look back- Harlem and CRCA race

The last two weeks were a whirlwind- Last Sunday was the Harlem crit, and today was a CRCA race.

Harlem:

I was so stoked for Harlem. I was finally going to try out a crit and give it a shot. it was a combined 4/5 field. it was a beautiful day, hot and sunny.


Our team lined our trainers together for the warm up for the pro effect, and we started spinning- our warm up was cut short since we thought our race was started before it actually did, but no worries.



As the race starts, we go into our first turn. Already someone doesn't hold their line and the go into me. I held my line and didn't give an inch- the guy went down and we kept going. first lesson- hold your line.



There were alot of short accelerations in the race, after pretty much every turn, but I enjoy that sort of effort profile- quick effort, quick recovery. it gets brutal but it keeps the race exciting.



With two laps to go, the crap hit the fan. coming out of turn 4, some guy in front of me (don't know who) just fell. we were going straight, why'd he fall!??!!?

took me and 2 of my teammates down. with two laps to go. ugh.

I guess that's the name of the game in crits- they're aggressive and they're tough. people get tired near the end and they get sloppy. Luckily, I was barely scratched. I didnt let go of the drops when I fell, and my shifters took the blow. Unluckily for me, both of my chorus shifters where totalled, and i snapped a front spoke. ah well. I walked back to the start and watched the rest of the races.



Big ups to my boy Bill$$ for taking such awesome Pictures. especially of me. way to encourage a narcissist, bro. I didn't even care that I crashed since he had gotten some great shots of me!

Since I refuse to pay $340 for a new set of shifters, I ordered them for $200 new @ totalcycling.com; downside is I have to wait for them to get here. I've been on my 'cross bike all week (although it was a rest week, and a much appreciated one).

Today was a long CRCA race. I realized it was my 10th cat 5/C race, so i figured I'd have some fun with it- try some tactics I'd never tried, be a little crazy. It was a 6 lap race- I rolled up with my obnoxiously green cross bike and off we went.

Our team kept it aggressive at the beginning to thin out the herd. there were a couple of sketchy riders out there, and I wanted to avoid them. two and a half laps into the race, I see one of my teammates and on of the Juniors, Liam, break off. I followed suite, along with a few other guys. we kept the pace up, and once we got into a good rotating paceline, it was just the three of us.

I was worried about staying in a 3 man break for 3 and a half laps- I've never pulled something like that before (Especially not on a cross bike). I'm usually more of a hang-in-the-peloton-and-do-no-work-until-the-sprint sort of guy, but I figured why not.

It was a hard, hard effort. we kept the pulls short and sweet, and Kyle and Liam were strong and smooth (much like the drinks i'll be having tonight). I was losing track of the laps again -

"is this the last lap?!?"
"2 to go!"
"shit...."

we stayed away and built a pretty good lap- about 1 minutes 30 from what I was told.



As we came around horseshit alley, I heard two dogs on the road- unleashed. I screamed and let out a fury of expletives and the dogs and the owner- mostly to scare the dogs off the road, but also cause I was LIVID. this new leash rule in central park is the dumbest thing I've ever seen. It's a liability to both dogs and cyclists to let them run free like that with an active roadway right in the park! I'm all for dogs running and having a good time, but it needs to be a fenced in area. I heard that one of the female racers had an accident this morning because of a dog as well. Dog owners- please. If you care about your dog, leash them when near the road.

As we got to the boathouse, kyle asked for a lead-out for the win. why the hell not- he had been super strong all day. I pushed up the hill and off he went. I saw Liam ahead of me- we lined up side by side, I shook his hand, and we sprinted for second.



I nipped him at the line, but it was close. He's a strong kid, a class act, and only 16- I scared to see what he'll be riding like in 3 or 4 yrs...

We had a great break and it stuck- I'd be lying if i said it wasn't the most exciting (and painful) experience I've had in a while. Awesome.

ok, time to drink!

Someone needs a lap counter...

You'd think someone that a college graduate working in Finance would be able to count to 5. Well, not being one to follow trends, I someone managed to do just the opposite on Saturday's Race in Prospect park. All the customary cat 5 sketchiness aside, the race was going really well. I've become a fan of the open races put on by Kissena in PP because they're short, flat, and usually end in pack sprints. that's a pretty good set up for yours truly. just hang out and sprint for a little action at the end. got me 3rd last time.



The most frustrating part of Saturday was that my legs felt great. I had the legs for a win, and i had even been visualizing it all week. Maybe it's because I didn't have any teammates in the field with me this time, but for some reason, I failed to hear the bell on the last lap, and could have sworn there was one more lap left. with less than 1 km to go in the race, i noticed everyone speeding up. I thought out loud, "is this the last lap or something??"

"yes!"

"SHIT!"

i spun up and sprinted as much as i could, and i think i managed top 15. not great, but given that i found out at the last second, I don't mind. At least I didn't get caught in the customary cat 5 pre-finish line crash/mechanical. Overall it was a good race- I felt good, and was near the front for most of it.

There was also a silly fist fight after the B race. from what I gathered, some rider in Green kept going into the rec lane (big no no); one of the Kissena racers screamed at him and told him to get out of the lane after he kept doing it. after the race, Green meanie goes up to the Kissena guy and starts talkin' tough. Tthen all of a sudden he sucker punches the kissena guy (named Eric I believe- nice guy) then the spandex-clad brawl starts and everyone's holding someone back. The guy in green ran off, but not before we took his race number down. He'll probably have his license revoked. good riddance. there's no place for fighting in amateur bike racing. its stupid and ruins the sport for everyone. I also consider it a general rule that unless you're a super hero, you should never fight in spandex. or else you end up looking like these two:



So that was fun. but now, I've got my sights set on next week's big race:

The Harlem Crit.

I've never done a crit, but I'm hoping i do well in them. I know there's a ton a speeding up and slowing down. I'm going to do my best to stay near the front, but something tells me that most people are going to have the same Idea. I've been that 'cross and crits are the same in terms of cardio effort, so we'll see how it compares. a top 10 finish in the combined 4/5 field would be fantastic. Let's see what happens. At the moment, my current bout of crappy eating makes me think I look like this when i'm being led out for the sprint:


In other news, I had a fantastic BBQ on my rooftop yesterday- complete with teammates and great beer. I think my boot-chalice makes me the Snoop dogg of white people.



For Rizzy.

Where Y'at?

it's been a busy busy past few weeks. There's been a lull in racing on my part, but there's tons to highlight. lets-a-go:

-last weekend I went for a (very slow) ride with my dad on the bike we got him for Christmas. It was great- no, he doesn't ride a $6000 De Rosa- we got him a Gary fisher Hybrid (courtesy of the boys at Metro bicycles on 88th). since it was cold and un-fun to ride during the winter, this was his first time out on it since we got it for him.



I admit, it may have been a silly sight seeing a 60-something guy on a clunky hybrid riding with a bike racer decked out in a (snazzy) team kit and a (very hot) Italian racing bike. i did a lap with him to see if the bike fit properly, and we strolled through the park. a nice Sunday stroll.




I haven't ridden through the park that slowly in years. It was fantastic. It made me so happy to see my father on a bike, enjoying the park- enjoying something I do- enjoying life. it was pretty awesome. He's now started riding the bike to work- go dad! he'll be rocking the masters' field in no time!

i also took my second Lactate threshold test last week- i improved a good bit, and there's further room for improvement.

Back in January:
Starting weight: 185
body fat: 16.5
Watt/kilo: 2.68
Watts @ Threshold: 225

Now:
weight: 174
body fat: 15.7
watts/kilo: 2.98
watts @ Threshold: 236

I'm happy with that- I'm looking to lose 5-15 lbs more by the new year. (whether that happens or not, we'll see)



I also had the (painful) pleasure of joining a few of my teammates on a ride with the Adler racing guys. It was only supposed to be a leisurely ride up to Nyack... riiiight- The adler guys rolled up and off we went hammering to the Orchards (about an 80 mile trip both ways). It was the toughest training ride I've been on yet- every time there was an incline, these guys would go for it. those adler guys ride a smart training ride...

i stuck on with them up until the final little climb up the the orchards. once I got there, i noticed half our team had disappeared. A delicious muffin later, we were back on the road, hammering it out. my fat ass got dropped on the climb right before the Toga shop. I tempo'ed back to the bridge, eventually catching up with the "shake" to my "bake", Matt. We both proceeded to bonk at the end of the ride- it was miserable and fantastic.


I was in New Orleans this past weekend for a friend's wedding- it was a great time, although i ate like a pig (as is the tradition in good old n'awlins)- how can you say no to beer, oysters, and po boys?? It's funny how not riding for two days makes you feel like a fatty-bobilatty.
I did get to go on a leisurely 30 miler with my old riding buddy Mikey. it was good to hit up the pancake flat levee path, and even sprint to the Huey P Long bridge on the way back. good times.



I hit up a spin class on Sunday with my buddy Luke. Sure, I may have looked a tad ridiculous doing a spin class in my team kit, but that's all i brought with me! It was a good interval workout. I was amazed at how few people that spin actually ride bikes. it's really too bad, cause I think they'd have a good head start over the average fred on a road bike...

out of the saddle Harlem hill repeats from a standing start was on the menu for today. probably the hardest weekday workout I've had to date. from a trackstand at the base of Harlem hill, you sprint to full speed, and hammer out of the saddle till you crest the hill. I started cramping after about 8 of them. ouch. At least i had some fellow teammates along with me to complain to.



It's pretty hilarious how much we (bike racers) complain. I think half of the time its geniune "i'm-in-pain-so-let's-share-in-the-experience" complaining, and the other half is the old "I'll complain that I'm tired just to make you look and feel bad after i kick your ass up that climb" sort of complaining. we all do it. it's pretty funny.

I might race the Kissena park race on Saturday. it's a short, sweet circuit race that favors sprinters. let's see what we can do with that.

Big race on the calendar is the Harlem Crit on the 17th. Combined 4/5 field. top 10 in that field is a goal- top 3 would make me go wee wee in my bibs. but hey- that's ok, cause bibs are just glorified diapers, right?

Right??

TMI.

later.

The Ultimate recovery drink:

Revisting Floyd

I've been silently watching Floyd Landis' arbitration hearing, decided to reserve my thoughts until both sides have made their case. once that happens, I'll see what i think about Floyd. as it stands, I believe in him, and I believe in his being innocent until proven guilty.

Let me say that again-

innocent until proven guilty.

witch hunts aren't justice. "every pro cyclist is a doper" isn't a viable statement.

i see red anytime i hear someone make a statement like that.

I'm sick of all these jaded s.o.b.'s who say shit like that just to sound like they're in the know. making an assumption about every pro cyclist like that undermines the very sport you love. it trivializes the hours upon hours of sweat and suffering that all competitive cyclists endure in order to cross that finish line first- be it at the penultimate stage of the Tdf or a central park race. it's a destructive, unfair, and ignorant comment to make.

one thing is glaringly clear about this whole situation, though- the system is flawed.

The anti-doping system has failed. WADA and USADA created a slew of rules and regulations to sort out the cheaters. Then, be it through a witch-hunt mentality, or just plain sloppiness, they break a whole bunch of rules just to try and nab the big fish just to make a point. If the governing bodies of cycling can't follow the rules they created themselves, then the whole anti-doping system is flawed.

At this point, Floyd's innocence or guilt is almost inconsequential. Testosterone or not, this whole experience has shown us all that the systems that are in place now do not give a cyclist a fair shake. There's no system of checks and balances. a simple accusation is all it takes to have a rider suspended without proof or litigation. Chain of custody? who needs it!? the a and B samples exceeded their thresholds for contamination? who cares?! inconsistent results? pshaw. I could go on and on (although Arnie baker does a better job than I) it makes me sick.

That being said, i think reform is necessary on the cyclists side. I think the work team slipstream has done in order to prevent their riders from doping is fantastic. I don't think it's ridiculous to ask all pro cyclists to submit to DNA testing.

I love what I do. I love this hobby and the experiences it provides me. I've experienced victories, pain, camaraderie, getting dropped, road rash, 50 mph downhills, sprints, climbs that make my soul hurt, crashes, pacelines, saddle sores, way too much spandex, and too many clif bars. That's what its all about. There'll always be cheaters. It's up to both cyclists and the rule makers to make sure that a system is in place that not only prevents cheaters from sullying our sport, but also protects the honest cyclists that pedal their asses off to win.

If cycling is ever to make its way back to being seen as an honest, beautiful, tough, and fun sport- both cyclists and the governing bodies alike are going to have to make an effort. it takes two, baby.

Back to it! 3rd place @ the Big Apple Classic

Wahoo!

got back into the racing swing of things today @ the Big Apple Classic race put on by Kissena in Prospect Park. This was my second time racing in prospect, and I was excited to see what I could do now that I had a better sense of the course and where/when to sprint.

The race a was a short one, at 17 mi. I think that was well suited for me, as I think the short distance prevented any breaks from being successful.

The cat 5 race was sketchy as hell. I've definitely noticed that the non CRCA cat 5 races are much sketchier than the C races in central park. I think that's due to all the coaching that's available to cat 5's in the CRCA. kudos to my racing club, they do things right.

we had 5 NYVelocity riders in the cat 5 field, and none in the 4's, as all the cat 4's and above are going to be racing up at Bear mountain tomorrow. I'm marshalling that race tomorrow, should be awesome. So anyway, this meant that we cat 5's had to make due today. good stuff.

I made sure to stay near the front and protect myself from the sketchy riders. I've noticed this one guy in the cat five field- he's enormous. not in a fat way, he's just a big man- at least 6'5". I try and stick to his wheel at every race I'm in- It's akin to sitting in the shad on an august day- it's fantstic. Thanks, big guy.

Once the last lap came around and we crested the "hill" I tried to stay near the top ten position for the sprint. as we came down the last mile, I heard the unfortunate but familiar crunch of a bike accident in progress behind me. I caught it in my peripheral vision and for a minute I thought it was a teammate of mine. As luck would have it, it wasn't. I was happy as hell to be near the front.

I noticed some CRCA guys were trying to organize a lead out for the sprint, and did my best to position myself.

Then, all of a sudden, my boy Bill (who was doing his first race) comes out of nowhere to lead me out.

Awesome, man. The lead out might have been a tad early, but he put his heart into it and ripped himself a new one to lead me out. Big ups to you, Bill.

I pulled around him and stuck on another guy and went for it. I barely missed second , but nabbed third in the sprint. Hoo-rah.

I was really happy with the result.

silly photos and team shots ensued.


Saturday's NYVC cat 5 squad:





Who bought tickets to the gun show?



The spoils of the (3rd place) victor? a medal!



I'm easily amused, but when I was a kid, I was a bit of a fattie and never really won anything sports-related. doing well in these bike races is pretty damn cathartic for me. its the fatty in me sticking it to the skinny grade school/high school kids that got all the glory in high school. it feels good.

That being said, I ended up speaking to a guy named Luke today that reads this fine blog. we got into a convo of the NY racing scene, and the prevalent theme is this- if you're not 21 and a cat one, you shouldn't take yourself too seriously. have fun, enjoy the fantastic hobby/sport that you do, but don't take yourself too seriously.



I also met a cool photographer named Richard, who was visiting from France- he does photos for a bunch of cycling magazines, and had some amazing shots of the 'cross races in Belgium. uber-jealous.

I'm not out to win a tour- I'm out to have fun, compete, do my best, and enjoy myself. I'm never going to be a pro, nor do i desire to make 14K a year doing so. I've got a full time job, a full time life, and this full time hobby- I do what I can and enjoy the spoils of it.



'nuff said.

Marshalling bear mtn tomorrow. should be fun.

Time for food and alcohol!

-Stophe