Monday, September 19, 2005
Monday
John and I waited for Tim and Beth to get here, they arrived and stuffed their faces full of Chocolatines and coffee. They had a very long flight spaning 2 or 3 days depending on how you look at it. So as they went for a little nap, John and I went out to do some TT intervals. We felt crappy at first, but ended up feeling not too bad.
The races...
The races:
Due to a little finacial difficulty I was unable to race Sat’s Abos-Iraty Grand Prix de la Palombe race in this Pyrenees. So I took over as DS once more as John had the race of a lifetime.
We drove 3hours to the start a little past Pau in the Pyrenees. John had a good race and rode near the front all day. The pace was high and they covered over 40k in the fist 2 hours of racing over some rather “hilly” terrain!
I was in radio contact with John from the caravan. I gave him general info about the distance left etc, but listening to his responses I could tell he was riding well and feeling pretty happy about how the race was going. Then things got ugly! The race is a mountain top finish as it finishes atop the Col de Bagagi in the Basque country. This is the climb that the Tour went over in 2003 when Hamilton won the stage. It’s a very very steep climb. Hamilton used a conpact chainring for that climb. As soon as we hit the slopes of the Bagargi riders started popping off the back, and very soon the mountain was covered in riders. John was far from being first to drop. In fact he never really dropped as everyone was all over the mountain side. It took me a while to get up to John in the car. The commisaires kept us behind John’s group for a while as they considered that the main field. Eventually as things were getting really really strung out I was able to get alongside John and give him water, talk to him and see how he felt. I follow John all the way up the climb and kept talking to him either out the window or over the radio. The climb was absolutely brutal!!! He did most of the climb with the Basque National Champion, and he finished the race in the top 60… not bad for an all-rounder on a true climbers course. This is one I think John will remember for a long time. There aren’t very many true mountain top finish races around, and this is one of the hardest.
Sunday we were supposed to do the Pyrenean Regional TT Championships. We got up early and drove over to the race venue, only to find that for some reason they had not received our entries. As it was a TT there was no way they could take us on the day. So we sat in the car and had a very VERY disgruntled drive back home. I was really pissed as I was looking forward to that TT, and even more pissed because it means I didn’t race at all this weekend.
Still… Tim and Beth arrived on their Honeymoon Monday, so that livened things up a bit.
Due to a little finacial difficulty I was unable to race Sat’s Abos-Iraty Grand Prix de la Palombe race in this Pyrenees. So I took over as DS once more as John had the race of a lifetime.
We drove 3hours to the start a little past Pau in the Pyrenees. John had a good race and rode near the front all day. The pace was high and they covered over 40k in the fist 2 hours of racing over some rather “hilly” terrain!
I was in radio contact with John from the caravan. I gave him general info about the distance left etc, but listening to his responses I could tell he was riding well and feeling pretty happy about how the race was going. Then things got ugly! The race is a mountain top finish as it finishes atop the Col de Bagagi in the Basque country. This is the climb that the Tour went over in 2003 when Hamilton won the stage. It’s a very very steep climb. Hamilton used a conpact chainring for that climb. As soon as we hit the slopes of the Bagargi riders started popping off the back, and very soon the mountain was covered in riders. John was far from being first to drop. In fact he never really dropped as everyone was all over the mountain side. It took me a while to get up to John in the car. The commisaires kept us behind John’s group for a while as they considered that the main field. Eventually as things were getting really really strung out I was able to get alongside John and give him water, talk to him and see how he felt. I follow John all the way up the climb and kept talking to him either out the window or over the radio. The climb was absolutely brutal!!! He did most of the climb with the Basque National Champion, and he finished the race in the top 60… not bad for an all-rounder on a true climbers course. This is one I think John will remember for a long time. There aren’t very many true mountain top finish races around, and this is one of the hardest.
Sunday we were supposed to do the Pyrenean Regional TT Championships. We got up early and drove over to the race venue, only to find that for some reason they had not received our entries. As it was a TT there was no way they could take us on the day. So we sat in the car and had a very VERY disgruntled drive back home. I was really pissed as I was looking forward to that TT, and even more pissed because it means I didn’t race at all this weekend.
Still… Tim and Beth arrived on their Honeymoon Monday, so that livened things up a bit.
Friday, September 16, 2005
The week
John and I got in some good training this week. We got in a lot of intervals, some TT intervals and some shorter uphill intervals. We did a few double days, which was nice, and we got in a great ride to Penne and around Bruniquel. That was a great ride, and one I will have to take other people on because it is so beautiful and takes in a load of the area’s castles and walled cities.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Pic de Nore
This weekend saw two races go up the pic de Nore climb. Sat we climbed from Jalabet’s home town of Mazamet to the summit, and on Sunday we climbed from the other side in near Carrcassonne to the summit.
John felt a little down after Sat's race. He was fairly happy with Sat, though I was pissed off because we watched the break go up the road and did nothing... I tried to bridge but couldn't, so came back to the chase group where John attacked to bridge up as soon as I was back in, he sat in no mans land all day, at the end I kicked it away from my group to finish just behind him (7th and 8th). Sunday we went with the break, but these guys go SO fast up hill it was hang on until you drop. I dropped and set into my own rhythm, I ended up in a group of 4 when we reeled in John. We sat in on the steeper slopes, one guy went so I let the gap open a bit and bridged taking just john with me. We sat on him making breathing noises to make sure he wouldn't ask for any help. Then John started to get gapped, but I wanted him to hang on as I was planning to attack our guy with about 2k to go (it was around 8 or 9% slope at this stage), John dangled off the back for a little while, then got on. I attacked with 2k to go, john couldn't follow and the other guy stuck to me for a bit, so I kicked again and whipped it from side to side... I got a big gap real quick and held it to the finish, the other guy was picking up the speed, he came in next with John just behind him. We were around 12th and 13th or something like that. I was happy because we did all we could, but dissatisfied because I would like to do better… as usual. I'm not sure why John isn't happy though, because he didn't miss the break, he gave it all he had... so...
John actually cracked his frame, so that changed things a bit, as he will tell you bellow…
BY JOHN PARKS:
Well this past weekend did not go quite as planned, but it was a worthwhile experience nonetheless. We woke up Saturday morning to heavy rain and fog so driving three hours or more to the Pyrenees where the weather was sure to be worse seemed a little risky. Sim and I opted to try a different race about an hour or so away. The race was a mass start hill climb that started in the town of Mazamet (Laurent Jalibert?s home town) and rose 25k to the Pic de Nor, 1000m above the start line.
At the start I jumped out front and pulled the first few kilometers out of town and up the hill at pace just fast enough to discourage attacks. Just as I was pulling off a group of seven guys attacked and got a gap that Sim then tried to bridge. Not quite able to catch the lead group, Sim dropped back to the pack and as soon as we caught him I countered with my own attack. Unfortunately I was never able to bridge the gap between the leaders and the rest of the field and spent the remainder of the climb by myself in no mans land. Halfway up, I passed a member of the lead group being helped into an ambulance for whatever reason. An hour after I started, I reached the top several minutes behind the leaders in 7th place. Sim, in a group of about five, attacked 3k from the top and dropped the riders around him and crossed the line in 8th place about a minute behind me. All the race officials and locals seemed to really enjoy having the both of us their because neither of us are French. At the small awards ceremony after the race they even gave me a trophy for being the first foreign rider to reach to top.
On the descent back down, a couple times my crank seemed to slip a little or so that?s what I thought, so I just took it easy thinking I would just tighten it when we got home. The bad news came when we discovered that the chain stay was separating from the dropout and my frame was shot. Knowing we had a race the next day, that night Sim and I swapped all of my components on to aluminum Go Sport bike that Greg Sonnenburg had left here. Greg, if you read this, thanks, and I owe you. However, now you can always take pleasure in knowing that you own a bike that?s been raced in Europe.
The race on Sunday was similar to Saturday with many of the same riders, but we attacked the climb from the other side of the hill and finished at the same point. The backside of the climb was shorter but steeper which was not good for me. The pace started extremely fast and dropped most of the riders quickly. I held on for about two or three kilometers but was not able to maintain the pace. Once again I found myself on my own, this time occasionally being passed by a rider or two. Two-thirds up the climb I was caught by Sim and a small group of four others. I managed to sit in with them just as the grade got began to get steeper. All the riders in the group dropped except for Sim, another rider, and myself. About 1k from the top Sim had the legs to attack the other rider and get a few seconds gap and hold it to the finish with the other guy chasing and me coming in about 15-20 seconds back. Not a great day but we both still managed top twenty finishes. I guess not bad considering most of the other riders were from towns around the area, and are used to this type of terrain. By the way these climbs have Liam?s name written all over them.
Yesterday we took my frame to a local fame builder who said he could repair it no problem, so I should have it for the upcoming races this weekend. Thanks to everyone at the shop for jumping through whatever hoops to get a new bike to me. We are not exactly sure what races we are going to do this weekend but it may involve a road race that finished on a climb in the Pyrenees, and or a regional time trial championships, we?ll see. Thanks again for everything.
John P.
John felt a little down after Sat's race. He was fairly happy with Sat, though I was pissed off because we watched the break go up the road and did nothing... I tried to bridge but couldn't, so came back to the chase group where John attacked to bridge up as soon as I was back in, he sat in no mans land all day, at the end I kicked it away from my group to finish just behind him (7th and 8th). Sunday we went with the break, but these guys go SO fast up hill it was hang on until you drop. I dropped and set into my own rhythm, I ended up in a group of 4 when we reeled in John. We sat in on the steeper slopes, one guy went so I let the gap open a bit and bridged taking just john with me. We sat on him making breathing noises to make sure he wouldn't ask for any help. Then John started to get gapped, but I wanted him to hang on as I was planning to attack our guy with about 2k to go (it was around 8 or 9% slope at this stage), John dangled off the back for a little while, then got on. I attacked with 2k to go, john couldn't follow and the other guy stuck to me for a bit, so I kicked again and whipped it from side to side... I got a big gap real quick and held it to the finish, the other guy was picking up the speed, he came in next with John just behind him. We were around 12th and 13th or something like that. I was happy because we did all we could, but dissatisfied because I would like to do better… as usual. I'm not sure why John isn't happy though, because he didn't miss the break, he gave it all he had... so...
John actually cracked his frame, so that changed things a bit, as he will tell you bellow…
BY JOHN PARKS:
Well this past weekend did not go quite as planned, but it was a worthwhile experience nonetheless. We woke up Saturday morning to heavy rain and fog so driving three hours or more to the Pyrenees where the weather was sure to be worse seemed a little risky. Sim and I opted to try a different race about an hour or so away. The race was a mass start hill climb that started in the town of Mazamet (Laurent Jalibert?s home town) and rose 25k to the Pic de Nor, 1000m above the start line.
At the start I jumped out front and pulled the first few kilometers out of town and up the hill at pace just fast enough to discourage attacks. Just as I was pulling off a group of seven guys attacked and got a gap that Sim then tried to bridge. Not quite able to catch the lead group, Sim dropped back to the pack and as soon as we caught him I countered with my own attack. Unfortunately I was never able to bridge the gap between the leaders and the rest of the field and spent the remainder of the climb by myself in no mans land. Halfway up, I passed a member of the lead group being helped into an ambulance for whatever reason. An hour after I started, I reached the top several minutes behind the leaders in 7th place. Sim, in a group of about five, attacked 3k from the top and dropped the riders around him and crossed the line in 8th place about a minute behind me. All the race officials and locals seemed to really enjoy having the both of us their because neither of us are French. At the small awards ceremony after the race they even gave me a trophy for being the first foreign rider to reach to top.
On the descent back down, a couple times my crank seemed to slip a little or so that?s what I thought, so I just took it easy thinking I would just tighten it when we got home. The bad news came when we discovered that the chain stay was separating from the dropout and my frame was shot. Knowing we had a race the next day, that night Sim and I swapped all of my components on to aluminum Go Sport bike that Greg Sonnenburg had left here. Greg, if you read this, thanks, and I owe you. However, now you can always take pleasure in knowing that you own a bike that?s been raced in Europe.
The race on Sunday was similar to Saturday with many of the same riders, but we attacked the climb from the other side of the hill and finished at the same point. The backside of the climb was shorter but steeper which was not good for me. The pace started extremely fast and dropped most of the riders quickly. I held on for about two or three kilometers but was not able to maintain the pace. Once again I found myself on my own, this time occasionally being passed by a rider or two. Two-thirds up the climb I was caught by Sim and a small group of four others. I managed to sit in with them just as the grade got began to get steeper. All the riders in the group dropped except for Sim, another rider, and myself. About 1k from the top Sim had the legs to attack the other rider and get a few seconds gap and hold it to the finish with the other guy chasing and me coming in about 15-20 seconds back. Not a great day but we both still managed top twenty finishes. I guess not bad considering most of the other riders were from towns around the area, and are used to this type of terrain. By the way these climbs have Liam?s name written all over them.
Yesterday we took my frame to a local fame builder who said he could repair it no problem, so I should have it for the upcoming races this weekend. Thanks to everyone at the shop for jumping through whatever hoops to get a new bike to me. We are not exactly sure what races we are going to do this weekend but it may involve a road race that finished on a climb in the Pyrenees, and or a regional time trial championships, we?ll see. Thanks again for everything.
John P.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Northern Races
On this first weekend in September, John and I drove up to northern France for 2 TTs and a road race. We drove over 5 hours on Sat to a TT. The TTs were what I was most interested in. On Sat I was 12th on the 22k TT. It was very very hot, and on a hilly course. The TV was out there filming, so that was interesting. I averaged 43kph and put in a reasonable time. We then got back in the car and drove another 3 hours to spend the night with some friends of ours near the Nantes area.
Next morning we were up very early to drive about 1.5 hours to a stage race in Cholet. We did a TT in the morning, once again this was my main aim for the day, I didn’t really care much about the road race. I put in a fairly good time, and average 44kph on the 9k TT, however the time gaps were very tight, and it was only good enough for 31st place. I guess it was in the top 3rd of the peleton, but I was quite disappointed. Then we had some food and got on the bikes for the second stage of the race; a 112 km road race. Things started off fairly well, John and I seemed to ride quite well, and we both stayed near the front. I was pretty tired after my two TTs, and luckily for me (I thought) those northern boys don’t climb quite as fast as our Pyrenean riders. Still we hit a hill at the half-way point of the race, the race got strung out and that was the end of the race for me. John was just able to hang on long enough for the pace to settle down a bit, and then he rode a great race. He was in a group of about 7 or so, he looked strong and had a good ride to finish somewhere in the top 40.
Then it was back into the car to drive back to our friends’ place, spend the night, then have to most boring drive ever all the way back home in the driving rain.
BY JOHN PARKS
I hope things are going good, and that everyone at the shop is doing well. As I had expected, this trip has turned out to be anything but a vacation. It is very clear however that coming will be worth every penny both in experience and in fitness training. Sim and I are living a cyclist life in its truest form by training every day, eating lots of pasta, and driving all over the country to race on the weekends. Last weekend we drove seven hours up to northern France for a 22k TT on Saturday and a two stage race on Sunday which included an 8k TT in the morning, a 112 road race in the afternoon, and two speeding tickets. Unlike Sim, I was not extremely interested in the time trials, but focused more on doing well in the road race.
Things operate quite a bit different over here when it comes to races in many ways. One example of this is that categories really don?t mean a whole lot over here. In many of the races, riders are simply grouped together so beginners can be racing against riders who were pro the previous year as well as juniors. This however does not make the race any slower or any less aggressive.
The Saturday TT was impressive in that it had the full production to include a covered start house and ramp, an announcer that introduced each rider and called out times as they crossed the finish line, and team cars to follow each rider on the course. A TV crew was also on hand to film a few of the starts including mine for local broadcast. The officials asked me questions while I was waiting in the start house but after I told them I didn?t speak French, all they did was make gestures and laugh. What are the odds they were saying something derogatory. The Sunday TT was not quite as elaborate but was still beyond what we are used to in the states. I didn’t give great performances in either event nor was I trying to so I couldn’t really judge my fitness with the other riders, but Sim seemed to do fairly well. The road race was another story.
Those boys were fast!
After we rolled out of the town and crossed the official start line, several riders attacked and from that point on, there was either someone attacking, or group of people off the front. Halfway through, the race got strung out over the top of a small climb and for many riders including Sim that was all it took to put them off the back. At some point during the race I looked down at my flight deck and saw that I was going twenty-five mph, up a hill, and it was still below the average speed for the race. I can?t recall the last time I had to work so hard just to stay in a race. I cannot stress enough how fast and aggressive these guys are. The racecourse had us come back into town, then make eight loops around the town. The weather was hot and I was running out of water, so luckily as we came back through town, Sim was there to hand me a couple bottles or I would not have finished for sure. In true form, I felt better as the race went on and by the end felt quite strong but by then the race had already been won by two team mates who crossed the line hand in hand, several minutes before my group reached the finish. Eighty some riders started the race, about fifty finished and I crossed the line somewhere in the mid thirties felling quite pleased with my performance given the sircumstances.
Another hard weekend starts tomorrow with a 90k road race in the Pyrenees that includes two col?s, and a 20k mass start hill climb on Sunday. Other than that, everything else has been great. We went over to a town close to use today and saw a stage finish of the Tour de Lavenier, which was impressive. Americans are representing pretty well this year.
Next morning we were up very early to drive about 1.5 hours to a stage race in Cholet. We did a TT in the morning, once again this was my main aim for the day, I didn’t really care much about the road race. I put in a fairly good time, and average 44kph on the 9k TT, however the time gaps were very tight, and it was only good enough for 31st place. I guess it was in the top 3rd of the peleton, but I was quite disappointed. Then we had some food and got on the bikes for the second stage of the race; a 112 km road race. Things started off fairly well, John and I seemed to ride quite well, and we both stayed near the front. I was pretty tired after my two TTs, and luckily for me (I thought) those northern boys don’t climb quite as fast as our Pyrenean riders. Still we hit a hill at the half-way point of the race, the race got strung out and that was the end of the race for me. John was just able to hang on long enough for the pace to settle down a bit, and then he rode a great race. He was in a group of about 7 or so, he looked strong and had a good ride to finish somewhere in the top 40.
Then it was back into the car to drive back to our friends’ place, spend the night, then have to most boring drive ever all the way back home in the driving rain.
BY JOHN PARKS
I hope things are going good, and that everyone at the shop is doing well. As I had expected, this trip has turned out to be anything but a vacation. It is very clear however that coming will be worth every penny both in experience and in fitness training. Sim and I are living a cyclist life in its truest form by training every day, eating lots of pasta, and driving all over the country to race on the weekends. Last weekend we drove seven hours up to northern France for a 22k TT on Saturday and a two stage race on Sunday which included an 8k TT in the morning, a 112 road race in the afternoon, and two speeding tickets. Unlike Sim, I was not extremely interested in the time trials, but focused more on doing well in the road race.
Things operate quite a bit different over here when it comes to races in many ways. One example of this is that categories really don?t mean a whole lot over here. In many of the races, riders are simply grouped together so beginners can be racing against riders who were pro the previous year as well as juniors. This however does not make the race any slower or any less aggressive.
The Saturday TT was impressive in that it had the full production to include a covered start house and ramp, an announcer that introduced each rider and called out times as they crossed the finish line, and team cars to follow each rider on the course. A TV crew was also on hand to film a few of the starts including mine for local broadcast. The officials asked me questions while I was waiting in the start house but after I told them I didn?t speak French, all they did was make gestures and laugh. What are the odds they were saying something derogatory. The Sunday TT was not quite as elaborate but was still beyond what we are used to in the states. I didn’t give great performances in either event nor was I trying to so I couldn’t really judge my fitness with the other riders, but Sim seemed to do fairly well. The road race was another story.
Those boys were fast!
After we rolled out of the town and crossed the official start line, several riders attacked and from that point on, there was either someone attacking, or group of people off the front. Halfway through, the race got strung out over the top of a small climb and for many riders including Sim that was all it took to put them off the back. At some point during the race I looked down at my flight deck and saw that I was going twenty-five mph, up a hill, and it was still below the average speed for the race. I can?t recall the last time I had to work so hard just to stay in a race. I cannot stress enough how fast and aggressive these guys are. The racecourse had us come back into town, then make eight loops around the town. The weather was hot and I was running out of water, so luckily as we came back through town, Sim was there to hand me a couple bottles or I would not have finished for sure. In true form, I felt better as the race went on and by the end felt quite strong but by then the race had already been won by two team mates who crossed the line hand in hand, several minutes before my group reached the finish. Eighty some riders started the race, about fifty finished and I crossed the line somewhere in the mid thirties felling quite pleased with my performance given the sircumstances.
Another hard weekend starts tomorrow with a 90k road race in the Pyrenees that includes two col?s, and a 20k mass start hill climb on Sunday. Other than that, everything else has been great. We went over to a town close to use today and saw a stage finish of the Tour de Lavenier, which was impressive. Americans are representing pretty well this year.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
rainin' on mah pirayd
As I’m sure you have all seen, there is some rather bad weather going around. Parts of Switzerland and Austria are under feet and feet of water, there’s bad flooding all over the place. Well although my little home of Cadalen southern France is known for being bloody hot and the home drought conditions, we have also been suffering from this bad batch of weather. This last week has been crappy to say the least. We’ve had covered skies, and even a few drops of rain. Get this; a couple days ago I went out for a fast ride with Alphonce, we were wearing arm warmers… unheard of for this part of the world at this time of year. I must say I miss my melted roads, I like suffering from a permanent state of severe dehydration. It’s actually even drizzling right now as I type. So… as I’m sure you can guess, knowing me as you all do, I’ve been pretty demoralized this week and have had trouble getting out on the bike. I’ve also damaged my left shoulder a bit, so I can’t lift much and it hurts resting on the bars on anything longer than a 1 hour ride.
So apart from my hard and fast ride with my training buddy Alphonce on Sunday and a recovery ride yesterday, there isn’t much else to say… I’m not even sure if I’ll do my intervals today, going out in the rain just doesn’t appeal to me, sorry, but there is a good reason I hated England… hours and hours and hours on end of riding in the freezing cold British August rain has made me feel like I’ve had my fair share of rain riding to last me a lifetime.
Right… hopefully there’ll be more to tell y’all about next time.
Oh yeah, I hope you all followed Jeremiah Bishops recent exploits at the Snowshoe round of the NORBA MTB series, he’s kicking some big old ass and it’s good to see. Keep it up JB, the big BIG one is just around the corner.
So apart from my hard and fast ride with my training buddy Alphonce on Sunday and a recovery ride yesterday, there isn’t much else to say… I’m not even sure if I’ll do my intervals today, going out in the rain just doesn’t appeal to me, sorry, but there is a good reason I hated England… hours and hours and hours on end of riding in the freezing cold British August rain has made me feel like I’ve had my fair share of rain riding to last me a lifetime.
Right… hopefully there’ll be more to tell y’all about next time.
Oh yeah, I hope you all followed Jeremiah Bishops recent exploits at the Snowshoe round of the NORBA MTB series, he’s kicking some big old ass and it’s good to see. Keep it up JB, the big BIG one is just around the corner.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Back to my ROOTS...
Sunday:
Today I went to do a Mountain Bike race. It started at the top of the Superbagnere ski resort in the high Pyrenees. Very hot, lots of Altitude… . It sucked-ass! The course was shit, mainly field crossings, some off camber singletrack that had a sheer drop on one side, (but a lot of climbing that was good) blah blah blah. I got hit by a tourist on the course going down an uphill section, he came round the corner and rode straight into me, the race lasted almost 3 hours, about 70% of the field didn't finish, I crashed twice = inflamed knee and inflamed ankle, finished 4th (but didn't know it) didn't hang around at the end and went straight home ie: missed out on some 4th place money.
Catching up.
This week I’ve been feeling a bit rough. My knee and ankle have been hurting. Tuesday I got in 4 hours again, with some TT intervals in the morning and a long ride in the evening, Intervals on Wednesday, Thursday it rained so I did 2 hours of intervals instead of my planned 3 or 4 hour ride. It’s been nice to have our visitor, I like having people around.
Sunday I did yet another Mountain Bike race. I don’t know what is happening to me but I’m getting slowly back into Mountain Bike racing. I say slowly because I suck at it now. I’m fairly fit so I can hold my own, but my technical riding is just plain embarrassing. So raced the Rialet MTB race. I came home a little disappointed, but I’m not sure why because I did quite well. I was 5th. Alphonce was 2nd, so that was really good to see him up there kicking some assio. There were some good riders there, including the Espoir women’s French National Champ who I think was 5th or something at worlds. I felt really bad because I had never heard of her. The day went well, I didn’t crash or anything, but I did notice I can hardly turn corners on my MTB, and I’m really slow when we hit technical stuff. (When I say really slow, I mean comparatively of course. I used to be a very technical and smooth rider…)
Thursday
Well yesterday I finished all the kitchen work. I did the plumbing, built a sink structure and work surface etc etc. Yesterday Pat and I went to the Sidobre to get some bits of black granit work surface to finish it all off. It’s been a lot of work, but I’m really happy with it. The kitchen now looks like a kitchen, where as before (as most of you know) it looked yucky and crap.
I’ve been feeling very tired this week, but still getting in my rides and intervals.. I’m guessing I’ll either flop this weekend and the tiredness will catch up with, maybe even as a cold; or I’ll pull through and feel really good… who knows.
This coming weekend I’m either doing a road race in the name of Jalabert, or a Mountain Bike race in the Pyrenees. As usual I can’t decide…
Visitors:
So… I’m waiting to see in this seasons (expected) revelation John Parks is going to come over to do some racing. If he does we’ll do some racing in northern France, the Pyrenees, some TTs etc.
Tim Dingus and his new wife Beth will be arriving for their honeymoon on September 19th. That’ll be really fun and good to see them again.
In October we should have 3 people coming over to ride for a week. One of them is Rick Martinez… so those of you wondering “what’s happened to Rick” well I might be able to tell you in a little while. I’m not totally sure if they are coming over, but that’s the plan.
Oh… silly me, I forgot to mention some… we have some people coming for about a week I think arriving on Tuesday, and I think we have some old colleagues on Pat’s from England arriving some time in October… the usually Green visitor spree… I love it.
Anyone else wanna come over? :-)
Today I went to do a Mountain Bike race. It started at the top of the Superbagnere ski resort in the high Pyrenees. Very hot, lots of Altitude… . It sucked-ass! The course was shit, mainly field crossings, some off camber singletrack that had a sheer drop on one side, (but a lot of climbing that was good) blah blah blah. I got hit by a tourist on the course going down an uphill section, he came round the corner and rode straight into me, the race lasted almost 3 hours, about 70% of the field didn't finish, I crashed twice = inflamed knee and inflamed ankle, finished 4th (but didn't know it) didn't hang around at the end and went straight home ie: missed out on some 4th place money.
Catching up.
This week I’ve been feeling a bit rough. My knee and ankle have been hurting. Tuesday I got in 4 hours again, with some TT intervals in the morning and a long ride in the evening, Intervals on Wednesday, Thursday it rained so I did 2 hours of intervals instead of my planned 3 or 4 hour ride. It’s been nice to have our visitor, I like having people around.
Sunday I did yet another Mountain Bike race. I don’t know what is happening to me but I’m getting slowly back into Mountain Bike racing. I say slowly because I suck at it now. I’m fairly fit so I can hold my own, but my technical riding is just plain embarrassing. So raced the Rialet MTB race. I came home a little disappointed, but I’m not sure why because I did quite well. I was 5th. Alphonce was 2nd, so that was really good to see him up there kicking some assio. There were some good riders there, including the Espoir women’s French National Champ who I think was 5th or something at worlds. I felt really bad because I had never heard of her. The day went well, I didn’t crash or anything, but I did notice I can hardly turn corners on my MTB, and I’m really slow when we hit technical stuff. (When I say really slow, I mean comparatively of course. I used to be a very technical and smooth rider…)
Thursday
Well yesterday I finished all the kitchen work. I did the plumbing, built a sink structure and work surface etc etc. Yesterday Pat and I went to the Sidobre to get some bits of black granit work surface to finish it all off. It’s been a lot of work, but I’m really happy with it. The kitchen now looks like a kitchen, where as before (as most of you know) it looked yucky and crap.
I’ve been feeling very tired this week, but still getting in my rides and intervals.. I’m guessing I’ll either flop this weekend and the tiredness will catch up with, maybe even as a cold; or I’ll pull through and feel really good… who knows.
This coming weekend I’m either doing a road race in the name of Jalabert, or a Mountain Bike race in the Pyrenees. As usual I can’t decide…
Visitors:
So… I’m waiting to see in this seasons (expected) revelation John Parks is going to come over to do some racing. If he does we’ll do some racing in northern France, the Pyrenees, some TTs etc.
Tim Dingus and his new wife Beth will be arriving for their honeymoon on September 19th. That’ll be really fun and good to see them again.
In October we should have 3 people coming over to ride for a week. One of them is Rick Martinez… so those of you wondering “what’s happened to Rick” well I might be able to tell you in a little while. I’m not totally sure if they are coming over, but that’s the plan.
Oh… silly me, I forgot to mention some… we have some people coming for about a week I think arriving on Tuesday, and I think we have some old colleagues on Pat’s from England arriving some time in October… the usually Green visitor spree… I love it.
Anyone else wanna come over? :-)
Thursday
Yesterday I did hill rep intervals. 1 minute intervals at 500 watts, and 30 second hill sprints at over 600 watts. It hurt. But today I spent the morning doing some cleaning work as I have destroyed a big concrete structure in the kitchen. I’m going to redo the kitchen. This evening we have a friend coming for a few day to visit.
So I went out and met Stephane at the Café in Gaillac. We stopped and had a quick drink, then did that gorgeous (in both meanings of the word) Bruniquel loop with quite a bit of climbing. I did intervals on the hills and felt really good for the first time in bloody ages. When we got home to Gaillac, Steph went home, and I carried on to finish off with something 4.5 hours and 120k.
So I went out and met Stephane at the Café in Gaillac. We stopped and had a quick drink, then did that gorgeous (in both meanings of the word) Bruniquel loop with quite a bit of climbing. I did intervals on the hills and felt really good for the first time in bloody ages. When we got home to Gaillac, Steph went home, and I carried on to finish off with something 4.5 hours and 120k.
Tuesday August 2nd
Today I did some intervals in the morning, then went out for a ride in the evening with Stephane. The weather is nice, the days a warm (hot actually). It was a good day, I got in 4 hours.
Saturday, August 06, 2005
Saturday
Yesterday I did nothing, had a day off the bike. I’m racing Sunday and the ace starts at the top of a Pyrenean ski resort.. that makes me a little nervous. It’s a Mountain Bike race, and once again I haven’t ridden the MTB in a long time… so I’m going back to my good old race preparation methods of a few years back: hard work during the week, followed by 2 easy days before the race. We’ll see how it goes.
I met Stephane again this morning for an easy spin to shake the legs out. I didn’t feel too good, but “tomorrow is the next day” as a wise man once said.. (hmmmm…..)
Until next time….
I met Stephane again this morning for an easy spin to shake the legs out. I didn’t feel too good, but “tomorrow is the next day” as a wise man once said.. (hmmmm…..)
Until next time….
thursday
I’ve spent a couple of strange days. I’ve been feeling tired, and I’ve also been watching 2 guys I’ve been racing with for a few years do their first pro race with AG2R. Both are local guys. Some people are just really talented and exceptional in this sport, but I don’t believe these guys are. I’ve had a hard time seeing them get results in their first pro, when just a few weeks ago I was racing with them, and they are not exceptional. I’m really jealous. Even though I’ve decided to finish school, and I haven’t been training properly, I’m still jealous.
Anyway; today I went out for a ride with Stephane. I’ve spent the last 2 days doing intervals. It really hurt doing intervals after spending 3 weeks with Bikestyletours.com doing very long but also very low intercity rides. I met Stephane at the café in Gaillac, and we sat and had a coffee for a little while, watched the world go by etc. Then we got on the bikes and did my much loved Bruniquel loop where you ride along the tops of hills with great views, before plummeting down into the Aveyron gorges. It was a great sunny day. I did a bunch of 30second 450W intervals on the climbs and felt pretty good. Once we headed back into Gaillac after 80k, I left Stephane and prolonged the ride a little. So I did 4.5 hours, about 120k. I really enjoyed the ride and felt pretty good. It was one of those rides that you long for for months… the kind of ride that reminds you what riding should really be about: great views, good fun, good company etc.
Anyway; today I went out for a ride with Stephane. I’ve spent the last 2 days doing intervals. It really hurt doing intervals after spending 3 weeks with Bikestyletours.com doing very long but also very low intercity rides. I met Stephane at the café in Gaillac, and we sat and had a coffee for a little while, watched the world go by etc. Then we got on the bikes and did my much loved Bruniquel loop where you ride along the tops of hills with great views, before plummeting down into the Aveyron gorges. It was a great sunny day. I did a bunch of 30second 450W intervals on the climbs and felt pretty good. Once we headed back into Gaillac after 80k, I left Stephane and prolonged the ride a little. So I did 4.5 hours, about 120k. I really enjoyed the ride and felt pretty good. It was one of those rides that you long for for months… the kind of ride that reminds you what riding should really be about: great views, good fun, good company etc.
Thursday
I’ve spent a couple of strange days. I’ve been feeling tired, and I’ve also been watching 2 guys I’ve been racing with for a few years do their first pro race with AG2R. Both are local guys. Some people are just really talented and exceptional in this sport, but I don’t believe these guys are. I’ve had a hard time seeing them get results in their first pro, when just a few weeks ago I was racing with them, and they are not exceptional. I’m really jealous. Even though I’ve decided to finish school, and I haven’t been training properly, I’m still jealous.
Anyway; today I went out for a ride with Stephane. I’ve spent the last 2 days doing intervals. It really hurt doing intervals after spending 3 weeks with Bikestyletours.com doing very long but also very low intercity rides. I met Stephane at the café in Gaillac, and we sat and had a coffee for a little while, watched the world go by etc. Then we got on the bikes and did my much loved Bruniquel loop where you ride along the tops of hills with great views, before plummeting down into the Aveyron gorges. It was a great sunny day. I did a bunch of 30second 450W intervals on the climbs and felt pretty good. Once we headed back into Gaillac after 80k, I left Stephane and prolonged the ride a little. So I did 4.5 hours, about 120k. I really enjoyed the ride and felt pretty good. It was one of those rides that you long for for months… the kind of ride that reminds you what riding should really be about: great views, good fun, good company etc.
Anyway; today I went out for a ride with Stephane. I’ve spent the last 2 days doing intervals. It really hurt doing intervals after spending 3 weeks with Bikestyletours.com doing very long but also very low intercity rides. I met Stephane at the café in Gaillac, and we sat and had a coffee for a little while, watched the world go by etc. Then we got on the bikes and did my much loved Bruniquel loop where you ride along the tops of hills with great views, before plummeting down into the Aveyron gorges. It was a great sunny day. I did a bunch of 30second 450W intervals on the climbs and felt pretty good. Once we headed back into Gaillac after 80k, I left Stephane and prolonged the ride a little. So I did 4.5 hours, about 120k. I really enjoyed the ride and felt pretty good. It was one of those rides that you long for for months… the kind of ride that reminds you what riding should really be about: great views, good fun, good company etc.
Saturday, July 30, 2005
“Needleless” back treatment…
I found a Doc to treat me yesterday evening. They gave me hundreds of little injections in my back. About an injection for every square cm of my back... the whole back, and even my neck got loads of injections… I handled it quite well considering I’m scared of needles (no wonder I suck at cycling)… after that they put my through a bunch of adjustments and I felt a bit better. I couldn’t get to sleep last night, and this morning my back was really stiff and after the treatment. So I’m not racing today of course. I’m sitting around trying not to move my back too much.
I’m also a bit sick. I seemed to get a bit sick just before come back home from the Bikestyle trip. That’s what happens when you share a bus with loads of people, move hotel every day etc etc. My lungs are full of phlegm and it feels remarkably like the thing I had about 3 weeks ago after that MTB race. Maybe if I could get some consistent training through the winter months, I could stay healthy during the season.. or maybe I just have a weak body.. I don’t know.
I’m going to go for an easy 1 hour spin and see how I feel… come home, enjoy a meal out on the balcony, and go out for another ride in the afternoon if I don’t feel too bad.Shit I hate this... I hate feeling like this.
I’m also a bit sick. I seemed to get a bit sick just before come back home from the Bikestyle trip. That’s what happens when you share a bus with loads of people, move hotel every day etc etc. My lungs are full of phlegm and it feels remarkably like the thing I had about 3 weeks ago after that MTB race. Maybe if I could get some consistent training through the winter months, I could stay healthy during the season.. or maybe I just have a weak body.. I don’t know.
I’m going to go for an easy 1 hour spin and see how I feel… come home, enjoy a meal out on the balcony, and go out for another ride in the afternoon if I don’t feel too bad.Shit I hate this... I hate feeling like this.
Friday, July 29, 2005
good, or no good... ??
2 days in the Pyrenees was really good. However… although fun it wasn’t all great. The 1st day I got the there I went out on the MTB and got lost on the Aspin mountain.. then got caught in some rain as I had ridden down into the neighboring valley. I felt really shit on the bike, but I figured that was just due to the past 2 weeks of long rides. So on the second day I got up early, had breakfast and headed out on the road bike to do both sides of the Aspin followed by the Tourmalet. It was incredibly hot… I did both sides of the Aspin and started the Toumalet but soon realized it wasn’t a good idea. I was feeling really rough. It’s my back once again. The pain even on the bike was excruciating and it was a hindrance to my breathing. Once I got back to the tent, I realized just in how much pain I was. I had assumed it was the mountain hurting me. Unable to move, I lay down for most of the day with my lungs constantly wheezing with asthma. I didn’t sleep last night either.. not only was the breathing just too hard to sleep, but massive mountain thunder storms came down and flooded the tent… oh well. This morning I got up and packed everything up wet into the car. I’ll hang it out to dry over the next couple days. My first priority is finding a doctor to sort my back out. I was planning on racing the MTB tomorrow, but that looks very unlikely, unless I can find some that can treat me this afternoon… Ugh… such is life with my fucked up back… it’s been years, but I’m really starting to realize that I need to be careful.. if I can’t get some serious treatment I’m going to be bedridden in the next few years. Someone has already said I have the back of a 70 year old… Ugh
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
And he’s off again. Pyrenees training camp.
Right, it’s nice weather out there, so I’m taking my MTB and road bike with the power-tap and I’m going to spend a few days camping at the foot of the Aspin and the Tourmalet. I’ll probably do 2 rides a day, 1 MTB and 1 road.
When I was in that area about a week ago I told myself I really had to go back with the tent and the MTB, hang out, relax and ride some mean trails. So here I go… so long suckers………
When I was in that area about a week ago I told myself I really had to go back with the tent and the MTB, hang out, relax and ride some mean trails. So here I go… so long suckers………
Back in the game mate...
Well here we go… I’m back. I got back in yesterday afternoon, I flew from Paris to Toulouse, got home and went for a ride with Stephane. We did a nice little 2+ hour ride. I’m really really tired from all the riding we did with Bikestyletours.com. It was a great trip with some really cool people. I met lots of new people and have found out a lot more about Aussies. They are a great nation of people, nothing phases them, they don’t care, they roll with the punches, suck it up and laugh at everything. We had some great townsign sprints, great rides in the mountains and sadly, even a couple of crashes.
I’ve ridden 20 hours a week for the past two weeks. Lots of the rides were slow, but with the mountains they were still quite hard. I put in a LOT of hours in the saddle that’s for sure. Some of the rides were fast, with lots of accelerations etc. Some of the guys on the trips were ex-racers, some were current racers, and so there was a group that was really tearing it up on the incredibly hot roads of France.
I have just spent 3 days up north finishing in Paris (and many days in the mountains before that) where it was raining. So today was a bit of a shock to me when I awoke to some really REALLY hot weather. I did a recovery ride today, but it was so hot that even when there was a breeze, it was like air coming out of an oven… just bloody hot.
I’m going to try an MTB race this weekend I think, then some road next weekend… we’ll see what kind of shape I’m in. I’ve got a good base now, but I’m sure I need intervals etc.
Right.. “off to bed hey, get an early night hey mate” as Pat Jonkers would say..
I’ve ridden 20 hours a week for the past two weeks. Lots of the rides were slow, but with the mountains they were still quite hard. I put in a LOT of hours in the saddle that’s for sure. Some of the rides were fast, with lots of accelerations etc. Some of the guys on the trips were ex-racers, some were current racers, and so there was a group that was really tearing it up on the incredibly hot roads of France.
I have just spent 3 days up north finishing in Paris (and many days in the mountains before that) where it was raining. So today was a bit of a shock to me when I awoke to some really REALLY hot weather. I did a recovery ride today, but it was so hot that even when there was a breeze, it was like air coming out of an oven… just bloody hot.
I’m going to try an MTB race this weekend I think, then some road next weekend… we’ll see what kind of shape I’m in. I’ve got a good base now, but I’m sure I need intervals etc.
Right.. “off to bed hey, get an early night hey mate” as Pat Jonkers would say..
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
SHREWWWS and roots MTB racing.
Sunday I did the Midi Libre MTB race in the Gard area of France. It was a return to my roots… remember… roots… shrews…?! No? Well, you had to be a part of the Subaru MTB series with me back in 1999. Oh well.
So I was up at 4am to get to the race over in the middle of noplace in the Seveen something region of France. It was a big race (I found out once I got there)… I was just going to ride around with my buddy Alphonce. So, there were some good guys there, guys from Lapierre, Maxxis etc. I guess some of the guys who didn’t want to go to the World Cup in Canada. There were 170 of us on the start line. Wow, for an MTB race… and that’s just in my category. Seeing as the race was part of a series, I had to start way back on the start line as it was my first race. It was one big loop, and get this, it was such a hard race, that it took us almost 3.5 hours to do the 45km loop!!! Anyway, I surprised myself and managed to finish 12th. I was very happy with myself. Maybe I should put the result down to my careful choice of equipment. I got my bike loaded with all the aerodynamic advantages I could… I used spinergy wheels.. etc… OK fine, so I went down to the basement before the race and pulled up my dusty MTB, it just so happened to have those wheels on it… great, they are heavy and it was a very VERY hilly course. Duh!
Maybe I’ll start MTB racing again….
My thoughts go out to Jeremiah who flatted while in 4th place at the Canada World Cup on Sunday…. That’s gotta suck!!! I’m gonna be looking out for the big man himself at the next round this coming weekend… lets all hope he has a flawless ride and pulls of the result he deserves! He’s obviously in good shape, so… Go JB.
If JB stopped fucking around on his MTB though, I bet he could save himself some serious electricity bills with the watts that bastard puts out! Hook his turbo-trainer up to a capacitor… use his wheel as a fan to cool the house down… ecologically sound Bishop housing.
Have I been drinking?
So I was up at 4am to get to the race over in the middle of noplace in the Seveen something region of France. It was a big race (I found out once I got there)… I was just going to ride around with my buddy Alphonce. So, there were some good guys there, guys from Lapierre, Maxxis etc. I guess some of the guys who didn’t want to go to the World Cup in Canada. There were 170 of us on the start line. Wow, for an MTB race… and that’s just in my category. Seeing as the race was part of a series, I had to start way back on the start line as it was my first race. It was one big loop, and get this, it was such a hard race, that it took us almost 3.5 hours to do the 45km loop!!! Anyway, I surprised myself and managed to finish 12th. I was very happy with myself. Maybe I should put the result down to my careful choice of equipment. I got my bike loaded with all the aerodynamic advantages I could… I used spinergy wheels.. etc… OK fine, so I went down to the basement before the race and pulled up my dusty MTB, it just so happened to have those wheels on it… great, they are heavy and it was a very VERY hilly course. Duh!
Maybe I’ll start MTB racing again….
My thoughts go out to Jeremiah who flatted while in 4th place at the Canada World Cup on Sunday…. That’s gotta suck!!! I’m gonna be looking out for the big man himself at the next round this coming weekend… lets all hope he has a flawless ride and pulls of the result he deserves! He’s obviously in good shape, so… Go JB.
If JB stopped fucking around on his MTB though, I bet he could save himself some serious electricity bills with the watts that bastard puts out! Hook his turbo-trainer up to a capacitor… use his wheel as a fan to cool the house down… ecologically sound Bishop housing.
Have I been drinking?
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Summer Plans
So… I’m trying to figure out my summer. Right now it looks like I’ll be working following the Tour in July, then coming back home and doing the Ronde du Gard Elite stage race here in France in August. It’s a 5 day event… but it’s a French style stage race… none of your crits or circuit race bullshit! J It’s 5 days of 130kms per day… in a hilly area of France… and in bloody HOT weather… OUCH.
Then it looks like I will be going to the US where I will do the Virginia State Time Trial Championships as well as the MABRA Time Trial Championships. This will be interesting as my thing is more short Time Trials. These are both 40k TTs. Although our road races are longer here, our TTs are shorter, so it’ll be interesting to see how I do. It looks like I will only arrive in the US 2 days before the TTs (they are back to back Sat, Sun) so the jetlag will no doubt have an effect. Then it looks like there is a small chance that I might do the Green Mountain Stage Race in Vermont, and then the Univest Grand Prix, a UCI event in Pennsylvania.
Of course the main reason for my going back to the US is for Tim’s wedding.. yep.. that’s right.. the “drunk” is getting married… “who’da thunk it.” J
So.. that’s the plan for now… of course I’ll probably change my plans a hundred times between now and August, but that’s normal… some things never change.
Then it looks like I will be going to the US where I will do the Virginia State Time Trial Championships as well as the MABRA Time Trial Championships. This will be interesting as my thing is more short Time Trials. These are both 40k TTs. Although our road races are longer here, our TTs are shorter, so it’ll be interesting to see how I do. It looks like I will only arrive in the US 2 days before the TTs (they are back to back Sat, Sun) so the jetlag will no doubt have an effect. Then it looks like there is a small chance that I might do the Green Mountain Stage Race in Vermont, and then the Univest Grand Prix, a UCI event in Pennsylvania.
Of course the main reason for my going back to the US is for Tim’s wedding.. yep.. that’s right.. the “drunk” is getting married… “who’da thunk it.” J
So.. that’s the plan for now… of course I’ll probably change my plans a hundred times between now and August, but that’s normal… some things never change.
July
I will be away again in July, working for Bikestyletours.com during the Tour de France. I have to get myself and my bike up to Paris for the 8th. I’m looking forwards to riding around and sharing this great riding country with the people on the bikestyletours.com trips. It should be a great TDF… I can’t wait!
Grounded
My thoughts go out to Greg who’s lying at home with a dislocated arm that he sustained upon his return from Airbus training a few weeks ago. Poor Greg is going to be housebound during the Tour de France… I’m sure we all feel really bad for the poor guy. We’ll be thinking of you there Greg, sitting in front of OLN, watching the Tour with a big old Belgian Beer in your one good hand. Maybe we should all come round in case you need to change the volume on the TV and your hand is already filled with a beer bottle.
Sadly Greg is unable to ride his beautiful carbon Lemond bike however… It’s Ok Greg.. I’ll put in the miles for you. :-) (well.. actually I think John Parks is putting in the miles for all of us!)
Sadly Greg is unable to ride his beautiful carbon Lemond bike however… It’s Ok Greg.. I’ll put in the miles for you. :-) (well.. actually I think John Parks is putting in the miles for all of us!)
The last couple days
Well here we are again.. it’s summer! The weather is blisteringly hot… the roads are melting and my bike tires are dragging tar back into the house after every ride. I’m getting through litres and liters of water a day, and the sunscreen has become as vital as the air we breath.
I thought that once I had finished with school, I would have a lot more time to catch up with this sort of stuff.. but that hasn’t been the case.
Yesterday I went out on an MTB ride in the morning (I’m racing the MTB Midi Libre this weekend) and I discovered a stunning view. After riding through a bunch of fields, I found myself on the edge of a cliff, overlooking the Tarn, with a view that covered everything from Albi to Gaillac. In the distance I could see the heat hazed Mazamet Black mountains. I couldn’t see the Pyrenees though, it was too hot.
So after my MTB ride, I came home and had lunch on the balcony. Even though I sat in the shade (of course) it was a sweat fest of a lunch. Then I relaxed a little bit with a coffee to digest, before heading out for a 50k ride on my time trial bike in the afternoon. I chose a hilly loop as I wanted to really get a feel for the TT bike on hills (it sucks). So I headed out in possibly the hottest weather we’ve had yet, with only one water bottle. I did the hilly ride in 1h30, but when I got home I actually got a little scared. I was in a bit of a state. My body wasn’t reacting too well to the effort and fatigue from the ride in such heat… I think I pushed a bit too hard considering I was already tired and obviously dehydrated… still.. it was fun and a cool ride. So to cool off, I went over to hang out in a friend’s swimming pool in the evening.
After a stifling night, I woke up this morning feeling crappy. I’ve consumed VAST quantities of fluids since yesterday evening. It’s stupid hot again, and I’m about to head out for a ride. I was planning on doing my very hilly 100k loop, but seeing as there are no places to stop and get water on that loop, I’m going to do a different one.
I thought that once I had finished with school, I would have a lot more time to catch up with this sort of stuff.. but that hasn’t been the case.
Yesterday I went out on an MTB ride in the morning (I’m racing the MTB Midi Libre this weekend) and I discovered a stunning view. After riding through a bunch of fields, I found myself on the edge of a cliff, overlooking the Tarn, with a view that covered everything from Albi to Gaillac. In the distance I could see the heat hazed Mazamet Black mountains. I couldn’t see the Pyrenees though, it was too hot.
So after my MTB ride, I came home and had lunch on the balcony. Even though I sat in the shade (of course) it was a sweat fest of a lunch. Then I relaxed a little bit with a coffee to digest, before heading out for a 50k ride on my time trial bike in the afternoon. I chose a hilly loop as I wanted to really get a feel for the TT bike on hills (it sucks). So I headed out in possibly the hottest weather we’ve had yet, with only one water bottle. I did the hilly ride in 1h30, but when I got home I actually got a little scared. I was in a bit of a state. My body wasn’t reacting too well to the effort and fatigue from the ride in such heat… I think I pushed a bit too hard considering I was already tired and obviously dehydrated… still.. it was fun and a cool ride. So to cool off, I went over to hang out in a friend’s swimming pool in the evening.
After a stifling night, I woke up this morning feeling crappy. I’ve consumed VAST quantities of fluids since yesterday evening. It’s stupid hot again, and I’m about to head out for a ride. I was planning on doing my very hilly 100k loop, but seeing as there are no places to stop and get water on that loop, I’m going to do a different one.
Sunday, June 19, 2005
Dead Tired. Need rest.
Well here we go again. The seriously hot weather is back. I love it.. it’s so hot you can’t do anything.
After 2 straight weeks of intervals, TT intervals, uphill sprint intervals and motorpacing, I rode Plateau de Beille and col du Chioula with my buddy Alphonce on Friday. I was so so tired. The intervals really took their toll. I was totally totally dead Friday evening. Yesterday I did 2 hours easy, and now today I’m heading down to the mountains again to watch the Route du Sud (where TIAA-Creff are racing) but mainly to ride the Col du Portillon with Stephane. Depending on how he feels, we might do it twice, and we might add the col de Peyresourde. After that I think will force myself to take 2 much needed and deserved recovery days.
Next week I plan on going down to Limoux for a couple days, and hanging out with James Hewitt, a British cyclist racing for the Bouygues Telecom development team Castelsarasin. We’ll hang out, drink coffee, and ride a little… but we’ll mainly do some relaxing and “battery recharging”.
So until next time.. A bientot.
After 2 straight weeks of intervals, TT intervals, uphill sprint intervals and motorpacing, I rode Plateau de Beille and col du Chioula with my buddy Alphonce on Friday. I was so so tired. The intervals really took their toll. I was totally totally dead Friday evening. Yesterday I did 2 hours easy, and now today I’m heading down to the mountains again to watch the Route du Sud (where TIAA-Creff are racing) but mainly to ride the Col du Portillon with Stephane. Depending on how he feels, we might do it twice, and we might add the col de Peyresourde. After that I think will force myself to take 2 much needed and deserved recovery days.
Next week I plan on going down to Limoux for a couple days, and hanging out with James Hewitt, a British cyclist racing for the Bouygues Telecom development team Castelsarasin. We’ll hang out, drink coffee, and ride a little… but we’ll mainly do some relaxing and “battery recharging”.
So until next time.. A bientot.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
still alive?
woahoooo.. it's about time I updated this thing!!!
I've busy as a .... erm.. well.. I've been busy! University, training, racing... drinking coffee... you know how it is!
Rick MArtinez emerged the other day... so it was good to hear from him...
Ok, I'll try and keep this thing unpdated a little more...
Later y'all
Grim Seen
I've busy as a .... erm.. well.. I've been busy! University, training, racing... drinking coffee... you know how it is!
Rick MArtinez emerged the other day... so it was good to hear from him...
Ok, I'll try and keep this thing unpdated a little more...
Later y'all
Grim Seen
Saturday, April 09, 2005
Return to the USA countdown.
Only a few day before I jump onto a plan with my beloved bike to leave some quality Michelin rubber on the roads of Virginia. The weather here has turned a bit crap, and it is chilly and wet again. It’s OK though, I’ve been getting in some big rides, so I was planning on a slightly easier week anyway. I’ll also be doing the Carlo Dolan Crit on the 17th in the US. I’m looking forward to getting into the US peleton again. I hate Crits, but it’ll be good for me. It will be interesting to see how I feel, racing just 2 days after getting off the plane.
Sunday I am doing a 140k race down in the foothills of the Pyrenees. I was looking forward to this, but they are calling for snow and rain. I need to race, and I really want to race. I also really want to get in a couple of longish races, but I don’t want to crash and risk messing up my trip. If anything goes wrong, I’ll only have 3 days to recover. So my plan is to sit in and get some miles, I’ll pull out after 100k if it is too hairy… ie: if I see 4 or 5 crashes by the 100k point, I’ll get in the car. (I say that now, but I’m when it comes down to it, I’ll really think “Oh good, I’m staying in, 5 crashes means less people…”)
Stay Tuned.
Sunday I am doing a 140k race down in the foothills of the Pyrenees. I was looking forward to this, but they are calling for snow and rain. I need to race, and I really want to race. I also really want to get in a couple of longish races, but I don’t want to crash and risk messing up my trip. If anything goes wrong, I’ll only have 3 days to recover. So my plan is to sit in and get some miles, I’ll pull out after 100k if it is too hairy… ie: if I see 4 or 5 crashes by the 100k point, I’ll get in the car. (I say that now, but I’m when it comes down to it, I’ll really think “Oh good, I’m staying in, 5 crashes means less people…”)
Stay Tuned.
Friday, April 08, 2005
Tour of Shenandoah:
I’m coming over to the US to do the Tour of Shenandoah with the Trek VW team. I’m really looking forward to the race. Usually this would be my kind of race, long point-to-point mountain stages. If only it were later in the year, and I could have spend some serious time in the Pyrenees riding my favorite climbs. Sadly that’s not the case… so I’m a little unsure about my fitness.
I’m really excited about the race. This is going to be one of the first times we have a clear leader, and everyone will have a clear job to do. This is more the kind of racing I like and look for. I don’t like racing for myself, that’s not how I think. I hope I’ll be strong enough to put my climbing experience to good use.
Thanks to Jeremiah Bishop for spending a LOT of time putting this composite team together and taking care of so many things.
I’m really excited about the race. This is going to be one of the first times we have a clear leader, and everyone will have a clear job to do. This is more the kind of racing I like and look for. I don’t like racing for myself, that’s not how I think. I hope I’ll be strong enough to put my climbing experience to good use.
Thanks to Jeremiah Bishop for spending a LOT of time putting this composite team together and taking care of so many things.
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Scott Gibbons:
Scott Gibbons has come and left. We had a great time riding and racing. We did a TimeTrial and a stage race. Scotts first few day here saw us ride in the rain and SNOW… only to get suntans a few days later. We did some great rides, Scott managed to crash every day he was here… well… almost… Scott saved it every time, but it was close. I don’t think a day went by without Scott either running into my rear wheel or going off the road into the ditch. See what happens when you mess around Scott.
The racing was good. We got to stand next to each other on the podium of the TT we did. Good start to the season for both of us. In the Stage race we did, we finished pretty much next to each other, and had fun doing Borat impressions. Pour French guys didn’t know what was going on. Scott has returned to the US and has been racing well. This is the second time he’s been over to race here in France, and he says racing here has taught him to be far more aggressive in the races back home, and see racing in a totally different light. Go for it Scott… attack! It’s better than sitting in the main field and finishing in anonymity.
Hope you can come back over here soon Scott!
The racing was good. We got to stand next to each other on the podium of the TT we did. Good start to the season for both of us. In the Stage race we did, we finished pretty much next to each other, and had fun doing Borat impressions. Pour French guys didn’t know what was going on. Scott has returned to the US and has been racing well. This is the second time he’s been over to race here in France, and he says racing here has taught him to be far more aggressive in the races back home, and see racing in a totally different light. Go for it Scott… attack! It’s better than sitting in the main field and finishing in anonymity.
Hope you can come back over here soon Scott!
Monday, March 14, 2005
1st 1st in 2005
Scott Gibbons and I went out to Carcassonne to do a Time trial, that was part of a team style duathlon sort of event.
The cold weather has started to move out now and today was a warm and sunny one.
The course was really hilly, with lots of STEEP climbs and lots of courners. It was very hard to ride the course on a Time Trial bike.
We ended the event by standing on the podium. Scott was 2nd, and I was 1st. It couldn’t have been a better finish with both of us so close to each other.
The event was a reassuring test for next week stage race (also very very hilly).
After the race we headed in to the old city of Carcassonne for some tourist activities. That means some visiting, photo taking, but mainly coffee drinking in the cafes.
The cold weather has started to move out now and today was a warm and sunny one.
The course was really hilly, with lots of STEEP climbs and lots of courners. It was very hard to ride the course on a Time Trial bike.
We ended the event by standing on the podium. Scott was 2nd, and I was 1st. It couldn’t have been a better finish with both of us so close to each other.
The event was a reassuring test for next week stage race (also very very hilly).
After the race we headed in to the old city of Carcassonne for some tourist activities. That means some visiting, photo taking, but mainly coffee drinking in the cafes.
Sunday, March 06, 2005
Stuck in Airport.
Scott Gibbons finally got here today, after spending something like a 12 hour delay sitting in Amsterdam airport stuck by the snow.
It was a total nightmare trip for Scott.
To make things worse, his bike was even more delayed, and didn’t get here until a few days later.
It was a total nightmare trip for Scott.
To make things worse, his bike was even more delayed, and didn’t get here until a few days later.
Stuck in Airport.
Scott Gibbons finally got here today, after spending something like a 12 hour delay sitting in Amsterdam airport stuck by the snow.
It was a total nightmare trip for Scott.
To make things worse, his bike was even more delayed, and didn’t get here until a few days later.
It was a total nightmare trip for Scott.
To make things worse, his bike was even more delayed, and didn’t get here until a few days later.
Sunday, January 16, 2005
Running away from a fake winter.
Well, winter plods on. Although I’m not sure you can really call it winter. We’ve had over a week’s worth of really nice weather. All the windows in the house are open, and it is so warm that I was even able to take a shower with the bathroom window open.
Sadly, I haven’t been able to make this most of the weather. I’ve been sick. I felt better for a couple of days mid week, but have now come down with something different. Add that to the fact that this is exam time… and the result is that my bikes are starting to gather dust.
I went on for a a few rides last week. I tried to ride alone as I really wasn’t feeling good and wanted to be able to come home if I felt bad. I was then talked into running a 10km race last Sunday. There were 240 people on the start line… it was hard and fast. The winter is ranked 5th in the world… or in France… I don’t remember, they’re runners, if there aren’t any wheels involved, it means little to me.
The big road races start soon, about a week after my last exam, so I’ll really out of shape and hating every minute of the race… I can’t wait. :-)
Well… I’d better go and stick my nose in some books, while the sun shines on others out hitting the blacktop.
Sadly, I haven’t been able to make this most of the weather. I’ve been sick. I felt better for a couple of days mid week, but have now come down with something different. Add that to the fact that this is exam time… and the result is that my bikes are starting to gather dust.
I went on for a a few rides last week. I tried to ride alone as I really wasn’t feeling good and wanted to be able to come home if I felt bad. I was then talked into running a 10km race last Sunday. There were 240 people on the start line… it was hard and fast. The winter is ranked 5th in the world… or in France… I don’t remember, they’re runners, if there aren’t any wheels involved, it means little to me.
The big road races start soon, about a week after my last exam, so I’ll really out of shape and hating every minute of the race… I can’t wait. :-)
Well… I’d better go and stick my nose in some books, while the sun shines on others out hitting the blacktop.
Friday, January 07, 2005
Better late than never
Wooow.. how long has it been???
Sorry folks. I’ve been away in the UK for x-mas… and I’ve been sick for a little while.
I’ve also got a load of work that I’m getting behind on… so… I know… I really need to keep this thing up to date.
Sorry.
More soon
All the best to all of you.
Happy New Year.
Sorry folks. I’ve been away in the UK for x-mas… and I’ve been sick for a little while.
I’ve also got a load of work that I’m getting behind on… so… I know… I really need to keep this thing up to date.
Sorry.
More soon
All the best to all of you.
Happy New Year.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
