tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14776622329214370402024-02-19T01:24:06.909-08:00ride on purposemostly words about bikes and bike racingrideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.comBlogger453125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-3421927586350096592017-06-14T22:23:00.003-07:002017-06-14T22:23:43.420-07:002017 Misery Tour (kind of a double misery tour)After Almanzo I took a little time off and then got up into the far western end of the U.P. the last couple weekends. The first weekend was 3 days with Jeff B. and the second was a long ride from home to central Wisconsin on the following Friday and then back into the U.P. Saturday. I also was able to get out for a couple long rides on the corresponding Tuesdays which were mostly notable because I accidentally stumbled on the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona, which I highly recommend. Anyways, I'm just going to share photos and a couple stories as they apply to the photos.<br />
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Deer Head in bathroom stall, Presque Isle, WI<br />
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Lake Gogebic sunrise<br />
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Near Presque Isle, WI. The white spec is a Swan!<br />
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Misery Bay, MI. This is why it was the "misery tour"<br />
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Old Victoria, MI. Near the end of day 1 with Jeff. There is a 'hut' nearby that is part of the North Country trail. No water readily available, but a great place to potentially spend a night.<br />
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Adventure Mine mtb trails are excellent<br />
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Antonio's in Bergland, MI. Part of the reason I wanted to be riding in that area was the heat this time of year. It was still pretty warm up this way. Always good to have a great ice cream shop. At this point I would say I'm good friends with the girl who scoops my sundaes. <br />
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More of Lake Gogebic<br />
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Agate Beach, MI<br />
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North Country trail near Old Victoria, MI<br />
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A beaver dam kind of modified this road for us. I was committed to making it to Misery Bay on the official tour with Jeff. We either needed to backtrack or take ATV trails from Misery Bay to Ontonagon. I bet I was off and on my bike over 100x and walked a full 3 miles of that section. This 'road' was the beginning.<br />
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Adventure Mine<br />
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Microwave pork rinds and bar pizza are about all you can find at night in Mass City. In the am, there is great breakfast at the Adventure Motel though! Made from scratch by the owner herself. <br />
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Jeff near the end of day 1. The last 15 miles or so were truly brutal. I believe we climbed over 2500' across the one large expected climb and then the two larger "surprise" climbs on the ATV trail.<br />
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Pasties from Krupps!<br />
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Another Misery Bay</div>
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I stopped here along the Red Cedar trail last weekend. The Red Cedar is the best rail trail there is. Go ride it! Don't stop here though without bug spray.<br />
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Porcupine Mountains, MI<br />
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Another Porcupine Mountains (Presque Isle unit)<br />
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Another Red Cedar trail<br />
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Irvine Park Zoo Chippewa Falls, WI<br />
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More from our Misery Bay to Ontonagon 'passage'. This was actually fairly typical and great fun.<br />
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Porcupine Mountains (presque isle unit). A better photo I took of this falls hangs over my bed.<br />
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Willy's Still in Island Lake, WI. Willy almost ran us over about 4 miles before we stopped in, but he didn't mean any harm. Interesting old man.<br />
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Lake of the Falls, WI.<br />
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I pulled over to avoid a storm in Marenisco, MI and a local pulled up and offered me a beer. <br />
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Jumbo Pizza Burger from Antonio's in Bergland<br />
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Rocking the Gopher kit in central WI<br />
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rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-74185299256384025212017-05-22T21:37:00.002-07:002017-05-22T21:43:27.748-07:002017 AlmanzoSorry for no photos. Perhaps I can add a few down the road, but I didn't see too many photographers braving the rain.<br />
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Almanzo is the hardest gravel race I do. It's harder than the longer races. It's harder than the 'harder' races. It's harder than the races promoted as "hard". The competition makes it and 2017 was no different in that regard. I knew going in that I would simply not be the strongest person in the field. It would take my best riding, strategy and some luck if I would have a chance. <br />
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Bad weather would be to my advantage. No one is better prepared to ride that course in cold and rainy weather. I rode 155 miles last month when it was 31 and sleeting because I enjoyed doing so. Even if someone else was as "ready" I was confident. I also knew my bike was perfect, with the brand new Barlow Pass 38c compass tire on the rear and the Snoqualmie 44c on the front soft roads and loose gravel would also be to my advantage. As soon as the extended forecast came out I was pulling for it to come true, and it did. <br />
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(insert photo of rain)<br />
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The race started a bit slower than expected. Most years it gets very strung out over the first hill. I think this was a little neutralized due to the strong east wind. Not much point in going too fast at that point in the course with that. Right away though Colin Catlin outed himself as feeling pretty good by going off the front solo but no one else really reacted and it was much too early/windy for him to get anywhere solo. We would hit a cross wind soon and things would get hard. I was positioned well and took my turns in the echelon. After the crosswinds I have no idea how large the field remained or who was there. Visibility was near zero all day. <br />
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You might say that visibility being zero is terrible. Heck, I went through Adam Bergman's "jet wash" once on a descent and had to emergency stop when I literally couldn't tell where the road was anymore. All that "sucks" and all that, but it is also a great opportunity. When things are broken down that fully. There is nothing but forward movement, instinctual reaction to the shapes in front of you, survival. It forces you to exist in your most basic form. It puts you into the moment and it is a gift. I've been that way in other sports a couple times in the past. Usually it is for a minute or two. I remember very clearly one run of Slalom at Spirit Mountain in a MidAm many years ago where I was fully present in that way. A day like Saturday though, it can put you there for hours. Better than drugs...<br />
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We barreled along in our own bubbles. I watched some minor attacks etc. into the wind but knew it wasn't "it". Keeper road approached and it gets steep at the end. I was well positioned but it's not my kind of climb. The right combo hit at the front, another fast rider reacted and another went to his wheel. I was sucking air but I had to go. I put in an effort and then the descent came and I took risks. When I made it across I truly felt like they were expecting me. The group had formed with Tim Savre, Catlin, Bergman, Eric Thomson and myself. I remember thinking that they expected me but that I wasn't sure I actually belonged.<br />
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The miles went by, I took my pulls. Always take your pulls if you can when you aren't sure you belong... <br />
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I got a bottle hand-up from my wife with Eira on her back and an umbrella in Preston. I forced myself to drink more and tried to eat.<br />
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Bergman attacked and got a gap in crosswinds. No idea on mileage, 48?<br />
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Savre got a tiny gap around a corner with a little rise after it and I just went. It wasn't thought out, it just happened. I crossed the gap to Bergman over the next few miles with no idea whether or not the guys behind were close or out of sight. I couldn't see behind me. I just knew I wanted to get to Bergman. Bergman and I together could stay clear and I could be assured of no worse than 2nd. <br />
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Soon after Forestville Catlin and Savre came up to us and Savre was clearly feeling good. He was gone. I struggled on the hills. If we had gotten over those next 4 miles without being caught it might have been different, but we did not. Credit goes to Catlin and Savre for, presumably, working together and if not for being so strong as to catch us anyways. Thomson was gone, we didn't know what had happened to him. I still do not. Tim said that when I had jumped to go to Bergman he had looked back to see who would chase me and Thomson was not there, only Catlin. <br />
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Anyways, I had played the one card I really had to play in such company. I dropped my chain once and a 20 second gap turned into a minute and then two. I lost my edge a little but I kept pedaling. I never looked back. <br />
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The water crossing was cold. I squatted in it and urinated. I felt much better on the bike after that. I also put my glove in the water accidentally but it was already so soaked it didn't matter. Nothing probably could have mattered then.<br />
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Oriole road passed, the final climb passed. I felt better than when I had won in 2015 over the last 6 miles or so, but there was nothing to do about it. The ship had sailed and I just ground to the finish. No one was there but two volunteers. My wife was in the car and Eira was napping. Kim helped me to get my wet clothes off and we drove away. <br />
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I would end my night collecting friends from NE Iowa where their attempt at riding the Alexander had stalled. <br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-23774638955189776862017-05-22T20:20:00.000-07:002017-05-22T20:20:06.119-07:00catching up a bit...This is very bike racing focused. A lot has happened in 'life' as well, but this isn't the place for that.<br />
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Have to start with last year. In the last corner of the last night of a 3 week crit series late last June I went down in a crash pretty hard. 36 hours later I rode 205 miles or so from my house to Spooner, WI. That was dumb. I rode the next day too. Heck, I rode a crit two weeks after that and then again the next week. Anyways, I had broken my collarbone, a small bone in my hand and sustained a concussion. I didn't really realize that all at the time. Really only the concussion ever caught up with me anyways, the rest just sort of messed up my golf season an ability to reach into my jersey pocket with my left arm. <br />
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Ten weeks after that crash I went over the bars in a WORS race. I was riding in 6th or so at the time which was good for me in the Elite field. I finished 8th. I was 'ok' but didn't feel well training that week. I raced ok in the Filthy 50 the next weekend and finished 2nd but things weren't all great. I continued to develop additional symptoms. It got bad. I was eventually off the bike for 4 months. I gained weight, struggled with some things. My family was great. I was lucky I worked at home and could work when I felt good. There were times when I simply couldn't accomplish anything for days. Times when I couldn't sleep. Times when I couldn't remember the meal I had just eaten with my family.<br />
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By late February the haze had past. I've been riding hard ever since. I've learned some lessons and have changed a lot of my plans for this year to avoid risk when possible. I don't have any deep life lessons or opinions. It was a mistake to go on the long ride after the first crash, I wouldn't do that again. Racing can be a little dangerous, but everyone taking the line already knows this. I guess I hope if you are reading this you'll still be aggressive and race hard but respect the need for rest/recover/care when it comes to head injuries.<br />
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Since that time I've done my best to fight hard and get back to being able to ride well. It's been a struggle with losing the 12 lbs or so that I had gained. I've been lucky to have plenty of time to ride and I think I've taken advantage of that. <br />
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I desperately wish I could be racing crits and road but I know I need to recovery as fully as possible first and doubt I'm completely there. That means this spring/summer I really just had gravel races on the calendar.<br />
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Cirrem I surprised myself with a late surge from a few minutes back with 20 miles to go all the way to the front of the race with just one rider who pipped me at the line. I had been solidly dropped early on hills and this was a big surprise late<br />
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LML I struggled with climbing early again (the weight) and had to ride solo much of the middle of the race. Again, was able to push hard late and finish 2nd despite another strong field.<br />
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Ragnarok I kind of knew what to expect and was able to execute a plan based on the reality of my fitness and take the win for the 2nd year in a row. <br />
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After Ragnarok I actually started to do more than just pure base miles and by the time the Hungry Bear 100 rolled around I had lost 8 of those extra pounds and my climbing no longer was a total achilles heal. In fact, I was able to be agressive on the climbs. I flatted very late while off the front with Jesse L. and that robbed us both of finishing off what had already been a fun battle. I wound up 3rd despite taking nearly 7 minutes to change the flat and left feeling motivated and with momentum.<br />
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I haven't had any clear symptoms or issue for a few months now and I am very grateful for that!rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-21653173567179989922016-04-14T21:53:00.003-07:002016-04-14T21:53:52.424-07:00Ragnarok 2016... first 1/4 of my season thoughtsLast year I didn't sign up for the Ragnarok. I can't really tell you why. This race means a lot to me. My family has been in the area this course goes through for over a century and most of them still do live in Red Wing. That aside, any of the original gravel races from the "almanzo gravel series"... well, they are what got me interested in bike racing. I rode them when it was a challenge to finish, when it was a challenge to try to compete, when it was a challenge just to survive (the year of the rain/cold). It's still a huge challenge, but I came to the ragnarok this year to try to win. <br />
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I think I've had good legs all spring. No wins, but all close misses since fatbike season. <br />
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CIRREM is a great first race of the year. It was very fast this year with beautiful weather. I may have had an advantage to press with 4 or 5 miles to go, but tried to play it safe and got beat in a mis-timed sprint effort. I left feeling pretty good about the day, but frustrated with 3rd. I've done CIRREM a ton of times now and am piling up the top 5s with no wins there. Maybe it's better that way with it being so early, but someday I would like to win!<br />
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Testing the legs a bit at CIRREM<br />
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I then did a couple of Iowa mixed road races. I was third in Hills and won a bunch sprint. Fresh legs right to the end, but no strategic way to use them other than what I did. Still a great training ride and fun. It was good to see my friend Jason win and I was happy that one of us not from the local team, with 7 guys in the race, was able to take it. The Crushed Rock Classic was a new event this year. Fun course with a mixture of gravel, a bit of road and some CX style grass/mud even. I was strong but tentative and wound up second.<br />
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This was a pretty ridiculous chase group that formed in the Crushed Rock Classic<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ-uLABVnBy-Es8kD5WBYTZPa4zi-RfSoG_VM2PQOejLutzGrbUSdIqMAWzDRUHwSwOo6N2c5v567WGXhTECgy0AS5kvj6Jgo1sXbEqn0pruWIYgIwuqBZ73DTSgtwCCh_H8WOhZPmsbrc/s1600/12888517_10205917335748407_321200014302451921_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ-uLABVnBy-Es8kD5WBYTZPa4zi-RfSoG_VM2PQOejLutzGrbUSdIqMAWzDRUHwSwOo6N2c5v567WGXhTECgy0AS5kvj6Jgo1sXbEqn0pruWIYgIwuqBZ73DTSgtwCCh_H8WOhZPmsbrc/s320/12888517_10205917335748407_321200014302451921_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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On to the Ragnarok and the first 'goal' race of the year. I had an idea of how the race would likely unfold going into it. The first 85 miles are all about conserving energy and then a group of 2-4 would likely form over the top of Heath's Hill which would break up further over the second to last climb OR come down to a sprint on the final ramp. I am racing a bit heavier these days (Dad bod?) and knew that a sprint up that final ramp was not for me. Anyone who would be able to stay with me to that point was likely to beat me on that pitch! <br />
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Conserving energy early<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwo0_ozw3cWaJlvSOUxFjCV2SqPoaN9vAZBpR9xNngeO1z_7S1hS1-j7uO-UP06RlVUWKNL9iYGe-DRxNONzn8fBo0VN51oIBuI6IvGzirgpeBwmFYZ9u3yaMh9Tep_TfGTVuf0V7GG3UM/s1600/DSC_0053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwo0_ozw3cWaJlvSOUxFjCV2SqPoaN9vAZBpR9xNngeO1z_7S1hS1-j7uO-UP06RlVUWKNL9iYGe-DRxNONzn8fBo0VN51oIBuI6IvGzirgpeBwmFYZ9u3yaMh9Tep_TfGTVuf0V7GG3UM/s320/DSC_0053.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is a great shot of what the Ragnarok is all about!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggNMokkL48aiEH9w63_0CsFduvF7wekvk4pkVRAWNQ6qo9BkmfOWukEfo5H4ousCs4aa5h5-_tALZOTihjPowkDPk9xmn5IE428QZku4ZYZ12ifM1BafiERU0Hn8O93bj0GTv3yrG0jVon/s1600/DSC_0072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggNMokkL48aiEH9w63_0CsFduvF7wekvk4pkVRAWNQ6qo9BkmfOWukEfo5H4ousCs4aa5h5-_tALZOTihjPowkDPk9xmn5IE428QZku4ZYZ12ifM1BafiERU0Hn8O93bj0GTv3yrG0jVon/s320/DSC_0072.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The pace early was pretty ridiculous. I wasn't in danger of being dropped until we got to the largest hills around mile 55, but I sure wanted to ride slower! I was expecting a bit more gentlemanly pace and a chance to pee and remove my jacket. Next time I won't wear a skinsuit under a wool jersey and will NOT start in a jacket. The combination meant no rolling pee and little access to any food, which was compounded by frozen bottles. In the end I wound up only consuming about 250 calories and 40 oz of water throughout the entire race. Thankfully my wife was at checkpoint two though! I only got one big sip of cranberry/cherry soda and a wish of good luck! but that helped me immensely on the last 25 miles.<br />
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The group dropped me on the large back to back hills, but I kept the gap reasonable and essentially coasted back on going downhill. Jesse had flatted on that same climb. When I caught back on the group really slowed and we finally did tentatively stop and pee. This let me safely get my jacket off, let Jesse back on and probably really influenced the outcome of the race. From that point on I felt the momentum shifting and was no longer hanging on.<br />
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Heath's Hill comes up at mile 85 or so. I still had it fresh in my mind getting dropped on the large hills earlier and reflexively went to the front and started riding my own tempo. I had to be sure to be in contact over the top. It's a technical climb that takes about 8 minutes from top to bottom. Throughout you have to look ahead and pick good lines while also putting down decent power. Things started getting quieter and quieter. The silence started to feed my desire to push a little harder and in turn it got quieter. I wasn't able to match my own KOM time on the climb, but I did put between 20 seconds and 2 minutes on the remainder of the group. After the quick pavement descent the course turns downwind and begins a much longer/gradual climb (perhaps a better launch pad for an attack from someone with my skills). I was caught by Jesse and Sam E. as we turned onto that gradual climb. I was Ok with that thinking that the 3 of us would be able to put time into the others and that was better than the big group had been. However, it became apparent that neither of them were in a condition to make any pulls. I slipped away as it started to go up and rode tempo the remaining 15 miles in! <br />
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It felt really good not to have to sprint on that final ramp.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_G3NrMrQ60R2dDC_FvQg5PExFrUaGNfyhQflPQxuYCBT8xEj9qelXGlXjMvpPaoe6OD6iqxEowz3DV6bvZ7WxhRmlHAsC3BxMm4Ib_m_QDqKlmYuhvjHuGdgt4hxZSrFetIdjXaUD6GpI/s1600/DSC_0186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_G3NrMrQ60R2dDC_FvQg5PExFrUaGNfyhQflPQxuYCBT8xEj9qelXGlXjMvpPaoe6OD6iqxEowz3DV6bvZ7WxhRmlHAsC3BxMm4Ib_m_QDqKlmYuhvjHuGdgt4hxZSrFetIdjXaUD6GpI/s320/DSC_0186.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I'm sure Jesse had used up a lot of his energy chasing on after the flat. It would have been interesting to see how much more I had in the tank had I been pushed late. I've been riding all week, but I'm STILL tired from the effort, no doubt.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLEFs2PvdaOj7ylaPo_79FT24SAciphPzEWJTdByNq609a2oKAKOCFkyaHrbKw3ai6Ka9nHFM0dLm4uCOIBT9ssO-wnfEVMTOhm4sdRpp_FjcGN5bt2wlqDoWMe1BGbAI2SocDXlo2MVq/s1600/DSC_0221.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLEFs2PvdaOj7ylaPo_79FT24SAciphPzEWJTdByNq609a2oKAKOCFkyaHrbKw3ai6Ka9nHFM0dLm4uCOIBT9ssO-wnfEVMTOhm4sdRpp_FjcGN5bt2wlqDoWMe1BGbAI2SocDXlo2MVq/s320/DSC_0221.JPG" width="212" /></a></div>
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LML has been moved to this weekend due to bad weather 3 weeks ago. I think that maybe took a little bit of the luster off of it. After all, Ragnarok was the "goal" in this early part of the year, but LML was supposed to set up as an important tune-up. Now it's the beginning of the next chapter which ends with Almanzo. Meanwhile, the crit season has also started. Gravel and crits complement each other better than most realize if you ask me.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-88703572480260352382016-02-03T22:34:00.002-08:002016-02-03T22:34:38.697-08:00Barn Hockey RinkWe have a structurally sound, but sort of useless barn on our property. It's not a proper "barn" the way most picture barn architecture but more of an early "pole shed", at least in architectural style, made from wood. When we moved in it didn't even have a large enough door to put a trailer or store a boat in it or anything. We put a huge sliding door on the far end last year and I built a large dog indoor/outdoor dog kennel down there as well. Anyways, most of it has just been storage for us. A lot more storage than we really needed. It was a pretty big mess. Here is a photo of it from down near the dog kennel.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGBLPb4LJUOHMXp5GwqJIIqBsZIQ4_OMtMdk8n64uLPv8ULkVgnwe2bg8J7CpdzbZHzaSx1IdA_-pnLB0kgxrhMR21Wrc4ex3a66X0ZPwtWl0iGxPuUMLv6iARGKugC8SoD702_IBxZ8Tr/s1600/20151226_172651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGBLPb4LJUOHMXp5GwqJIIqBsZIQ4_OMtMdk8n64uLPv8ULkVgnwe2bg8J7CpdzbZHzaSx1IdA_-pnLB0kgxrhMR21Wrc4ex3a66X0ZPwtWl0iGxPuUMLv6iARGKugC8SoD702_IBxZ8Tr/s320/20151226_172651.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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It was built in 1950 and originally had a series of pens for chickens in it. <br />
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I got it into my head that we should turn it into a hockey rink for the winter. The issue with having ice in a yard or whatever is always maintaining it, right? But if we did it in the barn it wouldn't snow on it! Plus it would be protected from the wind etc. etc.<br />
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What you really can't see there is just how much of a pain it was to level the fllor out with a shovel and rake. We had planned to have someone dump gravel in the future and to bring in a skid steer at that point. I was in a hurry and did it by hand (in about 6 hours). The frame is 4" sewer and drain pvc.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw_cK6dnb2diJBwPsEitf6I_3sVDz3FVc7Qa1F2UZD-LJMvjWkguK9ZCS20hPd5ZGmd6mvNBTVaftTpc41yPbQI012O_EG9bMWoA9a3UxS2MqvGdCBeUmVY4UOIVzAziUGJyvwYIQ2dBG9/s1600/20151228_154247.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw_cK6dnb2diJBwPsEitf6I_3sVDz3FVc7Qa1F2UZD-LJMvjWkguK9ZCS20hPd5ZGmd6mvNBTVaftTpc41yPbQI012O_EG9bMWoA9a3UxS2MqvGdCBeUmVY4UOIVzAziUGJyvwYIQ2dBG9/s320/20151228_154247.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The liner is just two layers of the thickest plastic we could find at Fleet Farm.</div>
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I added about half the water first then let it freeze. I've since added a few thinner layers on the top after filling it all the way. It's about 3" deep at the close end and 6" at the other.</div>
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I wired up some speakers and christmas lights and we've been out there about twice a week since.</div>
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Here is a quick video of Riley at just over 3 years old. This was the second time she ever skated by herself (with her walker). The first try was about 1 minute previous. Prior to this I've carried her around a lot letting her get used to how the ice feels under her feet. She likes to ride on her little slide while I push it around the ice and plays hockey from her knees with a cut down stick. </div>
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<br /><br /><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Wp0H92iiBM4/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Wp0H92iiBM4?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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The slide which shows the rink a little bit better too-</div>
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And another after a couple more practice attempts (still on her first night of standing alone)-</div>
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rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-76575584142043616932016-01-31T21:12:00.002-08:002016-01-31T21:12:29.675-08:002016 UntitledFacebook sent me a bunch of posts I'd made "on this day" in the past. I've had a lot of fun on January 31st! The Untitled ride was always great, when it happened. Of course, it kind of died out because two years ago it was -15 or whatever and no one can really ride 5 or 6 hours safely in those temperatures (or is going to drive just to do so with me).<br />
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Anyways, this weekend I was supposed to race in a one hour fatbike race (cx style laps/bell) on Saturday and then go to the bike swap. I wound up staying home both days and riding 4 hours each day. Three days this week I was lucky enough to ride for a while, sit down and eat lunch, ride home. I guess that was my version of the untitled. <br />
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Soon here I'll have a newborn at home and I may not get to do that as much for a while. I still hope to race quite a bit this spring though. We will see, I guess.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-86572271554917697732016-01-19T22:02:00.000-08:002016-01-19T22:04:39.572-08:00Snow Crush Fatbke RaceI had planned to start my season in the middle of December. Might have had a lot of miles on by now too. However, the same sinus infection that took me out of Jinglecross took me out all the way into early January. I did have a mediocre day at the Solstice Chase but went totally back in the hole after that. Since getting on antibiotics early in January I've felt much better. Thankfully, too, because I had a great trip to Colorado last week skiing!<br />
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Anyways, that meant I pulled the plug on the Triple D and was free to race the Snow Crush on what little training I have in my legs. More or less that consisted of the ride where I took this picture two weeks ago!<br />
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The <a href="http://www.rbnc.org/">Snow Crush</a> was a lot of fun. The course was firm and fast and the River Bend Nature Center is always scenic. It was also a great place for Riley to hang out and check out the animals etc.. pre and post race.<br />
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<a href="http://www.southernminn.com/faribault_daily_news/news/article_e98c61d8-4c6b-5efd-8f08-36a0dabf90ca.html?utm_medium=social">The paper always gets things just a bit wrong</a>... but yeah, I was really hot at the end! The Almanzo is a lot of fun (although, the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/741133459355097/">Dickie</a> is my event). The PWC appears to be dead moving forward (disappointing to me because I love that type of racing... riding a tight rope!). Oh, and I did win.<br />
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It was very windy and with such cold/firm temperatures it was not very technical. Riding skill wasn't going to be what separated the fastest people on the front in those conditions. In the end it came down to 'road' type tactics. I knew I didn't have too much in my legs fairly early on, but was also able to get into the ideal position in second wheel. On the first lap I was worried Dustin Gaffke was going to just ride me off his wheel and take off, but with each hill it was easier to hang on. I'm sure the wind was wearing him out some. He certainly had an opportunity to drop me early. By the last lap I had an idea of how the race would go down. It was a challenge not to attack too early. In fact, I did try to attack too early on the one technical descent but my gap was short lived. That served to put me on the front of a group of three though heading to the finish. Not the worst place to be considering how I expected things to shake out. Patience would be the key.<br />
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There was a relatively long hill with about 600 meters to go with a false flat. I knew things would go off on the way up. Both riders came off my wheel and opened up decent gaps on me on the main pitch. I was able to stay patient though, do my own thing and then run them down on the false flats before the final descent/sprint to the finish. <a href="http://www.rbnc.org/snowcrush/race%20results.pdf">Results are here.</a><br />
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After the Solstice Chase I was sort of excited about fatbike racing this year. The combination of the sinus infection and my second daughter being due in about 2 weeks now will mean that I may be done after just these two races. Maybe next year!<br />
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Yeah, I wore a ski helmet and goggles. GOGGLES.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-69705694424403122132015-12-07T19:53:00.002-08:002015-12-07T19:53:19.792-08:00crank brothers vs. shimanoThis year at the <a href="http://dickiescramble.blogspot.com/">Dickie Scramble</a> I broke a pedal while off the front trying to hold off a charging Ted Loosen. I was able to ride the last 8 or 9 miles in but it certainly slowed me down a bit. I had been using crank brothers quattro pedals on all my bikes for years. Being able to use either mountain or road shoes with the same pedals was always very appealing. Crank Brothers' reliability had always concerned me slightly, but since switching to the high end quattros and following a consistent rebuild schedule I had experienced no issues for about 3 years. The quattros had helped the reliability because the platform meant that I was not compressing the spring with each pedal stroke (I'd worn out springs on several sets of egg beaters in a hurry). <div>
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When I broke another pedal on mile 25 or so of a group ride the Monday after the <a href="http://rideonpurpose.blogspot.com/2015/12/i-won-2015-almanzo-100.html">Almanzo 100</a> I knew I had to switch.</div>
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Shimano was the clear choice for me. To put it simply thee more I ride the more Shimano parts I use. The appeal of slightly flashier/lighter/cheaper/whatever equipment just no longer is there. </div>
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I had a much harder time switching to the road pedals (7900 dura ace) than I'd like to admit. Maybe I should have switched over slowly, only using them on group rides initially, but bad starts (and restarts after free laps) in the northstar crits were actually a big enough issue for me to influence the outcome of the races. I'm still not 100% proficient. </div>
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On the mtb/cx front the switch went a bit better. I went with the 540s and got them right before the week long touring trip I took to the U.P.. Initially I rode them with the tension all the way loose which I found replicated the feel of clipping into the CB pedals very well. I noticed the longer spindles, but it was never something that bothered me on that trip (60+ hours on my bike in 8 days). Anyways, after that trip I was fairly confident in being able to clip into the pedals. I still am not quite as fast as I used to be though. I think my starts suffered a little bit until well into November. Dismounts are not an "issue" but the pedals do not allow me to walk my left foot out leading into barriers as easily as with the other pedals and I've had to change my technique some. I have been pleasantly surprised by how well they work/clear mud. If anything my experience this year was that mud performance was improved vs. the crank brothers.</div>
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In the end I'm not looking back. </div>
rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-8805501755004302262015-12-06T22:04:00.001-08:002015-12-06T22:04:41.381-08:00The KeweenawI made 8 trips this year. Two trips all the way to Copper Harbor by car and one by bike. It's becoming a tradition for me to ride up there from home.<br />
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At this point we are even looking at houses!<br />
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Photos-<br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-69367489858080092002015-12-06T21:21:00.003-08:002015-12-06T21:21:51.081-08:00I won the 2015 Almanzo 100<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This has been a blog post that has kept me from writing blog posts for a while. The title says it all, but it wasn't easy to say or accept. Those who follow my blog know what that means to me. It's hard to say it because of the luck I needed luck to make it happen. I've come to terms with it now. Perhaps two years in a row of inopportune flats in the same race meant I was "owed". Maybe it's more likely that if you just keep trying long enough eventually something works out. Maybe it makes no difference whatsoever. At this point it's simpler than that stuff. I simply rode my best race and the results were the results. The luck aspect of it is nothing to me anymore but that doesn't mean I don't desperately want to back it up next spring.<br />
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I was beat at mile 65. A long series of hills after the checkpoint saw the field literally exploding. I had worked to create that explosion but by the end of the steepest of those hills it was clear that 4 riders had a little bit more climbing ability than I did right then. Beat or not I absolutely put out everything I had between there and the line. A group formed behind me but they were soon out of sight and forgotten. Eventually, I would catch those 4 riders 25 miles later only to be dropped again on Oriole. Then I would find myself ahead of them. I don't know how far they went the wrong way. I know that when they came back into sight behind me and I realized that I was leading that it was not something I would relinquish. By the end the gap was very small. I don't know if I could have done it had the line been any further way. As it was I was taking things in small pieces the way you do when climbing a mountain pass. The pavement is only 1 more mile.... the next turn is right there... get to the bike path, you can't be beat if you make it to the bike path... <br />
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I doubt I'll ever finish another race and be immediately interviewed by a television camera!<br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-91271257116542324242015-12-06T20:48:00.001-08:002015-12-06T20:50:54.787-08:00Miscellaneous Spring StuffThe week before Lakeville Milltown Lakeville I got to go up to Lutsen and watch the spring series ski race. I snuck over to Moose Mountain on my fatbike and rode all over the place on the down low. It was pretty amazing bombing giant slalom turns all over the closed runs (closed to to limited snow cover so late in the season) and riding on the river through the golf course. This was just a ride, but something I had a great time doing!<br />
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Lakeville Milltown Lakeville itself was a great day too. Not much happened early in the race, but leaving the checkpoint a small group formed that Skarpohl drove and drove. I made a few pulls too to help keep some of our competitors out of the group, but soon regretted doing that. In the end Skarpohl and I went in the last 25 or 30 miles as a due. I think he kept me around so he would have someone to torture but then felt bad and let me stay with him all the way to the end and ultimately beat him in the sprint. I've now won that race 2 of the 3 runnings. All 3 years I've been unbelievably tired for 2 or 3 days after this thing. <br />
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I skipped Ragnarok. I don't know why. I want to do it next year. I guess I felt like LML, Ragnarok, Dickie Scramble and Almanzo was just 1 too many long/early races. Maybe I was right, but I'll never really know.<br />
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A huge benefit of not working evenings was being able to make the trip up to the Twin Cities on Tuesday nights. The Tuesday night points races and crits became a big part of my spring this year. I had moved up from being a 5 all the way to a 2 on the road without doing more than 10 or 12 total crits. Obviously, that was too fast to be really comfortable/good and I wanted to work on that so one of my goals this year was to 'learn' how to race crits a little bit. <br />
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I wound up racing every Tuesday available and a solid handful of weekend events. I was proud to finish 6th in the MN Memorial Classsic race at the Fairgrounds (where I'm sure I had a relative advantage due to familiarity). I was also consistently in the top 10 or so in the Tuesday races which meant a lot to me due to the nature of dealing with my health/food stuff. 10+ weeks of being "ready to go" on Tuesday night was something easy to get excited about! My season would eventually fizzle out as the temperature and humidity soared into late June/July but not before I nearly stole the Wisconsin Cat 2 State Championships with a long move, but fell to 4th near the line.<br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-71427553656623036312015-12-06T20:11:00.001-08:002015-12-06T20:13:31.635-08:00Pugsley World Championships ;) 2015As part of an attempt to somewhat catch up this blog with the current I'm going to hit on a few things I did this year with posts.<br />
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The PWC event down in Decorah was really just about a month after I stopped doing the Mayo job and began working just for myself. I had taken a lot of time off after having health issues once again during the CX season (I'm still doing a lot of learning even now pertaining to my diet and health). Then starting early February I started putting in a ton of miles at Gamehaven on the fatbike. Not exactly as preparation for anything, but because it was nice to stay out of the wind and tons of fun. By early March I had spent a lot of hours on snow, many of them trying to keep up with Trevor, and was as ready for a fatbike race as I have ever been.<br />
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The event itself was freaking great. The course was tough with much of it being just barely rideable. 98% of the course was singletrack and there really were no punches pulled so far as anything that would make it easy. The race consisted essentially of 4 loops with the last 2 being laps of the same sections. After everyone had ridden/hiked/crashed the first time around it was absolute mayhem just staying upright. The "fatbike birkie" took place the same day, whatever. I would love to see that same field on a course like this (irony coming from someone many consider to be a roadie... eh?)<br />
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So far as the race itself went- I was able to jump out to an early lead and stay away throughout. It was always close, but I was able to find a bit more each time it tightened up etc..<br />
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Our next stop was Iowa City for one of the Iowa Spring Classic road races Sunday. I had a decent day there and was able to get third. What stands out in my memory though was literally putting my foot down in the sprint for 2nd. I really left everything out there between the two days that weekend.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-27089179115793811352015-12-06T17:20:00.001-08:002015-12-06T17:20:24.637-08:00testtestrideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-75025551085775841912015-04-19T22:03:00.000-07:002015-04-19T22:03:49.363-07:00Roots<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-56836920288065655862015-02-09T19:29:00.002-08:002015-02-09T19:36:41.908-08:00new beginning/taking advice from the onion<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: #fefefe; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 28px;">ROCHESTER, MN—In an effort to help working individuals improve their fitness and well-being, experts at the Mayo Clinic issued a new set of health guidelines Thursday recommending that Americans stand up at their desk, leave their office, and never return. “Many Americans spend a minimum of eight hours per day sitting in an office, but we observed significant physical and mental health benefits in subjects after just one instance of standing up, walking out the door, and never coming back to their place of work again,” said researcher Claudine Sparks, who explained that those who implemented the practice in their lives reported an improvement in mood and reduced stress that lasted for the remainder of the day, and which appeared to persist even into subsequent weeks. “We encourage Americans to experiment with stretching their legs by strolling across their office and leaving all their responsibilities behind forever just one time to see how much better they feel. People tend to become more productive, motivated, and happy almost immediately. We found that you can also really get the blood flowing by pairing this activity with hurling your staff ID across the parking lot.” Sparks added that Americans could maximize positive effects by using their lunch break to walk until nothing looks familiar anymore and your old life is a distant memory.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #fefefe; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 28px;">-Verbatim from the Onion <a href="http://rochester%2C%20mn%E2%80%94in%20an%20effort%20to%20help%20working%20individuals%20improve%20their%20fitness%20and%20well-being%2C%20experts%20at%20the%20mayo%20clinic%20issued%20a%20new%20set%20of%20health%20guidelines%20thursday%20recommending%20that%20americans%20stand%20up%20at%20their%20desk%2C%20leave%20their%20office%2C%20and%20never%20return.%20%E2%80%9Cmany%20americans%20spend%20a%20minimum%20of%20eight%20hours%20per%20day%20sitting%20in%20an%20office%2C%20but%20we%20observed%20significant%20physical%20and%20mental%20health%20benefits%20in%20subjects%20after%20just%20one%20instance%20of%20standing%20up%2C%20walking%20out%20the%20door%2C%20and%20never%20coming%20back%20to%20their%20place%20of%20work%20again%2C%E2%80%9D%20said%20researcher%20claudine%20sparks%2C%20who%20explained%20that%20those%20who%20implemented%20the%20practice%20in%20their%20lives%20reported%20an%20improvement%20in%20mood%20and%20reduced%20stress%20that%20lasted%20for%20the%20remainder%20of%20the%20day%2C%20and%20which%20appeared%20to%20persist%20even%20into%20subsequent%20weeks.%20%E2%80%9Cwe%20encourage%20americans%20to%20experiment%20with%20stretching%20their%20legs%20by%20strolling%20across%20their%20office%20and%20leaving%20all%20their%20responsibilities%20behind%20forever%20just%20one%20time%20to%20see%20how%20much%20better%20they%20feel.%20people%20tend%20to%20become%20more%20productive%2C%20motivated%2C%20and%20happy%20almost%20immediately.%20we%20found%20that%20you%20can%20also%20really%20get%20the%20blood%20flowing%20by%20pairing%20this%20activity%20with%20hurling%20your%20staff%20id%20across%20the%20parking%20lot.%E2%80%9D%20sparks%20added%20that%20americans%20could%20maximize%20positive%20effects%20by%20using%20their%20lunch%20break%20to%20walk%20until%20nothing%20looks%20familiar%20anymore%20and%20your%20old%20life%20is%20a%20distant%20memory./">(original article can be found here)</a></span><br />
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Tonight is my last full night at the Mayo Clinic. I've fallen off on blogging recently as things have just gotten out of control time wise but that does not diminish the importance this blog has had in my life, or at least the things for which it serves as a record. When I started blogging I had just begun to ride. I was looking for something and had no clue what it was. Over the years cycling has already taken me so many places.<br />
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<a href="http://rideonpurpose.blogspot.com/2014_08_01_archive.html">Here</a><br />
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<a href="http://rideonpurpose.blogspot.com/2013/04/its-all-about-bike.html">and here</a><br />
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<a href="http://rideonpurpose.blogspot.com/2012/05/royal-162-recap.html">and no where</a><br />
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I started repairing carbon fiber parts nearly 4 years ago now. I've been lucky enough to be able to carve out enough of a niche doing so that I am feeling great about making the leap.<br />
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I certainly never expected to work in the bike industry. Frankly, I still don't feel like I do, even if it has been paying a decent chunk of the bills for a while. I always had an idea what the bike industry was like and if you've followed my blog for long you know I never really liked it. Maybe I was always wrong. There are certainly still things going on that I don't like to see on a very macro level, but on an individual level people are seriously awesome. It's impossible not to be grateful for that.<br />
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There are a lot of things I hope to have more time to do and tons of things I hope to be able to give my wife more time to do. And although 40 hours a week seems like a lot of time but I'm sure it will go fast. Totally stoked about attending group rides, the local Tuesday night bar ride, Tuesday night races in the Twin Cities etc. etc.. I'll be getting to spend a lot more time with this little person too. Tired of having to tell her I'm going to work. She always responds with "Daddy works hard". <br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-84770130977027531892014-09-11T16:54:00.001-07:002014-09-11T16:54:11.712-07:00Gravel Conspiracy 2014/HealthI have no pictures. Almost not worth putting anything up with zero pictures. Have to post something if only to tell you that you should do this event next year. Seriously.<br />
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This was a bit different thing for me than the last couple of years. Lots of endurance riding over the summer and these stages were looking a bit less like tests of endurance and more like tests of speed. After studying the routes I had a good idea of my time goals/pace for each stage. Keeping up with those timelines became a major battle with the persistent headwind over the weekend. The only one I really 'missed' was day 1 because of a road that didn't really exist where I stopped, looked around and left a huge 'tree arrow' to help others. The stages took me 3:48 (with approximately 20 minutes of screwing around), 6:50 and 2:58. So, a handful of minutes faster than what my pretty aggressive goal times were (3:30, 7, 3). Feel great about that.<br />
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I'm going to race this weekend for the first time since before the Almanzo. Could have virtually any fitness level and a couple of CX races will certainly expose whatever that level might be. <br />
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My health continues to be less of a problem. I still have some days where I think I've gotten it wrong, but if I stick to the foods which I know are OK things seem all positive. I have lost 12 lbs since March primarily on mexican, BBQ, thai, steak and french fries. CX requires a lot of power at times, but also has many punchy accelerations and climbs. Who knows! Regardless, I'm looking forward to having fun this fall. Hopefully building momentum which will allow me to train much more again next year and build on the base I redeveloped over the summer while not racing.<br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-25951227672410524712014-08-12T09:20:00.003-07:002014-08-12T09:20:58.966-07:00Home to Copper Harbor Folks were going to be at Copper Harbor for singlespeed USA. I figured if I took Friday off and left early I would be able to ride there before noon on Sunday (11 am Eastern) then hop a ride back. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-64459406356336248892014-06-29T22:11:00.002-07:002014-06-29T22:11:27.056-07:00Add your own dramatic romanticismI went on a long ride yesterday. Kim was working in central Wisconsin so I got the chance to spend the day headed that way. It started great, then it got really hot and the wind was 20 mph from the wrong direction. It ended with rain and an A&W where my helmet was seemingly stolen. I tried to stay relatively efficient (except for between 2 and 7 pm in the heat where I just tried to stay alive) and didn't take many pictures, but here you go!<br />
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North end of Rochester by sunrise<br />
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Pretty gravel between Hammond and Red Wing<br />
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Guess I'm rerouting a bit...<br />
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El Paso, WI<br />
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UFO Days!<br />
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Not only is there plenty of gravel in Wisconsin (contrary to the belief of many( there are also roads made of compressed sand<br />
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I'm smiling? but this was the low point of the day... pavement, into the wind, 12ish mph and not fun<br />
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Where that stupid paved road took me<br />
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Not exactly sunset, but this was as close as I got to a sunset picture.<br />
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Looks like I may get an opportunity to put up a bigger number as early as this Friday.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-31838331717489653312014-06-21T20:30:00.002-07:002014-06-21T20:50:45.417-07:00Been up north a lot since the Almanzo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sorry about loading this. Made a trip to Copper Harbor, Ironwood, Hayward then another trip back up to Ironwood for my wedding!</div>
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rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-11647615946602905742014-05-08T20:14:00.001-07:002014-05-08T20:14:19.825-07:00Tour of Filmore<b><a href="http://filmoretour.blogspot.com/2014/05/2014-tour-of-filmore-october-5th-9-am.html">HERE</a></b><br />
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I'm looking forward to it.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-60322854077123798672014-05-02T16:58:00.000-07:002014-05-02T17:00:17.866-07:00Driftless Dessertion: June 7th/8th and the scenic route from Stewartville to Decorah and backWe are planning to ride to Decorah and back on these two days with route similar to the following-<br />
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Day 1-<br />
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Day 2-<br />
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There are 16 climbs on the route which mapmyride has denoted as a cat 5 and 4 cat 4s with the first three of the 4s being basically back to back to back on day one. </div>
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We have planned breakfast stop on day 1, lunch on day 1 and dinner in Decorah (hopefully). Day 2 we will eat breakfast in Decorah, lunch at the mexican place in Fountain at mile 60ish. </div>
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If you are interested send me an email or comment here. This would be a good training ride for the Pasty Chase (and may in fact be harder). We will want to work out some details. There is potential for drop bags to be sent to Decorah, but that's up in the air. Likely, camping that night.</div>
rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-7494019403569503202014-04-21T17:09:00.001-07:002014-04-21T17:13:10.284-07:00Ragnarok(ish) postI called from my back, directly in front of the Kwik Trip in Lake City. My Dad was hitting golf balls in town, did I want a ride? I did not.<br />
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I continued to follow my Garmin's purple line as it wound me out of town. Near the edge of town a choice presented itself. Would I follow my guiding line or wasn't Territorial Rd the way to Heath's Hill?<br />
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Jumping back a full week, the Ragnarok had come over this road without me. It's sort of the crux of the event, the part where, when you dream about winning the Ragnarok, you ride away and stay away to the finish. However, I had only ridden just over 20 miles with the group. I'm used to not making it real far in my races these days. The disappointment is something I've become accustomed to. However, this wasn't the typical crap health, excuses, real issues whatever that had plagued my fall and winter. This was squarely on my shoulders. This time I'd just been an idiot and not worn enough clothing. My expectation was that one thing would happen with the weather but a totally different thing had happened. Pretty early on I looked around and noticed no one else had bare legs, my legs were turning a pinky red. I was hurting. I had a bit of chain suck and had to chase the lead group for a bit, but even that effort didn't warm me much. That was that. My first reaction had been to ride 100+ Sunday. I woke up Sunday sick. I had to wait and do nothing.<br />
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I put the whole thing out of my mind, focused on the Dickie Scramble stuff and family stuff that needed to be done during the week. It snowed to the north late in the week and the road race was cancelled. The Dairy Roubaix had called my name, but I was looking at waking up before 5 to get there and didn't want to do that to the 16 month old. It was looking like I should just stay home and do the group ride. Did some mapping, trying to come up with a group ride route that would take me somewhere inspiring. All of the routes kept creeping too long. It hit me that with all the wind out there that riding south for a while could be greatly rewarded and a plan formed.<br />
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="405" scrolling="no" src="http://www.strava.com/activities/132057915/embed/0bf39f6eacef304ec8085c49de2f8fe30c5d74b4" width="590"></iframe><br />
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In the end I made the right onto Territorial and up Heath's Hill. Like all the other hills I pushed the pace. A ride like this does way more than get rid of some frustration, but it did do some of that. More so it changed my perspective a bit. Being able to ride health wise and to enjoy the beauty of those roads is far more important than any race result.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-29010106799953126952014-04-21T00:04:00.001-07:002014-04-21T00:04:22.185-07:00Dickie Scramble on the news!I can't figure out how to embed this video so click <a href="http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=10073608">here</a>.<br />
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Here is the final update and information on the event's blog page <a href="http://dickiescramble.blogspot.com/2014/04/final-update-maps-parking-check-in.html">here</a>.<br />
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I will write up something about Ragnarok and my last week or so soon.rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-24587357939708271282014-04-07T22:46:00.002-07:002014-04-07T22:46:56.694-07:00Hills Iowa Spring Classic 2014 + General UpdateI'm continuing to avoid many, many foods. At this point I believe the two most likely culprits are certain sugars and gluten. The list that I will continue to avoid is long though and I'm not sure when I will feel ready or comfortable to begin trying to re-diversity my diet. I've gotten stronger every day I've been on my bike since beginning the new diet.<br />
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The weather folks were calling for a good sized snow storm late last week, and Iowa started calling my name. I got into a great 5 man team for the Gent's ride down in Des Moines Saturday. We rode 68 miles at a comfortable pace with plenty of conversation and even a couple of sit down stops. It feels pretty good after a long winter to be able to sit down on your butt mid ride in the gravel and just take in the world. Here are a couple of pictures from the Gent's 'race'.<br />
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Almost immediately after the Gent's race I took off. I wish I had been able to stick around and see a lot of people there and hang out in the bar. The problem was that I knew I needed to get some food in me asap after 5+ hours on the bike and to do that effectively meant finding something I could eat! Burger's without buns are potentially on my menu, but I've yet to go that route. It just sounds terrible for some reason. Plus I can't eat most steak sauce, BBQ etc.. Anyways, we took off and found some food I could eat and then made our way to Iowa City. <br />
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We went for a hike at Sugar Bottoms. I try to make it out there every time I am in the area and it never disappoints. The dogs had a lot of fun running there too! I also learned some interesting history about <a href="http://www.fws.gov/dingdarling/">Ding Darling</a>. As a kid we used to go to Sanibel Island almost every year and I never had any idea there was a link between Sugar Bottoms and Ding Darling. He is quite interesting.<br />
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Late dinner at <a href="http://www.monicasonthestrip.com/">Monica's</a> was a no-brainer as it was within walking distance of our hotel and they are very conscious of what they put in their food. The gluten free cheesecake and dinner rolls made my night. About half way through dinner we noticed flashing lights down the street. After dinner I wanted to go get some snacks at Walgreen's so we walked down that way to find this!<br />
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It was nice to be able to sleep in before one of the Iowa Spring Classic races rather than having to wake up at 6:30 to get to a noon race start. Two of my friends had come down from Rochester too and I was really looking forward to the race. Then I started looking around at all the fast guys I knew and noticing how many of them had on matching kits. I told Lew it was going to be a tough day out there, very fast at the least! Especially for this time of year. <a href="http://rideonpurpose.blogspot.com/2013/03/more-pugnago-and-hills-iowa-spring.html">I won on this course last year</a> and, of course, I wanted to try to win again! I think that mentally having won previously gave me a bit of an edge. It freed me to make an aggressive plan and to not worry about the potential consequences of riding very hard on new found "fitness" (fitness isn't the right word- but there isn't really a word for 'lack of poisoning or something which allows one to attempt to compete hard'). Anyways, I knew I would have to ride very aggressively and I was able to do so. It felt really, really good to be able to do so after so many cx races last fall, Triple D, CIRREM etc. etc. where it just wasn't there. Heck, where I was unable to feel like I was even pushing myself and competing for more than 2-3 minutes a lot of the time. <br />
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Here is my bike. There were some other pictures taken at the race but I don't have permission to post them. Plus I'm pretty much drafting as many people as possible in all of them, heh. Note my 'gravel' seatpost (<a href="http://google.com/">google</a> gravel seatpost if you don't find that funny).<br />
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Yesterday, though, the miles and laps piled on and a combination of my attacks, people flatting out and luck reduced the size of the group quickly. About halfway through the race there were 6 people in a lead group with 4 of them being riders from the same team. They sent a very strong/big guy up the road on the flat, paved, downwind section of the course. I tried to jump across to him and just wound up dangling 100 yards back and 200 yards in front of the remaining 4. Eventually he rode away and I accepted my fate. I sat in for a while and waited. Figuring the one guy was gone and that the remaining teammates would make it hard to compete for second. I attacked them hoping to split them up before they could make it harder for me and only managed to drop the one remaining rider not from their team. This worked out really well because then they took some pulls and we rotated as they wanted to keep that guy out of the race. Partly due to their help though we were only about 45 seconds down on the solo leader with 1.5 laps to go and I could see he was struggling on the hills. I went all in on the last climb of the lap, caught the solo leader within about 2 miles on the back stretch of the course where he had ridden away from me previously and then pressed on with him on my wheel. I knew he would be a passenger and just rode tempo to try to make sure the other people couldn't come across, then repeated the same attack on the very last climb and jumped cleanly away. It was emotional for me to ride that back stretch knowing that I was going to win a bike race. My friends have been saying all along that I would be fine, but I have definitely faced the possibility of never feeling that strong on the bike again and it wasn't a feeling I wanted to make peace with.<br />
<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1477662232921437040.post-18646363524931026022014-03-31T20:11:00.001-07:002014-03-31T20:11:06.582-07:00Lakeville Milltown LakevilleI was thinking about waiting for pictures to post a recap, but I don't think I'm going to feature real prominently in any. I spent most the day following wheels as hidden as I could get. I know I am weak, but at the same time I'm feeling so much better than just two weeks ago I can hardly believe it. I've gone on a very strict diet. Eating primarily of almond snickers (seriously one of the very few snack foods that seem 'safe' for whatever reason), pork, steak, chicken, potatoes and corn meal. I started it on the 20th and felt so good by the 22nd that I went and raced aggressively on the road in Iowa. <br />
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So, I was feeling better for about a week then found myself trying to <a href="http://rideonpurpose.blogspot.com/2013/03/lakeville-millville-lakeville-2013.html">defend my title from last year</a>... and riding "as if" and I wasn't dropped at mile 12 (like CIRREM). Then I wasn't dropped at mile 30. Then I realized I felt pretty normal. Then somewhere around mile 50 I started getting real real tired, but I was able to hang in there at the front. I found myself in a group of 5 and was forced to get out in the wind some, but I didn't blow up. Then I found myself in a group of 3 and I really was forced to rotate. It hurt, but I knew the other two riders were really strong and I was so happy to be there. I attacked on the last hill out of fear of anyone else attacking and the legs felt pretty good but it was covered well. I knew we were going to the finish line together then. I tried to jump the sprint as I saw an opening and knew I was likely the weakest and it didn't work.<br />
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Later we found out that we had short cut the course a bit accidentally. We had missed an out and back climb! The riders who rode the whole course were, therefore, the first real finishers. We had known it was out there and had actually talked about how it must have been missed while riding. We had though it was about 10 miles from the checkpoint and therefore the entire large lead group had missed it before any splitting? But it turned out we were wrong. Such is gravel racing.<br />
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I was very pleased with how I was able to ride. I hope that if I stay on this path diet wise that I'll be able to make something of the next couple of months. It's nice to be a bit "fresher" than normal I suppose. <br />
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I have some suspicions about what the diet issue is yet, but plan to hold the line with the diet for the full 8 weeks regardless. I do not want to mess up feeling better.<br />
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<br />rideonpurposehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06841233464784027037noreply@blogger.com0