Today was a long day. Not only did we have to change the clocks back, I woke up at 4 am to drive to Waco, Tx to race in the Bicycles Outback Blowout race. The race is held at Cameron Park in Waco. I rode with Matt to the race. He was racing in the Cat 2 race and to register by 8:30 to race at 9:00. My race was at 1:30pm.
I figured this would be a interesting race for a few reasons. Not the least of which is I have not been on any bike since the Huntsville race. The other factor is I did not pre-ride the course, and there is a lot of climbing which pre-riding would have helped to identify the best way through. Oh well, here we go.
We lined up and waited for our start. I pushed it but gave up a few places on the road before dropping into the grass section on the way to the single track. I got stuck behind one guy who I found I kept catching on the up hills. The good news is it did not take long for him to take himself out. I just had to wait for the opportunity.
I ended up catching a few of the rider who went out two hard, but for me I made my biggest gains on the up hill climbs. This course really does not have many good passing places. For several of my good climbs, I got stuck behind a rider who was just a little slower than I. This caused me to hit the breaks to avoid running him over. The result, I was walking up several of the longer hills. He would pull away, then I would catch him again for the next climb. Finally on the second to last climb, I was able to get to the top the same time he did. I was also able to get back on the bike and pass him. On the next down hill I was able to pull away. All that was left was the 1/2 mile up hill road finish to put the race in the bag.
That last climb was tough. I started the climb with the HR at 181 bpm, and pushed it all the way to the top. Just before the top, I tried to take a drink, but could not sowallow. Not fun. I looked down as I crossed the finish. My HR was pegging out at 193. Looking at my HR graph after the ride, I was pretty near red line the whole race. My average was 173, but it felt like it should have been higher.
After the race, there was some issues with scoring. It took the team about 2 hours to get the Cat 3 results posted. When they posted the preliminary results, I was in 10 place with a total time of 43 minutes for the lap.
Sweet a top ten finish. Let's hope the results stay that way.
Sunday, November 07, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Huntsville Mtb Race 2010
Wow, it has been awhile since I have posted any more adventures of my racing or riding. I have been a little preoccupied with some minor health issues, and focused on getting that in order. The good new, I seem to have it under control. The better news, I am much leaner and trim than before. To date, went into this race 30 pounds lighter than last year. The results showed it too.
I lined up with the field and got a pretty good position. The course was very sandy, but it was fast as long as you paid attention to the course. I had one good crash due to a bad timing to grab my water bottle. I crashed hard.
After the dust settled, I finished this race in 13th place out of 42 rider. My time was 48 minutes and 31 seconds, or about 4 and a half minutes faster than last year. I was very happy to do that, and even better I was able to break the 50 minute mark for this course. All in all, I was very happy with the results considering the year I have had. Looks like I came out of my health problems for the better.
I lined up with the field and got a pretty good position. The course was very sandy, but it was fast as long as you paid attention to the course. I had one good crash due to a bad timing to grab my water bottle. I crashed hard.
After the dust settled, I finished this race in 13th place out of 42 rider. My time was 48 minutes and 31 seconds, or about 4 and a half minutes faster than last year. I was very happy to do that, and even better I was able to break the 50 minute mark for this course. All in all, I was very happy with the results considering the year I have had. Looks like I came out of my health problems for the better.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Mountain Biking in KL
With a long stay in Kaula Lumpur, I wanted to do some riding. One of my co-workers took me to a local bike shop which had a loaner bike I could use for the stay. The only thing they asked for was that I bring the bike back.
Deal!!!!
So for my first ride in another country, my co-workers to me to the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia. The ride was a little north and west of downtown KL but within view of the twin towers. We met on the back side of the park and rode to the back entrance. The one thing I quickly noticed is that KL has a lot more mountains to deal with. We started out with some easy climbs and then regrouped at the base of a long steady climb. I was able to make it up about half the hill before I ran out of legs. I don't know if it was my legs which quit or if I needed more gears. Either way, I walked up part of the hill. Not what this flat lander was used to.
After the big climb, we had some nice down hill rides on some of the gravel roads through the park. This brought us to the front of the park so we headed into one of the local areas to get a drink and something to snack on. Then back toward the park and a chance to see a short section of KL single track.
As we re-entered the park, I learned that we had a nice climb waiting us on the north slop of the mountain surrounding the park. After reaching the top, we had some nice downhill sections to make the climbs worth it.
FRIM consisted mostly of jeep road type trails, but was alot of fun.
Deal!!!!
So for my first ride in another country, my co-workers to me to the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia. The ride was a little north and west of downtown KL but within view of the twin towers. We met on the back side of the park and rode to the back entrance. The one thing I quickly noticed is that KL has a lot more mountains to deal with. We started out with some easy climbs and then regrouped at the base of a long steady climb. I was able to make it up about half the hill before I ran out of legs. I don't know if it was my legs which quit or if I needed more gears. Either way, I walked up part of the hill. Not what this flat lander was used to.
After the big climb, we had some nice down hill rides on some of the gravel roads through the park. This brought us to the front of the park so we headed into one of the local areas to get a drink and something to snack on. Then back toward the park and a chance to see a short section of KL single track.
As we re-entered the park, I learned that we had a nice climb waiting us on the north slop of the mountain surrounding the park. After reaching the top, we had some nice downhill sections to make the climbs worth it.
FRIM consisted mostly of jeep road type trails, but was alot of fun.
Monday, January 04, 2010
Excruciation Exam 2010
Nothing like a short ride at Warda and Rocky Hill ranch to start the new year. On January 2nd, 2010, S&S Trails sponsored another installment of the Excruciation Exam. Against my better judgment, I signed up again. The full course is 87 miles. My goal, finish the whole thing.
I got to Warda a bit under dressed for the race. It was about 30 degrees when I got to Warda. Luckily it was about 38 by the time we started. One thing was sure, by the time I finished the lap at Warda, I was making better time than the year before. I started the road portion with a small group. I was able to keep up with the group for a while, but eventually it turned into a solo ride to Rocky Hill Rance. I got to Rocky Hill and refilled the water and took in some snacks. I had about 3 hours to finish the long lap a RHR. With my last race out there, that should be doable. As the day wore on, I was poised to almost make it. I started getting tired with about 5 miles to go at RHR and noticed that I was going to be close on time. As the miles ticked off, I noticed the time was getting closer and closer to the cut of. In the end, I missed the cutoff again this year, but the good news is that they moved the cutoff up by 1 hour over the previous year I did this race.
Over all I was about 45 minutes faster for the same distance, but this year it counted as a DNF. I think I will wait until I am a bit faster before trying this race again.
I got to Warda a bit under dressed for the race. It was about 30 degrees when I got to Warda. Luckily it was about 38 by the time we started. One thing was sure, by the time I finished the lap at Warda, I was making better time than the year before. I started the road portion with a small group. I was able to keep up with the group for a while, but eventually it turned into a solo ride to Rocky Hill Rance. I got to Rocky Hill and refilled the water and took in some snacks. I had about 3 hours to finish the long lap a RHR. With my last race out there, that should be doable. As the day wore on, I was poised to almost make it. I started getting tired with about 5 miles to go at RHR and noticed that I was going to be close on time. As the miles ticked off, I noticed the time was getting closer and closer to the cut of. In the end, I missed the cutoff again this year, but the good news is that they moved the cutoff up by 1 hour over the previous year I did this race.
Over all I was about 45 minutes faster for the same distance, but this year it counted as a DNF. I think I will wait until I am a bit faster before trying this race again.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Thanksgiving Weekend Rides
With the long thanksgiving weekend, I decided to get in some good riding. Since I am planning to do the Excruciation Exam at the first of January, I figured it would be a good time to get some mountain biking and road biking in.
Luckily I was able to get out of work early on Wednesday. I took the bike with me to work and stopped by Cypresswood for a ride on the trail. Trail was in good shape. I got in 11 miles.
Thursday, I went and road 30 miles with my friend in the woodlands. Came home and had the T-day meal and prepared for mountain biking on Friday.
Friday my neighbor and I headed to Rocky Hill Ranch to do the long loop. Finished the 20 miles in about 2 hours.
Saturday was a cool morning. We started at Fairfield to get in a few extra miles from Zube. By the time we finished the ride we had about 70 miles.
After all this riding, I did not have the legs for another ride on Sunday. So four good days of riding to kick the holidays off into good shape.
Luckily I was able to get out of work early on Wednesday. I took the bike with me to work and stopped by Cypresswood for a ride on the trail. Trail was in good shape. I got in 11 miles.
Thursday, I went and road 30 miles with my friend in the woodlands. Came home and had the T-day meal and prepared for mountain biking on Friday.
Friday my neighbor and I headed to Rocky Hill Ranch to do the long loop. Finished the 20 miles in about 2 hours.
Saturday was a cool morning. We started at Fairfield to get in a few extra miles from Zube. By the time we finished the ride we had about 70 miles.
After all this riding, I did not have the legs for another ride on Sunday. So four good days of riding to kick the holidays off into good shape.
Monday, November 09, 2009
Rocky Hill Round-up
Sunday November 8th I completed my second Mountain Bike race in the fall TMBRA series. The race was held at Rocky Hill Ranch just outside Smithville, TX. Since this was both the last race of the fall series, and the last time Rocky Hill Ranch will be in the fall, the race director decided to make the race a little special. They decided to make everyone ride the full 20 mile loop. This meant that everyone was scheduled to start at 8:00 with the different catagories starting at 5 minute intervals.
I ended up riding with one of my co-workers to the race. Matt was kind enough to pick me up on the way. Since RHR is about 2 hours from the house, he picked me up at 5 AM. I had a good case of pre-race gitters. I ended up getting about 4 hours of sleep, and set the alarm, but forgot to turn it on. No matter, I woke up before I had set the alarm, and got ready anyway. I was waiting and ready when Matt got to the house.
We arrived around 6:45 and were one of the first few racers to arrive. We got ready, checked in, and started our warm-up. We started out by riding up the course to see how they had routed by fat chucks, the long rocky steep hill near the start. After seeing they were bypassing the bad climb and using Mel's Way, we headed back to the start.
Matt races in the Cat 2 40-49 race. So he headed out about 20 minutes before I did. The start area was full of riders waiting for the start. Eventually it was time four our start. I decided that I was not going to go out overly strong because I knew it was a long race and longer than most of the races in the fall series.
The start came and I was right in the middle of the pack and we all stayed together until just past Mel's Way. Which was tough because RHR is nothing but solid climbing for the first 1.5-2 miles. After that it gets into some nice flowing singletrack. At this point I got in with a small group of about 4 riders. We stayed together for a while. There was a group of faster riders that came up to us. Most of the group decided to try to keep up with them. I chose to keep a consistent pace since we still had about three/fourths of the race left. Turns out that my strategy worked well. Half of the group slowed down and I caught them around mile 7. One of the guys stayed on my wheel. It was his second race and he was having fun. I followed me through the feed zone and up through the western fence line. Somewhere around mile 15 we got caught and passed by a woman that had a guy trying to keep up with her. Eventually she dropped him and I lost my previous friend and caught up with the other guy.
I remember starting to cramp a little around mile 17, so I sucked down a gel and some water and was able to hold it off. It is a bit tough to eat a gel while on a mountain bike and avoid trees, but I did it. With about 1 mile to go I looked back and I was all by myself. So I pushed forward and was able to finish about 30-45 seconds ahead of the next rider. When I finished, my total time was 2 hours 21 minutes. Which I was pleased with.
Once I crossed the line, I headed over to the truck and cleaned up, found some free beer, and got ready for the ride back. Matt and I decided to stick around for awards. After the results were posted, I saw that I was 27th out of 36. Not bad. About that time the sky started to rain a bit. luckily it held off until after the race. Since it started to rain and neither Matt or I was getting any awards, we decided to head back home. On the way we stopped for some food in Giddings then shared race stories.
Over all, what a great race. I think that RHR is one of my favorite trails in the Houston area. especially the full 20 mile course.
I ended up riding with one of my co-workers to the race. Matt was kind enough to pick me up on the way. Since RHR is about 2 hours from the house, he picked me up at 5 AM. I had a good case of pre-race gitters. I ended up getting about 4 hours of sleep, and set the alarm, but forgot to turn it on. No matter, I woke up before I had set the alarm, and got ready anyway. I was waiting and ready when Matt got to the house.
We arrived around 6:45 and were one of the first few racers to arrive. We got ready, checked in, and started our warm-up. We started out by riding up the course to see how they had routed by fat chucks, the long rocky steep hill near the start. After seeing they were bypassing the bad climb and using Mel's Way, we headed back to the start.
Matt races in the Cat 2 40-49 race. So he headed out about 20 minutes before I did. The start area was full of riders waiting for the start. Eventually it was time four our start. I decided that I was not going to go out overly strong because I knew it was a long race and longer than most of the races in the fall series.
The start came and I was right in the middle of the pack and we all stayed together until just past Mel's Way. Which was tough because RHR is nothing but solid climbing for the first 1.5-2 miles. After that it gets into some nice flowing singletrack. At this point I got in with a small group of about 4 riders. We stayed together for a while. There was a group of faster riders that came up to us. Most of the group decided to try to keep up with them. I chose to keep a consistent pace since we still had about three/fourths of the race left. Turns out that my strategy worked well. Half of the group slowed down and I caught them around mile 7. One of the guys stayed on my wheel. It was his second race and he was having fun. I followed me through the feed zone and up through the western fence line. Somewhere around mile 15 we got caught and passed by a woman that had a guy trying to keep up with her. Eventually she dropped him and I lost my previous friend and caught up with the other guy.
I remember starting to cramp a little around mile 17, so I sucked down a gel and some water and was able to hold it off. It is a bit tough to eat a gel while on a mountain bike and avoid trees, but I did it. With about 1 mile to go I looked back and I was all by myself. So I pushed forward and was able to finish about 30-45 seconds ahead of the next rider. When I finished, my total time was 2 hours 21 minutes. Which I was pleased with.
Once I crossed the line, I headed over to the truck and cleaned up, found some free beer, and got ready for the ride back. Matt and I decided to stick around for awards. After the results were posted, I saw that I was 27th out of 36. Not bad. About that time the sky started to rain a bit. luckily it held off until after the race. Since it started to rain and neither Matt or I was getting any awards, we decided to head back home. On the way we stopped for some food in Giddings then shared race stories.
Over all, what a great race. I think that RHR is one of my favorite trails in the Houston area. especially the full 20 mile course.
Monday, November 02, 2009
Tour de Donut
Time to kick November off with the first ride. Vanessa and I did the Tour de Donut. It consisted of a 55 mile route or a 30 mile timed event where you get a 5 minute time credit for each donut you eat. I opted for the 55 mile route. I started off early in the group and worked as a ride marshal. I got into a couple really good groups. The first 30 miles I had over a 21 mph average. I got in with another group for the next 10 miles and continued with a 20+ average. Around mile 40 I reached my limit and could not keep with the group any more. Time to slow down and do my ride. This was also the point when the wind was more of a headwind. The last 17 miles was significantly slower then I had been riding, but I was still able to finish with a 19.6 mph average. Not bad for almost no mile in the month of October.
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