Old

I'm getting old. I MUST be. Since I've been back to work I have typically hit a "nap patch" around 7:30 pm in front of the TV. Typically, after about a 30 minute battle I'm able to stay awake. 

Monday I lost the battle. HARD!  I think I fell asleep in the living room BEFORE 7. When I did come to I knew the battle was lost and I tucked my tail and slid into bed... for the night. 

Last night was our social ride. Except, with only 4 of us in the group the pace was a bit quicker than social. It was fun for sure. Food and beer afterwards was spot on. But that left me getting home right before bed time (10 pm). 

This morning I'm drinking a coke with my breakfast, posting from my smarty phone. 

That's it.

Sunday was a bright and early morning as my race start was 9 am and I had and hour and a half drive ahead of me to get to Dark Mountain.  I got there a little later than I wanted, and the conditions looked curious at best.

I was greeted by the other racers in my class as I had been MIA for a while now.  It was great catching up with them, but that of course ate into what little time I had before the start.  I got a quick warm up in and the course looked great, and dry.  Even the little run off that goes through the start area was dry!  Before the start all the fog burned off - conditions were great!

Having ridden here last week with the 18 (not race pace) I figured I'd be solid with the 20.  Maybe I would have, had my legs not exploded.

I don't know what happened.  Was it the fact that I destroyed my legs at the gym?  I went for a ride Saturday, but it wasn't anything demanding?  Maybe I shouldn't have stayed on the wheel of the guy in front of me off the start and let them go through the flatter stuff ahead of me?  Or maybe, just maybe, I've lost some from not racing in a bit?

Who knows what exactly attributed to it.  But all I can say is I didn't have it.

It wasn't until the second climb that my legs came back and I felt like I could put anything into them, or even stand and push on climbs.  By then it was too late.  The guys in the wave behind me were already catching me so I pulled off to let them go... and got stuck letting them all go as I didn't have time to get back and up to speed before the next guy - so I did a little running in the gaps.

There had been talk of a beer at the top of Snake... if there was beer, I was stopping to have one as this "race" was over for me.  (There was no beer...)  I rode the trail, had some fun, but wasn't able to keep pushing it like I should have been during a race.

So that's a wrap for the season.  It's also probably a wrap for racing for Blood Sweat Gears.  My buddy Sean (my connection to the shop) is out of racing for the foreseeable future due to an overuse injury to his hip.  He was ordered off the bike for over 2 months and is now only getting the ok to leisurely ride - but is told he won't be able to race again.  And Denver is just too far for me to maintain a relationship with the shop.  Of course I'll wear the kit out and about, but I think I'll be racing for someone else (myself) next season.

Some random thoughts about this season:
I need to ride more.
I need to do more focused training.
I don't get nervous at the start anymore because I've come to realize that I really am just racing myself.
Confirmed once again, mountain bikers (as a whole) are good people.
If your race involves a free t-shirt, I will most likely be there!

Oh, and I did manage to finish 5th in the season standings... so that's something I suppose.            

next year

Media Fridays

We'll post videos or photos that will hopefully inspire trail shredding weekends.

I missed it this year... but will do everything in my power to make it next year! 

Off season...

With the final race of the southern classic series coming up fast, it's time to start thinking about the off season... kind of. 

I still have the Southern Singlespeed Championships coming up in September.  Then of course, Snake Creek Gap TT in Jan, Feb, and March (not sure why March got spelled out while the others were abbreviated, but it just felt right). In any case, I'm starting to think ahead and try to plan out what I should be doing in the "off season" to prepare for a successful singlespeed season next year - in whatever form that takes on. 

So, I started back in the gym yesterday. When it comes to workouts, I'm a very regimented individual. I like to plan out workout days, pairing exercises in each workout for maximum benefit, all that good stuff. Yesterday, I went in blind. New gym, no real plan. 

Not good. I pieced together a string of exercises to "wake up" my muscles. Side note: I'm not a good stretcher. When it came time to squat I was planning on just hitting on my form and not pilling on the weight. I "stretched," but not enough. I could still feel it in my muscles but figured it was "good enough."

It wasn't. My first set was ok. Felt it in the back of my thighs but I was getting nice and low and figured it was just a stretch. I loosened up my legs a bit with more stretching before set 2. Set 2 was good. Form was great. Went in for set 3 and my legs screamed as I was getting into position. I stepped back, stretched, and tried again. My thighs protested and I paused, but did not listen. One rep and I was done. My legs were not happy with me and I was a bit concerned I'd done too much too quick. 

At home I sat watching TV with ice under my thighs. As the evening progressed I could still "feel it" in my legs but it felt more like the typical "burn" after a workout. This morning, I am feeling pretty good. I am eager to get on the bike to see how pedaling will feel. 

Lesson learned. STRETCH. It's been a long time, I've got to ease into this whole lifting deal again. 

* posted from my phone, so I apologize for no links and whatnot. 

Making friends

You may not know this about me, but I'm a pretty shy dude.  I'm not generally super outgoing, so if I don't know you I'm pretty laid back and reserved.  Once you get to know me, not so much.  Biking makes it easier though, gives a common ground to just be able to talk to random people in the parking lot, on the trail, in a shop, on the street, and wherever else bicycles might be found.  

Sometimes, I even make the types of friends I'd rather not have...

I hate spiders!  They creep me out.  No, I am not scared of spiders.  I am just not a fan of them on a ride.  I don't enjoy their webs in my mouth.  I don't like to think about the fact that a spider may now be on my back, or in my helmet because I just got draped with a big ass web as I'm flying down a trail.  I DO NOT like to feel them crawling on me.  And least of all, I do not enjoy them biting me.

I found this guy AFTER my ride crawling up my thigh... so he was on there for the long haul.  Thankfully he didn't molest me (at least to my knowledge) and was a silent passenger.  His white markings look kinda ominous though...  my limited search could not identify him... but he lives in Dark Mountain if you want to go find him.

I also met a father and his two sons while I was on the trail.  Much more pleasant interaction than with Mr. Spider... had a nice chat with them.  In the parking lot before the ride chatted with a family about the trail.  Between loops talked with two guys interested in how trail conditions were - gave them the run down: good, some puddles here and there, roots a bit slick, but good.

And then of course the "how are ya?"(s) and "thank you," "have a great day" whenever I met someone on the trial.  I like to be as courteous as can be when on the trail... people complain about bikers, so I want to give them as little as possible to complain about.  We are all ambassadors of mountain biking, whether we like it or not.  Be nice; we are all out to have fun - whether that is on foot, two wheels, or yes, even horseback.    

    

De-ja-puke

When I moved down to North Carolina last July I had already been off the bike as our lives were consumed with getting the condo ready to sell and then the move itself. My buddy Sean and I decided to dip our toes into the race scene down here by entering the final race of the summer series, Dark Mountain. 

I don't know if it was nerves, the heat, the fact that I chugged a Gatorade prior to the start, or a combination of all three but I puked during the race. Fun. After recovering, I quite enjoyed the course. 

Sunday I drove up to Dark Mountain to give the course a once over and test out how the trail would treat the Glow Worm. I could certainly let it go a bit more on the downhills with the HiFi, but the Glow Worm handled the footy goodness just fine. I was able to ride everything as is, but will likely make a gearing adjustment to account for traffic on the climbs. 

The thing about Dark Mountain is there is very little flat. You are either climbing or descending for the most part. So an easier gear should not be too much of a detriment... that is until the very end of the race when the course pours out onto a flat field, which we proceed to do a lap around. If anyone is close behind they will likely overtake me here.  

So I'll have to hit it hard off the start and put as much in as I can on the initial climbs. Let it go as much as I can on the downhills. And just pedal, pedal, pedal damnit the rest of the way. 

It's the last race of the series, I've got to be out of it on the overall standings, but I'm excited to be racing again. 

just amazing

Media Fridays

We'll post videos or photos that will hopefully inspire trail shredding weekends.

Ok... so this isn't bike related... but it is DAMN beautiful.  THIS is what mountain biking is all about... getting out and being.

Time in the Valley; Summer from John Woodside on Vimeo.

Enjoy the beauty around us... even better if you can do it from a bike!