La Vuelta de Bisbee Stage 3

Today was the final day here in Bisbee, and I have to say that the place has grown on me some, but what do I know, all I've done since I've been here is race, eat, and sleep.

Todays stage was a long one. 90 miles and close to 7,000 feet of climbing, most of it in the final 30 miles. A group of ten guys got up the road in the first 15 miles and everyone just let them go since it was so early. However, coming into the final 30 miles they had 4 minutes up on us at the base of the climb. The field was shattered as soon as the steeper climbing began. I sat in with the front chase group of about 15 guys and stayed there until the final pitch in the last 3 miles when I was out of the saddle and my chain slipped slamming my knee into the stem, no bueno. I sat up and just cruised it to the finish. Got a few cuts on my knee and its already a little tender, but I am sure it will be fine by Wednesday when the Gila starts.

Over all here I just got my stage racing fitness back and still was able to get a good stage finish the first day and finish in the top thrid of the feild overall. Its a good start to my stage racing season.

Sleeping in in the morning then driving to Silver City, NM and getting some recovery.

La Vuelta de Bisbee Stage 1 & 2

Well today didn't go as well as yesterday did.

This morning was a 80mile RR. It started out great but after about half a hour the wind kicked up to 30mph with gusts in the 50's, not fun. The pack decided to gutter it and gaps began to open and the feild got shattered as everyone did about 3hrs of TT tempo. The stage was mostly flat and all of the above didn't suite me very well. I finished mid pack and lost some time.

This afternoon was another TT. It was about 8 miles out and back, again in the wind, but now it was cold and raining as well. I wasn't feeling that great after this morning but finished about top quater of the feild and got some time back.

Tomorrow is a long climbing race, so a lot of time can be gotten back if things go right and I can recover enough tonight.

It is kind of hard to guage your effort and conserve some with another longer and harder stage race just days away.

La Vuelta de Bisbee Prologue

14th of 95. Thats where I sit after the Prologue.

I really thought that I had it after crossing the line, since I knew that Zajicek got first last year with the same time I got this year, but I guess this year it wasn't fast enough. I am still sitting good, and a long day tomorrow you never know what can happen.

More Bisbee (pics update)

Today it all starts. In the next 10 days there will be:

5 Road Races
3 Time Trials
1 Criterium
2 Stage Races

It all starts here in Bisbee.

On the way here yesterday from Tucson we passed through Tombstone. This town would be dead if it wasn't a national landmark, cause there is not much going on there.

Bisbee from the balcony of my room. This is the tourist part of the town, the actual town is a few miles down the road, and once again, not much alive around here, just the tourist services.

Mi Casa til Monday when we head to Silver City, NM for Gila.

More of the Casa

Now its just the waiting game again til things get crazy. My start time for the Prologue isn't until later tonight so check back later for that update.

Bisbee, AZ

Another long travel day in the bag.

I started today out at 4am in Superior, CO, flew from DIA, layover in Phoenix, landed in Tucson, and drove to Bisbee, AZ (AZ and Mexico border) by noon. Unpacked the bikes and rode around for a while, did the grocery shopping, and now finally hijacking enough of an internet signal to post an update.

Tomorrow is the Prologue, but my start time isn't until 6:36:30 pm, and its only a 2.8 mile uphill TT, so a lot of waiting for a short amount of racing.

Got some pics but can't upload them with this low of a signal. I'm sure I can find time tomorrow to hit up the coffee shop and use their internet to do a better job of updating.

Not Much

I've gotta get better at updates.

Not much as happened this last week, probably why I haven't updated. It rained, no I take that back, it poured...........still not right, there was a monsoon here yesterday and I had to sit on the trainer yet again. Today its better so I will head out for just a recovery ride and then finish packing up the bikes for my early, early departure in the morning to AZ.

So the next two week look like this: La Vuelta de Bisbee in Bisbee, AZ then Tour of the Gila in Silver City, NM. Two long hard stage races, now that's what I've been waiting for.

New Stuff

Don't you just love it when you get new stuff. I got the new Shimano heat formed shoes yesterday. It was pretty awesome, they bake the shoe, you put it on, put your foot in a bag, suck all the air out with an industrial strength vacuum, and once the shoe cools you take your foot out and the shoe is fitted perfectly.

To accompany the new shoes there are also the new Dura Ace pedals with new wider platform.Now the only problem is doing the finite adjustments to the cleat to get that sweet spot back. I think I am getting closer, but it should still take a few weeks of tinkering to find that spot.

Not much happening this weekend except for a TT tomorrow then hanging out with some old college friends in town from TX. Mostly its still rest time getting ready for Bisbee and Gila.

Catch Up

My bad, sorry about the lack of updates.

Well we were supposed to get up to a foot of snow last Friday, which would have canceled Boulder Roubaix again. So I woke up Fri, went to the blinds and threw them open......to find sunshine and a little bird singing while bouncing around on the bare green grass. Damn.

I love turning on the news and the morning and listening to the meteorologists say "well thats the thing about the weather, you just never know whats going to happen" thats the quote of the century. Then what the hell are people paying you for. I guess thats why, if you've noticed, a meteorologist mostly reports what is presently happening and what has happened, rather than forecasting as much anymore.

So I raced Boulder-Roubaix, ouch. 80 miles of racing with 50 of them over potholed, rough, loose dirt. I would say about 70 Pro1/2's started, and with the egos of this group, when the tough gets going over half the field "pulls the plug" and DNF. I finished, barely after tagging some potholes and hearing what sounds like a cracking carbon bike.

Sunday was another RR down in the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Security just isn't what it used to be. We pull up to the guard shack and just get waved on through, wow that really keeps the bad guys thinking twice before trying to get in. The course was part of the old 1987 World Championship course. Same thing happened, started with around 70, finished with less than half of that. Not too many people there pulled a double weekend, especially with Boulder Roubaix. Carter won in Carter fashion, I was somewhere in the back mess that resulted in his winning attack.

Last week/weekend was the end of a long hard intensity week, so thank god this week is a recovery week. You know you need it when you get a good nights sleep but you have the heavy eye lids all day and just want to sleep just a little more.

Poor Bunnies

This is our little pet that hangs around the apartment, I bet he isn't going to be too happy with the weather coming the next few days...............oh yeah, 8 more inches of snow on its way.In contrast to the cold, the other day was warm enough to completely melt our little chocolate Easter Bunnies that got left in the car for the day.

His brother made it out a little better, but the shock on his face says it all.

HaHA

I just noticed something. Scroll down a little and look at the pic of Lex on her back in the snow. Then scroll down to the next pic after her ......... striking similarities.

Effects of Cross Training

Don't you just hate it when you haven't done something (ie ski) for over a year and you go do it again and your legs feel wrecked for the next few days. Thankfully yesterday was Easter and the weather was still bad so I could just get away with eating a big Easter dinner and spinning easy on the trainer. Today was an easy spin outside cause its Colorado so that meant that it was snowing and 30 yesterday but today it was sunny, clear and 65.

Here is a pic from yesterday of Lexie's blind cat that loves to get attention and crawl all over you.

Ski Day

For those of you who read cyclingnews.com you already know that the Colorado "Epic" Classic Boulder Roubaix was postponed until next weekend due to weather. So instead of giving into it again and riding outside, we decided to go skiing instead up at Loveland. It took a while, a long while actually since the roads weren't all that great, but we made it.

We skiied. Oh, sorry..........I skied, Lexie snowboarded.

Whats better after lunch than a nice nap.

After a nice nap, we got a few more runs in and decided to pack it up and head home where work was waiting. I had to take the bike apart and clean it after my bad choice of ride yesterday then get on the trainer for a while.

Tomorrow...................Easter, Happy Easter!!!

Catch Up From This Week

This last week has flown by. Most days were spent doing 3 -4 hr rides with high intensity. The afternoons have been spent running errands and getting things caught up.

Lexie's niece and nephew have been in town and yesterday we went to the wildlife sanctuary out by Ft. Lupton. They have over 150 wild cats that have been saved from private owners and old retired cats from the movie business. It looks like a tough life, we were just in time for the 4 o'clock sun bathing.

A new day today brought could wet conditions back, and I wasn't going to give into it anymore, although I should have. I headed out for my ride and made it about an hour and had to call it quits for the day. My thermo jacket and every piece of clothing exposed to the elements became rigid from the misty wetness that froze on me. My bike didn't fair too well either.
Boulder Roubaix race is tomorrow but seeing that the weather is going to get worse, I am going to take the day off tomorrow and possibly get a day of skiing in before the resorts close this Sunday for the season.

Koppenberg

Yesterday was the famous Koppenberg Circuit Race. Why is it so famous, well its a 50 mile, 2 1/2 hr race that has the top pros in the nation completely thrashed afterwards. It is a 5.5 mile course with 8 laps. Each lap comprised of half dirt roads that twist, turn and are my no means smooth. Oh, I almost forgot the most important part, the 17% grade dirt climb, yeah, thats the kicker.

The race wasn't going very well for me, it was making me work more than I should have. People were sliding out on corners, opening gaps. People taking the climb supper slow, opening gaps. I seemed to always be behind these people, so time and time again I closed the gaps but when the final lap came down I had nothing left. We started with 60 + guys in the feild and I was around 10th. Not bad, my form is still on its way up, hopefully it should be here in full force in May when I am on the road at the big NRCs.

Not much else going on here. Lexie's niece and nephew are in town for spring break from PA, so we are heading to the rec center this afternoon to do a little swimming and rock climbing.

Pics to come of the Kopp race.