Planet CX

Reader, Tim, sent us some weights for some new cross bikes and fork: Redline 2009 Conquest Team scandium frame—54cm 1480g The new 12K weave 2009 Redline Conquest Team carbon fork is 450g And the new 2009 Lapierre full carbon FDJ ‘Cross frame—57cm---1247g Thanks, Tim!

First, apologies. I have been shirking my responsibilities as a blogger and have been devoid of content for posts but to be honest, I have not been all that inspired these days. I get in front of the keyboard and...nothing. Thoughts are uninspiring, Food is devoid of taste. I'm just crusty these days I guess.

Losing Darren in May was hard. Shortly thereafter, hearing my dear friend and team mate Joe Il Campione is going to face and man-handle the Type B Non-Hodgkin's out of him was staggering. Finally a week later learning my father is facing a tough battle with the cancer that has made its home in his pancreas and liver was all I could handle.

But I get to handle it. I'm alive and healthy and I'm needed.

What is needed of me is to close my eyes and think and pray and look ahead and live and communicate that life. And within that burning hope, be able to continue to communicate it with truth and conviction to those that will likely want to look into my eyes and try and find it as worlds are crumbling around. I am blessed to support those I love and do so with an intensity that causes a demonstrable pain in me when I focus on this love I need to share. Was born to share. The effort to create and communicate hope must be boundless and it is a deeper energy that any bike race can ever strain you with.

I'm scared for all of the families and individuals facing these roads. What's being faced is anyone's nightmare. And as spoken about before, the bravery witnessed is blinding and somewhat shameful in an odd way. In a way that questions whether if I were faced with like conditions, if I'd be as brave.

So I sit and think on it all.

I never anticipated writing any of this. I desperately want to write about cross and bikes and racing and all the fun that it entails. I'm the Lab with his tail always wagging. The wagging has stopped for now as the gravity of things applies its necessary weight and I am there to support it.

And I'll continue to look ahead.

BKW friend and local firefighter, TK spent the first part of April following the Classics with Peter Easton's tour company Velo Classic Tours and was practically blown off his machine when a surprise guest rider showed up to accompany the group onto the stones of L'Enfer du Nord. Peter had arranged for retired PRO and CSC Director Sportif, Scott Sunderland, to show the group just how hard the cobbles are and to share a few tips on how to survive the Arenberg Forest.

TK was fortunate enough to monopolize an hour of Scott's time. As summer begins to hit its stride, it feels like the right time to step back and once again indulge in the anticipation that preceeds Roubaix. The following discussion took place on the battered roads that lead to Roubaix.

TK: Hey Scott, great to see you, I have been a fan since you were on Fatka!

Scott: Yea those were good times on that squad. (The Arenburg Forest is approaching).

Scott: Alright mate, here comes the toughest section of cobbles, so keep all your weight on the pedals, keep your arse off the saddle and don't white knuckle your handlebars.

TK: Thanks!

Scott: See you at the end of the section!

(At the end of the section...)

TK: I made it!

TK: After that, any special preparations for Roubaix?

Scott: Not to much, we usually ride some sectors of the pave on Friday before PR and adjust our bikes per the weather and the conditions.


TK: Any special equipment this year?

Scott: Just the usual 24-25mm tubular tires, with 32 spoke wheel, depending on the rider.

Tk: I like the tube carrier on your bike!

Scott: Yea, I always have tons of spare CSC water bottles, and when I was on TVM, one of the mechanics took two water bottles and cut the top of the bottles off and put them together to carry tools, tubes, and food.

TK: Very PRO.

Scott: What's that mate?

TK: Cool

Scott: (laughs)
Scott's cell phone rings while riding, it's one of the mechanics looking for Fabian's tubulars, which he cannot find, Scott tells him where they are located.

Scott: Sorry mate, chaos happening before Roubaix

TK: No problem, just trying to keep up with ya!

Scott: (laughs)

TK: You still have your Harley Davidsons?

Scott: I sold the one last year. A persistent Belgian who had no idea who I was kept coming to my house and offering more money for my bike. I finally sold it to him!

TK: You still have the other one?

Scott: Yes, it's up on the blocks right now. I am having a former Alessio-Bianchi mechanic do work on it.

TK: A bicycle mechanic working on a Harley?

Scott: Yes, he went to the Harley Davidson Mechanics school after Alessio, and now works on motorcycles, including mine. I am currently putting some performance modifications to it to rip through the roads of Belgium.

TK: Sounds fun!

Scott: Yea, how about you, what do you do for a living?

TK: I am a fireman.

Scott: That's cool, and you've come for the Queen of the classics?


TK: Yes, this is my favorite race of the year, I have been watching it since 1986. I was 8 years old when I first saw this race!

Scott: Wow, been in any bad fires?

Tk: Nothing lately, most of the time just resetting fire alarms!

Scott: (laughs)
As we were riding, Scott mentions to me that this is where he told Stuey to attack!

TK: And what did he say?

Scott: He wanted to wait and see who was hanging with him, Fabian said he had no legs. Stuey said he felt great, so he attacked.

TK: How about Riis?

Scott: He's a great Boss. When I first started with CSC, we were at PR. Riis wanted to drive the team car for the race and I had to talk on the radio. I asked him if he knew the roads in Belgium, and he said that we would follow the other team cars. I then told him to switch spots as I knew all the back roads in Belgium and the northern part of France. Riis agreed!

TK: Great story! Any other great stories!
At this point, we were passing an old German concrete bunker in the middle of a farm field.

Scott: When I first started riding for a pro team, we had this East German rider who talked like the singer from Rammstein. On this exact spot he saw this bunker and told the team that the bunker used to be his Grandpappy's summer home in France! Scott said that the team almost crashed as some were laughing and others who were in awe!

TK: Rammstein? You like heavy metal?

Scott: I like everything, except rap and country.

TK: What no country?

Scott: I know I have an Aussie accent, but country music has that twang sound!

TK: What do you think about the Astana team?

Scott: I think it's a shame what's going on.

TK: Any stories from the Discovery team? Did you guys work together as was portrayed in the media?

Scott: We work with any team if it's in our interest.

TK: I see, any shady moves out there?

Scott: Yea, especially with the radios. A certain team was on our frequency and giving our riders orders, the team thought the orders were coming from us. We found out and confronted them, they said it was an accident! CSC knew it wasn't.

TK: I think I know who the team was!

Scott: Just smiles! Alright mate, gotta head back to the hotel to get ready for the press presentation. So, good luck, and by the way, Quick Step is coming with all the paparazzi, so don't crash into them, or you will never make it out of Belgium!

TK: Thanks, Scott! And good luck at PR! (Quick Step flies by me on the cobbles!)

Photo Courtesy: Mike McGarry / PhotoSport International, TK

I feel the need to post something since in theory I’ve had tons of free time, but there’s nothing much to report. Resting between bike races is so boring – you feel listless and trapped, and anything you might want to do is a no no because it costs energy that you need to be saving for your next race.

I did put my skimpy swim suit on today and mosey on down to the beautifully inviting and empty pool… just as I was shrugging my shirt off a family with two young children came screaming in ahead of me… so I spent about two minutes in the water getting splashed at before I went into the lukewarm hot tub and floated a bit… still felt quite good. I got back into the pool right before I left, and tolerated the kids’ shenanigans for a minute or two more before crawling out. And of course, as I left, they left too. GRRR!!!!

We went to the road course in the afternoon and watched the last race of the day finish, then did a few laps of the course to practice screaming through the corners on the tandem. We hit a rock on one of them, skipping the rear wheel out, and it sketched me out a little (a lot?). Gunnar and Betsy just “happened” to be on the course at the same time (yeah, like we don’t know when we’re being stalked!) so we chased them down and heckled them (oh, wait, I guess that would make us the stalkers?). It was fun riding tandems in tandem with the coolest bike racin’ couple out of West Virginia… but it’ll be GAME ON tomorrow! Just like the Dread Pirate Roberts, THERE WILL BE NO SURVIVORS! Muah hah hah.

Well, Harry Potter is over on HBO so I guess it’s time for bed. Hopefully the next post will be all about how we took everyone to skool in the tandem road race at 3:35 tomorrow!

I have a training philosophy that is based on nothing in particular but it seems to work for me. The less time I have available to train, the harder I go. It's simple and the area in which I live makes it very easy to do. Gray Tennessee is full of rolling hills that go from mild to "aw shit". Today I did a workout that hurts like the dickens but is very effective and I definitely toed the Duckman party line of training.

I picked a route that is only about 12 miles long and has in addition to the main climbs, a lot of little rolling hills and one loop that is perfect for hill repeats. I suck at climbing and it is something I work on continually. In fact, I don't really train for anything else, just climbing and let everything else take care of itself. I suck that bad at it. Some people that I ride with will vehemently disagree that I suck as a climber and maybe in certain circles, I climb very good but the circle that really matters is the guys I race against and compared to the upper echelon of them, I SUCK! I know part of the problem is my size. At 5'11" and 190# ( I am working on it) , I outweigh a lot of my competition by a good 30 or 40 pounds. So I train in the hills a lot.

We have lots of rolling hills like this that make riding here really good (except for the traffic). The loop I used tonight basically consisted of a lot of this kind of stuff with a few evil surprises along the way.

The first one is in the "loop" I talked about and it goes up to Miller Perry school. It is about 3/4 of a mile long and starts off easy but kicks up at the top.





After that, you have about 1/4 mile of slightly downhill easy spinning and you turn onto Eastern Star Rd and have another 1/2 mile gradual climb that's great for power intervals.

I like to go from telephone pole to telephone pole and go as hard as I can between them and rest between the next ones alternating between the two. That's great for simulating attacks and recovery that is one of my weaknesses in racing.

Next comes more spinning for about 3/4 mile and back to the base of Miller Perry hill. I usually do anywhere from1 to 5 of these depending on how smarmy I feel. Tonight I did two. After the loops, I go on generally back towards home but first I have to scale a real SOB on Ford Creek Rd.
The pictures don't do these justice. What you are looking at is about 200 yds of 7% or so grade and then it kicks up for 75 yds to over 15%. It really hurts.

After that, it's on to Buffalo Ridge rd in roughly 3 miles. Buffalo Ridge takes you to the highest point in the 37615 zip code and the climb starts off with about 200 yds @ 10-12% then backs off to about 7% for another 300yds and then kicks up just a bit right at the top.




In a couple of years, this former farm will be filled with 200K and up houses. Such is the trend where I live. Farms are disappearing in favor of yuppie neighborhoods with SUV driving soccer moms that hate guys on bikes. It used to be a great place to ride now it's not so much.
Oh well.

Anyway, the whole workout takes about an 1 to 1.5 hours to complete depending on how many loops I do and I am never more than 5 miles from home making it super convenient.

We stayed at this really nice place.

And the pool and this thing called the Lazy River - a man-made "river" that you floated in on inner tubes. We spent alot of time there.

A lot of time...........

Checked out the hotties........

Posed for this picture with aforementioned hottie and our son...... I had to start wearing clothes on the second day because I apparently suck at sunscreen application and consequently had a nasty sunburn on my stomach in the shape of Eastern Europe after the first day.

We played in the ocean...............

A lot..................

And the hot tub................

One of us went under water for the first time without holding his nose.........

We built sand castles.......................

And ate fresh fish.........................

Really fresh fish.............

We saw some cool boats like this 120' Cat.......

We rode this boat................

It was cool...........

Lotsa water..........

More water..............

Some dude got sick. It was funny but we were good............

Our motel from the ocean............

More ocean fun.............

It doesn't say anything about pants. It was tempting............................ but I was good.....

It was a welcome break before coming home and spending all that time getting the house ready to sell. Maybe someday I can get back on my bike and ride some.

It’s that time of year already. Folks are laying out their cyclocross training plans, dusting off the ‘cross bike and running shoes, and starting to scrape off old tubular glue. In that spirit, we’re posting a timely Issue 1 piece for you from killer B racer and Kiwi, Damian Handisides.

______________

With six-month-old dirt from the last season still present on my trusty steed and nine months of restlessness trapped deep inside, I venture out on the first “training ride” of the cyclocross season.

My training partner, Chris, arrives promptly at 6:00 and we are off for the first true suffering that I have experienced in a while.

En route to the local trails we have about 10-15 minutes to discuss how we both plan to put in a good full season of racing. I can’t help but wonder if the bike beneath me feels like it has heard this story before. I can’t help getting excited for ‘cross, but my excitement comes so early I’ve often peaked before (more…)

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Researchers led by Dr. Carsten Lundby at the Copehagen Muscle Research Center have just published a paper on testing for EPO via urine sample. Lundby and company administered recombinant EPO to eight male subjects to track the performance-enhancing effects of the drug. While the results of this study are plenty revealing in their own right, in the course of performing this study the researchers decided to send the samples to two laboratories to see if the subjects would test positive using the current test protocol approved by the World Anti-Doping Association (WADA). The results of this study were just published by the Journal of Applied Physiology, a peer-reviewed journal.

The seven-week study began with a two week “boosting” period in which subjects received high doses of EPO, followed by a two week “maintenance” period of reduced EPO administration and ending with a three week “post” period. During this time some 32 urine samples were sent to each lab. In the paper the labs aren’t identified; they are just labeled “A” and “B.” Lab A found all samples from the boosting period positive. However, it only found two of 24 maintenance-phase samples positive.

Much worse was the record of the lab labeled “B” in the study. It didn’t identify a single sample as positive, and only determined only seven of the eight boosting period samples as suspicious; no other samples raised proverbial red flags for the lab. Lab B has since been identified as the Laboratory for Doping Analysis (LDA) in Cologne, Germany. The LDA is a WADA-accredited lab. It’s director, Wilhelm Schanzer said the study’s finding that the lab could not accurately identify recombinant EPO is “outright false.” He went on to say, “It’s not true that you could take EPO and not be detected.”

Schanzer went on to claim that because the samples were for a research project his lab didn’t perform all the tests necessary to verify a positive finding. He said under normal testing procedures his lab would have detected EPO accurately. He makes a great claim, but there is a problem with it: all of the samples were submitted blind. LDA weren’t told anything about the samples that might tip off the lab’s staff.

Perhaps more chillingly: One sample taken during the post period when theoretically no EPO should have been detectable was deemed positive by one of the labs.

BKW spoke to Paul Strauss of the Agency for Cycling Ethics to get some perspective on the issue. He began by saying, “WADA needs to look at this very seriously.”

The first observation he made was to note that the markers used to distinguish EPO depend on its production. He says the test WADA uses is optimized to find Amgen-produced EPO, while EPO produced in Mexico or China, and recombinant EPO can all escape detection if lab technicians only look for Amgen EPO.

Strauss also said that the criteria for a positive result can and do vary from one lab to another.

Ultimately, it may be that in the short term the best way to deliver clean riders to the start of races will come through programs such as Strauss’ Agency for Cycling Ethics, Paul Scott’s Scott Analytics or Danish physician Rasmus Damsgaard’s testing program.

“Longitudinal analysis which uses statistics to compare individuals and populations of athletes is very effective in raising a suspicion of doping in a particular athlete,” Strauss said.

However, even longitudinal testing has its own drawbacks. Strauss continued, “Its weakness is that it is not specific as to the exact drug being used. This leads to the problem of pursuing a sanctionable event for doping on a non-analytical adverse finding.”

It may be a foregone conclusion that catching athletes using performance enhancing drugs will remain an imperfect science. The question that remains: What we are willing to accept as the margin of error—the innocent or the guilty? What is the greater injustice: To allow some cheaters to escape detection and gain wins that shouldn’t rightfully be theirs, or to wrongly convict the occasional athlete who didn’t break the rules?

If we look to legal systems for parallel, this is where the United States and some European countries differ significantly. The American view of justice is that no innocent person should be convicted (in theory, if not in actual practice), while many countries, such as France with its Napoleonic Code, would rather scoop up a few innocents along with all the guilty. This characterization paints with a broad brush, but it seems a helpful way to frame what ought to be a conversation for how drug testing should be considered.

Even if Landis had succeeded in his defense, the result would hardly have been as damning as this study which was funded in part by the Danish anti-doping agency. The message is simple: Use recombinant EPO and finish your boost phase before the Tour starts; we won’t catch you.

Today was my Masters Road Race Championship. It was 9 laps of a 5(?) mile circuit in a nice park in Louisville with lots of twisty turnies and up and downs, and rode more like a crit than a road race. With my bum shoulder and the long day yesterday, I felt awful when I had to wake up at 6 a.m. after not quite enough sleep.

Anyway, we made our way over to the course with plenty of time, and after changing etc etc I tried to spin around on my bike and get a feel for the finishing climb. Hmm, I guess I really did go hard yesterday, because someone had stolen my legs and replaced them with lead-filled prosthetics. The nerve!

My only goals for the race were to stay upright and with the main group. I decided instinct needed to guide me for anything beyond that. It didn’t take long for me to know I wouldn’t be a contenda for the starz and barz… firstly, it pained me enormously to stand while going uphill, and it was an uphill finish. Secondly, because of the aforementioned lead filled legs. Oh, and the whole lack of fitness thing – painfully obvious on day 2 of racing. When you realize things like that, it makes it hard to summon energy to do anything spectacular, like help out fellow Southeasterners in the group, or go on suicide solo attacks, or do anything but ride passively along, reacting to events rather than being proactive.

Eventually the field whittled down to 7 of us, and I thought “hey, I only have to beat two people to get on the podium!” I could do that. Just sit on 5th place and let them lead me into the finish. But, when the finish came, and I stood up and felt the awful stabbing feeling in my arm and shoulder, I just sat back down and let the sprint go rather than deal with any more pain. ProTour rider I am not! (in reference to all those Pros who get up and finish races with broken collarbones and wrists and whatever else…) So, 7th it was, and I was secretly kinda glad because then I didn’t have to wait for the podium ceremony and watch someone else get a striped jersey.
A blissful day of rest tomorrow followed by the Tandem Road Race on Thursday afternoon – that is going to be crazy (and crazy fun)! Looks like we might have quite a few tandems on the course at that time and dang, that is going to be one heck of a sight… not to mention challenge.

Today was the last day of National Championship road races for most countries (except USA).
After I finished my race today in Zolder, Belgium today i quickly rushed back to the van to catch the last 80km of the mens Belgian championships. Since the course was fairly flat, it was expected to come down to a sprint finish. Tom Boonen was the pre-race favorite.


I arrived home to watch the last 30km. Within thirty seconds of turning on the TV I saw one of my cyclo-cross heroes Sven Nys attack the field. I've been so accustomed to seeing him in his orange Rabobank kit that i almost didn't recognize him. Oddly enough i knew it was he based on his riding style. His break didn't stay off the front for long but it was exciting to see him with good form nonetheless.

The sprint was easily the most exciting part of the race. Quick Step had a leadout train started from 10km before the finish. For the most part, powerhouse and outgoing Belgian Champion Stijn Devolder did the work at the front with Tom Boonen on his wheel. Just as it looked like Boonen may take it, his train was engulfed by riders on both sides at the 1km mark. As the other riders passed, Boonen tried to find a hole to get through. But in the process, he moved a little to the right and took out his teammate who was on his wheel. That shakeup combined with another guy to the right of Tommeke swerving across the field cost him the title. He ended up fifth and fist-poundingly disappointed.

The surprise of the race was SunWeb ProJob's cyclo-cross star Sven Vanthourenhout. He placed 2nd.

A couple of other cyclo-cross specialists who had a great day was Lars Boom and Marianne Vos who won the Netherlands Championship.

As i was scouring the results I saw that my friend and former Lotto-Belisol teammate Siobhan Dervan of Fenix won the Irish National Champion jersey, crossing the finish line over two minutes ahead of 2nd place.

As for my day on the bike, it was a snappy race (about 39kph) with lots of twists and turns and mini undulations but i stayed strong throughout. My sprint is still not quite ideal yet so i finished far back at 50th place of 65 finishers out of 95 starters. When i picked up my prize money, the guy handed me the 5 euro prize money in an envelope and said, "you're lucky." I expect he was referring to my placing 50th, the last place to receive prize money. But when i replied "thanks" i was thinking about my luck in recovering from such a bad head injury over the winter to be able to stick with the peloton. My goal for the next race is to infiltrate a successful break so i can sprint for the win against a maximum of ten gals versus the usual 70-100. Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading!*^%&

I am excited to announce that I am VegNews Magazine's new Fitness Columnist. What a perfect way to unite my pro cycling career, writing career, and vegan diet. As a long time fan and subscriber of VegNews, I am honored to be a part of the magazine.

So the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has rendered its decision in the Floyd Landis case. Saying that his charges were “unfounded,” the court delivered a shocking rebuke to the Landis defense.

The 3-0 decision found no merit at all in Landis’ defense which is surprising given that even the American Arbitration Association (AAA) panel uniformly agreed that there were problems with the work performed by the French National Anti-Doping Laboratory at Chatenay-Malabry (LNDD), though ultimately they weren’t considered enough to exonerate him. You may recall that the panel found the LNDD had performed the initial test resulting the non-negative testosterone-epitestosterone result poorly enough to disallow the finding. It also stated that it might be difficult to find athletes guilty in the future should the LNDD continue to perform work in a manner other than specified by the World Anti-Doping Authority (WADA).

Bluntly put, CAS would not have thrown out the initial T:E result. The panel stated in its decision the lab was guilty of nothing more than "minor procedural imperfections." One could be forgiven for thinking of Mad Magazine’s Alfred E. Newman presiding over the proceedings with a “What, me worry?” bubble above his head.

The head of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), Travis Tygart, was quoted saying, “We did a full review of the evidence from the start. Before we brought charges in this case, every day we reviewed the evidence we had and asked the same question, ‘does this point to a doping violation?’ We were comfortable that we had the case when we started.”

This statement simply isn’t supported by the facts of the proceeding. Tygart never questioned the validity of the test results that lead to Landis’ prosecution; rather than mount an inquiry for the truth, Tygart and USADA worked to defend the LNDD.

I’ve read the full transcript of the AAA hearing at Pepperdine Law School in Malibu, California. More than 1000 pages. I don’t see how a reasonable, rational person who doesn’t have agenda can come to a conclusion other than Floyd Landis wasn’t caught doping. That doesn’t necessarily mean he was innocent, but if he was doing something, LNDD didn’t find it. That’s fundamentally the problem with the outcome; the truth got swept aside in the rush to get a conviction.

Landis’ next step (Surely you didn’t think the plus-size gal had had her moment on stage?) would be to challenge the outcome in U.S. federal court. Such a move has been hinted at in the past by Landis’ attorney, Maurice Suh. This move may be in doubt given that the panel took the extraordinary step of assessing Landis $100,000 of USADA’s defense costs as a penalty for “the unprecedented scope and intensity of the technical challenges" the defense raised despite the fact that they had been rejected in the first proceeding.

This is a punishment for style, not substance, and that goes against everything Americans understand the judicial process to be.

If athletes who appeal a conviction are punished for, in essence, appealing the conviction, this outcome will have a very chilling effect on any athlete attempting to defend him or herself against doping charges, whether or not the lab work was performed correctly.


Image courtesy John Pierce, Photosport International

Cara and I are in Louisville, KY this week at masters road nationals. Today was the TT. My individual TT was at about 9am this morning. I was pleased to get 4th in my age group with a time of about 50:54 for the 38KM undulating course. It was raining for most of my ride, but I don't think it slowed me down any. I averaged 343 watts which gives me slightly over 5watts per Kg....about as good as I could have expected today.

At about 1pm Cara and I set off for our tandem TT. We rocked it even though the wind had picked up dramatically. We did 50:43 ! Faster than my individual time ! We have never done that before. The return leg had a serious headwind and the last 5 miles were excruciating.....one of the hardest things i have done in a long time. We had the fastest mixed tandem time by about a minute.

Mission accomplished so far: one podium and a national championship......

Tandem road race is thursday.

a2

Sometimes, despite all the silly little turns the run of your life sends you down, things work out for you in the end. (beginning?)

Yesterday & today were so loooong… Everything we did seemed to take not much time, but it kept adding up and by the end of yesterday we were beat. Not the best pre-BIG race prep!

Up at 5:45 this morning (because Andy never sleeps when he actually has to depend on an alarm), and to the time trial course by 7ish. Andy’s individual event was at 8:58, so when we arrived we got started right away getting him set up for his race. Once he was out on the course, I thought I would be able to nap a minute or two, but it just didn’t happen. It is great to see so many people you know at these events, but you have to be super anti-social to take care of yourself to prepare for your event, and I didn’t really do that.

Andy came in from the rainy, windy 38k time trial in 50 minutes 52 seconds (or somewhere around that), which was good enough for fourth in his age group (podium!). He didn’t seem terribly disappointed (he shouldn't, that is really good!), as I think his attention has turned a bit from the individual events to the tandem. We came back to the car, and he immediately set about resting up for our tandem effort which was to take place 3 hours later.

This year, we signed up for the Masters Mixed Tandem Time Trial, mainly because my fitness just hasn’t been where it should be all season, but also because we hadn’t won that title. I warmed up on the trainer while Andy took the tandem out for one last check-up. I took care of myself nutritionally the way I always do, which has always served me quite well.

Fast forward to our time trial: gusts of wind blowing down tents and the metal barricades, and a cross-tail wind on the way out with a cross-head wind on the return meant that we were really going to have to kill it on the second half of the course. We went out of the gate last, chasing two teams 2 & 4 minutes ahead of us. Immediately I knew something was wrong with me – my HR was suppressed, so I ignored it, but my perceived exertion also seemed to be stoppered at 7-8 out of 10 – not good! I kept hoping to see the team that was immediately ahead of us, to give us a rabbit to chase, but it didn’t happen. I tried so many different techniques to get my “sea legs” so to speak, to no avail. So this killed me mentally… then, as we approached the turnaround, I looked to see where our competition was. It seemed as if we had put about 15 seconds into the tandem in front of us, but I just couldn’t tell and it further aggravated my mental state that we weren’t obviously ahead of them. Grr.

With about 5 miles to go, Andy started the verbal coaching – “I need you, Cara!” which yanked me out of my reverie but didn’t seem to pull anything out of my legs. Out of all the tandem efforts we’ve done together, this one seemed to stymie me. Even at 1k to go my body seemed to be fighting what I was willing it to do. But as we crossed the line, I almost reluctantly turned my head to look at the clock, and saw emblazoned upon it in red digital numbers 1, and 50:42. Which means, we went damn fast, and we won! Go figure. We also, in the first time of our history of tandeming, went faster together than Andy did individually. Andy was totally wasted, drooling all over himself and unable to speak for a little while. I felt nothing other than a deep ache in my legs (and the now constant reminder of my encounter with the pavement two weeks ago). Therefore, I feel like I let him down somehow. But, at least we won! And, to add a little icing to the cake, we had the fastest mixed tandem time of the day! Mmm, perhaps we SHOULD have entered the elite race…

Tomorrow morning I’ll contest the road race. I still can’t stand on my bike, and that course is super twisty turny up and down. If nothing else, I’ll learn it well for the tandem road race on Thursday, but I certainly have no expectations for the individual. The fun thing about that, is that it usually leads me down a good path…

Did my first 100 mile mtb race Sat in Levis WI. The course was pretty challenging with about 5 really tough climbs each lap. The last climb was pretty much a get off and walk the last 40 ft every time. The race was eight twelve and a half mile laps. I rode the whole race with my man Mike Minneti. We finished up 4th and 5th overall in the 100 mile solo division. Our time was 11hrs 32 mins. I’m as sore as I’ve ever been in my life. It was a beautiful day with no mechanicals and 1 minor crash.
cj

We're en route to Louisville, KY at the moment, for potentially my last road racing of the year - the Tandem and Masters National Championships.


(what did I tell you, I never did write my Cowbell Challenge report)


Tomorrow is the Tandem Time Trial. My teammate Christy never did find a bike to use so there will be no Team Inferno/BMW-Bianchi showdown. My shoulder is still royally whacked but I think I'll be okay. Andy tells me I have good legs, my teammate Laura who I rode with yesterday tells me I have good legs, I'll just believe them and leave any self-evaluation out of it.


Things that have happened between now and my last post:


Andy & I rode the tandem every day except Wednesday. He tells me I have good legs because we terrorized the group ride with 35 mile an hour lead-outs on Tuesday night. (man o' man that is fun!)


Friday night we participated in the Town Mountain Hill Climb on the tandem. We just narrowly escaped being girled by Andy's former athlete Lauren Franges, who is now on the US National Team. There wasn't a tandem category so we signed up for the men's A. There were four sorry fools in that category who were tandem'ed. Andy also did an individual effort and took third. It was one of the most fun nights I've had in a long time, because we saw so many people we haven't seen in soooo long. I've taken some photos but can't figure out the bluetooth on my new phone at the current moment, so hopefully i'll figger it out sooner rather than later.

Yesterday Laura and I rode for an easy ride, and it was my first venture on my individual bike since I was knocked off my bike two weeks ago. We spent a good 1 hour forty minutes out there, and though my shoulder was tender and sore, and potholes/rough pavement made me whimper, I was able to shift and brake. Standing up is a no go though. Still, the fact that 1. my bike is fixed (thank you Andykins!) and 2. I was able to ride it, is a big deal. I spent so much time on the back of the tandem the last week with my right arm cradled against my chest it was hard to imagine being able to put weight on it.

So, should be good to go for tomorrow. Now we're within an hour of Louisville and will be pre-riding both the TT and RR course today. Time trial tomorrow, my road race on Tuesday (if I do it - I hear it's pretty twisty turny). Then, a break of sorts till the main even, the Tandem Road Race, on Thursday. Hopefully somewhere in there we'll be able to snag some sort of hardware again.

I think I'll have a decent amount of time to post this week, so maybe I'll get past the <1x a week doldrums I've been stuck in.

Are you a cyclocross race promoter or know one? We have a limited amount of free mags, subscriptions, discounted ads, and primes/prizes for a few ‘cross race promoters that would be psyched to have our support and sponsorship.  If your race or series would be interested in working with us, please contact us at info [ at ] cxmagazine.com.  Include your race name, date(s), expected attendance, the race’s history, and a phone number and email. We will evaluate the interest and contact you in the next few weeks.

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Catherine Walberg’s cover shot below. Guess there is a photo of me in the article too somewhere. But, it’s always fun getting the cover. a2a_linkname="Catherine’s Cover Shot";a2a_linkurl="http://stevetilford.com/2008/06/27/catherines-cover-shot/";

Launching our online gallery has been a great success, and we’ve received a ton of awesome photos. A few will even show up in our print mag.

Here are just a few favorites from the last few weeks of uploads:

Submit your favorites in our beta forum here. You never know, you might even win something! Upload your best 2 or 3 for consideration.

Want to view more? Check them all out here.

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As most readers know, we here at BKW are intrigued by shops that focus on the passionate cyclist. We have noticed a trend that's forming in the bicycle industry. There is a push for bike shops which are smaller in size and narrower in focus. A shop specific to tandem riders, one aimed at the hucking crowd and of course, shops aimed at road cyclists. This specific approach offers cyclists a concentrated dose of their passion, free from both the physical and mental distractions of a traditional bike shop.

Our latest shop visit lands BKW in the Pacific Northwest with a visit to Cascade Bicycle Studio (CBS), a one man, one-on-one bicycle studio that operates by "appointment only". Given the nature of the studio and the individualistic approach, we'd fall short if we didn't mention its proprietor and founder, long-time bike industry guy, cyclocross fanatic, and Hup United founder, Zac Daab.

Zac's background is very similar to most bike industry folks: he began working at a bike shop at a very early age, sweeping the floors, building bikes for inventory, and picking up lunch for the mechanics and sales team. It was during these years that Zac became hooked on cycling and it became his full-time obsession and, in one form or another, his vocation for the next 12 years. Prior to his launch of CBS, Zac worked at Seven Cycles as Senior Fit Expert, recommending more than 7,000 frame specifications for a variety of clients, including olympians, professional athletes, weekend warriors, and cycling enthusiasts. Zac's broad industry experience equips him to offer an expert opinion as it relates to bicycle fitting, custom bicycle design and geometry, and material selection based on the rider's intended use of the bike and previous riding experience. Zac's education at Seven and his years of retail experience provided him with a perfect segue to the "studio" approach to bicycle retail.

CBS is located in Seattle's Fremont neighborhood. The studio space is set just off the main street, resting literally below the hustle of North 36th Street. Stepping through the doorway and into the Studio was a sensory experience. The warm glow of the wood floors paired with the beautiful, neatly aligned machines created a sensation that was part awakening and part flash bulb memory. Much in the same way that small shop in Redding, California did when I visited it after more than 22 years: the smell and feel of the space marked a first. For CBS, it was the first time I entered a "studio" bike shop, and for the latter shop, the first time I walked into an honest-to-goodness California bike shop. The first impressions of CBS remains etched into my mind's eye.

My initial thoughts were "where is all the stuff?" The streamlined nature of the shop and simple lack of the superfluous was, at first, disorienting. I mean, where are the boxes? the bright colors? the racks of clothes? the kids bikes? the tire inventories? the big service area? Where is all the stuff? Ahhh..., but this is the essence of CBS...streamlined and clutter-free. With these components missing, CBS is free to focus on the aspects that a passionate cyclist is seeking. Great advice, empowerment and top-level service.

The atmosphere at the studio is relaxed, professional, and rich in bicycle culture. Clients of all abilities and goals are welcome at the studio and a strong emphasis is placed on uncovering client needs and goals, rather than quizzing client’s knowledge, skill set, and accolades. At CBS, one does not need to “earn” the right to be a part of the studio culture. - CBS website

To some, CBS's product and service offerings may seem too narrow, too single-minded, but for others who seek their dream bike or relief from pain on the bicycle, CBS provides the right blend of offerings and non-exclusivity. A comparison could be drawn between cycling and motorsports. If you own an older model BMW, a car dedicated for use at the track, and you are seeking advice and mechanical expertise to make your car faster on track days, the dealer is probably the last place you would seek info. The focus of the dealer is different than a small shop who specializes in track cars (maybe even your generation BMW). Add a mechanic whose former experience was building BMW's race engines and now you have a shop whose focus aligns with your very specific needs and has the background to offer a level of support that few others do.

When you break down the Studio approach into its simplest form, it becomes apparent why it appeals to cyclists seeking top-level service and advice on the purchase of their next machine. Today's bikes are more technical and more expensive than ever before. CBS distills all components of a traditional shop leaving the services and products that are of interest and benefit to the serious cyclist. CBS aims not to sell a cyclist their first bike, but rather to sell them their second or third bike or fourth.

CBS's offerings are not limited to solely bikes. While visiting, Zac was wrapping up the installation of two SRMs for different customers. Having spent a season riding the SRM, I see the benefit of purchasing such a complex instrument from a retailer who has the time to explain the functions of the training tool and to address the enivitable flood of questions I will have in the future.

The cycling population at large is slowly adjusting to the new kid on the block, and for those who have a "studio" in their community, the acceptance of this approach to bicycle retail has already begun. In the same way the "corporate store" has rewritten the retail landscape, the studio approach is next. Bicycle retail is undergoing another transition in an effort to keep up with its customers and their needs.

If you find yourself in the Pacific Northwest, schedule a visit with Zac and drop by CBS. You won't be disappointed.

CBS is hosting an open house this weekend (June 27th - June 28th) to welcome representatives from Seven Cycles. Three days of Seven demo rides will be held. Please email or call CBS if you would like to attend the open house or to schedule a Seven Cycles test ride.

Cascade Bicycle Studio
473 North 36th Street #C
Seattle, WA 98103
206.547.4900

This guy clearly got a taste of one bombing the road roughly 500ft from my house...

Home today. I think I'll ride that bear riddled road myself. I need to tune into Channel Zero. Something to remove it. Beer doesn't even taste the same right now.

Time to release.

I wrote this in 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. The piece never found a home but the attacks and the piece came to mind recently as I watched a preview of M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening. As this is the season for vacations, I thought it might be an appropriate time to see the light.

It's no secret that I believe time off from work spent away from home isn't a vacation unless you have a bike with you. I'm realizing that I just don't believe it's a good idea to travel without a bike. By day I write for a trade publication that covers the electronic security industry. I spend my time interviewing the people you pay to make your home and your business safe. As I write this it is the 24th of September, 2001 and most of America is trying to come to grips with the aftermath of what are now being termed the Sept. 11th attacks. Less than two weeks prior to the attacks I was in New York city for a trade show at the Jacob Javits center. Using one of those great little passes you get from the USCF for travel on United, I loaded up my bike carrier and headed for the city that never sleeps (and trust me, it doesn't).

I had but two specific goals for my bike while in NYC. I wanted to go for a ride with writer J.P. Partland, and I wanted to ride in Central Park, the latter being a quintessentially New York-roadie activity in my imagination.

My Times Square hotel gave me close proximity to the park and I rose early to go spin around the loop. Years of VeloNews reading gave me an appreciation of the course's few features, so when I rounded the loop's north end and hit the road's one real hill—a hill insignificant to racers at 20 mph, but known for breaking big men when hit at 30 miles per hour—I felt like I was walking from the desert into Mecca.

For those of you who remember the name Jackson Lynch, former PR honch for Polo Sports and Trek, and before that an editor for Mountain Biker and Bicycle Guide, he was the one guy on a road bike I saw that morning. You might think that mention to be an aside, but it is part of my point: The bicycle has the ability to make the big world seem small.

After my ride the next day with J.P., I got brave. I decided to take my bike downtown and play in traffic. I figured if I was going to go on record and claim that the best way to see the world was from the seat of a bicycle, I better back it up by riding in a less idyllic setting. I headed straight down Broadway for the financial center. Once, a few years back, a girlfriend completely enamored of America's financial center had driven me through the district late at night. Even at two in the morning it seemed to pulse with an unseen ingenuity.

I rode several loops around the World Trade Center. At the time, the event seemed significant only on a personal level: I was in the presence of one of the world's most significant structures. I knew most of my friends would think me crazy. Maybe not now. On the same ride I made sure to pass the Empire State and Chrysler Buildings. I marveled at each of those landmarks, ever in awe of the New York commerce machine.

Sitting here, those buildings, and the people who worked in them, are present tense for me. The smells of the diesel, the deli I passed, the way my eyes teared at the exhaust, the angle I craned my neck to peer through the shadows cast on everyone below, and the reverberations of the trucks, buses, cars and honking taxis off the surrounding concrete captivated me with its raw energy. I'd leap off the line, dodge the traffic, only to pause for the light and a look at the changing skyline.

I went out for my 9th (our 17th) lap at about 8:05. The cutoff was 9:00 so I had time to get back and get Chris out for one more giving us 18. It was fully dark now and I rode my ass off. I wanted to turn another 35 minute lap but the traffic wouldn't let me. I passed 12 people on my last lap and at the top of the steepest climb on the course, a girl tells me the race has been called due to a storm that was in the area. Shit! I thought. I eased up a little in the last 3/4 of a mile of the course and still made it back in time for Chris to go out but it didn't matter. We were done and we ended up 4th, roughly a half lap down from 2nd.

Ah it is what it is. Me and Chris had never teamed up before and we rode together like we had been teamates for years. It was a blast to do a race and ride each lap as fast as I could and actually pass people for a change (I only got passed once, by Nat Ross). The upsides of team racing. Some of the downsides are the nervousness of waiting and the constantly calculating time. What time did Chris go out? What time do I need to go again? If I make a mistake how much harder do we have to ride to make the time up? It is all about time. Each of us had on average about 25 minutes to rest between laps before we had to get ready to go again. Hardly enough time to really rest but it wasn't so much that you got cold and stiff. I don't think we could have rode any faster or done anything much different.

It was a blast.

Thanks to Chris, Nancy for the food and cold towels and the driving and the pics and the everything else, Nathan (he was so cute grabbing my bottle from my bike and refilling it between laps), and all my sponsors: Vassago, WTB, White Bros, Ergon, Crank Bros, Carbo Rocket, and Under Armour for the help. Y'all rock.

Also to Taylor and all the volunteers for putting on a great race and to whoever maintains the trails at Fisher Farms, It's a really nice place.

The start was fast and dusty. Some dude ate it just after this pic was taken. It looked painful.

The New York Times had an article today about EPO drug testing. It sounds like a joke. I have avoided addressing drug usage on my website, but this is crazy. So, all these guys that are caught using EPO have an out. Of course, that is if they haven’t already confused. [...]

I witnessed things this week that have forever changed me. I have met true angels, I've seen our medical system and all its awkward and litigious underpinnings....underpinnings that present themselves first, before the patient. But ultimately I have been in the presence of bravery that will stay with me and if I am 1/2 the man of my father, I will try to pass on a semblance of that bravery to my sons.

Keep the faith my father. We are walking with you and you have yet again inspired us.

Yikes!

Donn/Challenge got back to me about their “file tread” tyre availability:

“The Grifo XS (file tread) will be arriving mid to late July. This tread design will be available in the following configurations:

* Grifo 32 XS Tubular Black/Brown (black tread/brown sidewall)
* Grifo 34 XS Tubular Black/Brown
* Grifo 32 XS Tubular White/Black
* Grifo 32 XS Open Black/Brown
* Grifo 32 XS Open White/Black”

The open tread is the clincher version!

I’ll have them in stock when they are available!

White file tread clinchers!

–

I’ve also got a small handful of Dura Ace 46 tooth cyclocross chainrings available!

$120 each shipped in the conti USA!

So dope! And rare!

The dolphin, the goat and the moose. And the gerbil…

All of that. For what?

Glicker.

Cara.

Kenji.

You become your power animal.

—

On cyclocross tyres:

After some wrangling I am still technically a Dugast dealer.

Thanks to those who deserve thanks and… I’ve got a boatload of Dugast Rhino’s in stock!

More coming too.

Donn from Challenge writes:

“Hi Molly!

We should be able to release the new “mud” tire, Fango, tread design soon. We will have the tire ready to go for the start of the season.

I have Grifo Open (clinchers) in stock.”

…Fango eh?

this is surreal. ken jennings looks just like the floyder.
i wonder if that's where he got all that wisdom about testosterone patches on your nads before a 52-bottle stage win?

Made it to Italy and back unscathed in 72 hours. I even had time to fit a MTB race in there somewhere... Arrived friday evening and then preroad saturday. The course was basically a succession of steep climbs followed by non technical descents that you could get your self into trouble on by being to brave. I, luckily, was not to brave and didnt even crash once. Had a back row call up and started moving up well, into the 40's by the 3r