Lianna Likes Bikes!

Lianna Bikes Europe!

2011-06-22T23:31:00.002-06:00

Hi all! As many of you know, I'm headed to Europe for a solo cycle tour. So, in honor of the occasion, I've made a blog just to detail the trip. Haven't heard about my travels? Head on over to: Lianna Bikes Europe!

The travel bug bites!

2011-04-19T11:39:00.002-06:00

The travel bug has jumped aboard and planted its suckers firmly in me. Soon, very soon, the academic semester will end, I'll finish grading the finals, and then it will be time to wander.

I have no specifics in mind, but I reckon I will squander my frequent flier miles and what little money I have to get myself and my (cyclocross) bike over to the European continent. I have only two stops so far: Cortina D'Ampezzo in the Italian Dolomites, and somewhere an old, local brewery. From there, who knows. Any recommendations? Any one want to join in the fun?

Christmas Break

2011-01-03T09:51:00.003-07:00

First off, it rocks to have a three week vacation from work over Christmas and the New Year. Yay, teaching! I spent the holidays lounging on a beach in Mexico, which for most people is the perfect vacation. But I won't lie, at first I thought this plan was going to be BORING. Lounging on the beach is not my idea of Christmas vacation...non-stop powder trees or long nordic treks are more my bailiwick. Not wanting to be the stick in the mud, I prepped myself to enjoy the trip. Lots of "when in Rome" kind of thoughts. And what do you know.....I had a great time. Largely because of the awesome company, but also, there was a profusion of really awesome dead things that washed ashore. It took us three days to figure out that the thing that looked like an unholy union of a head of cabbage, a horse heart, a jellyfish and some chicken livers was in actuality a sea slug. YUM!

Trips into the nearest town/village were both exciting and exhausting. Simple interactions like buying groceries turned into epic struggles to find the right words for chicken breast, shrimp, and coconuts. We almost bought a roll of polenta before we realized it was actually one huge tube of lard...wow. More pictures to follow.

Teaching Thermodynamics II

2010-10-19T12:58:00.002-06:00

As many of you know, I've been out of the bike racing action due to an unlucky crash and a dislocated elbow. As I work my back into full range of motion (physical therapy is an exercise in pain endurance), I've been busy with my new job: Teaching at the Mechanical and Aerospace Department of at UCCS (University of Colorado at Colorado Springs). I have been pleasantly surprised with the level of devotion to the topic by the students, as well as the intellectual challenges to myself. Thermo is not easy to learn, and I'm discovering it's even harder to teach. But very fulfilling. And, I have a captive audience for my bad jokes. Ha!

Off the back...

2010-08-09T11:33:00.004-06:00

OK, OK, I'm guilty! I've been busy riding bikes and not posting in my blog.

But I've got some pretty neat stories to share, so here goes the first one:

Just last Tuesday I was out on a ride with my good friend (Sp)Andrew, who was visiting from the lovely Houghton, MI. Lately we've been having these wrath-of-God thunderstorms, and while we were out on the ride, another one brewed up. So, with lightening slamming into the peaks and foothillls around us every minute or better, we put our collective tails between our legs and rode the most protected way home I could find. We stood just inside the door, taking off wet helmets and gloves, when

BOOOOOOMMM!!!

I knew we'd just heard a tree blow up. We opened the door, and agreed that the chunks of tree hadn't been in the drive when we'd walked inside just thirty seconds ago. I was really curious to see where I'd come from, but the sky was still throwing itself at the ground, so we had to wait. Fifteen minutes later we ventured outside to discover our neighbor's tree split down the center, with half of it falling on the roof of the garage. Turns out our neighbor had been inside that garage when the tree landed on it.....very luckily the roof held. CRAZY!

The remains of the tree as seen from our yard

Travels and Riding: Colorado Springs to Houghton

2010-05-25T07:35:00.005-06:00

You know those adventures that you dream up when you're feeling trapped at work or school? The ones that take far too long to pull off on the measly two weeks of vacation most American jobs offer? Well, I just finished one. For the past four weeks, I've been travelling and riding, in both familiar places, and new. First up, Houghton.

After becoming unemployed, I spent a week getting my world in order, sorting through paper from COBRA, the unemployment office, and the like. This was practically a full time job in itself. Then I set off in my trusty (rusty) 1990 Subaru Legacy (bet you're jealous!?). I took my leisurely time, stopping within the first couple hours to ride in Boulder with my friend Karl and catch up over a burrito with my friend Lindsey. That night I drove through a snowstorm in Wyoming and came very close to bogging my wagon down in the muddy road leading to my planned camp spot. Luckily, judicious use of the handbrake and a new set of tires prevented me from living my own version of Deliverance in BFE Wyoming.

Then, I was off to see the sights! I'd never been to Rushmore, so I planned my drive to go the the Black Hills of South Dakota. While the monument itself was a sight to behold (see below), I found myself more impressed with the general landscape. The area is full of steep rolling roads that made me want to come back just for a long weekend of road riding....plus another week of mountain biking. Certainly I would plan such a weekend for no later than Memorial day; Although it was almost deserted when I pulled through in late April, the town of Keystone looked like it becomes an insane hive of tourists in full summer. Not so cool.

George's nose is twenty feet tall! When he blows his nose, does he have rock boogers? If so, they must be the size of boulders!

After 17 hours of driving, I made it to the Twin Cities, where I enjoyed the good company and hospitality of my mentor Nick Chope, and got to hear about qualifying for wave 1 of the Birkie from Tim Martin. Way to go, Tim! As nice as the Cities are, I was anxious to get to open water and sweet trail, so I hauled through the last leg of the journey to Houghton in time to drive directly to the trailhead at the Tech Trails and get a couple hot laps in.

Now, I have to brag a little. Houghton is the center of one of the best trail networks and biking communities I've ever seen, and I've ridden quite a few places now. There is, literally, a group ride every night of the week, and weekend adventures regularly being planned at the group rides. I rode in Copper Harbor (pop. 70), home of an incredibly active non-profit dedicated to making and maintaining trails in the Harbor, the Copper Harbor Trails Club. They even have a full time trail builder, Aaron, whose work includes running a jackhammer to benchcut trail into the basalt, and making SICK bridges on site with an Alaskan mill (I want on of these; Think of a chainsaw with about a 4' cutting surface, then put a guide around it so that you can produce fresh planking on the side of the trail. Now imagine all the bridges you could build with that...)

Well, actually, when I say I rode in the Harbor, it's more like I got my butt kicked in the Harbor. Every time I go back thinking that I get to make a withdrawal from my I've-been-training-in-Colorado Bank, I get schooled by the local guys. Ah, humility. I wish you weren't so prevalent in my riding.

Seeing as this entry is getting long, I'll save more for later. Next up, more Houghton, and on to beautiful Petoskey, MI.

Gitchigumee, otherwise known as Lake Superior

ALL DONE!!

2010-04-16T13:49:00.002-06:00

Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today was officially my last day at Ingersoll Rand. I've been lucky enough to work with some VERY fine technicians, engineers, and folks in all sorts of other roles. I've seen great works and focus from the people surrounding me, and grown in the process. But I can also honestly say, that while I will miss the people, I am glad to be moving on from the eight-to-five of corporate engineering, and into the world of who-knows-what's-next. For now, I'll be expanding my coaching business and getting ready to teach engineering at UC-Colorado Springs. And in the very near future, I'll be on a road trip home; Look out Michigan peeps, I'm coming your way!

Adventures in nordic skiing

2010-03-11T08:26:00.004-07:00

On Sunday I went for a quasi-bushwhacking nordic adventure up to The Crags, a popular summer hike on the backside of Pike's Peak. Turns out that the real adventure was in the drive up. We were happily making our way up a very snow-packed and (slightly) dodgy forest service road when we encountered the forest service vehicle. In the ditch. WAYYYYY in the ditch.
Also there were some Texans in a jeep with a high lift jack and a winch, as well as a couple SUVs of people coming down from the Crags. The road was actually two thin strips of packed snow surrounded by unfounded depths of wet powder. Doom for the trapped forest service truck and his bald tires. After about a half hour of unsuccessfully pulling and digging, the Texans go out the right tool for the job, the winch. At that point, we decided to back down the now decidedly sketchy road before the snow conditions changed anymore to the nearest turnaround.
Yeah, backing down a steep mountain twotrack with about 3" for error? Nail biter.
But with some skillful driving (Jesse) and not-so-skillful guidance on foot (Me), we managed to get halfway down, turn the car around, and park in the low lot.
From there, a lovely ski. And we found an elk vertebrae. Yum!

Credit cards and car loans?

2010-02-19T14:28:00.002-07:00

All done!
The day passed when all of my debt (except for my very low interest engineering school loan) was paid off, and I didn't even think to celebrate it. So, here goes:
HOORAY!!
It took a concerted effort on my part, but I kept my expenses down, built up an emergency fund (good thing since I am switching careers), and paid off my debt. I sent in the last payment last week. A quick call today verified that my balance is zero dollars. Wo0t.

Project Olympics

2010-02-16T10:27:00.002-07:00

I stumbled on an interesting idea today: Use the timeline and the inspiration of the Olympics to give you the energy to complete a major project. Strangely, I learned about this through the lens of the knitting community, which I have nothing to do with, but hey, the interwebs are amazing.
Anyways, the concept is, start a big project (like a fair isle sweater that the knitter was working on) at the opening ceremony, and finish it by the closing ceremony. Although I'm not starting with the opening ceremony, I'm going to use this opportunity to focus on the business side of coaching. I've written out my major goals, and steps I need to take each day to get there by the time the flame leaves Vancouver. Anyone else doing a Project Olympics?

Don't Be Afraid to Succeed

2010-02-09T08:55:00.002-07:00

This morning I was gifted with a great piece of advice; "Don't be afraid to succeed" said the man in the coffeeshop after I explained that I was really into mountain biking. Great wisdom is in that statement. It's as though we are afraid to truly excel, afraid to shake up our "this isn't so bad" lives, to change our "I'm doing pretty well" routine.

As I approach my layoff date of April 15th, I am reminded what a great opportunity my engineering job is doing for me by going away. I am learning so much as a coach and a person, I can't wait to truly be on my own!

USA Cycling Level 2 Coach

2010-02-08T12:38:00.002-07:00

Like life, the Level 2 Coaching Clinic recently held here in Colorado Springs gave more the more you worked at it. So, I sat in the front row, took lots of notes, and hopefully didn't annoy the instructors with too many questions. I loved going back to "school"! As a result, I am feeling even more confident in my capabilities and knowledge as a coach. I didn't realize until the clinic just how much experience I already had under my belt; Working with the Junior Talent ID camps, as well as having already coached an athlete through a very successful season has taught me much already. But the clinic was so much more than just classroom learning. I was lucky to meet and learn with many other coaches from around the country, as well as go on rides, show them the nightlife (well, you know, the Colorado Springs nightlife), and eat delicious food at the Olympic Training Center.
Now I'm busy applying all that I've learned as a coach with my growing number of athletes. Holy cow, this is exciting!

How do you ski over sixty inches of powder?

2010-02-03T18:07:00.003-07:00

At the risk of sounding trite, don't stop. I did, once, on this epic weekend at Wolf Creek. I sank up to my chest. Didn't make that mistake again.

Many thanks to my fellow Petoskian Kyle for being the most awesome dude and making the whole trip possible: Thanks Kyle, you rock!

The only downer? Hard to get photos when you sink in that deep. But here's a picture of the car (notice that we had to dig the doors out):

April 15th is coming up...

2010-01-08T11:08:00.003-07:00

For most Americans, including my Uncle Freddie, who is a very busy accountant, the Ides of April marks the tax deadline. But for me, this year, April 15th marks a life change. It will be my last day of employment as a salaried engineer at Ingersoll Rand. And I don’t intend to jump right back into the world of eight-to-five engineering. I miss the sunlight and my own free will too much for that. So, as I said in my initial job-loss celebration post, I’m expanding my coaching from my first experimental athlete (who killed it last season!!), to a full-time profession, as well as hopefully getting some income (and satisfaction) by teaching at the local University.
Since this is my first time starting a business, it’s already been a heck of an adventure, and I’m just getting started. What’s happened so far?

First, I announced I wanted to seriously pursue coaching. Just doing that jump started my business-forming activities. Several folks have expressed an interest in me coaching them, and several more have given me leads, and lots of good advice and direction. Thanks guys!
Next, I called up several folks I know who are in the coaching business. I was initially afraid. What if they begrudged the time they spent giving me advice? Or what if (the tiny voice said) they didn’t think I could do it? Well, of course these doubts were unfounded. I gained even more advice and direction from this set of folks. Again, thanks guys!
Also I signed myself up for USA Cycling’s Level 2 Coaching clinic, which is fast approaching. I’m looking forward to the learning, networking (yeah, networking is not usually my thing, but nerding out about bike stuff is, so I’m pretty sure I can “network” with this crowd), and yummy Olympic Training Center food.
I have lots of documentation on my to-do list as well. Some things, like outlining my expectations for both myself and athletes, are already done. Other things, like getting into the meat of my business plan…not so much. And that is vitally important.
Also in the near future: meeting with a SCORE counselor, getting Training Peaks up and running, and contacting several more people who have offered to help with advice and possible athlete recommendations. And then, countless other adventures and more stuff to learn.

At least I know I won’t be too bored in my off season!

Vacation

2010-01-01T11:04:00.003-07:00

Sorry about the lack of posting, I've been way out of he land of wifi; I’m currently in a vacation house in Sedona, Arizona. The weather is currently inclement, but I’ve managed to get a couple rides in. The flowing trails of Courthouse Butte satisfied the desire to challenge my ability to keep momentum, and the Chimney Rock trails have rocked the directly-out-the-back door-of-the-house-we’re-staying-in aspect. And then when it started snowing, I hiked up to a Vortex, which is apparently a new-age center of spiritual power. I don’t think I was properly tuned to pick up whatever vibrations were coming up, but I did get to test out the coefficient of friction of my Shimano dirt jump shoes on slickrock. More to come soon.

Oh, and Happy New Year to all!

The Off Season (a.k.a. Awesome Season)

2009-12-17T11:44:00.002-07:00

Racing is done. Now it's the off season!

I'm not excited to be off the bike. But I am excited to be free of structure; No training regimen, no specific orders for five whole weeks. Translation: I get to go skiing! and trail running! and play lots of racquetball! and all sorts of silly outdoors activities. Christmas tree cutting? Let's hike to the very farthest edge of the forest and drag the tree out. It snowed in Red Rocks park? I'm crunching through the snow in my hiking boots. We're overstuffed after the Thanksgiving feast and haven't even had the pie yet? The whole dinner party strolls over to the neighborhood elementary and commences a massive playground session.

I love the off season!

New 'Cross Bike!

2009-12-06T09:01:00.005-07:00

It's ben a long time coming, but I finally upgraded to a Redline Conquest Team frame, built up with all kinds of fancy Shimano parts. Holy cow is this bike LIGHT and FAST. I've already had a great time racing it--see my last post here. Now it's time to move into snow season, rock the commute on my new rig, and enjoy some sweet nordic and alpine skiing adventures. I love winter.

Last (and Most Awesome) Race of the Season!

2009-12-01T15:00:00.003-07:00

Yesterday I raced my shiny new bicycle (pictures of my build to follow-This picture is just off Redline's website) on the sickest course of the season. It was the last race of the season, the Colorado State Cyclocross Championships, and Mother Nature finally delivered for me! How? SNOW, ICE, and SNOTTY MUD :)

After several races that had potential to be snow races only to have them turn to packed in mud, I was despairing that I would ever have a chance to race the way I love it. And with temperatures in the 60(F)s early in the week prior to the last race of the season, it wasn't looking good. Then the temperatures plummeted.

I woke up Wednesday morning to a single digit weather report and I rejoiced. The thin snow of cold, empty air wisped down from the sky for the following days. By Saturday, I was looking at a course that had me seriously admiring the technicality of it. This course, loaded with off-camber snow, one very righteous descent, rutted packed snow/ice, and snotty mud rewarded the aggressive, the relaxed, and the just plain crazy. I know I felt all three at different points in the race. The race started, and I found myself sitting pretty at 10th of 22, way farther up than usual. For once, I didn't fade, holding my position, having a great time jockeying with a strong group, and being very stoked that I was staying with my friend Susan Prieto. Unfortunately, I paid the price for running the old style Shimano pedals, as the mud clogged my pedals and promptly froze into place (in Shimano's defense, this year's XTR pedals are head and shoulders better at shedding mud). I watched as my competitors powered away from me. Several times I tried to stand only to have my foot skate off the pedal and almost have a close encounter between my chamois and the top tube (scary!). But I persevered, telling myself that there was nothing to do about the pedals right then, so I should just concentrate on attacking and competing. All told, I ended up 15th, still a great place for me, and very happy.

Congratulations go out to Lisa Strong, the new women's Colorado State CX Champion, and Peter Webber, who won the Men's open. And thanks to the Colorado Veldrijden Crusade for putting together a great race!

Engineering update

2009-11-29T11:25:00.003-07:00

I'm sitting in Pike's Perk with my mom and friend Jesse, typing on my new Netbook. Yes, a netbook. Against all sense of self-preservation, I bought an ittle-bittle computer on Black Friday. Thankfully we only spent about 15 minutes in the big box store buying it.

Why buy a computer? Well, I found out recently that my engineering lab is closing April 16th, leaving me without a normal (engineering) job, and much worse, without my work computer.

So what am I going to do? Run and get another engineering job so I can buy a spiffy new car? Hopefully not. I'm working to get two sources of income. First, I'm trying to get a job teaching at the University level (I knew I suffered through that Master's for something!).

Second, as a few friends know, I've been increasing my coaching knowledge over the last year. I earned my USA Cycling level 3 coaching license, and coached my first athlete throughout the season, as well as coaching at USA Cycling's Talent ID Camps. Now I am enrolled in USA Cycling's Level 2 Coaching clinic and actively expanding my coaching business. So, I will keep you all informed as I make the transition over the next few months. Wish me luck as I prepare for April 17th!

Thanksgiving Holiday

2009-11-25T09:11:00.002-07:00

This week my Mom is here in Colorado Springs, visiting and generally making the holiday happen. On the agenda: Having all the "orphans" (folks like me who live in the Springs but don't have family here to spend Thanksgiving with) over for a real, sit down Thanksgiving dinner, racing cyclocross on Saturday, and generally enjoying sleeping in for four days straight. Hooray!

In other news, I've had a so-so cyclocross season. With just two more races left in the season, I'm fully motivated to make them count. I'll report back soon with race results.

Sickness + Racing = Pretty Fast, Actually

2009-11-09T14:58:00.002-07:00

I've been in and out this cross season. In mid-October a really nasty cold put me out of commission with a gurgling lung (yeah, icky). Just last week did I feel like I was coming back into form, and I was stoked for a double race weekend. I did all of my race prep Friday night, ate a good meal, and went to sleep early.....only to wake up with a migraine and promptly relieve myself of that meal. Again, icky.

And then I had a great moment. I thought, "I'm already at the bottom, anything I do today will be a win". So I drove up to Lafayette, entered the race, and got a respectable 14th in the Open class, right smack in the middle of the 3s (Categories 1, 2, and 3 commonly compete together here but are scored separately). Pretty darn good for a girl who couldn't keep her dinner down. Just goes to show you don't know what you can do until you try!

Fat Tire 2009

2009-09-08T14:34:00.004-06:00

Yeah, drive that cart! Lisa, Wiggidty, Lumberg and I

Let me give a piece of knowledge to you as a reward for reading my blog: Copper Harbor is the next mountain biking Mecca. Don’t believe me? Go and check it out for yourself.
Every year I snub my nose at the elite of Colorado’s races and instead fly back for this race that doesn’t even show up as a blip on the radar of the big name bike community. Why? Because the Keweenaw Fat Tire is hands-down the best race out there. You see, this race is about all the things that make mountain biking great. Not just racing. So, while it starts on a solid foundation of awesome by racing on some of the sickest and most flowing trails out there (and it starts at 2pm so we can all party hard the night before), it only builds from there. Because once the racing is done, there’s jumping off the dock into Lake Superior to clean up, all kinds of yummy food in the park (free!), the awards ceremony (and this year’s overall awards were beautiful – wheels constructed of birdseye maple rims laced with copper spokes and treaded with water rounded stones), and only then does the party just begin to roll. The bluegrass fires up on the awards stage, and beer flows (also free! Thanks Keweenaw Brewing Company!). We dance the night away under the stars and aurora borealis until finally the band collapses and the community slowly drifts to bed, only to wake up the next morning for one last chance to ride the trails.

All props to Sam Raymond, the progenitor of Copper Harbor riding, and all the folks who have taken up the torch throughout the years...Tony....Nels....Aaron...countless others.

Me and the hard working boys of Copper Harbor, Nelson and Tony

Oh yeah, I almost forgot. The woman who always creams me in this race (28 minutes faster than me last year) was there again. But this year I've been stepping it up a notch....and this race was proof positive for me; I finished four minutes and forty seconds behind her this year. And her time was two minutes faster than last year. w00t!

Mountain Bike Nationals

2009-08-04T09:35:00.003-06:00

So, yeah, I got a middle-of-the-road seventh in the cross country race when MTB Nats were recently held at Sol Vista, Colorado. I was fine with that performance, because the next morning I went out and won the Super-D. Granted, they wouldn't let me race in Pro (since I don't hold a Pro DH or XC license), so I just won my age category. But I rode and strategized well, so I'm happy with my win.

I do have a cool new jersey; USA Cycling gives you a Stars and Bars when you win at Nats. And if you win a gravity event, you get a sweet gravity style jersey. None of those sissy short sleeves and pockets for me!

I'll try to get some more photos, but for now, here's my lone podium shot.

Winter Park Double Race Report

2009-07-14T17:32:00.002-06:00

I'm keeping it short today, folks. Lots of racing going on, and Mountain Bike Nationals is just around the corner (this weekend!), with Paralympic Road Nationals less than two weeks later. So, here's the skinny: Last weekend I went back up to Winter Park for another two installments of their excellent race series. Saturday was the Valley Point-to-Point cross country race. I knew going in that the course would suite me; Twenty-four miles with only 2,600 feet of climbing. So I pushed hard on every climb I ran into, trusting that none of the climbs could be that long. It worked, because even with a stop to fix a loose saddle (yah, not comfy), I was able to win my category. But I'm not gonna get too cocky about it--I was creamed by some of the 30-39 age group ladies.
The next morning was Super-D, and I had a great race. Michelle Rivera, the pro downhiller, was kind enough to pre-ride with me, giving me a much better sense of how fast different obstacles could be ridden. Back on the lift for the start of the race. I sprinted for all I was worth in the starting uphill straightaway, ending up with Michelle and Sage Wilderman, both pro gravity girls. Surprisingly, I was able to keep them in sight for most of the race, loosing time on the wide-open speed sections, gaining time in the sprints, and staying even through the quasi-tech rocks. I finished 50 seconds behind Sage, and 10 seconds behind Michelle....in just over 22 minutes. What an epic Super-D!
Sweet course, Winter Park, way to go!

Winter Park Super Loop Race Report

2009-07-08T08:58:00.004-06:00

I’ve been a racing fiend lately. The Super Loop XC race in Winter Park was my first foray into the vaunted Winter Park Race Series. Let me report that the reputation is well-earned. There are heaps of volunteers out on course, the race is well-run and a reasonable cost, and the racers are very pleasant out on course. Oh, and it IS on Winter Park singletrack….can’t go too wrong.
It’s been awhile since I’ve ridden a course completely blind – no pre-ride. I’d looked at the course profile, so I had a rough idea how long each climb was. Unfortunately I didn’t know which climb I was on! Mentally it was tough to push myself without knowing where the tops of the climbs were. The mass start meant that I had no idea who was in my category, but I had plenty of folks out on course to ride with. I found myself settling into a rhythm, rather than constantly pushing myself like I did in the CTS Wednesday Night Race – see the race report here.
So I had a great time racing, but didn’t push particularly hard, and had no idea where I finished. I washed my (borrowed) bike and headed to my car to change and hang out a bit with Bobbi and Jon Watt. Pretty soon they told me there was free beer back at the finish line for racers. How did I miss that?? I headed back down for a beer and socializing, and while I was at it, I figured I’d check my times. I found my category on the results board, but couldn’t seem to find my name. That’s because I wasn’t expecting it at the top of the list. Yeah, I won my category. Random. They gave me a sweet pint glass to hold my free beer, yay! The overall wins went to Alison Powers and Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (better known as JHK).
To top off a fun day, I met some of my teammates from Mafia, and other folks from Boulder for deliceous fish tacos before heading to my lovely campsite by the river. Ahhh, the good life.

My nifty race winnings (and sweet team thermal!)

Wednesday Night CTS Race Report

2009-06-29T13:18:00.002-06:00

We have this little race series in the park on Wednesday nights in the nearby Bear Creek Park. It’s put on by Carmichael Training Systems, and is a fun, inexpensive training race that lots of folks turn out for.
The format is halfway between a short track and an XC race. Laps are about two miles, and we go out for 60 minutes + one lap. This is to say that after 60 minutes, no matter how many laps we’ve done, we stop after one more lap. Sound confusing? It could be, except the officials do a great job of yelling and ringing the bell to let us know we’re on our last lap.
Anyways, turned out I was the only one in my race category this week. No worries, as there were plenty of other folks out there to try and chase down. Within the first half-lap, it was clear that my friend Betty of the awesome Sunna Racing Team was going to be my rabbit (this term comes from dog racing….chase down the rabbit). She was always within a hundred meters or so. Strangely, I was catching her on the climbs, even though I was on a fairly heavy borrowed bike (I’m waiting for a replacement suspension part for my bike). She was pulling away on the descents, the opposite of how our riding styles usually interact. This yo-yo act continued throughout the race until our sixth and last lap. That’s when I fired the afterburners. I dug DEEP on the climbs and gained a lot of ground. Coming into the flats, Betty lapped another woman, Charlotte, in a nice open space. I caught Charlotte shortly thereafter in some tight corners. I was waiting for the pass when Charlotte went down hard. I paused to make sure she was ok, then sprinted to try and make up time. Closer and closer I got to Betty, pushing every corner and pedal I could. The finish line was 200m and I was in full wheezing sprint. 100m and she was so close. At the finish she was about 20 feet in front of me. Bummer to not catch her, but I’ve never put the chase on so hard for so long. Good practice!

And if you want to nerd out, more results here.

Crested Butte Race Report

2009-06-29T10:37:00.004-06:00

Sage Wilderman and I ham it up on the podium

Well, I was so busy with the USA Cycling Devo Camp (see my brief write-up below), that I forgot to pre-register for Crested Butte. Since I was now stuck with paying the $30 on-site registration fee (holy cow!), I opted out of Super-D and just signed up for the XC race. Arriving late Friday night, I crashed in the Crested Butte Grand Lodge with Nick from Shimano.
On Saturday I enjoyed a leisurely morning, pulling my kit (kit is the term for my team outfit that I wear racing, complete with chamois and jersey) on at 11:00 for my 12:30 start. The course had changed from last year, and we were set to do a grueling three laps. At the start line we took a vote and opted down to two laps, a decision which I am still glad we made. At the gun we took off on the first climb, which was vastly improved over last year’s climb. In the past we had to spin up this awful cat-track that was too steep to do anything but spin and suffer in the little ring. This year after a brief start alley to spread us out we climbed up on lovely singletrack switchbacks. Soon we were following contour lines around the mountain, occasionally hitting a switchback in the aspen forest and open fields of wildflowers. A few sections of downhill singletrack followed and we popped out on a short stint of brutal fire road. Wheeeeezzz Thankfully we got to point it downhill, and onto some very new singletrack. It was so bumpy and soft that it was clear that it had been cut that week. I couldn’t seem to focus (literally) and had a couple scares where I almost blew off the trail or into trees. I needed some calories. I popped out of this only to see Sarah Rawley, the leader of my race and super-cool girl on the side of the trail in obvious pain.
I stopped with her (as good racing karma dictates) and sent the next rider who went by to let a course marshal know that a rider was injured. Luckily the bike patrol was nearby, and in a very short time two fellows with the ubiquitous white cross on red jackets came hiking up. They were calm and knowledgeable, and quickly had Sarah on the way to the nearest cat-track so an SUV could carry her down. At this point I knew my race was over but figured I ought to finish my laps.
Here’s the crazy part. All that resting with Sarah had recharged me. I made it to the bottom and started my second lap in short order. The second climb I did completely in the middle ring. I was picking riders off on the climbs (!) so often that I lost track. I’ve never felt so good on a climb in the Mountain States Cup. Ever. I bombed into the second descent, determined to see if I could catch my friend Lauren, whom I knew was still ahead of me. I did, and ended up finishing in second! Granted, it wasn’t a very big field, but I still felt very proud to have attacked the second climb so well. More results here.
I checked in at the mountain First Aid. Turns out Sarah had broken her collarbone, and later required stitches in the bursa of her knee. She had urged me not to stop with her and finish my race, but with that list of injuries, I’m glad she wasn’t alone. And besides, I had a great race. Get well soon Sarah!

USA Cycling Junior Development Camp

2009-06-26T11:13:00.002-06:00

Right after the US Pro XCT Cup came through town, I turned around and worked as a coach/ride leader for USA Cycling's Devo camp.
What exactly does that entail? Sweet, sweet riding with a group of really talented riders between 14 and 19, along with presentations, lots of yummy food, and yeah, stupid human tricks. Who would've thought that all those idiotic talents unearthed while hanging out with climbers in college would be such a valuable coaching tool?
Anyways, after six straight days of riding and chilling with the juniors, I'm feeling super stoked about racing. Thanks to all the kids for the awesome riding!
My only regret? Not taking any photos all week. I'm ashamed of myself.

US Pro XCT Colorado Springs Race Recap

2009-06-24T15:36:00.004-06:00

On June 12th and 13th, for the first time ever, Colorado Springs hosted one of the National Mountain Bike Series Races. That meant our town, already home to many great mountain bikers, was flooded with even more. It was almost disorienting watching Adam Craig, Katerina Nash and the like racing short track at my favorite, I-just-want-to-hit-a-little-singletrack-while-my-rice-cooks-loop at Bear Creek Park.
Ironically the XC (cross country) race was at Cheyenne Mountain State Park, somewhere I'd never ridden before. So much for the hometown advantage! But on the day of the big race, many familiar faces appeared, including some of my co-workers. Thanks for the cheers, guys! Having an audience sure helps me push myself.
Also, big thanks to Nick Murdick from Shimano for the pics!
Anyways, my race (Cat 1 Women, aka Expert Women) went off promptly at 10:30. The course started out with a wide open climb, narrowing down to progressively more technical singletrack climbing. Then we turned around and pointed downhill through progressively less technical singletrack. First lap felt like a repeat of Angel Fire; Get dropped on the sit-and-spin climbs, then gain a little ground as it got technical, and pass a bunch of people on the descent. Lap 2, more of the same. Lap 3, push it a bit harder on the climb since I know I'm almost done. Then, on the descent, with less than a mile to go, I recognize one of the other regular competitors from the Mountain States Cup. I've never caught her before. I pass her on a technical step-up, then PIN IT to stay ahead. Woohoo! 6th place of 11, not bad, still improving though.
In the Pro Women's field, Katherine Pendral beat out Katie Compton in a sprint finish (pretty imressive). Max Plaxton took the Pro Men's field. For more results, go here.

Angel Fire Race Recap

2009-05-29T09:39:00.009-06:00

Angel Fire, home of a sweet race that happens every year over Memorial Day weekend. The holiday means that practices and races are spread out over three days instead of two, allowing everyone the time to relax and enjoy themselves.

No one did a better job of that than my new team, Mafia. I drove in late Friday night with my good friend Will, arriving at the HUGE house our team manager and dreamer, David, found for us. I found a place to sleep and woke the next morning to the downhillers getting ready for their early morning practice. The endurance weenies (myself included) took a leisurely start to the day. Slowly I made my way through registration, then got myself suited up for some practice runs on the Super-D.

Holy cow! The Super-D was truly Super-Downhill! At first I was hesitant on the very rocky course, but as the drizzle continued to soak the trail, I was more and more confident. Three practice runs and it was time to go watch the Short Track. My teammate and friend Lindsey put in a great fourth place in the Pro division. We all headed back to the team house, and minor chaos ensued in the kitchen as folks prepared their meals. Props to the downhill dudes for exploring exactly how much pasta can fit into one pot. Hooray for surface tension!

Sunday- Race day. At ten thirty I arrived for my XC race start, warmed up and well prepped. The first climb (2000' of nonstop climbing) was brutal, but I managed to keep a couple ladies in sight, quickly passing them on the downhill. I was revelling in the 5" of travel on my new bike, Loki (a Felt Virtue). I started back up for the second climb, and it struck me that Angel Fire actually has a pretty sick climb. You're either going pretty fast in the middle ring, or you're on some super-tech rocky singletrack. No soul-crushing little ring slogs up open fire roads!

Again I hit the top, knowing that all I had to do was drop the two thousand feet I'd just climbed and I'd be done. I tore down the descent, hoping to catch a few women like I had the last lap, but it was not to be. A little disappointed I headed to the house to rest and recover for the Super-D.

At the homestead I absolutely killed this massive salad, licking the plate clean of dressing (hey, I know, not exactly normal recovery food, but apparently I needed it). I laid around a little, but soon it was time to hop on the lift and race again.

The race organizers keep inventing more sadistic ways for us to start Super Ds. This time we started by kneeling in the grass with one elbow on the start line, taking off at the gun to pick up our bikes laying across the field. Lynn Bush of Tough Girls joked that we should all put our foreheads on baseball bats and do ten circles before starting.

Anyways, I didn't do a good job of getting after the run, allowing myself to be pushed into a sign. Second-to-last out of the start I hopped on my bike trying not to be sketched out by the wide-open, rock, and treacherously rutted fire road that kicked off the course. Having survived that I entered the sweet rocky singletrack, taking each line as I'd practiced on Saturday. Coming to the technical crux of the course, I saw the girl in front of me dab off her bike. Ready for this to happen, I jumped off and started sprinting downhill through the rocks. I passed her, but soon was passed by my teammate Lindsey. Trying to stay on, I pushed as the course went from downhill rocky to enduro-fast. We all aired out on the mini tabletops across the trail at the bottom, and soon I was entering the final stretch. I could hear the clanking of a competitors bike behind me, and all I could think was, "There is NO WAY this girl is gonna beat me." We tore down the open fire road. Ahead was the last corner, leading into the brief sprint stretch to the finish line. Neck and neck we came into the corner. I braked, HARD. She was ahead of me out of the corner. People were screaming my name, thinking I was losing.

But I was winning.

You see, I'd dropped about seven gears before I'd hit the corner. She'd kept her high gear to pass me through the corner, but it was too hard to pedal down the finish stretch. In my easier gear, I stood up and SPRINTED past her. All said and done, I ended up in 8th place of 13 starters, learning the tough lesson about getting after my starts and being more aggressive throughout the race. But I had a great time, the course was the sweetest Super D I've ever been on.

And the other piece of sweetness? I found out that I'd gotten 4th in my XC race, better than I'd thought. I didn't realize it, but apparently I'd passed a couple of my competitors on the initial descent. Woot.

Finally, it was time to party. With Short Track, XC, and SD out of the way, us endurance weenies were done and ready to enjoy a wonderful member of the Mafia Family (sponsor), Pabst Blue Ribbon. Well earned!

A few inspiring links

2009-05-17T12:23:00.003-06:00

I added a couple of my favorite inspirations to the sidebar of this blog. Scroll down and you'll see the section of links on the right.
In other news, the weather is starting to warm up in the Springs, and so is the riding. Yesterday I broke out of the cross country groove and did shuttled downhill runs on a big bike. BRAAP! (that's a motorcycle noise for those of you who aren't familiar with Lee McCormack). I was incredibly stoked. Four runs down the local DH (downhill) favorite, I35, and we started to get a little sloppy on handling, calling it quits for the day. But when I got home I was feeling great from all the DH, so I headed out on my new XC rig for a second ride. The highlight? Finally nailing this drop in Red Rocks park that I've chickened out on every ride in the past. SWEET. Hooray for big DH bikes and body armor for building confidence!

Back from US Paralympic Cycling camp

2009-05-02T12:56:00.003-06:00

Let me say first: Being included with the amazing athletes at the Paracycling camp was the greatest highlight of my unorthodox cycling career.

Camp was for me a total immersion in the world of high level cycling, as well as learning a lot about disabled athletes. It was overwhelming, but thankfully, riding bikes has a fantastic way of making all of my worries go away. Each day we woke, ate (fantastic food at the OTC!), then rode 3-4 hours. Lunch (again, soooo good), then off to the velodrome, or if we were lucky, a little down time and a recovery ride. Dinner and socializing closed out the night.

The first day was the most tense; The time trial (TT) out Otay Lakes road loomed large. Both Carrie and I knew this was our golden opportunity to show our drive to the coaches, and to hopefully make the emerging time standard. We had done one TT a few weeks ago in Denver to see where we stood. We averaged a respectable 1:49 per kilometer, but had a ways to go before we hit the 1:43.8 of the emerging standard. But nervously waiting at the start of the TT, we knew we had a good chance.....and off we went! We pushed hard, occasionally frustrated by the shifting on our borrowed tandem. A little over 24 minutes later we crossed the finish line.

Our time per kilo? 1:39. We made the emerging standard!

Next up, making the talent pool time of 1:33.1. It's great to have goals :)

My only two regrets from camp? Having to leave early (stupid work), and not taking enough photos. But I got a couple good shots with my roomates:

My roommate Susan Katz (so fast!) and I

Me and my suitemates Erica and Tara--I lucked out to have such awesome roommies.

Going to Chula Vista OTC

2009-04-21T09:07:00.002-06:00

Being the sighted pilot of a paralympic tandem is starting to ramp up: This Friday, Carrie and I will be heading to the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center for the Paralympic Cycling Camp. We'll be riding, learning about paralympic cycling and fitting in a time trial or two in the process. I'm excited and nervous. The only bummer? Work requirements are preventing me from staying for the entirety of the camp. I'll try to update as the camp proceeds. Wish us luck on our first TT (time trial) on Saturday!

Ah, Petoskey, my hometown

2009-04-17T16:42:00.003-06:00

Tandem Racing

2009-04-14T17:00:00.002-06:00

Where to start...
Earlier this year, I was approached to be a training partner and pilot for Carrie Willoughby, a paralympic swimmer who wants to make the switch over to cycling.
Pilot, you say? I know, we're on bikes, not planes. But Pilot is the term for the person on the front of a tandem, and Stoker is the term for the person on the back.
So Carrie and I have been going out on a few training rides over the last two months, getting a feel for each other and how we ride. Last Wednesday we did our first race together, the first of the Cherry Creek TT series. It was a ~10.5mi road time trial. Both of us were poorly rested and really stressed out, but we managed a respectable 30:41. Next time, I'd like to be 7% faster.
But results aside, I had a great time racing with Carrie. Having company on the bike actually made the Time Trial (dare I say it?) fun. Usually a TT is just pure suffer-fest, but this rocked.
Anyways, I'm keeping it brief, but stay tuned for more updates as we see where all this crazy tandem riding can lead.

Vail powder

2009-01-30T09:34:00.002-07:00

Last weekend was a true joy. Companionship with my friend Tim, drinks, then 20" of new snow at Vail on Sunday, with a big crowd of folks. Coffee, yummy food, and a good heart-to-heart rounded out the weekend. I love the winter.

Ski Mountaineering

2009-01-18T09:53:00.020-07:00

I have a new love, and it is ski mountaineering.
When I first moved out to Colorado, a friend told me about his trip skinning up and then skiing down Quandary Peak. I've been dreaming of it ever since, and this weekend I finally did it.

Quandary Peak (photo from 14ers.com)

It was 11AM when my friend Tim and I left the Monte Cristo Trailhead (elevation 10,800'), an absurdly late hour to start climbing a mountain. Tim reminded me that I was thinking in "summer mode", when the daily afternoon thunderstorm endangers anyone trapped high on the mountains.

Monte Cristo Trailhead

Under a bluebird sky, we set out on a well-travelled ski track. Within the hour we hit the edge of treeline, and got our first good view of the snow conditions. Above us, the snowpack was thin, occasionally revealing rocks, but assuaging our avalanche concerns. Moving along the east ridge, we were soon above the reliable snow. But we chatted with a couple guys on their way down. They had boot packed up the ridge, then skied the north-east bowl back down. Great news!
With the promise of good turns in our future, we strapped our skis to our packs and boot hiked ever higher. Above 13,000 feet the ridge steepened, and I worked hard to keep up with Tim. We persevered, and suddenly we crested onto the summit traverse. A few quick steps, and we stood at 14, 265 feet above sea level. We enjoyed the view, savored a victory chocolate, snapped a couple summit shots, and unstrapped our skis.

Tim eyes the summit

Following the route recommended by our fellow skiers earlier, we schussed down a thousand feet of the east facing bowl. Even though the snow was rock-solid, forced into bizarre contortions by the winds, we were grinning. Tough snow meant aggressive turns--I suppose it was the satisfaction of meeting the challenge that had me stoked.

The East Bowl (photo from 14ers.com)

Our skis went back on our packs in order to climb out of the bowl. We sped across the high, bare section the ridge we had ascended, Soon we were back on the snow and in our skis. Expecting more hardpack, we were ecstatic to discover the south-east face of our descent was perfect sun-softened snow. Tim led, laying down telemark turns in perfect rhythm, whooping for joy. I followed, closing his turns into a figure-8, losing myself in the movement.

Five and a half hours after leaving the car, we skied up to the doors, dumped our packs, and headed home.

Summit Shot

Jose (pronounced Joe-Zay) is coming to town!

2008-12-31T14:45:00.004-07:00

Time for some quality adventures; Joe and Alicia are visiting! First on the agenda: Nordic skiing in Breckinridge. Followed by (hopefully) some ridiculousness on tandem bicycles and possibly something cultured (ha!), like the art musuem.
This photo is Joe in the natural state. I don't have a photo of him looking like this with Alicia (if you were her, would you want to photographed with him looking this crazy? Didn't think so.)

Powder Days

2008-12-28T11:20:00.002-07:00

Ahhh, powder trees. Oooooozing through turns in hip deep fluffiness, floating through the forest on fat skis. That was my Christmas. I miss my family, but I'll be back to good old Petoskey in January. Until then, I renewed my soul out in the woods.

Cyclocross Nationals Race Report

2008-12-28T10:39:00.002-07:00

I came into 'Cross Nats knowing that bad weather was my friend. Muck and snow are my allies, slowing my competitors down and boosting my handling skills. But it was not to be; By the time my race rolled around on Sunday, what had been a muddy mess on Thursday had dried to solid, superbly tacky dirt. Bummer.
To make matters worse (for me at least), the course featured a very strange element (for a cyclocross track): The first mile of the course was a long, gradual, sustained climb. Double bummer! Long climbs were my undoing this mountain bike season, and to have one featured at Cross Nats, in a discipline famously free of anything but brief, powerful ups, was a huge disappointment to me.
Well, I had a few doubts after pre-riding on Saturday and discovering the course complemented none of my strengths but all of my weaknesses. I buried these doubts and prepped for Sunday.
Race day dawned warm. We left the hotel at 10am in 60F weather, freakishly warm for Kansas City in December. It didn't last. Temperatures dropped so fast that I was forced into the trainer tent to do my warm up; Even with multiple layers, I couldn't keep my hands warm out on the road. Soon it was call-ups, and I heard my name waaayyy earlier than I would've expected. I listened, and when they called again, I rolled up to a start position that I had no business being in. I expressed my discomfort to one of the senior level racers I knew, who reassured me that I must have somehow gotten some points at Portland.
Off we went, and I was already wheezing up the long climb. Not good. I couldn't seem to get any air in, and soon I faded off the back. Thank goodness for supportive spectators, they make a crappy race worthwhile. With one to go, I was lapped and pulled, and left to face the fact that of 73 riders who finished, I was 73rd. How ignominious. And frustrating, to have Nationals be my worst race of the year. I can't pretty that up, can't make that look good. And I have always stepped up a huge notch at my biggest races, not down. Ah well.
Unsurprisingly my teammate Katie Compton won the race, followed by Georgia Gould and Rachel Lloyd. Ryan Trebon took the Men's Elite race, with Jamie Driscoll having the ride of his life and Jonathen Page filling out the podium.

I'm at Cyclocross Nats!

2008-12-13T15:57:00.002-07:00

Wish me luck, folks. I race with the Elites (yikes!) at 12:30 Central Time. For anyone who is frustrated with my slow posting, results are posted almost real-time at the race website: kccrossnationals.com. Sadly, I let this blog languish a little during major races; Balancing a full time engineering job with bike racing is tough. But, since this race is my final race of the season (YAY!), I'll be sure to get my race report up soon!

Portland Race Report: USGP #6

2008-12-11T10:58:00.007-07:00

Here I am at Cyclocross Nationals, still trying to finish my write-up of Portland, yikes!
As I mentioned in my last post, I did some soul searching on Saturday night. Somehow, even though I'd gotten creamed by the field, I felt like Saturday's race only made me stronger. I knew there was more that I could give; That I could look farther ahead through every corner; Dig deeper through every painful breath; Push myself to the point where even pain doesn't exist.

Well, it rained that night, and sporadically through Sunday. The Juniors suffered through pouring rain. For the first time in my cycling career, I warmed up on a trainer under a tent. The combination of cold air and a downpour made warming up on the open road a bad idea. It was mostly the same course as Saturday, with a couple different mud sections and an exhausting sand/mud run-up. But though the course hadn't moved, all that rain transformed it. Formerly solid ruts became beautiful mud, an open canvas for making my own line. REAL MUD, YAY!

Nervous..., but reassured by having survived Saturday's race, I lined myself up along the right side behind Kelli Emmet, knowing that she would be a good wheel to follow out. That proved to be a good call, as I found myself well situated in the starting sprint given my last place call up. We settled into the race after the first couple corners. Working to stay continually aggressive, I focused on chasing the woman in front of me rather than fending of the girls behind. Mud was a massive advantage; Though I have much to improve on, I'm consistently better than the women around me in mud and snow. Didn't hurt that the crowd loved anyone who could ride the up-down-up hairpin in the mud. Which I did every lap :)

But even better than the crowd were the voices of my friends. Tarnow, Rollert, Willie, the Butlers, and the awesome kids from Colorado Springs and the USA Cycling camps that I helped out with shined through the haze of my fatigue. You guys rock!!

Anyways, I ended up with a quality finish 26th, and a real hunger to keep pushing it for 'cross Nats. Even sweeter was my host's killer race: Sue Butler was third AND awarded the Most Aggressive Rider, for which she earned a mega-size check--so cool!

For the excellent Velonews write up, click here.

Portland Race Report: USGP #5

2008-12-09T11:35:00.005-07:00

Friday evening I flew into Portland, home of the most intense cyclocross scene this side of the Atlantic, looking forward to some crazy spectators, racing with friends, and a whole lot of mud.

In an act of pure insanity... , I decided to race in the Elites at the Portland Cup. At the UCI races in Boulder, I had opted to race in the Category 3s, and was disappointed that the field was only 8 women! Most of the other Cat 3s had chosen to race in the Elites. So for Portland I figured I would ride with the big girls, and have more competition. Except, as I watched the women's non-elite race go off with about 45 riders, that I realized I had chosen poorly. Turns out that no one in Portland had wanted to buy a UCI license, and so had raced the lower category. Crap. That meant that the only folks I'd be racing with were the real deal: national level pros. I turned up at the start line feeling decidedly out of place but telling myself that I would just have to ride my own race, and give everything to hang on. Luckily Georgia, Kelli, and some of the other big dogs had great words of support for me.

The gun went off, and we sprinted down the straightaway. At the first corner, I already found myself working hard to stay near the back of the pack. I hung on for the first lap, and then dangled farther and farther back with a few other girls as the race continued. Yet even as I slipped into last place, the crowd in Portland was screaming away for me; What a sensation! Racing in better-than-thou Colorado Springs made me forget how incredible supporters can be-- yelling for the sorry girl in last place as though I were leading the race. Yet even though I was in last, I was having a great time! The course rocked-a huge mudpit (yeah, there's lots of mud in Portland, even when it's 50 degrees and sunny), part of a moto track, and lots of sweet, semi-muddy, off-camber corners. I was lapped (with encouraging words from the lead girls, thanks ladies!), and pulled with one lap to go. I was bummed to earn last place, but not too down on myself; I was grateful for having another reminder of just how much I have to keep pushing myself at every moment.

Velonews did a great write-up of the race here. My host, and totally awesome lady Sue Butler, sprinted for fourth place, with Katerina Nash, Georgia Gould, and Rachel Miller taking the top three.

After the race I headed to all you can eat sushi (most incredible recovery food ever) and had a great time hearing about my friends' races. Then I did some soul searching and got ready for my comeback on day 2 of the Portland Cup.

Big Races in the Next Two Weeks!

2008-12-03T13:38:00.002-07:00

This weekend, I fly to Portland, Oregon for the last of the Gran Prix races. Here's hoping for lots of mud! Check the website here.
Next weekend is Cyclocross Nationals. Wish me luck!

Cyclocross in the Snow

2008-12-01T14:27:00.003-07:00

Riding bikes in snow = happy Lianna.

I snagged this photo off the Blue Sky Velo website (Click here for a great race recap from these fellas), hopefully I'm not infringing any copyrights :( But the last race of November needed a good photo. It was snowy, reaaaally technical (I ate it a few times in the snow/ice) and all over awesome. I thrive in bad weather. When everyone else is miserable, I'm happy. And when my competitors are miserable, they don't go fast. Keeping with my classic strength, I was second out of the start (behind powerhouse Amy Dombrowski). I let my friend Lindsey Bishop by, then slowed the whole pack down at the start of the singletrack. Who says 'cross doesn't have tactics? I was passed a few times, but caught back on to Willa, who was leading the Cat 3s, with two laps to go. She was struggled in the technical portion (read: snowyicydeath) and I was poised to jump off her wheel, but on the last lap, she put the nitro in and I didn't pass her. Overall, I landed in 8th place, and 2nd place in Cat 3. A good result for me.

Pikes Peak Supercross Race Report

2008-11-26T15:09:00.001-07:00

Thanks all who came out to cheer for me! I worked very hard to earn an overall 8th place in small but very talented field. Guess racing here in the Springs gave the home course advantage to yours truly :)

Fall riding

2008-11-26T14:53:00.003-07:00

...just a few pics from fall adventure rides...

Ted and Will look heroic

Myself, Will, and Mary.

Ted Jalabert

Cyclocross Begins in Earnest

2008-10-27T17:36:00.002-06:00

As some of you have seen, I was lucky enough to be a ride leader for USA Cycling’s National Talent Identification camp. In short, I (along with pro racer Lindsey Bishop, Carmichael Coach Ryan Kohler, and USA Cycling’s lead mountain bike devo man, Marc Gullickson) took some extremely talented (and speedy) juniors for rides, skill work, and lectures.
Did I mention they were fast? These kids made me work HARD to ride with them.
The unexpected benefit? A massive mental breakthrough. When I thought I was pushing my boundaries all this season…I wasn’t. Now I know what pushing it begins to feel like…and for some reason, it hurts less. Instead of dwelling in the misery that I lived in during every mountain bike race, the so-called pain cave that racers revel in, I now look up, at the next woman that I know I’m going to catch, and it doesn’t hurt to chase her down. At my first race after the camp, I started from the dead last start position. I passed thirty-two women. At yesterday’s race I was fifth amongst the Cat 3s, 23rd overall. A far cry from the dead last in Cat 3s that I got in the race right before the camp. I’m looking forward to pushing myself even further. And the perfect opportunity approaches: The Boulder Cup. As a UCI race, it’s an opportunity for all the pros to get international level points. For the rest of us, it’s a banner race, and one of the few times when my category gets to race separately from the pro women’s field. In other words, it is a chance for me to see where I really stack up in my field, without worrying about poor start positions or other riders on course. Wish me luck!

Back in the saddle

2008-10-14T13:47:00.002-06:00

Since my last post, I've ridden the Monarch Crest, worked with the Junior National Development Camp (think realllllly fast teenagers), and mostly taken a break from competing.
After working with the speedy kids (and some super speedy adults), I'm stoked and ready for 'cross season. First up: Xilinx, this weekend.

A little time off between seasons...

2008-09-20T10:56:00.003-06:00

Hi all,
Since mountain biking came to a close for me at the Fat Tire (see my previous post...second overall!), I've been taking things a little easier. The end of the season found me dangerously close to burnout. It's strange to think that the Fat Tire, which once heralded the start of racing for me as Collegiate season began, is now the end.
It was a tough season, without many high points. I did respectably in Super-D, but no wins. Cross country....well, getting on the podium at Nationals was a big victory for me. The loooonnnng climbs of Colorado racing don't favor me one bit. I feel as though something is not quite right with my health, but I haven't been able to figure out the cause yet. Chasing phantoms, I guess.
With the weight of a long racing season weighing on my mind and body, I've taken a well deserved rest. Still riding, but with no particular direction. Commuting to work, running errands, mountain biking with friends on fun trails...conspicuously lacking from that list are intervals, heart rate monitors, or time limits. I'm also letting my mind recover. Balancing a full-on engineering career and racing at a high level leaves me with very little time for myself. So my Mom has come to visit, and I have taken the time I usually devoted to riding and thinking about bikes, and I've spent it exploring Colorado Springs with her.
Cyclocross season is approaching, but I have one more week of freewheelin before I buckle down again. Until then, I apologize for my lack of posts. See you all in 'cross season!
-Lianna

Copper Harbor

2008-09-09T14:02:00.002-06:00

Ahhhhhhhh...Copper Harbor. I'll let the pictures speak.

MSC #8 Race Report: Short Track and Cross Country

2008-09-06T10:30:00.002-06:00

Man, did I have a tough race weekend. Short Track? Second from last. Cross Country? Second from last. My only consolation is that I went into XC with the intention of just riding (not racing) after my dismal performance in ST. So I put in the two slowest laps in the field...then on the third lap I lit a fire under my rear and put in the hottest lap in the field. Guess I just needed a good warm up.
The weekend wasn't a total bust, even though I raced poorly; I kept up my habit of meeting interesting folks at races, and thoroughly enjoyed riding a sweet XC course. I just didn't ride it very fast. :)

Happy Birthday to Me

2008-08-20T10:21:00.003-06:00

Yup, it's my birthday. I'm having friends over for Super Special (vegetarian) French Onion Soup, to socialize, watch the Olympics and generally have a good time. So, if you're reading this and are somewhere near the Colorado Springs area, drop on by!

Race Report: Boulder Roubaix

2008-08-19T10:36:00.003-06:00

The namesake of the Boulder Roubaix, the Paris-Roubaix (pronounced Pair-ee Roo-bay, making sure to give it a little nasal Frenchie flair), is the sufferfest of the pro tour for roadies. Famous for its cobblestones, it bucked Georgie Hincapie when his fork sheared off in one of the more rattly sections. Yikes!
So the Boulder Roubaix is like the kid sister imitating her European big brother. Cobblestones are replaced by chatterbump dirt roads. Riders complete multiple laps instead of multiple days. To me, this race sounded like my chance to give some roadies a run for their money. And then it rained. For days. Multiple days of rain in Colorado happens about as often as Hale-Bopp, so I worried that the organizers would cancel the race. But the day came and about ten hardy souls lined up in the Womens 1/2/3 race (my license says Category 4 on the road, but no one argued when I entered). Our instructions were to stay warm, and do five laps, totaling a little over 40 miles. Temperatures were hovering around 50F, and the rain never stopped. The race started, and I felt fine with the pack. Then as we started to accelerate, trouble! My rear derailleur wouldn’t move. I watched the field as I, trapped in my easiest gear, spun madly. Finally whatever rock or grit that was causing the issue cleared out, but by then I was playing catchup. I caught up to another girl coming into lap three, where she promptly flatted. She didn’t have an inflator, and figuring that anyone who was brave enough to show up for this race deserves to finish, I gave her mine. With two laps to go, we were chatting away, swapping leads depending on who felt strong (me up hills, her down hills), when we came through to start lap four. That’s when they stopped us. They pulled everyone early, really early. Bewildered to be finished already, we stood around for a little while. That’s when the cold started to sink in. Mara Abbott won our category, and my friends Kate and Lindsey put in strong finishes. An ignominious sprint back to Kate’s house found hot showers for all, and a strange finish to a strange race.

MSC #6 Race Report: Cross Country

2008-08-18T14:18:00.000-06:00

Hot, hot, hot. Black kit + racing at noon + low heat tolerance = heat stroke. I drank A LOT of water and mix (think Gatorade) out on course, but by my final lap, I started to get the chills, nausea, sluggish thinking. I was out of water. It finally penetrated my hazed brain that I needed to cool off, so I grabbed a couple random bottles from the trailside and drank them down. Then when I reached the aid station, I did something I’ve never done: I stopped during the race. I downed two bottles without a break, which I’m not sure I could do normally. I felt a heckuva lot better, and went on to finish, even managing to stay out of last spot. Hooray for 7th place!
A thunderstorm with clouds so thick you could take a bite out of them rolled in during the pro’s race, ending it early as lightening splintered the ridgeline trail. The early finish left Judy Freeman of the Tough Girl squad and Ross Schnell of Trek VW in the top podium spots.

MSC #6 Race Report: Moustache Cup

2008-08-13T15:28:00.002-06:00

A picture is worth a thousand words. Yes, that is my real hair. Yes, it is still attached. How does it stay? Toupee tape (the ladies at the costume shop recommended it). Yes, lots of guys hit on me while I had that on (which is a little weird/scary)….but maybe they were just after my winnings: I’m now the proud owner of a season bike pass to Sol Vista, ROCK! And I finally made it on PinkBike!

MSC #6 Race Report: Intergalactic Pump Track Championships

2008-08-13T09:38:00.002-06:00

The gang was all there, from groms to World Champions. Mike (the main dude, and nice guy, from MSC) announced and two USA Cycling officials were on course to do the timing (yeah, that’s right, we were sanctioned!) My friend Will (check out his report from the race here) and I lined up with forty or so other folks. Boyce did an exhibition lap, and then we all did our timed runs. Representing the ladies were myself, Mo Hein, and Bobbi Watt (you have to make motorcycle noises out of her name when she’s riding, like this: WAAATTT WAAAAATTT). Representing the fellas were many many folks, including Lee McCormack (he literally wrote the book on pump tracks), and Brian Lopes, World Champion.
After our initial runs, we were split into A and B groups to do our final runs. I was definitely B group, but Bobbi killed it into the As, along with Will and all the fast dudes. The outcome? Will was solidly in the center of the As, with Lopes adding Intergalactic Pump Track Champion to his host of titles, Lee and Bobbi following him up.

MSC #6 Race Report: Super-D

2008-08-06T14:02:00.003-06:00

Racing Super-D rocked this season! It's a discipline I do reasonably well in, and enjoy the process of improving myself. Where some of my cross-country competitors scoff at working on skills, and would rather go ride up endless hills as training, I go to the dirt jumps and the pump tracks. Now, I'm nothing special on either, but it's a helluva lot more fun than... suffering up some endless fire road.
Anyways, the last Super-D of the Mountain States Cup was this weekend, and it was definitely big-bike friendly. Nothing unridable on my little XC rig, but rocks and braking ruts the would've been more fun on a bigger bike. The course started out with a parade lap around the top of the ski hill, with a moto-cross style backward LeMans start (when the gun went off we were literally sitting on our front tires. crazy!) I hit the singletrack in second, holding on until about a third of the way down. A moment of lost concentration, and I was in the dirt. Unhurt but further behind, I finished my run for a final place of 4th. This also cinched my second place for the Super-D Series. Yay.
But, watch for more posts from me, because I redeemed myself somewhere amongst the Intergalactic Super-D Championships, Cross Country Races, and Moustache Cup.

Location and Fitness: What's the correlation?

2008-07-29T13:14:00.004-06:00

Colorado Springs was rated America's Fittest City by Men's Fitness magazine. This is based on obesity rates, number of open spaces, and many other factors (Randomly, I was quoted in the article. You can read my gems of wisdom here). The city also just earned a Silver Level Bicycle Friendly Community from the League of American Bicyclists.
So we do well in general fitness and in cycling. It would be hard not to with... three hundred days of sunshine a year, Pike's Peak in our collective backyards, and the Olympic Training Center in town. But what about walking? The older a city is, the more it is designed with walking in mind. Makes sense; A town created before cars were common has better infrastructure for pedestrians. So I went to Walk Score and entered my address. I live on the west side of Colorado Springs, in an older neighborhood, about a mile from downtown, with a major grocery store less than a mile away, and many amenities (gas, school, clothing stores, restaurants) even closer. Pikes Peak puts a hard stop to sprawl on the west side, meaning everything is on a smaller scale. So what was the score? 63 on a scale of 100, or somewhat walkable according to the website scale. Personally, I think my location is even better: my street is a designated bicycle route, and a few blocks' ride puts me into both the huge mountain biking and commuting trail networks. Also, I'm within a dozen blocks of two libraries and two farmer's markets. But it is a bit of an uphill hike to the grocery store.
Anyways, in a fit of curiosity I entered a random address from the suburban sprawl up on the northeast side of town. No mountain exists on the east side to keep the McMansions to a minimum. The score? 14 of 100, "car-dependent". Ouch.

2nd in Super D at Nats!

2008-07-23T16:51:00.003-06:00

Sorry, no podium shot. My camera ran out of batteries as I walked up to get my medal. But you get the idea.
Honestly, I'm a little disappointed. I was really trying for first (and a long sleeved Stars-and-Bars, the national champion's jersey). But I rode well, especially considering that the weather was perfect. You see, it's a well known fact that I shine when the weather is bad. But when it's good....well, mixed bag. Anyways, I have a 2nd place medal from the Expert 19-29 Super D to join the 5th place medal I earned in cross country.

Fifth at Nationals!

2008-07-19T15:56:00.002-06:00

I took fifth place in my age group in Expert Class Cross Country today. Tomorrow is Super-D, wish me luck!

MSC #5 Race Report: Super-D

2008-07-19T15:53:00.002-06:00

Sunday’s Super-D came early for me. Typically I’m up early and warmed up for racing, but this time, I opted to drink coffee and try and wake up from a really poor night’s sleep. I definitely prefer when we have a chance to get just a little course time in before we race Super-D. But for the Snowmass race, the lifts weren’t open before the race, mostly because the race started early, and this was because the Super-D and Downhill courses overlapped. In any case, I hopped the lift to the race start, which consisted of about 100m dash over uneven cat track to where our bikes lay. As at Crested Butte, I was not particularly quick off the gun, but I let my long legs carry me through the crowds so that I was second to the bikes. I held that position through a brief cat track descent (scary on my little XC bike!), then entered the singletrack. The course was really heavy on the singletrack and light on the pedaling. The former meant that it was difficult for anyone else to pass me, the latter made it difficult for me to try and catch the more downhill-oriented girl who was holding first and gain ground on the ladies on bigger bikes right on my tail. So I just tried to stay calm and not crash out on the singletrack, saving myself to sprint every open section. Good tactics, but I just wasn’t riding my finest. I needed that warm-up run to wake my brain up to shredding. Anyways, the course widened out as we funneled into the bottom of the downhill course. There, through a treacherous section of loose babyheads (deadly rocks about the size of, say, a baby’s head that like to shift unexpectedly), I was fairly passed by the woman behind me. Unwilling to go any faster through the choss, I finished five seconds behind her in third. Not a bad place, a podium spot, but still not the win I’m capable of.

MSC #5 Race Report: Cross Country

2008-07-19T15:42:00.002-06:00

Everyone agrees: The toughest part of the Snowmass cross country course is the infamous second climb, up what is known as the Powerline Trail. We didn’t hit it until our second lap, after doing a short lap first, omitting the Powerline. The long, second lap gave us some sweet, sweet time on the Government Trail (whose fame is well-deserved). But riding the long lap last meant that our final act, after climbing up Snowmass twice and riding the Government, was the brutal, unforgiving, and seemingly unending last climb out. That painful trail leaves every rider mentally drained and incapacitated. Long story short, I ended up last place...but with a good time. I guess we had a solid field this weekend.
Pro Women went to Dellys Starr of the Dale's Pale Ale squad, while Jay Henry had another solid win in the Men's field.

MSC #4 Race Report: Super D

2008-07-03T12:13:00.002-06:00

I raced the Crested Butte Super-D without pre-riding it, and my front brake went out. Not ideal. But the course was so fast and groomed, that I hardly needed the brakes anyways. I ate it once in a muddy ditch, but I still pulled off second place, yay! On the horizon: MSC #5 at Snowmass, then Nationals at Mt. Snow in Vermont.

MSC #4 Race Report: Cross Country

2008-06-29T10:28:00.002-06:00

Three weeks ago, there was so much snow left in Crested Butte that the guys at Mountain States Cup seriously considered cancelling the fourth stop in the race series. I'm glad they didn't.

I don't think I'll go into depth describing the course. Instead, I'll tell you about one sweet, sweet section of singletrack. It was at the top of the first, and longest climb. A strip of solid dirt bracketed by the bright green of new ferns snaked through aspen forest. Tight, high-speed corners, so rare here in Colorado, dominated the singletrack. First lap, I realized I had something great to look forward to for the second lap. Second lap, I heard some of the lead pro guys come up on me. I thought, "Oh no! This is a terrible section for passing!" But then.... "I can rip this fast enough that I wont hold them up much." So I dropped it into the big ring. I laid the bike through corners, pushed the tires in for traction, and had the time of my life screaming through aspen.
The section was followed directly by a swithback. I looked back to discover...I had dropped the pro men! Of course they caught me in two seconds on the next climb, but hey, little victories rock! I love tight singletrack, because if you ride it well, you can be just as fast as anyone, even the pro men, because fitness plays little or no part in tight quarters.
Anyways, I finished out in eighth place, a satisfying finish after a huge week (20 hours between Monday and Friday!) of riding. Leading the pack for the pro women was Jennifer Smith, who has been killing it lately. The pro men? Ryan Trebon, the man in cyclocross, decided to show us he can do cross country too.

A Week with USA Cycling

2008-06-26T11:23:00.002-06:00

So I recently had the great opportunity to be a ride leader for USA Cycling's Rocky Mountain Development camp. What does that mean? It means I had a banner week working with some very cool folks.

Working with development riders: We had 25 athletes, all but one of which were high school age. These kids were stoked to learn and ride.

Being at the Olympic Training Center: Yes, it is that cool. Yes, it is inspiring to a degree I can't express. And, best of all.....the food! Oh, so good. Imagine all the foods the nutritionists tell you to eat, prepared for you, available any time between 7am and 9pm. Thank goodness we were constantly riding, or I would have gotten chubby.

Learning from some of the best: Rides were interspersed with lectures and interactive lessons. Of course these were targeted for the kids, but I think all of us "adults" came away with new knowledge. We had experts work on nutrition, core strengthening, sports psychology, and a host of many other subjects. But I think the most jaw-dropping moment had to be when Greg Frozley wheelied his bike through a switchback. Downhill. Incredible.

Colorado Springs Bike to Work Breakfast

2008-06-11T15:47:00.004-06:00

Lemme do this the brief way:

Seven hundred riders (including the Mayor and a Lieutenant General)
+Three locations
+Fresh berries and other fruit
+Scrambled eggs
+Bagels
+Lots more food
+Raffles (including a spec'd out commuter bike)
+Corporate challenges
+And the street closed to vehicle traffic
=Colorado Springs Bike to Work Breakfast

Suffice it to say, I ate A LOT. Check out the local TV report (including video) here.

June 7th, 2008: National Trail Day

2008-06-10T11:14:00.003-06:00

I learned today that the best way to be well fed is to volunteer for trail work. For National Trail Day, the Colorado Trail Foundation teamed up with all kinds of different trail user groups. I can’t name them all (how awesome is it that there are that many?), but some big players included IMBA, COMBA (COlorado Mountain Bike Association), and the Front Range Backcountry Horsemen. Equestrians and bikes, you say? Yeah, I thought so too. Usually I think of horse folks as courteous on the trails, but thankfully few and far between, just because horses can get pretty uncomfortable around bikes. This means that when I come across a horse, I stop and move off the trail, so (no offense), I’m glad I don’t see too many horses.
But today I learned how well horsemen and mountain bikers can work together.... Check this: The day before the main event, a group of equestrians rode in to a remote section of the Colorado Trail, caching water and tools. The next day, mountain bikers rode into their work areas, some as far as six miles one way, to find all the tools already there. How awesome is that!!

At the same time, hikers, depending on fitness ability, hiked into nearer sections. I joined a hiking group, one of the farthest flung, hiking three miles to from the trailhead to the top of the pass. From there we slowly worked backwards, clearing debris, adding waterbars, and repairing eroded trail sections. This action was repeated below by many other groups. Finally after a good day of trail work, we headed down. And did I mention the food? There was a huge breakfast spread (most notable: lots of coffee) at the trailhead while we learned about the trail and the work we would be doing. Then after we finished, a huge barbeque, all the meat and cookies and chips and picnic food we could eat. And beer! Thanks, Golden City Brewing.

And yes, I managed to hop on my bike and do my part to pack down the trail we had just worked on. The final verdict? FUN.

MSC #3 Race Report: Cross Country (also MX and DH)

2008-06-09T10:26:00.002-06:00

This is the second of two write-ups from Angel Fire. To read my report from the Super-D, click here.

The cross country course at Angel Fire has a well-deserved reputation of being exhausting. Each lap begins with 2000’ of climbing, which gets only more rocky and fatiguing as you climb, until the last rock garden has all but the elite few pushing their bikes up, utterly drained. The descent is no time for rest either. It is a test of mental acuity; How long can you stay focused while you non-stop drop the third of a vertical mile you just climbed?
I love Angel Fire....

Anyways, the twenty-six minute long Super-D the day previous definitely sapped some of my reserves, but I persevered through the first climb, saving a little on the first descent. On the second (and final) lap, I thought the climb would go a little easier, if for no other reason that my mind begins to numb to pain after an hour or so of racing. Not so. I was spent halfway up the climb, staying on out of stubbornness. As I pointed it downhill, I kept within my limits. Until I went under the lift. As I passed under the chairs full of downhillers, some of the world’s best heading up for their practice runs, I was inspired. I let go, I ripped down he hill, I pushed the corners and trusted in my bike and my skill. I crossed the line with a huge smile and a announced to the spectators, “That was FUN”. All told I got 10th place, while Jay Henry and the unstoppable Katie Compton took topped the men’s and women’s pro podiums.

Also decided on Sunday was our new Mountain Cross National Champion. I am bummed I wasn’t able to watch their races, but Melissa Buhl and Rich Houseman are looking pretty good in their Stars and Bars jerseys.

MSC #3 Race Report: Super D

2008-05-28T09:35:00.002-06:00

The third Mountain States cup was hosted in Angel Fire, NM over Memorial Day weekend. The long weekend meant that there was time for some major racing to go down. Not only did we have all the hubbub of the Mountain States series (and that's quite a bit), but it was also on the National Series Calender for endurance (that's cross-country weenies like me) and gravity, the National Championships for 4X (also known as Mountain Cross), a World Cup Qualifier for 4X and Downhill! It was huge!

Instead of doing a day-by-day report like I usually do, I'm going to break down this race report by, well, races.

First race on my list was the Super-D. I arrived Friday afternoon expecting to pre-ride the XC course with a couple friends. Yeah, it was snowing. And raining. And this was at the base of the mountain. Two thousand feet above us was the top of the climb... This was a bit of a turnoff for preriding the XC....but it did get me thinking about Super-D. You see, Angel Fire Super-D is supposed to be pretty burly. More of the D than the XC (Translation: Super-D is an all-out race, combination of Cross Country and Downhill, and this Super-D was mostly Downhill). But all bets are off when it gets muddy. That's my speciality. After some waffling, I signed myself up.

The warm-up:
The next morning I dragged myself out of my sleeping bag, put on all my warm clothes, manked a coffee, and hopped on the lift for a quick pre-ride of the course before the race. Thank goodness for the coffee, it kept my hands warm as we climbed past the snow line. At the top of the lift, some chilly fellows handed me my bike, and the craziness began. The top of the course was frozen solid--scary. I pinged through the rock garden at the top cringing as my tiny XC bike was jostled by the frozen ruts. Thankfully the ice turned to mud as I descended--perhaps I would survive the race. I was like a kid in a candy store, giddy from riding mud. Three climbs left me breathless, and finally I was at the bottom, just in time to get on the lift for my race start.

The race:
We stood at the top of the mountain, freezing as the other race categories took off. Just as we got to the line, the clouds broke, and the sun shined down on us for the first time that morning. I took it as a good sign. It was a Le Mans start, meaning that we weren't on our bikes. Instead, we ran up a little hump, pushing our bikes the whole while, then hopping on as we went downhill. The gate timer beeped down, and we were off! I ran well, catching third place out of the start. Cautious in the frozen ground, I dropped back to fourth then regained third within the first two minutes. Then the rock garden: I waffled and dropped back a few spots. Hypoxic, I lost track of my position, and just concentrated on catching whoever was in front of me. I passed someone who was faltering in the technical singletrack, and at the first climb, I gained on the next person, someone in a yellow jersey. The second, I was even closer. I threw myself into the final climb; it was muddy, inefficient, sapping. I couldn't breathe, I thought I might throw up. All skill was gone. The next few minutes I just slammed into anything that could slow me down on the way downhill. There was no oxygen in my body to fuel my brain; This part of the race is largely blank in my memory. I could still see the yellow jersey girl, but couldn't quite catch her. Another person behind me passed. Knowing I was near the bottom, I let it roll. Through the line, I couldn't catch yellow shirt or the girl who just passed me, but I at least kept them close, knowing that I had put up a good fight for my sixth place or so.
But I had one more surprise: I had Fourth, a podium spot! Yellow shirt was second, I had been chasing second the whole time! Pretty good showing for me. The first place girl in our category actually beat the winner of the pro category by a full minute, wow.

And the winner of the Women's Pro? My fellow cross country racer Lynn Bush, congrats! More props to Nicolas Enjalbert for taking the Pro Men's category.

Volunteering

2008-05-12T08:59:00.002-06:00

Soapbox time:
Cycling is a community, one that continues to exist by the active effort of its members. I learned to ride in a vibrant mountain biking community, one where group rides went hand in hand with trail work, and the e-mail list where I heard about the next race was also the same list telling me about the next trail planning session.

Now I am really ashamed by how few of the racers here in Colorado contribute back to their community. Here we are, reaping the rewards of someone's hard work, riding on hand-hewn trails, handing our race registration to harried volunteers, training on roads made safer by activists in the legislature. We racers, more than anyone else, benefit from the cycling community. And while I don't mean to belittle the efforts of the individuals racers here, I am astounded that there is no cohesive drive amongst the racing community, no unspoken expectation that we should be giving back. We are racers, we are the ones out there in our matched spandex covered in sponsors' names, on the roads and trails every day. We should be the ones out there leading the charge for volunteering! I'll admit, I'm not the best at this, but one of my major goals as a racer is to become more involved in volunteer activities.

Some really great ways to help out:

After your next race, stick around for an extra half hour to help clean up (This one is a personal favorite of mine...and it's a great way to get the announcers to remember your name for the next time you're racing and want to hear your name when you come around on lap)
Contact the organizer of one of your local races to volunteer for a full day--they can always use help
Join a bike advocacy group like IMBA, Bikes Belong, Bicycle Colorado, or League of American Bicyclists.
Check out your local riding club. Try googling "trail work" with the name of your town to find contact info.

Think I'm way off base? Got a great volunteer opportunity? I really want to hear back on this one. Leave lots of comments, please!

MSC #2 Race Report: Day Two

2008-05-11T13:59:00.003-06:00

This post is all about the second day of racing in Nathrop, CO. To read about the cross country race, go here.

Day two for us endurance-type racers meant... short track. Let me spend a couple minutes explaining short track racing, since many people aren't familiar this discipline. Short track started out as a way to let crowds actually see cross country racers. Usually, watching a cross country race consists of cheering at the start, waiting around an hour, watching racers trickle through on lap, and another hour later (if you are really determined and actually stuck around) watching exhausted riders finish. to sum up: XC races are crap to watch, though fun to ride. So race organizers decided to take all the XC folks, put 'em on a really short course (about a half mile or so), and let 'em duke it out for a little while. Races are usually somewhere between twenty and thirty minutes long, though it feels like an eternity if you're the one on the bike. From a spectator's perspective, it's great; All the action is right in front of you. All of the tactics and riding happens within view, instead of out in the woods somewhere.

That being said, short track is hard. It's full-on, no breaks for the entirety. The courses rarely have any singletrack because there are so many riders in such little space. As a result, they tend to become fitness fests. Yuck.

But this was pretty cool as short tracks go. Why? Because they routed us through the mountain cross course. Yeah, that's right, dirt jumps in an endurance race. Sweet! Mike West in the Pro Men's category was airing out the step-up in typical Mike West fashion, while in my own field, I saw a couple girls EAT IT HARD. Ha. (Not very much pity from me. For once the cross country weenies who ripped on me for going to the dirt jumps ate their words.) Sorry, I'm a big believer in building technical skills, and going to the jumps is a sweet way to do it. And meet cool bike riders who don't live in spandex :)

Anyways, I was still having troubles breathing (I'm still kicking this cold as I type now, a week later). I missed my chance to move up two spots on the second to last lap, hoping to run some sweet tactics. Backfired, but next time I'll know to take my opening when I get it. All told, I took 19th in the Women's Open field. In a repeat of the previous day, Jennifer Smith took the field, with Kelli Emmett in second. Though Mike West gets style points for the day, his field was led by Jay Henry and Brian Fuentes. And big props to Mitchell Hoke, a Colorado College rider, for his third place finish.

And the dual slalom wrap-up: Aaron Gwin and Rich Houseman one-two'ed the Pro Men, and Joanna Petterson and Lisa Myklak led the ladies.

Up next on the MSC calendar? Angel Fire in two weeks...and it's a UCI Gravity Race! I'm gonna see some big names rocking the gravity events. Stoked!

MSC #2 Race Report: Day One

2008-05-10T08:35:00.003-06:00

Another Mountain States Cup race has come and gone. Last weekend was in Nathrop, CO, on a high mesa tucked under the shadow of Mt. Princeton. It's close to home; I don't think the drive is any longer than two hours. It was a complete luxury to wake up on Saturday morning, get a muffin and... coffee from my favorite local place, pack my stuff up and hit the road with plenty of time to prep for the cross country race once I got to the venue. What a far cry from the first MSC, where we rushed out after work on Friday, got stuck on Vail pass and had to sleep in the car!

Last year when I raced Nathrop, I couldn't stand the course. It seemed to be all dirt road, long, straight and boring sections where a bunch of roadies on mountain bikes passed me. This year I was ready for it. I knew the course, and had worked out a strategy with my mentor. I played it smart, catching wheels to draft off on every one of the sraightaways. And with all off the work I put in early this year, I had the fitness to stay on those wheels.

So why did I end up in tenth place of twelve finishers? Good question. Quite a while ago I decided that I would not let myself get discouraged. I know what's possible; If I let a bad race deter me from my goals, I've cheated myself of those possibilities. But one of my strengths is my ability to analyze a race, to see the tactics (yes, there are tactics in mountain bike racing).

So here goes:
One, was in the throes of a cold when I arrived on Saturday. My nose was stuffed, I couldn't draw a full breath, and I was coughing up some pretty righteous looking nasties. Two, I cramped on the start of lap two....of four. Yikes! That's really early in a race to be cramping, especially for me. Was it because I wasn't getting enough oxygen? Was my stuffy nose and half-cocked breathing causing the muscle cramps? I don't know, though I'd love to find out. Three, my goal after the cramps started turned from the podium to finishing. I HATE dropping out of races. I was going to finish, dangit, unless it was going to cause long term harm to my body. And finish I did. I did some fine "survival riding" for laps two and three, and gave lap four everything I had left, finishing right behind my teammate Sarah Musick. A loooonnnnnnggg cool down, some food, and then the post race hangout.

The racers took over the nearby Chalk Creek Campground, and I set up a tent near my friends Meghan, Kate, and Spencer. We got our cook on (yeah, pasta!), showered (Fifty cents = three minutes of heavenly hot water), and relaxed at the fireside of some nearby gravity guys. Thanks fellas!

Oh yeah, the Pro Women's XC (short for cross country) went to Jennifer Smith, followed by Kelli Emmett. Jay Henry and Rotem Ishray took the men's race. To my complete shame, I missed Joanna Petterson and Petr Hanak throw down in the Mountain Cross.

May is National Bike Month

2008-05-09T15:30:00.002-06:00

Next week, May 12th through the 16th, is National Bike to Work Week, with Friday the 16th is the official Bike to Work Day.

Now, technically Colorado’s bike month is June, but why not double up? I like biking to work on a regular basis for several reasons:

I’m more awake. Not just in the morning, but I have more energy throughout the day when I ride. Just don’t ask me why.
I eat better.
I can use the 45 minutes to an hour that I usually spend in my car to do something useful, like stay fit in the off season. Or I combine it with my training plan.
I don’t feel like I have to rush home to get my workout in.
I get to see some weird things on the commute. Like Colorado Spring’s finest bums. Or fox on the bike trail. Or racewalkers (verrryy weird).
I save money. Some stats from the Bikes Belong website:

--On a commute of 10 miles, bicyclists save roughly $7.50 and spare the air ½ pound of carbon monoxide emissions. They also burn 350 calories!
--Based on gas prices of about $3/gallon, the annual cost of owning, operating, and driving a passenger car roughly 15,000 miles is nearly $11,000. (It costs roughly $120 a year to maintain a bike.)

So go ride!

Engineers + Cats = Potently funny

2008-05-05T10:46:00.002-06:00

Yes, this is a bike-centric blog, but I'm also an engineer, and am now cat-sitting for at least the next six months. But hey, the cat is named Jalabert, after the french cyclist Laurent Jalabert. So here's a little laugh for the day:

http://www.glumbert.com/media/engineercat

Enjoy!

Do the test

2008-04-28T20:47:00.001-06:00

If you are reading this, you need to do the test.
Just trust me on this one.

http://www.dothetest.co.uk/

Allergies and injuries

2008-04-28T15:39:00.003-06:00

Nope, don't worry, I'm in one piece, aside from my newfound allergy of something that is blooming right now in Colorado. But my friend Ted is a little worse for the wear. During a group ride last weekend on a certain illegal trail that won't be named (hint for Springs residents: it involves riding through a shooting range), he lost focus for a moment on a section that he's ridden many times before. And in that moment, he hit a boulder. With his face.
He's remarkably lucky: No broken facial bones, no concussion, nose intact. He's just minus part of one front tooth, and the other front tooth is re-inserted and waiting (per dentist's orders) to see if it will reattach. Moral of the story? Wear your helmet, dangit. Ted would probably very very hurt if not for his.
And he gets to eat lots of milkshakes.

Also, I need to give credit for the pictures in my last post (Race Report: MSC #1 Day Two). Thanks, Grant Clayton, for the photos and good company at the races!

Race Report: MSC #1 Day Two

2008-04-26T16:02:00.003-06:00

Sunday in Fruita brought the cross country race.

Our field was HUGE! You can see Liz, Stephanie, and Kennon (in the Spike jersey) on the left.

The night before Dale's Pale Ale and Over The Edge (this place is one of those ultra cool local bike shops that plays a HUGE role in the local riding scene) threw a sweet party for the racers. Lots of chillin, lots of complementary beer (thanks Dale!), and all the people who weren't so caught up in their training program to not have beer...or at least come hang out.
Anyways, props to the Mountain States folks for putting together another sweet course. This time, to save the singletrack, they started the race on some fairly flat Jeep road. I thought this part was going to be boring, maybe even demoralizing, but... we were hauling the mail out of the start, and for the first time, I was keeping up, NO PROBLEM. Stoke!

That's my rear in the Spike kit. Note the signature hair.

Then we started to go uphill. Well, I didn't catch anyone else after this point, but at least I didn't lose my position. And I didn't have time to feel worried about it, because all of a sudden, I was on the Western Rim. Let me repeat that: We raced the Western Rim. Sick! It was like ripping on Porcupine Rim. Heaven.
Well, all good things must come to an end, and the climb out involved some two track. Thankfully the race ended on (I think) Trail Two, a rolling hills-singletrack-awesome trail. Again, not a great result for me (15th), but the trails were so good, I didn't mind.

Overall, Kelli Emmett and Ross Schnell showed us how it was done, followed closely by Katie Compton and Brian Fuentes. Also props to my friend Lindsey Bishop, who took an astounding eighth place in her first pro race, and to Meghan Woolley, who won her category, with her wrist broken from pre-riding. Wow.

Race Report: MSC #1 Day One

2008-04-21T11:06:00.004-06:00

Recently I kicked off my racing season with the first of the Mountain States Cup races.

OK, I actually did a road criterium earlier this spring as a training race, but I haven't posted about it yet. What can I say? Road racing just isn't very high on the priority list...sorry to the roadies out there reading this blog. It's a great sport. I just don't love riding the road as much as sweet, sweet corners. And I never have been very good at making my sunglasses match my bottle cage match my socks match my grip tape :)

Anyways, the MSC #1 race was hosted in Fruita, CO. Who wouldn't be stoked to race in
... the new mecca of mountain biking? Unfortunately, the drive out quickly turned epic when a semi turned over on Vail pass. After four hours of slow-to-stopped driving, me and my co-driver pulled over in a rest stop and did our bests to sleep in the cramped quarters of the front seats. Needless to say, I wasn't the best rested at the start of the Time Trial.

But enough whining about things out of my control. Originally, I wasn't too stoked about a time trial. I thought all time trials were destined to suck, but boy, was I wrong! A short two track lead in to sweet, rippin, Porcupine Rim-style singletrack. All told, it took me something over 23 minutes to rail it. To put it in perspective, Katie Compton (intensely fast cyclocrosser) rolled across the line two seconds shy of 18 minutes.....on her singlespeed. WOW! But the overall went to Georgia Gould, followed very closely by Katie, then Kelli Emmett (Michigan native, woot!). In the guys, Ross Schnell took top honors.

Next up: A report from the cross country race that happened the next day in Fruita.

Hut Trip report: The Final Day

2008-04-16T18:01:00.002-06:00

This is a four-part post about backcountry hut skiing in Colorado. To read the previous post in this series, click here.

The Dawn Patrol. An event stewed in meaning in my psyche. A goal of my life, a true test of dedication, a day I could point to and say, "Yes! I did it." This day was my final chance, and I did not miss it.

Long before dawn I woke up. I didn't need to wait for... the groggyness to clear; I knew immediatly that this was the Dawn Patrol. My pack was ready, and I joined the rest of the crazy souls from our group who were willing to sacrifice sleep for a catnap, all just to watch the sun rise. All told, we were a strong party. Brett, Mike, Ted and I set out in the blackness after moonset.
At 11,000 feet on the edge of a Wilderness Area, nothing interrupts the starlight. The glimmers normally obscured by city lights are fine points of brilliance against a perfect black, joined by thousands of thousands more stars. In silence we ski upwards, our physical labor deepening our thoughts. Soon we are above treeline, and even sooner at the ridge of New York Mountain. From here we can look down the valley. Far, far is the town of Eagle, near the western horizon. To our east is a viscous looking ridge, like a ragged knife wound against the steady terrain of our mountain. And behind the ridge? Only the faintest hint of gray.
The temperature is steady at 3 degrees Faranheit. We bundle up, taking photos in the darkness to distract from the biting, then numbing cold. Slowly, slowly the sky brightens. We are joined by Mark, and we are silent again, watching the light waken.
And then, seriousness given its day, we are giddy, ecstatic. The snow is perfect, and we are going to ski it! The guys let me take first turns. I was nervous, since the day before the snow was crusty, prone to randomly bucking me. But in the first turn, I could feel a difference; Overnight the conditions came together, tweaking minutae to make one of the most perfect, wide-open face runs I've ever taken. And then we got to the trees. God, I love skiing trees.

Suffice it to say, we returned to the real (hut) world, and went about all the tasks required to take our leave. And I'll leave it at that.

I've been sick

2008-04-08T07:45:00.002-06:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, folks. I got hit pretty hard with what I thought was food poisoning. Thankfully, I got over the part where I was calling dinosaurs (you know, when you're roaring into the toilet) quickly. But I kept sleeping.....and sleeping...and sleeping....and then I got a text message from another one of my friends. He was having a hot date with a pterodactyl.

That's when I knew it was something contagious. Yuck!

Anyways, I'm back to the land of the healthy, and working on some quality posts. Coming soon: The last day of my recent hut trip.

Dirt Climbs on Road Bikes...Sick!

2008-03-26T14:21:00.003-06:00

Looks like I'll be getting my spring classic on this weekend:

The Koppenburg circuit is modelled after the famously brutal cobblestones of the Paris-Roubaix. I can't wait to see some roadies suffer on dirt!

Coming soon: The final (and most exciting) post from my recent hut trip, and a race report from last weekend, my very first road race.

http://www.boulderracing.com/koppenberg.asp

Hut Trip report: Day Three

2008-03-24T07:27:00.004-06:00

This is a four-part post about backcountry hut skiing in Colorado. To read the previous post in this series, click here.

I woke up before 5am on Sunday, groggy but... excited. Another Tech grad, Mark, and I had made plans for the Dawn Patrol: To skin up by starlight, reaching the summit of New York Mountain in time to watch the sunrise. Unfortunately, at five in the morning, Mark was still recovering from the high stakes euchre tourney (and drinking) that had gone down the night before. Frustrated, and without someone to accompany me should something go wrong, I went back to bed.

I woke up for the second time at a more normal hour. This was the morning Tim, Ted, and I were slated to make breakfast. Apple pancakes were on the menu, and I set to peeling. We made two full boxes (20 servings apiece according to the nutrition facts) of pancake mix, and FOUR POUNDS of bacon. It was one o'clock by the time the last cake came off the griddle. Whew!

Ted, Tim, and I ruled the kitchen

As we cooks sat down for breakfast (more like brunch), the rest of the group set out to get at least one run above the hut. After our food settled, Ted and I set out with the same intent.

Ted is Happy

Ted is still Happy. Really.

Lianna is Happy

What can I say? I love tree skiing, and these trees were awesome. Chalk up another good day. Oh yeah, we ate some tasty chicken biriyani (props to Keith) and made plans. What plans? Stay tuned for the final post (and best day)...

Hut Trip report: Day Two

2008-03-21T09:50:00.006-06:00

This is a four-part post about backcountry hut skiing in Colorado. To read the previous post in this series, click here.

Ted in the entryway of our luxurious "hut"

After a well earned rest, Saturday morning saw us groggily taking stock of our surroundings in our aptly named hut, the Polar Star Inn. The morning light revealed what we did not see in our exhausted states the night before: A running spring just steps from the front door (no more melting snow!), a cornucopia of toilet paper, and the staggering (literally) amount of alcohol we had carried in on our backs. My friend Tim had done an admirable job of coordinating food and supplies for our trip, but when it came to libations, ... he left us on our own. What did that get us? About nine litres of hard liquor, along with the equivalent of twenty bottles of wine....in bags.
As some of the group set to taking care of our overabundance of drinks, five of us set out to lay down the first tracks above the hut. Our plan was to run day trips based out of our hut. We were situated on western flank of New York Mountain, not far below the treeline at 11,040'. Taking advantage of an existing track, we laid down a skin highway (skinning is a term that refers to using removable 'skins' on the bottom of one's skis to enable uphill travel. When the top is reached, the skins are pulled off, and presto!, one is downhill skiing on terrain that one couldn't have reached otherwise). Up we skinned through prime tree-skiing territory, reaching the wide-open face below the mountain's ridgeline.

Mike and Tim lead the way on our skin track

We skirted along one edge of the face, eventually gaining the ridgeline. There we dug a snowpit to assess avalanche conditions. In the midst of this process, we were joined by a sixth: Mark, our resident ski patroller and avy expert.

Tim supervises while Mike checks out the snowpit

After much examination and an impromptu class on slip planes, we determined the slope to be skiable. That's when the fun began.

Mark's grin says it all; Check out our tracks in the background!

Two laps of wide open slope skiing on untouched snow had everyone ecstatic. But the trees broadcast their siren song. As the rest of our little group headed back up the ridgeline, Mark and I dove into the forest.
That's when we discovered that some of the best trees I've skied in my life were directly outside our doorstep.

The top of the tree run. Can you see how deep the powder was?

Mark and I had the privilege of skiing perfect, deep, oh-my-god-this-is-good powder through silent pines. I oozed through corners, floating on miraculous condensed cloudform. Cries of joy involuntarily escaped our mouths. Soon the rest of the crew joined us, and we shared the unending powder.

Back in the hut, Miguel and Rochelle were hard at work on one of the best meals I've ever had. That night we were treated to melt-in-your-mouth lamb with rice, in an intriguing, savory but sweet spice mix. Yum! And after supper? Well, we had all that bourbon...

Hut Trip report: Day One

2008-03-20T18:17:00.007-06:00

Early Friday morning, I awoke at the condo of my friend Tim's family, having driven to Breckenridge late the night before. As Tim, Doug (a friend of Tim's), Ted (a friend of mine), and I prepped ourselves for the drive to the trailhead, the news came through: I-70, that singular artery through the state of Colorado, was closed at Vail Pass as crews blasted away the avalanche-prone snow that had dropped overnight.

Vail Pass lay between Breckenridge and our trailhead.

We settled into the couches.... to wait for the pass to open. Every few minutes, Tim called the Highway Hotline, where we listened to a man with a remarkably soothing voice deliver the same recorded report: closed. Doug snoozed. Ted and Tim chatted. We heard from other members of our group who were coming from every quadrant of the compass rose. All were affected by the delay.

Finally, Frank Sinatra of the Highway Hotline snapped us to action with the opening of the road. Five minutes later, we zipped in Tim's car towards Eagle, CO. An hour and a half later, after a little incident involving a ditch, two local guys who looked barely old enough to drive, a broken tie-down strap, and a very nice State Park ranger with a sturdy chain (who just so happened to be packing a Glock!), we joined the rest of our crew at the Yeoman Creek Trailhead.

Ted and Tim at the trailhead

Fourteen of us total strung along the Fulford Road, passable at this time of year only by snowmobiles, skiers, and other forms of snow travel. Some of the group had arrived to the trailhead and left already, concerned that they may need more time to get to the hut, and knowing that we were getting started late. Ted and Tim set a blazing pace. I tucked myself into their draft, and soon found myself at the head of our nordic peloton.
That's when the blue blazes, our guiding lights, turned to will-o-the-wisps, and disappeared. Never were we truly lost (our skin tracks through the snow were like the proverbial bread crumbs), but it seemed that every time I looked to the southwest, the sun had inexplicably dropped several more notches in the sky, and we were no closer to the hut. With the bit in their teeth, Tim and Brett, fresh in from Hawai'i, forged ahead through the fresh powder. Occasionally a flash of blue would give us hope of heading in the right direction, then all hints of markings were again gone.
Dusk was setting in, and hope that we would find the hut before nightfall was grim. This was starting to border on unpleasant: If we couldn't find our destination in daylight, our chances were slim by moonlight.
A shout from the leaders, the hut was in sight! Those of us in the front of the pack moved in. Mike, Tim and Brett (again fresh from Hawai'i to 11,000'!) dropped their packs and went into the darkness to help those in the back who had been putting in a steady cadence. The rest of the fore-runners set to making the hut habitable. Soon a fire roared away, melting snow for water, the propane lamps providing a steady glow to the folks cooking up an incredible meal of chicken, beans, and rice. The last of our group came in, and we stuffed ourselves, toasted our arrival to the hut with a variety of spirits, and passed out.

Hut Trip!

2008-03-11T09:27:00.003-06:00

This is the Polar Star Inn (Photo taken by David Hiser, posted on the 10th Mountain Division website). I've been invited to join a group of my friends for a hut trip. We'll ski in this Friday, spend two full days skiing, eating, and raising a ruckus, then ski out Monday. Stoked! Until then, I'll be busy working and riding my bike. Look for the full ski report on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Blog under construction

2008-03-05T15:30:00.001-07:00

I am making a couple superficial changes to the appearance of my blog in the next day or two. Hopefully there won't be any disruptions.

Sugoi Dirt Series

2008-03-05T14:32:00.003-07:00

Oh man, I reallllllyyy want to do one of these: Sugoi Dirt Camp
I first heard about these last season and seriously coveted a spot, but costs are prohibitive.

Underground hiphop...what?

2008-03-04T14:08:00.002-07:00

Why would I ever write about underground hiphop in a mountain biking-centric blog?

Because if anyone is going through the same struggles as an aspiring racer, it's an aspiring hiphop artist. Last night I saw Dilated Peoples live at the Bluebird in Denver. My friend Will and I got there early, lining up in the front row to watch the opening acts. I'd never heard any of the openers before, so I listened closely to their lyrics.

I heard rhymes about dreaming. Rhymes about being the little guy that no one believes in. Rhymes about the people who did believe. Rhymes about making their own path. And I watched as Dilated Peoples gave shoutouts and support to the locals artists, much like the big-name racers give advice to the fledgling riders out there.

In short, hip hop is a community, just like bike racing. Except hip hop artists say it better.

Birthday Parties and a New Team

2008-03-01T10:36:00.005-07:00

Yesterday I attended the surprise birthday party for my friend Lindsey Bishop. Lindsey is an up and coming racer, and I have the feeling you'll start to see her name around. She is fast, and only going to get faster. And we are now teammates on the Spike Shooter team. Psyched.
The party was my first chance to hang out with the Spike crowd as a part of the team. I started asking around about how to get onto the team at the end of last season. Why them? Truthfully, because I thought the other girls in my category who raced for Spike last season were damn cool. These girls (Kennon and Stephanie) both race because they love it. It can be easy to get caught up in the racing pressure and be overbearing or stressed out, but not them. So I thought, whatever team they're on must be pretty fun. After a few inquiries and some waiting, for the first time in my mountain biking life, I'm on a large team.
Of course, I'll always hold up my gold standard of racing with the guys at Michigan Tech. And I can't forget the absolute sweetness of racing for the coolest sponsors ever, Dirt Rag and Swobo. But it's time for me to let someone else take care of all the groundwork, and just go race. And it's damn cool to have all of these experienced racers to learn from.

More Adventures in Cross-Training

2008-01-25T15:15:00.002-07:00

Well, I may be on a training plan, but my mentor is super-cool and includes other fun stuff besides riding into my schedule.
What kind of fun stuff? Well, check out the photos below.

What to do in Michigan when the winter gets long? My good friend Doug poses with his family's ice boat.

Doug and I took a cruise across one of the local lakes while I was home for Christmas. As you can see, we weren't the only ones

I can never bring myself to stop downhill skiing long enough to take out my camera. So here's a couple of parking lot shots of my bike mechanic and I getting ready to shred the gnar. Yo.

Ted looks confused.

Self portrait while nordic skiing.

Will leads the way in a remote part of Pikes Peak National Forest.

Training

2008-01-14T22:23:00.000-07:00

Wake. Eat. Coffee. Work (except the weekends). Ride. Eat, with friends. Sleep.

Training on bikes is an easy life. Choices are premade for you, internal debates are simple; What shall I do today? Ride.
Or; Hmm, I'm done with work, maybe I should go sit around. Nah, I'll ride.
Or; Should I use my money to buy furniture, or for gas to get to Pueblo and ride sweet trails? Who needs chairs? I can just sit on the floor and eat. (Sorry Mom, I'll get chairs soon, I promise)

Ok, that's the brief concept of the day. As Garrison Keillor says on The Writer's Almanac, "Be well, do good work, and keep in touch."

Back on the Biking Wagon

2008-01-07T07:35:00.000-07:00

After a wonderful month of dorking around, today marks my return to the biking world. With that return comes more bike-centric blog posts, more riding, and yes, even a training plan. Perhaps more on that later. For now, I'm just getting back into the swing of it.
Wish me luck as I prepare for the upcoming season!

Mountain States Cup schedule announced...and it is huge!

2008-01-02T17:50:00.000-07:00

Wow.
The Mountain States Cup has been announced for this season, and it is gonna be epic.

Total number of weekends: Eleven
Weekends with endurance races: Nine
Weekends with gravity races: Nine
Number of weekends that are UCI races for gravity: Three (this is big news!)
Duration of the season: April 12th through September 7th

What does this mean?

First, those UCI gravity races will attract some of the big names to our little local series. You see, in order to do things like qualify for Worlds, people like Cedric Gracia and Brian Lopes have to compete in the UCI races for points. I'm prepared to watch some jaw-dropping gravity racing (no pun intended).

Second, I'm in for a long season. I've been described as having an identity crisis. That is, I'm an XC racer with an abiding love for Super D. Which means I'll be at a good number of those eleven (11!) race weekends.

Finally the venue line-up sounds like a bike rider's "Best-Of". Classic MSC venues like Angel Fire and Telluride (I loved racing at these places last year) are joined by such notable newcomers as Fruita, SolVista, and Breckenridge. Racing in Fruita? I'm super stoked!

Cross Training

2007-12-23T18:07:00.001-07:00

No, not cyclocross. The State Championships ended the season-you can read my personal report here.

I'm talking about training for cycling by not cycling. Doing some other activity to keep yourself sharp. Like nordic skiing, racquetball, or today's choice: Christmas tree cutting. That's my mom in the stunning pink hat (is it a quality of Moms that they have to embarrass their daughters with their choice of headwear?) Anyways, we made the arduous trek to our tree grove (50 meters from the front door), picked out a likely candidate, and I got down and dirty sawing it down. Then came the hard part: Wrestling the damn thing to upright in the stand. Who engineers these things? Arrrggh. Oh well, the finished tree looks great lit up in the living room. Merry Christmas!

Colorado State Championships: Cyclocross in Snow

2007-12-17T13:03:00.000-07:00

Easy come; Easy go.

That's my foreshortened version of the Colorado Cyclocross State Championships.

Here's the long story:
I haven't been training at all since the end of September. Instead I just turn up at races for the free beer and to keep myself motivated against getting chubby. But when it snowed just before the big race, I was cursing myself for not keeping in shape. You see, I love inclement conditions. Like the song, I'm only happy when it rains.

Race started in sunshine, with about forty of us lining up for the Senior Women Open category. Temperatures were low (I recall the forecast high at a balmy 21F), and the snow was solid under our wheels. Great! Women were biting it left and right, and I found myself in stronger company than usual--I had worked my way up into the top third of the pack. All that riding to work in the snow had certainly paid off! See the grin on my face?

That's right about when I clipped some part of myself or my bike on a barrier. Down I went, came up heart thumping. "No problem" I thought, until I looked down. My wheel was roughly 90 degrees to my handlebars, and no amount of gentle persuasion would get it to return. I broke out my tool as my competitors flew by. Finally, with a lot of help from my friend Will, I straightened it out. I had lost my position, so I just spent the rest of the race enjoying myself, targeting and passing rider after rider. I finished up in 26th (I think) place.

Lesson learned: Don't get cocky when doing well, because something as basic as a barrier will jump out and get you.

Will shows me how not to pile drive over a barrier

In other race news from the day, my friend Lyndsey Bishop took an astonishing 3rd place in our category, right behind Amy Dombrowski and the winner, Kerry Barnholt. I didn't stick around for the men's race (the promise of warmth, chili, free beer at Oskar's Brewing was too hard to resist), but according to the race website, Daniel Summerhill took first, followed by Brandon Dwight and the ever-strong Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski.

Bikes + Thanksgiving = Bikesgiving

2007-12-06T18:23:00.000-07:00

So what to do when traveling home for Thanksgiving is not reasonable? Do something more unreasonable!

My college buddies descended on the town of Moab from far and wide. Some arriving at the beginning of the week, the rest of us filtering in until we congregated on Wednesday night. That was our first night desert camping. Yeah, it gets a bit chilly. But a little snow didn't slow us down; We averaged a couple rides a day including the Sovereign Trail, Amasa Back, Tusher's Canyon, the unbeatable Porcupine Rim, Bartlett's Wash, and my personal favorite, the dirt jumps.

The dirt jumps rocked. Somebody spent a chunk of their life making these things PERFECT.

A note about dirt jumps and I: I love going to the jumps and playing around. Unfortunately I stink at it. But this time was different--I had the guys to heckle me. With Tim, Will and Josh's gentle guidance ("You need to go bigger." "Stop prejumping and let the jump throw you"), I finally got some decent air. See the picture? It's proof. Yes, I know, it's not very big, but it's a start. And I still love dirt jumps. :)

Bikesgiving!

2007-11-20T07:35:00.000-07:00

What do you do if you don't have family in the great state of ColoRADo when Thanksgiving rolls around? Bikesgiving, of course!
Tomorrow I leave for Utah, where I will spend Turkey Day riding Porcupine Rim. And a few more days riding every trail I can get to with my ruffian buddies from college.

'Cross Practice

2007-10-24T21:55:00.000-06:00

Pedal, unclip, flip leg across/behind bike, nearly eat shit hopping a barrier, fling yourself back on the bike, pedal, clip, repeat.
I forgot how much fun cyclocross is!

And it only gets better racing. Let me describe a typical race for you:
First fifteen minutes - Contemplate hurking as you push yourself WAAAYYY beyond your limits.
Next fifteen minutes - Remember that it's perfectly normal to want to ralph. You felt like this in every other race.
Rest of the race - I have no idea. Everyone is too hypoxic at this point to do those unimportant things like record what's going on to their memory banks.
And then.....finish! YAY! Now we can greet our adoring fans with dried spittle plastered to our chins, and an outline of a burst snot bubble across our faces like the gigantic impact of a phlegmatic meteor upon the planet You. Just kidding, the fans don't care about you, cause you garnered the dubious podium spot of third from last.

All facetiousness aside, I do love cross. It's absolutely ridiculous, and therefore fun.

BRAAAP! 'Cross Bike for Sale

2007-10-21T11:08:00.000-06:00

One of my friends is selling his cyclocross bike. This bike is NICE.

Independent Fabrications: Planet Cross 56cm frame
-Sweet custom paint job

-The head tube is tall to make it easy to pick up

Chris King hubs

Chris King headset

Thomson stem and seatpost

Ultegra 9 Speed drivetrain

I'll have to get back to you on the wheels.

You can contact me for more info, or I can get you in touch with the owner. lkmiller-at-mtu-dot-edu.