Gage's 1st Christmas

My nephew Gage enjoying his first Christmas. He is almost 3 months old now. Unfortuantely I haven't seen him since he was born. Hopefully the weather around here will clear up and I will be able to get home soon.

Christmas in Vail

I would have to say that if I was stranded anywhere for Christmas, Vail isn't too bad. We headed up last Saturday and started our trip at Beaver Creek. I didn't ski here all last year, so it was nice to get back. Snow and weather conditions were good. Had a good lunch at Red Tail Camp, and then headed to the Vail Cascade Resort & Spa.

The Cascade was very nice, and moderatly priced considering it was a holiday weekend. That night we drove to Edwards to eat at Sato Sushi. I know what your thinking (Sushi in the mountains?). Trust me this place is really good, they get fresh fish in daily from the vail/eagle airport and it is more of a locals place, so the atmosphere is laid back.

The next morning I woke up to falling snow. Ty and I caught 1st chair on the Vail Cascade lift and our day began. On the front side they had about 2 inches of fresh when we started. We instantly started making our way to the back bowls, were the snow got progressively deeper. Game Creek bowl to Sun Down Bowl to Blue Sky Basin. We were the first ones to catch 4 differnt lift that day. We laid fresh track for over an hour before we saw someone. By the time we got to Blue Sky the snow was 8 inches deep and it kept snowing all day. We had some epic runs down resolution. After lunch we hit China bowl and then made 3 runs down Red Square in the Siberia Bowl before ski patrol closed it for avy control. Overall one of the top 5 days I have had skiing. It snowed the whole day so the track kept filling in as fast as you could ski them. There were times the powder was almost up to my knees in spots.

That night we took a sleigh ride and had dinner at the Vail Golf Club. I had a good time but it was overpriced and not what was described when we made the reservation. I would not recommend going here.

The next day we got up and skied Vail again, but my legs were shot from the day before, so we stuck to the groomers with girls and pulled the plug early to catch lunch at the Red Lion I recommend the Nachoes and Burgers. After lunch it was back to Denver for a night of laying on the couch.

Denver Blizzard

The blizzard that hit Denver last week, dropped about 2 feet of snow in 24 hours and therefore cancelled our Christmas plans. We had planned to make it home to Illinois to spend time with friends and family, but instead made the best of the situation and went to Vail for the weekend. We weren't alone, as Ty & Jen couldn't get back to North Carolina either.

Midyear

Just got back from my annual pharmacy conference, not much to talk about there. Did have a good time driving down Pacific Coast Highway from Newport Beach to San Diego. Had a good lunch at 3 thirty 3 in Newport, saw lots of fancy cars and real life Barbies. Also had a great dinner at 21 Oceanfront . Ate at The White House, but thought it was a bit overrated. If you are every in the area and looking for a good time try the Rockin Taco . We went there 3 differnent nights for drinks and had a great time. I did however catch the flu from someone on the flight back wednesday, so I'm laying low trying to recover.

20 Questions

Click here to see what I had to say regarding the 20 questions my friend DB asked me.

Linkage

I've added state racing links, so that it is easier to search for certain races if you plan to travel. Feel free to send me more that I've missed.

Thanksgiving

Had a nice Thanksgiving with Ty, Jen, Joel, and Anna. The wine was probably my favorite part. We then heading to Brenckenridge for a couple of days. Had a few Vanilla Porters at the Breckenridge Brewery, then ran into Chris Nunez at the Blue River Bistro. If you watch Miami Ink on TLC you might recognize him. The skiing wasn't much to talk about, except for Ty throwing an unexpected heli and landing it. I guess, I'll have to give it a try next time.

Made the Jump

I joined the Vitamin Cottage 3s team this week. I got in a couple of good rides with team, and I'm super pumped about the upcoming season. We should have a strong team. It was a great opportunity to jump to a team that was dedicated to racing, and to train with a group of guys who take cycling as serious as I do. Several of the guys have the same goal as I do, to cat up, so it should be a fun season. 5 months to the first road race.

U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross

High jacked this picture off Jared Roy's blog. Check it out for some good pics and video.

I think the pic says it all.

Had a great weekend working the pit for Taylor during the 2 USGP races this weekend. Taylor had a great ride saturday and even better one sunday. He finished 26th saturday and 18th on sunday. Considering the field, it was a awesome result. It has got to be fun beating guys that get paid to race for a living. A few thoughts:

1. Ryan Trebon is a freak, kid is crazy fast. In my opinion, he would have won going away on sunday as well, if not for the 4 bike changes.

2. Boulder Cup course was awesome to watch, best race atmosphere I've ever seen. The hill run-ups were sick.

3. If you don't get called up, or have a starting number in the top 30 you are already out of the race.

Sat. Race Report
Sun. Race Report

Sat. Results
Sun. Results
After watching the races, I almost want to race cross myself.

The Nut Cup

I had a great time playing golf in Pinehurst. I went with my father-in-law and met up with 10 other guys for a weekend of fun. We were invited by my wife's cousin, Michael Landsberg to play in his private 72 hole tournament named the "Nut Cup". I know what you thinking, but it is actually in reference to Michael's life threatning allergy to nuts. After I finally got my clubs and clothes (American Airlines lost my luggage for 24 hours) I was finally able to relax. We played all weekend at Forrest Creek Country Club where Michael is a member. It has been voted top 50 private courses in the USA. I played 27 holes Thursday, 18 Friday, 36 Saturday, and 9 on Sunday. Needless to say I was a litte worn out when I got back to Denver late Sunday night, but can't wait to try to claim the 07 Nut Cup.

Sunday Cross

Sunday I went out to the Boulder CX#2 to help my buddy Taylor who was racing the Men's Open division. After a ride around the old Morgul-Bismark loop for myself I headed back to the race. Changed a flat for him before the race, and got his wheels in the pit just as they took off. Taylor got a crappy starting position which left him about 30th/50 riders coming up the first climb. 3 laps later his was sitting 7 and looking good. I was also feeding him. Let me say that when he wants water he means water, not some type of electrolyte mix. Needless to say I found some water within about 5 minutes to accomodate the request, and drank the mix myself. For most of the race Taylor was working with a TIAA-Cref rider, but that guy eventually blew with about 5 to go. Taylor ended up closing the gap to 5th place, and made a move on the next to last lap to solidify 5th place. Before the race, I thought top 10 would be a great result considering the field, so we were both pumped about 5th. Super strong ride, considering his shitty starting position. If he was on the front row he might have had a shot at the podium. It was good motivation for him and me, as I'll be pitting for him when the US Grand Prix comes to Boulder Nov. 4th & 5th. The results are here, and he even got his name and result in VeloNews. While that may not seem big to you, I think it's the Cat's Meow.

Gage Carter Dugan

I am the pround uncle of this little guy. Gordon and Gage after his arrival

What to do now?

After Salida, I got my upgrade to Cat 3 and had planned on racing the Fed Center but, bad weather, vaction with little training, and a bunch of canceled races lead me to end my season early. Overall I had a great season. I reached and surpassed every cycling goal I had set at the end of the season. Now it is time for some golf, and easy rides.

Salida Omnium

TT - I sandbagged the TT to save my energy for the road race, since my best finish in a TT this year was 20th. This turned out to be a big mistake as only 38 guys registered. I cruised in at 36th place, while Andrei took 11th and Ty 16th. If I had tried, I think I could have broke the top 10 considering the field.

RR - Disaster - I was feeling great, got to the park early had some time to shoot the shit with a few of my buddies and then got ready to roll. Just as we are getting ready to rollout. My back wheel goes flat (WTF). This was the first time I hadn't brought a extra wheel, so I felt guilty asking for a change that wasn't mine, before the race even started. So I hurried back to the hotel, changed wheels and the then did a TT effort to catch the pack before the neutral rollout ended. I ended up being about 1 min off before they hit the first climb. I started picking guys off, but realized I wasn't catching the front group, and I wasn't racing for 20th so I bagged it, hoping to be super fresh for the crit on Sunday. At this point I was pretty bummed how my weekend had gone.

Crit - Before the race Gregg and I had a chat about going together with about 3 laps to go. Here is his account of the situation. With our plan, I spent the first part of the race hanging in the top 10-15. HART had the #1 rider overall so their team (7 strong) were controlling the pace and chasing down everything trying to keep their boy in the pack. About 20 min in I got off the front with 4 others, but were quickly reeled in by HART who then sat up, bunching the pack again. At this point I was hurting so I drifted back to recover, then with 5 laps to go started working my way back up. No one was wanting to drive the pace because HART was chasing everything down, and they were content to cruise at 17mph. With 2 laps to go, things picked up and we were single file going into the false flat uphill (5 blocks long) when a HART rider pulled through and sat up. No one came around so the front group bunched again. Not wanting to wait for a sprint, and tired of the same shit every lap, I moved up on the outside and attacked about 20 meters out on the first of 2 corners before the finish. I was hurting, but figured so was everyone else. I caught everyone off guard, and they weren't able to react through the corners. When I got through the 2nd corner, I went as hard as I could go for 30 seconds and then looked back to decide whether to sit up or continue. To my surprise I already had 50 meters. Apparently everyone hesitated not wanting to be the one to chase. Having 6 corners in the next .4 mile stretch was a big help. I was able to recover, while maintaining a high speed and the pack couldn't organize a chase. Coming up the false flat for the last time I buried myself, took the last corner a little too fast (back tire skipped twice) and held off a fast chasing duo by about 20 meters for the win. This totally made my weekend. I was more pumped about winning here than Hugo. Still can't believe I was able to hold if solo for a lap in a crit.

Unfortunately, I wasn't any help for BAT, but Andrei
and Ty came through big time and both looked really strong
during the RR.

Where Have I Been?

Good question - I'll try to catch up with a barrage of posts. I have a lot of catching up to do.

Sometimes I Wake-up Grumpy

Sometimes I let her sleep.

Saturday Training Ride

I decided to bag the crit in Ft. Morgan since there are no upgrade points available and instead do a long training ride. The 100+ degree temps forcasted for Denver, saw me Ty, and Taylor leaving my house at 6am (ouch)to try and beat the heat. Taylor was our tour guide today, and from the start was all business. We did 71 miles in 4:04 w/ 4400ft of climbing

Avgs: speed 17.8 mph, hr 147, power 172

Max: speed 53 mph, hr 178, power 1117

total work: 2407 kj

Looking forward to more of the same tommorrow.

Oh Yeah - It sucks when your AC freezes and it is 101 out.

Andy Finch/Sara Kay Memorial Crit

Andrei and I, along with 45 other nut jobs braved the fierce
condtions for 50 minutes of pain on Sunday. (Temp was 59 and poured rain the whole race) I could have used a snorkel the first couple of laps. Felt like someone was holding a water hose in my face. After I settled in, tried my hand at getting off the front with a few other guys. We would get about 5-8 guys off the front but only about half would work or pull through. After my second attempt I went back to the pack and Andrei had a go which helped keep the pace high. I was able to recover during this point and when he was caught I attacked again over the top of
the climb to keep popping guys off. I never made an all out effort
to go solo, just to gap the field with the hope a few guys would
bridge and we could get going. After this attack no one bridged so I
sat up. That left us with 2 laps to go. Starting the last lap over the hill one of the guys I had been in an earlier break with attacked and got a good gap. I waited to see if anyone else was going to go, not wanting to drag the whole group up to his wheel. Finally Greg (Spike Cycling Team) jumped so I worked with him to bridge. The three of us ended up getting caught on the last straightaway, but had done our damage to the field because only 1 guy was able to counter before the last corner and climb. I ended up getting 4th. Greg got me by half a wheel for 3rd. The Winner got off the front after about 2 laps, and soloed home. I never knew he was gone until somebody said something with 3 laps to go, as I spent the first couple laps towards the back. I was really happy with race, being able to get off the front 4 different times and still finish strong on the climb. It was good to see Andrei at the front putting the hurt on as well and finish strong in 18th. We are now tied for 3rd place for the Best Team Competition and only 23 points out of first.

Proctor Cycling Classic

Last weekend I headed back to Illinois to visit my bro and get a race in. I did the Proctor Cycling Classic Road Race which also happened to be the Illinois State Championship. I was excited to race back home, just to see how it compared to Colorado.

picture

The course was challenging with several rolling hills, but a little short for the 4s if you ask me, only 32 miles. My plan was to sit in the first lap then hammer the last 5 miles (several steep climbs) as I thought it would split apart leaving ~15 guys. 32 miles wouldn't be long enough to make endurance a factor or be a advantage for me. Race started off as planned, basically a group ride. No real attacks, and no one driving the pace, big suprise. Waited for the last 3 climbs and I went to the front and picked the pace up. Got a good gap over the first climb and hoped some guys would bridge, instead 1 guy dragged everyone up to me at which time, I gave the flick of the elbow to pull through with no reaction, so I sat up, and so did everyone else. On the next climb did the same thing, got everything strung out, and finally turned around and told the guy to pull through, to which he replied, I can't. So basically they wouldn't let me go, but wouldn't work either. At this point we only had 2 miles left and I couldn't recover in time for the sprint, so came through in 8th place. Team Mack won with XXX taking 2nd or 3rd. Big results for 2 teams that had over 5 guys each who didn't attack, help ride tempo, or do anything proactive. Do I sound a little bitter? I guess they did win, but we should have all just hung out telling stories for an hour, then got on our bikes and sprinted for the town sign. What a waste of a cool course. If I come back next year, I'll definately be bringing some teamates.

Differences between Ill and CO - Colorado is more agressive, faster, and teams play more of a role in the race. Competition is a lot tougher in CO. CO Courses are a lot longer, usually 50-65 miles. ILL climbs are bumps in the road in CO. While 30 guys did finish with the main pack, if this same race had happened in CO the whole race would have stayed together. Field size was only 70 guys.

Similarities - 4s race negatively in both states. Bike handeling skills basically the same.

Dead Dog Classic

2 weekends ago I did the Dead Dog Stage Race. I was really excited and my form seemed to be great as well. So I headed up to Laramie, Wy on Friday and spent most of the night with Jeremy and Andrei trying to get my bike set up. In preparation of the TT on Sunday, I had a full TT cockpit set up on my road bike with cables, shifters and all, so I could get the best result possible. When putting my road handlebars back on I frayed my rear derailer cable hence the 3 hours it took us to get it shifting properly. Anyway I was pretty amped the next morning. We had a good breakfast at the Chuckwagon restaurant. I was so nervous before the race that an older gentlemen sitting behind me in the booth at the restaurant said if I didn't' stop shaking, he was going to spill his coffee and food all over himself. That gave Jeremy and Andrei a good laugh. The first disappointment was that the race course had to be changed do to a forrest fire, so the 7 mile climb was out and the course ended up being flat with 2 large rollers each way. Jeremy and Andrei went immediately to the front and started picking up the pace. This strung out the pack, but none of the other teams were really helping to keep the pace high. I sat in about 20th place. Eventually Jeremy got up with a group of 12 or so guys and Andrei and Matt put the brakes on opening up a nice gap. I then rolled up just to say high and helped block. As soon as I did this, I started getting yelled at to close the gap and stop blocking, boo whooo. Had one rider yell at me with the commment, "oh, they are really going to get away." If he didn't think they were, then why did he come around me and start chasing? This is why racing 4s sucks. Everybody races so negatively. No breaks get established, no one will work, etc. We were just trying to get some action going. Otherwise it is always the same - speed up, brake, speed up, brake, crash, attack through feed zone, brake, crash, field sprint. I personally get tired of this and want to make the race hard, so there isn't 50 guys left at the end. Anyway, Matt, Jeremy, and Andrei all got dropped and I was left alone with 10 miles to go so I had not choice but to sit in. About 3 miles out I was thinking I had good enough legs to win. I positioned myself on the yellow line sheltered from the crosswind. This side had been surging all race when there was an acceleration. I was sitting 3rd wheel behind Brent who got 2nd at Hugo the week before. Usually someone jumps with about 1k to go and things split up allowing you to move around. Not this time everyone held tight until 300m and then a guy on the outside jumped, but the guy in front of Brent never reacted, boxing us in. Never even had space to sprint so ended up 15th. This sat the tone for the rest of the weekend. It was basically going to come down to the TT, because we had 30 guys with the same time. The crit the next morning was uneventful as suspected. All my teamates got dropped again, so I spent a lap hammering the pace to try to drop even more guys so that there weren't as many to contend with at the TT. My legs were cooked after this and could only manage 13th in the sprint. I ended up 20th in the TT, which I was happy with, since it was my best TT placing all year. I ended up 16th on GC because 4 of the guys that beat me in the TT got dropped in the crit, so I guess keeping the pace high helped. Overall a frustrating weekend.

Amazing advances made in eye care: Dr. Taylor

My best friend getting some press.

Eye Care

Arms to the Sky

Saturday was the Hugo Road Race which my team Swift Cycling puts on. The Cat 4s had a 90 rider field limit which filled up by preregistration the week before. There were a total of 579 racers with 512 finishers. I had an awesome 2 weeks of training prior to this race which had me feeling confident and my legs feeling strong. Chaz, Jeremy, and Matt lined up with me for the race. We had to start on the last row, because we were late to the start line due to our volunteer responsibilites. With no warm-up, we headed out and spent the next 18 miles trying to weave our way to the front. I was only able to get up to about 50th before the first turn. After the turn, things strung out a bit and I was able to move up a little further. At this point guys were starting to open gaps from the crosswind and rollers and there was a lot of heavy breathing, so I decided I better move up quick. I saw Matt move into the wind and head for the front, so I jumped on his wheel and we went all the way to the front, then drifted left and slowed down to enjoy the draft. This is where our team finally got back together and hung out until the 2nd turn. After the second turn (now with a left right cross/headwind) the pace picked up a bit as a few riders got off the front through the feed zone. I had drifted back again so Matt pulled Chaz and I back up to the top 10. From here I settled into the pack about 20th, while Matt, Chaz, and Jeremy patrolled the front. Chaz and Jeremy got in some short breaks while Matt blocked. Once Chaz got caught he drifted back and told me to make sure I was in the to 20 going into the last turn as all hell would break loose. Sure enough it did. We now had a cross/tailwind and the pace was crazy 30+ for the last 8 miles. The pack instantly split with me sitting on the back of the main group of 30 riders. Eventually 20 more got back on. Chaz came by and I got on his wheel, then Jeremy came on my right so I jumped on his wheel , and this is where I spent the next 7 miles. Chaz was right next to me giving me the distance as my odometer stopped working and I wasn't familiar with the finish. 5 miles, 4 miles, Move up, 3 miles, etc. With about 2 miles to go the pace picked up again and Jeremy started moving me up. We were sitting about 25th, when he started to hammer and I just sat on his wheel as we kept moving up. We were about 1k out when there was an acceleration on the left and things started to split up. At that point Jeremy went all out to get me to the front, with about 500 meters I yelled for him to move left as he detonated, and I was now sitting 4th. A CPT rider jumped at this point and got a good 15 meter gap so I started to close It but came next to another guy so I sat back down to see if he was going to go or not, because I didn't want him to jump on my wheel. One look at him and I knew he was cooked so I started again. The last guy in front of me saw me coming, but couldn't accelerate, and at that point I knew I was going to win. I came by him and had a couple bike lengths and time to throw my arms up and get my first win. Finishing time of 2:39:36 for 64 miles with and avg speed of just over 24mph if my math is correct. Matt finished 11th, Chaz 16th, and Jeremy 48th. The results moved our team into 3rd place for the Best All Around Team Competition. I can't thank my teammates enough. It was great to finally see all the hard work pay off. I also wanted to thank my coach Mark Legg for helping me get to this point. Next up is the Dead Dog Classic this weekend and the team is now really motivated which is nice. Unfortunately we will only have 4 of us instead of the 7 we were expecting. I'm just excited to finally work together as a team and actually race.

Louisville and City Park

I basically imploded at the Louisville crit. 95+ temp took its toll. I had no problem hanging with pack but got chest pains about 20 minutes in. It felt like my respiratory tract was on fire so I pulled the plug hoping to get some rest for city park. I hate DNFing but thought it would be best. Next day I felt much better at city park. This is a very technical course with several turns and 2 turns and 4 round abouts. I started off well, but on the second lap I was sitting about 25 when two guys in front of my got tangled and almost went down forcing me to slam on the breaks and that was it. The first group of 20 were gone. I then spent the next 10 minutes working with 4 others to get back, but 2 of the guys didn't know how to do a rotating paceline. Pretty frustrating. We then had 4 more join us and I thought we would get back. We got the gap down to 10 seconds, but this GS boulder would pull through and block then you pass him and he would cut you off in the corners. Total tool. The gap got back up to 25 seconds so I had a go solo as the group I was with wasn't going to get back. I got it down to 15 seconds after a lap and half, but wasn't going to be able to catch on without blowing up, so I sat up let the group catch me and sat on the back until last lap. Typical last lap - I was sitting 9th going into the last 2 turn around, watch guy in front of me (gs boulder) touch wheels trying to cut corner (big suprise) and go down, next round about watched another guy go down taking the corner to fast and then another guys just fell over, but I don't know why. I ended up taking the field sprint again for 23rd. Even though the result isn't good, I felt like I was getting my legs back.

Rocky MTN Omnium

My parents came out for this weekend while I was trying to find my legs. It was a little rough considering I had taken off 16 days from being sick and our trip to Italy. I ended up 22nd in 8 mile time trial 1:26 off the winner. I was pretty happy with this considering I didn't have a TT bike or aero bars and it was only my 5th day back on the bike. The Circuit race next day wasn't as fun. It was a 1.2 mile circuit where I ended up 29th after getting dropped on the 1/2 mile (200 ft elevation gain) climb after about 3 laps. I had no legs and the 90+ temp was brutal. The last crit was in downtown Golden and probably the funnest race so far this year. My result again was 29th, but the course was awesome with 8 turns. There was probably about 1000 spectators which was pretty cool. I held on for about half the race then rolled solo for about 5 laps, and then waited for a group of 7 to catch me and basically waited for the field sprint which I took. Overall not bad considering how long I had been off the bike. Wish I could have pulled a better result while my parents were in town.

More Pics

The Past 30

Well it has been awhile since I posted, so I'll try to catch up. 1st Cori and I had a wonderful trip to Italy. No special occasion just a trip we've been wanting to take. Started in Venice and spent 2 days then on to Bologna/Forli. In Forli we caught a stage of the Giro d'Italia. From Bologna we took the train to Florence and spent 3 full days. On the fourth day we rented a car and drove down to Montalcino where Brunello wines are made. We then spent 2 days in Milan before finally coming back. Florence was by far our favorite. The food, wine, gelato and atmosphere were uncomparable. Cori's favorite part was a private cooking class she took in Florence, mine was probably the food and wine in Florence.

Just Got Home

I'll update more in the next coming week. Cori and I just got back from spending 10 days in Italy. Great time, but glad to be back.

Before

After

VO2 Max 2nd Test

I had my 2nd VO2 max test today. Can't say that I was motivated at all, and my legs weren't feeling the freshest either after Deer Trail on Saturday. After a Dexa scan, and getting stuck 5 times (ouch!) to get a line in so they could draw lactate levels I was on my way. Highlights of my results from all Test:

Dropped my body fat percentage 3.3 points since February 21st. Weight dropped from 162 to 156.

Increased My VO2 max from 52.2 to 59.3

Max HR dropped from 186 to 181, which most likely reflects that I wasn't rested enough.

Should have Lactate back in 2 weeks.

Deer Trail Race Report

On Saturday I headed out for the Deer Trail Road Race. My team Swift Cycling promotes this race. Our field was full at 90, with a total of 571 riders registered for all categories. The 8:45 start time was a little rough considering it is an hour drive from Denver. Chaz, Ty, Jeremy, Dave, Andrei, Shuka, Tim, and I made the start for our 61 mile Journey. Just as we rolled out, it started raining. Normally I wouldn't mind the rain so much, but it was only 40 degrees out. As I was warming up before the start, it was sleeting. We would eventually get rained on 3 different times, making for a cold/wet first 40 miles. The course was changed a bit do to poor roads on one section so we did a double out and back to Agate and the one out and back down the big roller section. Course Profile. To Agate we had a nice 20+mph tailwind, which became a headwind on the way back. Right before the 2nd turnaround to head back to Agate, there was a small attack and I had bad positioning at the back after being caught behind a crash, so the chase was on. I basically jumped from groups of 5 all the way up until I caught the main pack of 30. This took about 8 miles and I had to close about 5 or 6 gaps in the process. At this point I felt good, but was having to spend to much energy to get back on. After the 3rd turnaround the Main pack was now 60 strong for the ride back to DT in the headwind. Right after the turnaround there was break of 4 that went clear. By the time I could move up enough to see, they had 2+ minutes on us and they were far enough away, I couldn't see what teams were represented. At this time the pace was slowing at we were only making 14mph into the headwind, and no one was organizing a chase. Knowing that if they had more that 3 minutes by the time we hit the rollers, it would be hard to bring them back, Andrei, Jeremy, and I went to the front to get the chase started. Andrei and Jeremy alternated taking pulls and I came through once. We eventually got a couple other teams to start helping and when we make the right hand turn through town, the gap was down to 1 min. Soon as we hit the first roller through the feedzone the pace exploded and the 25 mph crosswind slightly from our tail, started breaking the field up instantly. I was feeling alright at this point, not great, but wasn't having any problems matching the accelerations up the climbs. Right before the last turnaround, we caught 3 of the guys left from the break, leaving one guy solo. After the turnaround, there was an attack on the first hill back and this narrowed the group down to 20. We now had a right to left cross/heading at 25mph. We then caught the last solo rider about 4 miles from the finish. I was sitting sheltered next to the yellow line until 3rd from last hill when there was an attack and I had to move right to pass a few guys who had thrown out the anchor. While I was able to move around, the guy behind me closed the gap on my inside and I was stuck in the wind with no place to hide, with 4 other guys tailing me. This was the mistake that was the end for me. I held on for the next climb, but starting the 2nd to last one, I got dropped with 4 other guys. We worked together to try to get back on, but no luck. They were having a hard time keeping pace, so I gave it an effort on the last climb dropped them and Soloed the last 2 miles finishing in 13th place 1:16 off the winner and 16 seconds ahead of the the group chasing me, with a total time of 2:52:01. I was the first across the line who didn't finish with the main pack. Full results here. Can't say that I wasn't disappointed not making the main group, but I'm taking it in stride. I know I was strong enough, but made a mistake, got caught in the wind, and paid the price. This race was definitely hard, and the weather was the biggest factor, for example, last year I took 6th place with a time of 2:27:56.

Boulder Beer Race

A hard week of training culminated in the Boulder Beer Road Race Sunday. I was feeling pretty tired from the weeks efforts so this was basically prep for the Deer Trail Road Race next weekend. This was 7.4 mile circuit race with 2 big hills each lap, click here for the course Profile. Andrei and Shuka joined me at the start line, so we had 3 Swifties. The race started as normal with nothing of note happening until the 3rd lap when there was an attack up the first hill. I just sat in and let everyone else chase. Andrei and Shuka had great position the whole race sitting around the top 20. At this point I wasn't feeling good, and was already thinking I was going to have a hard time hanging with the main pack as the group went on. I was sitting about 40th on the way back when there was a huge crash. I luckily was able to avoid it because I was sitting so far back, and chased back on within a few seconds. Between laps 3-5 there wasn't really anything happening, which allowed me to drink a lot and eat a powergel and drink and Enervitene Cheer pack which gave me my second wind. I was able to move up some and get in with Andrei and Shuka. The 6th and final lap saw a few attacks on the first hill, with nothing going as it all regrouped on the downhill. Coming down the last downhill, Andrei attacked stringing out the field which allowed me to move down the right side from 35th place to 12th. I was now just waiting for an attack on the last hill. Sure enough a guy from Spine & Sport attacked at the bottom and a Vitamin Cottage guy covered. They had 100 ft gap, but they were a long way from the top so I stayed patient and waited for someone else to bring it back. I ended up hopping on the wheel of 2 guys trying to bridge. By this time we were down to about 15 guys and we caught the 2 leaders just after the crest. I was sitting 5th wheel when a RMRC rider counterattacked on the left side and I hopped on 3rd wheel behind Louisville Cyclery guy in the last 300m and that is how it finished. I tried to come around the LC guy but I was spun out in my 12, I definately needed an 11. He got me by a wheel and I held on for 3rd. I was pretty pumped with this result as I wasn't feeling my best, and It is a definite boost of confidence going into Deer Trail. Shuka finished ~22nd and Andrei 33rd, which was great for the team as we all made the main group and were able to work together helping with positioning. Here are some pics from the race. First 2 pics arn't of my race, but give an idea to the views and course. The last three are. I'm in the orange kit and white helmet.

Bad Kitty

Mountain lion attacks boy on Boulder trail
By Kirk Mitchell
Denver Post Staff Writer

Boulder - Members of a 7-year-old boy's family drove off a mountain lion that attacked him on a trail on Flagstaff Mountain late Saturday.

The boy, who was not identified, was walking last in a single file of eight family members and friends near the Crown Rock trailhead about 6 p.m. when his father turned and saw the lion on him.

The lion seized the child by the head and dragged him toward the woods, family members told Jason Blumen, a supervisor with Pridemark Paramedic Services, at Boulder Community Hospital.

They shouted and struck the lion with rocks and sticks, said Tyler Baskfield, a spokesman for the state Division of Wildlife. "They did everything possible to defend the boy from the lion," Baskfield said. "You've got to fight back with everything you have if you're attacked by a mountain lion."

Authorities said the boy had injuries consistent with a mountain lion attack including claw marks on his leg and puncture wounds on his jaw and head.

"The family showed unbelievable courage and bravery," said Blumen. "It was the family that ultimately scared the animal away, and I am 100 percent sure that they saved his life."

Blumen said the boy, who was later transferred from the Boulder hospital to Children's Hospital in Denver, is doing "remarkably well." Family members, who declined interviews, issued a statement saying he was in stable condition. The family's home town was not available.

Dean Paschall, division manager of visitor environmental services for the city of Boulder, which owns the popular recreation area, said the boy suffered facial lacerations and bite marks on one leg.

"This is something that is extremely unusual," Paschall said. "The mountain lions here are very accustomed to human beings. They don't look at humans as their natural food source."

Claire Solohub of the Division of Wildlife said traps were being set and baited with road kill to catch the lion. Search dogs and officers with guns and flashlights were combing the area. "Whenever you have wild animals and people living together, we can't always control what happens," Solohub said.

Baskfield said the cougar, if found, would be killed in the interest of safety because it's possible it would strike again.

"The mountain lion may have been confused and thought the boy was prey because of his size," he added.

Baskfield said authorities are considering restricting access to trails on Flagstaff Mountain until the mountain lion is found.

Boulder resident Chuck Corwin, who frequently hikes in the area, said he has never seen a mountain lion there, but the animals have had so much interaction with people that they're not afraid of them.

"It's going to happen every once in a while unless you kill every mountain lion in the state," Corwin said of Saturday's attack.

Although cougar attacks are rare, mountain lions have killed people in Colorado - three in the past 15 years.

There are an estimated 5,000 big cats in Colorado. Males can grow to more than 8 feet long from nose to tail and weigh up to 150 pounds.

Pledge of Allegiance

My friend Emina Kadric went through her naturalization ceremony yesterday. She sent me the following pictures. We joked about all the national history she had to learn that I had forgotten. I believe most Americans take for granted their freedom and liberty, but seeing how happy Emina was, made me realize how great we have it. I'm extremely happy for her, because it is no small feat, and she can now enjoy the same priviliages I was born with.

Oredigger Classic Part 2

Well my time put me in 24th for the Hill Climb. I'm coming to the realization that climbing isn't my stregnth. Danielson did it in 16:02 (new record) 2 minutes faster than anyone else. Next was the Coors Tech Center Crit. It is a 1.6 mile loop with a few sweeping turns and two that were 90 degrees. It also has a 150-200 ft climb each lap and the finish line is at the top. When I got to the race, I found out that they weren't running it as an omnium, so no overall points. Anyway the race started fast as always and I stayed in the top 20 most of the race. I didn't have any teamates so I planned to just sit in the whole race. Each time up the climb guys were getting spit out the back. I spinned up it in my small ring to try and save my legs for the last couple laps, while others were grinding out there big ring. I felt good the first couple laps and we were down to a group of 30. There was a small break of 4 that got off the front after a prime, but they weren't organized, so I just sat in. 2 laps later we were all back together with 3 to go. On this lap a guy attacked hard up the hill and had a good gap, it took us a lap to chase him down. At this point it was single file for the top 15 guys. Setting up the last lap Spine & Sports team moved 4 guys to the front for a leadout. I hopped in 7th wheel. I was feeling pretty good, but was trying to stay patient. S&S started their leadout way too early and 200 meters before the climb there was only 2 guys left so they slowed and a second leadout came in on my inside, boxing me in. Not much I could do at this point, but wait for things to break up so I could move around. I hit the climb in ~15th place and hammered in my big to the top. I rolled through 8th. This course suited me well. I was pretty happy with this result. I had a hard week of training, and this was a C race for me. Next race for me will be in 2 weeks, as I'm trying to get in some good training hours for Deer Trail.

Props to James for his strong finish in the HC, smoked me.

Oredigger Classic Part 1

Today was the first stage of the Oredigger Classic. It was a hill climb up Lookout Mtn. Lookout is roughly 4.1 miles long with ~1500 ft of climbing. I got there about an hour before my start time and rolled up to the registration booth to get my number. The guy in front of me was all decked out in a Discovery kit at which point I noticed it was Tom Danielson. I guess he was wanting to add another hill climb record to his resume. I think the record is somewhere around 16 minutes. I preregistered so that I would have ample time to warm-up, however, it still took 20+ minutes to get my number. This cut my warm-up down to 12 minutes. Since I didn't get a good warm-up, I took it easy at the start, and finished strong. My goal for this season was to do this climb sub 23 minutes since 25:25 was my personal best last year (not good). I think my time was 23:07. I think this will get me into the top 20. I was pretty happy with this time since it is ~2:20 off my time last year and this was only the second time I've ridden it this season. Since most or our races are either crits or rolling in the early season, I haven't focused on climbing at all, so this was a pleasent suprise. I also picked up my Zipps yesterday, with these on my bike I feel fast, even if I'm not.

"City of Syrup"

Final two pharmacists sentenced in 'syrup' case
For filling phony prescriptions, they get prison terms of 10 and 12 years

By MELANIE MARKLEY
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

The final two of six Houston pharmacists convicted in October of conspiring to fill fake prescriptions for painkillers and codeine-laced cough syrup were handed prison sentences Wednesday.

John David Wiley III, 41, and Anthony Dwayne Essett, 39, were among the six pharmacists convicted of dispensing 2,500 gallons of promethazine with codeine, a highly addictive cough suppressant known on the street by such names as syrup, lean, purple and drank.

The trial helped illustrate why Houston became known as the "City of Syrup" among some members of America's rap culture. The drug's popularity even gave rise to a distinctive, Houston-bred style of rap music.

The six pharmacists also were found guilty of money laundering and filling phony prescriptions for 1.7 million pills of hydrocodone, a synthetic narcotic widely known by the brand name Vicodin.

They also were convicted of conspiracy to illegally dispense the drugs.

Wiley and Essett are co-owners of I-10 East Pharmaceutical Services.

U.S. District Judge David Hittner sentenced Wiley to 10 years in prison. Essett received a sentence of 12 years and seven months, and was fined $312,000.

The four other pharmacists convicted in the trial were sentenced earlier.

Otukayode Adeleke Otufale, owner of Med Stop Pharmacy on Hillcroft, was sentenced to 10 years.

Isaac Simeon Achobe, owner of American Choice Pharmacy on West Bellfort, received a 63-month term and was fined $5,000.

Chicha Kazembe Combs and Andre Dion Brown, co-owners of Mason Road Pharmacy in Katy, were each sentenced to 10 years.

According to testimony, the six pharmacists knowingly accepted fake prescriptions from Dr. Callie Hall Herpin, who pleaded guilty and testified for the prosecution.

Also named in the conspiracy were Etta Mae Williams, 47, Karen B. Williams, 40, Darryl Armstrong, 41, Paul Henry, 40, Omar Fahie, 24, Eric Craft, 38, and Will Bailey III, 36.

The remaining eight defendants are scheduled to be sentenced later this year.

Koppenberg

Koppenberg

Well I was hoping for wind to help break the pack up today, because the road was in such good shape, and I got more than I asked for (30+mph). Large field of 105 made the early start. Started on first row followed Matt, Jeremy, and Ty's wheel the first lap. They kept us in good position good position going into the climb (17% grade). I felt good first 2 laps. By the start of the 3rd lap we were down to 25. I was sitting towards the back of this pack and figured I better mover up prior to the next climb and ~5 guys were getting dropped each time up. I shot forward about 200 meters before the climb straight into the head wind (big mistake). Worked hard over the climb sitting 3rd. I sat up with a guy from 5280 to recover as a guy on our left attacked about where the finish line was. I was smoked at this point (HR 188) as a couple of other guys started chasing I just couldn't hold a wheel in the 30+ mph cross/head wind. I chased and got back on thanks to 40+ mph decent heading down marshall road. I caught the pack about 500m before we hit the gravel again. At this point we were single file and the guy in front of me opened up a gap, and that was it. We chased, but got no love from the headwind. finished up 21st with the winners in sight. Finished 1:46 off the winner with a time of 49:09. Made a couple of mistakes on the 3rd lap that cost me. Learned alot and had fun. Ty had an awesome race and rolled in 18th 30 seconds in front of me. He looked strong. I think he has been doing secret ninja training in his basement at night, because he says he hasn't been riding. It was nice to have a teamate to work with most of the race. Thanks Jeremy G. as well for helping close a gap on the 1st lap so I didn't have to.

UNC Crit

My second race of the year. I was just hoping to keep it upright. Legs felt tired and tight today after the field test on friday. My race didn't go exactly as planned, but learned a lot. I could have sat in all day, but Ft. Lewis College had 9 guys in the field of 60 and were attacking every lap, until something stuck. I bridged to the third solo attack hoping to get a break started. I was afraid I was going to miss the winning move. Unfortunately a 3rd guy tried to bridge and basically drug the pack back up to us. I thought if we got caught, I would be able to sit in and recover, but FLC counter attacked as soon as we were caught and with only 20 guys all strung out, there was no place to hide. I chased solo for a lap and got back on, then they called a prime and I was out the back again. Probably should have sat in. Ended up finishing 20-25th/60.

Power Tap

Got my new toy thursday night. Here are my results from my first Field Test. I went out way too hard on the first interval, and totally screwed the second one up. On the second one I rode the first 2 minutes in my small ring, until I realized my watts were low, and then proceeded to do an extra minute in my confusion. Oh well, I guess it is a starting point.

Field Test Results for Mar 24 2006

Conditions
Course : Cycling (Road)
Terrain : Flat
Wind : Breezy (10-15 mph)
Humidity : 0.46
Temperature: Cool (40-60 F)
Weight : 157.5lbs

Interval 1
Elapsed Time : 00:08:09
Distance : 3.05Miles
Average BPM : 169
Average Power : 307
Maximum BPM : 179
Maximum Power : 894
Average Cadence : 90
Perceived Exertion: 9 - very difficult


Interval 2
Elapsed Time : 00:09:01
Distance : 3.34Miles
Average BPM : 171
Average Power : 277
Maximum BPM : 181
Maximum Power : 630
Average Cadence : 90
Perceived Exertion: 9 - very difficult

Ninja Training

Clint sent me this site check it out. Make sure your speakers are on.

Ninja

CU Crit - A Display of Mastery Level Bike Handling (NOT)

First race of the year. Started out mid pack and worked my way up to the top 20 after a few laps, and basically stayed there. The course, while being easy to navigate, wasn't technical enough to string out the pack except on Prime Laps. If every race was as sketchy as this one was, I don't know if I would do another crit. Chaz and I were following each others wheel until about 4 laps to go and I started to move up. The pack was getting strung out and things were starting to set up great. I felt great as well, until the 3-4 guys on the front decided to sit up on the back stretch going into a headwind. I guess nobody wanted to drive the pace into the wind. I was sitting about 15th, when 4 guys slingshotted down the inside corner when the pack slowed. They ended up trying to pass in the gutter going into the corner and 1 guy about a bike length ahead and to the inside of me touched wheels. I saw it coming, but couldn't avoid it. He then swerved and laid it down in the middle of the pack, I was the 3rd guy to go down. I basically ran over the 2 guys in front of me, only my right elbow (small scratch) and right side of my back touched the ground. Bike - had to take it to the shop to get both wheels trued and my derailer hanger straitened. Happy I'm fine and bike is fine as well, but still sucks working to stay at the front to avoid crashes and get taken out because of passing in the gutter. Check out JFB's post for pics. In the pic on the right I'm on the left side of the group in orange with a red helmet. My teamate Chaz is tucked in behind my wheel.

They Forgot the Zero

In anticipation of the 10-20 inches of snow Vail was going to get, Steve, Ty, and I made an emergency ski trip to Vail Sunday. We wanted to make first tracks, so I got up at 4:45 am and the Ty and I met Steve in Morrison at 6am and we were in Vail by 7:30 am. The lifts don't even open until 8:30. We were so pumped until we got the snow report and they got a huge dump of 1 new inch. I though Ty was BSing me. I was ready to kick the weatherman's ass. Anyway, we were the first ones on the lift and went straight back to Blue Sky which they opened up an hour early. We skied the first hour by ourselves, I mean we were the only ones on the lift, didn't even see anyone for an hour. It was awesome, I felt as if I owned the resort.

Steve (master of facial expressions)













Ty













Me

Ty took this last pic right before I jumped off Lover's Leap. It was about a 6-8 ft drop (nothing to big before bike season).

Small Town

Saturday, Ty and I hooked up with Krist T. ,a friend from back home, at Breck. He was out with some buddies he went to West Point with. I hadn't seen him in over 5 years. While I enjoyed relatively no responsibility through college, he made 2 trips to Iraq and Afghanistan. Glad he's back in the U.S. We spent time catching up on the lift rides and he offered some advice for Cori and I's upcoming trip to Italy. We eventually made it up to the Imperial Express. This is the highest lift in North America, taking you to the top of Peak 8 at 12,840 feet above sea level. At the top Ty and hiked across to Art's Bowl, and I skied the steepest run I've done so far ~45+ degrees through two rock outcroppings. As Ty, Steve and I like to say the Penalty for Failure on that run would have been severe. (Cori and Mom ignore the previous sentence) Great Day all around. There is just something about a connection you have with someone when you are from a small town.

Tristan Prettyman and Ben Taylor

Cori, Theresa, and I saw Tristan Prettyman play at the Bluebird about a week ago. She has been described as the female Jack Johnson. Great performance in a small setting. Ben Taylor (son of James Taylor and Carly Simon) opended up for her. You can definately her James through Ben. My favorite song of Tristan's is Smoke and of Ben's is Digest. Check'em out.

Swift 4s Ride

Yesterday I rode with Dan and Taylor in Boulder. A little chilly. All in all 40 miles in 2:45 with 4000 ft of climbing.

Today the Swift 4s got together. Pacelines and leadouts/sprinting were the flavor of the day. About 4 or 5 all out efforts of 2-3 miles (max HR today = 189). The weather was fantastic 60+ degrees and 5mph wind. Dan and Daniel joined us as well. Looking forward to the upcoming season.

Warming Up

Finally Denver is starting to warm up again. Hit over 50 today. I got out for a late ride and snapped this pic on my way home today.

Coldplay

Cori and I saw them Sunday, and it was a great show. Awesome vibe from the crowd. Come to think of it, the vibe from the crowd has been great at every show I've seen in Denver, definately different that the STL or the Windy City. Our seats, weren't the best, but the sound was great. Visually there show is on a differnt level then any other I've seen. The coordiantion of video, graphics, lights, and vibrant colors were second to none. They did however, leave Moses off the set list, which was the only downer second to smelling some drunk ass college kid's puke a few row down from us. I searched all over for a picture to best represent the feeling at the concert, but none did it justice. I guess you'll have to see for yourself. I recommend it.

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday

Since the high today isn't going to get above 10. We slept in and and grabbed some breakfast at LePeep. Stopped by Emogene for a Chai Tea. and now it is nap time. I'm heading to the gym. Coldplay concert later tonight, can't wait.


Smiling already


Family Nap Time