Monday, June 25, 2007

Big News


No, not another bike or another kid, but another job. Resigned from the bank last week and will be joining Ironwood development Company as a partner and President and Chief Operating Officer. Click here for the company website. Please note web site needs some updating.
I took last week off the bike completely and probably will do the same this week. I will start training in July for Wilderness 101 on 8/4 and Shenandoah 100 in early September. In the meantime am doing some walking and light running to keep the weight down.
Later,
BRD

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Lumberjack 100

Here is a nice close up from the race. Thanks to Kevin and Connie for the pic.




Sunday, June 17, 2007

The Big M-F'er

It was a lovely day in Meeeechigan (that state up north), 80 degrees, nice breeze, a 25 mile loop x 4 equals 100 miles of fun filled mtb racing. Along with 250 other like minded cyclists, I rolled out at 7am Saturday June 16th for one hundred miles of singletrack racing. Round #3 of the NUE Series saw many pro and semi-pro racers looking for top results at 2007 Lumberjack 100. In the end I finished 30th overall with a race time of 8:30.

I rolled out of Cleveland Friday afternoon at 4:30pm (after the most important meeting of my life) and solo'ed the 400 mile drive to Wellston, MI and the Manistee State Forest. After a smooth and relaxing drive (did I just say that?) I bunked in nice little rental cabin with Ross, Kevin and their wives. After changing some tires, fixing my bottles and enjoying the Miller High Life I turned in around 1:00am. The 5:30 wake up call came very soon thereafter. Ate some breakfast, got the pit area ready, then prerode the first 2 miles of the course.

The race started with a 1 mile paved section followed by a sandy climb. I got a good start near the front and quickly settled into the top 20-25. Soon I caught onto a group that was lead by Gerry Plug, Ernie M., and others. Kevin was in the group also while Ross was up the trail.

Ended up riding the first lap in 1:47. Second lap was ok, staying consistent with the Hammer products. Ended up heading out for 3rd lap at 3:54 race time. Third lap seemed to be the longest lap EVER. Lots of bad thoughts, but lap time was actually ok. Headed out for final lap at 6:04 about 4 minutes behind Kevin. I felt ok, I was not bonking, but I just lost my desire to ride, breath, live, etc. As a result I did a 2:25 lap and finished in 8:30, shitty, but still a pr for a 100 mile. I lost several spots in the last lap and the 20 through 30 finishers were all very close on time. However, I am generally happy with the race...felt good and strong, nutrition was good (except for last 1:30), no crashes, no mechanicals, great trails, delicious free beer by Founders, good people...yeahh!!

The party afer was great, lots of yummy Founders brand beer, some old friends like Alex and Joe from MI. I am really starting to like the 100 mile race format. I do prefer 100 mile point to point version versus Lumberjack lap version, but I am still going to be back next year.

Later,

BRD

Monday, June 04, 2007

Making Progress

Here are the results for Mohican 100. http://www.cyclingnews.com/mtb/?id=2007/jun07/mohican100_07

Some interesting data from this race compared to other 100 milers I have done in the last few years.

July 2005 – Wilderness 101, State College, PA – Finished 2:40 behind winner with 9:40 finish time for me compared to 7:00 for Chris Eatough. Harlon Price was second at 28 minutes behind.

July 2006 - Wilderness 101, State College, PA – 1:45 behind winner with 9:18 finish time for me compared to 7:33 for Harlon Price.

September 2006 – Shenandoah 100, Harrisonburg, VA - 2:08 behind winner with 9:34 finish time for me compared to 7:16 for Jeremiah Bishop. Eatough was second at 8 minutes back with 7:24 time.

June 2007 – Mohican 100, Loudonville, OH – 1:43 behind winner with 8:51 finish time for me compared to 7:09 for Chris Eatough. Price was second at 6 minutes back with time of 7:15.

What does all this mean? If you agree that all of these races are close to the same length and difficulty, then I picked up an hour on the Eatough, Price and Bishops of the world (2:40 behind to 1:42 behind). That is still a lot of time, but that does get you around top 20. Need to be within an hour or so to get in the top 10. Is there still room for further improvement without quitting the day job, pissing off my wife, neglecting my children? We shall see.

Later,
BRD

Sunday, June 03, 2007

Mohican 100

Riding your bike for 100 miles doesn't really seem that hard, does it? Partcularly in Ohio which as I overheard someone in the staging area comment "Ohio doesn't have any hills." I was hoping to find that person after the race and see if he still felt that way. So if 100 miles on a bike is not hard, then why are these 100 mile races so hard? In the case of the Mohican 100, it could be the 40+ miles of singletrack, 11,000 feet of climbing, grueling hike-a-bike sections, or miles of rolling gravel road climbs.

I had done this race previously in 2004 and coming into this year felt confident after some decent efforts at Wilderness 101 the last 2 years and the Shenandoah 100 last year. These 100 milers are all about climbing as they all claim in excess of 10,000 feet of elevation gain. Having ridden many of the roads and trails, I knew the climbing in the Mohican 100 did not include any extended 30-40 minute climbs but rather a multitude of shorter 5, 10 and 15 minute climbs. Fortunately, give my body type, 5'7" and 180 pounds, this type of "power" climbing best suits me.

Because of the climbing I choose to go with the Specialized S-Works Carbon Hardtail as it weighs in at 22 lbs (cages, no bottles, no seat bag) which is 2-3 pounds lighter than my Epic. It is not as comfortable as the Epic, but for some reason I feel faster on the climbs, particularly climbing out of the saddle.

Saturday morning at around 7am the 200+ entrants rolled out for either the 100k of 100 mile race. Weather was warm and clear with a chance of an afternoon shower. The first few miles was semi neutral as the lead motorcycle kept the pace down. Once we got to the Dam (which we would later have to hike up) it was game on. I rode hard but kept it just under red line in anticipation of the long day to come. We rode about 7 miles and then we entered at around mile 1 of the 25 mile Mohican SP loop. We rode the loop until Mile Marker 22 then veered off on a horse trail. I rode back and forth with a few people, including Michael Gorman of Orville who was riding a single speed in the 100k race. We rode all the way to the the Aid Station where the 100k riders split with the 100 millers. From that point on I saw only a few riders. I passed a few and one guy passed me. On the Mohican Trail, a long rails/trails, I passed TJ Platt who was obvioulsy in some difficulty as we was going about 15 miles per hour while I was rolling 44x11 at about 20 mph.

Anyway, I felt great the whole day, no cramping and steady energy. Nutrition was all Hammer Products, a secret blend of Perpetuum, Sustained Energy, and Heed. Also sucked down some Hammer Gel in the last 30 miles. I must have taken 3-4 Endurolyte capsules an hour for 8 hours.

After not seeing anyone the last few hours, on the last 15 miles I began catching 100k riders that were finishing up. I kept an eye out for 100 milers but did not see anyone...until the Dam. As I was hiking up the Dam, I saw a guy catching me, so I quickly got to the top, remounted and put the hammer down. I saw him again on the paved climb to the finish. I paced the climb and he was still gaining so I attacked over the top and put in a big effort hoping to get out of sight. I managed to stay just ahead of him and finished 18th overall in 8:51...the first time I have broken 9 hours in one of these 100 milers.

Overall, it was a great day, with great weather, except for the 20 minute thunderstorm. Super fun and challenging course that was well marked, no wrong turns for me or anyone I talked to afterwards. Aid stations were well stocked with plenty of volunteers. I suffered a flat about 10 miles in when I puntured a tubeless tire in a rock garden and had some shifting issues due to a slighty bent derailler, but it was relatively smooth sailing. Kudos to Ryan, Garth and all the volunteers who did a great job. Seems like the race gets better every year. I am pleased with my performance and hoping for some good results later this summer at Wilderness 101 and Shenandoah, just need to drop this pesky last 5 lbs.

Later,
BRD