Tuscarora Endurance Race

Waking up at 3 am Sunday morning I felt rested but was more anxious to start my drive out to Blain PA. I met up with a teammate to share the 4 hour drive and not hurt ourselves too much with transit time/fatigue. The drive was smooth except for a couple of Easter bunnies that were begging to become speed bumps – which we narrowly missed. As we arrived at the park for the Tuscarora race we were happy to be out racing, but not too happy when we felt the temperature at which we were about to exhaust ourselves in. It was about 22-23 degrees when the gun went off –yikes. It was my first time racing in my winter shoes.

I had a good start as I was sitting on the front row but I wanted to be conservative as I had heard how hilly the course was and that it would be tough. I usually go out too hot and wanted to see if this tactic would pay off. So I stayed steady and watched racer after racer pass and I just kept my own pace. The course was hilly and had a ½ mile super technical rocky section that was fun to navigate. In traffic it was especially rough though. I passed a few and had to get off my bike in a few spots but was generally doing pretty well. I was hoping that throughout the day I would limit my efforts and the others would fade. At least that was the plan.

Through lap 2, I was pacing well and going back and forth with Dan from Black Bear which I know is a super strong rider and we worked through a bunch of people while having fun on the rocks. One section he would pull ahead, then I would pull ahead and repeat that for lap 3. At the end of lap 3, I saw Gerry Pflug creeping up so I put down an effort to drag him away from the competition as we usually see each other at some point in these races and he’s a super strong great guy. I towed him into the start of lap 4 and let him go on the first big climb. I knew that was the last I would see of him. He was riding well.

At that point though I looked at my clock and it was 1:58 into the race. I was feeling good but not sure how much more I had in the tank. If we completed 3 laps I knew I wasn’t going to get faster so the plan was to pace for 6 laps. On that 4th lap I put in an effort on the opening climb to see if Dan would stay with me but he fell off the pace a bit and the gap opened. He told me later that’s where his legs popped. I got a little motivation from this, but at this point the course was getting slicker and greasier as the temps rose and the snow/ground moisture started to melt. Mud was getting dragged everywhere making the course super slick. It was a bike handler’s course for sure. The lap was going well but I got passed by a rider from Scott. Later I found out it was Zach but I was hoping to be able to pass him by the finish. I would have the better ride through the tech but he was doing better on the fitness. We passed each other a few times and in lap 5 he got out of sight ahead of me. At that point I knew it was a lost cause.

Continuing on lap 5, I had to stop on a downhill as my front derailleur cable end had somehow flipped onto my tire causing a horrible noise and it got me thinking it would somehow eat through my rubber causing a fatal flat. I had worked way too hard to get where I was at this point so I stopped. When I stopped I let a rider through as he had the momentum and then just tried to pace him to make the pass back. That never happened. We cruised in sight of each other and then started lap 6. He was riding for Team CF and I knew he was pretty strong to be riding with that group. He dangling in front of me but he just had more gas than I did in that final lap. I was dealing with cramps for the last 3 laps and that made just enough of a difference to not have the energy to close the gap. I put down whatever power I could in the final few miles to try and close the gap but I would finish 1:30 behind him. The final present I received was on that last downhill to the finish I saw Zach(the Scott rider) on the side of the trail fixing what looked to be a flat. That was just fortunate for my placing. I was hoping to pass him but not like that. I asked if he was good and he said yes so I kept on motoring to the finish line. I always stay on the gas just in case that happens and for once it finally paid off. I cranked harder after I knew he was ok since if it was a quick fix he was very strong and would close that gap fast. I crossed at 4:16 knowing I had put in a solid effort but knowing that I had totally wrecked my hydration and nutrition plan.

The cold was such that I never really wanted to eat or drink. I forced myself for a while but then the race got in my head and I just overlooked it. Lap after lap I tried to get more fluids in but I just didn’t seem to need it. I said I’d stop after lap 3…nope. Then I said 4…nope. Then 5…but at that point I knew I had enough to get to the finish. I flew through the pit one last time without stopping and completed the course without picking up any additional food or fluids. Not the smartest move but it kept me motivated knowing others would probably stop and I wouldn’t.

In the end I didn’t know how I did. I knew there would be mechanicals and hoped that would benefit my placing, but not sure of by how much. I told myself that I would be satisfied with top 10. I got warm and came back for results and to my surprise I came in 4th!?!?!?!?!? Really? I thought there might have been some mistake but it was true. The guy I let through was 3rd and as I passed Zach fixing his tire that put me in 4th. I had no idea. These lap races are so tough to manage placings as there are so many riders on the course but never did I think I was in 4th. I’m super happy to have placed so well in a strong field and got to walk away with a sweet bottle of wine, some goodies, and some cash. It made a long tedious day driving worth it.

Then I had to jump in the car with my teammate who got 2nd place and head back to jersey. It was safe to say Team Bulldog had a great day out there in the cold woods of PA. Not bad for the end of March on a course that was anything but easy

Smokey and the Bandit Short Track

The 2013 season is officially under way I guess. This morning I did the eeney meeney miney moe and hoped things would still stay frozen enough to bring out my race bike. So I threw the Lynskey on the car and headed over to High Bridge NJ for the short track race. The trails were good. Tougher than I expected to see but they were tight...really tight. Passing was going to be an art on this course. The start had a little to be desired as it was 40 of your closest friends sprinting for 50 yards and then trying to nail a right hand turn into singletrack. It turns out it wasn't that pretty.

At the start, one of the racers to my left decided to sprint sideways and run into some of the other racers almost causing a pileup without making very few revolutions of the cranks - so this is how it's gonna go... I gave way to avoid crashing at got shoved pretty far back. I would say somewhere around 15th spot or so. So I'm sitting in line and being patient and waiting for my chance to pass as is everyone else. A few laps go on and there's no real way to pass besides asking the guy in front to let you by. Some do some don't. And the the ones that don't - I have no idea why they don't. This isn't the nationals and there's no paycheck for 11th place. So anyway it's all a game of mechanicals and mistakes at this point. I get through a group of 4 or 5 that were holding me back and then it opens up a bit. Of course by this time the top guys are gone. So now it was a time trial to get back to the front. I opened it up and just rode steady. Picking off a few here and there I heard I was in 7th...ok. I knew there were more ahead of me but apparently a few had flatted or crashed. In 7th I kept on my current pace and just tracked down the next guy...6th. Then 5th...then 4th. And that's where the time ran out.

After 45 minutes of hard racing on a sweet piece of singletrack I ended up with a nice 4th place. I'll take that. My lack of consistency this winter didn't make itself as apparent as I thought it would. I did some hard workouts on Wednesday and Thursday as well thinking it might not be good for the weekend but whatever. It turned out ok. I just wish the traffic opened up sooner so I could have the advantage of riding clean with the faster guys. There's always next time.

Off Season

So far this off-season, inconsistent is the word. I took over the job as the assistant ski team coach for my high school and it's been amazing and I love working with the kids but it's also been super hard to balance the time and needs for the job. I've been riding when I can and adding structure when I can but that's all about to change soon. As of next weekend my ski season will come to a close and the riding season begins in full swing. It's 5 weeks till the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek which is the official opener of my season and it'll be interesting to see how a slower early season may benefit me. The past two seasons I've had super strong early seasons and I've been burnt come September. Now with me firing things up in March it may pay off with better dividends come late season. We shall see. I'm excited to see what lies ahead. Especially with my wedding being in October of the upcoming year it'll be a test of discipline and planning. The cycling season is here: time to rip this sh*t up.

End of Season: Bubble CX, Sussex CX, and Horseshoe CX

The last 3 races on my calendar were all really good and tough races but really varied courses. And in 2 of the 3 I suffered mechanicals that I fought through to finish well but as always leaves me wondering what if...

Bubble CX - This was a great race as it was on my home turf and I was ready for the sand...and there was a whole lot of it! I got a great start and headed up the main hill of the course and let a few cruise by as I was just settling in. I figured I'd get a couple back in the twists and turns but everyone was quite solid and it was very tough if possible at all. So we made our way around the upper field maze, around the back gazebo, and then to the beach. The beach was tough but totally rideable. I made it, albeit slow with traffic and had a great back section that was MTB friendly and gave the roadies a nice pucker factor. I was feeling great for the first laps and the rest to follow would be good as well. But then the proverbial poop hit the fan. I lifted my bike on one lap and felt the rear wheel loose when I set it down. So I had to stop and tighten the skewer. It then happened two laps later as I powered up a hill and wondered how long that would last until it came loose again. Luckily it didn't. I lost enough time dealing with the wheel that I really didn't want to have to stop one more time. But that wasn't the end of the bad luck. For some odd reason my pedals weren't working with me. There was a very short section after the step runup that you had to mount and take on the long sand stretch and for the life of me I could not get the pedals to clip in before the sand making me lose time on at least 3 laps. It was very frustrating as I was riding well and knew I could be in the top 10 at least or maybe even top 5. But with all the mishaps I was happy to finish where I finally ended up in the 10th spot of 20 or so guys that were really solid racers. I had 7th locked up until one of the laps where my wheel came loose but then there just wasn't enough time to chase back on. C'est la vie...


Sussex CX - This race was one of my favorites of the season. Not because the course was my favorite but because I feel like I was being attacked by a pride of lions and came out on top. The course was a cold windy day and I was feeling pretty good and did all I could on the first lap. I had a good start and was riding with Andrew and Eric and having a really good time. I could tell they were feeling good as on one section they got a gap and I was fighting very hard to get back to them but just couldn't close. This is where the battle began as I was in no-man's land. Fighting for every inch of the course by myself and then I looked back to see the lions waiting to eat me. It was a really solid group of my coach Brian, with Dave, and David who were looking really strong and I know there is a lot of experience in that group. Each lap I looked back knowing full well that they were working together and just waiting to reel me in and eat me up. Each lap I dug deeper and deeper to stay away from them and for the time being it was working. Lap after lap I was still alone but somehow keeping my distance to each group and with a little gaining or losing either way that's how it stuck. I held the really strong group off and had a super solid ride with no mechanicals on a course that would expose any of my flaws. Even though I have a affinity for the hard, tight twisty courses, this one faired pretty well and was really a favorite of the season.


Horseshoe CX - This was a tough race. Since it was towards the end the season I was on the downswing and just trying really hard to hold onto the fitness that I've been carrying but it's been tough. The race was really muddy and just what I was asking for, but ended up being more than I wanted. The course was tough. Deep mud and a really long hill that was just greased up beyond belief... It was super hard and lap by lap it was getting worse and worse. So bad that the final lap the derailleur snagged my wheel and snapped off and ended the race bike. So I had to hike to the pit and get my backup bike to finish and only lost one place. It was a tough race but still a good one and a nice reminder of how hard some of these races can be. Time to plan ahead to the 2013 season.

Stoudt's CX Update

For those that read of the incident below at Stoudt's I do have some info to update. Thanks to the post below, Dan, the manager of Bicycle Therapy, got in contact with me and we had a discussion of the incident and it ended pretty favorably. He reassured me that it was totally an unfortunate accident and that Brendan is truly and deeply sorry for what he did, and that it still troubles him as to what happened that day. It still troubles me as well. As I said, I just didn't want the incident swept under the rug but I didn't want to report it to USAC either. I know it was a mistake. If it was malicious, there is no question that I would have reported it. So with that extra apology and the sincere concern for my well being I have moved on hoping that no one ever gets to have this experience. His team and shop are well aware of what happened and that's all I really wanted from this exchange. Some accountability and a little extra sincerity made me feel much better about the incident.

At the end of it all Dan extended the offer to replace my helmet that was broken when I got hit. It was not what I was looking to get from the incident but that offer goes a long way towards the sentiment and trying to make things right. For that I really do appreciate the effort.

Next up I'm working on my end of season recap...

Stoudt's CX Report - Smashed in the Head by a Bike...

Yesterday was supposed to be the Bubblecross in West Milford but due to Hurricane Sandy being a b*tch it wreaked havoc on the area and with lots of people without power and gas they thought it wouldn't be a good idea to hold the race. I agree it was the smart choice. But being the addict I am I was looking for another option. I talked to a few friends and we were working on putting together a local CX practice and do a full on race but that just wouldn't give the same intensity as an actual race. So that was the conundrum.

As I was perusing the web at my girl's place(since she actually was one of the few that had power), I came across the Stoudts CX race. Given the current situation after Sandy it did seem pretty selfish to use all that gas to get to Adamstown PA but the situation for fuel in PA is not dire at all. So we used the race as a great effort for racing, and bringing back tons of fuel in whatever fuel cans I could scrounge up was the secondary mission. So we loaded up 4 like minded people and headed out to Stoudts for the CX race. At least with 4 people going out we could warrant the fuel usage. How bad could it be the race was at a brewery? :-)

So we underestimate the time it would take to get there and roll in just an hour ahead of race time so we pop out of the car, run to registration, grab our numbers, and run back to the car to start warming up. After gearing up and finding the pit we got maybe a half hour of warmup in before we had to shed our gear and get to the line. The one thing I noticed beforehand was a nice grimy mud pit followed by a runup and then a few twisties in the mud that looked just fine. It seemed like a long flowy twisty course that could work to my strengths.

So the race goes off hard and my legs were just not warmed up enough. I dangled at the back of the pack which was probably good since they were squirrelly and all over the place almost crashing twice before the first real turn. Keeping steady I worked my way in traffic to find a good position. The mud and runup was tough as it was deeper than I thought. The rest of the course was nice and flowy and had some great tough turns. If you hit them wrong you would slide out and loose all momentum. So we kept on and I had a few ahead of me that I worked through and picked off one by one. I felt increasingly better and better as the race went on and traffic thinned. I could really get a groove going in the corners and I was able to track people down efficiently.

Somewhere in the middle of the race I had the most shocking thing happen that I would never ever have expected and I'll remember forever. I had a racer in my sights that I was tracking down and reeling in foot by foot. I hit this stretch of pavement that I knew I could get back to him on (or get close) so I turned the pedals over really hard. The next thing I know I look up ahead and I hear the racer I've been trying to get up to smash him and his bike on the ground. Somehow the course tape was broken and he caught it pulling him to the ground. He gets up in the middle of the course and is standing next to his bike. I ask him if he's ok as I fly by on the left and at that exact moment he whips his bike from the right side of the course and throws his bike off of the left side of the course which coincidentally happened to be right where my face and head were. Are you F'N KIDDING ME? From what I remember I saw the bike coming and lowered my head and hit the bike right in the bottom bracket/rear triangle area at close to full speed. It shot off my head and another 20 feet in the air as I somehow kept it upright. My glasses flew off and I then unloaded every expletive that I knew on him as I rode away and continued the race. Did that just really happen? I was in shock for a lap or two doing damage assessment.

From what I felt I was ok and not bleeding and just shocked at taking a bike to the face. I even asked my teammates at the end to check me out because if I was cut or messed up the adrenaline of the race covered it up. I was more shocked with the pure douchebaggery of a racer. It was unfortunate that he fell and must have been having a bad day, but to be that angry or upset to possibly kill another racer by throwing a bike? What if I had caught the chainring badly or even a pedal to the face? I could have been seriously injured or worse. So far the only injury I have from the incident is a sore neck and I can't believe that's it. That helmet saved me from a much worse fate. Really? Did that just happen? Still shocking...

After the incident I calmed myself down and I was able to refocus and keep riding. I did get that position after passing the downed-bike-throwing idiot so that helped. In the following laps I was able to pick off 1 or two more which felt better as I was still pedaling and riding well. I got to the finish and was just happy to get there alive. I was 14th of 25 and was happy with that finish as there were a lot of strong riders there and I survived being smashed in the face by a competitors bicycle. Now the effort was to catch my breath, get some warm clothes on and go punch this idiot in the face.

I looked around the parking lot and remembered I had to go pick up my glasses. So I started to roll over there to look for them. As I start over I see a guy kinda making eye contact and holding my glasses. It was the d-bag. He gave me my glasses and seemed upset at what he had done and repeatedly apologized. I asked him what the hell was wrong with him and what would make him do such an idiotic thing. I also reminded him that he could have killed me and I was lucky to escape with no injuries. He repeatedly apologized and really didn't know what to say. I was resisting the urge to just attack him for being such an idiot. I was sooooo pissed. My blood is boiling a bit just writing this recap. I accepted his apology and shook his hand and rode off as I didn't even want to look at him for any longer than I had to. I was still amazed that this even happened. I guess I really do need to shop for a new helmet now.

Independence CX Report

This past Saturday before the big storm is set to hit, I headed down to south jersey to compete in the Independence CX race. Being so far from home, about 2+ hours, there was a good reason that I haven't attended in the past. It's kinda hard to justify driving that far and only racing for 1 hour. So be it. Since I am persuing the NJBA cross cup I figured I'd get down there and hope for a great result and get closer to the podium. It's gonna take some big effort down the home stretch of the calendar but who knows. I'll just ride steady and see how it goes.

So I pull up and see yards of tape crossing everywhere. I get turned around just looking at the tape and even more turned around just riding the course. It's not your typical cx course as there's maybe only 50 feet of actual grass there. The rest is nice dirt/sand trails back in the woods. The technical features on the course were the beach run and the amphitheater of pain. The amphitheater is as it sounds with large steps to run up. It did get painful with every sequential lap for sure.

As I toed the line I had a nice front row call up and I hoped to use that to the best of my ability. We went off the line hard and there were some pretty fast guys in the group so I just hoped I could stay steady and get a nice finish. Off the line I was probably 7th or so into the woods. It was a hard start. Redlined off the gun I hope everyone would settle in a little. They kinda did as around one of the first bends a racer goes down tangled with one another and struggled to get going again. I had a clear line around so I just pinned it and didn't look back. That may not have worked to my advantage as I hit the beach and it seemed like I was standing still. I wasn't feeling it and one by one racers started passing me. I knew I was in for a long day if I kept feeling like this.

At this point I was looking for anything as a sign of hope. At one point I was going back and forth with Andrew Logudice and from previous races I know he's a strong rider. I couldn't hold him at one point and had to let him go. A few laps later in sections that he'd been out of sight, I saw him again so it seemed like I was gaining. That's all I needed for extra motivation. I put in some good efforts to close to him and I did. We passed and repassed each other as we had different grooves on the course. I said to him at one point to work together to try and pass the next rider which was Nick from Colavita. I took the climbs and hard corners and Andrew punched it on the flats and soon enough we caught up to Nick. In the second to last lap it was me, Nick, and Andrew hitting the biggest climb on the course. I put in a hard effort to try to get away and I just heard a lot of noise as somehow Nick threw himself on the ground. I hoped he was ok but had to press on to see if I could keep my gap and maybe see the guy ahead. As I hit the last lap I looked at those few sections on the course where you could see the others and there was no one ahead or behind. Somehow I shed Andrew as well.

I put down all I had left to keep my gap and finished with no more place exchanges and a good second half of the race. I was happy to have finished so well with not feeling good at all for the first half. Checking the results later I was 10th of 23 in a pretty good field on a pretty non-traditional course. I'd call it a good day.