Finally!

Yesterday I went on my last long training ride for 2012.  Finally!  I started my ride much later in the day than I usually do for long rides.  I didn't get out until 11:24am, so I was riding in the hottest part of the day.  Usually I only need a water bottle an hour to stay hydrated and carry two water bottles on me.  I went through the first two bottles I had in about an hour and half before I had to refill.  Once I refilled I figured I was just thirsty at the beginning of my ride and would have another two hours before needing to refill again.  That was a mistake!  I went through those two water bottles in about an hour and fifteen minutes.  Out of water with no water fountains nor gas stations anywhere close.  One good thing was I didn't run out until the long descent so at least I wasn't climbing without water.  It seemed like forever until I finally saw a potential water supply.  At the base of Red Rocks park is a wedding chapel.  I looked around for a water fountain, but there wasn't one.  However, there was a facet with a hose attached on the side of the building.  I took a quick look around for cameras and witnesses before shamelessly detaching the hose, filling up my water bottles, and reattaching the hose before making a quick get away.  I went through that pair of water bottles in about an hour, but luckily I knew of a water fountain close by.  It was a hot, painful ride, but I still felt it was a good strong effort so it was an success.  No more late in the day long rides for me though!

'Tis The Season

Ran to the local today booze shop today and saw something that made me very excited.  Samuel Adams Octoberfest is out!  I know, it's sad.  Colorado has more microbrews then you could think of, and yet I'm a sucker for this mass produced beer each year.  Anyone, back to the point.  Octoberfest equals cyclocross season is near!  Only four more weeks of two to five hour training sessions to prepare for my last endurance race, and then it's one to one and half hour training sessions for cyclocross season until January.  I'm super stoked this year for cross since for the first time every In Colorado there is going to be an ultra cross, the Boulder Ultra Cross.  Fifty miles containing mountain roads, singletrack, run-ups, barriers, cowbells, beer, and everything else that makes cross so much fun!  Heck, I might actually do well at this cross event.  That will be a change from me coming in among the mid pack feeling like my lungs are going to explode.  It's the first CX race of the year for me.  Perfect way to start the season.  I love my off-season!

Cyclocross is near!

Race Report: PV Cycle Derby

Welp, it happened again.  I over-trained and just like in the Ridgeline Rampage, my legs were sore before I even started the race.  Maybe it was the ride I did during my off week after the Breck 68 with a teammate, or the low calorie diet I was on to frantically lose as much weight as I could for this race, or maybe I just went too hard on the interval ride I did the previous Monday before the race, or perhaps I just needed more recovery time after the Breck 68.  Most likely it was a combination of all of them.  One way or another, my legs were overly sore on the Tuesday prior to the race and then I should have known to cut some training rides.  What can I say, I'm not the only A-type athlete who's battled with pushing too hard in training.  I remember reading an article by Georgia Gould about her lack of recovery causing her to be 'flat' during her Cyclocross season; and hence created #heckleme.  At least I'm in good company.  The race was 3 twenty-two mile laps.  It was a really windy day with a lot of open field fire roads so pace lining (yep, we all look like a bunch of roadies) was important to do well.  Unfortunately, I fell behind the group late in the first lap and spent the rest of first lap and some the second lap trying to catch up.  By mid lap during the second lap my legs were screaming.  Every climb was so painful I was actually biting my lip and clenching my teeth.  I thought the Breck 68 was going to be the most painful race of the year,but man was I wrong.  My body was saying, "Just give up", but my mind insisted, "Quitting isn't in your vocab, pansy!".   So I kept on grinding along.  I have never been so happy to cross a finish line.  I sat for at least ten minutes breathing hard before I even remotely came back to life.  Luckily only seven people showed up and I somehow beat two racers for a fifth place finish.  Good thing I did finish because it gave me just enough points to win third in the Rocky Mountain Endurance Race Series!  It's bittersweet though because I know I had the potential to podium that race, and it would also probably bumped me up to second in the series.  Still have a lot to learn about endurance racing, but for a guy with a training plan on a PDF, no coach to tell me when to back off, and the ambition to keep grinding along towards my goals no matter what obstacle, I can't complain too much.  I still have one more endurance race before cyclocross season starts.  Going to take a solid week off from biking, and take it easy the following week before hitting it hard again... but hopefully not too hard.

3rd in Rocky Mountain Endurance Race Series