Well, no bike testing this week and no racing this weekend most likely. Sean said its past time to get a X-Ray since its not healing soon enough. My knee is acting up and hurting again so I will go see a sports medicine doctor tomorrow (Dr. Blanda) in Akron. I initially tried to see Dr. Shah from Summa, but of course hes going out of town and I couldn't get an appointment till the 10th. Too long for me.
Well at least by tomorrow afternoon I'll know whats up with my knee.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Back on track
This has been a good week of training. Over 10 hours and 170 miles in last week. The more I rode, the better I felt and my knee just kept responding positively. On Saturday I finally got to do a workout, though strength was the goal was a good test of my fitness as I pedaled at 110% of FTP for short intervals. For certain the miles I put in this week have really helped me get back on track.
I learned a lot too as I used the intervals and data (power, HR, cadence) not only as a baseline, but as a warm-up of my legs, upper body, etc. So once good and fatigued I broke out the allen wrench, made some changes in position and then did some more intervals. I found ways to raise my wattage and lower perceived exertion and others that lowered wattage and HR consistently. I compared the data to the baseline data and that was very cool. A very good morning on the trainer indeed.
Then today the Hilltoppers had a fun day of racing and activities on cross country skis. I am going to post some pictures of Audrey skiing (of course). I am amazed at how well she skis. A natural smooth kick and her skis are always parallel.
Helping her team on the relay
She has now been introduced to racing in a fun way. I cannot describe how cool that is for me to see. And although the first few races were more like a ski tour for her, she is beginning to show some intensity and a desire to win which is really fun to see. I try and coach her "attitude" in a healthy way. I want her to try to win, but not try so hard that it no longer is fun. I talk to her about the little details like dont follow if your faster and when you pass another skier and they tell you its not a race and to stay in line behind them, dont listen!! Its true!! The world of 6 year old racing tactics!
Small, but fast
So onto this next week. I only have a few (read sarcasm) tiny things on my plate this week. So lets see there is the Conconni test on Friday, followed by a Wingate Power test then Mid-Ohio on Saturday!! Yeah thats right, racing season is almost here for me!! At Mid-Ohio I plan on racing the A or Cat1,2,3 event. Last year I shocked the system by not racing for 15 years and doing the Cat.3,4 race with some fast, fast 3's mixed in. I think I am in for a bigger shock. I dont know how many Cat.1's and 2's will do it with the Arnold Challenge on Sunday, but for sure I am excited and a wee bit nervous too. I'll be honest I am preparing my mind for a good shelling and quite a few lonely laps. But I'll be happy to be racing thats for sure. Crap, I better get that new chain on, take off the winter tires and put in those light weight tubes!! Its racing time!!
I learned a lot too as I used the intervals and data (power, HR, cadence) not only as a baseline, but as a warm-up of my legs, upper body, etc. So once good and fatigued I broke out the allen wrench, made some changes in position and then did some more intervals. I found ways to raise my wattage and lower perceived exertion and others that lowered wattage and HR consistently. I compared the data to the baseline data and that was very cool. A very good morning on the trainer indeed.
Then today the Hilltoppers had a fun day of racing and activities on cross country skis. I am going to post some pictures of Audrey skiing (of course). I am amazed at how well she skis. A natural smooth kick and her skis are always parallel.
Helping her team on the relayShe has now been introduced to racing in a fun way. I cannot describe how cool that is for me to see. And although the first few races were more like a ski tour for her, she is beginning to show some intensity and a desire to win which is really fun to see. I try and coach her "attitude" in a healthy way. I want her to try to win, but not try so hard that it no longer is fun. I talk to her about the little details like dont follow if your faster and when you pass another skier and they tell you its not a race and to stay in line behind them, dont listen!! Its true!! The world of 6 year old racing tactics!
Small, but fastSo onto this next week. I only have a few (read sarcasm) tiny things on my plate this week. So lets see there is the Conconni test on Friday, followed by a Wingate Power test then Mid-Ohio on Saturday!! Yeah thats right, racing season is almost here for me!! At Mid-Ohio I plan on racing the A or Cat1,2,3 event. Last year I shocked the system by not racing for 15 years and doing the Cat.3,4 race with some fast, fast 3's mixed in. I think I am in for a bigger shock. I dont know how many Cat.1's and 2's will do it with the Arnold Challenge on Sunday, but for sure I am excited and a wee bit nervous too. I'll be honest I am preparing my mind for a good shelling and quite a few lonely laps. But I'll be happy to be racing thats for sure. Crap, I better get that new chain on, take off the winter tires and put in those light weight tubes!! Its racing time!!
Friday, February 22, 2008
A sad day for Motorsports
I have been a fan of auto racing since I was probably 5 or 6 years old. If I could do any profession I think I would pick professional race car driver. One of my favorite forms of racing was USAC Indy cars then Champ car. One of the darkest days was when Tony George (with the influence of Bill France Jr. and NASCAR at the Brickyard) announced that he was forming the Indy Racing League and taking the 500 away form the Champs car circuit. The INdy 500 now means nothing to me, where as it was the biggest deal to me in the 70's and 80's. Sadly I never went to the race myself when it was good.
Well today is dark day #2 for US open wheel racing, though I hope to eat my own words in the coming seasons due to this announcement today!! Read on!!
Well today is dark day #2 for US open wheel racing, though I hope to eat my own words in the coming seasons due to this announcement today!! Read on!!
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Thank you Hammer
6am got-up exercised
6:45 ate breakfast
7:45 pop two Hammer Anti-fatigue caps (Ammonia scavenging thingamabobs)
8:35 on the road to Thom's house and then off to Willoughby. Its really cold, but the suns shining. Coffee and warm-up at Spin. Thom fixes the shifting problem I am having-thanks td. Back on the road to Bedford to my office. Alls well at first, hands staying warm on and off. Pop one more Anti-fatigue cap, eat a Cliff bar slowly and keep rolling. But as I get close to the end of the Hawthorne Parkway I start getting tired, really tired. I realize I am not drinking much so I stop, switch out the frozen water bottle and grab a bottle out of my backpack and keep rolling. At least my new Polar water bottle lasted a couple hours this time. I hit Northfield road and I hit the wall. The last overpass by my office takes a while to go over and I feel like I am running on an empty tank.
I get to the office, hit my Hammer Recoverite like its an elixir of life, eat everything I can find in the office. I crank up the office 3 more degrees, but I am shivering like mad. Ahh-my clothes are soaked in sweat. I change, put on a jacket and start to try and recover.
I am whooped and realize how dehydrated I am. I drink and drink the rest of the afternoon, but mostly I dread the ride home. I wish I could take a nap too.
SO I get dressed, turn the heat back down in the office and roll out of the parking lot and i feel really good, despite how I just felt in the office all afternoon. Luckily I had some Heed powder at work and mix it in my water bottle and vow to drink it all on the way home. I push a few times and then ride easy. I push a few minutes and recover all the way home.
Was it the Hammer products? I dont know, but my legs didnt even feel loaded up or burn like I expected.
Final stats for today.
62.5 miles
4 hours ride time total
6:45 ate breakfast
7:45 pop two Hammer Anti-fatigue caps (Ammonia scavenging thingamabobs)
8:35 on the road to Thom's house and then off to Willoughby. Its really cold, but the suns shining. Coffee and warm-up at Spin. Thom fixes the shifting problem I am having-thanks td. Back on the road to Bedford to my office. Alls well at first, hands staying warm on and off. Pop one more Anti-fatigue cap, eat a Cliff bar slowly and keep rolling. But as I get close to the end of the Hawthorne Parkway I start getting tired, really tired. I realize I am not drinking much so I stop, switch out the frozen water bottle and grab a bottle out of my backpack and keep rolling. At least my new Polar water bottle lasted a couple hours this time. I hit Northfield road and I hit the wall. The last overpass by my office takes a while to go over and I feel like I am running on an empty tank.
I get to the office, hit my Hammer Recoverite like its an elixir of life, eat everything I can find in the office. I crank up the office 3 more degrees, but I am shivering like mad. Ahh-my clothes are soaked in sweat. I change, put on a jacket and start to try and recover.
I am whooped and realize how dehydrated I am. I drink and drink the rest of the afternoon, but mostly I dread the ride home. I wish I could take a nap too.
SO I get dressed, turn the heat back down in the office and roll out of the parking lot and i feel really good, despite how I just felt in the office all afternoon. Luckily I had some Heed powder at work and mix it in my water bottle and vow to drink it all on the way home. I push a few times and then ride easy. I push a few minutes and recover all the way home.
Was it the Hammer products? I dont know, but my legs didnt even feel loaded up or burn like I expected.
Final stats for today.
62.5 miles
4 hours ride time total
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Man-Up or Go Home
So I went home. Post over....Yeah RIGHT!!!
But no, what happened was for days I have been trying to get in a long road ride. Forecast for Wednesday when Sean has me down for long miles is cold at 17f, possible snow and a little windy so wind chill will be a factor.
I have been joking with a friend who commutes in all weather and comes home in all weather in the dark that I need to be like him and man-up to the weather and just ride. So when I go to bed I am ready to ride. Good thing because I get Zero sleep. Two nights this week with sub 3 hours sleep. I was still looking at the clock in disbelief at 4am. I think I may have dozed off at 5 and the alarm went off at, you guessed it-6am.
The two guys who were thinking of going bail, but as planned at 7:40 I am out the door for a what I hope is a 3 hour commute to work (usually 55 minutes). I have Manned UP-YESSIR!! As I get to the top of Old Mill my fingers are already cold and hurting. There doesn't seem to be any help for them so I decide to take Berkshire down slow to save on wearing out my already thin brake pads down Old Mill.
I know from driving these roads Sunday that they are loaded with gravel for grip, but I recall thinking to myself "I don't get flats". This reminds me of another time racing go karts when I made the mistake to count my chickens before they hatch. At Gratten in Mi I was still a top 5 racer without a win, but I was really flying in practice. Going down the straightaway I let myself think "I think I am gonna win today". As I braked for turn one and made the right the piston broke and the motor crunched and grinded itself to smithereens for what seemed like 15 seconds. We poured piston bits out of the exhaust, carb and air filter!! Well, I promised myself to never say that to myself again, so you can now guess what happened next on the bike!!
As I make the left on Epping to head north to base of Old Mill I plan on stopping for a minute to warm up my hands and take a nature break. Well, I make the turn from Epping to Old Mill and my fronts going soft. Now I wont complain because, knock on wood I rarely get flats. By Chagrin River Road its flat and I nurse it to one of the town buildings, take a seat on a bench and start the dreaded process in the cold and wind.
To make a long story short, my spare tube which was already patched needed two more patches as it turns out!! I kept pumping and pumping!! Is the pump broken? Should I blast it with a CO2? Eventually I contemplated patching the original tube which got pierced by one of the millions of stones used to provide traction on Berkshire. But my feet had now frozen along with my hands and the thought of taking off my gloves to patch and 2 more hours of commuting then the afternoon commute home suddenly didn't seem that appealing. I was defeated.
I gave myself a bit of grief as my wife pulled up in the van to take me home. I should go home, put on another wheel or a new tube and get back on the road I said to myself, only this time a direct route to work for my usual 16 mile and/or 55 minute commute. What did I do? I stripped down to shorts, set up my rollers and road bike and rode for 1:45 doing some intervals to pass the time. I would have gone 2 hours, but my sit bones had had it so I cooled down and called it a day.
So I tried to Man-up, but I did put in a 45 minute ride outdoors on wet roads and low temps and backed it up with a 1:45 on the rollers. So what did I do to make sure this isn't likely to happen again? Why of course I spent more money (I dont really have).
Tomorrow I'll try again and this time with Conti 4 Seasons with Duraskin and reinforced sidewalls.
On a bright note the intervals seemed easy like they should have as did what little I rode outside so I think I am getting back on the right track finally.
But no, what happened was for days I have been trying to get in a long road ride. Forecast for Wednesday when Sean has me down for long miles is cold at 17f, possible snow and a little windy so wind chill will be a factor.
I have been joking with a friend who commutes in all weather and comes home in all weather in the dark that I need to be like him and man-up to the weather and just ride. So when I go to bed I am ready to ride. Good thing because I get Zero sleep. Two nights this week with sub 3 hours sleep. I was still looking at the clock in disbelief at 4am. I think I may have dozed off at 5 and the alarm went off at, you guessed it-6am.
The two guys who were thinking of going bail, but as planned at 7:40 I am out the door for a what I hope is a 3 hour commute to work (usually 55 minutes). I have Manned UP-YESSIR!! As I get to the top of Old Mill my fingers are already cold and hurting. There doesn't seem to be any help for them so I decide to take Berkshire down slow to save on wearing out my already thin brake pads down Old Mill.
I know from driving these roads Sunday that they are loaded with gravel for grip, but I recall thinking to myself "I don't get flats". This reminds me of another time racing go karts when I made the mistake to count my chickens before they hatch. At Gratten in Mi I was still a top 5 racer without a win, but I was really flying in practice. Going down the straightaway I let myself think "I think I am gonna win today". As I braked for turn one and made the right the piston broke and the motor crunched and grinded itself to smithereens for what seemed like 15 seconds. We poured piston bits out of the exhaust, carb and air filter!! Well, I promised myself to never say that to myself again, so you can now guess what happened next on the bike!!
As I make the left on Epping to head north to base of Old Mill I plan on stopping for a minute to warm up my hands and take a nature break. Well, I make the turn from Epping to Old Mill and my fronts going soft. Now I wont complain because, knock on wood I rarely get flats. By Chagrin River Road its flat and I nurse it to one of the town buildings, take a seat on a bench and start the dreaded process in the cold and wind.
To make a long story short, my spare tube which was already patched needed two more patches as it turns out!! I kept pumping and pumping!! Is the pump broken? Should I blast it with a CO2? Eventually I contemplated patching the original tube which got pierced by one of the millions of stones used to provide traction on Berkshire. But my feet had now frozen along with my hands and the thought of taking off my gloves to patch and 2 more hours of commuting then the afternoon commute home suddenly didn't seem that appealing. I was defeated.
I gave myself a bit of grief as my wife pulled up in the van to take me home. I should go home, put on another wheel or a new tube and get back on the road I said to myself, only this time a direct route to work for my usual 16 mile and/or 55 minute commute. What did I do? I stripped down to shorts, set up my rollers and road bike and rode for 1:45 doing some intervals to pass the time. I would have gone 2 hours, but my sit bones had had it so I cooled down and called it a day.
So I tried to Man-up, but I did put in a 45 minute ride outdoors on wet roads and low temps and backed it up with a 1:45 on the rollers. So what did I do to make sure this isn't likely to happen again? Why of course I spent more money (I dont really have).
Tomorrow I'll try again and this time with Conti 4 Seasons with Duraskin and reinforced sidewalls.
On a bright note the intervals seemed easy like they should have as did what little I rode outside so I think I am getting back on the right track finally.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Brooke live
Hey-Andrew Messick of AEG mentioned on Live internet broadcast that he rode with Brooke Miller and she told him she feels like shes going to win today!!
Way to go Brooke!! Hopefully in an hour I'll update this blog with a good finish in California at the Amgen Tour Of California Womens Criterium.
HAHAHA!!! 4:10pm update!! She did win and it got broadcast by Frankie Andreau!!!
News and pictures here!!
Way to go Brooke!! Hopefully in an hour I'll update this blog with a good finish in California at the Amgen Tour Of California Womens Criterium.
HAHAHA!!! 4:10pm update!! She did win and it got broadcast by Frankie Andreau!!!
News and pictures here!!
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