Friday, May 25, 2012
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Friday, November 25, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Goodwater TT Results
NAME TIME EQUIPMENT AVE MPH
Jack Evans 56:31 time trail 22.1
Kevin McKinney 60:58 time trail 20.2
Jonathan Thompson 63:08 road bike 19.8
Barry Garrisson 63:33 time trail 19.7
Glenn Olmstead 66:19 road bike 18.9
Rick Rice 67:45 road bike 18.5
Roger Whitlock 67:47 road bike 18.5
Steven Toby 68:05 time trail 18.4
** Goodwater TT results, april 19, 2011
Jack Evans 56:31 time trail 22.1
Kevin McKinney 60:58 time trail 20.2
Jonathan Thompson 63:08 road bike 19.8
Barry Garrisson 63:33 time trail 19.7
Glenn Olmstead 66:19 road bike 18.9
Rick Rice 67:45 road bike 18.5
Roger Whitlock 67:47 road bike 18.5
Steven Toby 68:05 time trail 18.4
** Goodwater TT results, april 19, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Cannon Fadder! A ride Report
I launched my failed attack about 150 yards or so from the church. It felt good. I felt as though it would be succesful. However, Jack threw the hammer down to take to win at the church. Great ride. Untill nextime.
Doug Vito, RDCS
Chief Cardiac Sonographer
Danville Cardiovascular Consultants
Danville, KY 40422
On Mar 18, 2011, at 10:37 PM, jt wrote:
Thursday’s team ride was…. well I can’t seem to come up with the right
word for it…Awesome.
Doug Vito, Glenn Olmstead, Jack Evans, Kevin McKinney (KMACK) and JT
meet at Barnsburg and took off to ride the Cannon Ball Road Circuit
clockwise. These five riders rode very well together, and the only
time anybody had to wait, they had to wait for me, JT, the guy to
invoked the “one minute rule” at turns or hill tops. The east side of
Cannon Ball Hill just kicks my butt.
The ride was very cohesive going out despite blistering turns at the
front by KMACK and Jack. The rest of us just enjoyed a fast draft on
Jack and KMAC’S bank account. Reaching Cannon Ball Hill, JT (me) was
the first to fall off the pace…. And I think it all shattered from
there. I wouldn't personally know, because I was about an hour behind
in the first five minutes of the climb.
Upon recollecting at the top of Cannon Ball, it was home free all the
way back to Barnsburg with the exception of the German Shepard hill.
Going up that hill, Glenn and Doug opened up some daylight on JT,
KMACK and Jack and they decided to run with it. Going down the hill
and into the fast flats leading to Shopville school, KMACK and Jack
worked very very hard to get Glenn and Doug back in before hw 80, but
they never did!!!!! I was very impressed.
I didn’t lift a finger to bring the duo back, because I didn’t have a
finger to lift! I just stayed on Jack and KMACKs wheel.
Once at Shopville school, everybody prepared for the run-in to the
finish. JT took up a perfect “gate-keeping” position on the back, and
refused to enter the rotation of turns on the front into a 15 mph wind
(gate-keeping). Doug and Glenn caught on to JTs stratigy half way
across Barnsburg Road, and began to gate-keep with me… which left
KMACK and Jack to do all of the work.
Realizing that 3/5th of the field had stopped working, Jack jumped
really hard for about 5 seconds, not so much to get away, as to
breakup the “gate-work” behind him, and it worked.
The great thing about a really early attack (like Jacks) is that the
rest of the riders simply can not ignore it, and absolutely have to
respond. Jacks goal was to breakup the gate-works behind him and force
the gate-keepers into a scramble to get on his wheel – thus
effectively causing the situation to collapse into a less organized
state (speeds collapsed, Jack and KMACK were then able to stop pulling
Doug, JT and Glenn, and the ride entered a state of no organization…
Everyone waiting for an odd attack from the slowing moving, disarrayed
pack.
300 Yards to go, the Sh%t hit the fan, and I can’t now remember to
started it. In fact, I can’t even remember who won it mainly because I
was nowhere near it (well behind it).
If I am not mistaken, KMACK launched the end-game with every body
responding. And if I am not even further mistaken, it was either Doug
or Jack who actually got the sprint.
GUYS, CORRECT ME IF I AM WRONG IN THE ABOVE PARAGRAPH.
Just like very year, we have guys who can do well at road cycling
races. In the past years, we have (always had) Jack and Roger. We
have had riders come and go – race then take whole years off…. I for
one took last year off. We have had Aaron and Jenny Denney, Brad
Johnson, Adam Bourne, Charles Senters, Brad Herrmann Jay Garmin and
several others.
This year, we have a great crew!!! Jack Evans, Roger Whitlock (tt
specialist), JT (back from a year off), Doug Vito, Glenn Olmstead,
Steven Toby, Barry Garrison, Kevin McKinney (ms), Ricky Farmer and
many others who are completely capable of racing in road events and
getting same-time finishes.
Good luck to all of those racing this weekend. (Nobody is expecting to
win – it is a training event for the crew)
Doug Vito, RDCS
Chief Cardiac Sonographer
Danville Cardiovascular Consultants
Danville, KY 40422
On Mar 18, 2011, at 10:37 PM, jt
Thursday’s team ride was…. well I can’t seem to come up with the right
word for it…Awesome.
Doug Vito, Glenn Olmstead, Jack Evans, Kevin McKinney (KMACK) and JT
meet at Barnsburg and took off to ride the Cannon Ball Road Circuit
clockwise. These five riders rode very well together, and the only
time anybody had to wait, they had to wait for me, JT, the guy to
invoked the “one minute rule” at turns or hill tops. The east side of
Cannon Ball Hill just kicks my butt.
The ride was very cohesive going out despite blistering turns at the
front by KMACK and Jack. The rest of us just enjoyed a fast draft on
Jack and KMAC’S bank account. Reaching Cannon Ball Hill, JT (me) was
the first to fall off the pace…. And I think it all shattered from
there. I wouldn't personally know, because I was about an hour behind
in the first five minutes of the climb.
Upon recollecting at the top of Cannon Ball, it was home free all the
way back to Barnsburg with the exception of the German Shepard hill.
Going up that hill, Glenn and Doug opened up some daylight on JT,
KMACK and Jack and they decided to run with it. Going down the hill
and into the fast flats leading to Shopville school, KMACK and Jack
worked very very hard to get Glenn and Doug back in before hw 80, but
they never did!!!!! I was very impressed.
I didn’t lift a finger to bring the duo back, because I didn’t have a
finger to lift! I just stayed on Jack and KMACKs wheel.
Once at Shopville school, everybody prepared for the run-in to the
finish. JT took up a perfect “gate-keeping” position on the back, and
refused to enter the rotation of turns on the front into a 15 mph wind
(gate-keeping). Doug and Glenn caught on to JTs stratigy half way
across Barnsburg Road, and began to gate-keep with me… which left
KMACK and Jack to do all of the work.
Realizing that 3/5th of the field had stopped working, Jack jumped
really hard for about 5 seconds, not so much to get away, as to
breakup the “gate-work” behind him, and it worked.
The great thing about a really early attack (like Jacks) is that the
rest of the riders simply can not ignore it, and absolutely have to
respond. Jacks goal was to breakup the gate-works behind him and force
the gate-keepers into a scramble to get on his wheel – thus
effectively causing the situation to collapse into a less organized
state (speeds collapsed, Jack and KMACK were then able to stop pulling
Doug, JT and Glenn, and the ride entered a state of no organization…
Everyone waiting for an odd attack from the slowing moving, disarrayed
pack.
300 Yards to go, the Sh%t hit the fan, and I can’t now remember to
started it. In fact, I can’t even remember who won it mainly because I
was nowhere near it (well behind it).
If I am not mistaken, KMACK launched the end-game with every body
responding. And if I am not even further mistaken, it was either Doug
or Jack who actually got the sprint.
GUYS, CORRECT ME IF I AM WRONG IN THE ABOVE PARAGRAPH.
Just like very year, we have guys who can do well at road cycling
races. In the past years, we have (always had) Jack and Roger. We
have had riders come and go – race then take whole years off…. I for
one took last year off. We have had Aaron and Jenny Denney, Brad
Johnson, Adam Bourne, Charles Senters, Brad Herrmann Jay Garmin and
several others.
This year, we have a great crew!!! Jack Evans, Roger Whitlock (tt
specialist), JT (back from a year off), Doug Vito, Glenn Olmstead,
Steven Toby, Barry Garrison, Kevin McKinney (ms), Ricky Farmer and
many others who are completely capable of racing in road events and
getting same-time finishes.
Good luck to all of those racing this weekend. (Nobody is expecting to
win – it is a training event for the crew)
Monday, March 14, 2011
Power Contest Results
We had eight cyclist turn out for the 2nd annual Power Fest at Total Rehab Physical Therapy. I would like to thank all those who decided to suffer for 10 min last Thursday. I especially would like to thank Jeff for letting us take over Total Rehab for the night. If you have not seen this facility you need to stop by, I would argue that it may be the best private physical therapy facility in the state.
Now for the results. The first list is average power. This number is really only good to compare yourself to future tests and track your progress.
Roger 380w
Jack 350
Jeff 344
Kevin 309
Steven 303
Jerry 247
John 239
Gary 165
This next list is where literally the rubber meets the road. It is watts per Kg of weight. This number can show a direct correlation of how well you can do in a race situation.
Jack 4.37w/kg
Jeff 4.09
Kevin 3.96
Roger 3.76
Steven 3.26
Jerry 3.12
John 3.10
Gary 2.06
A pro male cyclist will be able to produce approximately 440w and 6.2w/kg for a similar test.
Roger Whitlock PT
Director of Rehabilitation
Spring View Hospital
Now for the results. The first list is average power. This number is really only good to compare yourself to future tests and track your progress.
Roger 380w
Jack 350
Jeff 344
Kevin 309
Steven 303
Jerry 247
John 239
Gary 165
This next list is where literally the rubber meets the road. It is watts per Kg of weight. This number can show a direct correlation of how well you can do in a race situation.
Jack 4.37w/kg
Jeff 4.09
Kevin 3.96
Roger 3.76
Steven 3.26
Jerry 3.12
John 3.10
Gary 2.06
A pro male cyclist will be able to produce approximately 440w and 6.2w/kg for a similar test.
Roger Whitlock PT
Director of Rehabilitation
Spring View Hospital
Monday, February 28, 2011
Racing
Races will be coming soon; less than a month. Several of you are ready, and several others are not…. I am in the “not” category.
We have several Category V riders who should pick a few races, and all go together. You could really make a great presents for our club and team.
In these past five years, I have noticed a very big difference between running and multisport athletes and road cycling athletes. I had never realized a general difference before, but I see it now.
Road cyclists typically consider every single weekend a race weekend. Pure cyclists tend to race two or more times a month from March to August resulting in 20 to 40 race completions. Multisport athletes tend to race just a few times each year. I am not sure what the difference is; and neither idea is better than the other. I can only speak to what I am used to.
It seems to me, multisport events (MS) are kinder and friendlier upon each individual participant than pure cycling (RC) events. MS athletes are more able to bask in their race completions than RCs – After all, they’ve trained in at least two sports, and probably three… Each time the MS competes, it is a total commitment. RC’s are also totally committed but unfortunately, nobody seems to care if you completed any given race the way MS does.
Road cycling tends to only celebrate those who finished in the purse. Those who didn’t Finnish in the purse are noteworthy only because the “cash riders” had to have somebody to beat (Imagine if only five riders showed up to a race that paid five deep). Road cyclists are snobs in general, and as a rule – downright assholes. I don’t even know when this started, but it has been this way for as long as I can remember (early 1980’s) and do not like this aspect of my racing community.
I can tell you what road cyclists respect (other than winning or placing in the purse) and that is if they see you over and over again at many different races. The more often you are seen at road cycling races, the less the community is harsh on you.
As a brand new racer, you will have to overcome not only a blistering pace, many strong teams and getting dropped, but also MAYBE EVEN WORST OF ALL – the fact that nobody in the peleton has ever seen you before, or knows who you are. Breaking in to road bike racing is almost as hard as breaking into Fort Knox – the physical and emotional resistance insures that most “first timers” never come back. I HATE THAT ABOUT THIS SPORT.
Multisport events are far kinder. First of all, they are not all clumped up, and there are no team strategies to speak of. In other words, if Papa Johns has a rider off the front, and you decide to chase them down, you will not have to deal with half-a-dozen riders who will block you.
But road bike racing is richly rewarding if you can survive you’re first few races (physically and emotionally).
I have only done one MS event totally on my own in my life, but I have raced many hundreds of times in road cycling events. As such, I couldn’t possibly give any advice to our MS riders… But I can give advice to our up and coming road cycling riders.
SO IF YOU HAVE ANOTHER MOMENT…… LET ME TELL YOU WHAT TO EXPECT FROM ROAD BIKE RACING…..
1) There is a %99.9 you will get yourself clobbered in your very first race. If you attempt to hang on to the lead pack, you will probably feel like somebody dropped you into a deep and narrow water well along with a pissed off porcupine. All you have to do is pull the barbs out of your ass, shake it all off emotionally and race again next weekend.
2) Race as often as you can –and suggest racing in the same Association. As you show up to races over and over, other riders will begin to recognize you, and no matter what your results are, they will begin to respect you. They will talk to you, and they will begin to consider you a friend, even if you race for an enemy team. It is a brothers-in-arms kind of thing.
3) You can’t race just two are three times a year and expect to do well at road cycling. You really have to race every opportunity your situation allows.
4) Steal is forged in the furnaces of competition. The training you receive from actually racing is about ten times as great as anything you can do on your own or even on a club-team ride. To get good at racing, you have to race a lot. To actually win a bike race, you have to race almost constantly.
5) When you get beat, take “your licks” like a well adjusted human being…. Remember, you have a higher goal – getting fitter, stronger and more knowledgeable about racing… and that any given race does not matter. (Especially if you take my advice and race as often as you can).
6) One race is roughly equal to a month of training in your normal regiment in terms of personal gains.
7) If you race a lot, which I hope you do, you will find yourself in a very comfortable place…. Your friends can be your enemies and your enemies can be your friends. In the end, even your bitterest opponent on the road will be kind (before and after the race) to you as long as they see you are more than one race.
8) To win a race, you can’t be afraid of physical harm. You simply can’t be afraid of crashing. As for me, at my age, and condition, if I took a good hard shot to the pavement, it would probably do a lot of damage. Still, I can’t be afraid of it. I have to block that thought out of my mind. Races are most often lost, not because of lack of strength, but a reservation in terms of crashing.
9) I am sorry to say, as you enter road racing, you will enter upon some very strong riders, many of whom have no idea how to race. While you are throwing caution to the wind, as I suggested above, if you are CAT V, you will experience many very strong riders who can ride very cleanly.
10) As you upgrade, odd as it may sound, you will find the races more even, more clean and easier to win.
11) Even though you can upgrade to Cat 4 and even Cat 3 with less than a dozen races in you (and I recommend you get away from those categories as soon as you can) you really need to race at a minimum, once a month for a season to be a “seasoned racer”. Two or three races a year will not harden you, educate you enough to get yourself into a “same time” finish.
12) I didn’t make the rules…. I wish I had. Road bike racing is very self-cleansing. But it is not those who can’t handle the pace who fall away… it is the riders who can’t come back after getting whipped who go away.
I have won many races, and I have been absolutely humiliated in others. In road cycling, no single race defines you… So don’t let any single race define you! Take Jack’s lead, and race as often as you can…
We have many very strong cycling teams in our Associations (Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana). We have some of the strongest cycling teams in the country. Chances are, you may never be the first rider across some finish line.
If you crossed the starting line, you’ve already won…. PLEASE WIN (START) AS MANY TIMES AS YOU CAN!
Cycling is what we do to feel good. When we get beat in a race, we feel bad… but we should feel good that we were there… we were strong enough, physically and emotionally to give the big guns something to shoot at!
And, who knows, you might just win a few.
I will race soon – I will get dropped, and I will suck in March and April. But I know, if I show up in March and April, I might collect some ass in June and July!
We have several Category V riders who should pick a few races, and all go together. You could really make a great presents for our club and team.
In these past five years, I have noticed a very big difference between running and multisport athletes and road cycling athletes. I had never realized a general difference before, but I see it now.
Road cyclists typically consider every single weekend a race weekend. Pure cyclists tend to race two or more times a month from March to August resulting in 20 to 40 race completions. Multisport athletes tend to race just a few times each year. I am not sure what the difference is; and neither idea is better than the other. I can only speak to what I am used to.
It seems to me, multisport events (MS) are kinder and friendlier upon each individual participant than pure cycling (RC) events. MS athletes are more able to bask in their race completions than RCs – After all, they’ve trained in at least two sports, and probably three… Each time the MS competes, it is a total commitment. RC’s are also totally committed but unfortunately, nobody seems to care if you completed any given race the way MS does.
Road cycling tends to only celebrate those who finished in the purse. Those who didn’t Finnish in the purse are noteworthy only because the “cash riders” had to have somebody to beat (Imagine if only five riders showed up to a race that paid five deep). Road cyclists are snobs in general, and as a rule – downright assholes. I don’t even know when this started, but it has been this way for as long as I can remember (early 1980’s) and do not like this aspect of my racing community.
I can tell you what road cyclists respect (other than winning or placing in the purse) and that is if they see you over and over again at many different races. The more often you are seen at road cycling races, the less the community is harsh on you.
As a brand new racer, you will have to overcome not only a blistering pace, many strong teams and getting dropped, but also MAYBE EVEN WORST OF ALL – the fact that nobody in the peleton has ever seen you before, or knows who you are. Breaking in to road bike racing is almost as hard as breaking into Fort Knox – the physical and emotional resistance insures that most “first timers” never come back. I HATE THAT ABOUT THIS SPORT.
Multisport events are far kinder. First of all, they are not all clumped up, and there are no team strategies to speak of. In other words, if Papa Johns has a rider off the front, and you decide to chase them down, you will not have to deal with half-a-dozen riders who will block you.
But road bike racing is richly rewarding if you can survive you’re first few races (physically and emotionally).
I have only done one MS event totally on my own in my life, but I have raced many hundreds of times in road cycling events. As such, I couldn’t possibly give any advice to our MS riders… But I can give advice to our up and coming road cycling riders.
SO IF YOU HAVE ANOTHER MOMENT…… LET ME TELL YOU WHAT TO EXPECT FROM ROAD BIKE RACING…..
1) There is a %99.9 you will get yourself clobbered in your very first race. If you attempt to hang on to the lead pack, you will probably feel like somebody dropped you into a deep and narrow water well along with a pissed off porcupine. All you have to do is pull the barbs out of your ass, shake it all off emotionally and race again next weekend.
2) Race as often as you can –and suggest racing in the same Association. As you show up to races over and over, other riders will begin to recognize you, and no matter what your results are, they will begin to respect you. They will talk to you, and they will begin to consider you a friend, even if you race for an enemy team. It is a brothers-in-arms kind of thing.
3) You can’t race just two are three times a year and expect to do well at road cycling. You really have to race every opportunity your situation allows.
4) Steal is forged in the furnaces of competition. The training you receive from actually racing is about ten times as great as anything you can do on your own or even on a club-team ride. To get good at racing, you have to race a lot. To actually win a bike race, you have to race almost constantly.
5) When you get beat, take “your licks” like a well adjusted human being…. Remember, you have a higher goal – getting fitter, stronger and more knowledgeable about racing… and that any given race does not matter. (Especially if you take my advice and race as often as you can).
6) One race is roughly equal to a month of training in your normal regiment in terms of personal gains.
7) If you race a lot, which I hope you do, you will find yourself in a very comfortable place…. Your friends can be your enemies and your enemies can be your friends. In the end, even your bitterest opponent on the road will be kind (before and after the race) to you as long as they see you are more than one race.
8) To win a race, you can’t be afraid of physical harm. You simply can’t be afraid of crashing. As for me, at my age, and condition, if I took a good hard shot to the pavement, it would probably do a lot of damage. Still, I can’t be afraid of it. I have to block that thought out of my mind. Races are most often lost, not because of lack of strength, but a reservation in terms of crashing.
9) I am sorry to say, as you enter road racing, you will enter upon some very strong riders, many of whom have no idea how to race. While you are throwing caution to the wind, as I suggested above, if you are CAT V, you will experience many very strong riders who can ride very cleanly.
10) As you upgrade, odd as it may sound, you will find the races more even, more clean and easier to win.
11) Even though you can upgrade to Cat 4 and even Cat 3 with less than a dozen races in you (and I recommend you get away from those categories as soon as you can) you really need to race at a minimum, once a month for a season to be a “seasoned racer”. Two or three races a year will not harden you, educate you enough to get yourself into a “same time” finish.
12) I didn’t make the rules…. I wish I had. Road bike racing is very self-cleansing. But it is not those who can’t handle the pace who fall away… it is the riders who can’t come back after getting whipped who go away.
I have won many races, and I have been absolutely humiliated in others. In road cycling, no single race defines you… So don’t let any single race define you! Take Jack’s lead, and race as often as you can…
We have many very strong cycling teams in our Associations (Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana). We have some of the strongest cycling teams in the country. Chances are, you may never be the first rider across some finish line.
If you crossed the starting line, you’ve already won…. PLEASE WIN (START) AS MANY TIMES AS YOU CAN!
Cycling is what we do to feel good. When we get beat in a race, we feel bad… but we should feel good that we were there… we were strong enough, physically and emotionally to give the big guns something to shoot at!
And, who knows, you might just win a few.
I will race soon – I will get dropped, and I will suck in March and April. But I know, if I show up in March and April, I might collect some ass in June and July!
Friday, February 25, 2011
I Ride For The Cumberland Cycles Club and Shop
Hey All,
When I first started riding bicycles again, Labor Day,2006, my Father sent up one of my old racing bicycles – a Guerciotti (http://www.guerciotti.it/) that he had imported from Italy in 1983 through Ten-Speed-Drive. The bike had been restored back to its exact original build – all Campagnolo, Chenelli – Columbus XLS Steel tubing… That bike was the bomb! It had an old freewheel style rear drive train device, and a straight block at that (gears 12-19).
I rode the Guerciotti all that fall and winter, 2006 and 2007, racking up many miles on my favorite bicycle (over three thousand). After a 17 year period of time not riding a bicycle at all, I was happy with my Guerciotti. After all, it was what I was riding when I quit in 1989, and it seemed natural to me, even with a Block Free Wheel. I had no idea how far cycling technology had advanced.
As the racing season of 2007 approached, under the good advice of Marc Travis, Cumberland Cycles and my father, everyone advised that I acquire a new, modern bicycle. My father wanted me to ride a 2007 mixed-material Bianchi, and he wanted me to race for The Gran Fondo Team located in Nashville. On the other hand, Marc Travis was showing me some really nice Fuji and Trek bicycles, and he and I wanted to form a shop racing team in our hometown of Somerset.
SINCE I LIVE IN SOMERSET, developing a cycling club and team here appealed to me. After all, I had already raced for at least three Nashville area teams in the past, and I didn’t want to go back to that. I made a decision in January, 2007 to make my purchase from THE BIKE SHOP THAT WOULD SUPPORT ME BEST – the shop in my own town.
I made this decision un-lightly. The Bianchi was promised to me free of charge, so long as I raced for a team in another state. I decided to buy a Fuji Team from Cumberland Cycles, and race for my local shop and riding pals, believing this would be the best thing to do. So instead of getting a bike for free and racing for a team that wasn’t even in my state, much less, my own community, I decided to shell out the Big Money, and purchase the opportunity to build a team and club in Somerset.
That decision has been rewarded over and over and over a million times.
The Fuji that I bought from Cumberland Cycles is now “toast”. Our maiden voyage together was on February 27, 2007. 23,442 miles later, my last ride on this bike was February 16, 2011. I rode this bike in probably more than 100 races. I rode this bike in the Masters National Championships Individual Time Trial (25 miles in 58 minutes) as well as the National Road Race Championships (2008). I rode this bike to win the Tennessee Individual Time Trial Championships, and I won at least a six podium finishes in other races.
It is hard to let go of bicycles after such a long, and blissfully challenging history. Just like the Geurc.
But when I took my Fuji down to Cumberland Cycles to prepare it (her) for this years racing season (complete rebuild) Marc, Mike and Brad (Our Shop) discovered that there was a crack in the seat post; the frameset was no longer viable for racing. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IS A TESTIMENT TO SUPPORTING YOUR LOCAL VENDERS AND THE LINES THEY CARRY.
Marc Travis, the owner of our shop, Cumberland Cycles, began to talk to his Fuji representative about a replacement frame-set for me. Because of his long standing relationship with Fiji Bicycles, and his dedication as a bike shop owner, Marc was able to secure a REPLACEMENT FRAME-SET for me at no cost!!!
BROTHERS AND SISTERS –LOOKING TO OTHER BIKE SHOPS OR ONLINE PURCHASES - - listen to me please, like you have never listened.
I have made only one $43 purchase outside of our own shop (a uniform which promptly fell apart). All of my needs, even though they may be a few dollars more expensive at Cumberland Cycles (but not always), I support my bike shop.
WHY DO I SUPPORT MY BIKE SHOP? Before today, it had always been to support area cycling. We can not possibly do what we do here in Somerset without a vibrant and healthy bike shop. I have always believed, in fact, I know it for certain, the dollars I spend at Cumberland Cycles goes directly into the infrastructure of our club and our team. Perhaps not dollars, but in support and social cohesiveness.
We all ride in our own ways…. You may not race; I do. You may like mountain biking. I like it, but not enough to buy a bike. You may want to ride ten miles this Sunday, while others may want to ride 100. Yet we are all brothers and sisters; members of the same club and team!!!!! Evidence: The Awareness Ride last fall, conceived and executed all within a ten day period. That, my friends is a cycling community. WE ALL HAVE A TOUCH STONE. It is our club, and our bike shop.
My decision to ride for our local shop and club, and buy all of my gear from a hometown vender was correct. The fact that I am getting a replacement bicycle from Fuji is just confirmation that I made the right decision. I could have accepted a free bike from an out-of-state shop, but I would probably no longer be riding.
CUMBERLAND CYCLES MAY NOT BE ABLE TO GET YOU THE BEST DEALS on all of your gear when it comes to the “bottom line” in dollars. But the value you get from being a loyal customer of this bicycle shop is tremendous. Marc, Brad and Mike will demand that the lines they carry will in turn, take care of you over the years.
The Value of your purchase with Cumberland Cycles does not stop when the cash draw closes. It follows you everywhere you ride your bicycle. You will see it in the smiles and laughter of your fellow cyclists. You will find it in the knowledge of Mike and Brad and Marc….. Their eagerness to keep you on the road, cycling. You must know, you will not get that kind of service from a bike shop in Lexington, or Knoxville. And you know you will not get it from an online purchase.
IT IS PEOPLE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT…. Mikey, Brad and Marc don’t make a dime off how much we ride. Yet, they concern themselves so much about keeping us rolling! Why? Simple. They love cycling.
The Bike Shop does not pay me to write all of this… My compensation comes from seeing so many men, women and children enjoying bicycling in our area.
OUR TOUCH STONE IS OUR BIKE SHOP. In the end, it is my firm belief, if you want a total bargain, buy everything you need from Our Shop (in some cases, minimally more expensive). The extra few dollars you might save buying from another shop, or online does not support me, or Jack, or Jeff, Aaron, Glenn, Kevin, Ricky or any of the many dozens of riders we have in our community. If you need to save money, and I know we all need to do that, try it at the car lot where you can negotiate down thousands of dollars (knowing they will not support you when you are driving your car). Don’t look to save less than a hundred or two on a local vender whose viability is so necessary to the wellbeing of your own pastime.
If you think Cumberland Cycles is making a profit on us, for Goodness Sakes, I hope he is!!!!! It is a “for profit” business. As you are thinking about those few dollars they may make, bare in mind, Our Shop goes well beyond the “norm” in supporting us as cyclists….. after purchase.
I HAVE BLOOD, MUCH SWEAT AND MANY TEARS IN THIS CLUB AND TEAM. While I am not a stock holder in the financials of Cumberland Cycles as a business, but you better believe, I am a stock holder in the fundamental strength of our cycling club. This club and team and My Son are my fundamental concerns.
We can not do what we do without Cumberland Cycles; Marc, the owner, and then Brad and Mike – loyal shop employees.
Over the years, I have written many messages regarding our loyalty to our bike shop. You all know how I feel about this… Yet I fear I have not well made my point…. The After Sale Value of purchases from our Shop are to numerous to sum.
When I first started riding bicycles again, Labor Day,2006, my Father sent up one of my old racing bicycles – a Guerciotti (http://www.guerciotti.it/) that he had imported from Italy in 1983 through Ten-Speed-Drive. The bike had been restored back to its exact original build – all Campagnolo, Chenelli – Columbus XLS Steel tubing… That bike was the bomb! It had an old freewheel style rear drive train device, and a straight block at that (gears 12-19).
I rode the Guerciotti all that fall and winter, 2006 and 2007, racking up many miles on my favorite bicycle (over three thousand). After a 17 year period of time not riding a bicycle at all, I was happy with my Guerciotti. After all, it was what I was riding when I quit in 1989, and it seemed natural to me, even with a Block Free Wheel. I had no idea how far cycling technology had advanced.
As the racing season of 2007 approached, under the good advice of Marc Travis, Cumberland Cycles and my father, everyone advised that I acquire a new, modern bicycle. My father wanted me to ride a 2007 mixed-material Bianchi, and he wanted me to race for The Gran Fondo Team located in Nashville. On the other hand, Marc Travis was showing me some really nice Fuji and Trek bicycles, and he and I wanted to form a shop racing team in our hometown of Somerset.
SINCE I LIVE IN SOMERSET, developing a cycling club and team here appealed to me. After all, I had already raced for at least three Nashville area teams in the past, and I didn’t want to go back to that. I made a decision in January, 2007 to make my purchase from THE BIKE SHOP THAT WOULD SUPPORT ME BEST – the shop in my own town.
I made this decision un-lightly. The Bianchi was promised to me free of charge, so long as I raced for a team in another state. I decided to buy a Fuji Team from Cumberland Cycles, and race for my local shop and riding pals, believing this would be the best thing to do. So instead of getting a bike for free and racing for a team that wasn’t even in my state, much less, my own community, I decided to shell out the Big Money, and purchase the opportunity to build a team and club in Somerset.
That decision has been rewarded over and over and over a million times.
The Fuji that I bought from Cumberland Cycles is now “toast”. Our maiden voyage together was on February 27, 2007. 23,442 miles later, my last ride on this bike was February 16, 2011. I rode this bike in probably more than 100 races. I rode this bike in the Masters National Championships Individual Time Trial (25 miles in 58 minutes) as well as the National Road Race Championships (2008). I rode this bike to win the Tennessee Individual Time Trial Championships, and I won at least a six podium finishes in other races.
It is hard to let go of bicycles after such a long, and blissfully challenging history. Just like the Geurc.
But when I took my Fuji down to Cumberland Cycles to prepare it (her) for this years racing season (complete rebuild) Marc, Mike and Brad (Our Shop) discovered that there was a crack in the seat post; the frameset was no longer viable for racing. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IS A TESTIMENT TO SUPPORTING YOUR LOCAL VENDERS AND THE LINES THEY CARRY.
Marc Travis, the owner of our shop, Cumberland Cycles, began to talk to his Fuji representative about a replacement frame-set for me. Because of his long standing relationship with Fiji Bicycles, and his dedication as a bike shop owner, Marc was able to secure a REPLACEMENT FRAME-SET for me at no cost!!!
BROTHERS AND SISTERS –LOOKING TO OTHER BIKE SHOPS OR ONLINE PURCHASES - - listen to me please, like you have never listened.
I have made only one $43 purchase outside of our own shop (a uniform which promptly fell apart). All of my needs, even though they may be a few dollars more expensive at Cumberland Cycles (but not always), I support my bike shop.
WHY DO I SUPPORT MY BIKE SHOP? Before today, it had always been to support area cycling. We can not possibly do what we do here in Somerset without a vibrant and healthy bike shop. I have always believed, in fact, I know it for certain, the dollars I spend at Cumberland Cycles goes directly into the infrastructure of our club and our team. Perhaps not dollars, but in support and social cohesiveness.
We all ride in our own ways…. You may not race; I do. You may like mountain biking. I like it, but not enough to buy a bike. You may want to ride ten miles this Sunday, while others may want to ride 100. Yet we are all brothers and sisters; members of the same club and team!!!!! Evidence: The Awareness Ride last fall, conceived and executed all within a ten day period. That, my friends is a cycling community. WE ALL HAVE A TOUCH STONE. It is our club, and our bike shop.
My decision to ride for our local shop and club, and buy all of my gear from a hometown vender was correct. The fact that I am getting a replacement bicycle from Fuji is just confirmation that I made the right decision. I could have accepted a free bike from an out-of-state shop, but I would probably no longer be riding.
CUMBERLAND CYCLES MAY NOT BE ABLE TO GET YOU THE BEST DEALS on all of your gear when it comes to the “bottom line” in dollars. But the value you get from being a loyal customer of this bicycle shop is tremendous. Marc, Brad and Mike will demand that the lines they carry will in turn, take care of you over the years.
The Value of your purchase with Cumberland Cycles does not stop when the cash draw closes. It follows you everywhere you ride your bicycle. You will see it in the smiles and laughter of your fellow cyclists. You will find it in the knowledge of Mike and Brad and Marc….. Their eagerness to keep you on the road, cycling. You must know, you will not get that kind of service from a bike shop in Lexington, or Knoxville. And you know you will not get it from an online purchase.
IT IS PEOPLE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT…. Mikey, Brad and Marc don’t make a dime off how much we ride. Yet, they concern themselves so much about keeping us rolling! Why? Simple. They love cycling.
The Bike Shop does not pay me to write all of this… My compensation comes from seeing so many men, women and children enjoying bicycling in our area.
OUR TOUCH STONE IS OUR BIKE SHOP. In the end, it is my firm belief, if you want a total bargain, buy everything you need from Our Shop (in some cases, minimally more expensive). The extra few dollars you might save buying from another shop, or online does not support me, or Jack, or Jeff, Aaron, Glenn, Kevin, Ricky or any of the many dozens of riders we have in our community. If you need to save money, and I know we all need to do that, try it at the car lot where you can negotiate down thousands of dollars (knowing they will not support you when you are driving your car). Don’t look to save less than a hundred or two on a local vender whose viability is so necessary to the wellbeing of your own pastime.
If you think Cumberland Cycles is making a profit on us, for Goodness Sakes, I hope he is!!!!! It is a “for profit” business. As you are thinking about those few dollars they may make, bare in mind, Our Shop goes well beyond the “norm” in supporting us as cyclists….. after purchase.
I HAVE BLOOD, MUCH SWEAT AND MANY TEARS IN THIS CLUB AND TEAM. While I am not a stock holder in the financials of Cumberland Cycles as a business, but you better believe, I am a stock holder in the fundamental strength of our cycling club. This club and team and My Son are my fundamental concerns.
We can not do what we do without Cumberland Cycles; Marc, the owner, and then Brad and Mike – loyal shop employees.
Over the years, I have written many messages regarding our loyalty to our bike shop. You all know how I feel about this… Yet I fear I have not well made my point…. The After Sale Value of purchases from our Shop are to numerous to sum.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Goodwater Endurance Time Trial - a real killer
Announcing a bi-annual (twice a year) club time trial; The Goodwater Time Trial. See the map here:
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/28711522.
This time trial is a true hybrid, just like our competitive club members… some of us are road races, others are mountain bikers and others are multisport athletes.
This course, which is 20.85 miles will begin at the intersection of Kentucky highway 80 and Kentucky highway 1003. It will weave itself thought the woods and streams all the way to the “Radio Tower”, exactly ten miles into the ride at the intersection of 1003 and 1643.
Riders will turn left at the Radio Tower, and ride to Adams Grocery then turn left again. Rider will finish at the Stab Firehouse.
THE FIRST OF THE TWO EVENTS WILL BE HELD ON SUNDAY, MAY 1 – First rider off at 2 PM. Please plan to park at the Stab Firehouse and ride about 1 to 2 miles to the starting area.
Instead of 1 minute rider intervals, for this event, there will be three minutes between each rider.
This is not an easy course, and will test the strongest of riders. But it will be interesting to see how it comes out!
The second of the events will be held in the fall before everybody “goes to pot”.
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/28711522.
This time trial is a true hybrid, just like our competitive club members… some of us are road races, others are mountain bikers and others are multisport athletes.
This course, which is 20.85 miles will begin at the intersection of Kentucky highway 80 and Kentucky highway 1003. It will weave itself thought the woods and streams all the way to the “Radio Tower”, exactly ten miles into the ride at the intersection of 1003 and 1643.
Riders will turn left at the Radio Tower, and ride to Adams Grocery then turn left again. Rider will finish at the Stab Firehouse.
THE FIRST OF THE TWO EVENTS WILL BE HELD ON SUNDAY, MAY 1 – First rider off at 2 PM. Please plan to park at the Stab Firehouse and ride about 1 to 2 miles to the starting area.
Instead of 1 minute rider intervals, for this event, there will be three minutes between each rider.
This is not an easy course, and will test the strongest of riders. But it will be interesting to see how it comes out!
The second of the events will be held in the fall before everybody “goes to pot”.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Not Things left Unsaid, but things I want to say but didn't
THIS IS AN INVITATION TO POST A TIME AT THE BARNSBURG TIME TRIAL (BBITT) ON SATURDAY –
This is a race against yourself later in the year.
WEATHER FORCAST FOR SATURDAY: Sunny, 60 F.
COME RIDE EIGHT MILES FOR TIME! THEN BEAT THAT TIME LATER IN THE YEAR!
Our designated club-mates (Volo) will guide you to the right place at the right time… easy!.
Adam Bourne, Jack Evans, Jay Flynn, Mark Henry, Pat Jenkins, Jeff Parmelee, Rick Rice and DR Swanner got together one day in August, 2005 and timed each other on a four mile piece of asphalt…. Barnsburg Road. These fellows had been training together for many years for marathons, biathlons and triathlons. Several even did full-length Ironman Competitions. These eight bicyclesport athletes kept timing each other, and several others began to join in. In the fall of 2006, I broke from a 19-year long boycott of cycling, and joined in early 2007.
Since that first event, with eight riders, a total of 104 individual riders have posted times on the old Barnsburg Road. These riders include men and women – children. It also includes bicycles of all types, including fixed gear (Charles Senters), Mountain Bikes (Chris Smith and Forest Spillman) and tandem(Toby- not sure if they have posted a time yet). There has even been a Team Time Trial Event which was a great success.
Since “The Original Eight” first timed each other, the event has morphed into The Barnsburg Individual Time Trial. It has been sanctioned once, and will probably be sanctioned again. As of this writing, 492 times have been logged; the absolute fastest time being 18 minutes and 2 seconds (Brad Johnson).
Since those days, five and a half years ago, many things have changed in our cycling community. Our family of cycling brothers and sisters have swelled to numbers that I don’t believe anybody could have imagined. I am so thrilled, personally about each and every one… even though I couldn’t possibly know you all.
The growth in our cycling community I believe has to do with several things, three of which I will rank most important (in no order).
1) We brought a nationally sanctioned cycling event to our area (Mt. Victory Road Race)
2) We have an excellent bike shop and a knowledgeable bike shop owner (Marc Travis, Cumberland Cycles)
3) Aaron and Jenny Denney promotions of cycling events (Volo Sports) every week (during the summer months) for the past couple of years.
These three things have created a “perfect storm” in our cycling community – and there are now hundreds of us!
Combined with our hills to the east and our flat roads to the west, WE ARE A CYCLING MECCA!
…. Which brings me back to the Original Eight and their reasons for timing each other on the Old Barnsburg Road. They wanted to support each other in cycling sports…. Growth therein, and they wanted to develop a community – a place to exchange ideas, triumphs, disappointments – They created a hub (eight people) upon which many spokes (104 people) could test themselves. It is upon this core of cycling enthusiasts our club sprang. It is also upon the bike shop, Cumberland Cycles that supports us.
Not everybody likes racing or competing. In fact, fewer like it than not. NOBODY LIKES BEING UNDER A PUBLIC CLOCK. Given that, why have these 104 people subjected themselves, not only to a public score but 20 to 30 minutes of pure pain? The reasons are as varied as the people who show up to post times. As for me, I ride to race… If I could not race, I would not ride. But if I were to surmise a guess why everybody else posted times…. It would be for exactly the same reasons the “Original Eight” challenged the clock and Old Barnsburg Road. There is community and comradely in stressful events. There is bonding that occurs there that can not occur anywhere else. Yes, everybody posts an individual time, but everybody does the same thing! Over the course of a season, everybody is either disappointed or thrilled about how they did!
If you ride a bicycle, or if you consider yourself a cyclist, please join us in this specifically individual offering – The Barnsburg Time Trial, this Saturday, February 19. THIS IS NOT AN OFFICAL RACE. In fact it is not a race at all, unless you make it a race against your future self. It is an opportunity for you to post a time, and come back each month from now until October – It is an opportunity for you to race against yourself. Yes, if you elect, you may see your time posted against everybody else’s time if you choose. But more importantly, It is an opportunity for you to grow as a cyclist and as a member of our cycling club. NO FEE’S ARE COLLECTED; no credentials are required. In fact, you need not have ridden a single mile this year. If you come out to post a time, no matter or fast or how slow, you will get a really good feeling inside about cycling – your cycling community and about your own cycling.
As for me, you all know. I want to go as fast as I can. I want my time to be the fastest of all… I know this is a lopsided idea… TOTALLY COMPETITIVE. I am probably not the best person to be promoting a “personal growth” event. But my idea about the event doesn’t have to be yours. That is the beauty of an individual time trial…. It is still exactly what “The Original Eight” saw it as… a chance to gage and improve person fitness and cycling skills.
Just between me and you, no matter how hard I train; it seems I can’t ever post the fastest time! I have done the event 26 times, and I was fastest only once. I can’t seem to figure that out! (There is only one fastest time- everybody else comes in second)
THE BARNSBURG INDIVIDUAL TIME TRAIL - 2011
Eight Miles – along Barnsburg Road. Four miles out, turn and back.
Here is how it works:
The first rider to go will leave the starting line at about 11 AM this Saturday morning. Each rider will be brought to the starting line, and they will start on a given minute. Each rider will ride the eight mile course alone. When the rider comes back across the line, that time is recorded and a total time is computed.
One rider will leave the starting line every minute. You may overrun riders who have started one, two, three minutes before you, or you may be caught from the same from behind you. (Just focus on your effort).
Try to arrive at Barnsburg Church in time to get a bit of a warm-up… Remember, it doesn’t matter if you’ve been training this winter… If you post a time in this event, remember, it is a “bench mark”; a time to beat later in the year. It is a fact, if you post a time on Saturday, you will be about 1,000 times more inclined to ride more this year in order to reduce your time at one of the future events (held monthly).
This event… well, it’s February! Who is in very good shape now? It is a great time to lay down a base-time… FOR YOUR OWN INFORMATION AND DEVELOPMENT. But then, I won’t kid you… some riders, which totally does not matter, could post times down near 20 minutes. There will be all sorts of times posted.
The fastest time ever recorded is 18 minutes, 2 seconds. The slowest time is 52 minutes, 30 seconds. If you come out to post, I am sure you will be between these.
Yes, I want you to come out and post a time! Why do I want you to post a time? That’s so easy… If you post a time now, no matter how under trained you may be now, after this hard winter, we will do an event every month. You will get to see yourself progress over the cycling season…. When that happens to people, it is surely a beautiful sight.
I want you to come out to partake in the cycling community… There is nothing more bonding than combat – (Each person fighting the clock). In my years of bike racing, I have found, there is the easiest bonding among those who did not win… (The winner, collecting what-ever-spoils) leaves the place; almost ashamed, having putdown everybody else. (Community lies in the Average and less)
SATURDAY IS GOING TO BE SUNNY, AND 60F. My Gosh, come on out, get yourself a start time, and get your 2011 cycling season rolling! Remember, this is not a race! It is a chance for you to gage your progress! Can you imagine a better time to put down a ‘standard” than now, with the winter we’ve had?
NOT THAT IT MATTERS: I predict that Kevin McKinney will post the fastest time of 20:30 with a close if not an overpass by Glenn Olmstead or Doug Vito. Of course, if Jeff Parmelee shows up, he’s always in the low 20 minute range… The wildcard is Barry Garrison. Training this winter, BG is capable of doing a 19 minute time. I would personally be happy with 22 minutes or less. (I will be in the 17’s before year end)
WHY COME OUT? It is great fun! It is great fitness and it is great for you.
I ride to race – that makes me a very pour spokesperson for our club. Others are much better suited to speak to our Mass. Still, a good sense of shelf-competition is a good thing… without that, we do not grow at all…. Not just in cycling, but anything.
COME POST A FEBURARY TIME! Then beat it in June, or July!
This is a race against yourself later in the year.
WEATHER FORCAST FOR SATURDAY: Sunny, 60 F.
COME RIDE EIGHT MILES FOR TIME! THEN BEAT THAT TIME LATER IN THE YEAR!
Our designated club-mates (Volo) will guide you to the right place at the right time… easy!.
Adam Bourne, Jack Evans, Jay Flynn, Mark Henry, Pat Jenkins, Jeff Parmelee, Rick Rice and DR Swanner got together one day in August, 2005 and timed each other on a four mile piece of asphalt…. Barnsburg Road. These fellows had been training together for many years for marathons, biathlons and triathlons. Several even did full-length Ironman Competitions. These eight bicyclesport athletes kept timing each other, and several others began to join in. In the fall of 2006, I broke from a 19-year long boycott of cycling, and joined in early 2007.
Since that first event, with eight riders, a total of 104 individual riders have posted times on the old Barnsburg Road. These riders include men and women – children. It also includes bicycles of all types, including fixed gear (Charles Senters), Mountain Bikes (Chris Smith and Forest Spillman) and tandem(Toby- not sure if they have posted a time yet). There has even been a Team Time Trial Event which was a great success.
Since “The Original Eight” first timed each other, the event has morphed into The Barnsburg Individual Time Trial. It has been sanctioned once, and will probably be sanctioned again. As of this writing, 492 times have been logged; the absolute fastest time being 18 minutes and 2 seconds (Brad Johnson).
Since those days, five and a half years ago, many things have changed in our cycling community. Our family of cycling brothers and sisters have swelled to numbers that I don’t believe anybody could have imagined. I am so thrilled, personally about each and every one… even though I couldn’t possibly know you all.
The growth in our cycling community I believe has to do with several things, three of which I will rank most important (in no order).
1) We brought a nationally sanctioned cycling event to our area (Mt. Victory Road Race)
2) We have an excellent bike shop and a knowledgeable bike shop owner (Marc Travis, Cumberland Cycles)
3) Aaron and Jenny Denney promotions of cycling events (Volo Sports) every week (during the summer months) for the past couple of years.
These three things have created a “perfect storm” in our cycling community – and there are now hundreds of us!
Combined with our hills to the east and our flat roads to the west, WE ARE A CYCLING MECCA!
…. Which brings me back to the Original Eight and their reasons for timing each other on the Old Barnsburg Road. They wanted to support each other in cycling sports…. Growth therein, and they wanted to develop a community – a place to exchange ideas, triumphs, disappointments – They created a hub (eight people) upon which many spokes (104 people) could test themselves. It is upon this core of cycling enthusiasts our club sprang. It is also upon the bike shop, Cumberland Cycles that supports us.
Not everybody likes racing or competing. In fact, fewer like it than not. NOBODY LIKES BEING UNDER A PUBLIC CLOCK. Given that, why have these 104 people subjected themselves, not only to a public score but 20 to 30 minutes of pure pain? The reasons are as varied as the people who show up to post times. As for me, I ride to race… If I could not race, I would not ride. But if I were to surmise a guess why everybody else posted times…. It would be for exactly the same reasons the “Original Eight” challenged the clock and Old Barnsburg Road. There is community and comradely in stressful events. There is bonding that occurs there that can not occur anywhere else. Yes, everybody posts an individual time, but everybody does the same thing! Over the course of a season, everybody is either disappointed or thrilled about how they did!
If you ride a bicycle, or if you consider yourself a cyclist, please join us in this specifically individual offering – The Barnsburg Time Trial, this Saturday, February 19. THIS IS NOT AN OFFICAL RACE. In fact it is not a race at all, unless you make it a race against your future self. It is an opportunity for you to post a time, and come back each month from now until October – It is an opportunity for you to race against yourself. Yes, if you elect, you may see your time posted against everybody else’s time if you choose. But more importantly, It is an opportunity for you to grow as a cyclist and as a member of our cycling club. NO FEE’S ARE COLLECTED; no credentials are required. In fact, you need not have ridden a single mile this year. If you come out to post a time, no matter or fast or how slow, you will get a really good feeling inside about cycling – your cycling community and about your own cycling.
As for me, you all know. I want to go as fast as I can. I want my time to be the fastest of all… I know this is a lopsided idea… TOTALLY COMPETITIVE. I am probably not the best person to be promoting a “personal growth” event. But my idea about the event doesn’t have to be yours. That is the beauty of an individual time trial…. It is still exactly what “The Original Eight” saw it as… a chance to gage and improve person fitness and cycling skills.
Just between me and you, no matter how hard I train; it seems I can’t ever post the fastest time! I have done the event 26 times, and I was fastest only once. I can’t seem to figure that out! (There is only one fastest time- everybody else comes in second)
THE BARNSBURG INDIVIDUAL TIME TRAIL - 2011
Eight Miles – along Barnsburg Road. Four miles out, turn and back.
Here is how it works:
The first rider to go will leave the starting line at about 11 AM this Saturday morning. Each rider will be brought to the starting line, and they will start on a given minute. Each rider will ride the eight mile course alone. When the rider comes back across the line, that time is recorded and a total time is computed.
One rider will leave the starting line every minute. You may overrun riders who have started one, two, three minutes before you, or you may be caught from the same from behind you. (Just focus on your effort).
Try to arrive at Barnsburg Church in time to get a bit of a warm-up… Remember, it doesn’t matter if you’ve been training this winter… If you post a time in this event, remember, it is a “bench mark”; a time to beat later in the year. It is a fact, if you post a time on Saturday, you will be about 1,000 times more inclined to ride more this year in order to reduce your time at one of the future events (held monthly).
This event… well, it’s February! Who is in very good shape now? It is a great time to lay down a base-time… FOR YOUR OWN INFORMATION AND DEVELOPMENT. But then, I won’t kid you… some riders, which totally does not matter, could post times down near 20 minutes. There will be all sorts of times posted.
The fastest time ever recorded is 18 minutes, 2 seconds. The slowest time is 52 minutes, 30 seconds. If you come out to post, I am sure you will be between these.
Yes, I want you to come out and post a time! Why do I want you to post a time? That’s so easy… If you post a time now, no matter how under trained you may be now, after this hard winter, we will do an event every month. You will get to see yourself progress over the cycling season…. When that happens to people, it is surely a beautiful sight.
I want you to come out to partake in the cycling community… There is nothing more bonding than combat – (Each person fighting the clock). In my years of bike racing, I have found, there is the easiest bonding among those who did not win… (The winner, collecting what-ever-spoils) leaves the place; almost ashamed, having putdown everybody else. (Community lies in the Average and less)
SATURDAY IS GOING TO BE SUNNY, AND 60F. My Gosh, come on out, get yourself a start time, and get your 2011 cycling season rolling! Remember, this is not a race! It is a chance for you to gage your progress! Can you imagine a better time to put down a ‘standard” than now, with the winter we’ve had?
NOT THAT IT MATTERS: I predict that Kevin McKinney will post the fastest time of 20:30 with a close if not an overpass by Glenn Olmstead or Doug Vito. Of course, if Jeff Parmelee shows up, he’s always in the low 20 minute range… The wildcard is Barry Garrison. Training this winter, BG is capable of doing a 19 minute time. I would personally be happy with 22 minutes or less. (I will be in the 17’s before year end)
WHY COME OUT? It is great fun! It is great fitness and it is great for you.
I ride to race – that makes me a very pour spokesperson for our club. Others are much better suited to speak to our Mass. Still, a good sense of shelf-competition is a good thing… without that, we do not grow at all…. Not just in cycling, but anything.
COME POST A FEBURARY TIME! Then beat it in June, or July!
Saturday, February 5, 2011
BBTT
WE HAVE A TIME TRIAL COMING UP VERY SOON!!!!!
The Barnsburg Time Trail has been going on now since 2005. This is a rolling course, eight miles in total length. Riders leave the start line, ride four miles out, turn then ride four miles back.
From 2005 until the close of the season, 2010, thirty-seven timed events have been held, not including the team even held last fall.
Seventy-one individual cyclists have posted at least one time at an event. Four Hundred Ninety Two times have been recorded. The fastest male time recorded is 18:02 The fastest female time recorded is 22:59 Of all 492 times posted, the average time is 23:23, or 20.5 MPH.
Here is a link to all of the data colleted and analyzed starting in 2005 until the close of 2010:
https://spreadsheets0.google.com/ccc?key=tC0nvk6W-sl5qSHzBwpHIXA#gid=0
Our course is not an easy one in terms of time trial courses. It is undulating, with about 200 feet of vertical relief. There is a hard, 180 turnaround smack in the middle, and it is a nearly perfectly east/west trending course (there is always wind).
Many of our competitors use this event for training and measuring. Many of our club and sport cyclists use the event to gage personal fitness.
There are many reasons that ANY CYCLIST should post times in our event. If you are considering posting a time, or multiple times this year, please remember, only one rider will harvest the fastest time. The rest of us never even know who rode what time.
Since 2007, I have posted many times. I have also conducted topographically analysis of the course, and I have developed a strategy for this course which has allowed me to do well, from time to time. I will share my ideas with you now so long as you now. (Other, successful riders do not share some of my ideas, but if you are new to time trialing, you might as well start with my suggestions).
I have developed a strategy that works for me. It is an online spreadsheet and all you have to do is enter your target time, then navigate to the second worksheet and print out your mile assignments. Once I get my assignments printed out, I tape them to my handle bars to see if I am on track or not, for my target time. Here is the link to the “beta” version of the sheet:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0Ar4bROd73Tu5dFpHeGplM0JvUUxpczk0RHFUQWQ3TWc&hl=en#gid=0
Here are other suggestions for this time trial. Take as many of them as you feel necessary, and throw the rest away.
BEFORE THE EVENT
1) Try not to drive to the event in the cloths you will wear in the TT
2) Try to arrive about an before “first rider off” so you can dress, and warm up
3) Warm up slowly. Raise your level of effort as your start time nears.
4) Once fully warmed up, conducted max 10 sec max efforts in tt position, Rest. 10 sec in upright. Rest. 10 seconds out of the saddle. Rest. Do this as close to your start time as you possibly can. This TT is only eight miles. You will not exhaust yourself warming up, no matter how hard you go. The harder the warm-up, the better you will do. JUST BE SURE TO WARM UP SLOWLY! By the way, when any human being warms up for a race, they always feel like molasses in winter.
5) Try to get a time that is suitable to your level… You don’t want to be passed too soon. You also don’t want to be passing too many riders.
6) Never ever be in a hurry to do anything before the event (from the time you wake up that day). Plan your time, or your entire day, if necessary so that you will never feel in a hurry or rushed. The more hurried you are before the event, the less quick you will on the course. It is a Law Of Nature!
AT THE EVENT
1) Arrive at the line at least three to five minutes before your time to go.
2) Once at the starting line area, relax. Get off your bike, lay it down…. Meditate. Be funny or be yourself.
3) It is just eight miles. You will start soon, you will ride and it will hurt. It will be over soon; it will end and when it ends, you will be happy and glad you did it. Don’t thing about how fast or how slow you are going to be at this point. Think about how wonderful it feels to be a cyclist, and how thankful you are to be healthily enough to have a starting time at a timed event. Empty your mind of the effort to come as completely as you can. After all, you are probably not going to be the fastest or slowest. You will most likely “fill the pack” And with that, trust me, comes great comfort and anonymity.
4) Support others who are doing exactly what you are about to do.
5) When it is your time to go, get a “hold” if it is available (Have somebody hold you up while you get your cleats in). Take off in a sprint lasting no more than 10 seconds. Settle in to a comfortable position on your bike, then DAIL IT ALL BACK!!!!!!! FORGET ABOUT BEING UNDER THE CLOCK. <<<<<<>>>>>>> The human instinct is to go like balls, but once you are up to speed and settled into a comfortable position, just relax….
6) Take the entire first mile at a pace far less than you could do. Even if that mile costs you 4 minutes! Absolutely no more than 75% of your possible effort.
7) Once you’ve climbed the first mile to the Church, you will go through miles two and three. If you have done all of the above, you are now primed to lift your effort to your absolute maximum, and receive the benefit. Because of the nature of this course, you will only be able to lift your average pace on miles two and three and seven. All other miles (of the eight) you will most likely be loosing average speed. Don’t panic!
8) Once past the church, CRANK IT UP – go down the hill and into the flats as fast as you possibly can. These two miles will make you or break you. (BE VERY CERTAIN THAT YOU CRANK IT UP SLOWLY…. NEVER EVER SPRINT)
9) At the mile three mark, try to relax a little, and get some recovery, just a few seconds.
10) From mile three to four (to the turnaround), the course is curvy, and up and down and up). Don’t completely relax on this mile, but remember, your going to climb and turn. You will not achieve or miss your goal on this really screwed up mile of the course. But do remember, it is a relatively hard climb up to the turn. You will be going slow. Don’t worry about that. However, you don’t want to spend more time than necessary on portions of the course which are naturally slow. As such, be sure you get some recovery before you get to the climb to the turn so you can get that slow part done efficiently (notice that I did not say quickly). . Yes, a slow pace (and everybody is slow going up that hill to the turn) is very damaging to your overall time. But everybody is getting damaged. The smart ones, the most efficient ones will fare the best. Not to fast; not to slow, but just right.
11) Once on top of the climb, you will descend slightly to the turn. STOP RACING NOW! Look behind you for traffic – BE AWARE OF EVERY THING EXCEPT YOUR SPEED. This is the “clock-time” you simply throw away. Your safety is at stake, and the safety of others. Leave your ideas of personal records aside, coast into the turn, and be smooth and safe.
12) Having coasted into the turn, you are now recovered and ready to sprint back up to a good speed. Do so will all your might for no more than 3 to five seconds. After that, accept the speed you are at, and look forward to the down-slope coming your way.
13) Once you’ve sprinted back up to speed, get a good tuck, and use that down hill for more recovery.
14) RECOVERY RECOVERY RECOVERY!!!! Any chance you get to coast at a speed above what you current average is will only benefit you.
15) Be sure to make maximum use of the yellow line rule on your way back, because your time back will probably be slower than your time to the turn. Our course is basically down out and up back. It is also typically downwind out, and upwind back.
16) You are half done now. It hurts bad. You have entered survival mode. The average speed you gained on the way out is going to decay. DON’T PANIC. Tuck yourself into a comfortable, low profile position, and crank it off. Remember, you must take time to recover.
17) Only recover when your speeds are above your current average speed (you have to have a computer on your bike to do this)
18) You are certainly now dealing with slow upgrades, and probably headwinds as well. What ever your average speed was at the turn, consider yourself in “preservation mode”. Preserve that average speed. But at the same time, recover when you can.
19) Miles five and six are good; mostly flat with some upgrade. But probably some wind; Tuck in, preserve, and get some recovery when you can. By now, you are suffering. Your mind is telling your body to stop. But your spirit can tell your mind to keep going. The suffering will not last much longer. Just a few minutes at most…. Less than five minutes more.
20) At mile six, you will climb back up to the church. The same hill that gave you so much average speed is now going to get it back from you. This mile curves to the right… no yellow line – but put yourself all the way over as far as you can get to the right…. The less time you spend climbing this hill the better. RIDE ON THE RIGHT EDGE OF THE ASHPHALT IF YOU HAVE TO. Climbing back up to the Church will be slow, and a loosing derivative of your effort. No other mile hurts as much as this one. By now, you are getting an idea of what your time will be. And you are probably right on the dividing line of what you wanted to do. The less time you spend on this part of the course, the better…. So get over to the right as far as you can. Consider it an anti-yellow-line rule.
21) After climbing the hill up to the church, and a little beyond is the hardest part of the course. It seems flat or even down, but it is hard to get your instant speed back up above your average speed. This is because you’ve stunned your body, and it is flooded with the debris of your effort so far. JUST TAKE IT EASY, AND BE CONSISTANT AND GRINDING. Don’t try to accelerate more than you can, but slowly ride yourself to the downgrade that you know is coming.
22) It is only after you pass the church when you begin to go back down hill toward the finish. You feel the Earth release Her hold on you and you start going faster and faster. It is a nice mile long down hill, so you can actually pick up some average speed. Just bare in mind, the speed you do in the last mile, will only have 1/8 effect on your overall speed. Use the Center line when you can! NOW YOU’VE GOT NOTHING TO LOOSE SO OPEN’R UP – FULL UP, PLUGS OUT, NO RESERVATIONS.
23) Arriving at the finish, sprinting will probably do no good at all. That is, unless you and some other cyclist have posted nearly exact times. If you are able to sprint to the finish line, it is a fact, that you left too much effort over the course now behind you.
24) When you pass the line, pedal through, and soft-pedal for a few moments. YOU’VE DONE IT. You have placed yourself under an official clock, and you’ve ridden eight miles. Your time does not matter. What matters is that your had the emotional strength first, then the physical strength to put yourself through what, just moments earlier, seemed like insane pain.
25) Remember, and this is very important: Unless you are the fastest time, nobody will even know what your time was! So if you believe that you’d make a fool of yourself by posting a time, you need to find another excuse!
26) Do every Barnsburg Event that you can. That way you can gage your progress and your fitness. You will also develop your own strategies that may differ from mine.
END OF THE RACE
Be sure to hang around for a few minutes to share you experience with other club members. Tell them about how you rode the course… your strength’s and your difficulties. There is something very special about speaking about an experience. It quickens our learning.
Try not to gloat about your quickness, or pout about your disappointment. Either of these will prevent you from either learning from everyone else who just did what you did, or teaching them something. TRUST ME HERE! Every rider who does the course for time has something to learn, always… and something to teach, always. Your fellows want to hear about your experience, and that also want to tell. You may hear something in the aftermath that you didn’t think of – you may also say something that somebody else didn’t think of. Don’t deprive yourself or the rest of us by feeling above or below anybody else who rode.
Be proud of yourself for putting yourself under an official clock. That is not an easy thing to do. The founders of this event designed it to aid in personal growth. Each and every person who posts a time is important to our club and our team. Not because we have more data to report, but because you represent another cyclist who feels physically, and emotionally strong enough to “benchmark” yourself.
Please join us in the 2011 Barnsburg Time Trial Series! We will conduct an event about once every month. START NOW, so you can monitor your fitness!
The Barnsburg Time Trail has been going on now since 2005. This is a rolling course, eight miles in total length. Riders leave the start line, ride four miles out, turn then ride four miles back.
From 2005 until the close of the season, 2010, thirty-seven timed events have been held, not including the team even held last fall.
Seventy-one individual cyclists have posted at least one time at an event. Four Hundred Ninety Two times have been recorded. The fastest male time recorded is 18:02 The fastest female time recorded is 22:59 Of all 492 times posted, the average time is 23:23, or 20.5 MPH.
Here is a link to all of the data colleted and analyzed starting in 2005 until the close of 2010:
https://spreadsheets0.google.com/ccc?key=tC0nvk6W-sl5qSHzBwpHIXA#gid=0
Our course is not an easy one in terms of time trial courses. It is undulating, with about 200 feet of vertical relief. There is a hard, 180 turnaround smack in the middle, and it is a nearly perfectly east/west trending course (there is always wind).
Many of our competitors use this event for training and measuring. Many of our club and sport cyclists use the event to gage personal fitness.
There are many reasons that ANY CYCLIST should post times in our event. If you are considering posting a time, or multiple times this year, please remember, only one rider will harvest the fastest time. The rest of us never even know who rode what time.
Since 2007, I have posted many times. I have also conducted topographically analysis of the course, and I have developed a strategy for this course which has allowed me to do well, from time to time. I will share my ideas with you now so long as you now. (Other, successful riders do not share some of my ideas, but if you are new to time trialing, you might as well start with my suggestions).
I have developed a strategy that works for me. It is an online spreadsheet and all you have to do is enter your target time, then navigate to the second worksheet and print out your mile assignments. Once I get my assignments printed out, I tape them to my handle bars to see if I am on track or not, for my target time. Here is the link to the “beta” version of the sheet:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0Ar4bROd73Tu5dFpHeGplM0JvUUxpczk0RHFUQWQ3TWc&hl=en#gid=0
Here are other suggestions for this time trial. Take as many of them as you feel necessary, and throw the rest away.
BEFORE THE EVENT
1) Try not to drive to the event in the cloths you will wear in the TT
2) Try to arrive about an before “first rider off” so you can dress, and warm up
3) Warm up slowly. Raise your level of effort as your start time nears.
4) Once fully warmed up, conducted max 10 sec max efforts in tt position, Rest. 10 sec in upright. Rest. 10 seconds out of the saddle. Rest. Do this as close to your start time as you possibly can. This TT is only eight miles. You will not exhaust yourself warming up, no matter how hard you go. The harder the warm-up, the better you will do. JUST BE SURE TO WARM UP SLOWLY! By the way, when any human being warms up for a race, they always feel like molasses in winter.
5) Try to get a time that is suitable to your level… You don’t want to be passed too soon. You also don’t want to be passing too many riders.
6) Never ever be in a hurry to do anything before the event (from the time you wake up that day). Plan your time, or your entire day, if necessary so that you will never feel in a hurry or rushed. The more hurried you are before the event, the less quick you will on the course. It is a Law Of Nature!
AT THE EVENT
1) Arrive at the line at least three to five minutes before your time to go.
2) Once at the starting line area, relax. Get off your bike, lay it down…. Meditate. Be funny or be yourself.
3) It is just eight miles. You will start soon, you will ride and it will hurt. It will be over soon; it will end and when it ends, you will be happy and glad you did it. Don’t thing about how fast or how slow you are going to be at this point. Think about how wonderful it feels to be a cyclist, and how thankful you are to be healthily enough to have a starting time at a timed event. Empty your mind of the effort to come as completely as you can. After all, you are probably not going to be the fastest or slowest. You will most likely “fill the pack” And with that, trust me, comes great comfort and anonymity.
4) Support others who are doing exactly what you are about to do.
5) When it is your time to go, get a “hold” if it is available (Have somebody hold you up while you get your cleats in). Take off in a sprint lasting no more than 10 seconds. Settle in to a comfortable position on your bike, then DAIL IT ALL BACK!!!!!!! FORGET ABOUT BEING UNDER THE CLOCK. <<<<<<
6) Take the entire first mile at a pace far less than you could do. Even if that mile costs you 4 minutes! Absolutely no more than 75% of your possible effort.
7) Once you’ve climbed the first mile to the Church, you will go through miles two and three. If you have done all of the above, you are now primed to lift your effort to your absolute maximum, and receive the benefit. Because of the nature of this course, you will only be able to lift your average pace on miles two and three and seven. All other miles (of the eight) you will most likely be loosing average speed. Don’t panic!
8) Once past the church, CRANK IT UP – go down the hill and into the flats as fast as you possibly can. These two miles will make you or break you. (BE VERY CERTAIN THAT YOU CRANK IT UP SLOWLY…. NEVER EVER SPRINT)
9) At the mile three mark, try to relax a little, and get some recovery, just a few seconds.
10) From mile three to four (to the turnaround), the course is curvy, and up and down and up). Don’t completely relax on this mile, but remember, your going to climb and turn. You will not achieve or miss your goal on this really screwed up mile of the course. But do remember, it is a relatively hard climb up to the turn. You will be going slow. Don’t worry about that. However, you don’t want to spend more time than necessary on portions of the course which are naturally slow. As such, be sure you get some recovery before you get to the climb to the turn so you can get that slow part done efficiently (notice that I did not say quickly). . Yes, a slow pace (and everybody is slow going up that hill to the turn) is very damaging to your overall time. But everybody is getting damaged. The smart ones, the most efficient ones will fare the best. Not to fast; not to slow, but just right.
11) Once on top of the climb, you will descend slightly to the turn. STOP RACING NOW! Look behind you for traffic – BE AWARE OF EVERY THING EXCEPT YOUR SPEED. This is the “clock-time” you simply throw away. Your safety is at stake, and the safety of others. Leave your ideas of personal records aside, coast into the turn, and be smooth and safe.
12) Having coasted into the turn, you are now recovered and ready to sprint back up to a good speed. Do so will all your might for no more than 3 to five seconds. After that, accept the speed you are at, and look forward to the down-slope coming your way.
13) Once you’ve sprinted back up to speed, get a good tuck, and use that down hill for more recovery.
14) RECOVERY RECOVERY RECOVERY!!!! Any chance you get to coast at a speed above what you current average is will only benefit you.
15) Be sure to make maximum use of the yellow line rule on your way back, because your time back will probably be slower than your time to the turn. Our course is basically down out and up back. It is also typically downwind out, and upwind back.
16) You are half done now. It hurts bad. You have entered survival mode. The average speed you gained on the way out is going to decay. DON’T PANIC. Tuck yourself into a comfortable, low profile position, and crank it off. Remember, you must take time to recover.
17) Only recover when your speeds are above your current average speed (you have to have a computer on your bike to do this)
18) You are certainly now dealing with slow upgrades, and probably headwinds as well. What ever your average speed was at the turn, consider yourself in “preservation mode”. Preserve that average speed. But at the same time, recover when you can.
19) Miles five and six are good; mostly flat with some upgrade. But probably some wind; Tuck in, preserve, and get some recovery when you can. By now, you are suffering. Your mind is telling your body to stop. But your spirit can tell your mind to keep going. The suffering will not last much longer. Just a few minutes at most…. Less than five minutes more.
20) At mile six, you will climb back up to the church. The same hill that gave you so much average speed is now going to get it back from you. This mile curves to the right… no yellow line – but put yourself all the way over as far as you can get to the right…. The less time you spend climbing this hill the better. RIDE ON THE RIGHT EDGE OF THE ASHPHALT IF YOU HAVE TO. Climbing back up to the Church will be slow, and a loosing derivative of your effort. No other mile hurts as much as this one. By now, you are getting an idea of what your time will be. And you are probably right on the dividing line of what you wanted to do. The less time you spend on this part of the course, the better…. So get over to the right as far as you can. Consider it an anti-yellow-line rule.
21) After climbing the hill up to the church, and a little beyond is the hardest part of the course. It seems flat or even down, but it is hard to get your instant speed back up above your average speed. This is because you’ve stunned your body, and it is flooded with the debris of your effort so far. JUST TAKE IT EASY, AND BE CONSISTANT AND GRINDING. Don’t try to accelerate more than you can, but slowly ride yourself to the downgrade that you know is coming.
22) It is only after you pass the church when you begin to go back down hill toward the finish. You feel the Earth release Her hold on you and you start going faster and faster. It is a nice mile long down hill, so you can actually pick up some average speed. Just bare in mind, the speed you do in the last mile, will only have 1/8 effect on your overall speed. Use the Center line when you can! NOW YOU’VE GOT NOTHING TO LOOSE SO OPEN’R UP – FULL UP, PLUGS OUT, NO RESERVATIONS.
23) Arriving at the finish, sprinting will probably do no good at all. That is, unless you and some other cyclist have posted nearly exact times. If you are able to sprint to the finish line, it is a fact, that you left too much effort over the course now behind you.
24) When you pass the line, pedal through, and soft-pedal for a few moments. YOU’VE DONE IT. You have placed yourself under an official clock, and you’ve ridden eight miles. Your time does not matter. What matters is that your had the emotional strength first, then the physical strength to put yourself through what, just moments earlier, seemed like insane pain.
25) Remember, and this is very important: Unless you are the fastest time, nobody will even know what your time was! So if you believe that you’d make a fool of yourself by posting a time, you need to find another excuse!
26) Do every Barnsburg Event that you can. That way you can gage your progress and your fitness. You will also develop your own strategies that may differ from mine.
END OF THE RACE
Be sure to hang around for a few minutes to share you experience with other club members. Tell them about how you rode the course… your strength’s and your difficulties. There is something very special about speaking about an experience. It quickens our learning.
Try not to gloat about your quickness, or pout about your disappointment. Either of these will prevent you from either learning from everyone else who just did what you did, or teaching them something. TRUST ME HERE! Every rider who does the course for time has something to learn, always… and something to teach, always. Your fellows want to hear about your experience, and that also want to tell. You may hear something in the aftermath that you didn’t think of – you may also say something that somebody else didn’t think of. Don’t deprive yourself or the rest of us by feeling above or below anybody else who rode.
Be proud of yourself for putting yourself under an official clock. That is not an easy thing to do. The founders of this event designed it to aid in personal growth. Each and every person who posts a time is important to our club and our team. Not because we have more data to report, but because you represent another cyclist who feels physically, and emotionally strong enough to “benchmark” yourself.
Please join us in the 2011 Barnsburg Time Trial Series! We will conduct an event about once every month. START NOW, so you can monitor your fitness!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Last Sunday (Jan 30) Ride Report
Sunday Ride Report… I can’t remember it… give me a second. Oh yeah, the day we were suppose to just go out pedaling.
Ten riders left the vision center and rode the loop consisting of Pump house Road, Barnsburg Road, Grundy Road and back to the vision center with the added twist of “Behind the Factories Sprint”.
It seems, in the warm days of winter, No Body Dropped Rides seem to morph into EVERYBODY DROPPED RIDES! That’s ok with me, but it might not be for some. I think if most of the racers (multisport, running, road) are going to show up, you can just about guarantee that we will get “Effort Creep”! Marc Travis called it on the nose.
But that is ok. The racing crowd does need the road workout when they/we can get it, so lets just go ahead and start stating the possible paces in our rides. Rides with more than one or two competitors on it will get hot. I think Marc’s post was good, and much more accurate than my was in terms of Sundays Rides/Efforts.
When it gets warm like it did, some guys can come out Saturday, not Sunday…. Others can come out Sunday, not Saturday…. We’ve all been pent-up for a long winter, so nobody can be blamed for “stretching their legs”. It is a natural thing to do when men and women have been on a stationary trainer for the past few months.
Anyway, Doctor Farmer, KMAC and Mr. Bourne (Esquire) were feeling good so they kept the front end of Sunday’s ride over the Grundy Loop (Clockwise) hot!. At the end of Barnsburg Road, the group opted to do the little Jig behind the Factories. As what seems to be becoming a Natural Law of Cumberland Cycling, anytime a ride (of any previously stated venue) ventures onto the road behind the factories, you know that the ride itself has broken the delicate bonds of sanity, and lifted into the realm of the insane, hyper-completive.
Why? Well, there’s a mailbox back there that everybody likes to be the first to pass. (You have to be a racer… i.e. partially or wholly insane, to understand).
Yes, a mail box…. And we gun and gun; we fight for position, cut each other off, gate-keep, sandbag, blow snot, get sneaky and otherwise cantankerous…. Hell, down right “disagreeable” in order to be the first rider past that damn mail box!
To those who are not competitive cyclists, it must seem as if the “eNtire aRea cYcling aRmy” got the conviction that every Rainbow ends AT THAT MAIL BOX. But, I can assure you, as insane as it seems to have everybody “Up-and-Get”, all at once, there is some reason to it. (The team has always will contest a sprint to that certain place).
Competitive cyclists on the team often sprint to a point to practice the violent art. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RNAYR3KPIg). The boys and girls riding in road races need to practice sprinting, as the above video will insure you.
Anyway, Adam arranged himself such that at least seven or eight riders were in front of him when the bombs started to fall. I didn’t see it, but I heard while the guns were blazing up front, Adam (esquire) was caught in such an atmospheric vortex, he was actually coasting behind us at 35+ MPH. Arriving at the infamous Mail Box, Adam came around us like an Indy Car at a Soap Box contest. (It was impressive for a guy who’s been running 50+ miles at a time in the woods).
It was a great ride, and there were many great things that happened on the ride.
Coming in on Gundy Road, JT has a favorite stretch of road, so he attacked, and got considerable “day light” on the crew. AC Donahue (esquire2) brought the field up to JT. And that is just awesome! There is nothing that makes my ride happier than to see riders make huge advances in fitness!
Well, that just about does it for my ride report… LESSON: If you are a casual rider, and you are on a ride this summer, and there are some racers among you, and they divert the ride to the area “Behind The Factories”; don’t do it!!!! Don’t go in there! If you do go, rest assured, they will all wait at the Shopville School.
We will all be out in the warm sunshine soon, I promise. I hope you are all well. I am well.
JT
Ten riders left the vision center and rode the loop consisting of Pump house Road, Barnsburg Road, Grundy Road and back to the vision center with the added twist of “Behind the Factories Sprint”.
It seems, in the warm days of winter, No Body Dropped Rides seem to morph into EVERYBODY DROPPED RIDES! That’s ok with me, but it might not be for some. I think if most of the racers (multisport, running, road) are going to show up, you can just about guarantee that we will get “Effort Creep”! Marc Travis called it on the nose.
But that is ok. The racing crowd does need the road workout when they/we can get it, so lets just go ahead and start stating the possible paces in our rides. Rides with more than one or two competitors on it will get hot. I think Marc’s post was good, and much more accurate than my was in terms of Sundays Rides/Efforts.
When it gets warm like it did, some guys can come out Saturday, not Sunday…. Others can come out Sunday, not Saturday…. We’ve all been pent-up for a long winter, so nobody can be blamed for “stretching their legs”. It is a natural thing to do when men and women have been on a stationary trainer for the past few months.
Anyway, Doctor Farmer, KMAC and Mr. Bourne (Esquire) were feeling good so they kept the front end of Sunday’s ride over the Grundy Loop (Clockwise) hot!. At the end of Barnsburg Road, the group opted to do the little Jig behind the Factories. As what seems to be becoming a Natural Law of Cumberland Cycling, anytime a ride (of any previously stated venue) ventures onto the road behind the factories, you know that the ride itself has broken the delicate bonds of sanity, and lifted into the realm of the insane, hyper-completive.
Why? Well, there’s a mailbox back there that everybody likes to be the first to pass. (You have to be a racer… i.e. partially or wholly insane, to understand).
Yes, a mail box…. And we gun and gun; we fight for position, cut each other off, gate-keep, sandbag, blow snot, get sneaky and otherwise cantankerous…. Hell, down right “disagreeable” in order to be the first rider past that damn mail box!
To those who are not competitive cyclists, it must seem as if the “eNtire aRea cYcling aRmy” got the conviction that every Rainbow ends AT THAT MAIL BOX. But, I can assure you, as insane as it seems to have everybody “Up-and-Get”, all at once, there is some reason to it. (The team has always will contest a sprint to that certain place).
Competitive cyclists on the team often sprint to a point to practice the violent art. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RNAYR3KPIg). The boys and girls riding in road races need to practice sprinting, as the above video will insure you.
Anyway, Adam arranged himself such that at least seven or eight riders were in front of him when the bombs started to fall. I didn’t see it, but I heard while the guns were blazing up front, Adam (esquire) was caught in such an atmospheric vortex, he was actually coasting behind us at 35+ MPH. Arriving at the infamous Mail Box, Adam came around us like an Indy Car at a Soap Box contest. (It was impressive for a guy who’s been running 50+ miles at a time in the woods).
It was a great ride, and there were many great things that happened on the ride.
Coming in on Gundy Road, JT has a favorite stretch of road, so he attacked, and got considerable “day light” on the crew. AC Donahue (esquire2) brought the field up to JT. And that is just awesome! There is nothing that makes my ride happier than to see riders make huge advances in fitness!
Well, that just about does it for my ride report… LESSON: If you are a casual rider, and you are on a ride this summer, and there are some racers among you, and they divert the ride to the area “Behind The Factories”; don’t do it!!!! Don’t go in there! If you do go, rest assured, they will all wait at the Shopville School.
We will all be out in the warm sunshine soon, I promise. I hope you are all well. I am well.
JT
Barnsburg Personal Records to Date
18.03 Brad Johnson 26.6 ROAD
18.37 David Hays 26.1 ROAD
18.45 J T Thompson 26.0 ROAD
19.00 Sean Cundiff 25.3 MULTISPORT
19.12 Robert Miller 25.1 ROAD
19.37 Aaron Denney 24.8 ROAD
19.38 Eric Barnett 24.8 ROAD
19.38 Jonathan Edwards 24.8 ROAD
19.55 Nick Grigsby 24.6 ROAD
19.62 Adam Bourne 24.5 ROAD
19.85 Jack Evans 24.2 ROAD
20.02 Jeff Parmelee 24.0 MULTISPORT
20.03 Kevin Black 24.0 ROAD
20.07 Gary Rogers 23.9 ROAD
20.18 Bill Bacon 23.8 ROAD
20.30 Keith Cottongim 23.6 ROAD
20.33 Kevin Mckinney 23.6 MULTISPORT
20.42 Roger Whitlock 23.5 ROAD
20.57 David Ponder 23.3 MOUNTAIN
20.82 Frank Cornett 23.1 ROAD
20.90 Ricky Farmer 23.0 MS
21.08 Charles Senters 22.8 ROAD
21.13 Jay Garman 22.7 ROAD
21.32 James Messer 22.5 ROAD
21.37 D R Swanner 22.5 MULTISPORT
21.62 Andrew Harrell 22.2 ROAD
21.62 Harvey Schleter 22.2 ROAD
21.67 Jay Flynn 22.2 CLUB
21.67 Stephen Toby 22.2 CLUB
21.72 Mark Henry 22.1 MULTISPORT
21.95 Rick Rice 21.9 MULTISPORT
22.02 Barry Garrison 21.8 ROAD
22.02 Glen Olmstead 21.8 ROAD
22.10 Brad Hewitt 21.7 MOUNTAIN
22.37 Chris Schmidt 21.5 MOUNTAIN
22.42 David Altmaier 21.4 CLUB
22.70 Nick Cabrini 21.1 MULTISPORT
22.72 Dave Stewart 21.1 MULTISPORT
22.82 Tim Howard 21.0 CLUB
22.97 Travis Crawford 20.9 CLUB
22.98 Melissa Bellew 20.9 FEMALE
23.00 Brad Herman 20.9 CLUB
23.12 Jeff Blevins 20.8 CLUB
23.12 Matt Harville 20.8 MULTISPORT
23.15 Pat Jenkins 20.7 CLUB
23.23 Kerry Fain 20.7 CLUB
23.33 Matt Wilson 20.6 CLUB
23.45 Kiff Wilson 20.5 MOUNTAIN
23.50 Glenn Girdler 20.4 ROAD
23.57 Jenny Denney 20.4 FEMALE
23.58 Trent Pool 20.4 MOUNTAIN
23.68 Chris Smith 20.3 MOUNTAIN
23.68 Jerry Graham 20.3 CLUB
23.75 Carrie Greerson 20.2 FEMALE
23.80 Charlie Bailey 20.2 FEMALE
23.97 Doug Vito 20.0 CLUB
24.18 Mike Gomes 19.8 CLUB
24.25 Brad Stiltz 19.8 CLUB
24.28 John Millmier 19.8 CLUB
24.32 Ben Whitaker 19.7 CLUB
24.50 Debra Fortenberry 19.6 FEMALE
24.53 Kevin Aker 19.6 CLUB
24.72 Chuck White 19.4 CLUB
24.83 Kate Cabrini 19.3 FEMALE
24.88 Cody Brackett 19.3 JR
24.93 Dave Zwick 19.3 MULTISPORT
25.12 Roger Tochunter 19.1 CLUB
25.23 Mark Hamm 19.0 CLUB
25.25 Dwayne Harris 19.0 CLUB
25.40 Chad Stikes 18.9 CLUB
25.58 Mark Harrell 18.8 CLUB
25.83 Claude Hoffman 18.6 CLUB
25.88 Brice Burton 18.5 CLUB
26.02 Jahan Miremami 18.4 CLUB
26.10 Alan Dempsey 18.4 CLUB
26.10 Wes Cate 18.4 CLUB
26.20 Carson Atwood 18.3 CLUB
26.35 Bruce Gover 18.2 MOUNTAIN
26.43 Lindsay Powell 18.2 FEMALE
26.70 Steve Jones 18.0 CLUB
26.93 Steve Cornelius 17.8 CLUB
26.98 Nick Flynn 17.8 CLUB
27.00 Vince Mitchell 17.8 CLUB
27.28 Ron Cooper 17.6 CLUB
27.38 Ben Rice 17.5 JR
27.47 Mike Phelps 17.5 MOUNTAIN
27.50 Lisa Mullins 17.5 FEMALE
27.75 Glenda Elder 17.3 FEMALE
27.85 Omar Meer 17.2 CLUB
27.90 Gary Perior 17.2 CLUB
28.88 Forrest Spillman 16.6 MOUNTAIN
29.22 Mike Correll 16.4 CLUB
29.30 Marvin Reynolds 16.4 CLUB
29.87 Marty Hollingshea 16.1 CLUB
29.93 AC Donahue 16.0 CLUB
30.05 Sheri Ponder 16.0 FEMALE
30.18 Beca Burton 15.9 FEMALE
32.03 Kenny Ramsey 15.0 CLUB
32.67 Chas Hodges 14.7 CLUB
33.37 Rachel Riqueline 14.4 FEMALE
34.12 Tiffany Finley 14.1 FEMALE
35.88 Amy Rice 13.4 JR
18.37 David Hays 26.1 ROAD
18.45 J T Thompson 26.0 ROAD
19.00 Sean Cundiff 25.3 MULTISPORT
19.12 Robert Miller 25.1 ROAD
19.37 Aaron Denney 24.8 ROAD
19.38 Eric Barnett 24.8 ROAD
19.38 Jonathan Edwards 24.8 ROAD
19.55 Nick Grigsby 24.6 ROAD
19.62 Adam Bourne 24.5 ROAD
19.85 Jack Evans 24.2 ROAD
20.02 Jeff Parmelee 24.0 MULTISPORT
20.03 Kevin Black 24.0 ROAD
20.07 Gary Rogers 23.9 ROAD
20.18 Bill Bacon 23.8 ROAD
20.30 Keith Cottongim 23.6 ROAD
20.33 Kevin Mckinney 23.6 MULTISPORT
20.42 Roger Whitlock 23.5 ROAD
20.57 David Ponder 23.3 MOUNTAIN
20.82 Frank Cornett 23.1 ROAD
20.90 Ricky Farmer 23.0 MS
21.08 Charles Senters 22.8 ROAD
21.13 Jay Garman 22.7 ROAD
21.32 James Messer 22.5 ROAD
21.37 D R Swanner 22.5 MULTISPORT
21.62 Andrew Harrell 22.2 ROAD
21.62 Harvey Schleter 22.2 ROAD
21.67 Jay Flynn 22.2 CLUB
21.67 Stephen Toby 22.2 CLUB
21.72 Mark Henry 22.1 MULTISPORT
21.95 Rick Rice 21.9 MULTISPORT
22.02 Barry Garrison 21.8 ROAD
22.02 Glen Olmstead 21.8 ROAD
22.10 Brad Hewitt 21.7 MOUNTAIN
22.37 Chris Schmidt 21.5 MOUNTAIN
22.42 David Altmaier 21.4 CLUB
22.70 Nick Cabrini 21.1 MULTISPORT
22.72 Dave Stewart 21.1 MULTISPORT
22.82 Tim Howard 21.0 CLUB
22.97 Travis Crawford 20.9 CLUB
22.98 Melissa Bellew 20.9 FEMALE
23.00 Brad Herman 20.9 CLUB
23.12 Jeff Blevins 20.8 CLUB
23.12 Matt Harville 20.8 MULTISPORT
23.15 Pat Jenkins 20.7 CLUB
23.23 Kerry Fain 20.7 CLUB
23.33 Matt Wilson 20.6 CLUB
23.45 Kiff Wilson 20.5 MOUNTAIN
23.50 Glenn Girdler 20.4 ROAD
23.57 Jenny Denney 20.4 FEMALE
23.58 Trent Pool 20.4 MOUNTAIN
23.68 Chris Smith 20.3 MOUNTAIN
23.68 Jerry Graham 20.3 CLUB
23.75 Carrie Greerson 20.2 FEMALE
23.80 Charlie Bailey 20.2 FEMALE
23.97 Doug Vito 20.0 CLUB
24.18 Mike Gomes 19.8 CLUB
24.25 Brad Stiltz 19.8 CLUB
24.28 John Millmier 19.8 CLUB
24.32 Ben Whitaker 19.7 CLUB
24.50 Debra Fortenberry 19.6 FEMALE
24.53 Kevin Aker 19.6 CLUB
24.72 Chuck White 19.4 CLUB
24.83 Kate Cabrini 19.3 FEMALE
24.88 Cody Brackett 19.3 JR
24.93 Dave Zwick 19.3 MULTISPORT
25.12 Roger Tochunter 19.1 CLUB
25.23 Mark Hamm 19.0 CLUB
25.25 Dwayne Harris 19.0 CLUB
25.40 Chad Stikes 18.9 CLUB
25.58 Mark Harrell 18.8 CLUB
25.83 Claude Hoffman 18.6 CLUB
25.88 Brice Burton 18.5 CLUB
26.02 Jahan Miremami 18.4 CLUB
26.10 Alan Dempsey 18.4 CLUB
26.10 Wes Cate 18.4 CLUB
26.20 Carson Atwood 18.3 CLUB
26.35 Bruce Gover 18.2 MOUNTAIN
26.43 Lindsay Powell 18.2 FEMALE
26.70 Steve Jones 18.0 CLUB
26.93 Steve Cornelius 17.8 CLUB
26.98 Nick Flynn 17.8 CLUB
27.00 Vince Mitchell 17.8 CLUB
27.28 Ron Cooper 17.6 CLUB
27.38 Ben Rice 17.5 JR
27.47 Mike Phelps 17.5 MOUNTAIN
27.50 Lisa Mullins 17.5 FEMALE
27.75 Glenda Elder 17.3 FEMALE
27.85 Omar Meer 17.2 CLUB
27.90 Gary Perior 17.2 CLUB
28.88 Forrest Spillman 16.6 MOUNTAIN
29.22 Mike Correll 16.4 CLUB
29.30 Marvin Reynolds 16.4 CLUB
29.87 Marty Hollingshea 16.1 CLUB
29.93 AC Donahue 16.0 CLUB
30.05 Sheri Ponder 16.0 FEMALE
30.18 Beca Burton 15.9 FEMALE
32.03 Kenny Ramsey 15.0 CLUB
32.67 Chas Hodges 14.7 CLUB
33.37 Rachel Riqueline 14.4 FEMALE
34.12 Tiffany Finley 14.1 FEMALE
35.88 Amy Rice 13.4 JR
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Silver Star 1/29/2011
Silver Star was the route today; from Shopville. Here’s the map. http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/27626684
A Word from JT: Get Out Side!!!!!
A total of fifteen riders showed up to ride the course, and we had to fight for parking spaces as a large archery contest was going on at the Shopville School. No Bother.
The forecasted temps were for 51 or 53… something like that. When I got home from the ride, I saw that it actually got up to 63! When riding in January, it is very hard to know how to dress! It is really hard to trust the weather man! I’ve been riding outside with temps in the teens so I knew I was good with what I had on. Others were either to hot or, well… I heard no complaints of being to cold. There really is no substitute for riding outside all winter in order to gage your dress for the weather occasion.
"No Body Dropped” rides are a hard thing to manage when 60 degree days come in January. Of course, the Guns are all out… the “Front-Enders”; the Vampires (vampires only because they can’t stand any daylight between them and the cyclist leading the pack. Toby’s choice for Silver Star was perfect, and it was most enjoyable for me. I had roughly 22 miles on my computer at 14.9 mph. A great ride.
The ride stayed together (recollected) all the way to Dahl-Elrod Road. At that point, with six or seven miles to go, Barry Garrison launched an attack that nobody noticed for a few moments. I have probably raced in 500 races in my life (probably more, but I don’t have the count) but I have never seen a move pulled off so perfectly as this.
THE END GAME
By the time JT and Jack figured out that Barry was attempting to sneak off the front, he had at least 75 yards on us. Elrod Road to Dallas Grocery – behind the factories… Jack pulled me and it was all I could do to stay on his wheel. I could not pitch in to get Barry back. I have never, ever seen Jack pull that hard. In the mean time, everybody else was caught by surprise as well… Toby, Glenn, Doug. Barry’s sneak attack, and JT and Jack’s almost immediate response left all other contenders chasing in “no-mans-land”, handling 15 mph head winds. The competitors were tore apart by Barry’s attack – left alone to handle the headwind alone… Maybe he planned it that way. (I would have)
Over the miles of Barry’s Long Range Solo Attempt, Jack and JT almost got him in. But as soon as we got within just a few yards, he attacked again, and JT could not go (Barry’s renewed attack killed JT). Jack kept pushing and eventually caught him.
I am not very good at staying in “No Man’s Land” – I never saw the logic of it... If I am not in the lead pack, I will pedal medium until other pursuers come up to organize a chase. The safest, most efficient place to be is inside a collection of “wheels”; either in the lead pack or a chasing pack but never, ever in between (under force). Many times I have lost the lead group, and I just sit up to see what is coming up from behind. It is usually a good chase. But today, shattered by Barry’s brutal attack, there was no chasing group… Just individuals seeking support from what might cave in from the “Garrison” attack.
Anyway, Glenn was not far off the pace and he had been pursuing for quite a little while on his own. By the time he got to me, and I could help, so I “bridge” if he could and I waited for the next “shard” of the shattered Barry-Block. It was Kevin (KMack). Problem was, he had run 4 miles before coming to the ride .
Way up ahead, in the flats of Shopville, we could see that Jack caught Barry, and Glenn was chasing his heart out. KMack and I didn’t exactly sit up, but we relaxed a bit until Vito chased us down, Solo.
Talk about shattering a finish – Barry did just that… Only our most seasoned racer, Jack Evans could bridge up to Barry, but could not beat him in the sprint behind the factories.
With in just a few minutes, less than ten, we had everybody back to the start of what was not an easy ride. Yes, we recollected often, but in between, the pace was hot.
2011 – WHAT I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO
Because I took 2010 off from racing, I am sure that I will have to relearn how to ride in the top ten wheels. I am considering taking the entire year just to do that.
More warm weather is coming – I guarantee it. They say June and July will be warmer (than today). Jack and I are going to race for sure. Kevin and Jeff Parmelee are training for a marathon. Mark Henry, Dave Zwick and Rick Rise will do Multisport Events. Adam Bourne is caught between is adventure running races and cycling.
What excites me most are our newcomers – and we have them every year. I am looking forward to, and praying that Barry Garrison will race some CAT V races this spring. As soon as we upgrade him to CAT 4, so he can race in his age bracket –he’s actually going to be really something to watch. Jack will continue to advance in his TBRA Series Standings (Jack was 11 in 2009, and 5th in 2010). Jack has found a racing home. I would love to see Toby win a few time trials… and then there is Roger – our club Freight Train… Roger will continue to compete in time trails I am sure.
I am most excited about our new comers…. Glenn Olmstead, Doug Vito, AC Donahue and Omar Meer (We are going to ignore Barry Garrison tonight! He sliced most of us from eye-ball to ass-hole with a dull dear antler today).
Cumberland Cycles Team and Club has never begun a year with so many riders who could easily do well at racing in just a few weeks training. In my humble opinion, Vito, Garrison ,Olmstead and Toby are ready now to enter CAT V racing. We will be able to upgrade you to CAT IV after just a race or two, and then you can race in your age category.
But I am most interested in AC Donahue and Omar Meer. These men are up-and-coming. They ride like horses. They are training consistently and have a great enthusiasm. The human body responds to training as the machine that God made it to be. I don’t believe in some people being more gifted than other physically to much extent. I believe that hard work, a determined spirit and an endless heart for the sport are far more important than a persons genes.
For now, AC and Omar are the most dedicated cyclists we have in our club or on our team. Both of them are working very hard, and ---- trust me… it will pay off in Spades! Wait and see. They both will be “front-enders”.
AC and Omar could get pack finishes in CAT V races in the later half of the year, if that is what they want. If that is not want they want, I hope they keep it up, so they can kick some asses on club rides!
I am not a gifted athlete. I don’t have lungs the size blimps. I don’t make muscle in order to buy custom britches. What I do is train. I train my heart out to be mediocre at best. When I see people train like Omar, AC, KMACK, Jack, Jenny, John…. On and on… there is only one outcome.
Jesus himself said, when you plant pea seeds you get peas. You all know what I mean.
I ride my bike in order to race. I apologize if I seems “out of touch” to you. I ride to race even though I have not won a race since I came back to cycling 4 year ago. I still believe. We all ride for our own reasons. My reasons are not better or more important than yours. But I am convicted in my own pursuits.
I do know this… Our dreams can become reality so long as we believe in this hard enough. Believing in something hard enough is hard. Once the conviction is done, the training is the easy part. You might want to ride 100 miles in a day… You may want to race, and upgrade… you may want to ride 2,000 miles or 5,000 miles in one year. You may want to do a specific tour. What ever it is, get convicted, then you will do it.
My dream? I am living it. I rode with AC today, Jason and Omar. They completed a challenging Cumberland Cycles Ride, as did several others. My Dream? To bring the love of cycling, in the form of the individual choosing to who ever is willing to dedicate themselves to it. Yes, I want to race and place well. But honestly, that is not as important to me as this club ad this team.
A Word from JT: Get Out Side!!!!!
A total of fifteen riders showed up to ride the course, and we had to fight for parking spaces as a large archery contest was going on at the Shopville School. No Bother.
The forecasted temps were for 51 or 53… something like that. When I got home from the ride, I saw that it actually got up to 63! When riding in January, it is very hard to know how to dress! It is really hard to trust the weather man! I’ve been riding outside with temps in the teens so I knew I was good with what I had on. Others were either to hot or, well… I heard no complaints of being to cold. There really is no substitute for riding outside all winter in order to gage your dress for the weather occasion.
"No Body Dropped” rides are a hard thing to manage when 60 degree days come in January. Of course, the Guns are all out… the “Front-Enders”; the Vampires (vampires only because they can’t stand any daylight between them and the cyclist leading the pack. Toby’s choice for Silver Star was perfect, and it was most enjoyable for me. I had roughly 22 miles on my computer at 14.9 mph. A great ride.
The ride stayed together (recollected) all the way to Dahl-Elrod Road. At that point, with six or seven miles to go, Barry Garrison launched an attack that nobody noticed for a few moments. I have probably raced in 500 races in my life (probably more, but I don’t have the count) but I have never seen a move pulled off so perfectly as this.
THE END GAME
By the time JT and Jack figured out that Barry was attempting to sneak off the front, he had at least 75 yards on us. Elrod Road to Dallas Grocery – behind the factories… Jack pulled me and it was all I could do to stay on his wheel. I could not pitch in to get Barry back. I have never, ever seen Jack pull that hard. In the mean time, everybody else was caught by surprise as well… Toby, Glenn, Doug. Barry’s sneak attack, and JT and Jack’s almost immediate response left all other contenders chasing in “no-mans-land”, handling 15 mph head winds. The competitors were tore apart by Barry’s attack – left alone to handle the headwind alone… Maybe he planned it that way. (I would have)
Over the miles of Barry’s Long Range Solo Attempt, Jack and JT almost got him in. But as soon as we got within just a few yards, he attacked again, and JT could not go (Barry’s renewed attack killed JT). Jack kept pushing and eventually caught him.
I am not very good at staying in “No Man’s Land” – I never saw the logic of it... If I am not in the lead pack, I will pedal medium until other pursuers come up to organize a chase. The safest, most efficient place to be is inside a collection of “wheels”; either in the lead pack or a chasing pack but never, ever in between (under force). Many times I have lost the lead group, and I just sit up to see what is coming up from behind. It is usually a good chase. But today, shattered by Barry’s brutal attack, there was no chasing group… Just individuals seeking support from what might cave in from the “Garrison” attack.
Anyway, Glenn was not far off the pace and he had been pursuing for quite a little while on his own. By the time he got to me, and I could help, so I “bridge” if he could and I waited for the next “shard” of the shattered Barry-Block. It was Kevin (KMack). Problem was, he had run 4 miles before coming to the ride .
Way up ahead, in the flats of Shopville, we could see that Jack caught Barry, and Glenn was chasing his heart out. KMack and I didn’t exactly sit up, but we relaxed a bit until Vito chased us down, Solo.
Talk about shattering a finish – Barry did just that… Only our most seasoned racer, Jack Evans could bridge up to Barry, but could not beat him in the sprint behind the factories.
With in just a few minutes, less than ten, we had everybody back to the start of what was not an easy ride. Yes, we recollected often, but in between, the pace was hot.
2011 – WHAT I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO
Because I took 2010 off from racing, I am sure that I will have to relearn how to ride in the top ten wheels. I am considering taking the entire year just to do that.
More warm weather is coming – I guarantee it. They say June and July will be warmer (than today). Jack and I are going to race for sure. Kevin and Jeff Parmelee are training for a marathon. Mark Henry, Dave Zwick and Rick Rise will do Multisport Events. Adam Bourne is caught between is adventure running races and cycling.
What excites me most are our newcomers – and we have them every year. I am looking forward to, and praying that Barry Garrison will race some CAT V races this spring. As soon as we upgrade him to CAT 4, so he can race in his age bracket –he’s actually going to be really something to watch. Jack will continue to advance in his TBRA Series Standings (Jack was 11 in 2009, and 5th in 2010). Jack has found a racing home. I would love to see Toby win a few time trials… and then there is Roger – our club Freight Train… Roger will continue to compete in time trails I am sure.
I am most excited about our new comers…. Glenn Olmstead, Doug Vito, AC Donahue and Omar Meer (We are going to ignore Barry Garrison tonight! He sliced most of us from eye-ball to ass-hole with a dull dear antler today).
Cumberland Cycles Team and Club has never begun a year with so many riders who could easily do well at racing in just a few weeks training. In my humble opinion, Vito, Garrison ,Olmstead and Toby are ready now to enter CAT V racing. We will be able to upgrade you to CAT IV after just a race or two, and then you can race in your age category.
But I am most interested in AC Donahue and Omar Meer. These men are up-and-coming. They ride like horses. They are training consistently and have a great enthusiasm. The human body responds to training as the machine that God made it to be. I don’t believe in some people being more gifted than other physically to much extent. I believe that hard work, a determined spirit and an endless heart for the sport are far more important than a persons genes.
For now, AC and Omar are the most dedicated cyclists we have in our club or on our team. Both of them are working very hard, and ---- trust me… it will pay off in Spades! Wait and see. They both will be “front-enders”.
AC and Omar could get pack finishes in CAT V races in the later half of the year, if that is what they want. If that is not want they want, I hope they keep it up, so they can kick some asses on club rides!
I am not a gifted athlete. I don’t have lungs the size blimps. I don’t make muscle in order to buy custom britches. What I do is train. I train my heart out to be mediocre at best. When I see people train like Omar, AC, KMACK, Jack, Jenny, John…. On and on… there is only one outcome.
Jesus himself said, when you plant pea seeds you get peas. You all know what I mean.
I ride my bike in order to race. I apologize if I seems “out of touch” to you. I ride to race even though I have not won a race since I came back to cycling 4 year ago. I still believe. We all ride for our own reasons. My reasons are not better or more important than yours. But I am convicted in my own pursuits.
I do know this… Our dreams can become reality so long as we believe in this hard enough. Believing in something hard enough is hard. Once the conviction is done, the training is the easy part. You might want to ride 100 miles in a day… You may want to race, and upgrade… you may want to ride 2,000 miles or 5,000 miles in one year. You may want to do a specific tour. What ever it is, get convicted, then you will do it.
My dream? I am living it. I rode with AC today, Jason and Omar. They completed a challenging Cumberland Cycles Ride, as did several others. My Dream? To bring the love of cycling, in the form of the individual choosing to who ever is willing to dedicate themselves to it. Yes, I want to race and place well. But honestly, that is not as important to me as this club ad this team.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Beta Fitness Model
Based on my times at Barnsburg Time Trial, the above chart seems to give a good approximation to fitness versus previous 60 day miles.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
My club My Team
I thought about cycling some, but not much. I endured summer thunder and winter snow…. Nobody bothered me much, and I wrote a column in a local news paper about my life in the woods.
Fifteen years consulting as a geologist and geophysicist; from California to New York, year after year…. Feeling as if my efforts were just a “stage act” – corporate obligations fulfilled…. I desperately needed meaning. I needed the stillness of the woods. And I did that three years.
I was done with the deprived life after three years and I settled into a place with cable TV and lights that came on with the flick of a switch. Not long after, It occurred to me to start riding bicycles again. And I did.
I raced in the 1980’s, but as a young man, I was hyper competitive. After 15 years consulting as a geologist, then three years in the woods, alone – cycling came back to me as a purity – a life-philosophy; a way of life.
I’ve been back racing five years now. And I have not won very many races. I will probably never win many more. And that doesn’t matter to me. I feel strong, and I feel qualified to race in my field.
There are many things that I love in my life. I love my Son most of all. I love the woods, and the memories of my life at the cabin. But my heart and soul belong to the men and women who share a passion with me for cycling.
Cycling and racing is as much a sanctuary as the woods were, those years at the cabin. I probably will never win another race. But I will train my heart out. I do this, because my brothers and sisters on wheels do the same…. They ride, sometimes with me, sometimes on their own…
While I may not be a good enough cyclist to Win the big races, I am fulfilled sharing a love with you, who ever you are.
In so far as I will do well with a pack finish, I race for all of my cycling friends – Jack most of all.
MY BIKE SHOP IS CUMBERLAND CYCLES…. Marc Travis is one of the most knowledgeable bike geeks I know. I will ride for this club, this shop and this club for as long as I can turn a crank.
Let make 2011 a great year!
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