Back to Reality

After the success at Jingle CX, I was optimistic about my fitness and skill as well as the rest of the year. As you likely know, it hasn’t been the best year but things are getting back to normal and I’m starting to get back into the rhythm. But back to normal means back to the normal ups and downs.

After Jingle CX I had an easy week, with just one set of intervals and then rest until the weekend. I went home and relaxed with the Family. I then decided to race down in Chicago on Saturday. The competition wasn’t very deep, but the front of the field was still strong. Tall Mike and Paul Mumford, two crazy mo fos kept the racing fun and challenging. But compared to WI racing, I felt much more in control. But to compliment that, everyone was riding against me. It was tough, but I had to keep myself in second place or better to keep a gap from opening up on the tight and technical, but slow course. It was hard to open up a gap. The corners were so close together that one couldn’t really get away and stay away, so we stayed together the whole race and it came down to the last lap. I made a mistake and fell back to third and got gapped, just like I was worried about. I pulled around for second, but couldn’t make the final pass for the win.

More training the following week in preparation for a race I had my eye on. Not one that many people pay attention to, but tough all the same. The collegiate regional race determines who gets the call up to the front row at nationals and that would be a huge help in winning that race. So I was focused on it. I was treating it like a bigger race than it was not only because it mattered to me, but for practice. Practicing the routine and doing everything I could to be as fast as possible. I even avoided the party we went to Friday night… Gasp! But I didn’t get the best sleep that night, but I don’t think that hurt me too much.

The morning was just like most others before a race. A big breakfast to keep me fueled for the day and we headed off to the race. After some booty shaking and open shirt conversations, I kitted up and got a few laps in. The course was on the side of a hill. It had tons of off camber corners and lots of climbing. But it was technical which would suit me pretty well on a normal day, but not as much on this day because I was racing against two other good mountain bikers. The race started and filed in in the top 3 around the first 3 corners and quickly realized that both Josh and Drew (the two big competitors) were back a ways in the field. So I turned on the gas and opened up the gap to try and force them to chase hard. They chased, but let it happen slowly and pulled me back after 3 laps. From there it was all about keeping them behind me. I would let one get in front once in a while, but mostly tried to lead them as I wanted to control the race. We rode together for 2 more laps when drew came around me. Instead of making him work for it and then passing him back, I let it stick. A few corners later, he crashed and took me down with him, as Josh rode away. I got up as quickly as I could but Josh had 20 seconds. I pushed it hard and kept him from pulling away, but after 4 laps I was cooked and sitting with a big gap back to third. I sat up a little bit with 3 to go and resigned myself to second. For my pride I pushed it hard on the last 2 laps and ended up pulling a few seconds back, but nothing big. I really wished I could have had a full race and not been chasing. It would have been a throw down. But in the end Josh was the faster guy, so congratulations to him.

After the race we said goodbye to friends and headed home early so we could make the race back in Madison, Booty CX. Last year the race was known for its crazy hard course, straight up and down a massive hill. Beyond the tough course, the top Wisconsin riders were there, Matt Shriver, Isaac Neff, Mark Lalonde and other. For some reason I had a call up, possibly for being a Cat 1, but I lined up on the left side and had a good start. I was second after the first few corners with the leader getting at gap but nothing serious. I’m still not sure what or why I rode the way I did, but it was pretty bad. I was all over the place. Matt attacked on lap 2 but I was able to hold his wheel but went from 1^st back to 4^th in the group. Not a big deal.  But there was this one corner, I had trouble with it all race. It was slick and slow, right after a fast section. I must have had pressure too high or something. But on lap 2 sitting 4^th, I hit the deck. From there, it was more and more of the same. I was a bull in a china shop. But with 3 laps to go, I got my thing together and started a comeback. I was able to bring it back and get a 5^th place in the race. Not my best race, but I came out of it with a little fire in my belly and another race under my belt.

Next time the story will continue. At some point I’ll catch up to the present. But among other things there will be a little explanation of the last few weeks, and missing the state and regional champs.

Paradigm Shift

After the success at the Cam-Rock race and the Ripon collegiate race the next day, I was pretty tired. At the Ripon race you could tell that everyone went pretty deep the day before. I was tired and when I looked back at the rest of the field, expecting them to pass me, they were looking just as tired. So I took some time off that week to rest, getting in a little bit of training, but focusing on the recovery side of things. Going into to Jingle Cross, I made a point of getting school done, getting my head clear so I could focus on the racing. The legs felt pretty good and my head was clear. I was amped and ready.

The drive down was nice, the conversation ranged from serious to ridiculous. Just as it should be in a car full of cyclist. We arrived in ample time to get ready, check out the course and relax. Friday night was a night race, so as the sun went down I started getting ready for a frozen battle.

From the moment the whistle went off, it was. The field wasn’t too deep so I was able to move through the pack and get a good start, almost too good of a start. I found myself on Brian Matter’s wheel on lap 2 thinking, “should I go around him?” I talked to him after the race and it sounded like he had a bad start and the legs were slow to get going. I eventually came around him and made the move into 5^th place. I’d like to stop for a second and say holy crap. At the time it was amazing, but I was focused on holding it. In retrospect, that was pretty awesome. I wasn’t able to hold it, but I still rolled in for 10^th place good for 1 UCI point. It wasn’t an exciting finish, but I was happy to be counted amount the best in the world with a point. The legs were not anything amazing and my head wasn’t totally in it. So I knew I had more.

 

I told myself coming into the weekend that if things were just not going my way on Saturday that I didn’t want to burn myself out by going too hard. I thought it smarter to save a little bit for Sunday where the big points were up for grabs. in the end, it turned out alright, but I might have damned myself by taking it easy because when I missed the move for 10^th, I sat up and took it easy for 17^th place.

After the slightly disappointing finish on Saturday, I spend the night and morning doing everything I could to make sure I was ready and mentally in the game for Sunday. One thing I got wrong Friday going into Saturday was I didn’t drink enough water. I made a point of drinking a tone of water and it made the difference. My legs felt much clearer Sunday. I also put the feet up and did the compression gear along with a good stretch and massage. It did the trick.

I came into Sunday feeling fast and feeling aggressive. I got plenty of practice laps in and a good warm up. Everything was falling into place. When the race started and I moved into about 18^th place, I didn’t give up. I was too charged up to take it easy so I battled for position and started moving up. 1 spot there, and another spot here. They added up until I was riding in the 12-15 group. I was in the points. But I didn’t stop there. I kept the pressure on fighting for every point and position I could. It was a fun and tough battle but I was able to best the 2 two riders after 12^th place got away. It came down to an attack with 2 to go and then just going into full pain mode to hold onto 13^th place. But when I came across the line, there was a little smile on my face.

The weekend was a good learning experience. I had good days and bad days so I can look back and try to understand the differences:

·         Tire Pressure: If you ride tubulars you probably know how sensitive they are to pressure. If you don’t know that, then you’re probably running too high a pressure. I ran too high on Friday and it cost me a few places.

·         Get your head in the game: Do what you have to do, but get focused. Visualizing seemed to help me a lot. Visualize yourself sprinting out of the corners. Focus on putting the power down and working through the progression of each corner. When you’re totally focused, you can give it all.

·         Recovery: Recovery won’t win you a race on day two, but it’s worth a few places and on day 3, its worth a few more. Pull out all the stops, and do all those little goofy things you think help. They might not help, but they are worth it mentally. Don’t stress out about the race, but always be thinking what you need to do next to prepare.

Its hard to say how much all these things helped, but they seemed to be the difference between Saturday and Sunday. An ok day and a great day.So moving forward they will be done before every race, no matter how big or small.

And that leads me to the title of the post. The last few weeks have changed me and how I view racing. I wanted to race professionally since I can remember and it’s been my focus for the last few years now. I’m not saying its going to happen, but I beginning to see the shift. I’m looking for all those little improvements and taking them seriously. I am looking at it like my livelihood depends on it. So hopefully in the next couple of years, it might.

On the edge

The last time I posted on this blog was a while ago, but things have been moving along just as fast. The last WORS race was nothing to call home about, I came in for 13^th which was a good finish, but no what I was looking for. I wasn’t riding the mud all too well, but was still able to hold my own in a pretty deep field. I then had a good finish at the WCA Washington Park race on Halloween where I was second to Matt Shriver. Nothing out of the expected, but I was happy to have a solid finish after the WORS race was a somewhat disappointment.

The following weekend I was heading down to Cincinnati for the Cincy3 CX festival weekend. It’s a big UCI weekend on some good courses. I was excited to race against the pros again and see where I could stack up. Especially after USGP, where I accomplished my goals, but nothing more. Friday was a tough but short course. I didn’t really know what to expect. Was finishing good enough? Or should I expect something more.  Turns out I was riding well. After a good enough start, I was sitting top 20, and only moving up from there. I was picking guys off each lap and making my way up, peaking out at 13^th where I finished. No points, but at the time, points weren’t even in the cards as far as I thought.

Saturday was a night race, so we had all kinds of time to hang out. I watched a few races in the morning, and chatted up the Raleigh team and they offered me a bike! I raced their bikes in the race and was sitting 12^th until I had a mechanical. Not their fault, as I shifted the chain into the spokes and then ripped the wheel out trying to fix it. I ended up running half a lap and got pulled. Not the best, but I was happy with how I handled it. Sunday was another tough day as I flatted mid-way through the race and couldn’t recover. All in all pleased with the surprising performance on Friday and happy with how the rest of the weekend ended up.

I was totally blasted on Sunday though. It’s been a while since I’ve done 3 big races in a row. In fact, it was almost a year. I ended up taking that Tuesday off and using the week mostly for recovery and skills work. I was also organizing the race that weekend, so I was all over the phone and emails that week getting things finished off. Pretty stressful week, but it was totally worth it.

It was totally worth it because I got a pair of nice wins that weekend. The Cam-rock race was good because I didn’t make the same mistake as last year. I sat down a lot and remembered to eat. Legs were firing well during the race and I came through with a dominating 20 second victory over Mark in the P/1/2 and also grabbed a win in the collegiate division. The next day we traveled up to Ripon for their Cookie Cross Collegiate race. I really did enjoy the course, despite it being very tough and technical. I have to say, they used the terrain very well.

Now to keep it short, we’ll talk about next times post a little bit. To be honest, I’m sitting in the hotel room at Jingle Cross Rock feeling happy, but a little tired. I’ve had some success, but I’m looking for more. Keep it posted for a more detailed report later.

The Ups and Downs

It’s happened before, and each time it seems worse than the last time. Cycling has a way of bringing you up and down. We all know life has its ups and downs, but it seems that a cyclist’s life is a little more of the ups and a little more of the down. I feel like I’m one of the lucky ones because the ups seem to outnumber the downs, especially in the last month or two.

But here is the most recent iteration. Back at the last WORS race, I had some bad luck. I came in feeling good. The legs were solid, the bike was finally working well, and I was ready to go hard. The course was a blast. I wouldn’t say it suited me perfectly, but they never do. I would describe it as a technically demanding course. While it had some sections that were tough, nothing was crazy. What it did do was demand you full attention every moment of the race. Some courses you can think about other things, like strategy, your legs, the guys around you when you’re in the open sections; but not this course. You had to be on the entire time, using all you muscles, and move the bike around to keep you speed up. It was difficult, but very fun.

I spend the remainder of Saturday night hanging out with some fellow young WORS races, Miles, Ben, and Tim my teammate. We sat around hanging out and talking about everything from training to just life and the people who make it colorful. It was good because it’s the best part of cycling. It’s the stories and the people who make it something special. As a competitive cyclist, I love to push myself. But its important to remember that I ride because of the stories, people and good times. So I have to thank those guys for that.

But the race was a different story. I knew that I was going into it with good legs, and a good chance at a high result.  And it started out well. I had a second row start and despite getting pushed back a little, I was able to make my way up into the front group by the time we reached the first technical single track section.  I was sitting 7th or 8th just off the back of the leading group. I could see the leaders up the road pushing it hard. I was hurting, but I was moving up. I finished out the first lap by getting into the second group on course which consisted of 4th through 8th and I was feel awesome.

But a dropped chain towards the end put me back of the group. I had to push hard to catch back up. But I did it and was still feeling good. Some days you just want it so much you don’t feel the pain. Coming through on the second lap I started to feel a squishy feeling in the rear; flat tire. I stopped and fixed and again caught the second group, but was really feeling the efforts at this point. But I knew if I kept pushing, my top 5 result was in sight and within reach. And then early on laps 3, the tire went low again. It had a slow leak in it. To say at this point I was angry, would be to say MT Everest is a tall hill. I rolled in, checked in for a DNF and just sat down, boiling over.
But it’s nothing that a trip to Olive Garden and a nice chat with Tim on the way home can’t fix. Thanks to Tim for that, I would have done something stupid if not for that chat.

With a surprisingly clear head, I went into the week feeling ready. It was a stressful one with lots of lab reports and 2 tough presentations to give. But I got through it like I always do. With plenty of riding to keep the noggin squarely placed on my shoulders. It was highlighted by a 10 hour drive down to Lindsey Wilson College in Kentucky for the final MWCCC MTB race.

Saturday’s short track was different than the last year. It went up the hill into a small section of single track and then dropped into some BMX turns and flow section before looping around to the finish. It was much better than last year’s grass crit cx race with a hill. With a good start from the second row, I was on the tail of the lead group. I did my best Brian Matter impersonation and waited for the right moment. I sat in as the attacks went and the group morphed. Half way through I decided it was time to put people in the hurt locker and started rattling off hard laps. At this point I knew that a few guys were up in front but not how many. I was just laying down the power and staying consistent. So I didn’t fully understand what happened when I passed Drew, who was as it turns out the lone leader. He dropped his chain which allowed me to slip by and take the win. I was satisfied with the result but it never really hit me because I was so confused as to how it happened.

Sunday’s race was definitely more my style. The race began with a 200 meter long field section before going straight to single track. I made sure to get a good start, but wanted to wait for my time again. I knew people would be looking to me after yesterday’s win. As we entered the single track I sat into second place. What I didn’t realize was that there was a tangle up in that first corner. But as I looked back after the first few corners I saw a gap behind me with Josh Johnson and Drew catching me but looking like they were struggling. I wasn’t hurting so I decided it was a good time to go and make them hurt. I did and I quickly got away. I knew that if I could just stay consistent I’d have my best shot. With the lack of intensity in my training since the injury, I was all about steady consistent effort. And those chasing me were the opposite. I didn’t see another face until middle of lap 2 when Drew started catching me, but only on the technical descents. I clearly had him on the power sections and technical climbs. But never the less, he seemed to slowly claw his way back all the way through the middle of lap 3. When he started getting really close I remember telling myself, “Joe, if you don’t go all in, if you don’t risk blowing up, you can’t win.” Because at that point that was exactly what Drew was doing. I put it down and pulled away, then rolled in for the win about 1 or 2 minutes up for a sweep of the A’s endurance!
Super stocked to do that. I was happy not only because of the good results, but the dominating fashion it happened in. Next weekend is the last MTB race of the season for me with the WORS #12 Wigwam race in Sheboygan. I’m looking forward to killing it and hopefully getting that highly sought after top 5. Wish me luck, turns out I need it.

USGP Sun Prairie

Back in March when I looked at my USACycling account and thought about requesting an upgrade from a 2 to a 1 in CX, I thought it was a no brainer. Duh, of course I want to be a 1. If I had known then what I know now, I wonder if it would have been such an easy choice.

The weekend started out with a nice little ride out to the course on Friday to get a couple laps in with Dries, and then help set up the registration area. The course was similar to previous years with many winding corners and a few tough hills including the infamous hill side strangler. I did a few laps and picked up my number before getting a ride home with Jordan (thanks!).

Saturday was an early morning as they changed the format and race schedule so the 2/3 men and women, and cat 4 men all started before 10am. I got a ride over super early, but I was happy to see my friends ripping it up out on the course. I figured they all got yell at me later, so I’d better get them back when I could. But the long day at the race was of concern because it’s easy to forget to eat and drink. I made sure to focus enough to make sure I was primed and ready for the race. I warmed up as usual, making sure to really get a long one in versus a MTB race because the effort was much shorter. I could already tell in the warm-up that I didn’t have the top end I was hoping to have.

The racing was so intense! There is certainly something to be said for it being my first real CX race of the year, but still. The start was fast and aggressive, people bumping bodies all over the place. Every corner was do or die. I know that it can be like this, but again, I’m just not used to it yet I guess. I pushed it so hard to try and stay in the race. Every time I came to the run-up or another section with fans, they were so loud; I would just push it harder. But the top end wasn’t there and I faded back as the race went on. I was suffering, and you could see it on my face. I’m lacking some core and upper body strength and my body was screaming by the end when I was pulled with 2 laps to go. I finished in 39th. It was an early night for an early morning as I passed out pretty much when I got home.

It was a similar story on Sunday. Early start, lots of cheering, and complete focus on the race. I had a better starting spot this time so I was hopeful to get a good start and keep it. I was moderately successful. I was very happy to a head of the tail end of the field though as the riding in the top 30 and 40 was much more respectful as riders weren’t trying to cut you off every corner. I pushed hard to keep my spot, but to top end wasn’t there and I was suffering again. But just like on Saturday, the fans were going crazy and, as Skip would say, fueling my domination (sort of). I was able to stay in the race and finish in 39th again. But don’t get me wrong, I was hugely excited to finish, even if it didn’t look so on my face, I was hurting pretty bad.

And now for some data.
Saturday Laps
1-7:18
2-6:57
3-6:53
4-6:41
5-6:30
6-6:47
7-6:52
8-6:18
Sunday Laps
1-7:18
2-6:23
3-6:11
4-6:23
5-6:23
6-6:35
7-6:37
8-6:37
9-6:35
10-6:51
I looked at lap time and first off, you can really see how much a good start and good start position matters. Looking at lap times, my first lap was the slowest both days. But the lap times were pretty consistent, so I’m happy about that.

Tire choice was a big one too. This is the first year I’ve had the opportunity to run tubulars (big thanks to Challenge) and I’ve learned a lot already. They are extremely sensitive to pressure. I’m talking a psi here or there makes a difference. I ran the Challenge Limus on Saturday and I could tell that they were hooking up like glue in the corners. but they are more of a deep mud tire, so they weren't the best for the conditions. Sunday I ran my grifos and I was blown away. They were notably faster in the straights, but still had the grip in the corners for the dry stuff. Even on the run up, I had the grip to put all the torque into the pedals without worrying about my rear slipping out. Now that’s the kind of confidence that lets you push yourself.

Beyond that, I really do have to thank everyone who was there to support not just me, but all the local riders. There were so many people wishing me good luck and congratulating me on  the race that I couldn’t possibly name them all, but the support was amazing. And like I said, the cheers on the run up were keeping me on the power and in the race. So weather you’re a friend, fan or teammate, thank you for cheering! But a special thank you needs to go out to Dave Eckel, director as KS/TW. Even though he was racing both days himself, he was making sure I had what I needed. And of course it was awesome to see my parents there too. I was feeling the Wisco love!

Chequmegon 40 – Family traditions and a little success

This past weekend was the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival. If you’re not familiar, it’s a huge MTB race held in the northwoods of Wisconsin every year. It features a 40 mile race on Saturday as well as a 16 mile, and Sunday Crit-Cross, Poker Run, and Sunday funday events. All in all it’s pretty tough to not enjoy yourself with all the festivities.

And that has been true for me for the past nearly 2 decades. While for most it is just a race, for others it’s  a whole lot more. To some it’s a Wisconsin Icon, it’s a MTB icon, an epic race, or even just another challenge. But for me, it’s a family tradition. Every year my family in some form or another has been up in Hayward in the early fall racing their mountain bikes. I have literally been there almost every year since I was born. In fact, it’s more than a family tradition, it’s a family identity. It always has been, and hopefully will continue to be for a long time.

And to make matters more special, this was the race’s 30th running. I remember as a little kid running around the bowl, looking at the helicopter, and waiting for my dad to ride in after completing “the most brutal race in the world”. I have so many memories about going up there, I could go on and on and on. But to sum it up, I’d say this. Every kid has that special place, or special memory which defines there idea of happiness as a kid. For me Chequamegon is that special place and those memories are how I define my perfect childhood. To drive my point home, this race means a lot more to me than any other.

So to say the least, I get a bit nervous. And this year was no exception. Coming into it after pushing through both a broken collar bone and Mono, I knew I was not going to have my best race possible. But I was hopeful for something I could be happy about. I’d go as far as to say I needed a good result to keep the spirits up. I lined up after a pretty solid warm up and got comfortable in the 5th or 6th row in Gate 1.

The race started up as it always did, with a slow roll down main street and then onto the highway. As the quads pulled away a few people tried to attack, as always. The pace on the start this year was fast as it usually is, but it lacked the aggressiveness it had in the last few years and instead there was an overwhelming sense of nervousness. There were a lot of tires rubbing, every few moments there would be someone grouching as the “braaaap” of the knobs grinding cried out. It was a very nervous time, but I stayed cool and held my position in the top few rows.

When we hit Rosie’s field, I gunned it and got to the front as best I could, rubbing elbows with Tristan and other childhood heroes. But by the time we started out on the trails, I was getting gassed. Maybe 5 miles in I was hurting and lost contact with the lead group as they pulled away. I was overtaken by a few riders and fell into the back of the second group on the trail. I was struggling to stay there, and everytime I felt better, I’d get hit with another hill or another attack. And I’d like to make it clear. There are two things that make the Chequamegon hard. First, each hill is like the main climb in a WORS race, and they come one after the other without relief. And second are the attacks. The attacks are more vicious than in any other race I’ve done, because this race really matters, and people fight for every spot. So needless to say, I was in the red.

I dropped off the second group on a climb and slowly faded back just as the group was catching Bryan Fosler, a KS Energy Services/ Team Wisconsin teammate. I checked my computer and I had a long way to go so I settled in an focused on getting my breathing and heart rate under control to bring myself back within my limits. Once I did that I set about trying to keep it on the limit to try and catch any riders dropping off or maybe even a group.

I mostly rode solo through Hwy OO and beyond. I picked up a few riders on Fire Tower, but they were only in sight at that point. Once I hit the Berkie Trail, I began to close on the riders in front of me, but so did the riders behind me. With a few miles to go a small group of 5 riders including myself formed but quickly broke up after some shuffling around on the logging roads before the Mt. Telemark climb. I got to the top right on the heels of Justin Piontek as we began the descent into the finish area. I pushed hard, giving it everything I had. I didn’t touch my brakes once in hot pursuit. But in the end I just couldn’t close the gap. I rolled in alone, as I spent much of the race, for a 25th place finish.

I wasn’t sure about my finish position when I was done, but I knew that I had given everything I had, and whatever spot I got, I earned it. When I finally found out it was 25th overall, I was pretty excited. It’s important to remember, that while Chequamegon isn’t the most important race of the year, it in some ways is to me. This is because it is to my parents. And I love making them proud. But I was also extremely happy with the result for myself too. I see that as the first awesome result after being injured. In fewer words: I’m back.

Saturday night was filled with some good food on the grill, good beer, and good company as we celebrated with the team, friends and parents. But it was an early night to get ready for the Crit-Cross in the morning. A huge congratulation does go out to Bryan Fosler, one of my teammates, for placing 20th. It was cool to see him go up there and be recognized with the rest of the top finishes.

So I was up at the butt crack of dawn again on Sunday to head over to Telemark and race in the Cable Crit Cross. My history with this race is interesting. I race it every year, and as I’ve grown I’ve done better and better. But in last few years it’s been 2nd, or third. That win seems to elude me. After a 3 lap pre-ride, a fast 2 lap qualifier and a good warm up on the fund-raising trainer, I headed over for the finals. The course this year was different than before. Since changing to a Cross style race, the designers have struggled to make it a true CX course. But this year they’re starting to get it. More so than any year, the course suited a CX bike. But of course, I had my mountain bike. I started off fast and didn’t look back. I was able to pull away, but never really got away too much. I think I was about 5 seconds a lap faster than 2nd place. So when I dropped my chain on the last lap, I was in a hurry to get going again. Luckily I was able to get it on and win the race. Pretty stoked about that too. More than anything, It’s a free reserved entry into next year. That’s the best prize of all!

So the relative huge success of the weekend has me feeling awfully thankful and happy to make my family and sponsors proud. A huge thanks goes out to my mom and dad for always being proud and supportive. Of course the Team Wisconsin crew is a huge part of that support too. The support from KS Energy Services is unlike any I’ve ever had, and Trek is spot on supplying the team with the best bike around. And looking back, I realize I’ve never really thanked Emery’s a whole bunch. Emery’s has been there the whole time supporting us riders with gear and advice. I remember going through the bike buying process and I can tell you, they make it easy. They really did go the extra mile to make sure we were taken care of and ready to dominate the season. The whole team owes Brent and the whole crew at Emery’s a big thanks. If you need anything bike or Triathlon related head over there and be sure to mention my name and team and they’ll be sure to go the extra mile for you too.

Treadfest and Preparation

It’s time to stray from the usual blog subjects and talk about bikes.

Oh wait, never mind.

But seriously, I feel like this blog needs a bit of sprucing up, so I’m going to attempt to actually put useful information on the internet and talk about my pre-ride and warms up. What they should be and what they are.

First a little background. In all honesty, this is the first year I’ve put real effort into my preparation for races. My racing strategy has evolved from “put in enough effort to have fun, but not too much so that when you have a bad day you can say I wasn’t trying that hard” to “no any stone left unturned”. There are those Brian Matter’s and such who know the courses so well, are just that strong, etc. But I am not one of those. I’ve learned to work hard. Unfortunately I’ve yet to see the fruit of my labor, but that’s another story.

So needless to say it’s been a difficult process dialing in the preparation and figuring out how much effort to put into the pre-ride. You don’t want to make yourself tired for the next day. But the hope is that I have enough base in my legs that I can put in an hour or 2 and not feel it the next day. But the goal is at its core to gain a level of comfort with the course. You want to eliminate those first two laps of making mental notes about that corner there, or that rock here, how hard attack the hill, blah blah blah. You want to walk away from the pre-ride with the that confidence that you could race the next day and make no mistakes. You also want to open the legs up. I find that 1 or 2 laps ‘easy’ followed by 1 or 2 laps hard is perfect, depending on lap length and difficulty.

And I think I’ve a good job here. Take Treadfest for instance. I did 3 laps. My lap times were as follows: 34:57, 34:32, and 30:21. I did 2 laps easy and one almost at race pace. To compare my race laps were about 29 minute averages. That final lap acts are a good set of intensity to open the legs, and sometimes I’ll do some leg drills before that lap to wake the legs up. But again, I think my pre-rides have been good.

So you show up on race day, the course is buzzing around in your head and you feel good. You got a good night’s sleep (probably not) ate well (beer counts right?) and cleaned the bike up (haha, yea right). Regardless of those things, the warm up is something that I increasingly find to be important. The start of a MTB race is very important. Obviously the first few minutes are important, but really the whole first lap could be considered the start if you ask me. You’ve got be your rhythm right away. There is no time to find your legs or get focused. It has to be there at the start. I find that the real key to whatever warm up you follow is to get the heart rate up a few times. Sprints and 1-2 minute efforts are good for me. Get the heart rate up and let it come back down a little then hit it again. Tell your body to get ready. I’ve struggled to really be consistent with these.

Beyond that there are a million other little things you can do to make sure you’re ready when Don yells go. But I find the most significant one to be food. Eat the ride things at the right time and you will feel focused and lean. Still figuring this out, but for me, I stop eating real food 3 hours before the race, then start reaching for clif bars and shot blocks to fill the gaps before the race.

So in the end hopefully you learned something here, I know I did. In retrospect, I think I avoided writing about the actual race this weekend because I was disappointed. My usual impatient nature is starting to be annoyed with my racing as of late. I told tim on the way down that I only have one more ok performance before I start getting angry. Well the opening salvo went off when my chain slipped a few times and I threw my bike down. But really I need to thank those who encouraged me to get back on. Fellow racers Bill Street and Mike both told me to get back on the bike after that. Then the WORS super fans were going nuts like always at the top of the start climb, and I hate to disappoint them.  On top of all that, my mom was there making the most noise of all. At the end of the day, that race belonged to these people, because without them it would have been a DNF. So thanks.

Back to School

It’s been 2 whole years of working at Saris. After a semester off to work I’m returning to school, and I’m going all in. It’s obviously time for me to graduate, this being my 5th year. To make sure things go smoothly, I quit Saris to focus on school. Hopefully this will keep things a little less hectic. I’ve tried it before, and the work can be overwhelming. But there is a flip side. Money will be tight. But I know I can do it because I have an awesome family and the best support network of friends and sponsors to keep my head above water.

But beyond the trade-offs, it’s strange to be back in school. Waking up when class starts, and not at 6:30 every day is the big one right now. There has been so much sleeping going on! It’s strange to be sitting behind a desk getting talked at instead of thinking about a problem, or just cranking out work. It’s refreshing, but strange. A feeling which I welcome however is the feeling of confidence in classes. I feel much more in control, and much more on top of things than before. I owe this to my work experience for sure, so thanks Saris for that opportunity.

The free time has been abundant in the last few days, and hopefully it stays this way. And it will if I keep on top of things. And I need to because this extra time leads to better and more focused riding, and a lot less stress than before. I’m really looking forward to that.

But I think the best part of school starting was my return to collegiate cycling. The Ripon Red Hawks once again held a slamming race. Well organized with the man power to have a well set up and maintained course. Beyond that it takes place at Nordic Mountain, site of the Wisconsin Pro XCT, easily the best collegiate course in the MWCCC.
































The weekend started off with watching the DH guys “hucking their meat” on the downhill run. Absolutely amazing what those guys do. There are a lot of things in this world that are difficult, but riding a bike on that type of terrain is such high risk. In XC, you can ease into difficult obstacles, but a huge gap or drop, the only way to figure it out is to risk the fall. So, mad respect to the new gravity crew at the UW. The Short track followed DH. I felt ok at the start and had a good comfortable start. But as the race progressed I only got stronger and stronger. I was putting in little attacks to make the group smaller and smaller until it was only myself and Casey from Ripon. This kid will be a massive talent in the next few years, and if all goes well, on the national circuit. The kid has skills. But all that talent was no match for my strength and experience that day. With a cool head I waited and watched for the right moment to attack and ended up pulling a 15 second gap for the win. Huge shouts go to the massive UW cheering section on the back side of the course. I couldn't air the jump so well, but it didn’t soften their cheering.

Sunday featured the XC race. About 20 miles of no rest because it’s basically all uphill then difficult downhill. It’s a tough challenge but totally worth it because you can’t have more fun. At the start I felt good and noticed a gap form quickly behind me. Combine that with all the big threats to my win starting poorly, I went for it up the steep start climb. After pulling out a gap of 10 seconds to second place I dropped my chain and had to stop and fix it, putting me back to 3rd with some ground to make up. I quickly pulled in 2nd place and set my sights on none other than Casey charging in the lead. I think we both sensed that these early moments were going to decide the race, because he was gassing it, and so was I. After the first lap he was still in sight, so the pressure stayed on. After lap 2, the gap began to grow. On laps 3 and 4 it was much the same save a small section where he must have rested because pulled 10 seconds back in the middle of lap 4. But on lap 5, I was cooked. And with about a minute to make up and over a minute back to 3rd, I eased off. I knew that the race wasn’t over, but the only thing that could get me the win was a big mistake by Casey. I rolled in about minute back of him, happy with my second place performance. Losing to that kid is an honor, especially on that course. I bet he could teach the pros a thing or 2 about the lines out there.

With Monday off and Tuesday of no classes, it’s been pretty relaxed. Training is starting to pick back up again as the mono is slowly regressing and I feel more normal every day. I’m not back to normal yet, but getting there. I’m looking forward to putting in some hard training in the next few weeks to prepare to USGP and the rest of the CX season. And Chequamegon in 2 weeks! Can’t wait.

Thanks to Gary over XTR Photo for the great shots, go say hi at the next WORS race over at the XTR Photo Trailer. Also huge thanks to Gordy at Speed Cycling Madison for helping me get through the last few weeks without over doing it, and of course to Trek and Shimano for putting me on the best equipment around.

The name of the game is suffer

This past week was spent pretending I was all better. I tried to ride seriously on Tuesday and couldn’t, but was more successful on Thursday. I got done and my legs were actually sore. It is a familiar and comforting kind of pain. But the overwhelming feeling was that things weren’t the same. I couldn’t understand it or place my finger on the change. Was I still sick? Or was it just that 10 weeks of poor health and training dragging me down because I was out of shape. I couldn’t separate the feeling of sickness from the feeling of being tied. I was confusing the pain of a strong effort with the pain of your body telling you to cool it and rest. In the past I have always erred on the side of the first, but experience was telling me to be smarter.

So I have been treading lightly, trying to be smarter and trying to listen to my body. Part of this was justified, but part of this was honestly disbelief. I was having a hard time believing that I was actually healthy and getting to ride and train again. I took it easy Friday and Saturday in preparation for the WORS race on Sunday near Green Bay.

The drive was refreshing as it reminded me of the first few year of racing when I was 16 and 17. I just got my license and driving hours solo to a bike race blasting music while speeding down the road. I got to the venue at the reforestation camp north of Green Bay, signed up and got ready. It was very good to be back, and the welcome was warm. A few people seemed to be in as much disbelief as I was. Asking me if I knew where I was. Haha, maybe I didn’t. I missed the WORS family, and I could tell I was missed as well. Even Don gave me a welcome back.

But from the moment the word GO went out, the name of the game was suffer.  I had some luck on the start and missed a big tangle that happened just to my outside and slotted in in the top 20 as we headed into the fast open trails on the start loop. I sat in and watched those around me trying to stay within myself while holding the top 10 I had from moving up on the open trails. Then the hammer dropped, at least I think. It’s hard to say if they went faster or if I started going slower, but I started moving backwards.

The gaps had grown, so I was only losing 1 or 2 places at a time. In the first 2 laps I was caught by 3 or 4 groups of guys and ended up moving back into the high teens. I was suffering like a dog as people would catch and drop me. On lap 3 I looked back and the gap behind me was big enough that no one else was going to catch me. I started to push it to see what I could do. I passed one guy back half way through the lap. Then with 3 miles left I spotted 18^th place ahead. It was a ray of hope for a guy imprisoned in the pain cave. But let me take you back 5 hours at my parents in Milwaukee. Before I left for the race my dad and I were talking. He told me a story about Tom Danielson from the US Pro Challenge. When he won the stage into Aspen, he said that he wasn’t just riding for himself and his team; he was riding for his family. My dad told me that when I go out and race, that I was riding for my family as well. In the hustle of packing and leaving I didn’t stop to think. But at the moment when I was hurting the most, I found the strength to push harder by remembering that I was riding for the ones I love too.

I pushed hard to keep him in sight, but when we hit some technical sections I was able to pull back some time without expending too much effort.  We came out of the woods and I realized we had less than a mile of open double track before the finished. I put the power down. Not a full sprint but a seated pace and I slowly clawed him back coming into the final corner. I was right on his wheel and I stood up for a sprint and as I passed him you could tell he was cooked. It was rewarding to be there in the end.

Overall, I’m extremely happy with the result. The complete lack of training in the last 10 weeks and still feeling a little sick should have kept me down, but I pushed through. I’ve got a long way to go, but I know that I have the support of my family and friends just like they have my support. In the recent past, I’ve had it tough, but I had help getting through. I only hope that when someone calls for my help,  I can be there for them like they were there for me.

What can I say?

My ego imagines there are some people wondering why I have missed a lot of the racing in the last 10+ weeks. Well imaginary people, it’s been one thing after another. The broken collar bone was pretty un-fun, but I worked through it. Then 3 weeks back on the bike doing base miles trying to get my lost fitness back and muster up a little something to be proud of at the end of the season. And I was starting to feel pretty good too. But then I started to get a scratchy throat. I thought it would be a few days off and then back at it, but man was I wrong. I spent the next two days in my bed, barely able to sleep. A fever the first night, and a migraine so bad the second night, I was incapacitated. So I went to the doctor really hoping it was just a bad case of strep throat. After a quick blood test and mouth swab, the doctor told me I had mono.

WHAT THE FUCK?!? Pardon the language, but seriously? I didn’t want to believe it at first, but then again here I sit, 2 weeks later and still feeling crappy. I’ve only had one more fever and 2 migraines, but that’s not the worst. I just want to race again!

But honestly what can I say. There is nothing I can do. I keep trying to think there is some reason this happened, trying to rationalize it. But there is no rationality to it, it’s just the worst luck I’ve had in my life so far. I keep wanting to believe that because this happened, I’ll have an amazing year next year, or that I won’t be sick for a few years or something. But who knows? If there is one thing I’ve learned from this it’s that I sure as hell don’t know. So you just have to take the good when it comes, and deal with the bad when it comes. All we can do it hope that bad luck doesn’t come our way, but that only makes us feel better, it doesn’t actually help.

As you can see, I’ve had some time to think, between sleeping all day and night. But that’s all I have to say about that…

Hopefully a slightly more interesting topic is what I’ve been doing to pass the time. Well, mostly watching movies and playing Warcraft. I cleaned my room, but it got dirty again. Maybe I’ll clean it again. But the interesting one has been looking at wheel and frame design on bikes. If you’re interested, I highly encourage you to look into it. I’ve found that it’s actually something of a science. Well, motorcycles are at least. But everything transfers over, mostly.

To sum it up, the bicycle is one of the most complex vehicles we as humans have ever invented. I suppose there is a reason that even after almost 200 years of existence, people are still fascinated by them. And with good cause, because we really have only just begun to understand how they actually work.

Take for instance how a person is able to balance on a bike. Some would say it’s the wheels. Because they spin, they create a gyroscope effect which makes the bike more stable. Some might say it’s the angle and trail of the steering mechanism. Well, almost. Some recent(ish) mathematical and experimental analysis has shown that it’s not the gyroscope or the trail. It’s as simple as keeping the weight over the two wheels. If you’re more interested, the article below is a report on this research where they created a bike which balances itself. It has wheels which have mass spinning both ways (to cancel the gyroscopic effect) and negative trail.

http://bicycle.tudelft.nl/stablebicycle/StableBicyclev34Revised.pdf

or for those who don't know math

http://discovermagazine.com/2012/jan-feb/26

So how do we stay up? By turning. Each time we turn it moves the center of mass and the front wheel in relation to the rear wheel and the forward motion. Think of this as like putting a foot out to catch yourself, except it’s your front wheel. Now do this motion very slightly and over and over and over very quickly and you’re balancing! Ever notice how people who are new to riding don’t always go so straight and more experienced riders do? Exactly.

Counter steer is another interesting one. It’ related to leaning in a corner. The bike doesn’t actually turn solely because of its handle bars getting turned. In fact, it’s usually the opposite. The bike gets the majority of turning from leaning. The rider needs to balance 2 things when turning. First make the correct radius turn and second staying off the pavement. To do this they use the bars and leaning to keep the sum of the lateral forces correct to produce the turn and to keep the weight over the wheels. This, more often than we notice, produces a handle bar direction opposite of where we want to go. If you ask me, that’s pretty amazing to think our bodies can do that.

There is a ton more to learn about it, and I’ll continue to read until I can ride bikes again without getting tired after 20 minutes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_and_motorcycle_dynamics

Wausau 24 and a few thoughts

A few weekends ago was my glorious return to off-road racing with the Wausau 24 at nine mile forest up nort. Of course I joke. I was hoping that my return would be incredible, that I would just start crushing it. The road back to form has been longer, tougher and more importantly eye opening. The most eye opening things is the realization of just how in shape I was before. I was wrapped up in the effort and racing to really stop and realize anything, but looking back I now understand. I think I understand now because I’m trying to get back there and it isn’t coming as easy as before.

But of course with off-road racing there is the strength and the skill. The strength will get there as it does with hard work and time. But the skill is something else. The skill takes effort, focus and a critical attitude to improve. Wausau 24 was perfect for his. Each lap was like its own mini race where I could practice my routine on getting ready, make small changes and then go out and see what worked best. I ended up doing 8 laps and by the time I was done, the confidence was back and I definitely think I made some serious gains. Of course those last few laps are like riding with an anchor in your shorts, but I suppose the single track skill plays an even more important part.

It was a long weekend or riding and it make me extremely tired. Not just in the legs, but mentally too. The legs are recovered, as much has they can, but the mind is still tired. Sleep just isn’t’ enough it seems after being on edge for 24 hours plus. But I’m not complaining. Matt Gehling said it best, “I remember why I don’t like 24 hour races, it just took me 12 hours to remember”.

Combine that mammoth effort with watching the Olympics non-stop like a zombie and I’ve been thinking about where all this riding and racing is going. The Olympics have this special aura about them. I saw an interview with Sam Schultz about the Olympics. He makes a good point, that the Olympics is that one race where you mention it, and suddenly everyone cares. Everyone knows what that means. I don't know if I could ever be that fast, but it's always fun to dream.

Cleared

Email received from Coach Gordy 7/23/2012 at 5:36.


"Good to hear Joe. Roll up your sleeves, time to get to work."


I woke up yesterday feeling like I was forgetting something. I showered and headed to work but couldn't shake the feeling. I sat in my chair and opened up my email. The meetings for the day came up and first on the list was: Doctors Appointment! SHIT! I called and was allowed to come in late. I ended up being about 1 hour late for my appointment. The people at UW Health were pretty cool about it, apparently they were on a slow day. I headed in for X-rays. The same nurse/technician who gave me initial x-rays working. She is pretty cute so I definitely sucked in the gut when I took the shirt off ;) (almost comically it was sucked in so far, but I caught her looking). Anyways, saw the doctor and talked about how cool bones are, they are pretty sweet, and at the end of it all, I asked can I race? He said: "You can do whatever you want, but you're still at risk." I figure if I crash I would probably hurt myself regardless. I was pretty excited and emailed Gordy at Speed Madison.


Sleeves are rolled up, and I'm getting back to work.


Next race is the Wausau 24. Awesome and well run event. The hours of trail riding will help me get my confidenc back so I'm pretty excited for it. Check it out!


http://www.wausau24.com/


Peace.

Getting back on the horse.

Today was first day back on the mountain bike since the crash. I was excited to go, but a little worried my bike wasn’t totally up to it. I haven’t touched it since the crash since today. 20 minutes with a spoke wrench and the front wheel was good to go and so was I. Rain was in the forecast, but we said F it and went anyways. We met out at Cam-Rock after work at 6pm with the skies clear and blue.

We started down the path and things were great. We hit the single track and immediately I noticed my front tire was a little low on air. I decided that would be good as it would keep me from trying to push it too hard. Sometimes I wonder what makes me so dumb while on a bike. I kept going and things were fine. We got to the first technical downhill and I took it nice and easy, sort of. The last corner, it has a lump right in the middle of it and I’ve washed out there before. I hit it with a little too much speed and rolled the tire falling hard on my butt. It left a pretty good gash in my left cheek and dirt rash on the left arm. I pumped it up and kept going, but I was noticeably more timid, extremely timid to be honest. I was actually afraid.

Things got better, as it started to poor rain. No big deal for Cam-rock. It’s so dry that the trails stay good for a long time after it rains. But then came some serious thunder. We headed for the shelter and hung around until the rain broke and rode back to the car.

Hopefully tomorrow I can have a better day. There are some days you just need to completely forget; today was one of those days.

Trying to find my rhythm

Crashing and hurting yourself has some obvious consequences. The time off was tough because I lost a fair amount of fitness. Not being able to race in the races I wanted to, missing some of my season’s biggest goal races was even harder. As much as it was cool to see friends tearing it up in Idaho, it was bitter sweet knowing that I could have been there having success too. There were a lot of I could haves and what ifs running through my head, weighing me down and making it tough to push through and continue keeping focused on coming back. It’s funny, just because you want something doesn’t mean that you’ll have the drive to make it happen. I’ve had a taste of this for the first time in my life in the last few weeks, feeling afraid to try for fear of failure.

I think my fear was somewhat justified too. I have yet to get back on a mountain bike, still waiting for the doctor to clear me in a week. And while on the bike I was feeling uncomfortable. I wasn’t picking up where I left off. I was trying to re-learn a lot of what I spent years learning. There was a blockade standing in my way and for some reason I couldn’t just deal with it like before. It was almost like I forgot how to.

And this continued much the same into this past week’s rides. I was trying so hard to hit the numbers, to push myself, to go hard. But I couldn’t. I didn’t know if the numbers were wrong, or if I was just not up to it. After failing to push myself hard enough on the weekend, I was still feeling tired from the long hours. Not recovering right and felt dead Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. But something happened yesterday. Something happened that showed me the light at the end of the tunnel. It was distant and dull, but light is still light. During another FTP effort where I just couldn’t keep the pace up, I thought maybe I’m just not in a rhythm. So I focused, I push the pace and effort to a place where I knew I could hold it and just sat there. It hurt like all hell, but I stayed there. I focused to keep the cadence high and the effort high all the while keeping my gaze on the road ahead. I let my body do the work while I focused on the effort.

I think that’s the subtle difference. I was too focused on the pain and not focused enough on the effort. I was too focused on how hard I was going and not focused enough on how hard I should go. Hopefully this makes sense. Like I said, that light was short lived, as I only had 2 minutes left in my interval. But for that brief moment, I felt like I was strong. It wasn’t easy, but it was manageable. I found a rhythm and held it.

And this is true in the other aspect of my life/training (what’s the difference anymore?). I was eating whatever, getting takeout and subs almost every day. I was staying up too late. I was letting things sit and not dealing with them. I stopped doing the little things that alone don’t matter but together make all the difference. In the last few years I’ve become someone who can fix almost anything as long as I understand the problem. I thought I did with this one. I thought I knew how to get back going again. Turns out I didn’t, but I think I do now, but only the next week’s riding and training will tell.

I owe Gordy at Speed Cycling huge thanks. He picked me up this year and I was a little worried that my lack of results would be reason to kick me out. But after 4 weeks of recovery I contacted him letting him know I was ready to start riding again. We met and got things going again. His support was rock solid. His confidence in my abilities was noticeably deeper, and this played a big role in helping me figure this all out. But of course he stressed that we should focus more on handling skills, haha.He gave my training and remainder of the year some much needed refocusing. His experience and knowledge are there, but the caring is what makes Speed different. Gordy and all the coaches there care, like no other. When I went in 2 other coaches who I don’t really know all that well asked me how things were going, as if they understood the whole situation. I could go on and on about it, but I’ll sum it all up with a HUGE THANKS to the whole Speed Crew but even that isn’t enough.

http://www.speedmadison.com/

The next few weeks will be important. There will be lots of hard miles trying to get back to where I was and further. Then on the 23^rd I’ll get cleared to race and race off-road. The next race of any consequence will be Ore to Shore where I’m hopeful for a solid result to confirm that I’m making progress. I might race the Wausau 24 before that for some fun and some dirt practice, but we’ll see.

See you on the roads and trails!

Tough couple of weeks, and it’s about to get tougher.

The last few weeks have been difficult for me. Fracturing a collarbone is a pretty common injury in cycling, so it’s tough to say this will end my hopes of making something out of racing my bike. But beyond those worries, there is something more basic.

I talked to my dad yesterday when I called him in the morning to wish him a happy father’s day. We talked about a lot, but the conversation turned to my collarbone soon enough. Most people seem to ask about the physical pain saying “I bet that hurt” does it still hurt?” of course it hurt, I’m human but I expect that. And besides I race bike and train to endure pain and almost enjoy it. But when we started talking about it my dad’s first response was, “you must be going insane!”

He captured exactly the problem! The pain was there but it was nothing. What’s been the most difficult is waiting for it to heal and watching my season slowly tick by from the sidelines. I became so focused on working hard, training and racing that without it I felt lost. Without that focus I felt like I was waiting to die. Sounds harsh, but it’s kind of true. It’s a bit extreme, but so am I.

The first few weeks have been tough, but I had good friends to help me through it. Accepting help with daily tasks is strange for me, but something I dealt with and I can’t thank Tim enough for everything. But there was a little fun too bad had. I helped out with the WORS Media at the 4^th race of the year, CamRock. It was a little strange watching from the sidelines, the racing kept my mind off those thoughts.

But it is starting to heal. More than just feeling better, it is starting to feel more solid. Although it feels more solid like jello is more solid than water, it’s still and improvement. It’s actually to point where when I move, it moves with me. That’s cool, but hurts like a bitch. And that’s the story, as it hardens it will likely hurt more and more until things are strong enough to bear my weight in 2-3 weeks’ time. And that only part of it. The training will start back up soon and we’ll see how much fitness I’ve lost. The good news is there is a ton of time between my next race and now, so I’ll be able to get into some good shape and regain any confidence I’ve lost off-road. If I’ve done an okay job on the trainer it won’t be too bad, but hopefully it not so bad to where I can’t easily motivate myself.

Next race on the schedule right now is Ore to Shore, possibly going to race Wausau 24 and Sunburst if I can get clearance by then. The next couple weeks will be all about resting and healing, getting on the trainer when I can and holding on to what fitness I can. Then I’ll have a couple of month of train and very little racing to build fitness and hopefully come into the second half of season riding like I have something to prove, cause I do.

there is fine line between badass and stupid, i walk that line

so, some bad news.

my collarbone is broken. i crashed yesterday racing the Wausau big ring WORS race. i was in position to sprint for that  elusive 5th place i've  been hunting. crashed pretty hard and thought right away is was the collarbone. i was told it was not broken on the scene and i could move it around, so i was hopeful. but i went into the emergency room today for x-rays and they said it is broken in two places. everything is in place and it already beginning to fully set so recovery will hopefully be quick.

typing is slow going with one hand so i'll make this quick. laps 1 and 2 were awesome. i felt in control and i was riding within myself. i was sitting in because i knew from last time that its not really possible for to ride away so tactically my best move was to follow wheels. Matt was talking to me over dinner the night before and made sure i heard it this time. sit in, take it easy and wait for the big moves. beginning of lap 3 things came back together and the big move happened, Tristan went. the group worked together to pull him back in but it was over. then Brian went and the  group exploded. i was sitting 3th with Nate on my wheel and i had a little tangle with a tree in the first section of single track. i got back on and Cory caught me.

Then Mark Lalonde got me on the big hill but i was able to keep him in sight through the single track. then Tyler caught me but i was able to hold his wheel much better and we paced each other for the rest of the lap and into the last lap. i was putting everything i had to hold his wheel, but was beginning to settle in. just as we entered the most technical section i eased up a little but Tyler put on the gas. i began to follow but just couldn't quiet follow through the rocks. i was back in the red and without warning i hit a rock which flung me off my bike. i hit the ground and felt a crunch. i rolled off the trail and just sat there assessing the damage. i tried to get up but couldn't. my race was over.

a huge thanks to the national mountain bike patrol for getting me out of the woods and getting me some immediate care. Thanks to Matt for the pre-race talk and saying exactly how i felt as he went by me laying on the ground; "dammit Joe!" also huge thanks to teammate Tim for helping me home and with getting to the hospital. it's nice to know that when things go wrong, friends have your back. i'll be at the Trek 100, we'll see if i can ride.