www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Friday, December 26, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Sunday, December 21, 2008
FMB/Fango
Some cool news from Francois at FMB...
INFORMATION
Nouveaux ;
Les boyaux cyclo-cross FMB sont désormais disponsibles avec la nouvelle chape Fango. Les succés remportés par ce nouveau produit conçu pout exceller dans les conditions boueuses offre une résistance au roulement faible.
New ; The FMB cyclo-cross tubulars are now available with the new tread FANGO. The success of this new product designed to excel in muddy conditions provides a low rolling resistance.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Tis la saison
Fun times at the Beaver cookie exchange. Cheers to all my homies in
the K.C.
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
the K.C.
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Monday, December 08, 2008
material concerns
It was a day of multiple material concerns (and too much running) at Reston yesterday. I got a good start, but perhaps a paid a karmic price for pimping Andy Gorski pretty good in one of the early turns. I'm all for racing and fighting for position, but I probably didn't need to close the door on him 1 minute into the race when there was plenty of room. I did apologize and open up space in the line for him afterwards.
A couple of minutes later I remounted at the top of the runup and my bike made a nasty sound as one of the brake arms got wedged under the rim. The wheel wouldn't even turn. I messed around with it for a couple of minutes but couldn't get it to budge, so I ran.
Just like that I went from being close to the front, on Gunnar's wheel, and feeling pretty good to all alone way off the back. I would like to think I had a top 10 in my legs, but that's racing. I was a shit show, but I still had fun.
I kept alive my record of never DNF'ing a 'cross race by coming in DFL, but at least I finished. Since I wasn't exactly racing I had time to reflect on the season while I rode the track and waited to get lapped. Yes, this photo was taken during the race. I had just flatted on the last lap and looking at the prospect of running the same long section that I had already run on the first lap.
It really was a very good season for me and I'm already thinking about next year. The transition to Elite Masters went well. Now I need to figure out what I need to do to step it up and find a way into the top 10 at MAC events and consistently top 5 in the MABRA.
I'm relatively new to bike racing (first CX race 2003) so I feel like I'm still improving every year. I'm also becoming more aware of my weaknesses. That's where I'll focus when I started putting together the game plan for 2009.
286 days until Charm City 'Cross (Sunday 9/20/09)
Cheers!
A couple of minutes later I remounted at the top of the runup and my bike made a nasty sound as one of the brake arms got wedged under the rim. The wheel wouldn't even turn. I messed around with it for a couple of minutes but couldn't get it to budge, so I ran.
Just like that I went from being close to the front, on Gunnar's wheel, and feeling pretty good to all alone way off the back. I would like to think I had a top 10 in my legs, but that's racing. I was a shit show, but I still had fun.
I kept alive my record of never DNF'ing a 'cross race by coming in DFL, but at least I finished. Since I wasn't exactly racing I had time to reflect on the season while I rode the track and waited to get lapped. Yes, this photo was taken during the race. I had just flatted on the last lap and looking at the prospect of running the same long section that I had already run on the first lap.
It really was a very good season for me and I'm already thinking about next year. The transition to Elite Masters went well. Now I need to figure out what I need to do to step it up and find a way into the top 10 at MAC events and consistently top 5 in the MABRA.
I'm relatively new to bike racing (first CX race 2003) so I feel like I'm still improving every year. I'm also becoming more aware of my weaknesses. That's where I'll focus when I started putting together the game plan for 2009.
286 days until Charm City 'Cross (Sunday 9/20/09)
Cheers!
Saturday, December 06, 2008
Tree is up
And it's snowing. Full belly & I'm ready for Reston...hoping for more
snow on the ground!
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
snow on the ground!
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Friday, December 05, 2008
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
MABRA Cross Championships
MABRAcross Championships (and State Championships)
Taneytown, MD
Cold, Wet, Muddy day
HEAVY, slippery track
The story of the day was teamwork. Everyone pulled through and threw down for their teammates. It feels really good to be part of such a special and supportive group.
Our main goal for the day was to move Auer into the 35+ Series lead. Marc Gwadz held a 6 point lead going into the race. Therefore, we needed Auer to finish at least a few spots ahead of Gwadz. We felt confident that Auer would have a good race, but we also needed to place some guys ahead of Gwadz...no easy task.
As for the race...
Fatmarc made a strong opening statement by coming from back in the grid to grab the hole shot. I slipped through a couple of tight spots in the opening series of slippery up and down turns to move up to third wheel, right behind Gunnar. Marc continued to rip it up front riding the mud with just the right mixture of power and finesse.
Halfway through the first lap Auer made his way to the front and then off the front with Gunnar. Marc had done such a good job of driving the pace from the start that there was now a slight gap behind us. He and I rode together for a while with Gwadz just a few seconds back. We pushed it hard knowing that we needed to maintain our positions to give Kris a chance at the series title.
Eventually the effort started to take its toll on me and I made some mistakes (mental: unclipping my low-side foot on a slippery off-camber and physical: eating shit trying to square off a turn too soon on another slippery off-camber). As I watched fatMarc continue to ride strongly in front of me I saw that the chasers (Fuentes and Root, with Gwadz just a few seconds behind them) begin to close the gap.
I had been hoping to get enough of a gap that I could cruise it in at a solid, but not puke-enducing pace. It was now clear that I would have to resort to puke-enducing. I'll just say that I put everything that I had into the last lap and a half. I was fading and I looked and felt like shit, but I wasn't going to give up.
I had some friends and teammates cheering around the course and by the tone of their voices and their choice of words on that last lap I could tell that it (I) wasn't looking too good. Dave Fuentes finally caught up to me just past the pit with maybe a minute left to go. Luckily it was tight from there to the run-up and through to the ensuing slippery downhill.
I figured that I could keep him behind me until we got to the road, giving me time to recover enough to have a shot in the sprint. Happily it didn't come down to that. Just after the run-up I heard a noise just behind me. It sounded like someone stacking it. I took a quick peak behind me and sure enough Dave had clipped the telephone pole on the edge of the course.
I put my head down and negotiated the next tricky off-camber cleanly to get onto the road with enough of a gap to make a sprint unnecessary. After crossing the line the cold and the effort hit me. I felt like shit and was shivering.
After a celebratory muddy hug with Auer and Vettori I stumbled off to find a way to get dry and warm. Luckily one of my teammates told me to go see Tom McDaniel. Tom had his usual pimp compound set up with hot shower and warm changing area. Tom saved the day! Huge thank you to Tom McDaniel for the post-race support to combat hypothermia!
So I got cleaned up and changed with Kris, Gunnar, and Jan. I was even forced to see Gunnar's naked ass, though I understand that many before have had that honor.
In the end we did it. Auer 1st, Gunnar 2nd, Vettori 3rd, Me 4th. Jan is more of a fan of a fast, dry track but he still gutted it out for 11th and I think a Delaware Gold Medal. Kris locked up the 35+ Series. Kris, Marc, and I swept the 35-39 Gold, Silver, and Bronze for MABRA and Maryland States. It was a good day for the Elite Masters team and a great day for the team all around. We won more than a few races and medals. Good stuff.
Postscript: I had been fighting a cold since Tacchino and a day slopping around in the cold rain and mud at Taneytown put me over the edge. Instead of a cold it's a chest infection...outta work Monday & Tuesday, cold sweat at night, hacking up brown sludge from my chest. Nice. I'm starting to feel a little better today, but training may be out for the week. I'll have to rally for the last race of the season Sunday in Reston and squeeze something out of the fitness I've built up thus far.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Old home place
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Earned it
Tough day at the Tacchino Cross.
Ran over my team director 1 minute into the race. Rode around in a
daze for a lap. Then the encouragement of a lot of friends around the
circuit flipped a switch for me and I started racing. Thank you
everyone. I ended up having good legs and worked my way through a
bunch of groups to get somewhere around 10th, give or take a bit. I
had hoped for more prior to the start, but given the circumstances I'm
very happy with my ride. Hats off to my teammates Kris, fatMarc, & Jan
who also battled back from some bad luck. Thank you to my bro's in the
pit and friends around the course for keeping me going. And thank you
to Squadra Coppi for providing a high quality race, albeit on a
punishing track. ;-) Gonna be hurting on Monday.
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Ran over my team director 1 minute into the race. Rode around in a
daze for a lap. Then the encouragement of a lot of friends around the
circuit flipped a switch for me and I started racing. Thank you
everyone. I ended up having good legs and worked my way through a
bunch of groups to get somewhere around 10th, give or take a bit. I
had hoped for more prior to the start, but given the circumstances I'm
very happy with my ride. Hats off to my teammates Kris, fatMarc, & Jan
who also battled back from some bad luck. Thank you to my bro's in the
pit and friends around the course for keeping me going. And thank you
to Squadra Coppi for providing a high quality race, albeit on a
punishing track. ;-) Gonna be hurting on Monday.
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Movie time
Barnyard
Chill weekend
Recharging the batteries
Ready for the home stretch
Only 3 more weekends of racing
Then it's beer + mountain bike season!
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Chill weekend
Recharging the batteries
Ready for the home stretch
Only 3 more weekends of racing
Then it's beer + mountain bike season!
www.bassadventures.blogspot.com
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Saturday, November 08, 2008
Thursday, November 06, 2008
KBS Rockburn Cross in the Baltimore Sun
Janene Holzberg from The Baltimore Sun wrote a nice story about the Rockburn 'Cross race. It's in the Howard County section of today's (11/6/08) paper. Nice photos too, including the one of Thor and I posted above. You can check out the story & photos here. The word is getting out. Cyclocross is taking off.
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Rockburn CX - tally
So, in the end Gunnar took it wire-to-wire. Aside from that we had a really nice race taking 2nd, 3rd, 8th, and 9th. That was fun. Big thank you to Marc for letting me finish ahead of him for the extra MABRA Series point. ;-)
I wonder if we can wear the Karate Kid skinsuits at Beacon?
I wonder if we can wear the Karate Kid skinsuits at Beacon?
Rockburn - Jan!
Jan also rode a super race, nursing ribs hurt in a pre-ride crash. He and Marc were all over the chase group and then Jan launched a furious last lap attack up the climb and held it to finish 3rd.
Rockburn - Sandy turn
We rode this sandy turn a lot during our Wednesday CX practices learning how to rail it. We also worked on the next fast downhill left-sweeper. That practice really helped me during the race, especially on the last lap when I used that course knowledge to get a gap on Sean and Roger.
It was really cool to race at the park where we do our weekly practices. Nothing like a little home-field advantage.
It was really cool to race at the park where we do our weekly practices. Nothing like a little home-field advantage.
Rockburn - cruise director
Marc marked and controlled the group while Kris went after Gunnar. Tactics in cross are subtle, but can have a big impact on the outcome. Marc rode a very smart race and did a lot of little things that helped our team. That was really cool to be a part of.
Rockburn - Shake and bake
Auer and Birner get free of the group and attempt to bridge. Nice ride by both guys! Way to throw down.
Rockburn - hot pursuit
Gunnar is just off the front and the chase group is still big at this point. The sand got the tiller treatment this year.
Rockburn hole shot
Got the hole shot with the teammates Auer, Jan, and fatmarc (just out of the frame) in good position.
I think Gunnar is licking his chops about the leadout I am providing. ;-)
I think Gunnar is licking his chops about the leadout I am providing. ;-)
Monday, November 03, 2008
Saturday, November 01, 2008
Pimp
Karate Kid inspired Halloween costumes for Fair Hill 'Cross. From the
sick mind of our fearless leader Kris Auer.
Cyclo-cross Cyclocross C3-Sollay.com
sick mind of our fearless leader Kris Auer.
Cyclo-cross Cyclocross C3-Sollay.com
Friday, October 31, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Last wednesday CX practice
And a nice present from the crew. Thank you! It's been a blast this season.
DCCX
flubbed the start
but got back up front quickly
oh boy, i'm on Gunnar's wheel...good place to be
oh crap, i think i just broke my saddle
it's probing my colon
pitting twice during lap one is never good
from way back in the field i worked my way forward
Judd and I worked together well to reel back a few guys on the last lap
and I jumped at the right time to win that group for 17th
not what i was hoping for
but I'm actually very happy with how I raced after the first lap
I learned a lot about moving forward, passing guys, and moving from group to group....it was like bike racing school
I love cross
but got back up front quickly
oh boy, i'm on Gunnar's wheel...good place to be
oh crap, i think i just broke my saddle
it's probing my colon
pitting twice during lap one is never good
from way back in the field i worked my way forward
Judd and I worked together well to reel back a few guys on the last lap
and I jumped at the right time to win that group for 17th
not what i was hoping for
but I'm actually very happy with how I raced after the first lap
I learned a lot about moving forward, passing guys, and moving from group to group....it was like bike racing school
I love cross
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Good stuff
Excellent suggestion from Mr. Mayhew (superman). Gonna need this for race fuel this weekend at Fair Hill & Rockburn (my backyard).
I'm an uncle again & again. Welcome to the family Will & Matt!
I'm an uncle again & again. Welcome to the family Will & Matt!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Monk mode
The Map Room - Chicago
Striving for monk mode while in Chicago for work. It ain't easy. ;-)
Ran over by the Lake yesterday afternoon. The Marathon is tomorrow so I had a lot of people ask me if I was running on Sunday. Ummm, no.
St. Bernardus Abt 12 in the proper glassware at The Map Room last night. That qualifies for monk mode, right? Great bar. Many Belgians and other quality brews on tap. Good music and scene. Seeing a lot of bikes parked out front was a good sign. Thanks for the beta, YDT!
Ran again this morning and I'm getting a massage this afternoon.
Trying to get the work done for the upcoming races. It's a short season.
Missing the family and bummed to miss the backyard beer cross at Ben-fest tonight!
Well, I better start paying attention to this presentation. ;-)
Striving for monk mode while in Chicago for work. It ain't easy. ;-)
Ran over by the Lake yesterday afternoon. The Marathon is tomorrow so I had a lot of people ask me if I was running on Sunday. Ummm, no.
St. Bernardus Abt 12 in the proper glassware at The Map Room last night. That qualifies for monk mode, right? Great bar. Many Belgians and other quality brews on tap. Good music and scene. Seeing a lot of bikes parked out front was a good sign. Thanks for the beta, YDT!
Ran again this morning and I'm getting a massage this afternoon.
Trying to get the work done for the upcoming races. It's a short season.
Missing the family and bummed to miss the backyard beer cross at Ben-fest tonight!
Well, I better start paying attention to this presentation. ;-)
Friday, October 10, 2008
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Monday, October 06, 2008
Hagerstown Cross
Breast Cancer Awareness Cross in Hagerstown
I like this race. Yeah, it's bumpy, but the venue is cool and the event has a good vibe and a great cause.
My hands and back are still sore. I ran the widest tires I own at a low pressure (not quite bottoming out on the harshest bumps). I guess I should have run them at bottoming out pressure.
My teammates Bad Andy and Norm saved the day for me by getting my bike shifting again before my race. I am a novice mechanic, proficient enough to do a lot of things right, but also proficient enough to really mess some shit up too.
Working the pit for the 10am B-Masters race is fun. A lot of my buddies are in that one so I get to heckle and help out as needed. Not surprisingly there were a lot of flats by people running clinchers and one guy who had Stan's up some clinchers.
Despite an against training program trip to NYC with requisite drinks and no race prep ride on Friday I had a decent race. The start was pretty easy and I was 2nd wheel to Bernie Shiao heading into the first turn. Auer came by soon after and put in the accelerations to form the lead group. Gunnar Shogren also bridged up there before long. It was very cool to race with Gunnar, even if it was only for a few laps. He's super strong, super smooth, and a nice guy taboot.
I dug in and hung on the back of the lead group for a few laps. Well, it was more like I would dangle off the back and fight back on. A couple of times Kris slowed at the front to assess the situation which allowed me to get back in. If my legs were really good I would have gone to the front then and there, but they were just ok so I sat on the back and tried to delay the inevitable.
Of course, sitting on the back just means you'll just be the first one spit out the back and that's what happened. On the bright side, I had held on long enough that we had created some space back to the chasers. So, I rode around for some laps, content with my spot in the top ten.
Eventually, I caught up to Mike Birner who was going backwards after riding really strongly up front for most of the race. I got by him and moved up pretty close to Marc Gwadz. I had been content with my spot so it was hard to get the fire back and close the gap. Mentally I just didn't have it. So, I dangled behind Anthony Van Lierop, happy to stay a few seconds back. In hindsight, I'm kicking myself for 'settling' and not 'racing' all the way to the finish.
However, I did have to start riding hard the last two laps as Karl Connolly and Barry Holman were dueling it out behind me and starting to close the gap. The fear of getting caught got me going again. They were moving. Good racing.
Considering how I felt Thursday and Friday I'm damn happy with 7th place. The guys that beat me are super strong and a lot of the guys that I beat are as well. Gunnar took the win. Auer was 2nd after mechanical issues sent him to the pit multiple times. It was great to see him out there riding strongly after last weekend's scary car accident. He's the guy that makes it happen for our team!
Moving up to the Elite Masters has been fun and quite a challenge. Racing against these guys is making me a stronger and smarter bike racer. I've still got a lot of work to do. I'm just happy that I've got such a great group of guys to race against and learn from.
No racing for me the next two weekends due to travel so I need to put in some hard training this week and pack the running shoes for the weekend.
Thursday, October 02, 2008
Rolling
Hopping a train to the big city for meetings and dinner. Should make for less than stellar legs this weekend. Oh well.
Shifting is f-ed on the Blue. Hopefully someone can help me fix it Saturday morning before the race. I'm ok with simple derailleur adjustments but this is above my skill level. Help!
Shifting is f-ed on the Blue. Hopefully someone can help me fix it Saturday morning before the race. I'm ok with simple derailleur adjustments but this is above my skill level. Help!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Thank you Karcher
Good day for the power washer!
Thor loved the lil' Belgians race. Best part of the day for me. 8-)
Thor loved the lil' Belgians race. Best part of the day for me. 8-)
Blue turns to Brown
Fun times in the mud today at Ed Sander 'Cross. Worked the pit for the B Masters and after washing their bikes decided to not pre-ride the course. Lotta slop and grass clogging up the bikes.
The Blue did a great job of shedding mud and grass. Running the big mud pit helped. Glad a wore the old shoes too. They are a mess!
The Rhinos were perfect foe the conditions. Only a few slippery turns but they hooked up nicely and rolled the soft stuff and slop very smoothly. The tread + width (34) + running them kinda soft was perfect.
Good race for me as I got a decent start in the top 10, then hung on, before moving up a few spots with 2 to go. Couldn't catch the fast old guys but I'm happy with 5th. Chased Gwadz but couldn't quite catch him.
More later.
The Blue did a great job of shedding mud and grass. Running the big mud pit helped. Glad a wore the old shoes too. They are a mess!
The Rhinos were perfect foe the conditions. Only a few slippery turns but they hooked up nicely and rolled the soft stuff and slop very smoothly. The tread + width (34) + running them kinda soft was perfect.
Good race for me as I got a decent start in the top 10, then hung on, before moving up a few spots with 2 to go. Couldn't catch the fast old guys but I'm happy with 5th. Chased Gwadz but couldn't quite catch him.
More later.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Charm City 'Cross 2008
The race went well this year.
A few hiccups (like not enough beer) that will be fixed next year.
Great teamwork to make it happen.
Like always, the day was a blur but what I saw looked good.
Like always, I felt like crap warming up and raced pretty well.
Big thanks to Chris Newell for the encouragement and the pull's.
We were working together to move up and both feeding off the cheers for "Chris".
It was pretty funny and was a welcome distraction from the suffering.
My chain had partially slipped off when I shouldered my bike, but I was able to reach back, turn the pedals, and get it back on. That was pretty cool.
Sleep is overrated
Burritos = good fuel
Thor loved the lil' Belgians race. In fact, we had a hard time getting him off the course. 8-)
Burritos = good fuel
Thor loved the lil' Belgians race. In fact, we had a hard time getting him off the course. 8-)
Friday, September 19, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Monday, September 08, 2008
Happy
From Gavin's 1st birthday last week.
Is that a Pope hat?
He's starting to walk. Time flies.
Finally recovered from the 100 & ensuing escalation of the head cold.
Time to start ramping up the CX specific work.
And getting some stubborn tires off so that I can glue up some new
Rhino's. Maybe I will have more than one race where I need them. The
FMB SSC Sprint 'file tread' tires got the job done last season.
Is that a Pope hat?
He's starting to walk. Time flies.
Finally recovered from the 100 & ensuing escalation of the head cold.
Time to start ramping up the CX specific work.
And getting some stubborn tires off so that I can glue up some new
Rhino's. Maybe I will have more than one race where I need them. The
FMB SSC Sprint 'file tread' tires got the job done last season.
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