it blows

wind gusts. my least favorite. i've got other reasons to not ride today. **as the wind picks up to around 30mph** ...sitting... **small dust devil in the parking lot** ...I need to get some things at home depot.. i'll need the truck for that..

The Dawn of the Twilight Series 2010

you know....the last time I heard that sound of a bike crash up close and personal was maybe 1991. Imagine all the normal screams and yells and swears and snaps and clicks and scrapes but all of these things had a common backdrop wall of sound much like if say, 10-15 people tossed 10-15 shopping carts in the air to land tumbling down the road at 30 mph. It's not like that anymore. The sound of panic and chaos is now enhanced by a more pleasing POPPING and GRINDING SCRAPING and SNAPPING.

Here's the short version of the Baddland's Twilight Series Chapman Lake Short Course Road Race #1 (for those of you who don't give a crap about details and have clothes to iron or dishes to wash.)
My Teammates Pat, Mark and Rog all had pressing issues(dishes/ironing) that kept them from being able to make the race although I know they all wanted to be there. I would miss them but do them and myself proud. After 19 years off and 4 races worth of being dropped from the pack, I raced aggressively and came out with a 6th place (still unofficial) finish. Sweet.

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I don't have a heart rate monitor. My heart just tells me, "no." in a very stern and simple manner so until I get it back I have to try and race with that in mind and manipulate whatever minds I can. It IS mostly a mind game anyway.

I'd been looking forward to this race for a while. I had a great week of rides and pushed myself pretty well. I HATE getting dropped...although these days I still smile through it.

I'd guess that our "B" pack numbered 25 to 30. Our lead vehicle missed a turn on our neutral roll out before the race started. ...We all knew it...Shawn/Sean from EMDE and I figured well, It's 4/20 so maybe he's baked or something...the pack then followed the lead vehicle to the donut shop(no)...but around a few Cheney residential blocks and we caught the turn we missed...about a minute after the "C" pack rolled by. ..we smelled eventual trouble. **POPPING and GRINDING SCRAPING and SNAPPING**

After a few minutes and a lead car tailgate party the race/ride was on. I say ride because well, i think it was pretty slow for quite some time which may have helped me...It was me who actually made the first "attack". No, it wasn't epic or anything, just wanted to say "hello, I'm here." I am VERY aware that I'm not even close to being able to make any breakaway for too long after less that 2 months on the bike..but it's in my nature so I did it and thought of Pat and 2010's first solo breakaway in the Muddy Huetter. We rolled around the course and up a little hill where I again made an ever so slight "move" to cause a ruckus. The mood was light and a few Baddlands fellows also made a few moves. Shawn/Sean did a few hammers at the front and we were about halfway done with the race. I only saw the back half of our pack once which was nice. I tried to never touch my breaks and that's why. I sat right on the front for a second and felt a lull and, like many people, tried to conjure(if only for 15 seconds) Fabian....I remained in the saddle and pretty much punched it and managed to string out the first 5-15 guys and cause another ruckus...when i knew my Fabian moment was through i slowed and told the guy behind me...."that's what I WOULD have done." It was right after that that I made my visit to the back of the pack. I breathed, calmed my heart down, told my legs to shut up and found myself easing up the shoulder back to the front just in time for a little hill, a little tree shelter and WTF...I went off the front AGAIN, this time I held up 3 fingers making my claim as the races most consistently aggressive/annoying or stupid rider.
...down into Chapman Lake and Shawn/Sean from EMDE ran over a rattle snake and from now on I will call him "Snake" which is easier to type than Shawn/Sean anyway...The day was not without questionable/dangerous moves by a few guys who coincedently happened to be on the same team. I took note of their numbers as I am sure others did and will watch them very closely. I will approach their team managers/coaches/leaders about them if I deem that a necessity.

We made the final turn home with maybe 8 miles to go...my computer was somehow mis-calibrated so I was clueless. Eric from Baddlands gave me our mileage. Thanks buddy! At this time the new faces started to appear in the front. Erika and Shannon, the two women racers in the field seemed to be pretty consistently up in the the front which I thought was pretty dope and things started to get live. There was a team with black jerseys and black and brown argyle pattern on the back that were being really aggressive and exciting (not dangerous) I admired them. There were a lot of attacks in the last 5 miles and I was almost to the point of "just hold on"..I stood up to stretch my back several times and right when i'd do that someone would attack and i'd be right on top of it. nice. With all the attacks and with about 2 miles left we finaly caught the "C" pack who had to be neutralized while we passed all lumped together and not able to attack therefor, all of a sudden....1K. I'll never trade my racing experience for anything. It put me 2 or 3 guys back just this side of the centerline. I KNEW shit was going to go down. The pack didn't even really realize that the sign said 200m....I only had just started sprinting when it happened. It's always in slow-mo...could have been a foot, a wheel a bar or an ass but something came within 2/3 inches of my right leg. Trying to out run a storm here.....go...POPPING and GRINDING SCRAPING and SNAPPING YELLING SWEARING..sprinting sprinting around Eric who's right foot popped out, watching the finish line lady leave the finish and run towards the huge crash....did she leave the camera on? ...cuz there were 7-6-5 guys in front of me...I got 6th. I dodged the crash because I raced the whole race from the same spot. The front.
There were broken bikes. Broken bones. A neck brace and arm splint for one of the black/argyle jersey guys.. :( Curt Dupuis and "Snake" and another guy only heard the crash...everyone else was affected by it speed wise.
I hope the fellows make a quick recovery.
Pat, Mark and Rog...you were there on my bike.

at :06 you can see me in old Arrivee green

Thankyou Baddlands. again.

next

LET'S GO! Maybe...

Ooof. Is it just me, or is there a slight problem with spring training? Here I find myself striving through the winter months, training in horrible conditions (both indoor and outdoor), spending my spring busting apart holding onto wheels of stronger riders (hi Roger), getting a few initial races under my belt, only to lull my training motivation just when things actually start to get interesting!!!

Here we are, races actually starting to appear, and I find myself eyeing that last 'adult beverage' in the fridge with the longing of Gollum and the Golden Precious. My barbecue is calling me from the deck so longingly that I'm begging my family to tie me to a makeshift mast in the vein of The Odyssey. Don't even get me started on the lure of gin and tonics as the weather gets warmer...

This is the time when one should be starting into speedwork. This is when I should be attempting to conquer that devil bitch known as a "hill" longer than one I can 'power' over. This is when, for God's sake, I should be thinking about LOSING weight. Carbon fiber can only take so much...

At least I now have teammates. The jersey order is in (I know, everyone was waiting on me to figure out if I needed the XL, or the "OMG XXL"), and the greatest revival since Creed getting back together (wait, they suck) is oficially underway. With RT's great efforts to not only kick some serious butt, but also personally take on what was considered 'exciting' behind the scenes action, to Cris's ability to show that retro cycling isn't retro, and Mark's power over the peloton, things are potentially going to get fun. Oh, and I might just get my butt out there for more training.

I promise, by the way, to start bringing the film.

By the way, don't tell the other guys I've been slacking...

P

Roger's TT Frozen Flatland's 2010 1st Place*

Hello! I'm Here. Are You?

This was a great weekend. All this celebration of rising from the dead. All this talk of hope mixed in with all the candy coated lures of what is great. Rabbits whizzing by and off into the distance and you're left there, alone or with a small group chasing the colorful eggs...eggs of red and black, yellow and black, orange and green and white and blue, green and black and some random mixed in colors...yes, Easter, as far as this blog goes, has just symbolically turned into a bike race and said colors are team colors.

You can add Arrivee Cycling Club to the short list of things who arose from the dead this weekend.

None of us four guys expected to do any sort of official "winning" in the road races that we planned to drag our old asses through but we did do exactly what came naturally and I for one am proud of where we came from and where we are spinning along toward.

Ya see, although there have been many seriously commendable accomplishments among this group we've always carried on the gifts that our goofy ass predecessors handed down to us. This has never been the Tour De France. This has never been so serious as to not be able to befriend fellow riders dawning different color shells. There has never been so serious a race that we've left ourselves coiled up in an anonymous corner of the pack watching and waiting for something to happen. You can't possibly file the personality off of us. Even when our race fitness is FAR from where it used to be and FAR from where it will be soon, we cannot sit in and lurk.

During the 25 mile Easter egg hunt that was the Frozen Flatland's second road race, each one of us superimposed our own unique stamp. For Mark and I we knew our time was limited 'in the pack' as we are "a little" :) behind in fitness. I can't help but smile ear to ear when I see Mark move straight to the front and then off the front like it's his race knowing full well that he's also pretty much twisting every little over serious racer's brain..yeah sure he was reeled in but he said what maybe 90% of yesterdays racers never said, "Hello, I'm here. Are you?"



The Welton Brothers pose with 3/4ths of the Arrivee Posse.

Ego blow

I did it, and I truly feel bad.

For many years, there has been a point of pride/nostalgia in my wallet. No, it's not what you're thinking. It's my cycling license.

Ever since the 'good ol' days', my great USCF/USA Cycling category was that of a respectable 2 on the road, and 3 on the track. Until now. I've downgraded myself to a 4. This is kind of like convincing yourself that you really aren't cool enough to sit at the cool kids' table, or even worse, that you're old.

But then again, maybe it is a blessing in disguise. Maybe I'll actually enjoy this experience we call bike racing. Maybe I'll even finish (eventually) in the front end of the pack! Maybe I'll be like Michael Anthony Hall's character in The Breakfast Club! You know, the King of the Dips***s!!!

Then again, maybe I'll just block the wind for the other guys and look like a dork with a helmet cam.

Good plan. 4 it is.

P

where to start...

ok. so.

As the elder of this rag tag bunch, I feel like I should say something philosophical or even wax poetic about challenges, clarity that comes with age, or even the changes I see in the sport. Well, I'm not going to do that. not my style. I'm more of the fart jokes guy of the bunch. The jackass sprinter (or at least once was a sprinter). I'm here to laugh, suffer, burn off the useless calories, and document as much as possible to show that bike racers aren't either uptight people with too much disposable income, or Eurotrash coffee shop poseurs. The missus says it best, I'm different when I'm riding, and even more when riding with friends. Guess that about covers it. Oh, and the cruel irony that Cris rode with Roger on the flats, and I on the climb from hell...

Full Circle Addendum

My pics and vids from the birthday ride.

Time, Timing and Fate

The greatest of relationships, teams, classes, administrations, ideas.....usually have a few things in common. Timing is one of those things. Words need not be spoken, you just trust that when needed you will all arrive together and when you're apart you're still most likely together. In the rare instance of a separation of thought the goal is not to focus on pride or ego, it is to focus on the goal of unity....and then collective pride and ego maybe?

...the feeling of a team, in matching color, confidently riding together comes from the inside as proven in two separate decades with a decades length in between. We've ridden and thought as a team the whole time, apart. Why would we ever let go of any glory days when they won't let go of us?

It's seems strange how this group of fellows has suddenly snapped back together. But it's not. I had online race registration pages up on my computer the very night that Roger mentioned that we should do a race. ...just like, when without thinking, Mark and I moved to the exact point in the pack that we needed to be for Roger to win the sprint and win the Washington Trust Cycling Classic in 1989...or 90? ...see, memory may fade but apparently timing doesn't cause here we are together again and we didn't even plan it. .....or did we?

Full Circle on Cris' Birthday

Yesterday (Wednesday) was a day that will live on in history as one great ride. With Frozen Flatlands just a couple days away, most people are resting and getting ready for what looks to be a very tough couple of days. But when you love riding your bike, you ride it. And when it's sunny out, you really make sure to ride it. And when it's sunny out, and you have some great friends to ride with, you cancel everything and ride.

Originally Mark (who just got a road bike yesterday), Pat, Cris, and myself were going to head out and ride the 50 mile road course that we would be racing on Saturday...after a 20k TT in the morning. So that 50 miles will actually feel a tad longer. When push came to shove, Pat could not give up another 4 hours away from home after his epic ride up Mt Spokane the day prior, and Mark could not give up over 1/2 a day of work. So it was Cris and myself. It was Cris' birthday too, so I already knew it would be a fun day. I had also sent Greg Welton a message, our coach when we were all racing since I knew he was riding a bit too, but did not hear from him. As I was about 10 minutes away from getting ready to ride, Greg calls me on the phone and apologizes for not getting the message earlier and would have to miss the ride. But since it was Cris' birthday, and he was running about 30 minutes late, it all worked out and we had 3 people heading out to Cheney.

Not to bore you with the details of what heart rate zone I was in, or what I ate, or how any of us felt on any of the climbs, the great part of the ride was all the conversation. I think my first internal conversation was when we first started out on the course and Greg started a rant of a pace. I thought, "Holy sh#@! There is not way I am going to be able to maintain this pace for 50 miles!" But we eventually slowed down a bit...or the wind slowed us down. It was so much fun reminiscing about what great times we have all had, what is happening in cycling today, what a friggin' idiot Eric Calmond was/is, and what we have all been up to. You see, the three of us have not all been together riding since 1990. And back then, things were amazing in the cycling world. And of course for Cris and I, we were mere 18 year olds with not a worry around us. Just chasing races and girls. But yesterday, when we were all riding, it was just like it was before. Pure enjoyment out on the road and turning the pedals.

Both Cris and I shot some video and pics on the ride. Hopefully he will load his up too, but here is a little clip I had.