Invitational Cyclocross- December 4, 2010-Detroit, MI

My teammate Jeffro (in the Cossack hat above) created and hosted a CX race this past Saturday. This excerpt was taken from his Blog, CX Czar:

I've decided to host my own Cyclocross.

For the last several years I've competed in or witnessed some of the most unique cyclocross events in North America and would like to incorporate the best of these events into our own quazi-competitive event in the motor city.
My race team, The RACING GREYHOUNDS!, has an internal racing series that is made up of numerous public and private events designed to encourage cross discipline competition and team comradere (as well as internal trash talk and squabbling). These events include Time trials, Criteriums, mountain bike races, Triathlons, duathlons, as well as night mountain bike races, Iceman and of course cyclocross races like the Mad Anthony. As CX Team Captain, it is my responsibility to create a unique season ending cyclocross event that will follow those guidelines as well as punish all of those not familiar with the delicate art of Cyclocross (I'm looking at you tri-team) While planning this event, it was obvious that the best part of racing cyclocross is the fan/ racer interaction. It was obvious that we needed to have two races: The first for Greyhounds Team Points race and the Second to celebrate all of our friends and competitors that made this past year great.

OK, since I chose to help out I found myself at Dorais Park at 0730 to help lay out the course. It is a small, forgotten park near some run down neighborhoods. The best feature is the soap box derby hill at the top of the park and the concrete velodrome at the base. Perfect.


The "progressive ascending barriers" complete with an intersection:


The Tequilla Shot Shortcut cut out a portion of the course. The winner of both races did a shot on EVERY lap. That amounts to 13 shots!


The Invitational race brought out several teams:






It took 3 hours to set up the course. It took about 30 minutes to break it down. Afterwards we all headed over to Kuhnhenn's Brewing Company for eats & drink. What a great time! A huge thank you to all those who came out to play. Not too shabby for a FREE event. This could be the start of something big.

Iron Horse Bicycle Classic - May 28-30 2011

I'm geeked! I just signed up for the 40th running of the IHBC! I signed up for the KOM events which includes the 47 mile Road Race from Durango to Silverton followed by the Mountain Bike XC on Sunday. I was registered for this event a couple of years ago (when the road race was canceled due to snow) and basically bagged the trip to Durango. The last time the Iron Horse included a XC race was in 2006. I raced this as a Sport rider and I sucked thoroughly. It started off bad when I missed the start and had to hammer up Chapman Ski Hill from a cold start. For me the best part was rubbing elbows at the finish venue while checking out the results (and picking up their winnings) with luminaries such as Travis Brown, Ned Overend and Shonny Vanlandingham. Just another day at the office for these locals. Chaulk it up to a new experience. Hopefully, I will suck less. On the events tab of the website it indicates the Criterium and MTB race will be going on simultaneously with laps taking place through downtown Durango. Should be interesting. It's a tad pricey but I have wanted to do this for several years. Check out the details. Registration is still open.

Website & Registration:

Good time

Brazilian or American? Who cares.

I associate this song with the Amstel Light beer commercial.
I rode a bicycle along the Amstel River this summer.
I drank Amstel Light while in Amsterdam and it tasted great!
Life is a journey. Enjoy the good times wherever you may find them.

Michigan Masters racer suspended for EPO use

I've been debating this topic since the story broke last week. I don't want to dog pile on him but it's been difficult to ignore. This story and subsequent outcome has fueled some fiery rhetoric being slung across the Blog-a-sphere. IMO, this whole thing sucks.
Here are the details:

VeloNews article:
* By Charles Pelkey
* Updated: Nov 24th 2010 12:27 PM EST

Neal Schubel, a 45-year-old masters racer from Saginaw, Michigan, has accepted a two-year suspension from competition after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency found that he had purchased and used synthetic erythropoietin (EPO).

According to a USADA announcement issued Wednesday, Schubel’s suspension began on November 18, 2010, the day he accepted the sanction, but his results have been negated all the way back to August of 2006. Schubel readily admitted the violation when confronted with evidence in the agency’s possession.

Under UCI and USADA rules, Schubel is also required to return any prizes earned over that four-year period, but a review of his results posted at USA Cycling’s website suggests that he needn’t worry about that aspect of the Doping Code.

RESULTS:

Neal Schubel's response from Facebook:

I wanted to post this to all my cycling friends and colleagues. I have been sanctioned for two years by the cycling federation for buying and using erythropoietin in August 2006. I had always wondered what it would feel like to cycle on it and exactly how much it could increase a person's performance, so I bought some online in early August of that year and took a dose each week for a month. My hematacrit before I took it was 42.3 and when I had it tested the lst week in September it had gone up to 49.2, and by mid-October it had dropped back to 44.5 I had trained with a powertap that year and my maxmimum wattage output had been 332 watts for 32 minutes at the Willow Time Trial. I did a 25 minute time trial test the 2nd week in September and my wattage was 361 watts. It was almost a 9% increase on end of season fatigued legs. When you consider that the difference between lst and last place in the Tour is only 3%, it's easy to understand why epo can skew the whole playing field and why it can't be in the sport. It made it easy to understand how whole pro careers can be made by riding 10-20 percent over their natural abilities. I did not race on it during this time, but it was still the absolute wrong choice to make. I think we all know deep down when we are doing something we should'nt be doing, and I should have listened to myself better. It was very easy and tempting to just send an email and order it, and I lacked the self-discipline then to not do it even though I knew deep down it was'nt right. I shared the numbers so hopefully anyone curious can refer to these and NOT try it!!!! I've told my son about this experience and I hope he can take away from it that there will be many times in your life that temptation to make the wrong choice will arise, and that you have to be able to have the self-discipline and moral fiber to make the right one. I hope that can be a positive aspect of this.
I am a good father, husband, and honest businessman, and every time I've ever knowingly gone against my morals, I've paid the price. I stole a .98 cent car air freshener in 10th grade and got caught, I knowingly drove my car way over the legal limit when I was 23 and got caught, and this time with the epo. I can say for sure that I will always listen to my moral compass from this point on!!! You can't selectively apply your morals, they have to be the end all/ be all that keeps you on the right path. I hope everyone understands that although I've haven't raced much in the last 3 years, I feel terrible about bringing any negative aspect to the sport. I feel proud starting the West Branch race, and I want to make sure I give something positive back to the sport and not cast it in a bad light. I love to simply ride my bike with my friends and will always do that. If you have any questions or comments, please let me know.
Take Care
Neal

On a side note (and this has little to do with the story above), as a 50+ Expert rider where the Expert Women start behind us, I have had the pleasure of being chicked by Neal's wife Susan on many occasions. She is an excellent rider.

Is there such thing as a Fall thaw?

Well, today was the much heralded Cyber Monday that follows the Thanksgiving Holiday. Rather than waste my day in front of a computer doing all possible to resist the urge to purchase useless cycling crap I chose instead to go for a ride. Shocking!
I met up with a teammate, Wendell, at Island Lake State Recreation area and rode a few laps of singletrack. At 1000 am, lap 1 was very fast on the frozen singletrack. My tires were hooking up in the turns and it was a blast to ride with someone, especially on an identical bike as my own. It was kinda like looking in a warped mirror, although the guy in front of me was half my weight and age. The temperature kept climbing, the ground thawed and lap 2 was a greasy mess. We then hit the road over to Kensington Metro Park for a lap around the park. All in all, it was a great day to ride and it reminded me of the fact that the Spring thaw is only a few months away.

Sunday, December 5, 2010 - Springfield Oaks CX

SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY!
This will be the final race of the Michigan Cyclocross Championships. Be there!

Race flyer and details HERE:

Registration LINK:

The weather outside is frightful...

...but it's nothing like it's going to be in February.



It's 28 degrees outside. Overcast. Light winds. Perfect day for a ride.

With this in mind I have continued my protest of NOT riding that fracking trainer until it's absolutely necessary. Conditions have become generally "harsh" lately although the ground is still clear and it's possible to continue with the outdoor rides. That being said I have noticed several things as the season draws to a close. Primarily, the effort to knock out some miles has increased. Rides that took place in the heat of summer are taking a lot more effort now. My overall average speed is dropping. This could be the result of several things such as fatigue, cold muscles or just being slow as hell. Easily, it now takes me an additional 30+ minutes to prepare for my ride. I check the weather feeds for temperature, wind speed and direction. I utilize multiple thin layers and my choices have worked fine but I still feel like I'm hauling an extra 5-10 pounds wrapped around my body. I'll take it. It still beats spinning indoors and I will keep going until the snow gets too deep.

Be Thankful...

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone. Be thankful for your family, friends, loved ones, good health, carbon fiber and especially your bike. Be thankful that we live in a great time.

US Gran Prix of Cyclocross

The fun continues....



The Stanley Portland Cup - December 4th & 5th, 2010

U.S. gran prix of cyclocross from Jim Fryer/BrakeThrough Media on Vimeo.

US Gran Prix of Cyclocross LINK:

steephill.tv bike travelogue and cycling live video

steephill.tv bike travelogue and cycling live video

If Cyclists Designed Road Signs....

From the November 2010 issue of Bicycling. Illustrated by Jude Buffum

2010 Iceman Cometh video

This is a great video capturing the action at the head of the race. Check it out!

Visit cyclingdirt.org for more Videos

Funky plumbing & compression socks.

I'll preface this post with my apologies regarding the discussion of medical conditions on a cycling Blog. I tire of listening to folks who feel the need to discuss their medical conditions (as well as the weather) to anyone who will remotely listen. Unfortunately, it is my turn so you can now call me a hypocrite. Kill me. What I will say if you make it to the bottom of this post is that for me, compression socks work. They may look dorky to the fashionistas out there but I don't care as long as they make my legs feel better.


As you can see, the plumbing in my left leg is a bit messed up. The veins in my legs pop out (especially in the left) and there was difficulty in moving the blood back out of the leg. After diagnosis it was determined to be a result of a compressed vein and the medical condition is referred to as May-Thurner syndrome.

OK, so I recently had surgery to have a stent placed in the left iliac vein followed by several months of anti-coagulants during this upcoming off-season.
I have several different pairs of compression socks although I'm currently digging on the Beaker Concepts socks. (Note, this is not my scrawny leg in the sock photo below).


Beaker Concepts link:

And I believe you can still take an extra 20% off the beaker Concepts Vaso Socks with the coupon code "beaker" so you can save some cheddar for that carbon wheel set you've been drooling over.

2011 Racing Greyhounds Team applications

The RACING GREYHOUNDS cycling team is now taking applications for the 2011 race season. Deadline is December 1st.
Beginner, Sport, Expert and Elite levels alike (Cat 5, 4, 3, 2, 1), all are welcome to apply.


We are accepting MTB, Road and Tri applications. And, for those of you not wanting to race, but still wanting to join an awesome cycling family, you may apply for the Touring Club.

Do It! Apply today!

Application LINK:

Racing Greyhounds Invitational Cyclocross December 4, 2010

Rider - "Because I can offer crowd pleasing dismounts such as this":



Jeffro, aka CX Czar and el Capitan for our Cyclocross Team has decided to host an underground Cyclocross race. SWEET! He has placed a great deal of time and effort into making this first annual event a slam dunk success. I have confidence we can pull it off. I believe this event will embrace the true spirit of cyclocross in all aspects. The venue (like Area 51 - TOP SECRET) will provide plenty of terrain variety. I won't be racing although I have volunteered to work the Tequila Shot shortcut. Check out his Blog for details and hopefully, we will see you out there. Hell, it's even FREE. DO IT!!



BLOG LINK:

Stranger in a strange land.

Having spent 13 of my formative years as a local in Vail, Colorado I thought I had a clear definition of the term "tourist". Upon my arrival in Amsterdam it was apparent that I was clearly the tourist. Fortunately, most Dutch speak English and there were never any language roadblocks to overcome. I tried to avoid pulling my city map out when I was obviously lost. I now have a new found appreciation for the locals who have to deal with myself and the throngs of tourists who invade their space each day.
For the Dutch as well as most Europeans, cycling is just another facet of life. In Amsterdam the crappier the bike the better. Nobody is comparing components here. I was fine with it and enjoyed watching the locals take to the streets on their bikes versus driving. Belgium was pretty cool too.
Since this is a cycling blog I will avoid boring you with all of the dorky tourist shots and focus primarily on the the dorky tourist cycling shots.

On vacation!!

Holy cow! Time for a real vacation. This Saturday I will be heading over to Amsterdam to celebrate 25 years of bliss with my bride, Lynelle.

The adventure will begin as we stretch out in a First Class seat:

I plan to ride a bicycle just like the natives:

I plan to check out a coffee shops:

I plan to take a side trip to Bruges, Belgium: