other forms of bicycle racing.

One final word: Time trialing does not have to be expensive. If your goal is to better your own performances, the races can be ridden on the same bicycle you use for everyday training and pleasure riding (for a time trial, it is strongly recommended to use aero-bars on your bike). Of course, if you're seriously trying to better your personal record or beat someone else's, you can spend large sums on special time trial bicycles and aerodynamic wheels. But such expenditures just aren't necessary to meet most people's goals.

Equipment

If you are gauging your progress, rating yourself against yourself, you can ride the same equipment month as month and the fancy trick equipment doesn’t really matter. The aero equipment matters most for those who are racing against others, not themselves. In fact, if you are primarily interested in personal improvement, changes in your times will reflect your fitness level instead of your equipment.

If you get bitten hard by the competition bug, however, it won't be long before you start wondering how you can make your bicycle just a little faster. Wheels are a good place to start.

You'll want the light weight and low rolling resistance offered by narrow tires, coupled with the low wind resistance of deep dish rims with fewer spokes.

Registration and Warm Up

On the day of the race, get to the course an hour before the start so you have plenty of time to register, put your bicycle together, and warm up. Add a few minutes for eventualities like getting lost on the drive or changing flat tires during your warm-up.

Warm up completely. Time trialing requires an intense, continuous effort from the start to the finish. So be ready to go hard from the first pedal stroke. Start the warm-up by spinning in a low gear for at least 15 minutes. Work up a sweat, and get your muscles loose until your pedal stroke feels fluid. Then do several short repeats, but don't exert too much. Go just hard enough to start stressing your body, waking it up for the impending effort.

Pick a gear you can start from a standing stop in your big chain ring. Finish warming-up with several short sprints in your starting gear to make sure your chain doesn't skip under load or your rear wheel pull over in dropouts. And time your warm-up so you have 5 more minutes to spin easily before you come to the line. You should be sweating, but not breathing heavily. In a time trial, each cyclist starts one minute apart. If you have a stopwatch, start it when the rider before you he leaves so you'll be able to determine your elapsed time by merely subtracting a minute off your watch at the finish.

The Start

Get in the gear you can start from a standing stop in your big chain ring. At the start, most time trials will have a "holder." The holder will grab your bicycle so you can reach down and get both feet clipped in. Roll the pedals over until they are horizontal, then relax and concentrate on a good start. When the timer counts down to 10 seconds, squeeze the brake levers to keep the bicycle from spurting forward, and rise out of your saddle, balanced over the pedals.

On "Go!" sprint steadily away from the line until you get the initial gear rolling, then sit down and spin it up to a cadence of about 100 rpm. Shift to a bigger gear, build up the cadence again, and then settle into the gear you know you will use for the majority of the ride. You'll know that gear from your training - the one that allows you to maintain a cadence of about 90 rpm with your heart rate hovering near your anaerobic threshold. Don't let the race's excitement and your ego tempt you into using a larger gear, or your cadence and speed will drop as your muscles fatigue. Speed is the product of a steady cadence and energy output, not pure gear size.

Once you have settled into a rhythm, focus on keeping the same aerodynamic position that you practiced in training. The most ultramodern disk wheels and skin suits won't help at all if your upper body catches the air like a sail. A good image to help you position yourself properly: a shark knifing smoothly through the water.

Hills, Wind, and Traffic

U.S. time trial courses have traditionally been flat, a tradition inherited from England where time trialing is a revered art form. European time trial courses, on the other hand, have been more like road courses-twisting and hilly-and the European model is increasingly influencing American races against the clock.

Try to stay in the aero position as much as possible. If necessary, handle short hills of less than 100 yards by standing to keep your gear rolling. Don't let your cadence drop too much - it's OK to go mildly into oxygen debt because you can recover on the downhill - but don't overdo it either. A course with short hills favors more experienced cyclists, because they know exactly how much to save on the flats so they can push hard on the ascents without blowing up. Rookies, on the other hand, tend to go so hard on the easy sections of the course that they are left with nothing when the terrain demands everything.

On longer hills, you'll have to gear down and stay seated. You are better off keeping enough in reserve so that you arrive at the top breathing instead of gasping. The key to time trialing is to portion out your energy throughout the entire race instead of blowing it all on one section.

Wind is the time trialist's nemesis. A windy day is always a slow day. And no matter how much faster you go with a tail wind, you'll lose that extra time and more when you turn around and face it. Head winds are the worst, but crosswinds can be almost as bad.

Wind, however, is a fact of life in time trials. And every cyclist is out there under the same conditions. So you need to fight the wind effectively to do well. Start with a good aerodynamic position. Always important, your position on the bicycle becomes vital in windy conditions when the effect of any body part protruding more than necessary into the slipstream is magnified. Keep low on the bicycle.

Don't overgear into a head wind. If you can handle a 53x16 on calm days, you'll probably need a 53x18 or lower when it's blowing hard. Don't let your ego interfere with your judgment, either. Use whatever gear you need to keep your cadence at optimum levels.

The best way to conquer the wind? Fight it mentally. Windy days discourage some cyclists so much they perform poorly. Often, they're the ones who stay at home on windy training days. Remember: If you train in the wind, you'll race well in it.

Nearly all time trial courses are open to traffic. Safety is the first consideration: Keep your head up and be alert for vehicles, especially at the turnaround. But traffic isn't all bad. As traffic passes, the draft increases your speed slightly for several seconds. Take advantage of this suction by raising your cadence about 5 rpm when you hear an overtaking car or truck. Then hold the higher cadence as long as possible after the vehicle has passed. This technique is legal as long as you don't linger in the draft of a slow car.

Approaching traffic, of course, slows you down with a wall of wind, but since it's farther away in the other lane - the effect is less significant than a passing vehicle's. When you see an approaching car, raise your cadence and check your position to be sure it's as aerodynamic as possible. Then power through the turbulence and resume your normal cadence as soon as possible.

The Turnaround to the Finish

As you approach the turnaround, shift to the gear you will need for re-acceleration. Soft-pedal to catch your breath, but don't brake until the last second. Here's where practice can give you a real edge. Start the turn from the far right side of the road, and shave the marker cone. As soon as the bicycle straightens up, get out of the saddle, and sprint back to race speed. Resume your most efficient gearing/cadence combination as soon as possible.

My New Bike Doesn't Have Pedals?

2004-12-10T11:43:00.000-08:00

My new bike doesn’t have pedals? You go out to buy your new bike and find out they don’t have pedals. There is such a large assortment of pedals on the market that bike shops and bike manufacturers don’t know what pedals you are going to use – this will be up to you.

In the old days, and now with cheaper bikes, bike pedals were either flat platforms or they had toe clips and straps. Bikes under $700 will probably have toe clips and straps. The strap keeps your foot attached to the pedal. The pros, you don’t need special shoes and the pedals themselves are cheap. The cons though, are many. They can be relatively heavy and the mechanism they use to attach your feet to the pedals can cause problems. You need to reach down and pull a leather or nylon strap to “lock” your foot into the pedal. When you come to a stop, you need to reach down again and “unlock” you feet. You may be new to bike riding so reaching down, usually in traffic, to loosen a strap can be a touchy procedure.

With the new system of “clipless” pedals you no longer have clips or cages, and straps to worry about. You do need to wear special shoes that have a cleat attached to the sole of the shoe but the shoes look like any other cycling shoes or any other sport shoe, for that matter. These shoes range in price from $50 to over $200. There are quite a few brands on the market. I personally use a shoe from Shimano.

There are actually two main types of pedal systems.

The shoe has a cleat that mounts on the sole of the shoe. It sticks down below the shoe and makes walking pretty tough. This is the kind I use. Like shoes, there are a lot of different brands to choose from. I use the Look system. Expect to pay anywhere from $80 to over $200 for this type of pedal.

The second type of system uses the cleat recessed into the bottom of the shoe. You can walk normally in this shoe. The problem right now with this system is they tend to be a little heavier than the below the shoe design, and they don’t seem to lock onto the pedal as well. I’ve never used this system and I am only passing on what I’ve heard. Progress marches on and this system will only get better.

High End Look Pedal

The first time you look at your bike with these pedals you’re going to think, “Oh my, I’m going to fall over the moment I stop.” They do look scary but they are so light weight and efficient you can’t race without them. The key is to remember to twist your foot out of the pedal before coming to a stop. If you forget to do this and you come to a complete stop, you’re going down. You probably won’t get hurt but a lot of people will look at you strange. If it does happen, realize that it has happened to just about everyone else too.

Check out the article in cyclingnews on Look's new pedal; the Keo.

My First Race

2004-12-09T14:36:00.000-08:00

It’s April 2004, and I’m 47 years old. I’ve always stayed in pretty good shape; the weight room every other day, running 3 miles each day with my 14 year old daughter. I’m 6’ tall and weigh 210 lbs but still can bench press 275. My road bike is hanging on my garage wall and I’m starting to look at it again. I take it down and go on my first training ride. This ride is tough, it’s only 17 miles but it might as well be 107 miles – but it’s a start!

Days go by and weeks and I’m still riding. I’m starting to ride 25 plus miles on weekends and have picked up riding partners. My weight is magically beginning to drop and I now like to eat hot oatmeal for breakfast and sometimes lunch. The month of May shows up and my wife is starting to feel like a “bike widow.” Solution, buy a tandem bike. It’s a heavy Cannondale tandem but both of us can ride at our abilities. The trials of tandem riding will be a later post. But the tandem does a neat thing; it makes me a much stronger rider. My wife and I are up to 70-mile weekend rides by June. I also find out that the California Time Trial Championships are held in the city of Lancaster, a town in the Antelope Valley of Northern Los Angeles County. Since we basically live in Lancaster my wife and I decide to ride the tandem to the race and watch it for ourselves. The riders race a 40 k time trial and they push to beat a time of 1 hour. The men and women in the race are giving their all to ride their bikes at an average speed of 24 mph and greater. I now think I can get back into racing, and time trials will be my admission ticket.

18 years ago I raced in time trials, criteriums, and 100-mile road races (more on these different types of races in a later post.) I was always a large racer; I weighed back then about 178 lbs. Time trials were not my best event – I was a “sprinter.” Time trials require you to go all out against time and any extra weight, on you or the bike, is not helpful. But even though I’m now weighing in at around 200 lbs, I needed something to slake my competitive instincts and time trails seemed the safest way to start racing again – on to San Diego’s Fiesta Island.

San Diego, the Mecca for triathletes and other time trial racers, and I’ve arrived on Oct 8 for the Oct 9th race. I’m kicking butt riding in the Antelope Valley and I’m putting in training rides at over an 18 mph average – I’m ready! Yea sure, I’m ready. It’s another beautiful morning in San Diego, temperature is around 70 degrees and I’m ready to race. I arrive in the parking area to see over a hundred bikes and riders all looking better than me. Time trial bikes, triathlon bikes, bikes with 3 spokes, bikes with rear disk wheels – I’m in big trouble. I’m barely getting used to using the clip-on aero bars I put on my road bike. The time trial race is run on Fiesta Island, a little sand spit in Mission Bay. The course is 20 k or about 12.5 miles. They are running the race on the “short course” which is 5 laps around one end of the island. I’m number 42, which means I’ll be the 42nd rider to start the race – a rider starts every 30 seconds as opposed to “mass start” races where everyone leaves the starting line at the same time.

I’m off. I quickly accelerate up to about 25 mph – now I just need to stay there for the next 12 miles. I pass up two riders that started ahead of me and I’m feeling good. You don’t need to pass anybody in a time trial as you’re only racing against yourself but I can’t imagine any time trial racer that will admit he or she likes being passed in the race. I’m sailing along when I hear the dreaded words, “I’m on your left.” The 1st rider has just blasted past me – but he’s young, probably a Cat 1, 2, or 3 racer. My heart is pounding and I now realize I need a heart rate monitor – all good riders need technology. Another young rider passes me but now I’m focused, he’s not going to get away from me. You can’t draft in a time trial so I stay back about 10 meters but concentrate on staying with the young rider in front of me. My speed has dropped to 22 mph and I’m having trouble going any faster. The course is pancake flat and not a breath of wind. I start to congratulate myself as I come to within 2 miles of the end – only two riders have passed me up but I've passed up two racers myself. But then I hear what sounds like a train approaching from the rear. A rider goes flying past me with a carbon fiber rear disk wheel – no chance to try and hang on to him. He’s by so fast I hardly had time to realize that he must have been years older than me! He is whippet lean with white hair and grizzled gray beard…and he is fast. His name is Butch Richardson and the results page shows his age at 61. He started in position 51, 9 spots behind me, and he’s made me feel like the newbie I really am. Butch not only is the best in the 60 – 69 age group, he is 6th overall with a time of 27:51 – that’s a 26.77 mph average!

Thank goodness Susan Cooper started in the 142nd position. She didn’t have a chance to blast past me. Susan was the fastest women in the 150-person race, and took 22nd overall with a finishing time of 29:09. That is a 25.58 mph average! Oh, what about me? I was hoping to break 30 minutes…not even close. My time is 32:48 with a 22.73 mph average – not bad. Hell, it’s terrible. I’m in the bottom 3rd of my division and 76th overall. Heck, I would have done better if I could have raced against the 20 – 30 age group, what gives? I guess the guys that were racing against me when we were in our twenties have never stopped riding and are now studs in their forties and sixties. Well that’s probably pretty true but I clearly have a lot more work to do before the next time trial. I realize I need to have more structure in my bike workouts (grist for another post?)

I couldn’t stop talking about the race as we drove the three hours back to the Antelope Valley. I couldn’t wait to get another training day in. Don’t get me wrong – I was pretty humbled about my race but I’m pretty competitive and knew I just had to train harder. And yes, I need to have one of those carbon fiber rear disk wheels…

Road Races

2004-12-08T19:04:00.000-08:00

You think you might want to start racing bikes but are not sure what kind of events you'll race in. If you watched the Tour de France last summer, you saw a lot of road races. Road races are just like the name implies; you race on the road. You can race a circuit or road race, a criterium, or a time trial. You can put all three of them together over a long weekend, and you've got a stage race.

Let's take a closer look at these races via a good resource for the racer, the USA Cycling web site. This site has a lot of useful information for the beginner as well as the veteran racer.

Road Races
Criteriums
Time Trials (also see this months posting on time trial racing)
Stage Racing

Now that you know what kind of races you can compete in, a future posting will look at the different categories you will race under. Don't want to wait for me? Fully explore the USA Cycling web site on your own...and start riding.