Leadville 2010

Recap

I have to quote Levi when I say "I didn't respect this race enough". I figured that going into this race I had done what I needed to finish in under 9 hours. I was wrong. I didn't train long enough, hard enough or consitantly enough to conquer this bitch of a race.

While I didn't make my goal I did race well. Finishing 189 out of 1600 isn't too shabby. I finished in 9 hrs 18 mins.

Wednesday: Arrived at the Copper Mountain condo and settled in. Walked around the village and made a nice dinner. Slept only 3 hours and spent the entire night sweating and pissed because I wasn't sleeping.

Thursday: Met Drew and Jen in Leadville and went out to the Powerline climb. We rode the bottom of the climb and I was on cloud 9 because it was easy. I thought, "If this is what people dread so much I have this race licked". This would prove to be an embarassing assesment of the race... We then headed to the two feed zones to scope out the situation so that Jenny would feel confident getting from one to the other. After course recon we went to Cycles of Life to say hi to Brian Feddema. Brian and I played soccer together for years and went to the same highschool. His shop is awesome and he was swamped while we were there.

Friday: Slept awesome last night and felt like a new person. Mandatory check-in and race meeting in the morning. Went back to Copper for the afternoon to do final prep. Filled water bottles, organized all my feeds and got the numbers on the bike, jersey and helmet. I was feelign relaxed and confident.

Saturday: Up at 3:15am to eat and load the car. We were on the road to Leadville at 4am in order to place my bike at the start line by 4:30. Drew and I placed our bikes at 4:40am and were about 200 people from the front; great position! Went back to the car to stay warm and get some fluids and energy drink in me. Back to the bike at about 5:45 to wait for the gun at 6:30. Jenny was there to take our warm layers at the start and she snapped some photos.

By 6:15 everyone was getting pretty amped and some people were starting to lose their cool. I think everyone was feeling the pressure of having trained so hard and long for this that they didn't want anyone messing with their idea of how things should be. Some people tried to cut into the lineup and get positioning up front. One guy was actually booed right out of line and lined up significantly further back. Kind of funny...

6:25am and the camera moto crews are at the front and the helicopter is hovering overhead. This was really exciting and it felt like we were really a part of something big! Gun goes off and we all head downhill for several miles to the base of St. Kevins climb. I feel great and Drew and I are consistantly moving forward in the group. There is always ebb and flow but I think we are both generally moving up. The first climbs really aren't bad considering it's so early in the race. We hit the pavement and speed downhill then up a large climb to the top of Powerline. Then down Powerline and to the first feed. It's a crazy scene but Jenny does an awesome job of flagging us down. We spend only about a minute and half at the feed and hit the trail again. Drew and I are both feeling good and make really fast time to the next feed. We arrive at our feed at the base of Columbine 15mins ahead of our 9 hour pace. Jenny just barely made it to this feed because of the enormous amount of people/traffic. She is literally running through the field yelling my name as I bike by. I skid to a stop and she starts throwing all our feed and bottles out of the backpack. She's awesome! We shed our arm / knee warms and vests. We getting going about 2 mins after stopping. Drew and I speed up to the base of the climb. Soon as the road tilts up I know I am in trouble. Drew steadily pulled away from me and I was left feeling like I was going to red line. This is where my mental game started to shift. Watching Drew ride away was really hard and I had to adjust my expectations. I figured that I had to just ride consistent and not try to match anyone else. Near the top Drew passed me heading downhill. When I reached the top I was 3.5 minutes behind Drew. I topped off on water and was flying downhill. This is actually where I started to cramp. I was cramping behind my knees, something that has never happened to me before. I tried to keep good power to the pedals on the downhill and arrived to the feed about 2 mins after Drew had departed. I told Jenny I was suffering. She said Drew was going to ride slow to let me catch up to him. I didn't see him for the next hour. I was having real trouble eating at this point. I was 5.5 hours into the race and could barely choke down the sport beans I had. They were tough to chew and I was ending up with huge slugs of sugar in my mouth. I was also starting to get sick of drinking Gatorade Pro. I have always trained with Gatorade but today I was overloaded. I had a sqeeze bottle of PowerGel and that really made the differance. I arrived back at the Pipeline Feed and Drew was still there. I had made up some time. Jenny asked how I was doing and I told her, "I am fucking suffering". I think that's really exactly what was happening. All I could think about was plain water. Jenny had some and I slugged it down. When Drew and I departed I told him that I was now just riding to finish and that he needed to just ride his own race. He nodded and a mile later he was pulling away. The next few miles weren't too bad and then Powerline. I completely hit a mental wall at the bottom. I had to walk most of the bottom and once at the top (of the bottom) I realized just how much more climbing I had to do. Powerline on the way down is fun and fast. It didn't really hit me that Powerline is a series of three big steps. After topping the first step my heart sank. I spent the next hour suffering and just willing myself ot keep going. I seriously considered sitting down "for just a few minutes, you know, to gather myself" but in the back of my mind I knew that if I sat down it was game over. By the top of power and the decent back to the lake I was wasted. I was starting to gag on sport beans and my PowerGel wasn't much better. Gatorade was also starting to really piss me off. I just kept thinking about plain, cold water. Water. Water. Water. Water. Water.

I took turns spinning and mashing big gears on the pavement climb to the Carter Aid station. The alternating seemed to help as it worked different muscles. When I got to Carter I asked for plain water and they dumped a large glass of water over my head and back. It instantly turned my race around. I jumped away from the aid station and was feeling strong and confident again. It was too late for me to make 9 hours but I was hammering away anyhow. I flew down the descent and hammered away at the flats below town with a group of 5 other guys. On the final climb to town I put it in the big ring and just mashed gears through gritted teeth. When I turned on to the pavement and could see the finish I got tears in my eyes. I felt like giving up so many times and was just so happy to have made it. I blinked a couple of times, clicked in to 44-11 and just hammered the last mile to the finish. I kept going faster and faster and was flying towards the finish. The crowd was going nuts and I felt like superman. I sat up, zipped my jersey and threw my arms in the air.

My immediate response to the race was, I am glad it's over, cross it off the list. Never doing it again. Period.

The next day I reflected on where things went wrong. Mostly training. More dedication to diet and long rides. Next, Food. More gel and fewer chewy things. Also, maybe take an extra mintute at the feed zones to eat a pastry / baked good. Lastly, WATER. Can't go on just energy drink.

By Monday morning I was excited to enter the race again and thrash 9 hours. Hope I get in...

My wife was so awesome and supportive and there was no way I would have done as well without her. She is a constant source of inspiration and was always in good spirits. Thanks Babe! I love you!

So, next year I hope to get in and will beat the 9 hour mark. If I don't get in I already have an alternative race planned, Pierres Hole at Grand Targhee (7000 more feet of climbing than Leadville).

Pictures to be posted on Facebook.

Good ride

Today was a good day on the bike. 90 miles with 6 guys. Averaged 19 and didn't hit any major hills until the end. Finished the ride with a tour up Bridger Canyon. Windy day. Recovery ride tomorrow and lots of time in the office. Legal paperwork and other not-so-fun activities.

Jenny went road biking in Yellowstone National Park today. It's open only to cyclists right now. 3 hour ride with her sis. She said it was cold but really fun.

This is at mile 75 on Sheeps Hill. I am almost on empty and starting to think about the food in our cupboards. Only held on for a few minutes, lucky for me the few minutes ended at the top... Started to get that barf reflex right as we crested the hill...

Stuff is happening

Riding: Check
Working: Check
Working more: Check
Eating: Check
Sleeping: Sometimes

Life is good. Busy with many, many plans. Finally organized myself and created a Design 5 "to do" list. 47 items that need attention. Good to have all of these items out of my head and on to paper. Time to get out the red pen and check some items off.

Jenny and I have made some fun plans for this summer. First exciting trip is to Moab. We are going over Memorial Weekend. Two and a half days in Moab should be epic. Going to do one big mtn ride and one big road ride. Also two smaller rides with Jenny. I think she is more excited than I am because she has been there and loved it. I haven't been so I don't know what I am missing...

Second fun trip is to MN (for me). Going to see my brothers new daughter who is due in late June. Time with Ben, Erin and Gretta and then some Troy time at the cabin. Bringing my pooch Mario to MN to introduce him to the north woods. He may live there someday so I need to make sure he likes it.

Jenny is spending her July in Alaska, without me. She is leading a hiking trip for NOLS and isn't allowed to carry human and canine baggage with her. Oh well...

Our last fun trip is to the Beartooth Wilderness where we hike each year. Not sure of the route yet. The trip will be four days over the labor day weekend.

Biking is going swimingly. Power is increasing. Time on the bike is increasing. I think it takes me about an hour to warm up on a road ride. This is really frustrating since my friends like to hammer out of the gate. Pain for me, fun for them.

No pics. Too bad for you!

Getaway

Jenny and I needed some R&R so I surprised her with a trip to Chico Hot Springs. We took off early Friday morning and headed to the Paradise Valley and drove directly to Mill Creek. This is a beautiful east/west valley that sees a lot of logging so there is a great network of roads criss crossing the mountains. We skiied uphill for almost two hours before we took a break. We packed cookies and hot chocolate and enjoyed the views (with Mario of course). We had the entire drainage to ourselves and didn't see anyone until the last ten minutes of the trip, near the trailhead.

After the ski tour we checked into our cabin at Chico, donned our swim trunks and hit the hot spring pools. The air was very, very cold so the pool was very, very steamy. There were not many people around yet so it felt like we had the pools to ourselves. Very quiet and relaxed.

We ate dinner at the Chico Lodge. Jenny had a 4 oz fillet and a 4oz Mahi Mahi. I had the rack of Lamb. Both were amazing. I topped it off with a fresh baked apple crisp. Jenny had a flaming tower of maringue, set on an orange filled with chocolate and vanilla ice cream infused with orange stoli. We found it interesting that they serving a flaming tower of desert inside of a 120 year old lodge with ancient drapes and woodwork...

Jenny discovered that our cabin had a magic tub that shot water jets and bubbles out of its sides. I didn't see her the rest of the evening...

Saturday morning was another big ski tour day. We spent the late morning / early afternoon touring in Emmigrant Gulch. We again had the drainage completely to ourselves. This erea sees no logging and the mountains are much more rugged, despite being only 5 miles south of Mill Creek. We skied on a mine road that was cut in more than 100 years ago. There are three abandoned mines about 11 miles back, near the tops of three different peaks. We skied about 4 miles back to where the roads head straight up the mountain sides. We feasted on more cookies and hot chocolate and watched Mario fall asleep sitting up. It was his third day in a row of major ski trips and he was worn out.

After skiing was again dipped into the hot springs and at some bar food. We finished the trip off with dinner at the Rib and Chop House in Livingston. Great trip!!!!

Today I got out with Ryan for some faster paced training on the skis. We were out for 3.5 hours in the Bozeman Creek Drainage. I burned 2300 calories which meant a guilt free enchilada eating contest this evening.

6 months later...

Bozeman, we have a problem....

Not really. How can I complain about going on a 40 mile road ride on January 4th with a great friend and training partner? Ryan and I put in some time on the tarmac on Sunday. Quiet roads, blue sky and no mechanicals.

The last six months have been good. Design 5 has been gaining clients and we beat our first year goals and we still have two months to go! We are opening up our marketing campaign to MN so we can spend more time at home. Anyone in MN need landscape design, planning, graphic arts, presentation materials, or anything creative from two talented folks in Bozeman? Check on us at www.design5landscapes.blogspot.com or on Facebook at Design 5 Landscapes!!!! We have a website coming soon as well...

Bike racing in 2009 was almost non-existant. I did three cross races and absolutely sucked wind in all of them. Oh well. What's unfortunate is that the only weakness I can point to is my bike handling. I need to practice, practice, practice! I did make a breakthrough discovery with tire selection. I rode tubular clinchers this season which made a huge diference with handling and grip. "Discovery" isn't right. My brother has been beating me over the head, trying to get me to ride some good cross gear. He has been on tubulars for two seasons and can't believe I was rolling on clinchers. I am slow to change. So, I now have two sets of tubular wheels for 2010. One set of Ultegra tubulars and one set of Zipp 303s. Even so, these nice wheels won't do anything but lose fabulously if I don't seriously improve my handling skills. Timid McGee on the race course.

On the upside, this year was one of the most fun on the mountain bike! The Trek made it through the season without any mechanicals and I flatted only once. I felt like superman in August and was firing on all cylinders on the dirt. Ryan and John were great riding partners and I hope this coming season is as fun. I registered for Leadville 100 and have a couple of connections for getting in... Let's hope they work. I am very excited for it and have set the goal of sub 9 hours. Ryan and Drew are registered as well and everyone is in full training mode.

Christmas was fun and busy, despite having "no plans". Ben and I hit Theo Wirth on the Pugs. That was a real blast and wish we had more time to spend churning snow.

Jenny and I ate a ton of food, enjoyed some time in St. Cloud, went to museums, saw the Bodies exhibit at the MOA, had a sushi blowout at Origami, gorged at Cafe 128, ate Blucys at the Blue Door, swallowed House of Pizza with recklous abandon, sipped on some great Belgian White ales, at approx. 40 peanutbutter / hershey kiss cookies, ate one pan of my moms nut roll bars, hung out with Tomas and my sis, helped Jim and Nancy with a landscape plan, signed wills, visited Granny Franny, saw Mike "The Godfather", watched South Park, went to Avatar, visited the MN Zoo, got my sisters car sideways doing only 20mph, hung with the Hawkins, drove my dads tractor, set up my parents new TV and hardly slept at all.

Hope this finds you all well!

What's tha haps

I don't remember a lot of what has happened since the last time I blogged. So, I will just start where I am now...

Heading to MN tomorrow. The BRO is getting married on the 18th. My lovely wife left this morning to drive home with her dad. They are shuttling my road bike home with spare wheels. A friend of mine called for pointers on how to get his wife to drive his bikes around the country while he flies...

This coming week is sure to fly by. Saturday AM road ride with brohonzzle then an evening full of grilling and beer swilling. I have received notice that several people are concerned by the idea of overindulging in barley pop and then riding bikes through the cities. I agree. Outcome to be determined...

Sunday I am accompanying my wife and Liz to the cabin to two days in the north woods. Think I will leave the road bike behind and focus my energy on catching fish and grilling hot dogs.

Back Tuesday for the Tuff Ride. I am scared...

Wednesday is Donut Ride. This is a ride from Highland Park through dowtown Minneapolis, to the Lakes, to Minnehaha Parkway. Stop at Mellow Glaze Donuts for a time-out. This is where I proposed to Jenny so she is really looking forward to the ride.

Thursday Mtn Bike race at Buck. Last mtn race I did was in St. Cloud two years ago. Mike knows how well I did there...

Friday is party night at Gasthous (sp?).

Saturday. Wedding!

Sunday. Recovery ride and grilling.

Monday back to Bozeman.

In biking news:

Managed to shave a full minute off my best time up Hyalite Canyon.

New Zipp 303's are f***ing awesome.

Scored second place at the Beartooth Pass TT. 22 miles, 3,700 ft of climbing.

Strong is building me a new ti cross frame as I am not too psyched with the one I have now. I love the 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Garmin-Slipstream pint glasses showed up today. There are going to make me much faster.

Ben checked out a BMC Pro Machine from Quality for Jenny to ride. Full Super Record and Easton tubulars. 13 pound super bike. Will I be able to get jenny back on her Salsa???

Do you ever get tired of...

hearing about this economy...these troubling times...due to the economic slowdown...the meltdown....the crisis...the bad credit...the liquidity problems...the golden parachutes...the capital needed...the stress tests...recession proofing...the recession...profit taking...deal seeking...these economic times...

I am ready to vomit. If everyone would just turn off their stupid TVs and stop listening to inflamatory pricks like Savage, Ingrahm and Limbaugh we might all be better off. No one knows what to do, so deal with it. Stop bitching, it doesn't help anything. It's so easy to be critical. We are all professionals at that.

If you are going to argue about the realities of global warming at least know the basic tennants of the argument. I work around a bunch of people who shit on every Democrat / liberal / independants name every time it snows. So much for global warming, huh? Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle... I don't consider myself a crusader, an eco-nazi, a peacenik, a granola, a greenie or even much of a liberal; but I do consider logic and reasoning to be the building blocks of discussion. At least have a clue before you open your mouth and spout off. And racist jokes aren't funny; grow up. Everyone is different, deal with it.

Went around town today and handed out flyers for my new company to architects around town. Some people were genuinely interested and some people just politely smiled through their teeth and showed me the door. I hate being that guy...

On the upside the new team kits arrived a couple of days ago. I like the new design (since I created it) and the gear fits really well. I liked the process of working with Hincapie. The are easy to work with, the design process was easy, you can do any number of colors you like for one price. The downside is that one price is steep. Jersey and shorts for $176.

Biking is not going well this year. I have been too tired to bike most nights and when I do get out and ride I go hard. Right now I really only have a two hour tank and when I hit that mark I am empty. But I guess being able to maintain 170 bpm for 1.5 hours is still ok. Last weekend the GAS boys put the leather to me and made me suffer. Doing 2000 ft of climbing at 18-20mph is NOT easy. At the start of the third climb I waved the group past and limped home. This weekend should be good for riding. The goal this year is to be good middle of July...I have time.

I am going to try to get some office time at the home theater job. I want to set up a complete Autocad library and start to make our drawings look pro. We need to distinguish ourselves from the competition and I think this is one way to do it. I think we should show that we are on the same playing field as architects. Architects convey their thoughts and ideas through drawings and we can do the same. Hopefully less wire pulling for me and more time on the computer.

Well, I am out of finger strength. Little bit of rant in there. Hope all is well !