d-dubbs day off #1

A day in the life of d-dubb, nothing exciting I am taking a few days off from work and will try to catch up on some home chores.

• Build compost bin
• Clean gutters
• Finish shelves
• Find recipe for cornish hens
• Laundry
• Rake leaves
• Ride bicycle

Wait, ride bicycle is really not a chore and I did manage to go to Bent Creek and ride the cross bike for 2+ hours. Tomorrow I plan to go to Dupont and ride with Marcus so I may not get to mark anything off the chore list. Oh yeah and Amber wants to ride Thursday, can't let chores stand in the way of spending some quality time with one's daughter, then Saturday there's a practice cross race at Jackson Park @ 10 am, wouldn't want to disappoint my friends.....mmmmmmm maybe I need to prioritize and revise my list:

• Ride bicycle
• Build compost bin
• Clean gutters
• Finish shelves
• Find recipe for cornish hens
• Laundry
• Rake leaves

There that looks a lot better and more realistic. OH yeah I plan on riding Dupont tomorrow. Start @ 1030 am Guion Farm Parking area.

NCCX Hendersonville

My weekend started early, Friday at 11 am to be exact. I took ½ day off from work and headed over to Jackson Park to help set up the cyclo-cross course for the 2 UCI races held there this weekend. I arrived, found Tim and we proceeded to gather the necessary paraphernalia required to set up the race course. Tim had marked the course with white paint which made it easy installing the stakes to which we would later attach the tape to mark the course. Jason Morgan did an excellent jog rallying volunteers to come out and help with the course setup. There were racers and non racers helping with the course setup with more people showing up as the day went on which was awesome as the weather itself was not conducive to outside labor. It was cold and blustery, as my dad used to say “it was colder than a well digger’s butt” I am not sure how cold that would be but I had to go to the truck a couple of times to warm up. There is also another description used to describe severe cold that has to do with a certain part of the anatomy in a brass bra(why did I get imagery of Madonna when I typed that). Regardless of the analogy it was cold!!!

I got up Saturday morning at 5am and went back to the park to help put the tape on the posts we installed the previous day. We chose not to tape the course on Friday due to the high winds which would have ripped the tape down. Again I was surprised at the number of volunteers that showed up at that time of day to help tape the course. We taped the course, erected tents and put up the necessary signage and now it was time to race.

At the start of my race it was a balmy 21 degrees F. I had a difficult time deciding what to wear as it had been a long time since I had raced in these temperatures. I chose wool socks, windproof tights, windproof top(in front) long sleeve jersey and a balaclava. I had a good race and finished in 8th place. I felt surprisingly well after all the walking I had done setting up the course. After the race it was time to relax and socialize, my favorite part of cyclocross.

I slept in Sunday got up and made my way back to Jackson Park for race #2. The weather was ~8 deg F warmer Sunday @ 930am than Saturday @ 930am. The only change I made to my wardrobe was lighter gloves and no balaclava. I had a good race Sunday and another top 10 finish. After the race it was socialize then off to work the pits and watch the other races. First up the women’s 1-2 Cara had an excellent race and did much better than her 4th place finish. Andy does an excellent job describing her yo-yo tactics http://a2trainingblog.blogspot.com/. Next up the men’s 1-2, again an awesome race, Nathan had a good race and finished 5th.

A good birthday weekend. I got to race, work the pits, hang out with friends and ended up with a cool t-shirt, pair of socks and some home made bread. After Sunday’s race my daughter Amber and her fiancé Joseph came over and fixed Diana and myself Birthday dinner. Diana’s birthday is the 20th and mine is the 22nd.
A great weekend, thanks to everyone for making great!

No Holds Barred

I will preface this post with the comment below:


Cara said...
you forgot to mention you weren't GIRLED either. NEXT TIME, my friend, NEXT TIME!!!!!

I was not going to elaborate on the SS other than to say I had a good race. However there seems to have developed quite a rivalry between myself and sometimes training partner(if you look at the comments on my previous post you will see to whom I am referring). This rivalry apparently began after I LET the aforementioned person beat me on the Chimney Rock Hill Climb. I now understand how Armstrong felt after giving Pantani the victory on Hautacam . Yep you try to be the nice guy and it goes to their heads.

Anyway on to the SS race commentary. I dressed in my usual attire, Sugar Smack Jersey to which I attached my AARP card so everyone would know they were racing against a grumpy old guy. The week prior to the race there was quite a bit of smack talk directed toward yours truly. I did nothing to encourage this J and as always was courteous and nice choosing to let my legs do the talking…on to the race report; we lined up at the start I heard a high pitched voice whisper “ten bucks if you take out the old guy” I knew it was my adversary and now knew of the dastardly plot(I may be old but I can still hear). The starter yelled go and we were off and racing. I had my trusty Surly, set up with clip-less pedals, flip flop hub and geriatric geometry. First lap I was setting near the back of the field but making steady progress. 2nd lap someone came around me screaming trying to disrupt my concentration and flowing rhythm. Needless to say the shenanigans did not work as I simply sighed and pedaled away. Kind of reminded me of shooing a fly away. The rest of the race was pretty relaxing and was finished with minimal effort.

Once finished I made my way to the car changed had a bite to eat went back to the finish to wait for my sometimes training partner Cara to finish. She finished a short time later we congratulated each other on the race; afterwards I headed to Asheville, Andy and Cara to Southern Pines.

The above is my interpretation of how the SS race went, there may be those of differing opinions!!

MSG #4 Wet and Rainy

Saturday I journeyed to Tennessee for the Mud Sweat and Gears cyclocross race #4. I awoke Saturday to wind and pouring rain, made some last minute changes to my wardrobe, put the bikes in the truck instead of on the bike rack so they would remain dry on the trip over saving my tush from the initial cold wet saddle. The drive over was uneventful with one detour on I-26 due to construction on a bridge.
Dwayne did his usual outstanding course setup. The course was somewhat short but it had a lot of turns and the mix of rain and mud made it interesting. I went to the front at the start and attacked the course. Jeff Haase stayed on my wheel and I kept attacking through the mud slick corners. Through one of the corners I heard a metallic sound i.e. handlebars bashing against the TT, I went hard, no mercy. Going through “the spiral of death” I looked and did not see Jeff anywhere in sight, back around to the start finish line where I saw 3 laps to go. The last 3 laps I went hard where I felt relative safe and backed it off a little in the corners. Over all a good race and the bike worked great.

Next up the SS race. The course had definitely changed and was more slippery during this race due to more rain. I had an OK race, definitely over geared and one uphill section I could not decide if it was faster to run or ride. I finished the race and was not last.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing and loafing. Doing nothing really, no agenda no plans this felt great something I could get used too.

This weekend NCCX grand prix and my b-day.
Have a good week!!!

Dobson Cross Race Report

Sunday I got up, left the house @ 6 am and made my way to Dobson NC for NCCX State Championship CX race. The drive down was uneventful and pretty straight forward. I-40, named the cyclocross freeway by me because of the numerous trips I have made on this highway going to cyclocross races; after I-40 it was I-77 North to Dobson.
 
I arrived at the venue unpacked and readied myself for the race. The course itself was the typical cross course grass, sand etc. There was one section that worried me. It was a tight twisty downhill on gravel with a couple of trees encroaching into the apex of 2 of the corners.
 
The starter sounded and we were off and racing. I was in the top 5 group, I made it through the chicanes, sand pits and up the hill. At the top of the hill we started the gravel down hill. I made it through the first turn ok but clipped the large oak tree with my shoulder on the next turn, needless to say the 14"diameter oak tree did not take kindly to being nudged and promptly knocked me off my bike. Andy Ammon fell on top of me and my bike. I got up found my handle bars were off center and the brake levers had been knocked inward. I straightened the handlebars as best I could hopped back on the bike and started racing again. Once on the bike I noticed the front wheel was slightly out of true and that I had not centered the handlebars just right in my haste to get back into the race. I also noted that I was dead last. I made it back to the pit grabbed my spare bike and now the chase was on. I attacked the course and started picking off riders. With 2 laps to go I looked ahead and much to my surprise I saw Bob Pugh. Bob beat me in the weeks previous race in a sprint, so I was surprised to have closed the gap and I now had the opportunity to challenge Bob on the last lap. I closed within 5 seconds and was hoping to make contact at the end of a long straight with a hard right hand uphill. I gassed it on the straight and was hoping to carry momentum through the right hander and up the hill. I carried a tad to much speed going into the right hander and up the hill. I did not crash but came unclipped and lost the time I had made on the long straight. I attempted to close the gap again and did make up some time but I did not have the gas to do the job. Bob crossed the line ~5 seconds ahead of me. Overall I had a good race and am well satisfied with my fitness.
 
I finished the race talked to some friends packed up and headed home, I-77 then west on I-CX. Again the drive home was uneventful, although I did suffer a little from highway hypnosis. A couple of calls to some friends got me out of it (THANKS GUYS) and I made it back to my humble domicile.
 
This week I will do some mtn biking, earlier versus later due to the chance of rain later this week with the weekend being filled with cross racing. Saturday will be the MSG series where I will race the 45+ and the SS race. Sunday is undecided, Southern Pines NCCX series or Blairsville Georgia.
 
I hope everyone has a good week!!

Pisgah Solo

Earlier this week I was somewhat undecided about what ride to do today. I looked for a race but did not find anything close by other than a short track race in Charlotte. Doing this race would have required a 2 hour drive in which case I probably would have spent the night in Charlotte and drove to Dobson on Sunday for the NCCX state championship.

I decided to stay home and do a mtb ride, this was due in part to this weeks riding @ Bent Creek and my plan on doing the Snake Creek Gap TT January, February, March. I raced the Snake Creek Gap last year but did not "train" for it. I would like to break 2 hours this year and was hoping that a little more focus and some preplanning would make that possible.

I chose to go to Pisgah and do one of my favorite loops. The loop starts at the Pink Beds goes to the gauging station down some road, hang a left and go across a swinging bridge and another left and hit a trail called Squirrel Gap.From Squirrel Gap you hang a left on Horse Cove Trail which brings you out to a Forest Service Road,follow this road down to the main gravel rd and then a right back to the Pink Beds Trail. This ride is ~ 3 hours. I could have gone faster but I was being extra cautious as I was alone(well almost, Hairry was with me but he can't even talk) and did not want to break myself or worse my bike. This route does take you deep into the woods and you should be prepared.I saw nary a soul on Squirrel Gap and only 1 person at the gauging station, he was on a horse, my immediate thought tubular glue.
This was a great ride on a beutiful day.

I made it back to the car and at this time was quite hungry. I had not eaten breakfast due to my stomach being upset. I did take one GU on the trail. I guess I have enough body fat to fuel my body for 3+ hours. I changed clothes hopped in the truck drove out of the Forest and made my way to Poppies for lunch. Poppies is similar to Earth Fare,they have excellent Panninis and soup. I got my standard turkey pannini on wheat and sat on the patio and enjoyed my food and the sunshine, I felt great. Before leaving I picked a piece of cheese cake and a piece of key lime pie for desert after dinner.

I made it home safe and sound cleaned the bike, prepped cross bikes for tomorrows race, did laundry and helped Diana cook dinner.

Tomorrow it is off to Dobson for the NCCX state championship.
Oh yeah GOOD LUCK Stephen in your race tomorrow!

Spooky Cross

MSG Spooky Cross:
This is my favorite cross race. The costumes or lack thereof are very interesting and make for some interesting racing, i.e. I am not sure how you race wearing a dress or wearing your whitey tighties, but these were some of the outfits that were seen at the Spooky Cross. I chose to show a little less skin(which I am sure everyone appreciated) and opted for a fro wig, white knee socks and my Honey Smacks Jersey…oh yeah my good friend Hairry went along for the ride also. More on Hairry later. What made the race even more awesome was my daughter Amber (recently engaged) came to watch me race. Thanks Amber you made my day!!!

45+ Race
The race itself was great. I was on the front practically the entire race. I felt great and countered all of the attacks. Two errors:
· Mistake #1:
I fell on the remount at the top of the run-up, popped back up quickly and had to put forth a bit of an effort to get back to the pack. Once I closed the gap I attacked again and went to the front. I kept attacking but was unable to crack the last 2 riders. This led to my 2nd mistake.
· Mistake #2:
Last lap I let Jeff Haase around me thinking I would sit on his wheel for a while, we went through traffic and he was able to get a lapped rider between the two of us and open up a bit of a gap that I was unable to close. Martin Visser came around me in the sprint to take 2nd , that left me in 3rd
I felt great about my performance but was disappointed in my results.

SS Race

I also participated in the SS race. I always enjoy racing the SS no shifting you just have to hurt. This race I was going to sit back and relax. I did not want to finish last but I wanted to have a comfortable race with the least amount of pain as possible…approximately 2 laps into the race a certain person came tearing past me in an attempt to rip my legs off, not wanting to loose to the aforementioned person(I have already been gurled more times this year than I care to remember) I countered, passed and opened up a gap. After this it was on, no more “sit back and relax”. I tell you I get no respect as an AARP member. My legs were screaming in pain, I was not about to give up. Last lap, my legs were burning but I went as hard as I could hoping I could open enough gap so I would not have to sprint. Hairry and I finished the race just 2 seconds in front of our adversary (friend) and my legs were ripped. It felt great!!! After the SS race I packed my bags and Hairry and I headed for Asheville. Once home Diana and I had a wonderful dinner at Apollo Flame, then it was home and off to bed for me.

Sunday NCCX #3

I left the house Sunday morning @ 7 am for the trip to Lenoir and the 3rd race in the NCCX series. This course was a mix of pavement, off camber, grass and a couple of hard turns thrown in. The course had very little elevation change which was one of my many concerns, the others were: how well had my legs recovered after being so brutally punished the day before and what tires to use. After pre-riding the course I hopped on the trainer and did 2 mins 15 on 15 off in hopes of clearing the legs. After these short intervals I did several high speed spins and then it was off to the start line.
The gun sounded and we were off and racing. I had a great start and was sitting in 3rd place. There were several attacks which I countered and continued to sit in 3rd 4th places. The last lap was almost a repeat of the day before as 2 riders came around and I was unable to counter. I finished 5th but was really happy with my finish and with my fitness. After the race I went for a ~1.5 hour road ride came back to the venue talked with some friends (the best part of x) and then Hairry and I packed up and drove back to Asheville. Once home I showered let the dogs out ate some leftover pizza and relaxed.

Monday

Diana and I took Monday off and went to Panther-town Valley hiking. We had a wonderful day. We hiked a couple of hours then it was off to Cashiers to Carolina Barbeque for lunch. The main reason we made the trip was to eat barbeque, the hike seems to make it a little more justifiable. A great day spent with Diana.

A great 3 day weekend spent with some great people.

The remainder of the week I plan to mtn bike with Saturday being somewhat open. Dupont perhaps?? long gravel road ride on the cross bike or road ride from the house?

Have a great week!!!