Desert Days, and on a more important note

After the odd rainy day here in Phoenix yesterday, today looks to be a nice, dry, sunny 58 degrees. I believe that’s the kind of day that calls for a long lunch with a bike ride after a morning’s work.

And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the foremost thing on my mind since the moment I woke up. Today marks one year since Rosa’s dad passed away. We miss you, Jeff.

Stabbed in the Back

UPDATE: I have removed the beginning of this post as I brought what should have been private conversations here into my public forum.

...

Having said that, the situation says that much more about the ABD Elite Team roster taking shape for 2009. As of right now our guys are basically racing for free because they know what it means to be a part of the cycling community, how to win bike races, and do it with integrity. Our bike industry sponsors (especially PPC) know that too and we owe them big for taking care of the team next year.

E-Mail of the Day

I’m not one to share correspondence because it’s usually catty and will get you in trouble, but this one from an ABD event participant is a gem:

Will you have more fans at Winfield?
Last year during my first TT, I did not have a fan blowing any air into my face to cool me. As a result, within 3 minutes of my start, the sweat was just pouring down.
I was more prepared at my second attempt a few weeks later.
See you in a few weeks!
If, like me, you immediately thought “fans” meant spectators then you understand what makes this so special- if not, read it again with that in mind.

I was just one more convulsion away from spitting coffee all over my laptop.

Makes Me Thirsty

Everyone should see this little gem that Luke over at Chicago Bike Racing discovered:

Say it ain't so...

I’ll admit that Rock Racing hasn’t always been my favorite squad, but I hope there isn’t much to the recent VeloNews story about the companies financial woes.

Rock’s combination of Southern California flashiness, roster spots taken up by convicted dopers, and a fleet of Escalades really doesn’t do it for me (as much as I loved Cipo’s return). However, there are definitely plenty of hard working bike racers on the team and I admire Michael Ball’s ambition to sign as many out-of-work riders as he could this winter. For a while there I was joking with an out-of-work pro that it seemed Ball would just sponsor the whole American racing scene.

If something really bad happens though, then I say Michael Ball and Stein Bagger should be chained to Computrainers and forced to race for our entertainment for the rest of their lives, a la Triplets of Belleville.

Pro/Am Madness

The recently released 2009 US continental Teams’ roster list is a topic worthy of the SNL Weekend Update’s “Really?” and “OMG, Are you serious?” departments.

Names like Pipp, Clarke and Wherry are nowhere to be found... “Really?”

Then there’s the recently announced Rock Racing club team including Mike Creed, Chris Baldwin, Cesar Grajales and Rashan Bahati... “Oh My God, are you serious?“

I wonder if they’ll be lining up at Elite Nationals with the rest of us....

Back Again

        If it’s true that I’m my own boss I really should have fired my ass at this whole blogging thing by now. A span of over two months with nary a peep is completely unacceptable. But you know what? I’m the boss of this here blog and since I’ve been a little busy I’m going to give myself another chance.

“Busy with what?”, you may ask. Well, since you may have asked, I’ve been filling my days with:

• moving into the new apartment 
  
• planning a wedding (actually 1 wedding & 2 receptions)
  
• race directing the Fall Fling (even raced a stage)
  
• a trip to Phoenix (bridal shower #2)
  
• ran a Cannonball Film Festival at the Studio (sooooo awesome)
  
• negotiating with riders for the 2009 ABD Elite roster (can’t wait to announce this)
  
• negotiating sponsorships in a down economy (our industry sponsors are stepping up big)
  
• playing catch-up after being hired back at ABD full-time (happy to be back in the bosom of my cycling family)
  
• trip to Chicago (PPC, ABD and other various meetings)
  
• and did I mention helping to plan a wedding? (I can’t really even take that much credit as Rosa is rocking away at planning the majority of this party)
  

        So now I’m on a plane back to Burbank and I have to admit there are things going on in here that reinforce while LA is a special place. I can see two people on their laptops typing away in Final Draft on what could be the next great indie flick or summer blockbuster. There’s a tattoo artist on a laptop working on his website. Another guy appears to be running some music mixing program, and then I know I’ve seen the tall redhead sitting behind me in a movie. Los Angeles is definitely the land of dreams.

        But having said all that about LA, I can definitely identify with something Christian Vandevelde said last night during his appearance at the ICA awards banquet. Steve Thordarson, founder of SmartCycling and my first coach, asked Christian what kept him grounded through all the ups and downs of his career. Christian said, “I just remember who I am and where I came from. That’s one of the main reasons I moved back to Chicago”. No doubt about it, Chicago is good people.

Office for Off-Season Bike Racers: Not Just Yet

Test out that late season fitness at the ABD/GEARGRINDER Fall Fling stage race these next two weekends!

Advice for off season bike racers #3

Take off your cyclecomputer/heart rate monitor/power meter for the
rest of the season.

Get back to basics: if it's warm enough to ride outside and you want
to ride- just go.

Advice for off season bike racers #2

For every new thing you plan to do or change this off-season or next season with the goal of being a better bike racer... try a new type of food, beer, wine, cigar or read a new book, magazine or blog.

It will remind you that sometimes new things are AWESOME... but sometimes they suck.

Advice for off season bike racers #1

Enjoy Happy Hour, even if you don't have a beverage.

Sent from handheld

Best Vacation Ever?

Last year Rosa and I had the opportunity to kick it around Germany, Austria and England for a week. This year it was a Trek Travel trip along the Northern California Coast. How can you pick one of those over the other? It’s close to impossible (but since one included my best friend’s wedding I suppose it has a slight edge...) But regardless, this vacation was beyond anything a cyclist like me could ever ask for.

We posted some photos over at the MobileMe gallery , and they pretty much speak for themselves. Gorgeous scenery, delicious meals, plush accommodations and great company. Anyone looking for a not-so-run-of-the-mill vacation needs look no further than a Trek Travel trip.

S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y, hey!

Do Rosa and I know how to party or what? Neither of us have any idea
how we fit all this stuff in 525 sq feet for all these years- and
we're not even sure where it all came from! As we unpack I'm sure
quite a bit will get kai-zahned! (according to the Mike Farrell
definition of kai-zahn...which is the equivalent of making everything extraneous in a room disappear)

Change of Plans!

After 75, 90 and 50 mile days with Coach Farrell, we started to shift
gears to prepare for the Trek Travel trip. This photo says it all.
There are lots more photos and stories to come, but we have to get
moved to our new apartment by Monday. As long as the DSL is up and
running I promise more soon!

Day 2: Whose Idea Was This?

        75 miles the first day was a little tough, but bearable. So the second day we started out on a ride from Ojai to the Santa Ynez Valley that I estimated would only be about 70 miles.         Fortunately, I placed a call to fellow flatlander Mark Swartzendruber to ask him about the route I planned to take up over the San Marcos Pass. Mark’s brother lives in Santa Barbara and he’s fortunate enough to spend a few weeks every year riding in the area. Mark informed me that the main road included a lot of traffic that didn’t give bike riders too much room, and if we wanted to go up the “old road” then it would be like climbing Snake Alley for 10 miles. After three and a half ours in the saddle and packs on our bikes? Uh, no. Mark recommended that we head up the coast and take the 101. 

It was definitely easier going on the coast and the ocean air was nice and cool... but the ride ended up being closer to a 95 miles and there was one 15 minute, HOT, inland climb near the end that just about did us in. Although the bags are only 15 lbs or so, it definitely makes things a lot tougher. And it’s not even necessarily the weight as much as the way it redistributes the weight. The seatpost racks provide an upside down pendulum effect- but we’re getting used to it.
        At least after that hot climb we had about 6 miles of easy downhill into Buellton, and then another flat three miles over to Solvang where we called it a night. Another 15mph average put us at just over 6 hours in the saddle, and we felt it. Of course, it wasn't anything a delicious dinner at Cafe Angelica’s and a bottle of ‘05 Epiphany Petite Syrah couldn’t help with.
        

Northbound

Yesterday, Farrell and I began our great trip North in what is my
first self-supported touring ride. El presidente (mike) flew in Monday
night, and Tuesday morning we loaded up our seatpost mounted racks and
hit the road for a three day trip taking us from Glendale to Ojai,
Ojai to Santa Ynez, and then Santa Ynez to Morro Bay where Rosa will
meet us before we drive the rest of the way to San Francisco for the
start of our Trek Travel coastal trip.

The original plan called forjuw to ride all the way from LA to San
Francisco (a trip of about 450 mles) but due to time constraints we
just cut it to a 3-dayer with anywhere from 75 to 90 miles a day. I
kind of thought we were being slackers with only that much riding- but
the terrain is pretty tough here and that extra 20 lbs of weight (rack
+ clothing) makes a big difference. We averaged 15mph the first day,
which considering the mountains and 30 mile headwind section, I'm ok
with. Today's mountians are a little bigger, but we get a long coastal
section, which will be a much needed repreive from the heat of our
inland ride yesterday.

I'll try and send some pics during the day if I have some decent cell
phone reception.

Racing Bikes Is Fun!

(posted by handheld- sorry for any eggregious spelling or gramat errors)

Although it's been waaayyy too long since I've dropped in an update,
I'll try and not bore anyone with the details of my tardiness.
Suffice it to say I'm still working for ABD and the ABD/Geargrinder
team, working for Carter Thor Studio, riding my bike to work and any
other time I can, and oh yeah, getting married in about 4.5 months AND
looking for a new apartment. The last one has actually been the most
consuming thing of the past few weeks. The night we got the letter
from the landlord that he was raising the rent (again) we started
driving around looking at places. We're narrowing in on what we
want/need/can afford and hopefully we can check that whole moving
thing off the list soon. After almost 4 years in a 525 sq. foot
apartment, we're anxious to go bigger and add bedroom #2 for an
office/guest room for all the family and bike riders we love having
stop in. The extra space will certainly give us a little breathing
room with so much going on right now, and it seems like the only time
I get any solid workouts in anymore are when a teammate stops in to
whip me into shape.

And speaking of getting whipped... back to the bike racing.

While back in the Midwest last weekend for a sweet double ABD/Family
bridal shower, I decided to join the ABD/GG boys up at the Glencoe
Grand Prix. Nothing helps you sweat out two nights of eating and
drinking like some good old fashion suffering. Contrary to what my
scientifically minded current and former teammates think, I do believe
I'm capable of putting the suffer meter on 11 every once in a while.
And seeing as how my weekly training volume is under 6 hours right now
(I won't admit just how far under 6), racing against a bunch of dudes
fresh off 1,000 laps of Superweek certainly meant I would suffer...
And I did.

But it really wasn't too bad. There were a few laps where I was
further up on the nose of my saddle than I've been in the past five
years, but once the break was established it was business as usual and
I had fun rolling along with the guys, doing our best to keep it all
together until our riders lapped. The only thing that comes close to
the satisfaction of winning a bike race is the satisfaction of playing
a part in a well-executed strategy. That's why see guys like
Cancallara and O'Grady just slaying themselves in the Tour for their
leader, because if they do their job for the day then they can go to
bed happy men. And if their man takes the lead, then they cam take
pride in that and take a bit of prize money to boot.

Now I'm not saying we were anywhere close to Canca and Stuey, but the
team did a great job of executing the plan and keeping control of the
race. It was almost so much fun I forgot about the pain.

Why I Ride A Bike

Well, at least this is one reason... 

At the end of the workday I get out the door, make myself hurt, and get to see scenery like this as I head up the "Rock Shop" climb on the Mulholland Highway.

Rosa and I have often discussed/pondered this question: what's to be said about how we cyclists crave the pain we inflict on ourselves- when our goal is the lactic acid burn and sensation of coughing up blood? Are we masochists? Is it like a drug that numbs our brains? 

I wouldn't say I'm a masochist, and in fact might even admit I'm a bit of a wimp... but I do enjoy the way an extended, anaerobic effort seems to have the effect of blowing the cobwebs out of your body and your head.

The reason Rosa and I always talk about it is because the way I love the physical pain is the same we she and other actors love the emotional pain.  She can't understand why I like to do this to myself and I have no clue why someone would want to strip themselves to the emotional core while other people are watching... 

...but maybe it's because we do understand that we work out o.k.

Paparazzi are Dumb

Cameron had a coaching with a high-profile client tonight, who I escorted up the stairs, so my mug might be appearing on your favorite celebrity gossip website some time soon.

So after these morons almost caused several accidents, they just camped outside our building and snapped photos anytime a door opened. We could see flashes up in the office... and after a while I decided to turn the tables...



Morons... but I’m not sure what the guy in the chef’s hat is doing, and I do have to give props to the guy wearing the Air Jordan’s.

What a job, what a job.

Will & Pate on NPR

NPR had a little blurb on the Tour this morning, complete with quips from Will as he battles his inner demons to a mountaintop finish and a brief interview with Danny Pate.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92663973

I hope Danny doesn't mind my man-crush, it's just nice that we jadded fans get to root for the good guys.

I don't think Tricky Ricky Ricco saw my hat

Found picture from our neighborhood

I do believe this cash machine is getting fresh with me.... it says:

"Please dip your card in the slot and take it out - so we can begin."

The Team Reporter

Believe it or not, I’m actually updating a blog regularly... just not mine.

Throughout Superweek I’ll be posting nightly reports from the team at both the ABD News Blog and the Team page. The ABD News feed is right at www.abdcycling.com and the team is at www.abdcycling.com/elitemen

What Has Been Running Through my Head 24/7

Many family members and friends had told me about Flight of the Conchords, but it wasn't until we visited Jodi up in Oakland that we had a chance to watch a few episodes... and now I have a big old mancrush on these two guys and can't get this sequence and song out of my head...

Fast Fellas

Just a brief update on the ABD/GEARGRINDER squad: these guys were fast this past month!

It started off with Carter taking second at the Winfield Twilight Criterium (technically on May 31st). Then Rob White nabbed the “W” the first day of June at the ABR National Championship.

One week later our man Jeff Schroetlin started to flex his “summer muscles” by driving the 6-man breakaway at the Tour De Winghaven, flatting with 2 miles to go, and bridging back up in time to get 4th place!

The weekend after that Rob White lapped the field with two other riders (including former ABD’er Frankie Dierking) en route to taking the Wisconsin State Crit Title, and his brother Ryan took the field sprint for 4th.

Next up was another big Wisco weekend: the Grafton Twilight Criterium and GEARGRINDER’s own Sheboygan Criterium. Mr. Carter didn’t disappoint the hometown fans, catching the late breakaway from Bissell pro Garret Peltonen in the final straightaway to notch Saturday’s win and outsprinting Jittery Joe’s pro (and another former ABD’er) Chad Hartley on Sunday. (There’s a great video of Saturday’s finish courtesy of Tim Keeley at www.abdcycling.com/public/grafton/Grafton.mov)

To round out the month of June, Schroetlin’s form continued to improve and at the Proctor Criterium he finished as the first Illinois rider across the line to take the IL state title!

And to finish off the pre-Superweek preparation, this past weekend the team did the double 1-2 as Ryan and Rob White executed perfect team tactics to finish first and second, respectively, at the UWW Road Race, and in Sunday’s ABR State Championship Schroetlin agained manhandled the field, lapping them twice and leading out Josh Carter for 2nd place en route to taking 1st himself.

Celluloid at the Cemetery

I'm sure that every time you're at the cemetery and see the big white wall of a mausoleum you say to yourself, "wow, what a great place to watch a movie."

Of course, you don't say that because it's absurd, creepy and maybe a little disrespectful...

But then there's Hollywood Forever- a cemetery whose entire back property line borders the Paramount Studios and where many of Hollywood's stars and starlets are buried. And just in case you don't remember some of the names many had their portrait etched into the headstones. It's really the epitome of Los Angeles- a town that is all about being seen. So with that in mind, I don't think the deceased are bothered that 2,000 people gather in an empty corner of the cemetery every summer weekend night to watch classic Hollywood films projected on the side of an enormous mausoleum- especially since the $10 cover charge goes towards preserving the original prints of the old movies as well as beautification of the cemetery grounds.

Rosa, her sister, and I joined our friends Reah and Andrew last weekend for our first Hollywood Forever experience, and it was one of the coolest things I've ever done in this town. There was also a strong sense of community that I haven't experienced often in L.A.

Although the movies don't start until it's dark (around 9:30 pm), the gates open at 7:30 and the party actually begins around 6 pm. That's when everyone begins to arrive to get a good place in line, but in order to do so your entire party needs to be present, so groups spread out their blankets and chairs on the front lawn and start with appetizers and cocktails. Then when the gates open it's a respectful, hushed dash down the lanes and to the back corner, where everyone sets up the blankets and chairs once again, and this time dive in on their main course for the evening. Some groups even bring low tables, candles and we also saw a fondue fountain.

That night's showing feature was Hitchcock's "The Man Who Knew Too Much", starring Jimmy Stewart and Doris Day. Rosa and I actually just saw it for the first time not more than a couple of months ago, so it was a pleasure to be able to pay just as much attention to the crowd as the movie. I'm sure that watching a film with that many people evoked some of the same feel that audiences experienced back in the hey-day of the local moviehouse. The cheering was more boisterous, the tension was thicker, and the laughing louder. We were definitely all in it together.

Called out... ok, I give.

Rick DeMoan called me out that my sorry excuse for a blog had gone from plain old boring to being worthy of an afternoon nap- which is where I rate watching golf (nothing put's my to sleep like watching people walk around a well-groomed lawn). That's ok, Rick, I deserve it (although if you'd called me out in the comments section at least it might have sparked some lively commentary). But I routinely violate the two rules of proper blogging: 1) stay focused and 2) update often, so here's the deal.

Normally I'll write about cycling, but the whole cycling thing ain't working out for me right now. As many of you know, life happens. Last season started out great, then came the hernia. I hobbled through the end of the season, then more important things came up through the Fall and Winter. Then just as I finally started hit my stride last month, the car accident. Whatever I did to my ribs kept me off the bike for about 3 weeks, but I started hiking. Then I decided to jog up and down the mountain on Sunday... and ripped apart my legs to the point I can hardly walk. Why is it that running down a mountain rips apart your legs like that?

So, here's where I'm at. All that time and energy that went into training? I'd like to think it's going into cognition: work, reading, writing- sorry, just not blog writing, and social commentary is definitely outside the scope of this blog (an article in the month's Atlantic, Is Google Making Us Stoopid? , confirmed my need to unplug a little more too). Cameron and I are also working on a few big projects right now, including a couple of books, so that's good.

So, until I start riding regularly again, or I have something entertaining to write, or I hear requests for a 29-year old's rambling about the good, bad and ugly life out here in L.A. ... I got nothing.

One Hundred Years of Solitude

Quite possibly the best and most important book I've ever heard.

Up until now the top picks were Lolita, Sons and Lovers, To Kill a Mockingbird ... but ... Gabriel Garcia Marquez... wow.

100 Years of Solitude was similar to Sons and Lovers in that it took me a long time to get into it (I must have started it and restarted it four or five times over the past three years), but once I hit page 70 it was this beautiful, tragic story that just kept building momentum, carried along by the weight of Marquez's masterful storytelling. The last 80 pages took me two weeks to finish because the story could only end one way, and I didn't want it to end. And that's exactly how I felt at the end Sons and Lovers- I just didn't want it to end.

A reviewer from the NY Times wrote in his initial review of the book in 1970 that he thought 100 Years of Solitude should be required reading for the entire human race after the Book of Genesis, and I'd agree. Marquez reminds us of the lessons we've learned throughout our lives without being preachy or paternizing, but rather showing them to us through a kalediscope that separates the lessons into an eternity of mezmerizing reflections and refractions of experiences and emotions that every human being has experienced.

Business as usual at the Nature Valley Grand Prix

http://www.velonews.com/article/77439

Now something good: the ABD and ABD/GEARGRINDER riders

I know some of this is old news, but I still feel all warm and fuzzy inside about it. Head on over to www.ABDcycling.com and check out the results pages, news blog and reports blog for updates from the past few weekends.

First up, major props to the ABD crew that pulled off the Midwest's biggest three-day Masters' series and turned around four days later to put together our biggest and smoothest running Winfield Criterium Weekend ever- over 675 riders in two days! And then to top it off, ABD'ers had some great results in the hometown races with New Kids on the ABD Block Sebastian Grinstein winning the Cat 5 men under 40, Gabe Looker taking the Cat 3's and Rob White scoring the win for the ABD/GEARGRINDER squad in the Cat 1/2 race!

Then this past weekend, in keeping with the "hometown" results theme, the ABD Multisport squad tore it up at the Batavia Triathlon & Duathlon, which is literally out the front door of the Prairie Path Cycles-Batavia store. Props to Kim Malmquist, the first female duathlete across the line, Scott Pahl for taking his age group and Gretchen DeMong for taking the silver in her age group!

And on a final note, although it's an "out of area" event, it's very noteworthy that Gabe Looker and Ron Bridal took 2nd and 3rd at Sunday's brutally hot Tour de Winghaven.

Since I'm to0 far away to do it (back in LA now), I hope all the ABD'ers give each other a well-deserved pat on the back.

Well, that sucked....

So, I'm back in the Midwest to help with the Winfield Criterium
Weekend. Things are a little crazy running last-minute errands for the
race, when out of nowhere some 16 year old kid overcorrects a mistake
and takes a detour at a 45 degree angle into oncoming traffic... and I
happen to be oncoming traffic, driving back towards the bike shop at
about 45 miles per hour.

I audibly say "oh sh&%", and it wasn't until later that I realized I
considered three options (bike racers will identify with this post-
crash-recollection of your stream of consciousness), I can:
a) swerve to the right and hit him more head on
b) swerve to the left and hit an SUV in oncoming traffic
c) just stay the course.

I stick with (c) and it's unavoidable, loud, fast, expensive and a
little painful. I get a cut on my wrist and bruised ribs, my
counterpart gets a burn on his face from his airbag. Both cars get
totaled. But most importantly, we both had our seatbelts on, get out
of our cars, and walk away. (Although as you'll see from the pics
below I shudder to think if he'd had a passenger in the car.)

All my siblings happen to be home this weekend too from various
locations around the country, so when I call for someone to pick me
up, everyone comes along.... and Mom figures there couldn't be a
better time to get the Christmas Card photo. Sure, her car's totaled
(sorry Mom), but she's got all her kids home for a weekend and we're
alive and healthy.

Just another gorgeous day in LA

Sent from handheld.

May 12: A Day in Pictures

May 12th is my birthday. A couple of weeks ago Rosa asked me what I wanted to do for it and I blurted out "Ride my bike to Santa Barbara".

So I did.


View Larger Map

My plan was to park my car at our boss's place in Augora Hills and ride 90 miles inland over the mountains, through Ojai, down to the coast and then up to Santa Barbara.

The ride started out pretty well, overcast and in the high 50's. I had the roads to myself at 10AM on a Monday.

Then I ventured into the canyons northwest of Simi Valley, which are full of massive sand and gravel pits. It's fun descending but a little crazy with all the trucks.

Then came the Heritage Valley: birthplace of many an orange, avocado and strawberry.

Next up came the serene Ojai Valley...

...then up and over the climb at Lake Casitas.

And eventually down to the Pacific Ocean.

Where the lovely Rosa Linda met me on the beach for a picnic...

...and I asked her to marry me.

That's right, it's official! Take another gander at her left hand in case you missed it.

And here's just one reason why I love this woman: when we're deciding on a restaurant for dinner that night, she says, "You better not pick some fancy place just because we got engaged. I'm totally down for the Brewhouse". The Brewhouse is a great little brewery & restaurant away from the main, fancy strip-- so to the Brewhouse we went for a delicious dinner and some celebratory beverages.

It was going to be tough to match May 12, 2007, which was spent at my best friend's wedding in Austria, but I think we pulled it off.

Catch Up

Catch Up- what I feel like I might be doing when it comes to racing with my teammates this summer. These boys are fast! Big props to Rob White and his 6th place overall at the recent USA Crits Speed Week. Most guys at that race have been going full tilt for a couple of months, and the ABD/GEARGRINDER squad is just getting their legs under them.

Catch Up- what I'm doing with this blog entry. Man, what have I been doing for two weeks? Oh, that's right, working. The new job with Carter Thor Studios has been going well.. and then when I get home from that gig (or on my lunch breaks) I'm taking care of some ABD communique, which is getting hot and heavy now with the 40k TTT this Saturday and then both the big Memorial Day Weekend Msters Races and the Winfield Criterium Weekend at the end of the month.

Fortunately, I have been able to get four or five days of riding in a week too, but no real long rides yet- mostly 90 minute to 2 hour hard workouts. Lots of threshhold and "on road mountain biking" up in Griffith Park and the Hollywood Hills. Riding in the neighborhoods that follow the borders of the park is a blast, the roads are steep, twisty and in horrible shape! The pavement is super cracked and uneven, creating all these mini jumps, berms and obstacles. But all the rich stars and starlets have built their houses so on top of each other that the roads are barely wide enough for one car- much less a road crew! There have been several occasions when I've launched off a lip or over a massive pothole on a descent only to have to grab a handful of brakes to avoid becoming a hood ornament on some Mercedees or Porsche whipping around a hairpin turn.... And yes, I am still talking about riding my road bike. Knock on wood, but my Bontrager x-lites and Serfas tires have neve failed me on that loop.

Oh yeah, it hasn't all been work and riding, I am happy to report that I'm reading a great book right now too: 100 Years of Solitude. I started it three years ago and kept rereading the first 40 pages, but once I pushed through to about page 70 it all became clear and I was hooked. Anyone who's read it or wants to read it and discuss, please shoot me an email. It feels good to get the old English major wheels turning again.

The Stats

Read 'em and weep folks:

2 hours and 30 minutes
24 miles
1,700 feet of climbing
2 sections that required a push

Those are the stats for Rosa's first ride of 2008 on Saturday. I told her that we didn't need to all the way over the mountain to the Rose Bowl, but she said she was "going big or going home", God bless her.

Needless to say, she's been a little sore the past couple days, but not too bad. I installed my compact crankset (50/34) and the 12-27 on her bike, so she was able to maintain a decent cadence on a ride that is all uphill or downhill- no flat roads to speak of. Of course, this also forces me to ride big boy gears now, which is probably a good thing- but I rode that compact for almost a year now (including Superweek and the August crits last year) and it was pretty nice.

In other news, the ABD/GG squad took another win on Sunday with Ryan White taking the honors with brother Rob in 4th place. In Saturday's race they finished 3rd and 7th as well, which ain't too shabby. They meet up with Josh this weekend for the Athens Twilight Crit followed by the USA Crit Series. Stay tuned...

Garret Lemire Race Report

Sunday's Garret Lemire Memorial Criterium was HOT! And not a fun, exciting, (miniskirt) hot, but as our favorite Uncle Fred would say, "Africa hot". When we rolled up to the line for our 2 p.m. start the mercury sat at 96 degrees (just two away from Ryan White's favorite boy band).

Needless to say, two boys from the frozen tundra and my embarrassingly-low weekly training volume were not very effective against squads from HealthNet, Toyota-United, Successful Living, Colavita, Jelly Belly and others. But the team that proved our undoing were some riders from Kahala-LaGrange, who would drift to the back only to let massive gaps open up-- not even allowing us to tailgun in peace, licking our wounds to the finish line. Nope, chalk up three fat D-N-F's.

At least we're all re-motivated to get back to the drawing board for our races that matter in May, June, July and August.

Fun NPR Stories

Most of you know that I'm an NPR addict. Morning Edition is the perfect compliment to a cup of coffee, and nothing soothes an afternoon commute in Los Angeles like All Things Considered. So, I just wanted to pass along some great stories from the past week. 

The first is an interview with Martial Arts master and film star Jackie Chan.  I would argue that his fight scenes are the most well choreographed dances on celluloid in the last 20 years.

And here's the "Wall of Shame" story, where students at a high school out east post their college rejection letters on a wall for everyone to see. 

Island View Criterium, UCSB & Views from Ojai

On Friday night the White brothers, Rob and Ryan, flew into town for a weekend of racing. The docket included a collegiate race on Saturday at the University of California Santa Barbara, and this afternoon's race is the Garret Lemire Memorial Grand Prix, a National Racing Calendar criterium in Ojai. Ojai is where Rosa and I lived with with her dad, Jeff, for the first few months we moved out to California and where Jeff published his "Ojai and Ventura Voice". 

The Saturday morning drive up the ocean was a pretty ideal start to the trip. Spring here in Southern California means lots of green, and the ocean is always good scenery. Then we arrived on the UCSB campus... and we instantly learned why people say that UCSB stands for the "University of Casual Sex & Booze". The campus is a sprawling fantasy land sitting smack dab on the beach a few miles north of Santa Barbara. An extensive network of bike paths runs for miles in and around campus, with a fully-lit path running down the coast to downtown Santa Barbara. When we went to pick up our numbers at 10 a.m. in the morning, the bike paths were full of well-tanned young men shirtless and young ladies in bikinis riding cruiser bikes barefoot to the beach or to various parties. At turn 2 on the race course a frat party was already spilling out into the street, again the dress code apparently calling for as little clothing as possible. This place is not real, and did I mention it was just past 10 AM?

And then there was our bike race. The White boys asked me to what expect and were already eyeing the prize list with dollars in their eyes. I tried to explain that in a place with 20 million people, lots of mountains and never any snow, there are a lot of bike riders in good shape - but I don't think they got it. Then we lined up with 110 riders including three HealthNet riders, a full Successful Living squad, 9 riders on some British team in town, and 90 other guys that have been racing full tilt for three months.

We averaged 30 mph for 75 minutes, and the White boys saw average heartrates not seen since Superweek. They both covered a lot of attacks and managed to finish right around the top 20. As for me, I was just happy to be there. 75 minutes would be my longest ride in three weeks and this was really my first race since the San Dimas debacle didn't turn out so well. I actually hung out at the back with Mark Swartzendruber (of ABD TT Series domination fame), who's brother lives in town. I made up to the front of the race for a few minutes and jumped into a two lap breakaway that ended up with a lot of horsepower (most notably Rory Sutherland and Karl Bordine), but I'm pretty happy we were caught so quickly since four pulls through that rotation made me want to hurl.  

After the race we did a sweet little ride down the coast to cool down, grabbed lunch at the delicious Brewhouse in Santa Barbara, and then drove the back roads up to Ojai through the mountains and past Lake Casitas - the same route the Tour of California takes. The night was just too nice to sit in the hotel room, so after showers and a few minutes of tv-watching we drove up through the East End and upper Ojai. The Orange Blossoms are in full bloom and you can smell it throughout the entire valley. I took the boys up Sulphur Mountain Road, which after 4 miles of single lane, twisty road, crests the mountain ridge to the south of Ojai. Anyone who lives up there might have some of the best views in SoCal: the Pacific Ocean and Channel Islands to the Southwest, the Ojai Valley to the North. I'll let the pictures posted at the end do the talking.

And today we take on the Garret Lemire NRC Crit: 50 miles, $15,000 in prize money, and a race time temperature predicted to be 97 degrees. Should be awesome for a couple of guys coming from the "neverending winter".

The view to the north of Sulphur Mountain Road. Those are the channel islands on the horizon.

And the view to the North: Looking down on the Upper Ojai Valley.

Weekend Recaps

Sorry folks, there hasn't been much in the way of blogging juices the last two weeks. Now that I'm working the Studio gig and the ABD gig I don't have many minutes left in the day...

Of course, that's not to say there haven't been some newsworthy happenings. I did my first race of the year, if you'd like to call it that. In the results of the uphill TT prologue at the San Dimas Stage Race you'll see my name fifth from the bottom (I can't believe I beat four people), but in the following day's road race results you will not see my name. Apparently, 5 or 6 hours a week of training does not a competitive Category 1 rider make. At least the Bird said I looked good when I ran into him before the race. 

Then the day after my DNF I had grand plans to ride from my house over to Agoura Hills, a great 3.5 hour ride that takes in mountains and the ocean, ...only to have my rear wheel completely seize up on me 45 minutes from home while I was on Mulholland Drive. I always rock a frame pump and saddle bag, but not cone wrenches! So for only the second time in my 14 years of riding I had to call someone to pick me up. The first time it happened I was in Phoneix in the days before cell phones, and I hobbled to a gas station to 1-800-COLLECT my Grandpa. The tendons in my knee had gotten so swollen I could hardly bring my knee over the top of the stroke. I was off the bike for over two weeks, and then two months later I was in Belgium racing with the National Team. So maybe having to call for help is a sign?

After the weekend of not-so-good riding and training I did the usual commute to work, and then on Thursday did a weekend trip on back to Chicago for a couple of meetings and the John Fraser Memorial Time Trial. It was great seeing everyone at the event and I'm very happy that the weather cooperated for us. 

So, now I'm back here in sunny SoCal and this weekend the White brothers will be joining me for the Island View Criterium and the NRC Garret Lemire Memorial Grand Prix. I've never done the Island View race, but the GLMGP is a great course and I think the boys are going to have a solid race. It will be good for them to mix it up with some of the P-R-O's before heading down to the SouthEast Crit Series at the end of the month. Stay tuned here and at the ABD/GEARGRINDER Team site for updates.

A Zero Emission Day!

On Tuesday Rosa and I went the entire day without driving a car-- a tricky task in this town, (especially when Rosa can get an audition call from anywhere between San Diego and Santa Barbara at a moment's notice). Fortunately, I've found an easy route for riding into "the office", so I'll be able to tack on a few hours to my embarrassingly low weekly riding volume. And we're lucky enough to have the post office and local markets within a couple blocks of the apartment, and Rosa can ride into the Yoga studio. 

Hopefully we can get these Z.E.D.'s up to at least two a week, because we know that for Hunter & Aimee in Tucson and ST in Boise, Zero Emission Day's are the norm rather than the exception.

Carbs v. fats v. Nothing Weight Loss Rules

Monique Ryan's books and articles should be required reading for endurance athletes. Over on the Velonews site she has a fantastic response to a reader's question regarding how to eat before and during training if they are aiming to lose weight (but don't want to lose performance).

One thing that surprised me was her advice that skipping carbohydrates in the morning before a 60 minute workout can have the effect of burning more fat stores (but after the one hour mark a breakfast-skipping athlete is only burning the same percentage of fat as their well fed counterpart). This advice makes logical sense because if you don't have any immediately available carbs then of course your body will turn to the fat stores sooner, but I've always been a little old-school when it comes to "break"ing the "fast".

Hit the link and check it out.

Order Up That Java!

Sorry for the delay, folks. You can order up the delicious Big Gear Blend using the order form here.

Shipping is just $5 no matter how big your order, so you might want to think about combining orders with fellow coffee lovers!

The New Gig

I can officially add "personal assistant" to the next line on my business card.

It's been a full week since I started working for Cameron Thor at Carter Thor Studio, and so far, so very good. I'm playing a lot of catch-up since the Studio is a tight family and everyone else already knows all the ins and outs, but it's fun. Everyone is open to the different perspective I bring to the table too, which is great.

Of course, learning a new job while the ABD gigs are in full swing is a little crazy, but it's been good, and so many things are happening right now. Winter is finally getting ready to leave the Midwest, the team is having a camp this weekend and hitting the big Hillsboro Roubaix road race, and I might even jump in my first race of the year this weekend in San Dimas. I was hoping to be the Sugar Glydar's wingman at the race, but unfortunately he's been grounded and is on the DL for a spell. Let's hope he's back soon so I'm not flying solo for too long.

Just Started The New Job

Sorry for the delay, I promise to update soon!

The Stomping Grounds

I've mentioned the LA River Bike Path and Griffith Park as preferred (and just out the door) training locations, so I thought I'd offer some visuals.

To the right is the lovely LA River. Gorgeous, isn't it? At least it doesn't smell too bad... and there arent' any cars.

 Now this actually is rather bee-you-tiful. It's from the center of Griffith Park looking south at the Griffith observatory (and downtown in the background). The Hollywood sign is just over my right shoulder. The climb up to this point is on the "closed" roads, so again- no traffic. "Closed" also means that the roads never get cleaned either, so it's like on-road mountain biking.

Laurie Morris: 1967-2008

Laurie was the hospice nurse who helped us take care of Grandma. She was one of the most beautiful people I've ever met.

Around the time Grandma passed away, Laurie started getting sick and the symptoms made it appear that her asthma was acting up. Unfortunately, it was a virus that went to her heart and over the last two months she'd been in and out of the hospital and the ICU. She passed away on Saturday night at just 40 years old.

I was given a lot of credit for taking care of my Grandma in the final months of her life— but I couldn't have done it without Laurie's strength, patience, guidance and kindness. She was my rock, the one who kept me strong, and I will never forget the lessons she taught me. One lesson is that listening can be more reassuring than anything you ever say, and the rest can be summed up in this quote:

"Nothing is so strong as gentleness, and nothing is so gentle as true strength."- Ralph Sockman.

My deepest condolences to her husband, children and grandchild.

Daytripping

There was a little more snow than we expected in the mountains of California today!

Unfortunately, we didn't get to see the giant Sequoias. The road ended when the snow banks got to be 8 ft high on each side. They just stopped plowing and suddenly there was a minimum base of 6 feet of snow on the road. We just went for a hike. More pictures to come.
Sent from handheld

The List

I like to think I'm a man with simple needs, despite my love of gadgets and exotic cars.

If I can have each of these things every day then it's safe to say I'll go to bed a happy man:

30 minutes of NPR or even just reading the paper
Hearing 1 good song
At least 1 hour on my bike
1 big cup of bold coffee- black (GearGrinder, please)
1 apple
1 cup of old-fashioned Oats
1 heaping spoonful of peanutbutter (Crunchy, please)
1 bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Sure, there are other things a man needs, but it's these that can really make the day. So how 'bout it, dear readers? What makes your day?

The Boss

I've mentioned my affinity for the music of Mr. Springsteen before, much to the chagrin of some readers, but for those of you who don't mind a little politics in your rock n' roll, check out the NPR interview with Springsteen this morning.

SOS

Dear Mr. Jungels of Prairie Path Cycles,

Please, I don't have much time. I hijacked Mike's computer while he's walking down to the store to get more fruit for his confounded daily smoothie. 

Mr. Jungels! Rob! Jungle-Juicer! He's torturing me! It's been months since my chain was replaced, my cables adjusted, or the bearings in my rear wheel properly tightened so that I don't roll along like some old beach cruiser! And a proper cleaning? Ugh, I'm afraid I've lost all hope for such a pleasure. The build-up of energy drink under my bottom bracket shell is like a constant itch that never gets scratched. 

I suppose he tries, every once in a while pulling out some wrench and pretending that he knows what he's doing... but it's no use. I miss the way you look at me: you saw me for what I should be, and looked past whatever neglected state he left me in. Your gentle, yet firm, hands are like human torque wrenches- always knowing just how much I like it. And I hope your fiance doesn't mind me saying so, but no one can make my drivetrain purr like you can.

Sigh... will we ever meet again? Is there any hope for me? Oh no! I hear him coming up the steps! Please, if you ever come to LA- steal me!

Respectfully,

Mike's Bike (the LeMond)

My friend will have the turns well done...

As I mentioned earlier, teammate Alex Sharon came up from San Diego last weekend to do a little riding and maybe ride over to the Rose Bowl to watch the finish of the ToC. Well, the weather kept us away from the race, but on Saturday morning we had sunny skies long enough to do the Mullholland Drive ride from here to the ocean and back. 

It was a pretty good ride: we put the hurt on each other, saw lots of big houses, fancy cars (the best being an Audi R8), and even a gathering of the paparrazi on the side of a cliff hoping to catch a glimpse of that hot new ABD/GEARGRINDER kit... (actually, we were in our old kit and are pretty sure they were there to snap photos of J-Lo's twins).

But the highlight of the ride came near the end (well, at least for me). We were about 3.5 hours in and descending off the Mulholland ridge down to the 101. Alex must have been feeling a little randy (the only explanation for such kamikaze behavior), and was sprinting all out down the descent. He dropped me in the first switchback- but then, as I neared the bottom, there was Alex standing on the side of the road-- looking all p-r-o as he prepared to remount his trusty steed. He'd already picked himself up from what had to be a momentarily terrifying slide into the guardrail. But he's tough-- don't underestimate the little guys.

Three reasons to keep a PC around the house.

As most of you know, I'm a Mac guy. I was sucked into Uncle Steve's Reality Distortion Field about five years ago and planned on never looking back (although I do have some issues with the iPhone and MacBook Air...)

But, as a bike rider there are two major reasons to keep a PC around:
1) Computrainer's indoor training software
2) TrainingPeaks (formerly CyclingPeaks)
The Computrainer software is pretty outdated and looks it, but it's still the best thing out there for training inside and is only available in the "Windows" PC Flavor. TrainingPeaks, on the other hand, is an extremely-powerful training analysis tool (we ABD coaches use it), but alas, is only available for Windows as well.

But really, the most important reason to have a PC around (or run Boot Camp on your Mac):
3) Netflix's "instant" program. They've loaded up tons of movies and TV shows for their subscriber's online viewing pleasure. Wednesday night we weren't up for reading the subtitles of "Infernal Affairs" (the original version of Scorsese's "The Departed"), so instead we queued up "Ghostbusters" instantly. Then last night when our copy of "Breach" showed up cracked (Netflix ain't perfect), we kept it old school and instantly watched "The Neverending Story" for the first time in about 20 years. The rumor has it that Netflix will have a Mac version of the instant service this year, but there's 10 months of '08 left...

We'll get to "Infernal Affairs" this weekend. Teammate Alex is coming up from San Diego for the weekend to do a little riding and catch the end of the ToC. Hope you can roll with the foreign film, Alex.

So that Gear Grinder Coffee?

Yeah, it's awesome. Even Rosa, the 6-year Starbucks barista veteran, said she loved it. Big, dark and bold-- just the way she likes her men.......... So, where does that leave me?

But seriously, what's she's really hoping for is a full-sized poster of the "Big Gear Blend" label to put up in our kitchen. (hint, hint. nudge, nudge sponsors).

You can order up some of this caffeinated goodness through teammate Rob White, just $7 each 8oz bag. As soon as Mr. White hooks me up with the order form I'll post it here.

Time To Get My Java On

Thanks to teammate Rob White for sending me the good stuff. What you're looking at there is the official "Big Gear Blend" coffee from our sponsor GearGrinder. The saying next to the picture is "Puts hair on your chest, not on your legs" and the fine print reads:

possibly
DRANK BY TOUR CHAMPIONS
on occasion

I'll be brewing up a pot of this tomorrow morning... but with the overcast day here maybe it's an afternoon coffee day.

Mario's message

I do love me some 'Cipo. Nobody's come close to replacing his panache...

http://roadmagazine.net/road_home/index.html

...and this is courtesy of Mr. Sharon, may the Sugar Glydar's blog rest in peace.

Project

I've lacked a green thumb my entire life, but there's something about
this plant that got me. I took over it's caretaking from Rosa a couple
of days ago, and this is actually an improvement since then... we'll
see how this adventure goes.

No Team Astana at le Tour

The cycling wires are hot this morning with news that Tour de France race organizers ASO will not invite Team Astana, and defending TdF champ Contador, to any of their events this year.

C'mon Team Astana , you knew this could happen. But my heart goes out to Levi... I never wanted to say I told you so.

Yeah for Griffith Park

During a few minutes of scouring the internet last week, I discovered that most of the Griffith Park was now open for hikers and bikers.

This weekend on the rainy Sunday that found the competitors of ToC suffering through the final stage, Rosa, Dad, Alex and I went for a hike up through the park. It was nice to show off a seldom-seen section of LA. The only other people I've hauled up the mountain were ST and my uncle.

As for the riders that finished up the ToC? Gentlemen, you're table is ready. That was an impressive performance and looked absolutely miserable.

Got Me A New Hat

...courtesy of the folks at some financial company. They sent a free hat to the Voice along with a press release for their campaign aimed at high-schoolers. But of course it works well for hiding helmet hair post-bike-race too.

My Girfriend, the Enforcer

For your reference, this is Rosa:

How about those steely eyes? That iron will? You don't want to mess with that.

Yesterday Rosa walked into a Starbucks (where she worked for 6 years) to grab a coffee. The barista is cleaning a machine, her back to the register, and says she'll be right there. There is one other customer standing in front of Rosa- a kid in baggy jeans with his sweatshirt draped over his shoulder. Rosa can't see his face. Then, as they stand there waiting the kid leans forward to look into the bakery case and casually reaches into the tip jar and grabs a handful of singles. He straightens up and without a moment's hesitation Rosa leans into the kid and quietly says, "I saw you do that. Put it back." ...and he does. Then they have to stand there about another 30 seconds, during which reason catches up to action and Rosa thinks, "He might turn around and punch me in the face". But no, the barista turns around, the kid asks for a glass of water, and he walks away.

The best appositive of a cycling related news article in 2008

From VeloNews.com's recent article on KBS/Medifast:

Five of the team’s riders are in school, including all four of the team’s Canadians — Gilbert, Lacombe, Hinnen and Veilleux — as well as Mumford, who is studying for his PhD in high-energy particle physics at John Hopkins University.

Granted, Candelario's "spent January training in Hawaii" is enviable, but the uber-geek factor gives Reid the win hands down. (He even runs Linux on his laptop!)

'07 Wrap. Blog's moving.

2007 was a helluva year...

- A few people knew this, but I started '07 with barely riding my bike for 3 months but instead doing Physical Therapy 2.5 hours a day, five days a week. X-Rays in October '06 revealed my right hip was twisted 1" lower and 1" set backwards from my left hip. Apparently it's a common thing that happens to pregnant women... and me. Awesome.

- April: screw up my back royally days before the first race of the year in the Midwest, Hillsboro Roubaix. Race anyway and get into a break with 75 miles to go with all my old teammates: the Bird, Mumford, Puffer. Pure comedy. It didn't turn out so well for me. Puffer probably suffered more than anyone that day for a very respectable top 5 finish.

- Aggressive PT exercises lead to a hernia two days before the Tour of Virgnia. Worst organized stage race I've ever been to, saved by the comedy and experience of one Beth Wrenn Estes.

- May: spend 10 days at best friend's wedding in Europe. Munich, Germany is my new favorite city. The hernia gets to come too, which means that Rosa carried the luggage. 

- Hernia surgery. Sucks. Tendontis of the groin still happens to this day.

- Summer: the ABD team is fast. Josh Carter wins lots of races including the team's first stage of Superweek.

- August: I start taking care of Grandma. She was a trooper.

- October: Grandma passes. I return to L.A and hang up my ABD race director hat.

- November: Get to announce the ABD/GEARGRINDER Pro Development Team. Fast team of fun loving guys.

- December: Rosa's Dad has a heart attack and dies two days before Christmas. I'm in Oakland for the night with my family when we get the call. I catch a 4 AM flight to Phoenix followed by an 8 hour drive across the desert to Ojai, California. Jeff SanMarchi was a one-man show known as the Ojai & Ventura Voice, a biweekly newspaper that ran for 18 years. For a week or so I think about donning an Editor-in-Chief hat with Rosa's sister, Ana. After an exhausting 10 days we decide we're not passionate enough about Ojai's small town politics to do it justice.

And here we are, 2008. It's a big year, folks. It's an election year. I'm starting some new jobs. And although what I most like to do is ride a bike, I can't guarantee this blog will just be about bike racing. In addition to commentary on cycling, I like gadgets, tasting new beverages and have caught some election fever. Thus, I'm moving to ebertchecksin.blogspot.com . Maybe I should have renamed it to "Ebert Checks Out..."

Thanks for reading.

The Bird's Blog

It's about time. Former ABD'er Bryce Mead can now share his deepest thoughts with the world
http://www.brycemead.missingsaddle.com/
Bryce, what is your deepest thought ever?

One more reason United now runs the unfriendly skies

I've had so many bad experiences with United... and here's one more reason to avoid them from the ChicagoTribune.com: United Airlines to charge passengers $25 for second bag...

I'm even a member of United's frequent flyer program and this tweaks me to no end....

coming back

Working on a post...