According to Cyclingnews.com, the riders are considering a "spectacular" protest against doping at the beginning of tomorrow's stage.
I have a better idea, instead of the traditional "celebrations" during the stage, how about the riders race their asses off and give us fans who've stuck with it a good show. There's less than 30 seconds separating the top three places ... so don't waste time celebrating before the final finish line and compete for every second out there. I don't think the Tour should be won or lost on time bonuses, but it'd be awesome to see a breakaway shake things up.
7.28.2007
7.25.2007
Pate will win the 2008 TdF
"I'll give DNA. I'll post my information on the internet. I'll do whatever it takes to save the sport." -Danny Pate, Team Slipstream
If the UCI and ASO carry on with their no holds barred, zero-tolerance policy on dopers (which needs to be done), I'm putting my money and faith in DP for the '08 Tour.
If the UCI and ASO carry on with their no holds barred, zero-tolerance policy on dopers (which needs to be done), I'm putting my money and faith in DP for the '08 Tour.
7.24.2007
Dopers Suck
Grrrr... another black eye on our sport. I suppose if we really want to clean it up then this is how it’s going to happen. Would the news have been any less devastating if we’d found out after the Tour? Of course not, and there would have been a lot of questions about how Vino (or Rasmussen) and the teams affected the results.
As a rider looking to make a meager living from this sport, the news is like a punch to the gut. How do you convince sponors to give you money for a sport that’s constructed a cloud of suspicion over every competitive cyclist at any level? Our heroes test positive, guys I race against on the regional level have tested positive, and a mountain biker I coach who races in the Expert class has had a competitor test positive. Now as soon as a rider at any level starts to enjoy a little too much success, there are immediately grumblings that “he must be on something”.... and unfortunately, the rumors are proved true too often.
I’m tired and don’t want to go into it too much... but it seems that throughout history, in pretty much every sport, there are athletes that will desperately search out an advantage to win — and the desperation is so deep that ethics of the methods don’t even enter their minds. How do we stop them?
Fortunately, it looks as though cycling is on the right path to a clean sport by working to create a community that is completely intolerant of doping. Riders need teammates, teams need managers, managers need sponsors. The riders, managers and sponsors that survive this painful “culling” will hopefully be the people we need to give cycling a clean rebirth.
As a rider looking to make a meager living from this sport, the news is like a punch to the gut. How do you convince sponors to give you money for a sport that’s constructed a cloud of suspicion over every competitive cyclist at any level? Our heroes test positive, guys I race against on the regional level have tested positive, and a mountain biker I coach who races in the Expert class has had a competitor test positive. Now as soon as a rider at any level starts to enjoy a little too much success, there are immediately grumblings that “he must be on something”.... and unfortunately, the rumors are proved true too often.
I’m tired and don’t want to go into it too much... but it seems that throughout history, in pretty much every sport, there are athletes that will desperately search out an advantage to win — and the desperation is so deep that ethics of the methods don’t even enter their minds. How do we stop them?
Fortunately, it looks as though cycling is on the right path to a clean sport by working to create a community that is completely intolerant of doping. Riders need teammates, teams need managers, managers need sponsors. The riders, managers and sponsors that survive this painful “culling” will hopefully be the people we need to give cycling a clean rebirth.
In God’s Country; Heartland
Those are both U2 songs, and they always pop into my head when driving through the rural Midwest, especially en route to the family farm outside of Wautoma (non-operational farm nowadays). The photo is shot out the driveway.
I joked with my teammates that when I go up there I’m torn between riding my bike all day, sitting in a boat and fishing all day, or doing absolutely nothing all day. After weeks or months in LA or the Chicago Suburbs, I sit out on the porch at the farm overlooking the surrounding farms and forests and soak in the stillness in the air like sun rays.
If I do muster up the motivation to go ride my bike — well, that’s pretty perfect too. I can ride out the door for anywhere from 2 to 5 hours and spend the whole day on lightly-traveled country roads, seeing a stoplight only if I decide to head towards a town (and if the town even has a stoplight!). My biggest challenge is deciding just which way to go.
I lived in the Wautoma area for the first five years of my life and have spent vacations and holidays in the area, and there’s something special about riding the oldest roads in your memory.... maybe it’s just nostalgia, but that’s ok too.
7.21.2007
Superweek: Week One
Oh, Superweek... a wicked mistress indeed. Every July a hundred or so young men leave their homes to head to America's heartland for a shot at glory and a few pennies. This year it seems that fewer fellows bothered to come out, but it hasn't made the going much easier.
Just over a week ago the doc gave me clearance to go out and give it a whirl for as much as I was up for, and we started the ICC festivities last Friday in Beverly. Everything went pretty well as our mohawk-sporting Sugar Glydar, Alex, and two of our not-so-clandestine combine all made it into a break of 16 that went on to lap the field. However, as they came around the back with 20 to go the Glydar (whom I also coach) asked me to pull out because his knees were killing him. It turns out the made a significant cleat adjustment just days before the start of the series and it was coming back to haunt him. I urged him to stay in and finish because for a rider in his first ever Superweek race to make the winning move boded very well for the races ahead. However, we should have known better as the Glyder is now on an indefinite period of rest while he makes sure he's 100% better before he gets out there again.
We miss you, Glydar, and there is a good chance I'm going to accept the burden of sporting the mowhawk until you return -- because frankly, it doesn't seem like any self-respecting squad at Superweek can be there without at least one team-member with an outrageous hairdo.
My own race at Beverly was pretty solid considering it was my first race since April 22nd and only my 4th race all year. I was able to help the guys maneuver around and lead Josh out for $100 prime. A huge thanks to the Oehmen family for letting us use their home as "base" for the Beverly race and then cooking up huge quantities of tasty post-race food.
After Beverly I skipped the Blue Island event on Saturday, where Carter placed a respectable 12th, and decided last minute to jump in with the crew at Bensenville. I'm really glad I did because if I'd been on the sidelines for Josh's victory I would have been kicking myself. While he was off the front I even went for four primes... only to get 2nd or 3rd in every one of them. Finally I learned my lesson and for a $70 prime I had Schroetlin lead me out... and then let the gap open up to him in the turns so that he was able to ride away and win it. If you can't beat 'em, have your teammate do it, right?
Carter's victory at Bensenville was a huge first for the ABD team too. We'd taken the points jersey twice and Pipp, Dierking and Mumford had all made the podium over the last 5 years, but we'd never been able to score that elusive win. Bravo, Josh.
After Bensenville we had three road races on the docket that didn't leave too much to write home about. Brett was the only ABD rider at Alpine Valley and finished a respectable 22nd; at Whitnall Park we had a guy in every major move except the one that stuck- curses; the MGA Proving Grounds race had about 1000% humidity and turned into a death march, but one of the aformentioned not-quite-teammates pulled off a great ride to make the break and finish 5th.
Thursday was a night off for everyone and then last night Carter, the two not-quite-teammates and myself lined up for the inaugural Green Lake Criterium. A tight course with a little hill made for a fast and brutal race that didn't even have any primes - but only about 40 guys actually finished. Green Lake is only about 40 minutes from my birth-land of Wautoma, WI, and I'd actually headed up to hang out at my Dad's right after Wednesday's race. He, my grandparents and aunt were all able to come out and watch the race, which was awesome, but unfortunately I wasn't able to put on too much of a show. About 40 minutes into the race my back really started to hurt and spots on my left leg were even going a bit numb. It's the same pain I've dealt with for years and the reason I spent three months in the winter on the physical therapy table and not-so-much on the bike, but it appears the 6 weeks of "off-time" with the hernia didn't help the situation too much - double curses.
So now it's time to head back to the suburbs for the ABD Tour de France party (always a good time) and then some stretching and strengthening for a few days before jumping back into the final week of Superweek.
Next up: More on Wautoma and the return to the Motherland.
Just over a week ago the doc gave me clearance to go out and give it a whirl for as much as I was up for, and we started the ICC festivities last Friday in Beverly. Everything went pretty well as our mohawk-sporting Sugar Glydar, Alex, and two of our not-so-clandestine combine all made it into a break of 16 that went on to lap the field. However, as they came around the back with 20 to go the Glydar (whom I also coach) asked me to pull out because his knees were killing him. It turns out the made a significant cleat adjustment just days before the start of the series and it was coming back to haunt him. I urged him to stay in and finish because for a rider in his first ever Superweek race to make the winning move boded very well for the races ahead. However, we should have known better as the Glyder is now on an indefinite period of rest while he makes sure he's 100% better before he gets out there again.
We miss you, Glydar, and there is a good chance I'm going to accept the burden of sporting the mowhawk until you return -- because frankly, it doesn't seem like any self-respecting squad at Superweek can be there without at least one team-member with an outrageous hairdo.
My own race at Beverly was pretty solid considering it was my first race since April 22nd and only my 4th race all year. I was able to help the guys maneuver around and lead Josh out for $100 prime. A huge thanks to the Oehmen family for letting us use their home as "base" for the Beverly race and then cooking up huge quantities of tasty post-race food.
After Beverly I skipped the Blue Island event on Saturday, where Carter placed a respectable 12th, and decided last minute to jump in with the crew at Bensenville. I'm really glad I did because if I'd been on the sidelines for Josh's victory I would have been kicking myself. While he was off the front I even went for four primes... only to get 2nd or 3rd in every one of them. Finally I learned my lesson and for a $70 prime I had Schroetlin lead me out... and then let the gap open up to him in the turns so that he was able to ride away and win it. If you can't beat 'em, have your teammate do it, right?
Carter's victory at Bensenville was a huge first for the ABD team too. We'd taken the points jersey twice and Pipp, Dierking and Mumford had all made the podium over the last 5 years, but we'd never been able to score that elusive win. Bravo, Josh.
After Bensenville we had three road races on the docket that didn't leave too much to write home about. Brett was the only ABD rider at Alpine Valley and finished a respectable 22nd; at Whitnall Park we had a guy in every major move except the one that stuck- curses; the MGA Proving Grounds race had about 1000% humidity and turned into a death march, but one of the aformentioned not-quite-teammates pulled off a great ride to make the break and finish 5th.
Thursday was a night off for everyone and then last night Carter, the two not-quite-teammates and myself lined up for the inaugural Green Lake Criterium. A tight course with a little hill made for a fast and brutal race that didn't even have any primes - but only about 40 guys actually finished. Green Lake is only about 40 minutes from my birth-land of Wautoma, WI, and I'd actually headed up to hang out at my Dad's right after Wednesday's race. He, my grandparents and aunt were all able to come out and watch the race, which was awesome, but unfortunately I wasn't able to put on too much of a show. About 40 minutes into the race my back really started to hurt and spots on my left leg were even going a bit numb. It's the same pain I've dealt with for years and the reason I spent three months in the winter on the physical therapy table and not-so-much on the bike, but it appears the 6 weeks of "off-time" with the hernia didn't help the situation too much - double curses.
So now it's time to head back to the suburbs for the ABD Tour de France party (always a good time) and then some stretching and strengthening for a few days before jumping back into the final week of Superweek.
Next up: More on Wautoma and the return to the Motherland.
7.17.2007
Superweek's On
Turn left, turn right, sprint. Thus is my life for the next two weeks.
Body is holding up much better and the racing's going pretty well too. Check out Carter's win in Bensenville. It took the Elite team a few years, but we finally got one.
I raced last Friday, Sunday, today in Whitnall Park and then having a go at the Road Race tomorrow. A proper update will be out on Thursday.
7.14.2007
Tendonitis of the what?
It's great to be back in the Midwest when the weather is as nice as it was today. Steady winds out of the West meant an hour and 15 minutes of torque work going out and 45 minutes of 30mph tempo coming back. There's nothing like a ripping tailwind to make you feel like Superman.
Made it to the doctor this morning and the diagnosis is that the pains I was getting are like a form of tendonitis as the wound heals up and pulls and rubs against various parts of the nether region. If there's no pain, I can go as hard as I want. If there is pain, grab some couch and rest just like any other form of tendonitis. The harder I go the more I increase my chances of irritating something, but I can take some preventative measures like stretching, ibuprofen and ice.=20
So if see you me at Superweek of course I'll be happy to see you, and why yes, that <i>is</i> a bag of ice in my pants.
7.11.2007
Just Riding
The past couple days haven't been so bad for riding. I like riding my bike, so the 4.5 hour ride from the apartment to Ojai on Monday followed by a 2 hour ride from Ojai to Santa Barbara yesterday were nice.
Did they hurt?
Oh yeah. Especially the 2 hours of constant headwind across the Heritage Valley. That was awesome.
Were the power numbers any good?
Uh, sure - for a ride.
Am I ready for Superweek?
Hahaha... well, since the pain came back I haven't done too many efforts comparable to jumping out of a turn at a Superweek crit...200 times in a row. Mentally, yes. Phyically, should be soon. I guess the doctor gets to answer this question tomorrow.
As I said though, I was on my bike for a couple of days through some beautiful scenery. It was good.
I'm ORD-bound via BUR & DFW this afternoon. Hello humidity!
Did they hurt?
Oh yeah. Especially the 2 hours of constant headwind across the Heritage Valley. That was awesome.
Were the power numbers any good?
Uh, sure - for a ride.
Am I ready for Superweek?
Hahaha... well, since the pain came back I haven't done too many efforts comparable to jumping out of a turn at a Superweek crit...200 times in a row. Mentally, yes. Phyically, should be soon. I guess the doctor gets to answer this question tomorrow.
As I said though, I was on my bike for a couple of days through some beautiful scenery. It was good.
I'm ORD-bound via BUR & DFW this afternoon. Hello humidity!
7.08.2007
Debauchery in SD
Well, the riding didn't go so well this week with the sensation of minor tears in the gut and getting what felt like a "cup check" through half my workouts - but nothing helps you wash your worries away like good friends, coastal air and a little vino. Warning, not much about bike riding in this report...
Rosa and I headed down to San Diego yesterday to celebrate my college buddy's engagement. We went to he and his fiance's house first for a late-afternoon BBQ and then headed over to the Hillside neighborhood and a place called Wine Steals for the official party.
Any entrepreneurs or restaurateurs in the Chicago area should take note of this joint. It's a wine-tasting bar that includes a small retail section of unique but reasonable priced wines ($5 to $40). I'd never seen 90% of the labels before. Then in the "tasting area" (80% of the space) they serve you any wine they sell in portions ranging from the "mini-taste" (just 25¢!) up to a full bottle, and local beers, coffee, tea and all sorts of hors d'oeuvres (although they serve an enormous cheese-focaccia-artichoke bread that's a pizza by any other name). They have a standard, brass-rail bar for tasting, but otherwise the place is packed with big comfy couches and coffee tables. Folks can browse the immense chalkboard menu above the bar or walk through the retail section, pick out a bottle, and grab a spot for an hour or two. The place was packed from 5 in the afternoon until closing time... errr, at least I was told they were packed until close.
In addition to the main seating area, there's a room off to the side for private parties up to about 40 people and filled with more couches, loveseats, and a big tasting table. The only thing required to reserve the room is the guarantee that you'll run up at least a $250 tab. Yeah, I think our party of 45 went from $0 to $250 in 2.8 seconds.
The entire place had a great casual atmosphere without the "dingy-ness" of a bar, any wine-snob pretentiousness, and a more laid-back feel than a coffee shop.
Bless Rosa for stepping up as the evening's d.d. as we chatted it up with friends old and new well into the night. The ladies even did a little bit of dancing, which energized Rosa enough to drive the two hours back to LA so we could avoid traffic and crash in our own bed.
Today I actually had a decent ride in spite of the aforementioned pains. They're still there but they aren't getting too much worse. I see my doc when I get back to Chicago on Thursday so he can tell me what the heck is going on and how much I'm allowed to push it. If he keeps me in the holding pattern I might just focus the energy I would have spent on Superweek into opening a fun little cafe of my own in the Western Suburbs.
I'll keep you posted.
Rosa and I headed down to San Diego yesterday to celebrate my college buddy's engagement. We went to he and his fiance's house first for a late-afternoon BBQ and then headed over to the Hillside neighborhood and a place called Wine Steals for the official party.
Any entrepreneurs or restaurateurs in the Chicago area should take note of this joint. It's a wine-tasting bar that includes a small retail section of unique but reasonable priced wines ($5 to $40). I'd never seen 90% of the labels before. Then in the "tasting area" (80% of the space) they serve you any wine they sell in portions ranging from the "mini-taste" (just 25¢!) up to a full bottle, and local beers, coffee, tea and all sorts of hors d'oeuvres (although they serve an enormous cheese-focaccia-artichoke bread that's a pizza by any other name). They have a standard, brass-rail bar for tasting, but otherwise the place is packed with big comfy couches and coffee tables. Folks can browse the immense chalkboard menu above the bar or walk through the retail section, pick out a bottle, and grab a spot for an hour or two. The place was packed from 5 in the afternoon until closing time... errr, at least I was told they were packed until close.
In addition to the main seating area, there's a room off to the side for private parties up to about 40 people and filled with more couches, loveseats, and a big tasting table. The only thing required to reserve the room is the guarantee that you'll run up at least a $250 tab. Yeah, I think our party of 45 went from $0 to $250 in 2.8 seconds.
The entire place had a great casual atmosphere without the "dingy-ness" of a bar, any wine-snob pretentiousness, and a more laid-back feel than a coffee shop.
Bless Rosa for stepping up as the evening's d.d. as we chatted it up with friends old and new well into the night. The ladies even did a little bit of dancing, which energized Rosa enough to drive the two hours back to LA so we could avoid traffic and crash in our own bed.
Today I actually had a decent ride in spite of the aforementioned pains. They're still there but they aren't getting too much worse. I see my doc when I get back to Chicago on Thursday so he can tell me what the heck is going on and how much I'm allowed to push it. If he keeps me in the holding pattern I might just focus the energy I would have spent on Superweek into opening a fun little cafe of my own in the Western Suburbs.
I'll keep you posted.
7.06.2007
"The waiting is the hardest part"
- Tom Petty.
So I was planning on racing this weekend at the La Mirada Grand Prix, but it turns out my body isn't quite ready. I started getting the pain in my gut last Sunday after a really solid week of riding, but then it took almost four days of rest before I could get out and ride again. I would head out the door this week and within 15 minutes I'd feel a little twinge telling me to go home. Oh well.
Today I went out and did a little tempo and everything felt pretty good again. I'll just have to keep the really high torque efforts out for another couple days, but as long as I can still do the longer tempo days I'll be in good shape. It's just a matter of being able to do some all out efforts by Superweek in 7 days...
Since I started out the entry with a musical reference, I thought I'd make a few musical confessions since my only other tuneful Blog post was the pre-surgery "depressing" emo stuff. The last couple of weeks I've had some stellar workouts (best watts I've seen all year) to none other than AC/DC and "the Boss" (and specifically early Springsteen). The drums, guitar and vocals get you all pumped up and then the sax solo carries you home. And do I really need to say anything about AC/DC?
And don't worry, I only wear the headphones when riding the mostly deserted bike path (with no street crossings) along the loveliest stretch of the I-5 I know.
So I was planning on racing this weekend at the La Mirada Grand Prix, but it turns out my body isn't quite ready. I started getting the pain in my gut last Sunday after a really solid week of riding, but then it took almost four days of rest before I could get out and ride again. I would head out the door this week and within 15 minutes I'd feel a little twinge telling me to go home. Oh well.
Today I went out and did a little tempo and everything felt pretty good again. I'll just have to keep the really high torque efforts out for another couple days, but as long as I can still do the longer tempo days I'll be in good shape. It's just a matter of being able to do some all out efforts by Superweek in 7 days...
Since I started out the entry with a musical reference, I thought I'd make a few musical confessions since my only other tuneful Blog post was the pre-surgery "depressing" emo stuff. The last couple of weeks I've had some stellar workouts (best watts I've seen all year) to none other than AC/DC and "the Boss" (and specifically early Springsteen). The drums, guitar and vocals get you all pumped up and then the sax solo carries you home. And do I really need to say anything about AC/DC?
And don't worry, I only wear the headphones when riding the mostly deserted bike path (with no street crossings) along the loveliest stretch of the I-5 I know.
7.05.2007
Pain in the...
Not a lot to write about pertaining to bike riding.
Some painful twinges near the repaired region (6 weeks after surgery) are annoying the crap out of me.
Some painful twinges near the repaired region (6 weeks after surgery) are annoying the crap out of me.
7.03.2007
Ups and Downs
Training has been going pretty well. Last week I put together three, solid 4-hour rides and even hit some personal bests for some of the shorter power intervals. Unfortunately, I might have pushed just a little too hard because there was a little pain around the incision the last couple days. It's been five weeks since the surgery, but apparently I'm still not 100%. Oh well, a couple days rest is never a bad thing.
In more important news, the past few days have been a rollercoaster on the Midwest cycling scene. As many of your have heard, the ultimate tragedy occurred at Saturday's state championship road race outside of Peoria. Beth Kobeszka, 24 years old, was killed during an accident in the Women's 4 race. Then, on last night's Monday Night Ride two ABD members crashed and were taken to the hospital. Brian McCrae escaped with a broken clavicle, while Bill Michaux suffered a broken clavicle in addition to pelvic and hip bone fractures. Thanks to all the ABD members who have been checking in on them.
But there have been some bright spots too the past few days: ABD'er Tom Egan has stabilized and is doing better. Josh Carter took the overall win at Proctor, Susan Peithman finished second overall in the Women's Omnium behind two third place finishes, Konrad Witt was crowned the Illinois state road race champion, and Jessi Prinner won the scratch race at the Junior National Track Championships! Congrats to all of them.
In more important news, the past few days have been a rollercoaster on the Midwest cycling scene. As many of your have heard, the ultimate tragedy occurred at Saturday's state championship road race outside of Peoria. Beth Kobeszka, 24 years old, was killed during an accident in the Women's 4 race. Then, on last night's Monday Night Ride two ABD members crashed and were taken to the hospital. Brian McCrae escaped with a broken clavicle, while Bill Michaux suffered a broken clavicle in addition to pelvic and hip bone fractures. Thanks to all the ABD members who have been checking in on them.
But there have been some bright spots too the past few days: ABD'er Tom Egan has stabilized and is doing better. Josh Carter took the overall win at Proctor, Susan Peithman finished second overall in the Women's Omnium behind two third place finishes, Konrad Witt was crowned the Illinois state road race champion, and Jessi Prinner won the scratch race at the Junior National Track Championships! Congrats to all of them.
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