Ed Sander Cross Elite Masters Video

video from the Ed Sander Memorial 'Cross - Elite Masters Race



hard hard race
heavy heavy course
going all out just to keep moving forward

mud!
peanut butter mud
ankle deep in spots
i'm a mudder but conditions like that still scare me

solid start turned to suffering and survival
timely bike change (thank you teammates in the pit!)
led to a second wind and a hard charge the last two laps
to move up from 8th to 5th

4th was right there
but on the start line I had told Randy there'd be no sprinting today
and I'm a man of my word
plus, I was deep deep deep in the cave at that point ;-)

5th place, last spot on the podium
so that makes 3 podiums the last three years at Ed Sander Cross
and I haven't been around to stand on any of them
but it's all good

balance means getting home to hang with the family
and having balance is good
real good

heart warming

'Cross is getting big (Charm City Cross > 600 racers) but the 'cross vibe is still alive!

I <3 the 'cross community. Go Avy!

Photo courtesy of the talented Kevin Dillard.

Shenandoah Mountain 100

Pre-game
I got properly fueled with two big plates of spaghetti, veggies, &
meatballs (plus a couple of 60 minute IPAs), sorted out the drop bags,
and had all of my gear laid out in the tent so that I wouldn't be
anxiously searching around for gloves 5 minutes before the start like
some people. ;-) Solid night's sleep and some superhero quality
french press to get the 'ol motor started in the am.

The start to CP1
A big horde of racers lined up and squeezed down the skinny, dusty
road out of camp for a "controlled" lead out...slightly sketchy, but
not too bad.
Out onto the road the pace picked up. It was easy to draft and get
pulled along at a pretty good clip. Once we made the left and started
climbing the pace was pretty steady. I tried to move up a bit to
avoid as much traffic as I could without having to expend too much
effort. I could see the front and the big hitters were taking it at a
controlled pace while one guy had attacked and was dangling just off
the front. When the climb turned onto the double track I think the
pace hotted up because things got strung out and the leaders motored
away. I stayed in the vicinity of the top 100 or so and climbed at a
pretty good yet sustainable pace.

I had intended to sag climb and drift back but I held my place pretty
well and felt good the whole way up. The climb went by pretty quickly
and I hit the cookie trail around some good riders. Only one guy
dabbed the initial rock section and I was able to ride the nearly the
entire trail. I got off and walked one steep bit to save the legs but
I rode much more than in the past. That was really due to less of a
traffic jam from being closer to the front.

CP1 to CP2
Out on Tillman Rd I made sure to eat a rice cake, a potato, a few
endurolytes, and a big swig of hammer gel. Before long I got together
with a small group that seemed especially motivated to drill this road
section on the way up to Lynn Trail. I didn't have a speedo on the
bike but I'm guessing we were hauling along close to 20mph on the
gradual climb. I was prepared to take a pull but two guys just stayed
on the front going really fast. I was very happy to get a relatively
easy ride up the road.

When we hit the singletrack climb we had a pretty large group of 10+
riders. Everyone was strong but that was too big of a group to make
for a smooth ascent up the steep, narrow, switchbacky, granny gear
climb. We spun our little gears wheel to wheel up and up but
eventually someone bobbled and had to dismount. That put us all of
the bike and into hike mode. I had a really tough time hiking. My
calves and lower back were not happy with the steep walk up the
mountain. I'd ride when I could but then have to get back off and
walk. It was just a bit too crowded and that is a super tough climb.
I was very happy when the climb was done but I was also anxious to get
the downhill over with.

Wolfe Ridge is a nice trail but it is pretty rocky and super fast.
You pretty much have to go a bit faster than you are comfortable or
pull over and let better descenders (usually with full suspension
rigs) get by. 5 minutes into the downhill my right palm developed a
nice blister. 5 minutes later that blister ripped open. The rest of
the descent my hand (and my triceps) were screaming with all of the
rocks. I also had plenty of two wheel drift through turns as my
nearly treadless Raven tires flailed around avoiding sidewall tearing
rocks and begging for traction in the loose stuff.

Back on Tillman Rd I was very happy to be off of the ridge. Next up
was about 8 miles of rolling forest service road to CP2. I ate more
rice cake and potato goodness and tried to drink what was left in the
bottle and hydration bladder. Even though I was feeling pretty good I
knew that eating and drinking now was the key to how I would feel
hours later.

CP2 to CP3
I made a quick stop at CP2 for fluids and a quarter of a PBJ. As I
rolled out I was very happy to see Tim Covington (from the Wed Night
Happy Hour Crew) right there. We rode together to the start of the
climb of Hankey Mountain. About a third of the way up the pitch
kicked up slightly and I shifted down one gear to save the legs. Tim
kept on trucking, turning over the gear effortlessly. I watched him
ride into the distance passing everyone in sight. I felt I was
climbing really well but to see him fly up the mountain like that was
super impressive. That climb is very long and the second half is the
toughest part. It just keeps grinding and kicking up.

The Dowell's Draft descent is pretty sick. It is a fast, flowy, off-
camber benchcut roller coaster. It is super fun but it also demands
that you pay very close attention as the trail is narrow and you are
going very fast. I always enjoy this one but I can never really relax
on it. I rolled into CP3 (mile 45) at the bottom feeling good about
my ride so far. I grabbed dry gloves and more food from my drop bag
and topped off my fluids.

CP3 to CP4
The first part of this section is the only true road part of the
course. You cruise along Rt. 250 for about 5 miles. At first it's
downhill and then it's slightly uphill and into the wind coming from
the West. This makes riding in a group very helpful. I linked up
with two guys, one geared and one singlespeed. The singlespeeder
couldn't really contribute so me and the other guy let him sit on. We
were all happy to set a decent pace but not so hard that we were
hurting going into the next big climb. I made sure to eat and drink
plenty on this section.

We made the right from the road onto singletrack at Mountain House and
cleaned the dry, super rocky creek bed. Usually it has enough water
in it that I end up walking but not on this day. Up the giant, rocky
Hans Rey steps and it was time to get back on the bike and turn over a
tiny gear. I've come to like this climb. For the most part it is not
too steep but it has enough rocky technical sections to make it
challenging. Plus, it is a narrow bench cut trail that falls off to
your right. You have to really focus on your line to keep moving.

Halfway up the climb I caught up to a small group, including two guys
I know (Les Leach and Theo Procopos). We rode the rest of the climb
at a nice steady, yet comfortable tempo. Over the top I let those
guys lead it out as this is a ripping fun downhill and knowing my
conservative descending I did not want to hold those guys up. Sure
enough they were out of sight after just a few turns. I was able to
relax a bit more and enjoy this downhill though I did come into a
couple of curves too hot and got to enjoy some rear wheel drift as I
corrected my line.

Rolling into CP4 I was happy to see Tim Covington again. I got more
fluids, including about 10 ounces of warm Coca-Cola for a bit of sugar
and caffeine to enjoy on the next long stretch of dirt/gravel road.

CP4 to CP5
I rolled out of there after only a few minutes. I was still on a good
pace and didn't want to squander time away hanging around the aid
station letting my legs get stiff. The next 18 miles or so are nearly
all uphill. At first it's just a gradual false flat but eventually it
starts to kick up more and more until you make a right onto a dirt
forest service road for some steep climbing up the mountain with a
bunch of switchbacks. This whole section is known as "Soul Crusher".
It is aptly named. ;-)

I started this section with the same geared rider that I had ridden
with after CP3. We traded pulls evenly and eventually caught up to
Danielle Musto (4th place female and an endurance mtb rock star). She
joined our little paceline and took strong pulls. A while later we
caught up to a group containing Les and Theo so our group swelled to
about 8. Not long after Tim Covington and a few other guys caught up
to us so we had a large group rotating through a paceline. I had
thought Tim was leaving CP4 right behind me so I was glad that he made
back up. It was nice to have so many friendly faces in the group to
share the workload and pass the time.

My legs were feeling kind of worked from the 60+ miles of riding so
far and the pulls in the paceline so I was starting to wonder when I
would crack. Luckily with the size of the group I was able to eat a
bunch of food (more rice cakes & potatoes) and I drank all of the
Coke...even warm and flat it tasted SOOOO good! Before long I started
to feel strong again. I noticed that a lot of people in the group
were getting tired and skipping pulls so I stayed near the front
figuring the group would split at some point. After one pull I pulled
over to let the next rider through but nobody was there. I looked
back and saw that I had opened a decent gap without really trying
to.

Since I was feeling good I just kept on going at a decent tempo but
making sure I was saving something for when the climb turned steep.
At the turnoff I gave myself a little pep talk to prepare for the
tough climbing ahead. Instead of looking too far up the road and
getting demoralized by the length and steepness of the slope I just
kept my head down and focused on turning the pedals and enjoying the
tunes in my right ear. My good legs continued and I passed several
more riders on the first pitch of the climb.

About halfway up I pulled over to take a leak...the only one of the
race. I don't think I was dehydrated but it seems strange to drink
that much fluid and only pee one time in a 100 mile mountain bike
race. I was happy to see Tim catch up and pull over for the same
purpose. We both felt even better after that and continued to work
our way up the climb. Shortly before the climb crested for the first
time I ended up on my own and cruised down the 'false' descent passing
a couple more guys that had passed me earlier in the day. When the
climb kicked back up I caught up to Pat Miller and rode with him into
CP5. Catching up to him confirmed that I was having a good day and
this gave me more confidence for the last 25 miles. I felt good about
reaching my goal of under 10 hours. I just needed to keep it steady
and avoid cramps or crashes.

CP5 to CP6
iPaul totally took care of me at CP5. He is the man! Fresh drinks,
endurolytes, pizza, coke and I was out of there in under 5 minutes.
After CP5 (mile 75) you hit a ripping doubletrack/forest service road
downhill with some air launching waterbars. Fun stuff! A couple of
times I caught more air than I wanted and got a little nervous mid-
air. Fortunately I kept it upright and the next thing I knew I was
staring at the first of the steep up's through the meadows.

In the past I have suffered in the section up to Little Bald Knob both
from the steepness and the mental anquish of the multiple false
summits. This time I decided to climb in my small chainring at a
relatively easy effort. I also didn't fall into the cycle of hoping
that ~this~ meadow was the top. I just kept turning over the pedals
and enjoying the spectacular scenery of the high meadows. The
beautiful colors of the wild flowers and the cooling breezes kept me
smiling even as I was grinding away at the steep pitches of the climb.

When I finally reach the true summit I was surprised as I had told
myself that there was more climbing yet to come. That was a nice
change. The ensuing downhill of Chestnut Ridge is a beast. It is
steep and full of rocky gnar gnar up top and then becomes a high speed
white knuckler with some blind turns toward the middle. Then you hit
a couple of morale busting uphill sections that seemed easier than
normal...maybe because I was expecting them. The bottom part of the
trail is just a super fast curvy smile inducing speedway. The
adrenaline levels were topped off by the time I hit the bottom. That
left me feeling really good to tackle the last 12 miles.

CP6 to the Finish
At the bottom of the downhill I checked my fluid levels and decided
that I had enough to get me to the finish. I rode straight through
CP6 and got myself motivated for the last climb of the day, Hankey
redux, the first part of the climb we had done earlier. Heading to
the start of the climb I caught back up to Pat Miller and we started
the climb together talking about how little suffering was left. I
continued up the climb at my own pace, legs tired but still turning
over the pedals pretty well. The first time from the start of the
climb to the turn-off had taken me 20 minutes. I told myself that it
would take 30 minutes this time. I was looking at the watch thinking
I still had 9 minutes to climb when the turn-off appeared. This was
another morale boost.

From there it was just a bit more climbing followed by some fast
descending and some big ring hammering. All of a sudden I saw some
people cheering and a sign pointing right. Just like that I was
descending through the campground to the finish. I crossed the line,
rang the gong, and asked what my time was. 9 hours, 9 minutes. I was
very stoked! Last year I felt strong and did 10 hours 14 minutes.
This year I knew my fitness was better but nearly all of my rides were
in the 1.5 to 3 hour range. I had no idea how I would do over the
course of 100 miles. I think that nutrition (eating/drinking early
and often) and course knowledge helped me put up a personal best.
Fast conditions, tunes from the iPod, and the lightweight tire gamble
helped too. The improved fitness is a direct result of consistently
hitting the Tues/Thurs TMR all year long. It definitely helps a ton
to add plenty of fun and camaraderie to the ~training~. Thank you
everyone!

Huge thanks to Chris Scott, Shenandoah Mountain Touring, and the army of volunteers that make the Shenandoah Mountain 100 such an incredible experience. Also, thank you to Dogfish Head Beer for the kegs of 60 Minute IPA!

Cheers!

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.

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.

Rockburn CX - tally

2008 Rockburn Cx 925
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

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?

Rockburn - Jan!

2008 Rockburn Cx 900
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

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

2008 Rockburn Cx 842
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

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.

Rockburn - cruise director

2008 Rockburn Cx 767
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

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

2008 Rockburn Cx 765
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

Auer and Birner get free of the group and attempt to bridge. Nice ride by both guys! Way to throw down.

Rockburn - hot pursuit

2008 Rockburn Cx 699
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

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

2008 Rockburn Cx 650
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

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. ;-)

Rockburn CX Lil Belgians

2008 Rockburn 2 042
Originally uploaded by jandmscott100

Doing a lap with Thor. Too much fun.

Pimp

Pimp
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom

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

Last wednesday CX practice

Last wednesday CX practice
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom

And a nice present from the crew. Thank you! It's been a blast this season.

DCCX

P1010570
Originally uploaded by homey at the velodromey

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

Monk mode

Monk mode
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom

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. ;-)

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.

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-)

Teammate Kevin Dillard has a bunch of cool photos at www.demoncats.com

041808_12541.jpg

041808_12541.jpg
Originally uploaded by cbnystrom

Might need some