Its what I like

I know that sometimes it doesn't seem like I like all this brutal , epic, knarly stuff...but I do. Its just like Jenny said, "I signed up for this". There were some parts of the Cape Epic that were less than enjoyable and certainly very hard, but its the stuff that I love and that makes me feel alive. Taking things to the limits is what helps us to know what our limits are.

It also gets a bit addicting. For example, this week the only thing on the agenda is rest and recovery. This involves sleeping a bit more, eating good food and easy 1-1:30 rides. And some souvenir shopping. This sound great, huh? It is for sure, but its hard to go from a week like last week to this week. In some ways, I crave the hard and exciting days. I'm not getting an endorphines or adreneline so it can be a bit of a letdown. Its crazy. I sometimes wonder how I will handle that when I retire from racing.

Actually, I have gotten a little adreneline spike riding through downtown capetown in the afternoons. Its not a big city, but it has some mad drivers and strange traffic patterns. And they drive on the left side!

I am here until Friday with Jenny and Jeremiah. They are both staying on after I leave. They are heading to Stellenbosch to resume training. I am headed to the Netherlands to stay with my sister Mary, brother in law, Pieter, niece, Susan and my nephew, Alex. Nothing beats being able to stay with family while in another country. They are taking me to my next two races as well.

I got a bunch of Rooibos tea today. It is one of the very unique products that South Afica produces. Wine is another, but I won't be taking any of that back home. The food here is really good quality. The citrus is amazing and the apples are being harvested now.

Sorry, still no pics. I forgot my camera cable and hope to get one in the airport or maybe my sister has a matching one.

I'm bummed to be missing the Harrisonburg dinner party at chrisscottistan and the famous Harris-Roubaix. At least I'll be racing in near the real Roubaix. Big hi to all the burgers!

One day to go

Today's stage was pretty nice. We started out on this amazing paved climb. We climbed up to get the view of the lagoon that we crossed when the tide was out and then today the tide was in. It was really spectacular. There was some dirt roads of course, but today wasn't essential for making a fast ticket. There was actually some nice singletrack. It was through the pine trees and had a lot of switchbacks. Its funny because its all about perspective. When you have to ride a lot of roads and gravel roads, then any singletrack is magnificent.

There were some cute kids asking us for chocolate, so I threw them a gel. There were also these amazing plants called Protea. It is the national plant of South Africa. Its has a big flower and is kind of prehistoric looking.

We were second again today. Its kind of like we are not racing anymore. We are just riding. The last two days have been pretty easy for me in terms of effort. Again that might just be perspective because the first two days were very, very hard for me. I don't know if I wasn't opened, too rested and still stiff from the travel. Of course, also Jenny has been pretty sick the last two stages. She is tough to pedal through it and not complain. And tomorrow is only 63Km.

We talked to Pia Sundstedt(Team Rocky Mountain) after the race today and she said that it was too hard for her and she really wasn't enjoying herself that much. I guess thats good to hear, but she is on the winning team and winning is always fun, isn't it?

So thanks for reading. There are actually two more stages...the party and then the trip back to Cape Town in the RV.

Bredasdorp to Hermanus

We started today in the town of Bredasdorp. This town is the southern most point of Africa. Today the finish was in Hermanus where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. The town claims that fame, but it acutally happens out a ways where the currents come together. Apparently, there are a lot of whales offshore. This town looks a bit like California again. Bredasdorp looked more like Africa.

There were so many fans and spectators out on the course today. It was really nice to see. It really feels like we are getting to the finish in Lourensford. There are more wineries, wealthier communities and of course the ocean.

Jenny woke up with a bit of a sinus infection. Its not too hard to know why....miles of dust, comprimised immune system and lots of germs. So, we decided the best thing to do was take it as easy as we could. We want to finish the race, so its better to take a chill day, then push it and not be able to podium at the end.

Of course, an easy day at the Epic is 130 km. Actually, today's terrain was the easiest I thought. There wasn't much climbing. Actually the climbs were really nice. They were extremely scenic and real mountainbiking. The coolest thing was when the helicopter was hovering over us down the big downhill. It was crazy when I hit a little jump and the wind from the helicopter almost blew me sideways. But hey that is the price you pay for being a big superstar.

I heard a guy in our group say that the end of the race had a lot of corrugated road on it. I said what does that mean. He says, you know, bumpy. Well most of the gravel roads here are bumpy. Remember the last day of La Ruta when we had to ride like 15 miles on the train tracks. This was like that.

This was 15Km on severe braking bumps into a headwind, with long sandy stretches. So you had to stay on the wheel, go light on the front end, be in a big gear and have lightning reactions in case some one in front of you messed up. This was really intense mentally. Plus, the body is pretty tenderized, so it hurts the hands.

To get a better idea of the race, check out Chris Eatough's blog on cyclingnews.com He is one tough guy and he thinks this is a very hard race. He is looking pretty worked, but he is always so nice and gentleman like. Plus, those other 24Hour guys better watch out for this year. He is getting in some serious speed work. The same for Jenny's X-terra compitition. She has reached a new, superior level this year.

Also, for people who don't like to sleep, you have to check out the live coverage on www.cape-epic.com Laura's boyfriend has been an addict with it. He texts her from the states to tell her how we are all doing because the helicopters and motos show it.

Also, don't think that we are roughing it too bad. We are staying in an RV that the air conditioning now works in. We are getting massaged everyday. Laura has been washing our bottles and taking our laundry to the service. Bork has been giving our bikes the pro treatment. I've already gotten a new tire, chain and rear derailleur. There was a tiny pebble in my shifter that he removed. And of course the bikes look so shiny clean. And we are going out to dinner tonite!

So, its tough, but I can't help but thinking how tough those upcoming World Cups are going to be and it makes this seem not so bad.

Givin it horns

People have been saying 'give it horns'. I guess that means give it all you got. Or be the bull or something. Well, we did give it a big effort today and won the stage. It was a massive amount of good fortune for us that a massive amount of bad fortune fell upon the Rocky girls in the form of three flat tires. They caught back on two out of three times. We beat them in by two minutes. So we are still in second by about an hour. I think they might want to unload a can of you know what. But tomorrow looks like its all about finding a 'fast ticket'...that means a good bunch of guys to draft on.



also the we saw Spring boks and giant beetles today.

Towards the end of the race, I asked Jenny how she felt and she said don't ask me that now. I took that as not very good.

Africa Hot!!!

Hakuna Matata from Swellendom! The big news is that we won another stage today. We rode all day with the women's GC leaders, Alison and Pia. They are two amazing women...very pro and very classy. They didn't sprint us to the line and conceded no time on the GC. Jenny and I rode really well on the climbs today. Well, Jenny rides all the climbs really well actually. She is basically outclimbing me and I am sucking wheels and making some snap decisions. But we are getting better at balancing out our strengths and weaknesses.

The other news is that is Africa hot here. It is 40 degrees right now. That is like 100 or more. Its sweltering. I hope I don't look five years older after these nine days from so much sun.

Between our two stage wins have been some pretty hard days. Stage 1 was a big shock to the system. It was all big hills and lots of pushing on the pedals. I had so many little aches and pains that I didn't know how I was going to ride the next day. It was so weird. I guess it was just the body getting adjusted. My arms were dying, I guess they weren't conditioned enough. We got one flat that stage and ended up about 20 minutes back of 1st and 10 of second.

Stage 2 was another tough one especially because of the heat. And there was a really hard mountainbike climb for 6km. It took a lot of effort and it was Africa hot. The downhill was a knarly ripper with wild paved lanes and water ditches. Everyone's brakes were burning so bad. We got with a great group of guys and made up the time on the Trek/Dolpin girls(the dutch based team- Katrin is German and Fabiana is Swiss) We all ran out of water. I thought we were going to die out there, but we were actually 500 meters from the finish line, but I had no idea.

Stage 3 was much better in some ways. We were riding really well, but couldn't seem to stay in any groups. We rode alone a lot. I flatted and had a bad change. I thought that I could just air up and the stans would seal it. But it was a slice down the middle of the tread. We put a tube in and then the tube was bad. So another tube and 5 minutes later we were back trying to make up some ground. Again we rode without much of a group. This can really make or break you day, basically. We rode into a headwind and then into the most viscious head, cross wind that I have ever experienced. It was soul crushing. We got fourth on the day.

Our days are like this: We wake up at 5 am. Believe it or not, I put on my Chamios right away. It is just one thing to get out of the way. I go the bathroom, wash my hands really good. I eat breakfast in the RV. Usually, a bowl of cereal, cup of coffee and a piece of bread with almond butter and jelly. We pick up our bikes at the bike lock-up and then Bork checks them over. Bathroom again. Then we have to line up at 6:45 and the race starts at 7 sharp. We race for 6 hours. Its hard racing...pee stops are rare. We are blown at the finish. Then we go to the podium circle and they have hanging hoses in there that you can shower and sponge all the sweat and dust off. Laura has cold drinks, recovery and pringles. Then we find the RVs. We eat a sandwhich and more chips. Then we shower at the shower trucks. And then we got back to the RV and Sweat and Sweat because the power always goes out for most of the afternoon. The sun is brutal and it can be hard to find shade. Then we get massages and watch Bork work on bikes. The girls chatter. Chris goes to the media room to email his family. Jeremiah calls Erin. Sometimes I shower again before dinner. There is a lot of sweat and dust, so its nice.

Dinner is in a massive tent with round tables and creative centerpieces. Its nice. the food has been good. There is a nice mix of stuff. I haven't eaten any of the dark meat yet, but the chicken is a zillion times better than in the US. It tastes hormone free. Then each town puts on a little show with kids. Sometimes its dancing or singing or a flag show. Its contemperary, not traditional. Then awards ceremony, course description for the next day and then a picture show of the days race. Then back to the RV to get ready for next day. We have been going to bed around 9:30.

Its a hard race because of the speeds and pack riding. Its a beautiful race because of the amazing mountain scenery. At times it looks like the American west and then it can look like a sunny Scotland and the African Alps. There are hardly any houses were were ride. Its all open space, protected lands and farmers fields.

Hope this entry isn't too long and boring. No pics, nothing funny. But I am having an really awesome experience and hopefully killer training for the race season. Please check out Trek's website for lots of pics by Sven Martin. Also cyclingnews.com has our diaries. And of course Cape-epic.com has live coverage.

Cheers

20,000 miles to ride 950Km

We are all safe and sound in South Africa! Its been a crazy trip to get here. It took a long, long time. But it is now worth it. South Africa is very beautiful. It doesn't feel like the only other African country that I've been too, which is Tanzania. I'm sure as the race travels to the smaller towns and villages, I will get a better idea of it. Because for now, It feels like a mix of Calfornia, Europe and Australia. I'm not sure why I compare places to other places,but regardless, its cool here. We are having ostrich tonite for dinner. Its our last night in our swanky hotel on the harbour. Tomorrow all the hardships and suffering start. Its the first real day...123km, climbing 3000meters with 1200 other riders.

And did I mention....JENNY AND I ARE IN THE LEADER'S JERSEY!!!! And so far, yes, it was mountainbiking. We are having fun and getting a suntan.

Jeremiah and Chris got their pictures taken with an elephant. The Trek/Dolphin guys team with baboons and the girls with birds. That is a photo that will inspire stories for the grandkids.

Some of my good friends are down here including our former Trek soigneur, Allan Carlsen and he is riding with my Trans Rockies partner, Hillary Harrison. I'm going to change their team name to The Skinny Smilers. Also, I'll be racing against my friend and former teammate, Alison Sydor. She is happy as a clam to be racing for nine days like her old roadie days. By the way, her and Bart Brejetnes are the fastest people of their age by a long shot.

I saw the Southern Cross last night. I saw it two years ago in New Zealand, but its still so cool.

Anyway I'll try to get some pics up at some point. And check the Cape Epic website because they have a live feed from the race. Yes, a live feed! Also check cycingnews and velonews.

Cheers!

Tim and Ruby would like it here i think. But I wouldn't want Ruby to have any encounters with a baboon or wildebeast.

Schlossing

Tim, Kyle, Ryan , Andy and I went up to our favorite ride...Big Schloss. It was supposed to be 60 degrees, but at 9am there was still a hard spring frost on the ground. We went up the pavement, up to the Big Schloss, down the short downhill, up the long downhill and then back down the short. What an incredible way to spend the first day of Spring.

Did I mention that I leave for South Africa Sunday night?

Offering to the Blogging Gods

I'm sorry. I wrote a detailed story of our team camp that I didn't save and then it disappeared. I was bummed, but just consider it an offering to the blog gods. It was a pretty good one, but can't be recreated, so its just time to move on, I guess.

In short, Moab was really fun. The team vibe was very family. We stayed at Pam and Tony's B&B and shared lots of group meals. Zack, our manager, and Caitlyn his girlfriend and Rocky Mountain Team member made the best food for us. It was healthy and made with love and quickness. Our new Soigneur, Laura Downey, tenderized our legs and took care of us like we were big time pros. Michael Browne, our team director, gave us fun cameras to play with while we rode, hoping to get some cool video for future media use. He also gave us a good pep talk for the season. Our mechanics, Dusty and Bork and Shep, worked long hours to get our hardtails built. They also put up with all the mirco adjustments that occur when riding a new bike. Our photographer, John Laptad, squeezed blood from a stone and got some amazing pics in record speed and in little space.

My only complaint is purely superficial. For some reason the girls jersey's are a weird pink color. Pink is a little two years ago, but I'm about two years behind on trends, too.The unfortunate part is that the shorts are red. I'm old school and have a problem with red and pink going together unless its on a valentine's day card. That said, maybe I should just think of myself as a giant valentine day card riding a bike, bringing love to all the mountainbikers out there. xxx ooo. That is a better visual image than a color clashing clown. But if you like our pink jersey's let me know.

I'm still in amazement over the group of riders that make up the team. There is some serious lung and leg power amongst us. And the skill set of our team is very high. I would love to have some sort of competition that was technical riding only. I think our team would kick ass against other cross country riders. And most importantly, everyone is very nice and fun to be around. We had some awesome group rides.

Moab was the last time the team will be all together this year. We are all going to different races in different places. The staff will do the same. It made our time in Moab even more special.

Moab

Team Camp

The 2008 Trek/VW mountainbike team is converging in Moab, UT this week for our team camp. Its a blast! I haven't been to Moab since 2002 when we did the 24 Hours of Moab. Its such a cool town with awesome trails. And of course its like Christmas getting new bikes, gear and electronics from JBL.

I'll have more on the specifics, but here are a couple of pics for now.d

Virginia

The weather at the end of Feb and beg of march in Virginia can pretty much mean anything. This week it was a bit hard getting used to the constantly changing weather and of course much colder temps than in Tucson. It helped that I had an easy week and have took a lovin to rollers. It is great being home. Its fun being back with Tim and Ruby and riding in our very local oasis of Hillendale Park. Tim did tons of work to the house while I was gone. He picked some nice paint colors. Its really nice having a real floor, too. Its a one of a kind...can't get this at Home Depot!

I battled the wind for most of the week, so Sunday was awesome as the weather warmed and a group of us got out on the trails at Big Schloss. Tim got a new bike and was rippin it. It is so cool to see good travel go with good skills. I had some beautiful moments getting back to the rocky trails of Wolf Gap.

Tim took me to a Cirque de Soliel show in Charlottesville. It was Saltimbanco. It was the best of the three shows that I have seen. It had a lot of outrageous athletics and humor. We also celebrated Thomas and Julie's 6th anniversary. Good times.

Ray's Indoor Mountainbike Park

I finally got to visit famous Ray's warehous of fun in cold, friendly Cleveland, OH. Dirt Rag hosted a women's only day at Ray's. This is such a brilliant idea that I can't wait for the next one. 30 or more women showed up from many states and lots of different backgounds and skill levels. I was the token cross country teacher. I was the geek in a lycra racing kit. But cross country skills are the real world and many of these women were trail riders so I could help out a little. After teaching my clinics, I headed over to the pump track to get a lesson from the crazy fast Jill Kitner. She was so fast on the track...so impressive. She is going for the Olympics in BMX so I will be routing for her. Then my buddy, current National Champion in downhill, Ms Kathy Pruitt gave me a personal lesson in tabletoping. I took a little bit to get the consistency down, but by the end I had the baby tabletops pretty dialed. It was so fun!

I got to hang with the WSD wrench, not wench, Chris Garrison. Chris is more than cool and she already had the tabletops down. Check out her page on the WSD section of the Trek website. I also got to meet a future ripper of america, Lindsey. It is so great to see young girls on bikes that smile all the time while they are shreddin!

The next day, I decided to try riding in jeans like the other jumper girls. I noticed that you don't really sit down much while doing the park stuff, so I gave it a go. It wasn't bad at all. One of the cool jumper girls noticed and I think gave her approval.

The vibe at Ray's was very friendly without any of the competitive vibe that can be there at some parks. I highly recommend a visit during these awful cold east coast winters. There is varying degrees of difficulty for the sets of jumps, stunts, vert walls, and pump tracks. It got something for everyone.

Goodbye Tucson

The bubble had to burst some time. It was a blast spending the last month in Tucson riding. Big thanks to all who pushed me on the group rides, Spring for training like a pro, Todd for hosting me and FairWheel for my bike needs.

pueblo pics

Its just one day in the life

Spring and I crushed at the race. We had good legs and good luck. After the race we were talking about how lucky we were because we really didn't have any great plans, nor did we have any back-up plans. Kevin was there to help with some stuff which really eased us after the lap. But thinking back to when I did the Worlds solo race in Georgia, it was night and day. I had five people at my beck and call for an hour lap. I even had my chamios creme heated in the middle of the night when it got cold. This time I had a tent for a very small child that I could never find after my laps.

But it was awesome. It was so great to see Spring after I finished my laps. She was smiling and always said that she was so proud of me. That made any hard thing that happened out there melt away. I think that is one reason that I like the team categories better than solo. A teammate inspires.

Our stategy was to do two laps at a time, then when it got dark to do three at a time. It worked out. The three lapper wasn't that bad. It kept us warm while we were riding and then it gave the other person a decent break to eat, drink and sleep. The highlight of my third straight night lap was when Jenna Zander came up and I just told myself to stay with her. It was so fun to ride that course fast with another fast girl like Jenna. Plus, mentally, it gave me something to focus on. I practically gave her a sunburn with my lights. And she cleared all the traffic out of the way.

Another great lap was when Michael Rainey and his friend led me through the 'his and hers' trail just flying. I didn't like that trail much before until I rode it fast following them.

The course was 17 miles of classic desert singletrack. It had snowed the night before and the road into the place was super sketchy for the Clegg's A4. Then the first lap was pretty sloppy in places. But I'm from West Virginia so it was no problem. It dried out to tacky and fast.There was alpine glow over the Catalinas with the fresh snowfall. It was cold for Arizona, though. There was a heavy frost that left a white shimmer to all the cholla cactus. But as always, the sun prevails in the southwest. Sunday was sunny and about 70.

This race has a great vibe. There are lots of independent types with singlespeeds, tatoos, odd facial hair, and big wheels. Everyone is so friendly, all 1600 racers, plus the race volunteers and spectators. Going on my last second lap, I realized that I had just shed my jacket with my snacks in it. So I stopped at some spectators who had cheered every lap for everyone and asked if the had any snacks. I got a nice banana and chocolate chip cookies(healthy ones, too!) Everyone was drinking beer afterwards and telling stories. It was good times.

Spring could of stopped at 17 laps since we were so far ahead. But her goal for the team was 18 laps. So she went out at 11:15 and did the 18th lap for the team. There were only two other guys duo teams that did 19. She is so tough.

So you wanna be an Olympian?

I've been enjoying reading Kathryn Bertine's Olympic Blog on espn. I met Kathryn on the shootout and in one minute of talking to her, I pegged her as nice, intelligent and very ambitious. Then when I got home Todd told me a bit of her story. I started following her blogs. Boy, was I right on the money on that first impression.

Kathryn has wrote the book "All the Sundays Yet to Come" about her experiences in the figure skating world. Now she has a book deal with ESPN to write about her travails getting to the 2008 Summer Olympics. At the time of the book deal, she didn't actually have one sport that she was counting on making it to the Games with. She trys out for handball, pentathelon and cycling teams. Google her name and you can read all the funny stories.

But I got to ask her a few questions:





Why did you switch from triathlon to cycling?
I'd been doing triath-a-lons for eight years. I did okay, but was a middle-o-the-pack pro racer. I thought it would be interesting to see what would happen if I focused all my energy and training one my best discipline, the bike.

Have you considered a switch to the dirt?
I've always liked dirt. I have fallen in it lots of times, but usually there is not a bike involved. I would really like to try mountain biking at some point. But only if you will show me how. You're such a rock star, Sue!

If you had to stereotype cyclists how would you do it?
Male cyclists: Weird.
Female cyclists: Weirder.

Briefly describe your improvement in cycling?
Well, funny story... I went from Cat 4 to Cat 1 in ten months. This means I'm the most inexperienced Cat 1 out there, but I have made vast improvements in lancing saddle sores.

In your opinion, how hard is it to become an Olympian?
Hard. You have no idea how much paperwork is involved. Ok, seriously? It is the hardest thing I've ever attempted. And therefore the best. I'm kind of burning the candle at both ends right now, and result is either going to get me to Beijing or to a mental institution. I plan on holding a very big party before entering either.

Lastly, which earns you more dough...prize money at cycling races or taking your used clothes to the Buffalo Exchange?
Definitely cycling. The last time I went to Buffalo Exchange they didn't take one freaking tee shirt. The punk rock cashier lady said, "Uh, yeah, this stuff really isn't in style anymore. Sorry." Whatever. She wishes she could win $25 in a local crit! I don't need your Buffalo charity. I get paid in five dollar bills, yo. Snap!

the things you see

A young Canadian roadie from Manitoba had a big day under the Tucson sun.

An old schooler welded his own "new school" 36 inch wheel bike.

Aqua Caliente

The weekend was filled with great riding. The shootout was actually really fun. There are these nice young boys wearing USA kits that pulled us around all day. They were really fast and so happy to be on the front. This kid Caleb was a supercharger. I finally made it to the top of Madiera and then felt good enough to get towed up Helmet Peak. Plus, a tailwind back down Mission.

Then on Sunday a stellar crew from the midwest and Montana met at Aqua Caliente Park(the only hot springs in Tucson) for a ride up Reddington around Italian Springs , back the AZ trail past Bellota Ranch to Milagrosa Canyon. Milagrosa is my favorite mtb trail in Tucson. Its has some big moves and awesome views. I always get some crazy highs and lows on that trail. The low was falling on a prickly pear cactus. ouch!

It was the warmest day since I've been here. It was so nice to see water in all the little creek crossings.

Tucson is pretty

Tucson is really pretty in the winter. I've never seen water in the Rillito River. Its awesome. Sometimes after my morning training rides, I'll go out in the afternoon and explore the paths around town. Tucson is very biker friendly all in all. There are way too many cars on the roads here, but most roads have a bike lane. There are miles of bike paths, bike lanes and they even have specific lights for bikes. A big thank you for all the folks who have been instrumental in making Tucson a good place to ride a bike.http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.photo.gif
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the weekend

The shootout was a little harder this week. I did some work to move myself towards the front of the huge pack after the small break went up the road. I was working hard. It was survival singlefile in the wind on the rough patch after the bridge. I was looking for that sweet spot in the draft like last week, but it was no where in be found in the gutter eschelon. I popped myself and rode with some folks I didn't know, hoping some friends would come up. Eventually, Kathryn(more on her later) and some other guys came up and we headed up Maderia. It was beautiful as always and hard as hell, too. The wind and the grade are so steady. We got a ways up and then the fast group was coming down so we joined in. Good thing. Today was a bit of a reality check for fitness level.

But of course a day on the mtb made me feel tons better. Spring and I headed out to Tucson Mountain Park for a good ride on the dirt. Its just so pretty there and the fun factor of mountainbiking is a good reward to the week of road riding. I split mhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.photo.gif
Add Imagey sidewall in the first three minutes. Tires take a beating around here. The new Shimano m300s are very nice shoes. They are going to be great this season. I'm trying out the Ergon grips. They are very interesting. I'm not ready to make a judgement call yet, but I will say they seemed to help my steering on the loose corners.

There is a pic of my family away from home...Todd, Carrie and Fredo. I'm heading over to Amara and Jason's for dinner. They are the friends that we stayed with last year in Tucson. They will be moving to Harrisonburg in April to start up their own Traditional Chinese Medicine clinic.

I missed the Superbowl Sunday ride at home. I'm sure that it was a blast as always.