The Chronicles of Just Another Bike Racer

Wowzers

2011-04-15T10:01:00.000-04:00

When you have cool sponsors, you get cool things.

Presenting my snazzy new Oakley Jawbones. These eye candy are Marian Uni. colors. How cool is that?!

Fortunately they are also Pacers colors. On the other hand they are, unfortunately, Pacers colors

Smooches!

Horrifying!

2011-04-14T11:56:00.000-04:00

Just saw that six people found my blog by searching for "horrifying images" and eight by searching for "Joseph Kukolla". Sooooo... cool.

Moorseville Crit

2011-04-13T11:45:00.000-04:00

Puffer. He'll sit on you.

Chad. He'll light you up.

Just wrote this for the team. Enjoy.

It ended up being a nice day so Chad and I decided to ride to the race from home. After getting to the race, Chad Puffer and I devised a diabolical and ingenious race strategy. Make it "hard as balls". So that's what we did.

After an onslaught of attacks from Birdman and Puffdaddy (30 mins in) I countered on top of the hill and flew the coop. After being joined a lap later by Nuvo (JJ), Panther (Hamilton) and Marian (Danny) we quickly established a sizable gap from the field. For the next few laps I floated the break in hopes of being joined by Chad and/or Puffer. We were eventually informed that there was a chase group a few dozen seconds behind (w/Chad). It was apparent that JJ and Hamilton didn't want this group to catch so as we were lapping the main field(w/Puffer), I launched an attack and yelled at Puffer to get booking. Puffer's and my attack seemed to work momentarily but a little later my breakaway compatriots caught back on.

Before I knew it, they were giving us two laps to go. It caught us all by surprise, which I knew didn't give JJ much more time to attack and it was pretty obvious that he wanted to go before the sprint. With one to go JJ went on the offense on the hill. But there was no way that he was going to break loose of Puffer's (Hitler-esque) iron fisted grip. Going into the last 500 meters Puffer was leading it out and dropped me off at the perfect 300 uphill meters to go. As Ricky Bobby would say, "Slingshot engaged". I took the sprint by a proverbial mile, finishing off the team's incredible work. Chad decimated the chase group to grab fifth.

Then Puffer and I lit Chad up on the ride home.

The end.

Elite Track Nats

2010-10-04T15:17:00.000-04:00

I just got back from a successful showing at Elite Tracks. My main goal heading into it was to win the Individual Pursuit. I ended up getting 5th in the Kilo(3rd U23) 2nd in the Team Pursuit and 1st in the Pursuit!!!

I just got back to Indy and now I'm catching up on school since I haven't been to classes in about 2 weeks. The past few weeks have been pretty stressful but it's all paid off.

I'll get the exciting details out later. Now, rest and recovery.

Track Nats

2010-08-27T13:30:00.000-04:00

If anyone still reads this thing, Collegiate Track Nats are being held in Indy this year. My target events are going to be The Kilo, Pursuit, and Team Pursuit. (With one event still in question. Hopefully it's the Points Race.) They go on from Sep 22-26. The theme is more cowbell so bring out the cowbell. We're trying to get the stands packed so hopefully I'll be seeing you there.

School

2010-08-24T18:14:00.000-04:00

School is in now. And so far so good. Between that and tearing up the track nothing much is going on.

Things are changing and I like this kind of change. Could I be anymore vague? Yes. Yes I can. Just like that one time at that one place with those people. Yeah. Good times.

I don't see the point to this post but I felt like updating.

Well...

2010-07-07T20:25:00.000-04:00

Well... I've been bike racing, schooling, and getting all googly eyed with my lady. And that pretty much brings you all up to date.

School is bleh. I don't like it but I'm trying to get it out of the way.

Bike racing was bleh, but now I'm getting pretty good again.

Here's what I wrote from Grandview.

It once again was a sweltering hot day, with the temperatures hovering around in the mid 90s. I liked the course a lot; there was a long hill where the finish was followed by a technical downhill which looped right back around to hit the hill again. I would compare it to a more grander and upscale Melon City. The race started with a flurry of attacks, as expected. We were trying to cover as many promising attacks as possible until Jeremy got away (about 10 laps in) with an Aerocat rider and a recycling rider. This would have been nice had Panther and Mountain Khakis been present in the break but since not they were attacking and countering out the "wazoo" to bridge a man up there. Jeremy's move eventually got brought back and it was once again down to the constant attacks from Aerocat, Panther and Mtn. Khakis. I decided I had to ride in the front to not be caught out in any splits, especially since the field had shrunk in half. I tried to keep Cleve. Clinic - RGF/Felt presence in the majority of the breaks, but of course I missed the one move that stuck with 8 laps to go (Aerocat and Panther). As the group was settling down for a group sprint with 6 to go I launched one last ditch effort to bridge up to the breakaway on top of the hill. I got a gap so I kept working it and almost actually got up to the front group. I brought the gap down to about 10 seconds but then they turned on the afterburners and I was stuck out in the dreaded "no-mans land". So I put my suffer hat on a dug deep to stay away from the field for a 3rd place on the day. To give you an idea of the attrition rate of this race, we started the crit with 'round about 60-70 guys and only 20+ finished.

Fitchburg was last week.

I was lucky enough to stay At Jeremy Power's place for the few days leading up to the race. That guy is the absolute coolest person I have ever met. One of my "boyfriends" as Sierra would say. I definitely had a blast hanging out with him.

The form was going pretty good leading up to this race so I was expecting a lot from myself.

I was feeling fantastic on fire for the circuit race. Not even needing to get out of my big ring for the climb, I thought I was going to have a "money" day. Not to be. With 6 laps to go someone dumped it in front of me after the feedzone. I had no where to go but over, up and down. Straight down. Now I have never had a crash like this. I didn't slide. I just hit the ground. I had barely any road rash but I did get the wind knocked out of me. I pounded my shifter back into place then set out to give chase for half a lap, right about until my body said "Oh yeah, forgot to tell you, but that cement you just body slammed was harder than you." I began to feel all the pains. I still couldn't breath, I couldn't pedal with my left leg, and I couldn't hold onto the bars with my left hand/arm. I waited for the group to come back around, hung in with them and finished at the back.

Afterwards, I stumble over to the EMTs. They check me out and diagnose me with several broken ribs, a shattered hip, a collapsed lung and possibly a broken collarbone. Ouch. Tyler Karne's parents end up taking me to the ER, because I can't drive my truck (which happens to be a stick). We waited for 7 hours until I could finally be seen. I got a few x-rays done and fortunately nothing was broken. Whew! I just had deep major bruising to my hip, shoulder, back, and arm. I finally got home around 2 in the morning and passed out stone cold.

I'll keep the rest short because that was the most exciting part and I'm starting to get bored with being bored.

I decide to start the road race just to see what would happen. I didn't want to drive back another 15 hours with only getting 2.5 hours of racing in. So we start, I'm sore, and I finish in the main group. Not bad.

The TT could have gone better. The sore story once again and ended up with a weak 60-something place.

I mixed it up a little bit in the crit a few times, going with attacks but the heat and bruises caught up with me for once again, another lame pack finish.

I proudly made the trip home with only one stop (for an hour nap) and got in by 9 am. Now I'm home trying to get all healed up and get prepped for the NRC in Grand Rapids this weekend. More importantly I get to hand out with The Circle from school. (My best friends, Joe Kukolla, Zach McBride, and David Williams) We're gonna go boating, get into shenanigans, and have a blast. Can't. Freaking. Wait.

Now I'll update again if I feel like it. If not, oh well. It's my blog and I do what I want.

Thanks for reading.

Whatever.

2010-07-07T16:41:00.001-04:00

I do what I want.

Pic Dump Cont'd

2009-04-15T15:24:00.000-04:00

Team Amurica!!!! The stage's efforts show. The bros rode their hearts out.
It's Business Time

A big thanks to Casey Gibson!!!!!

Pic dump

2009-04-12T04:20:00.000-04:00

Feeling fine

2009-04-12T04:18:00.000-04:00

As it turns out I'm still in the jersey. The head "ref" messed up the results big time. Its whatev. I'll hopefully get a new jersey, flowers and trophy when we go to the race today.

The stage today will be even harder than yesterday's. But I'm ready for it. Bring it on Belgium.

Wow....

2009-04-11T02:40:00.000-04:00

I still can't believe it. For those of you who don't know, I won the prologue at the Ster can Zuid-Limburg.

The team rode freakishly fast with placing everyone in the top thirty.

Its going to be a challenge keeping the jersey but if I don't ride like an idiot, we should be able to "slay" it. Today's stage is 120 km. Not too sure what the profile is. All the time gaps are pretty small, so every time sprint and gap will be vital to keeping the yellow.

The stage won't start until later today so we'll get to get breakfast-ride-then get some lunch. I'll try and keep you(my three loyal bloggers) up to date with all the shizzle that hits the fan.

Wish me luck!!!!!

Euroland

2009-03-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

T-Minus 10 days and counting until I leave for the Motherland. (Home is wear the heart is.) The form is coming along great, and the school is going just ok. It was tight hanging out with the blood brotha, Bennet, for an entire 2 weeks. Hes heading out for a week in Triny and Tobagy in the next few days. Good luck to ya!

I have two more weeks of racing here in the US and I'm gonna make them count. The Marian team leaves for Notre Dame in a few hours. I'm gonna try and squeeze a ride in before that. The RR on Sat is called the Chip and Seal Classic...... Pretty self explanatory. Its 70 miles. Don't know what kind of course it is. It should be a pretty good test for some of the stages we're gonna do in Europe. Then Sunday is just a round downhill crit. Should be a blasty blast.

I'll post up some pics when I get back to the dorm.
Cha!

Har Har

2009-02-23T22:04:00.000-05:00

Mr. Sexymanbeast desecrating the fruits of my labor

Swagtastical

2009-02-22T23:08:00.001-05:00

Grab Life By the Horns.......

2009-02-18T13:25:00.000-05:00

And hit a few bikers while your at it.

Or was the slogan, Built for..... tough guys to nail?

Pile O' Bikes

2009-02-18T13:09:00.000-05:00

Looks like I got myself a pile O' bikes.

Took the TT bike and Slick Mick out yesterday for a good old thrashing. Now my legs hurt and I think I need to adjust some parts on the TT rig. Off to class now.

Biggest load of......

2009-02-17T10:41:00.000-05:00

B***S*** I have ever seen....

A certain Union should go fornicate with a bunch or porcupines.

Tasty

2009-02-16T13:21:00.001-05:00

Mmmmmm. Can't you just taste the mullet?

Finished with classes today. Bout to head out for an easy ride. The next 3 weeks are gonna be rough.

Pain in the A**

2009-02-15T21:47:00.000-05:00

Now this just has to be a pain in the A** to adjust for the Wrenches. Sucks for them.

New Bling

2009-02-15T12:37:00.001-05:00

Yes, I already have a name for it. Is it appropriate for the blog? Nope.

Giant is the bomb.

True Character

2009-01-31T19:03:00.000-05:00

Now here is a real man

Shawn Crawford.

X Worlds

2009-01-29T17:16:00.000-05:00

And my 2 cents for the finish is that its gonna come down between Lars and Sven. I'd like to see Boom Boom win again but I think Nys will get the better of him. And now you know.......

Creeping

2009-01-29T17:13:00.000-05:00

Look whos macking it up with the Belgies.....

J-Pows haha

Wow

2009-01-24T08:06:00.001-05:00

B.E.A.S.T

I was wondering if he could pull it off. Class act.

In other news....

2009-01-21T10:44:00.000-05:00

This guy has taken up to scaring kangaroos

While this guy is trying to quit smoking

In other new.... we now know this guy is human.

*Meaning that he suffers like a normal human being.

Pro tour embarrassment

2009-01-11T09:28:00.000-05:00

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

beast.

Smoking

2008-12-05T16:03:00.000-05:00

Guess who makes a striking young lady....

Brad Nelson..........

I give her a 10.

Tear

2008-11-04T17:26:00.000-05:00

Why do "my opponents" like to try and make me cry?

http://nathanjwilson.blogspot.com/

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!

2008-10-31T22:34:00.000-04:00

Michael Phelps Yo!

(actual size)

I am such a G.

You're welcome Karnes.

Common Sense Epiphanies

2008-10-29T23:58:00.000-04:00

A common sense epiphany is when you know something in the back of your mind but it doesn't really hit you or you don't realize the fact until you've experienced it first hand. I have just had a common sense epiphany. It even inspired me to get out of my nice and cozy bed at midnight to share with the world.

Stupid people do stupid things.

See? Common sense things, that don't come to fruition until you have dealt with them for yourself in a real world situation.

Here's a complemented thought-

Is it the stupid person that make the things stupid or is it the stupid things that the person does to make him/her stupid?

Tell me what you think.

Quote of the day

2008-10-15T11:05:00.000-04:00

"He closed the door. So I nearly fell, and I had to stop my sprint, I had to tell him because we don't do that in sprints. He's young, and he must learn."

Common Tommeke. It's called bike racing.

http://cyclingnews.com/road.php?id=road/2008/oct08/sluitingsprijs08

Good Day/Bad Day

2008-10-12T17:10:00.000-04:00

Good Day

Not So Good Day

(Power Test)

And I didn't even know that Power Taps could spell CHUMP. Well, you learn something new everyday.

Finally!

2008-10-11T22:09:00.000-04:00

About time. I may have to start eating more fortune cookies.

Rare........yet awesome

2008-10-10T17:29:00.000-04:00

Not too often do you get cat-called on rides here in Indy. Even better was that it was a chick this time. Needless to say it made my day. Sad isn't it.

reverse reverse

2008-10-06T14:15:00.000-04:00

Ok I changed my mind.

Change of scenery

2008-10-06T10:25:00.000-04:00

Time for a title change to go along with a change of scenery. Maybe I'll change it back maybe I won't. I liked the old name but certain circumstances have forced me to acclimate. I know this doesn't make any sense to some of you. But maybe its meant to, maybe its not. Tell me what you think.

Dire Need!

2008-10-01T13:57:00.000-04:00

Hey all, I am in need of personal sponsorship. I have some special plans in the making and if you are interested in helping me out, (ie-$$$) shoot me an email for further inquiries at leibosuperfast@yahoo.com

Thanks for your help!!!

Joko, don't even think about it.

Wedding dance off

2008-09-30T20:54:00.000-04:00

Just watch it.

http://www.boreme.com/boreme/funny-2008/evolution-of-wedding-dance-p1.php?n

So Pro

2008-09-30T16:21:00.001-04:00

Get some.

Ninja/Demon Cat

2008-09-28T21:39:00.000-04:00

Sorry I couldn't upload it but, this scared the living begeezus out of me.

http://video.yahoo.com/network/100000086?v=3510825

It's a start(again)

2008-09-27T20:02:00.000-04:00

ADAM LEIBOVITZ
2008 Race Resume (U.S.)
My name is Adam Leibovitz and I am from Indianapolis Indiana. My racing age will be 18 in 2009 and this has been my 5th year of racing. I raced in Europe with the Junior National Team this year as well as The Junior World Road Championships. I achieved one of my long time goals this year by winning the National Time Trial.

Contact Information: email: leibosuperfast@yahoo.com

Bio: Height: 6'3" Weight: 175 lbs /80kgs

Contacts
Dean Peterson- Marian College Cycling/ Personal Coach:

Benjamin Sharp- USAC Junior National Team Coach:
Mario Camacho- Previous Team Director

DATE RACE CATEGORY PLACE
2/16/2008 Mentor RR Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 19th

3/01/2008 Le Sprit Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 6th

3/15/2008 Acton Lake RR Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 5th

4/5/2008 Marian Crit Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 7th

4/13/2008 Kruse International Victory Crit Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 1st

4/19/2008 Ceraland Cat 3s (ABR) 2nd

4/20/2008 Moorsville Circuit Race Cat 1,2,3s (ABR) 1st

4/26-27/2008 Tour of St Louis Cat 3s (USCF)
4/26/08 Crit A 43rd
4/26/08 TT 1st
4/27/08 Crit B 1st
Tour of St Louis Overall 4th
5/3/2008 Winona Lake RR Cat 3s (USCF) 1st

5/4/2008 Winona Lake Crit Cat 3s (USCF) 1st

6/29/2008 Monrovia 20k TT Open (ABR) 26:02

6/29/2008 Zionsville Crit Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 7th

7/3-6/2008 Fitchburg Lonsjo Classic Juniors (USCF)
7/3 TT 1st
7/4 RR 29th
7/5 CR 19th
7/6 CT 12th
Fitchburg Lonsjo Classic Overall 9th

7/14/2008 Red River Gorge TT (Worlds Qualifier)(USCF) Juniors and Overall 1st
7/27/2008 Monrovia 20k TT Open (ABR) 26:30

8/06/2008 USA Cycling Jr. National TT (USCF) 1st

8/16/2008 Mass Ave Crit Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 13th

8/17/2008 West Clay Crit Cat 1,2,3s (USCF) 1st

8/23-24/2008 Indy Stage Race Cat 1,2,3s (ABR)
8/23 Ft Harrison RR 5th
8/23 Fall Creek 4.5 mile TT 1st*
*Course record 8:57
8/24 State Fairgrounds Crit 7th
Indy Stage Race Overall 2nd

8/29/2008 Major Taylor Hot Summer Nights Scratch RaceCats1,2s(USCF) 1st

8/30/2008 W. Lafayette RR Cat 1,2,3s(USCF) 3rd

UCI/ EUROPEAN CAMPAIGN
BEST RESULTS
Ronde Von Axel 5/16-18/2008 9th in the TT

Trofeo Karlsburg 5/22-25/2008 14th in the TT

Pay de Vaud 5/29-6/01/2008 53rd in the TT

Junior Road World Championships 7/21-23/2008 42nd in the TT (with a big fat mechanical)

La Abitibi Coup de Nations 7/31-83/2008 1st on Team GC, 3rd in the TT, top 20 Individual GC

Ouch.............Worlds off to a great start. The TT Part A

2008-07-19T03:49:00.000-04:00

We'll, I was all warmed up and at the start line then they were rolling my bike out and I looked up and Missy (one of the assistant coaches) was holding my rear derailleur cable and my bike in two different hands. It had snapped clean from my shifter. So this was 5 mins before my start and then Marc, the mechanic, had to change the cable. Even though he made the fastest cable in the history of bike-kind, I was still 3 mins late to my start. :( oh well. I really couldn't do anything about it, so I just tried staying chill. On the official results I received a 41st place 3 mins and 33.04 seconds down. Call me if you want to know my "virtual" time and place.

The RR is on Sunday so now I'm pumped for that!
One of the many quotes of the days- "Get Some!!!!!!!!!!"

Yep, I know its a pretty weird time to start updating this horrible blog but it's my blog and I do what I want!

Pics from Axel and Beyond

2008-05-19T15:13:00.000-04:00

Woops did these in the opposite order. I'll talk about it later.

Taking off!

Axel TT warmup

In the Netherlands, it's so windy they plant the trees as wind blocks.

COBBLES BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1,2 skip a few

2008-05-15T07:49:00.000-04:00

Yikes. Well the title sums it up. Got here in Europe a few days ago. The internet is really slow so thats going to be my excuse for the lack of updates.

Ronde Von Axel (Netherlands) starts tomarrow:
Stage 1- 100 km partially cobbled RR
Stage 2a- 7.8 km TT (technical)
Stage 2b- 100km RR
Stage 3-100km RR(?)

I just switched my PT over to kilometers, so thats a nice change. We've just been chilling here for the most part. Have some pretty awesome room-mates ( Matt Brandt, and Chris Montalone(?) ). All the other juniors are riding pretty strong(Nate Brown, Larry Warbasse, Danny Finnernan, Rob(z) Bush, and Scotty Tickemyer) Nate just off a big overall win in the biggest junior stage race in France with Hot tubs. Els couldn't find enough space to put all of his trophies.

We all went to Brugge a few days ago and during that;
1. "Somebody" lost their wallet
2. There was a bomb threat on the train
3. Snuck in some stores before they closed
4. Had a skimpy dinner
5. "Somebody" found their wallet
6. And almost got in a fight with a retarded, belgian, karate master on the way back to the house.

Today we did an hour easy coffee ride out to Kortijke. We're about to go out and test out the TT bikes for Sat. Alright, thats all for now. I also wanted to do a quick shot out to Dill. We miss ya bro!

Marian Crit+ Victory Crit. Lots more to come.

2008-04-14T19:53:00.000-04:00

Man, I've been slacking. I think I just haven't had too many good stories to tell recently. School is going down to the wire. With only 1.5 weeks left, the teachers have been loading on the projects and workload. It's pretty overwhelming sometimes, but in the end, I know I'll survive. Hopefully.....

So, about a long time ago was the Marian Crit, and the course was pretty decent. It was made up mostly of sweeper turns, with a loooooong finishing straight(700 meters-ish). Joe and I didn't have too much of a plan. The main goal was just to finish, since we both had just gotten back from training camps. It started out with a respectable field of about 50-60, but only 29 people would finish. The first lap I rolled off the front, mainly to get away from the first lap jitters of the peleton, and also to get warmed up. When we were brought back, the counters came and went yet, I found myself still in the top 10 ish. Then we got to the hard part of the race and I fell back and back and back, until I lost contact with the field. For about 3 laps I buried myself trying to bridge back up to the field. Thankfully, they slowed down enough for me to jump on, and move back up to the front.(Where Joe was.)

When I caught up to him we had a dialogue (with real time translations) that went a little something like this Joe-" Adam, how you feeling?"(Dear God!!!! How long is this race?!?!?!?) Me-" Not good."(Please save me!!!) Joe-"Yeah."(Oh Dang.) Anyways.....(its been a while since the race obviously and my "remembery banks" are not quite adequate. So, I'm gonna skip to the end.) Druber gets off the front with a few laps to go, and gets the win. I lead Joe out for the field sprint and he gets nipped by one of the pinstriped posse. I end up in 7th.

Main lesson of the day: (learned from the collegiate race)
Don't put your hands up 100 meters before the finish line IN A SPRINT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry Bennet.

Victory Crit....pretty appropriate name.... Well, it was cold, rainy, snowy, haily, and cold..... Did I mention that it was cold? It was an interesting venue. We first went out through a "tunnel" then raced for 70 mins, then finished by going back under the tunnel with 400 meters before the finish line. Joe and I didn't have too much of a plan(just like every other race) so we wung it(just like every other race). A pinstripe posse got away with Gary Painter (a very solid TT-ist from Koelinger) in the first 15 mins. I knew the move was dangerous, so I attacked into the headwind, to no prevail. I countered my attack and got off the front with 2 other strong racers(sorry, can't remember your names). We made the bridge to the front group within 2 laps, and continued to work the time gap, until we had about a min on the field. Just about then, Ben Weaver (from the pinstripe posse) flatted(made a junior move and did not have wheels in the pit). We then hammer even harder, because we thought Nuvo would be in hot pursuit. Never happened. We then gained even more time. With 10 laps to go we started cruising a little too softly and pretty soon we were back into the sight(and therefore mind) of the first chase group.

I thought then it would be a good time to test the waters and open up an attack. They brought me back in a lap but it stirred them(the breakaway) awake. We worked from then out pretty fluidly(just enough) to lose the chasers, and bid for a sprint finish. I had not ever raced with the guys in the break to know what their strengths were, so I just has to play to my own (semi) strengths. In other words I just waited for the sprint and launched it right out of the tunnel, to take the win!!!!!!!! It was such a relief to finally get a win on my belt. Man, it was cold right afterwards.

So much fun in too little time

2008-04-07T18:42:00.000-04:00

Two weekends ago was Hillsboro Roubaix. Dave Caughlin (Nuvo) and I made the haul out for Hillsboro. The 1,2s was 4 laps of a 22 mile loop with rolling hills, a gravel section and 2 blocks of "cobbles" right before the finish. The course was a blasty blast, but the racers and weather was going to make the going tough.

We started off in a frigid 40 degree haze, but right after we got rolling the temp warmed up significantly. Coming off of a semi easy week, I was hoping to get a decent result, but other parts of my anatomy were to say otherwise. I kept a top 5-15 spot position in the field in the first lap, while Matt Brandt was off the front with several attacks. At the start of the second lap I began getting some uncomfortable stomach cramps that just wouldn't subside. And before I knew it I was off the back not being able to pedal without the consequence of losing the white in my new bibs (if you know what I mean). Thankfully Dave pulled off seeing that I had lost contact with the field. Everyone knows that misery enjoys company. But not enough company in the World could have helped me with my gastro problem. After a few miles of trying to "walk it off", I just couldn't fight it off and had to pull in to some poor secluded person's yard and http://blip.tv/file/189853 (For an extremely entertaining description of a similar event by Bob Roll click on the link). All I can say is that it was a good thing no French family was behind me. I feel your pain Bob.

The race went on for every body else though;

Cat 3/4s

1- Chris Wallace-Mesa
2- James Vandeven-Gettagrip
3- Garrick Valverde -Mesa

Cat 1/2s

1- Steve Tilford

2- Brian Jensen

3- Adam Mills

.......

12- Matt Brandt- Mesa

20- Adam Lang- Mesa

If anyone knows if there was a photographer at the race leave me a message. Thanks!

Next report due: Tenn/Marian Crit.

Acton Lake Pics

2008-03-19T19:57:00.001-04:00

Pre race P.R.(Joe wanted to show off his new bling,{in the bottom right corner})

We we're both trying to eat.
Just before lift-off.

Lap #1: almost everyone is still together

Lap #2 Breaks start to go.

Lap #3: I was off for a while.

Lap #3: Joe doing his thing.

Lap #4: Still feeling fresh. Breakaway has about 1-2 mins on us.

Lap #4: Getting cold, and the break is loooong gone.

Lap 5(?): Sprint(a)

Sprint(b) Joe getting 2nd(by a long ways).

Sprint(c) Not quite there.

Until next time......."You stay classy, Planet Earth."

Acton Lake RR

2008-03-15T19:21:00.000-04:00

Nothing much has gone on for the past week or two. The CIBA Hinkle Field house rides have just started up again, and I got a new TT helmet. Pretty sweet! Today was the Acton Lake RR in Oxford, OH. It started out pretty chilly when Joe and I rode a warm up lap, but it got even colder as the race progressed, eventually raining in the end. There weren't too many people there, but the Alderfer & Bergmann guys made about half the field.

As soon as we start off some A&B guy attacked and ran out of gas, then another one attacked ,and another one attacked, and another one attacked, (etc. etc,) for the first lap until another A&B guy got away with a Pista Elite guy(sorry, I don't know every body's name), and they got a bit of a gap. The move didn't look too dangerous so Joe and I backed off for a half a lap. We then find out they have a minute on us, so we start pulling through, and for some reason another A&B guy attacked! That was it! If they want to play like that, we'll give it right back to them. Joe and I started attacking and somewhere I get a gap and try bridging up to the break, but by then the break had up to 3 mins on us. Dang. Those guys were booking. When I got pulled back only 5 guys were there, including Joseph, Depauw, Inferno, and 2 A&B. I sat in for a few minutes then started helping Joe pull. The A&B guys were pulling through, but they were obviously blocking. Because the break ostensibly was not gaining any ground, Joe and I decided to start up the fireworks. Two laps later of continuously attacking the break, it was apparent that we weren't going to drop anybody else.( 1 A&B either was dropped or flatted, I'm not sure) We just sorta gave up on going off the front. With one 9 mile loop to go, it started to rain and the temp dropped some more. Since I wasn't working as hard as the past laps, my body started shutting down(courtesy of the temperature drop). Joe absolutely destroyed the sprint(for second, once again) with A&B getting 3rd, Inferno 4th, and yours truly almost 4th. Pics will be up sooner than later.

I don't even know whats next.

Arnold Pics

2008-03-05T19:28:00.000-05:00

Let's do this!

Here we go.

Shak'n and Bak'n

Doing the back-of-the-pack leadout.

Joe Throwing Down The Gauntlet

The Arnold Challenge

2008-03-03T20:28:00.000-05:00

I think the best thing that happened during this race was actually seeing The Govenator. Yes, Arnold Schwarzenegger was there to start off the first race, but left in a hurry to important California business.(in Ohio?) Anyways, the course was a 1 mile 4 corner sketchy crit. The last turn had me the most worried; it was really sharp, really narrow, and a little bit of gravel on it. My goal was to race smart and not lose any skin. I decided, if it got too dangerous, I would bag it and save it for another day.

Thanks to a front row starting position, I was able to stay at the front for the first few laps. Around the 6th or 7th lap I let down my guard and faded to midpack, and started to panic a little(being in the middle of the pack is one of the last places I wanted to be on this course). Right then I saw Joe making his way to the front, and I did my best to grab his wheel. I lost his wheel but hitched a ride to the front from someone else. Then faded back and rode to the front and faded back etc, etc. After a while my mental block got the better of me and I decided to bag it. I hate quitting, but it's early in the season and I'd like to keep all of my present layers of skin right where they are.*

Joe put in some devastating attacks and round up finishing 11th. Not bad. Not bad at all for the only the 3rd month of the year. You guys better watch out for this playa. He's a lean, mean, clean, racing machine and hungry for a win this year. Grab yo glocks and run!*

*I'm pretty exhausted right now, and I'm sorry if some of this stuff makes lots of sense to nobody*

*exactly*

Next Up: The Henryville Classic

L Esprit

2008-03-01T20:16:00.000-05:00

L Esprit is a 9 mile, predominately flat loop with one "hill" or big roller. But that's where the move ALWAYS goes. Joe Kukolla, Weston Luzadder(ISCorp), and I made the trip down for the 1,2s. Joe and I played in conservatively for the first lap, but after nothing really was happening, we decided to try and shake things. Still nothing stuck. After another lap of relentless attacks (mostly from Texas Road House since they made up about 20% of the field), Weston got in a break with a Roadhouse guy and a Bolla guy. That break lasted for about half a lap until (for some reason) all 30 Bolla guys made it up to the front and reeled it in. Right after that a roadhouse guy attacked on the hill and I went with it. After hammering up the hill I was extremely grateful that my buds Joe K. AND Weston L. had made the break! I was especially surprised that Weston made it since he had worked pretty hard on the earlier break, he must have made a herculean effort not just to catch on but to start pulling. Now we're in a break of 7; w/3 road house guys(Rob Bush, Dirk Something, and Chad B), a Huntington guy, Joe, Weston and I. After we crest the hill we start motoring and gain significant time on the field almost immediately. For the next lap and a half we all work pretty smoothly, but with half a lap to go I look back and the field is not more than a minute back. When we got to the hill for the last time Dirk attacked like "a bat outta hell". I didn't even have a chance to respond before he was half way up. Joe did try to go with him but just couldn't quite hold his wheel. Great. Now the other RH guys are just going to sit on for the ride. Weston, Joe and I were doing all the work to try and bring him back but he would not be seen again untill after the finish. for some reason the Huntington guy never helped pull through in the last few miles, which was particularly irritating since he sprinted in the finale. In the sprint Joe took 3rd, Weston took 4th and I took 6th. The field was right on our trail and finished only a few seconds behind us. I was pretty pleased with the day's racing since we all made the break and I didn't get last in it. Whenever I find pictures, I 'll try and post 'em.

Next up: The Arnold Classic

Long time no see.

2008-02-22T12:40:00.000-05:00

Well, foremost and importantly, this blog is lame. I've let a lot of people down (along with myself) with not updating this thing. And since the racing is starting up again, I'll get back to business.

The racing started 2 weekends ago with the Mentor and Schabobele RRs. Mentor was a 60 mile rolling out and back course. Now, I had never done a race like this before. The course wasn't different, and the riders were the same. It was different because I never had to go to the front, not once. Only because Jake Rytlewski sat on the front and pulled for the entire race. Yeah, Jake is one of those undiscovered American talents, but he surely is making a name for himself with an overall win at Fitchburg in the pros, and a 2nd(?) overall in the Tour of the Bahamas. I cramped up in the last few miles and hung in for the finish, while JOE KUKOLLA almost won the darned thing! He won the field sprint but ran out of room to catch the IU guys that went off the front with .5 miles to go. Very nice!

Schobobele. Enough said. It was cold and rainy. Only about 20 guys showed up for today, but it was still meant to be an intense race. Just as expected, Jake went off the front in the first few miles, never to be seen again. I went off in a group of 4 guys, and the group stayed away for the rest of the race.....Too bad I had a flat half way through. Joe also had a mechanical and we were forced to head on home. I guess it just was not meant to be.

Great weekend of racing overall. Could have been better, could have been worse.

Next up....... L Esprit and Arnold

Mmmmmm....Bacon!

2008-01-19T18:43:00.000-05:00

Here's to bringing home the bacon

And here's to eating the bacon.

Pimp my ride

2008-01-13T21:58:00.000-05:00

Dents, dings and scratches: courtesy of Fed-Ex.

YIKES!!!!!!

2008-01-09T02:05:00.000-05:00

Wow, I guess it's been a while. Unfortunately it's too late to do a full post, so I'll get to it later. Right? We'll see.

Here's a little something-something to keep y'all hooked for a little longer.

http://www.hsstm-digital.com/hsstm/200801_indiana/
page 56, 57

High School Sports The Magazine did a little interview with me. Tell me what you think.

I promise, I'll at least try to get a in depth post of whats been happening. It will be long, it will be captivating, it will be epic. That is a guarantee.

Pic summary post

2007-12-18T18:44:00.000-05:00

Stay tuned in for the report.

STAY TUNED!!!!!

2007-12-18T00:08:00.000-05:00

I promise!!!!! I'm sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry!!!!!! I'll get a few posts up here pretty soon. I just have to buckle down for finals, then I'm free.

West Layfayette CX Challenge

2007-11-18T23:12:00.000-05:00

This race was a learning experience. You could call it other things, but that's what I'm sticking with. I was pretty psyched for it, since it was the first race for the bike and first A-Race for myself. It was hard. The course was a fun one. The first fourth of it was twisty and technical and the other 75% was an open bumpy grassy field. I was able to ride the entire course before the start, but I still didn't have too great of a feel for it. I knew I had to be in the top 5 within the first lap if I was going to be in the mix of it by the end. I also know that the starts are always fast and furious. Indeed, the start was fast but I was not furious enough. Going into the first corner I was 5th, but I was being a wuss through the technical section, and lost my position. I could have gone so much faster through that section. I have no idea what happened. By the second half of the first lap, I had lost contact with the field. Yet I tried to keep my losses at a minimum and just keep it consistent, hoping I could pick off a few guys by the end. No such luck. I thought at one point I was going to catch Andy Messner, then he went off like a bullet again. It turns out he had a flat.......I couldn't even catch him when he had a flat! Another performance of the day goes out to Remo Thomson. He's 15 years old, and he raced to an 8th place in the "B"s and jumped in the "A"s right afterwards. He suffered like a dog, but rode extremely strong. He had the exact opposite performance as I did. I didn't bonk, but I just couldn't corner like I usually would. It was a bummer, but I ended up with 9th place(out of 11 starters, with one of them flatting). The only good thing I have to say is that the bike handled like a dream...... now I just have to learn how to handle it like a dream. Oh yeah, I held off being lapped until the last 300 meters(and only by the top 3 racers). I was not 2 laps behind like it was stated on truesport. Not that it matters or anything but I'd just wanted to save myself a little dignity.

On another note, congratulations to Mario Camacho of MOB Squad and Adrienne Murphy of Mesa Cycles on winning the Argyle Jersey Level of the Slipstream Sports Youth Cycling Award. Next year I'll be racing for Mesa Cycles, based out of St Louis MO. I'll write up a report on the team later. I'm really tired.

Here are the pics:

2nd or 3rd corner

2nd half of the 1st lap

Can you say, "SLOW!!!!!!!!"?

A reversed cambered U-turn.

Through a loose dirt/barrier section.

After the barriers.

No excuses.

CX + surprise

2007-11-17T21:29:00.000-05:00

*Yellow legwarmers and rain jacket= Junior race
*Back legwarmers= B-Race

It was cold, rainy and muddy.....

but I still know how to have fun.

The U-turn with the tree. Lap one.

Reaching for the tree. We had a really good one(pic) of me in mid swing but "someone" deleted it. Bummer

Thats the big downhill in the first lap of the jrs

A few laps later

What fun.

Not me, but you get the picure.

Oh yeah.....

It's here.

Brookside CX/ IN state championships

2007-11-15T02:51:00.000-05:00

It was cold AND rainy AND freezing AND muddy AND cold. I don't really know how to describe the course completely, but there was a big downhill that was entirely torn up by the end of the jr race, a few muddy switchbacks, two barriers sections. One section was a U-turn with a tree in the apex, that you could grab and slingshot yourself around. I know its hard to imagine since I didn't describe it too well. But I have pictures to make up for my partial (complete) retardation.

I'm gonna try and keep these reports short, because all I remember is the mud AND the cold AND the wet. The junior race wasn't too messy at the beginning; but with 3 other races going on at the same time it got pretty slippery and muddy by the end. I escaped on the first lap and bagged the junior state championships. The 30 mins before my next race, I spent cursing the cold and trying to warm up in the truck. My mom's ear's MUST have been burning! I was forced out of the car within minutes of the B-men that contributed to my horrible starting position(3rd row back). At the start I couldn't get into my pedals until the race was 50 meters up the road. Right from the gun I was playing catch up. Fun...... At the beginning of the first lap I was dead last at 30something place, I think I moved up 10 places on the first lap. That still left 20 something more places to move up in the next 6 laps, but I burned a lot of energy trying to pass those ten guys. I think I was picking up about 4 guys a lap, but its really hard to remember because it was really cold AND wet AND muddy. With 4 laps to go Dad yelled at me to unclip my inside foot on the downhill to act as a counter balance. It looked silly but it really helped out with the "not falling" on your face in the foot deep mud. As the laps ticked down my machine's braking capabilities disappeared like an open jar of Nutella. On the downhill section of the last lap, I had to bail off the course in order to avert a head on collision with a solid looking tree, riping 3 sections of tape off the course in the mean time. I would rather the tape take the beating instead of my face through a tree. After that short little detour, I jumped right back on the bull(literally)just in time to get off the bull for the run up. Half a kilometer later I cruised in for what I thought was 20th something place.

Pretty disappointing, considering nationals are only 30 days away and counting. But I had only ridden 4 times since my 2 week break, so I'm using this as my excuse. I was pretty surprised when I saw the results and had actually finished 6th in the race, and 4th in the state( for all of you non racing-educated bumpkins, that means that 2 people from a state other than IN finished in front of me, since this was the state championships)

From now on I'm going to try and finish every one of my posts with a random tip or a acknowledgement to a person(or object) I think deserves a shout-out/recognition for any reason that I deem acceptable.

Tip Of the Post(TOP) Buyer beware: I just went through the third replacement of carbon FSA cranks. After two rides(including the race) the pedal inserts broke loose again! The pedals almost ripped away from the crank. Love their stems and bars. Hate their cranks!!!

Pictures later............

Dang.

2007-11-04T22:26:00.000-05:00

Oh well, at least they don't have any pressure to be undefeated. And who cares?!?!?! It's not even the playoffs . And when it does come down to the playoffs we'll have a fire in our bellies. Whatever..........

GO COLTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-11-04T19:14:00.000-05:00

Can you tell I've been on a break for 2 weeks?

Louisville USGP

2007-10-29T23:20:00.000-04:00

The USGP was so AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! I could only go on Sunday but, it was quite a show! I saw so many pros; from Pro Tour to Junior Champions. I took about 500 pictures, so I'll try to narrow down the amazing pictures from the really good ones.

Katie Compton

she won by about 2 mins.......freak

Lyne Bassette

Tim Johnson. As of now, he is the new Chuck Norris.

Ryan Trebon. Got his butt handed to him.

Barry Wicks.

There goes Horner.

Before the smack down.

The man with the hammer just visited Trebon.

Jeremy Powers. He's a pretty cool guy.

He's pointing to his wedding ring......not the double f-bomb.

Goeff Kabush. He's Canadian.

Danny Summerhill. Another freak.

PTI (Power Test Investigations)

2007-10-24T01:33:00.000-04:00

To this day power tests are known as the most inhumane torture methods known to human race. Power tests are actually outlawed in many 3rd world countries because of their cruel and unusual nature.

Signs that a power test has occurred-

Many half finished projects in hope of an excuse to not proceed with the test

The throwing of fits to prevent the indoor-trainer arrangement.

Excess of bodily fluids on the floor, walls, ceiling, etc

The most important factor in the power testing is the apparent lack of power

And here is the poor tool afterwards. What a chump..........a studly chump at that, I may add.

http://www.velonews.com/diaries/rider/articles/13347.0.html
just do it.

CX Pics

2007-10-16T21:39:00.000-04:00

Ok we got a new laptop. I can finally upload the cyclo pics!!!!!!!

Ride the slide

Just don't pay any attention to the guy laughing his behind off in the background

WHEW!!!!!!!!
Oh, the disappointment!

It was hot!

Fortunately, I like it hot!

I just realized how pale I am. Wow.

The sprint

It was bittersweet.

Post Hilly Action

2007-10-14T22:50:00.000-04:00

Ahhhh, another Hilly come, another Hilly goes. The weather was awesome this year! Saturday was pretty chilly, and today was pretty nice.

Saturday

We started out with a decent sized group on Sat, with a bunch of heavy hitters. There was Guy East, Joe Jukolla, Jake Rytlewski, Brad Nelson, Weston Luzzader, Dan Skinner, and a whole group of juniors and Mob Squaders. After we got warmed up, we just flew! We were to the half way pit stop in a little over an hour! I had so much fun. I felt pretty fresh by the end. We averaged 20 mphs for 50 miles, burnt 2000 kjls, had an avg of 240 watts, and a peak wattage of 1508. I was pretty let down on the tent sales, though. There were just no good deals.

Here's Brad(Mob Squad), Jake(front row, Rite Aid) Guy(Front Row, USA), Weston(ISCorp) ,Joe(2nd row, USA)

Sunday

I slept in a little today, and missed the main departure of riders, so it was just Dad and I for the most part. We first met up with Mr. Kukolla (Joe's dad), then a bunch of IU guys which I race with all the time. At the lunch break we saw Joe, Guy, Weston, some Nuvo guys, and some MOB Squad guys that I didn't get to ride with yesterday. I got to catch up with a lot of guys I don't see on a regular basis. So yeah, we be jamming. You guys are gonna hate me for not getting documentation of this but I saw an actual clown college today! I'm not even kidding! Man, I was a lucky guy today, especially when a bee flew straight into my mouth and all I got was some freaked out taste buds. We averaged 19.0 mph today, and I spent about 2200 kjls. Not a bad weekend of riding, considering I needed a racing break, and that I needed to spend some time with friends. It's all good!

Here's Brad's Tat

And here's to another Hilly Hundred

HILLY HUNDRED WEEKEND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-10-13T00:00:00.000-04:00

Its that time of year again! ITS FALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And what better way to kick it off than the Hilly Hundred! I don't know what it is about the Hilly but, it just revitalizes the mind and (if your lucky) the legs.

The weather's alter egos have been duking it out again. For the last few weeks the temperature has just been scorching. On this Monday's ride it in the low 80s, but this Thursday it was in the low 60s! INSANE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I finally got to try out my new legwarmers(that I got in early July), though. Its actually a nice change, getting to see your breath, instead of watching the sweat pour off your forehead.

I finally get to ride with people again! Joe K and Brad are finally off their little hiatus's. I was lucky enough to ride with both of them this week. Dad is back to his top form again, form where he left off in July. Actually, from when I took him out in a training accident over the summer. I'll just give you the play by play recount.

First, I hit the deck during a fast sprinting circuit.

Second, Dad hit me.

Third, Dad hit the deck.

Fourth, we slid.

Fifth, we slid.

Sixth, we slid.

Seventh, we stopped.

Eighth, I actually don't remember anything from Step 7 through Step 10, but I do remember showering off( you just can't forget the post crash shower), getting bandaged up, finding out Dad broke his arm, and taking MK out for a date. But anyways.....

Yeah, Dads back to ripping the legs off of little boys. I can't wait to see some people I haven't talked to in a while, and I really just can't wait to ride some hills! I think I'll be riding with the MOB Squad group. We'll be starting from the big tent around 9:00. If you see me and I don't see you just give me a holler. I'll be happy to ride with ya! Oh yeah, our lap-top with all the pictures on it is toast now, but fortunately all the pics were backed up on a hard drive. Unfortunately, it'll be a little bit until I can get them up, but on the other opposite reverse flip side, I'll hopefully have pics from this weekend!

Cross Chronicles #2

2007-10-11T18:40:00.000-04:00

Sorry it took so long to get this up and posted. These week of school was crazy hard. So, without any further adu(?).........

This week I continued my cyclo-cross campaign to Yellow Springs Ohio. This course was so AWESOME!!!!!!!! It was flat, "critty", had only one barrier section and 2 (short) short track sections. It was great! We got there about 2 hours before the junior race. Even though it was early in the morning, it 90 degrees(in October!)!!!! I felt like I was going to melt, and I was only chilling in the truck. Did I say it was hot?!?!?! There were 2 groups that started 1 minute in front of us. The junior race started extremely fast. I was held up at the start, and put on the chase for 2 laps. On the last last I caught the lead masters group and posed for the cameras at the finish line. Juniors took the 1st and 3 place overall!!!!!!!!!

After the juniors I just couldn't cool down. It was scorching!!!!!!!!!! Before I knew it, it was time to suit up for the "B" race. I had a front line starting position but, once again I just couldn't get clipped in right away. I started maybe 7 guys back. During the first lap I picked off 2 or 3 guys, and by the third lap the break had been established and thankfully I was in it. I eventually move up to 2nd wheel and cruised there while the guy in front just hammered. He never motioned to me to help or anything, so I was way too happy to let him do the work. The race up to now had been pretty smooth and consistent, almost as if it had a rhythm to it. With 3 laps to go we were rounding a reverse cambered turn when the guy in front of me just flipped over the bars! I barely managed to get around him but, lost all of my momentum. This happened right before one of the short track sections, so nobody was really able to move up or make up lost ground. I'm going to be honest, I stepped on the gas a little bit. I know it wasn't the "gentleman" thing to do but, I got excited. So I put on the pressure for the next 2 laps and slimmed the group down to two other guys. On the last lap one of the guys puts in an attack and I just couldn't completely reel him back. The only other survivor of the break took the lead with 100 yards left and tried to get away after the technical section, but I held on and took the sprint for second.

I actually felt less gassed in the "B" race then in the juniors. Weird how things turn out, isn't it? I'll get the pics up later.

YEAH BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-10-05T09:24:00.000-04:00

Can you say Beijing 08?

Thats what I'm talking about!

Cross Chronicles #1

2007-10-03T19:28:00.000-04:00

First and for most I must say, cycle cross is HARD!!!!!!!!! Its fun, but its a lot harder than I thought it was gonna be. Anyway, we got to the course and only have enough time to ride the course once before the other races start. it was a pretty smooth course, with only 2 barrier sections, the second one was about 100 feet away from the finish. Riding the junior race seemed like a good idea to preview the course. Dan Bush, younger brother of Texas Road House rider Rob Bush, is a cycle cross freak! Going into these races I knew squat about racing cycle cross. After riding the juniors race with Dan, I knew about going over barriers, sand pits and grassy sections!

In the first lap another junior, Dan, and I were off the front. We were going through a 120 degree, grassy turn, when the other junior goes over a grass-covered, hole that was deep enough to make his back wheel come off the ground and before I could figure out what happened, I nail it and flip over the bars. Unfortunately my rear wheel comes up and takes out Dan's front wheel, and he also goes down. We get up and access the damage (which was minimal thankfully, the only casualty was my knee, it caught the top of my bars pretty hard). We then start hammering to catch up with the other junior. The rest of the race (2 laps) was uneventful. The big benefit was getting to know the course pretty well. I would hate to have the endo experience in the larger race.

I then chill for about 20 mins and hop up to get a front line starting position for B-men(cat 3/4) race. The race starts and I was 4th going into the first turn. I had no idea what the tempo is usually like in cycle cross, so I just hammered for the first 2 laps and broke away with a MIke Purvis. He races mtn bikes, but this was also his first cross race. With 3 laps to go he made a move that made me look like I was standing still. He probably had 30 seconds on me half a lap later. Two other guys come across to me and we start working, but I knew if we were head and head by the barriers it probably wouldn't work out in my favor. In the last lap I made 2 big moves and dropped one guy. The other one was right behind me by the barriers. I got clipped in as soon as I could after the barriers, but not soon enough. He smoked me in the sprint. I was pretty disappointed with 3rd place, even though it was my first cross race. That just leaves more of a fire burning until next time.

Talk about scare-tactics!!!! GEEZ!!!!

My little man Dan.
Giving me advice about girls........I mean cross!

Dang.

1st or 2nd official barrier section.

Pre CX

2007-09-29T20:50:00.000-04:00

I guess I'm gonna give this cycle cross thing a try tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Hopefully I can stay out of one of these

Extremely urgent and horrifying news story!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-09-26T19:33:00.000-04:00

This just in!!!!!!!............................Brad now has a chainring on his left calf!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a baller!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm pretty disappointed. I was hoping for something like........

Or ........

Or at least....

There shall be pictures.

Interbike

2007-09-23T18:57:00.000-04:00

Brad Nelson and a few others are going to Vegas for Interbike this week, while I get to stay in Indy and go to school. Awesome. He promised me that he was going to get a tattoo. If any one has an idea what he should get, leave a comment.(preferably humorous)

Today Dad and I tore up the trails on the cross bikes today while Brad was to lazy to change his flat on his X-bike. So he wimped out on us and used his mtn bike. Brad and I had fun but Dad was a little shaken up after a confrontation with Mother Earth(after trying aerobatics and vaulting over his bars). So Brad and I went around for another lap, and I'm proud to say that I did beat him. Even though I only did half the loop, but its all good!

Zipp T-Shirt Instrutctions

2007-09-21T11:06:00.000-04:00

For those of you don't know, Zipps are the best bike wheels in the world. http://www.zipp.com/

Here are the instructions that came on Brad's shirt he won on Sunday.

Zipp Shirt Maintenance Instructions

Your new ZIPP shirt will require occasional maintenance in the form of cleaning after soiling shirt from energy bar/drink spillage, excessive wear and other unforeseeable reasons. (Note: for best washing results we recommend removing shirt first.)

1. To remove shirt for cleaning, grasp shirt firmly at bottom edge with both hands and pull directly over head. (Note: helmet, hat and/or sunglasses may need to be removed first)

2. To protect the valuable artwork from nasty synthetic detergents and maintain the highest possible aesthetic of the multi-color hand-silk screening process- turn the shirt inside out.

3. Place in the washing machine (the big white one on the left). Wash in cold or warm (not hot) water with colors of the same ethnic background and political bias. Use a minimum amount of the evil detergent and, for the good of mankind, put the lid down and step away from the bleach. (Bleach is the mortal enemy of color, and as such has sworn to do everything possible to erase it from the face of the earth.)

4. The best drying process to further protect the aforementioned spectacular graphics, is to line-dry or air-dry(yes there is an 'air-dry' setting on your dryer). If you don't have time for this lengthy process, because, like most, you have nothing else to wear or simply have a special function to attend and this is, of course, your favorite article of clothing, do ahead and put it in the dryer(the big one on the right) - but be cautious, we cannot be held accountable for the possible permanent devastating effects. If you must, please, please use 'low' heat unless you plan to give the shirt to a much smaller(infant size) friend or family member.

Once dry, repeat step(1) in reverse and it is once again time to don your fabulous ZIPP shirt and venture fourth into the world with pride and confidence.

Unfortunately, we are sad to say; like all things in nature, cotton also has it's limitations and your ZIPP shirt will not last forever. When this sad time comes, the stains too deep, holes too plentiful and your friends refuse to be seen with you in public, you can take solace in the fact that the soft cotton makes a great bike cleaning rag. And you can still be close to your favorite ZIPP shirt while working in the garage for years to come.

The Huntington Challenge

2007-09-19T17:08:00.000-04:00

Warning! this is a ridiculously long blog post! Call in to work sick, skip school, cancel the plans, drop the kids off at the daycare! You're gonna need to make some time.

Last weekend Dad, Brad Nelson and I traveled up to the Huntington Challenge. This is no ordinary race. It's two days long with 70 miles each day, based on time. But the real kicker is that there are cyclocross/mtn bike sections thrown in between the road sections. The off road parts were between 3-7 miles long, varying from short track to mountain bike trails to zig-zaging fields with miles and miles of yellow caution tape. So if you only bring a road bike you're SOL. I found out last year when I got in a break about 30 mins in with Chase Hoeffer. We took a wrong turn somewhere and got about 30 miles off the course. Guy East and Weston Luzzader had reached the off road sections and they said there was no way a road bike could win this race. This year, thanks to my coach, Dean Peterson, I was equipped with a superb cross bike.

We arrived pretty early to get registered and man was it cold! It was a frigged 40 degrees! We get there, unpack the bikes, get dressed and as soon as I'm done pumping up the rear tire, the pump rips the valve clean off the tube. I scramble around looking for a tube and luckily find one and slap it on the wheel. After our freezing pre ride, we line up for the start and I get another flat just sitting there! Dad and I then run back to the car and throw another tube on the wheel and get back just in time for the blow of the whistle. OK! First adrenaline rush of the day out of the way! Now we're off and cruising until a masters rider with a road bike attacks and gets away to get a bit of a cushion for the first cross section. 50 mins into the race we hit the dirt(or actually freezing wet grass) and I keep my lead position for the first mile or so until I take a wrong turn, luckily Brad saw me and yelled at me to get my butt turned around. I then turned my butt around and sat on Brad's wheel to get the hang of handling the bike in dirt, then put in my own attack and got a few seconds gap. I proceed to hammer and gain about 2 mins by the end of the first cross section. By now I'm the first cyclist on the road portion, which also means I have the lead vehicle. Not 2 miles out from the cross section I get a flat, again!

By the time I get it changed the lead group(Brad's group) and the entire pack passed me including Dad. He stopped and readjusted his seat, because he was having a disappearing seat post. In the trails it kept on dropping down on him. So we got going again and started pacing our way up. But to no prevail, I hit the most historic 40 mile bonk that anyone has ever seen on the face of the earth! I'll spare you the minor details, but I lost all my strength, my vision(for about 5 mins), and around 40 mins to the leaders. Dad had to baby me all the way to the finish. He told me to go on alone with about 10 miles to go, because he was still having major problems with his seat post. With one mile to go I had ANOTHER flat! Dad caught up and switched wheels with me, so I could at least have a minuscule chance on GC. Brad got 6th on the day only 5 or so mins down. OK! Glad that day was over.

Day Two

The next day we woke up around 6ish to pack up and take advantage of the free hotel continental breakfast. We get to the course a little behind schedule courtesy of me for not having a clue on whats going on. We have just enough time to put our numbers on and we're off again! I had totally learned my lesson the previous day, and that is............... to attack as hard as you can and as many times you can in the first 10 mins..........ok maybe not. The game plan of the day was to sit in for the road sections and stay in contact in the cross sections, and maybe make a few moves by the end. We get to the first cross sections only 10 mins into the race. (We rode the course backwards from yesterday for the first 20 miles) When we hit the off road section, I'm about 10th rider back. Not exactly the place where I wanted to be, but I make my way to the front eventually and take Brad's wheel. He is one of the most knowledgeable and street......."trail" smartest person I know. Its a safe bet that Brad will pick the right lines, plus I can see over him if I need to look ahead. The group gets to a log barrier to dismount and my speedplay pedals get so clogged up. I couldn't get clipped in for another mile. I got fed up when my left shoe came loose on a fast downhill and I nailed a log at the bottom straight on........racking myself........big time! I though I was gonna puke! After I regain consciousness and remember who and where I am, I grab my only bottle (the other one had fallen out some time in the trails) and hosed down both cleats. FINALLY! I can get back in the pedals. By now the cross section is over and I bridge up to the break in a few mins. Maybe 20 mins later we hit a gravel road which leads to another off road section.

You have to remember that it was 40 something degrees, and we crossed 2 or 3 river crossings. I couldn't feel my feet for the rest of the day. So after the river crossings I almost bite it on the gravel, and tempo it at the front until the road. Right before we got to the road section, I heard this big BANG! That sucks for somebody. The group I was with had all 3 major teams represented with at least 3 people from each team, yet no one was driving it. I looked back and Brad was no where to be found. It turned out that the big bang was both of his wheels flattingat the same time. He only had one tube, so he fixed his rear wheel and just kept on trucking with a flat front! He rode 2 HOURS with a flat front wheel including the off road sections. There was a ramp in one of the cross sections that I luanched off of, and apparently Brad tried also! (with a flat front tire!) He then lost control of his machine and shot off the trail. I asked him why he did that with his flat tire and he responds "I had to jump it." Ladies and Gentleman, Brad "B-Rad" Nelson for you!

So anyways........... there was this one master in my group with a road bike who kept on hammering trying to get a break on the guys with the cross bikes, yet he wouldn't quite attack. He would more or less role off the front and we would just sit on his wheel. He kept on getting frustrated so he just kept on tempo-ing it at the front, for some reason. Which amused the entire group. We get to the 3rd cross section and I get to the front and tempo it, not going to soft or too hard at all. I look over and Dad is yelling at me from the feed station, he's actually talking to me and demanding answers from me, as I'm concentrating on the course. He apparently got lost in the first cross section. (Should have had that GPS on you, Dad.) After this section I look back and have a gap. I started picking the thorns and pricklies off my jersey, drinking and eating. I then look back and there is still no one there! he lead vehicle in front of me, so I know I'm not lost . I start tempo-ing it again and going harder and harder. Now I have about 40-50 more miles to go and I'm trying to decide what to do. Fall back to the group, or try soloing it in, while the master pulls everyone back up to me. Hmmmmmmm........Its clobbering time! So I start drilling it, and it was so incredibly boring! The only incentive I had was to get to the next cross section as fast as I could! Not to have a repeat of yesterday crisis, I kept downing bottles and gels. The people in the lead vehicle were very nice because whenever I finished a bottle I would wave it up in the air and they would come back and hold on to it for me. It felt very pro tour-ish. I'll try to condense the rest of this for you guys: I TT it all the way to the finish and after 2hours and change of being out alone by myself, singing hundreds of song lyrics and talking to cows about politics and the weather, I only gain 5 mins. That's actually a fair amount of time but it was no where what I needed to gain back from the catastrophic amount of time I lost yesterday.

We waited and waited and waited about 1 hour for Brad to come in. We then got some pizza from the race promoters, some schwag(they had a random drawing for free stuff), some ice cream and our money. Dad was one of the first to be drawn in the giveaway so he got to pick out a zipp carbon bottle cage, Sweet! We just paid for our entire trip! Brad got a zipp shirt with the funniest instructions I have ever seen in my life. Yep, the shirt had instructions! (I'll post them some other time when you people get out of the coma I've just put you in) I got a mtn bike tire. The thing I got out from this weekend is that......CYCLO CROSS IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And hopefully you'll be seeing me out there soon tearing it up on the trails! Sorry for the lack of pics. I forgot the camera. I'll get some up soon! Thanks for reading!

The First Annual Marion Classic Criterium

2007-09-11T22:48:00.000-04:00

This weekend I headed out o the Marion Classic Criterium. From my understanding its an old race that a lot of people liked. We get up there and it is storming pretty hard. I was planning on racing the Pro 1,2,s but I just wasn’t too sure with the current conditions. Yet before it had started to precipitate Brad Nelson raced the Cat 5s........and won........common Brad! Are you serious?!?! For those of you who don't know Brad, he is an 18 year old professional monkey biker, a cat 2 wheel suck and a cat 4 racer. HOLD ON! Those are his words not mine, and I think he's proud of it. A subdued congrats goes out to you Brad. Anyways...... The course was a short steep hill, flat section and a technical down hill about 100 meters before the finish. And did I mention, on about every turn there was a manhole cover? After watching the 3 man strong masters race, I decided to man up and suit up. I have to say, trying to get a skinsuit on a wet figure is no walk in the park. After riding the course only two times I figured that the decent was going to cause some problems, and to my relief the officials decided to shorten the race from 75 mins to 55 mins. Only ten men were to be paid after this soon to be epic race, and there were eleven people lining up at the start. One poor soul wasn't going to have anything to show for his day’s efforts. Before the start its still raining and getting chilly. The race starts and I take off the front and lead up the hill, stall on the front and take the downhill 3rd rider back. For the next 3 laps I sit in, but after a prime I attack up the hill and get away. I stayed out by myself for 2 laps until an Inferno racer, Ryan Gamm, bridged. We then proceed to hammer until 20 mins to go where as my rear wheel flats. We were on the back side of the course and 0% chance of me getting down the "decent" to the wheel pit to get a change, not that it mattered because I decided not to put my wheels in the pit. Great idea. Fortunately for me we were about to pass Chase Hoeffer, and I yelled to him " Chase I got a flat!" And before I could request anything, he rips off his rear wheel and switched it out with mine! What an awesome team mate! I then fly down to the wheel pit to receive my free lap and wait for my breakaway compatriot to come back around through the finishing stretch. On Borris's (the coolest French USCF official you'll probably ever know) count I take off to join Ryan again. Two laps later, right as we were getting in a rhythm, my bike starts to bounce and slide uncontrollably......... another rear flat! This time it was on the downhill section. I was incredibly lucky to keep it up through the final turn. Brad Nelson, his Dad and my Mom were all standing on that turn and as soon as I came around they all realized the problem at once. Brad later admitted he was impressed that I was able to keep the rubber side down. So I just roll into the wheel pit and tell Borris I had received another flat. Without any wheels in the pit and no free laps left I was S.O.L. I was pretty bummed, yet satisfied with my overall efforts. Ryan then lapped the pack and went on for the win. Nice ridding Gamm! After the race the officials pitied me enough to give me the prime I had won in the break. A big thanks goes out to Chase Hoeffer, Mr. Nelson, Mr. Dewalt, Mario Camacho, Steve Goar, all the officials, all the corner marshals and police men. Without you guy's this race couldn't have happened! I'll get the pics up later. Until next time, keep on keeping on!

rain rain go away!

2007-09-10T12:17:00.000-04:00

When the weatherman says "heavy rain at 7:00" he actually means "heavy rain at 3:30"
Atleast it was warm. If anyone is looking to get a 56cm cross bike off there hands I'll be willing to do so....if the price is right.

Gateway Cup- University City

2007-09-04T20:31:00.000-04:00

Monday was the final day of racing in the Gateway Cup, and I was ready for it. I was planning to go full out to try to get the big result. The course was another rectangle, with the backside being a steady upgrade and the front side a long down hill sprint. Not too encouraging of a race for juniors. Apparently not discouraging enough for at least eight other junior racers. After Mom and I walked a little bit of the course we set up camp around the car and chilled for about an hour. After getting warmed up and pinned up, I set out to secure a front line starting position. The temperature was creeping around the triple digits, and the sun was glaring down on The University City Crit, in other words, it was a scorcher.The race starts and I'm top 5 for the first few laps, and my lungs just aren't up to par yet. I try sitting in the pack for a few laps and after a close counter with a crash, decide that it probably won't to bad of an idea to move back up to the front. With the long downhill section it was pretty difficult to keep a safe position. With 3 laps to go I'm feeling pretty gassed and dangling off the back, just willing myself to think of reasons to stay in, and not pull out. I started contemplating of what I could do before pulling out.......put in a huge attack........drill it at the front...........or just drop out. I then looked over and saw my incentive. There was a junior I had talked to and gotten to know throughout the weekend, John Tomlinson. He was cruising around the back of the pack.
"Hey John! You want up to the front?"
"Yes please!"
"Alright, LETS ROLL!!!!!"
We then shoot up the right side of the road and into the top ten. Then I realize that I'm at the front.........and I'm feeling a little better. Ok, change of plans. I guess I will finish it. So John and I are at the very front now, as in 1st and 2nd wheel. There is only 1 lap to go so we start trucking it. I have to go early know not to get swarmed and by the top of the hill I burn myself out, and rolled in for field finish. Oh well. I accomplished the majority of my goals, though.
1 Stay up at the front
2 Stay out of crashes
3 Finish
A big thanks goes out to my Mom! Without her I definitely wouldn't have had any fun this weekend......or ever for that matter. Thanks Mom!

Rest day

2007-09-02T17:49:00.001-04:00

Today I decided to skip the race. I've been fighting a chest cold for the past week and I just really needed the rest. It definitely wasn't an easy decision.

Gateway Cup- Tour of Washington St. Louis

2007-09-02T17:31:00.000-04:00

The race directions only specified to look for " the really tall buildings downtown." Yet the entire downtown area was made up of really tall buildings. So it took us a while to find the race. This course was once again a rectangle but had a slight uphill and downhill on each long side. The finish was on the vertex of the hill and 500 meters from the last turn, so it was quite a drag race to the finish. My plan for today was to keep a low profile. I've been battling a chest cold for the past 5 days, and it's pretty hard to breath. This time I get a pretty good starting position. To some it up, for the entire race I attained my goal by sitting no more than 6th wheel back. I only went on the attack once or twice, but it was only half hearted. On the last lap I got swarmed again, and decided to keep the rubber down. I pulled out on the 3rd turn and watched the finish from the back but, there was a crash in the last 300 meters. And unfortunately it included Kevin Moore, who raced for the Indy based Bacardi team 2 years ago. Fortunately he was alright, the only casualties was a few Kserium spokes, a durace derailleur, and a Castelli kit. Before I had pulled out I was actually on Kevin's wheel, but something was telling me to back down to fight another day.

Gateway Cup- Tour of Lafayette Square

2007-09-02T17:21:00.000-04:00

The Tour of Lafayette Square was the first twilight crit I have ever done. I was really nervous because I didn't know what to expect, except I had, however, heard that this race was a crash-fest, with all of the shadows and darkness. It was hard to tell if someone was next to you or behind you. It was about a mile each lap and the race was 45 mins + 5 laps long. When the race before us ended I thought that everybody was going to take a lap so I go around,but when I came back to the line, everybody was already lined up. The race starts and it takes me 3 laps to get to the front. By then the sun has gone down and it is completely dark, except for the single light on each turn, which created a weird shadow effect. I sat at the front for a few more laps and went for a prime, and took a chance off the front for a few laps. With all the teams here though, nothing was getting away. That still didn't discourage me form going off the front a few more times. But in the last 10 laps I kept a good position in the front about 5 riders back. With 4 laps to go there was a crash on the second corner, leaving a rider out cold. They had to bring an ambulance on the course while our race was still going on. On the last lap there were at least 3 crashes, but coming into the last 2 turns I got swarmed and just sat up. No need to lose skin for 30th place.

Downers Grove

2007-09-02T17:15:00.000-04:00

The day started out with a uneventful 3 hour drive to Illinois with my Mom, yet was anything but in the end. We got to Downers Grove about 3 hours before my race (we didn't plan on the time difference, thankfully it was in our favor) So Mom and I went out to get some breakfast, and shot over to the race. The big thing I noticed driving in the Downers area is that, there are a ridiculous amount of expensive car dealerships. As in Porsche, Maserati, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Lamborghini, and well you get the picture. So we get to the race and registration isn't open yet so I ride the course a few times, while my Mom waits in line. Half an hour later I'm registered and ready to race. I get a nice intense warm up and head out to ride the course again. I then cut back to the car on a sidewalk, a couple is also walking on the sidewalk also and I' thinking that they'll go single file..........but they don't. So I jump off the curb and jump back on, except my wheels catch the sides of the curb and I hit the deck.

I wasn't going too fast but I landed pretty hard. I stayed on the ground for a few seconds assessing the damage to myself. (After a crash, no matter how soft or bad it is, always, always, ALWAYS, stay on the ground for a for at least a few seconds or until someone comes over to you. The first thing you should do is to check yourself out, not the bike! Don't worry about your bike. You can always get a new bike put you can't get a new collarbone or arm. And for a bit of legal advice, if a car is somehow involved always call an ambulance, and never say that you are ok or fine. You may be in shock and dazed and feel ok at the moment but when the adrenaline wears off you'll be one sorry cat.) So I just stayed on the ground taking a breather while testing my back, chest, internals, legs, and arms for immediate damage. My mom was over me in a fraction of a sec and slowly helped my up. When I knew I was ok, I then checked out the bike. Ok, handle bars twisted an opposite 90 degrees from the wheel, brake pads rubbing, saddle pointing a different direction then the top tube, shifters bent inward.......not a pretty sight. But miraculously it was all fixable. So I got back on the trainer for another 15 mins to regain my bearings, while my Mom pinned my number on. As I'm warming back up it starts to rain. And now the current 60 degrees is starting to feel a little chilly.

Now I head over to the start line to get a nice starting position. Thankfully they let us just scramble for starting positions rather than calling us up by registration. The race officials decide to shorten the race from 30mins to 20mins. While they're telling us the rules, I'm starting to get colder and wetter. The race starts and I start losing ground because of the slick conditions. I decide I'd better move up soon or attack, so I don't get caught up in a wreck. A lap later there was a prime and I attacked right after it on the hill and manage to get a little gap. I keep my cool and take my time going through the turns and hammer on the flats. Before I knew it there was only 1 lap to go. I remember thinking to myself, don't ruin this, don't crash, don't crash, don't crash!!!!!!! So I took my own advice and added another one to the win column.