Fail down

There are some days when you can triumph over the weather and other days when you are better off tucking tail and letting the weather kick your ass all the way home. Yesterday was the latter. In an attempt not to end up like this poor fellow I kept a very close eye on the storms as I headed off last night. By the time I crossed hwy 93 I was getting rained on steadily but I was avoiding all instances of natural electrical activity. I made it to Rollinsville in good time but another big black band was queued up in front of me and I had another 3,000 feet in elevation to gain to go over the pass. Not where I really wanted to be in an electrical storm so I called Marni and turned around. All in all it was still a good ride. My rain gear worked great and other than my gloves and leather Sidi's I was only slightly damp and never cold. My gear stayed dry in the new pack and I did have a good climb, knocking out almost 5k feet elevation in 43 miles with my full multi-day setup. My GPS even kept working despite filling with water. Note to self, must bring rubberband and baggie for GPS protection. Rollins Pass isn't going anywhere and all the rain actually made us bump our pre-ride to tomorrow anyway so it all worked out. I'll post the pictures I did get shortly. I'm going to get over that pass this summer!

Ass over the pass

Well I'm off. I'm meeting Marni and Bill tomorrow morning in Winter Park to preride next weekend's race course. Tonight I'm headed up to Winter Park over Rollins Pass. It's a ride that's been on the list for a while and tonight was finally a decent time to slot it in. The new pack is all set and I've got the PerpetuBrick in my frame bag along with a couple other essentials. I'll sleep somewhere near the top and finish off the climb and descent in the morning before breakfast and the preride. More to report when I'm back!

Little known facts

You can put way more Perpetuem into a 1L Platypus than either Marni or I would have guessed and there is still room for more. Experiments continue. Looks like the S-Lab pack may get a test tomorrow night. It's overweight by the way, at 15.4oz, but still not a bad weight for what it is. Plus there is room for modifications but not until I test it first. I'm not going to start hacking up a $125 pack right off the bat. Yes Jill the pockets seem to be useable for bear spray if one so desires.I'm staying out of the current discussions as an attempt not to argue over the internet. Right now I'm in the mood to do what strikes me and maybe talk about it later. Reading about these badasses was certainly motivation of the day.

Just in case

Just a shorty 'cause I'm sleepy. I had to go back to work after the following ride and didn't get to bed until after1am.

Yesterday afternoon was supposed to be a team ride but everyone was noncommittal so I headed to the Cone parking lot solo and called Bill on the way. He was on his way to yoga but ditched and came with me instead for a 2 lap affair from Mayhem Gulch (now come on, that is a sweet name for a trail). We made as much use of daylight as we could although we were questioned/interrogated by a ranger for having lights. Funny thing was this was at ~5pm and Bill and I always have the PT EOS's on our helmets. Ummm yes we know the rules. No we don't really need a pamphlet. Not to mention, the park doesn't even close until 1 hour after sunset so technically lights are a good thing no? Plus you never know when you'll have a mechanical issue... Lap two above the valley...
Pretty sunset and clouds. Lightning was on surrounding ridges but it was pretty far away. Not a drop of rain where we were.
Oh yea, that mechanical we were talking about that could happen. What do you know? Broken seat rail at the end of lap 2. Fixable easily but it took a few minutes of tool wrestling. Guess Bill gets another free seat from Performance.
On the way down we found this little guy. He was small but it was the first rattler of any size I've seen all year. He was motionless though as it was getting chilly. I know how it feels to wait for the sunrise though little buddy.

More riding tonight I think. Hoping for good weather!

Late Edit:

At least this guy isn't a cheater

Thanks to Ray for the pictures. Gotta have fun out there.

Fool me twice, shame on me...

Damn Vino. You really let everyone down. Seriously do they all dope? I'm sorry to say I'm surprised at Vino going down in flames. I foolishly wanted to believe there are some good guys at the sport's top level. Maybe I should sport the jersey in addition to the socks?

Evening

It was a good evening on some tired legs from really pushing it hard the last two days. I was okay though, until I watched the little vid of Stefan. Then I remembered how much I really wish I was out there and it hurts a bit. Tomorrow is another day though and I'll get through it. Great job buddy and to everyone else out there. Through all the hard days and tough times maybe a little of my jealously will somehow make you a little stronger.

Couple profiles

Dumped the GPS to the computer this morning. GPS loses a bit of contact in the woods as the WP race was really almost 19 miles. Hope Adam like his new ETrex Vista HC so I can get one too :)

Untitled

Yum cake. Rode the road bike today until dark. I got out a bit later than planned but it was worth it. Sleeping in, breakfast at Luciles and seeing Sha-ndy's new puppy. 82 miles at 18.5mph all by my lonesome. With so many riders out you would think I'd eventually find someone to shoot the shit with for a few miles but it didn't happen. Climbing was only moderate by front range standards at ~3500feet but it was hot as Hades for most of the ride. It felt good to push hard in the heat though. What's next?

Step on the box

Another short race for the year. 14 minutes (!?) faster than last year although this time I avoided crashing into a tree and flatting. Still it was only an 83 minute race. At least I feel like I earned 3rd this week, stalking and making the kill well before the line and taking full advantage of my preride. I closed to within 10 seconds of 2nd place but never could quite make the move before a bobble put him out of sight and out of mind. He then put another minute or more on me in the closing miles. I was happy in 3rd anyway. Less chance of falling off the podium and the older age group is quicker. Marni points out I'm the youngest one in the class. I point out that 1st still beat me by 5 minutes. And he crashed into a creek. Downhill was ripping today and quite fun. I am really coming on going down again. Finally. Finally. Sometimes you have to cross the line and then step back a little to find what works. I could verify that comment in a million arenas but today I'll call it tire selection. Schwalbe snakeskin 2.25's with sealant. Worry free, let it fly.Blurry but it was dark and storming outside so I'm not really complaining about being indoors.Lots of smiles. Marni came in 4th today but with a great time of 2:09. She wasn't feeling her best and still rocked it only 11 minutes slower than last week on a course over 4 miles longer and more technical in many places. Bruises are badges of honor. Melissa came in just behind in 5th. Those two girls are also putting up a strong series showing for true beginning racers.Bill also got up on the box today. Again. Way to really really step it up this year man. If you're careful you can end up winning the series crown since you potentially have a big weak score to drop compared to your competitors. Keep training that uphill and work on the descents. The later is probably your biggest time gain per time spent.Okay I'm 6 foot tall basically. But I'm standing next to #2 (Jason) and #3 (Bill) in Clydes this week. Yea. About that.
Big props to the rest of the Feedback crew who podiumed today including Rob S in his new state champ jersey, Lisa winning the pro women and James Mack in sport. Brady was oh so close behind Bill as 4th Clyde and Jason was 4th in Sousa's class I think. Plus everyone else who raced and got sore backs from the rooty, rocky finish. Nice work. Group linner at Hernando's was tasty even if the waitress wasn't the most mathematically inclined or fabricly contained.

Time for ZZZZZZZZZ. Tomorrow I think I have a long date with my road bike but I'm going to get enough sleep first. Plenty of sleep dep this year already. No need to push it more until it counts for something. Huge change from half a year ago, man. Also sent an email off, we'll see what road the response leads me down. I want to step up to the next level so I need to figure out how to do that.

Proof

...that there has been riding. Marni looking color coordinated.Argyle
Backwards hat day. Not my best idea unless I'm trying to look like a bigger dork.
Marni leads the pack off to Matthew Winters.
Scott and the Clark sisters lag behind pumping up some rubber.
Working on some technical skills
I got close but alas no cigar this time.
This one I got first go around.
Scott made a good attempt.
John continues to win the road rash contest.
Truesdale wins the "more crashes than a drunk on a police chase" award. He's given MTBing quite the valiant try for a trackie.
Something old.
Something new. (Hey they work for me so I stocked up. Can't beat $7 a pair)
Neither borrowed nor blue, the perfect pack search must continue.
That's all for now. Marni and I are off to race tomorrow with the rest of my team and the gang.

Let it rain...

Can a person and their environment share attributes? The ground here is cracked from lack of moisture and so I feel a similar drought in me. But the monsoons are coming and likewise I feel something building. I don't have a lot to share right now but rest assured that doesn't mean I'm not riding and plotting. Brown boxes arrive, routes are mapped and when a few nagging physical ills are cured like the land by the rain, I will be back.

No CTR for Chris

It's official so I guess that makes it blog worthy. No CTR for me this year. Lots of reasons I guess. I know it's the right decision but it doesn't make me happy. I'm feeling pretty lost right now...

Lucky Sevens

With Evan's on Wednesday I didn't know how my legs would feel but it was a solid week of riding and I was excited for the weekend's Winter Park race anyway. Marni was nervous so I made sure we were ready in plenty of time and that she had good food and a good race plan in place. We got to WP and got checked in with plenty of time. I started my warm up and arrived at the base of the mountain only to find out that all the starts were pushed back 30-40 minutes. So much for the perfectly timed warm up. I hung out with Marni and some friends waiting for the starts to finally happen. By the time I went off I was definitely not warmed up so when the group jumped at the start I let the leaders go. This time it worked in my favor. I climbed strong but never blew up and rode from 11th up to 6th before hitting the singletrack for the first time. Once in the woods I could see riders ahead and worked my way toward them one at a time. Knowing the course was great and I turned the screws on each climb. By the time I hit the last time I shook 5th place for good and had 3rd and 4th in view. Once we started decending my teammate from the next class caught me and we worked together down the hill. I passed 4th before getting into lap traffic and passed third just after dumping out of the final singletrack . Unsure if I was actually the place I thought I was I sprinted hard to the line and nipped one more rider who turned out to be from a previous class.

I hung out at the line waiting for Marni to finish. I didn't get to see her start since I was racing but I couldn't wait to see her finish. She had been really nervous about racing this one after our preride but I knew she would do great if she didn't have any mechanical issues. We had even talked about and practiced being passed by faster riders on the one part of the course that overlapped. One by one friends and teammates finished up. Soon Marni and Melissa, our two beginner women, were the only ones left I course. Scott, Dan and I headed out to the end of the course to watch for them and cheer them on as they rode in. After a couple false hopes, Marni came pedalling up the course really strong! I was so happy to she her stomping the pedals because I knew that meant she was doing well and having fun. I cheered her to the finish and then we cheered in Melissa a few minutes later. We headed over to get some snacks and water which I had to get from the resort since the race people were out of water (why screw the beginners with not enough water?). Eventually we headed over to the awards area but Marni's time wasn't posted yet. Once the awards started I walked over to check the board one more time and luckily they were posted! Even better Marni got 3rd in the beginner women! I was so proud of her and we both got to have fun getting up on the podium to get our medals and glasses plus our friend Bill got third in his class as well. All and all it was a good day of racing and everyone did really well. Make sure you checkout Marni's blog for her full write up and more pictures.
Late Edit:
A little course profile plus Mike put up some great pictures here.

Mt.Evans

A bit delayed. Where does the time go? Nevertheless the Fourth of July ride this year was good. I passed on a 2nd Firecracker and instead joined Erik for his annual Mt.Evans ride. I headed out from home a bit before 4:30am and enjoyed a nice ride up to Idaho Springs. Marni was waiting there to play SAG for the crew climbing the mountain, prefering to save her energy for the weekend's XC race. After swapping bottles and hitting the restroom we all headed up the mountain staggered a bit to try to arrive at the top at similar times. I chased Erik hard, closing the gap to around 3 minutes at one point but then Erik began to open it up on the upper slopes and I could never catch him. I got a little sleepy on the upper climbs but rallied on the last bit of switchbacks bouyed by the altimeter's climbing reading. Soon enough I hit the top and ate some of Marni's homemade cookies before switching shoes to climb to the summit witih Marni and Turbo for a picture. On the way hiking back down the clouds rolled in quick and it was time to head down. The girls all drove down in the car while Erik and I took off down the mountain enjoying a roughly 28 mile descent back to 6700 feet from over 14,100 feet. Aside from a pretty killer headwind we enjoyed it a lot especially since I had been climbing almost solidly for the past 70 miles and 11k+ vertical feet. I cruised over to Beau Jo's on bike to wrap up my century and then I joined the group for some tasty pizza. It was a great day on the bike and much better than being at work. I fueled with concentrated Perpetuem the whole time and it worked as expected. Next up was the weekends MTB racings so enjoy the pictures while I work on the next post...