Downhill from here...

The Tour of Hermann

2009-04-22T12:37:00.000-07:00

I rode in the Road Race on Sunday at The Tour of Hermann. It was raining so hard, you couldn't see a thing. It was cold and the course was 30 miles up-hill. I held on to the pack for the first two climbs and let them go on the second down-hill. The rooster tails of spray water from every ones tires were about twenty feet. It seemed like it was raining from every direction. I thought the safe thing to do would be to fall back. I felt like I got into a great hill-climbing rhythm at about the half-way point. I pretty much rode by myself in the rain and cold for twenty five miles. I finished 28th out of 54. Maybe, in good conditions, I would have done a little better. I was not ready for the hills.

It was a great weekend with 5 other teammates. The other guys raced a Time Trial (10 miles) Saturday morning. Then they did a Crit Saturday night.

The Crit was a 1.2 mile loop with a killer hill (I mean killer) up to the start/finish line every lap. More of a circuit race really.

About 300 people raced The Tour of Hermann. I might be back next year.

Tilles Park Crit

2009-04-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

The forecast was a high of 48 degrees and thunderstorms. When I got up Sunday morning it hadn't started raining yet. By the time I started loading the bikes on the carrier, it was raining pretty good.

Tilles Park is in Ladue, MO. Only about 45 minutes away. When we arrived, it had just stopped raining. We picked-up our registration packets and started getting ready.

I was in the earliest race with Patrick and Dan from our team. I think it started about 10am. The road was one lane narrow and very wet. Our race was to be 20 minutes and 4 laps. About 12 minutes into the race, I was trying to pass on the outside, when I heard someone clip a pedal on the inner curb. Four riders shot, slid and skidded across the road and took me out.

I really got side-swiped! I held onto what was left of my bike. The computer, water bottle and front wheel were out in the middle of the road. A photographer and two guys from my team came over and helped me gather everything. I put it back together and jumped back into the race.

My front shifter cable was crimped and the computer wasn't working. I worked my way back to the front and even led for a few laps. I didn't know how much time was left in the race so I settled back into the pack. When I came around the next lap, I saw the 20 minute sign up. I had 4 laps to go all out, but I was completely boxed in. I couldn't get around anyone. Finally, with one lap to go, I passed the group, but the front runners had taken off. I could see all ten of them about 100 yards in front of me. I sprinted the last quarter lap and finished 11th.

Patrick finished 10th. I grabbed his arm as we crossed the finish line to congratulate him. It scared him, he didn't realize anyone was that close to him. I'm surprised we didn't crash right then.

Our team was at the front of every race that day. We all led for a few laps and did very well. The road dried out, but there were crashes in every race. By the last race, around 4pm, the weather was getting nasty.

This weekend is "The Tour of Hermann." 4/18 and 4/19/2009.

Race #2

2009-03-25T09:16:00.000-07:00

Did my second race 03/15/2009. The Forest Park Crit. Seven of us from, Wild Trak Bikes Racing, raced and five of us did really well. I was not among the five.

I came home determined to start training harder for races. I went out and rode as soon as I got home. I have trained hard every night since (except Friday the 20th, I had to work late).

My next race is 04/05/2009. I need to come up with a strategy of winning. I will not be happy just staying with the pack.

1st Race of 2009

2009-02-24T12:42:00.000-08:00

Well, Sunday (2/22/9) was the first road race of the year. "Froze Toes." I think it was 27 degrees when we started about 12:45 pm. I couldn't even tell which way the wind was blowing. I raced cat. 5 masters. 31 miles and I finished top 10 in my race. It was fun and I felt pretty good. I rode hard and now I am ready to start race training. My team has a ride 3/8/9. The Sunday after that is the first crit race of the season. I sure am having fun and want to buy a bunch of new stuff...

New Beginning

2009-02-11T13:33:00.000-08:00

This all re-started when my oldest son graduated from U of I. He raced on their road racing team. When he moved back home, he asked me to go for a little ride with him. I hadn't ridden in about 12 years. The last race I was in was a TT, about 20 years ago. The last season I had actually raced was over 25 years ago. But, he said that it would just be a short 12 mile ride. It sounded like a fun loop down to the River Road and back up State Street Hill. I used to go out every night after work and sprint State Street Hill 10 times in a row and not even breath hard. The problem was, I apparently forgot how to ride a bike. I couldn't keep my balance. I felt like we were riding 50 mph. I'm sure my heart rate was about 300. When we got to the end of our street, I had to try to get my water bottle without crashing. But I couldn't drink because I was breathing too hard. When I tried to return the bottle to it's cage, I dropped it. I nearly crashed when it bounced off of the rear wheel. Of course, I couldn't make it up State Street Hill. I couldn't breath, I couldn't get a drink, my heart was about to break ribs, and I was actually starting to cramp. I still had about 3 miles to go, mostly up hill.

Old man look at my life...

2009-02-10T12:41:00.000-08:00

I'm a lot like you are. Only now I'm slow and can't sprint up hills like I used to. I don't even want to talk about what I used to do. I'm just glad I started cycling again. I love it. And now that I'm slow, I can enjoy the scenery. All of my good friends are cyclists. Most are in their twenties, some in their forties and some...well, some are older.
We are all hooked on cycling. Most of us worked in a bike shop or two. Cycling is addictive. They come out with new models every year. New gear is advertised just to see what kind of response they get before it is ever mass produced. The clothing only lasts a season or until the first contact with the pavement. Tools, tubes, tires, tape...I could go on and on.
I guess that is what a blog is all about. Going on and on.