And the hits just keep coming: more updates from Justin in Belgium

Our friend Justin Lindine is still in Belgium as part of the Euro Cross Camp. Until I get around to setting up his own blog, we are copying a few of his emails over for all of you to see.


It was a nightmare stop and go roller coaster before we even got to the race. I couldn’t tell if the surges in traffic were making me more or less nauseous then the radio “Donna” mix of incredibly bad American pop with Belgian techno-esque noise. In either case those of us in the back seat were rapidly reaching terminal sick state accompanied by the desperate need to pee. Great.

Step one after arriving at the venue was to miss the access to our parking zone. Step two was to use the facilities between a team sprinter van and some nice Belgian persons shrubbery. Ahh… After that desperate evacuation of fluid and some much needed fresh air there was the question of this whole race thing we were supposed to be getting ready for. The weather was pretty atrocious…I mean, nice typical Belgian weather. In other words it was 2 degrees Celsius and raining. It doesn’t take a degree in soil science to guess that rain, plus bike racers plus a farmer’s field equals all sort of pasty, peanut-buttery mud. Sweet! Because really, my bike has not had enough beat into it over the last couple of days. Sigh.

Morale in Camp USA was not what you would call “high” upon arrival. There were shivering U23 riders milling around, waiting for their ride home. Unfortunately their race was still being called in the distance. Me and my two other “profs” (Troy and Brian) sat in the warming van after riding our one course recon lap pondering the deeper questions of motivation and purpose in addition to line choice, dismount or ride, and some just general complaining about how hard it was going to suck to slog through a tractor pull of mud for an hour. Our musings did nothing to change the weather or the course however, and soon it was time to ride the trainers and do something of a warm up.

The course at Loenhout is nothing if not a really good example of an inventive use of open featureless space. When I say that a lot of it is just a farm field, I’m not kidding. But through the magic of design and a lot of sponsorship dollars, out of this field rise multiple flyovers, and a pump-track like whoop section (if you think this sounds like fun, go to your local BMX track, put 20lbs of air in the tires of your cross bike and try it out: it’s terrifying at high speed, and I like pump tracks). Once again I was amazed at the crowds at these races. I mean, who wants to come out on a day like this: sane animals are hibernating or migrating right about now. But despite this there were thousands upon thousands of Belgians making their way into the rainy wetness of some random field to watch us accomplish what a tractor and a plow would in about half the time. As I made my way around the course trying not to look like a flailing idiot too much of the time, I rode through clouds of cigar and cigarette smoke so thick I could almost taste it. This is racing. This is awesome. I’m riding well. I’m being lapped by Sven Nys. Sigh.

It took forever to figure out how to get back to the car. I was cold, dejected and not wanting to stare into the faces of a public so excited by this sport. “How many fences are there in this place?” “Where the hell am I?” But in reality the people were polite and eventually, after me looking dazed and confused for long enough, gave me directions back to town and the parking lot. It’s amazing how you can ride so many laps around a labyrinthine course without having any understanding of where it actually goes. So now we were back in the van, piling wet muddy clothes into bags to deal with later. Another day in the books and still not much of a result to speak of. Troy managed a pretty solid result riding in with a group containing mountain biking icon Jose Hermidia for 30th. Not too shabby.

The rest of us, or at least myself, spent the van ride back thankfully a little less motion sick albeit a little more reflective. As I sit staring out the window at the Belgian countryside passing by I’m already thinking about the next race, and the bike maintenance I have to try and get done in the next couple of days, and what I’ve learned here that I can take with me into next season and beyond. It’s been a humbling day for a lot of us to be sure, but I know that at least for myself, I’m trying to soak in as much experience as the Belgian mud soaks in the rain….tomorrow is another day.

Update from Justin Lindine in Belgium

As some of you may remember, our friend Justin Lindine is in Belgium at the Euro Cross Camp. We will be putting up some of his updates until we get him set as a writer. Thank you for all of your support to help get him there!


Today was the first race day of the camp. It was a relatively small race in the town of Middelkerke which is on the northern coast of Belgium. From what I was told it is a race normally decided by strong coastal winds and sand. Today however was a little bit of a different story. It was very cold, as it has been for the past week or so here, and the snow that the area received was still in place on the course. By the time we raced it was a treacherous mix of snow and one "good" muddy line through it all. That being said the course could have been fun, with some wide open sections, a nasty run-up and some fast 180's, along with a good amount of spectators for a smaller race.

However, this is where my personal story goes awry. It was race day and my bikes still weren't here. To say I'm a little stressed out may be understatement. Fortunately, I was able to borrow the loaner bike that the camp has to race on. Unfortunately, the bike is a good four sizes too big, the rear shifter sort of sometimes works, and I had to use some borrowed pedals because as you might guess, they are in my bike case as well. Now, I don't like to make trivial excuses for bad rides, and a good rider can make a bad bike work. But, it definitely didn't add to a day where I might not have felt that good anyway. So as I sprinted off the start line with my sweet second row call up (right behind f'ing Sven Nys!) I struggled to make my shifter go through the gears, and sat more or less on the top tube (with the bars higher then my now slammed seat).

Long story short, it wasn't the best race I've ever had, and I wound up getting lapped which is not great. Hopefully it was at least worth the effort and a blowing out of the legs will do me good come the world cup in Zolder this weekend. Hopefully as well, my bikes will make it here tomorrow and I can get out a bit and check out the countryside. I'll keep you all posted....with what I am expecting to be improving news.

Justin Lindine

Nationals in Bend, OR by Roger

Nationals

Like I said I would write what happened in Bend on the way home, well I did, but never finished the story due to a red eye flight.
We got to Bend on Wednesday night and got settled at the La Quinta hotel, which was a very nice place to stay for a bike racer. Big rooms, tasty waffles for breakfast and a friendly maintenance guy who let as work on our bike in the “ boiler room”. The only problem was the 9-degree weather!
It was a long day and we need to eat, so Ralf and me took Matt Spinks advice to look for a restaurant call Pastini. It was very weird, a year ago we did the Nationals in Kansas City and we ate at a little fancy shopping center that looked identical to this one where Pastini was. The food was pretty good, so yes we ate there the next 3 nights; I guess that is pretty weird too according to Kyle, perfectly fine with me!
Kyle and Justin made it there that night as well after driving from RI with all the bikes. It sounded like they went thru hell getting there with a little pressure time wise, since we all were supposed to start riding the course on Thursday and Richard Sachs had his race on the first day. With the 3-hour time difference from home, now it was really late, but at the same time I did not want adjust to it either. My race is 9.30 am on Sat, so actually at 12.30 our time which would workout well since we are used to race at that time back home all the time.

Thursday morning, cold as hell! We get the bikes ready and head Wal-Mart to get some toe and hand warmers. Felt like we were going ice fishing or something, got a thermos and some socks as well! Then to the venue, it was squeezed into a small some sort of a warehouse parking lot. What else would you expect for the Nationals? The course is covered in ice and snow, super short and narrow and twisty with a million turns. It also has a set of stairs with 22 or 23 steps, very Euro! The hour that was available for pre-riding was like a balancing act, there was about 2000 people on it and only a few new how to ride on the snow ice, so we definitely got a good look at the course going 2 mph around it a few times. There were a million different races going on all day, every day, categories I never heard of. What is a B-race under 29 years?? Time goes quick we rode back to the hotel on roads covered with slush, sand and ice. Thursday and Friday was identical; wake up, waffles, Wal-Mart, ride the rush hour or gridlock on the course which they extended every day, clean the bikes, Pastini and then to bed @ 9.00 pm.

The real excitement on Friday was the 45-49 age group race with one of our clients, Ralf Warmuth starting on the front row with a good chance of finishing on the podium. Ralf has trained almost specifically for this event all year; he more or less put all the eggs in one basket to put his goals in perspective. Our good friend Jon Bold was in that race as well and between these two guys they probably made this race the most exciting to watch all weekend. Jon battled for the win after moving up from 45th spot at one point to the lead with James Coats. An epic battle all the way to the end, just like we race in New England every weekend and think that was to Jon’s advantage. JB wins and Ralf is in 3rd place one lap to go, gets stuck behind a lapped rider (that was supposed to get pulled???) and Noble slips by, a little bobble on the barriers and it costs Ralf his 3rd spot. 3rd or 4th is still a phenomenal performance by the German and I was really excited for both of them and a good start to the weekend. In addition to these guys an other East Coaster, Paul Curly had won the day before in he 55-59 category.

Race day; I felt good! We got to the course nice and early and I started to ride the course to test out some tires, did 4 laps on 4 different tires, file thread it is! The funny thing is that I had about 6 sets of different wheels with me, but Jon Bold offered me his Dugast file threads on a nice light Reynolds wheel, a very special tire, so that was no brainier at all. A very nice gesture from our new National Champion to offer that to a fears competitor all year, I would have done the same for that matter though.

Kevin Hines was up first (8.30 am start). Tillford was there, but did not line up, so I already new who was going to be the first FinKraft client to win the Nationals before the gun went off. Kevin races with me and Jon all year and I do not know any other 50 plus guys that are actually beating us occasionally, so as long as he stays up right and does not break anything on the ice he will have the stars and stripes at the end of the day. Kevin got a good start and just rode his own race and there was nobody even near him. He crashes a few times, but it did not matter this was probably the most dominant win all weekend. Great job, it has been such a pleasure to work with Kevin and Ralf and for them to have such good results is just outstanding.
Then it was my turn, I got a good warm up on the course testing out all those tires and then on the trainer while Kevin raced, so I was ready .It is great to get the first call up, but standing there for about 15-20 min waiting for the rest of the 190 guys to get lined up is not. It was not too cold so, not bad.

I manage to pull off the dream start ( hole shoot), I knew the start was critical and getting to the 180 turn would be important and then have less guys to deal with on the ice. The first lap went well, I think I was second up the stairs, but then for some reason I started to get passed on the really slick parts by a few guys, no attacks they just kind of rolled by. I had a small crash in the turn before the stairs, but nothing critical. Now am in like 10th spot and there are a group of slower riders in front of me, but not being able to pass at too many places my race was over, almost lost the fire to race and it felt like I was just riding around without really pushing myself. A very mediocre race for me, disappointing, but on the other hand this as one race out of 20 something cross races and a ton of road racing this year. I had a great season and not many disappointments at all which is unusual in bike racing. I went back to the hotel, took a shower and packed up, I was actually relieved it was over, I was tired and did not want think about a bicycle for a little while. Ralf and I went back to he venue and watched the U-23 race and then the 35-39 age group right after. Kyle and Justin had already pretty much packed up the bikes for the guys who were done racing and the million wheels we had, I have to say if it was not for Kyle and Justin, this trip would have been a lot more painful, thanks guys!
The drive back to Portland was interesting; a little snowstorm going over Mt Hood made the roads pretty traitorous. We made it and after returning the rental car, we were back at the airport. I change my flight to the red eye one , no breaks by the Continental people , they charge me a nice $ 150 and gave me some attitude to go with it. It was either that or stay another night in a hotel and pay for a baby sitter back home. Now we had some time to kill, so a couple of beers (Belgian) and a greasy burger were perfect after not eaten much all day. I think this might have been one of the best moments of the trip. Red eye flight back home, not much sleep, but glad to be back home!

A long story, I hope you are not bored to death reading it , the weather is crappy now , so there are nothing else to do anyway. Read blogs and watch YouTube , before you know it is back to racing !

Thanks

Roger

Summing it all up by Roger

I am on a plane to Portland, OR sitting next to the German. (Ralf) The bikes are in Wyoming by now if not even further by now. Hell of a trip for everybody with bad weather and lot of stuff to move across the country for a 45 min race. A normal beer dinking and cigarette smoking Joe would say this is insanity! I agree, what was even more insane was the New England Verge series consisting of 14 races all over the place.
I could have driven back and forth to Bend, OR three times with the amount of miles I racked up going to all those races chasing the over all series win.

I never even unpacked a lot of times; it was just wash what was covered with mud, clean the bikes and make a trip to the bike store and rebuild the headsets and bottom brackets. I did my best to keeping thing organized and still do my job coaching and riding with clients in addition to try to do some training and recovering myself.

The New England series or the “Masters World cup” like I call it. The competition makes this CX series the best in the country. Everybody has their ups and downs in a stretch of 14 races for sure and if you are not ON one weekend you better hope you finish in the top 10 and still get some points. The coverage on the various web sites all tells how it goes down each weekend , so you all know the stories by now. Some courses and weather conditions suit some riders better and from Sep to Dec Mother Nature will throw everything possible at you guaranteed. Every venue has double race weekends and that also affects the results sometimes, it is extremely hard to have 2 perfect races back to back. I think I was the only one who won both races one weekend (Vermont).

Well it went right down to the wire; I was leading by 10 points going into the last 2 races in Warwick, RI. I always feel like I am on the enemy’s territory in New England, even though we are all friends and I even coach a few guys there. I am the guy to beat, no matter if I am winning or just fighting for a placing. Well it is no different to me either, I am there to beat them any chance I get, it does not matter if it is on the road or in cross.
I drove up the night before with the trailer in tow, since everybody who were going to the Nationals were going to be at this race and Kyle was going to take of for Bend, OR right after the Sunday race.
We raced hard again, Jon Bold was in control and I was hanging on for dear life to preserve my lead. I was close on Sat 5 sec off the whole race, but I did not feel like the same guy I was in Vermont 3 months ago. Sunday was even worse, lower back tightens up 1 lap to go and then it was game over, oh well! I won 5 races and Jon won 6, that was all it took to loose the series by 10 points. It is really hard to get to the top, but once you get there it does not become any easier, that is when the struggle starts to stay there. The last 2-3 weeks was a tuff period of time trying to stay motivated, recover and do the right kind of training for the fitness to stay at least the same or keep rising to yet another level.
I was winning races in March and had super form all throughout the summer with some really hard road races at the Pro 1 2 level, so when I am not beating the master’s field in cross by a mile, something is going on ! Maybe tired????

Great season though, won a USGP race and 3 Mac races as well plus a lot of 2nd places (first looser) so no complaints. My wife has been super supportive, it is not easy with baby sitters and me being on the road every weekend. She works hard at her real job as a nurse and then works for FinKraft (as hard if not even harder) on her days off besides being a mom. To be a girlfriend or wife to a cyclist or any other elite athlete for that matter takes a lot. I grew up doing this stuff, but for some one to jump into a life like this with no racing life background it is probably the hardest thing to adapt for someone and really puts a relationship to the test. A topic I will write more about another time in the off-season, a very important part of racing that every single athlete experiences.

The bikes (Ridley) were fantastic and all the tires (Challenge and Dugast) and wheels (mostly Zipp and Mavic) never let me down either. The super flashy National Champ Kit by Verge stood out and drew a lot of attention for sure. All the other things that Mark @ Westwood Cycle supplied me with like gloves for example (a whole bag full) and the service and the 12 tires( did not roll one) Allan glued this fall for me is irreplaceable in racing at this level. Sports Balm, Uvex and Country Choice Organic products is what gave me that extra boost each week to do better and win. This is something we all should think about, if someone gives you something for free or even a discount on a product that helps you in any way doing what you love (racing). When the gun goes off, race a little extra hard and show that the support means a lot to you. This is sometimes the only way of giving back besides saying thank you!

The plane landed (finally), we are in Portland and it is 25 degrees! A 3 hour drive over Mt Hood and we should be in Bend, 14 hours later since leaving my house in NJ. I will write what happens in Bend (if anything) on the way back , I hope Kyle and Justin are getting close as well , we will need the bikes to race !

Thanks for reading,

Roger

Now they call you Prince Charming...

I cannot even imagine what the inside of my car must smell like to "outsiders". I have to be used to it by now.

First, to say that I am over-caffinated would be a slight to moderate understatement. So there is some gurgling there.

Then, all of the "elite" bikes were put away without being washed, so there is that 4 day old mud thing starting to build up.

I am pretty sure that Justin left some of his Grandmothers swiss cheese in the passenger door pocket back in Boise.

I am also pretty sure that Boldy did NOT wash his national championship winning skinsuit before he put it in his bag and then stacked that bag directly behind me in the back seat.

I cannot remember the last time I did laundry. Or even bothered to change clothes into clean laundry, for that matter. Hey, out of site, out of mind.

Last but not least, there is a teeny tiny bit of flop sweat left over from that fog thing in Utah.

So, for all of you, my faithful readers, scratch the computer screen and sniff. Yikes.

A few passing thoughts: Cleveland does not rock. Why do some trucks have fancy lights and others none at all? JB: thanks for the messages Champ.

Training tip: wash your kits in cold with a little oxy-clean.

Sorry, no pictures.

I never thought I would ever say that I am happy to be back in Iowa, but I am happy to be back in Iowa. Kinda.

So this morning started with me calling the Wyoming State Highway Patrol after the light trailer ban continued to be in effect on I-80. It went something like this:

"Good morning, Wyoming Highway Patrol, Lt Crespin speaking."
"Hi, is the ban still in effect for I-80 east?"
"What does the internet say?"
"Oh. Um, It's not that I don't think your state is nice, but I want to leave, how to do I that?"
"Have you tried the old route 30?"
"oh"

So, I went across to the coffee shop and asked the guy with the biggest hat about old route 30. They gave me directions. So, I started my simple 100 mile detour of Southeast Wyoming around Elk Mountain on a lovely single lane desert road. I got to see the town of Medicine Bow (elev. 7700, pop. 274) and the bustling Bosler (elev. 7640, pop 0). Yup, zero. A real life ghost town. Pretty cool. Soon, I made it to Laramie and back on the Interstate.

Then, my enemy appeared, and his name is Nebraska. Even with "severe clear" skies and dry roads, this state takes forever and is freaking cold. I mean, it took 8 hours it was 6 degrees in Omaha. What? How do you grow corn in 6 degrees? And those cows only have thin leather jackets, they must be freezing!

So, here I am Iowa, resting up for the big push home. Oh wait, did I tell you the best part of Iowa? Well let me tell you: its their 350 miles of grooved concrete highway. Except for the fact that the trailer is filed with extremely light carbon fiber bikes and wheels, so the trailer bounces up and down on every groove and rocks the Kyle-mobile more than a Friday night at the movies! ha!

Ok, that's it.

Remember, you race like you train.

Chasing windmills in my dreams...

"They put poets in prison?" " No." "Too bad." Alright, fair warning: this is going to be a long one. So get a drink and a snack. I'll wait...still waiting...ok?...time for me now?...Thanks.

The USAC Cyclocross National Championships are finally over. I will not lie to you, my faithful readers, it was chaos. A repeat thumbs up to Kevin and Ralf, great showing Finkrafters! Yesterday was the "elite" race. It was incredibly fast; those guys are on top of their game and it was very impressive. It was also cool to see the nice guys from New England bring it hard to Treefarm and Mr "Rude" JP. Nicely done gents.

Our own Justin Lindine is ranked 11th in the country, so he got a sweat call up spot. He handled the start well and was going strong. However, on the back side of the course, the sun had set behind the hills and some water froze on a short section of pavement. He, and most of the field (including then leader J-Pow) fell hard. Justin carved himself up and ripped his only long sleeve skinsuit. He was able to catch back on and moved up to 13th overall when he flatted just beyond the pit. Crap. By the time he ran all around the muddy course, the officials pulled him and all the other riders. A bit disappointing. Unfortunately, the nature of cyclocross is that sometimes it happens. We put him on a plane this morning in Boise, ID to go home early so he can heal and get ready for Belgium. We went to a meeting on Saturday evening and the schedule will be awesome. They even gave him cards to hand out to the fans at the races. So freakin' cool. He will write some blogs for us to tell about the adventures over there.

Ok, now I get to vent a little. This weekend's event was a joke. Normally when we go to bike races, the promoter is a club or a rider or a fan. However, when the USAC puts on their events, they use a large scale promoter who is there to make a profit. For all we know, when the guys that put on Natz finish, they have to prep for the Bon Jovi concert next. With fees at least at $70, we should have been able to count on course marshalls, pit passes, or at least the same course every day. Instead, it was chaos, and with fields over 190 riders; people were getting lapped and pulled within a two laps. Crazy.

Then there was the venue: a lovely mountain town, sure. But this town is 3 hours from the nearest airport and as far as I can tell, the course was held at a toxic waste dump.

Then, this other picture is a view from the spoils piles over towards the lovely mud slop called the service pits. It was disgusting. Then there is this picture a pile of garbage on the far side of the course. If you look carefully, you can see the course tape in the background. You don't see those pictures on the internet!!!

Ok, I feel better. Now, you ask: Kyle, from where are you typing this lovely note? Well, I am stranded in Rawlins, Wyoming. Yup, they have closed I-80 Eastbound due to high winds. Apparently my car and trailer (with 25 bicycles) will blow over. No snow, but wind. Ugh.

However, this part of the country is stunning. That's it for now. I am hoping that the wind will stop so I can get the heck out of here and back east. I don't like beards. If you have been to Oregon, you would understand.

Train hard, race harder.

Just around the Bend

Greetings from Bend, OR again! Today is Sunday and the last day of the Cyclocross National Championships. It has been a very interesting week.

First off, CONGRATULATIONS to Finkrafter Kevin Hines who won the masters 50+ race on Saturday morning. It was a great race! Kevin was second in line going into the first hairpin turn at the beginning of the race, passed the one person and never looked back. With cold and icy conditions, the course was treacherous but Kevin never faltered and beat the next placed rider by almost a minute. It was fantastic. He was supposed to have heavy competition from a famous ex world champion, but rumor around here was when that guy heard Kevin was a Finkrafter, he decided not to show up! Awesome. Good work to Kevin for a long season of racing and training. In fact, Coach Roger advised Kevin to race the "faster" 35+ Verge series all year, and that prep made him heads and shoulders above the rest. It was great to watch.

In the 45+ event, Finkrafter Ralf Warmuth was amazing in taking 4th place. He has been moving up every year and now to be on the podium was just great. Ralf rode a smart race, never panicing on the ice and moving up lap after lap. He was cautious and aggressive at the same time, and his hard work really paid off. Our friend Jon Bold won day in one of the best races I have ever seen. Remember, rubbin' is racin'!

Roger came to this venue after winning races since March and the defending champion. He absolutely railed the hole shot at about 30mph but had some issues and was not able to defend. The competition was incredible and the racing great.

Also, our friend Luke Keough took 3rd in the under 23 event. This is considered the future of bike racing, and so is Luke. He was beat by a guy on a Protour team, so it hardly seemed fair.

Well, today is the big show. The elite races for men and women. It should be awesome as this year has really been a slug fest out there, and the Northwest guys have been giving a lot of trash talk about us New Englanders and Northeast guys. Cant wait. Our own Justin Lindine has an 11th spot call up, so that should really help him. I hope everyone thinks good thoughts.

We head back East this afternoon so Justin can get on a plane to Belgium for the Superprestige and Zolder World Cup. Freaking awesome.

Ok, one last thing to mention. The hotel where we have been staying has been great. They have a fantastic waffle machine, the staff has been very friendly and the maintenance guy let us use their hose and indoor (warm) shop to work on the bikes and the maids don't freak when they see what Roger does to a hotel room.

Also, when I went to get batteries for my camera this morning (hence no pics of Kevin, sorry) the neat market next door has an amazing selection of snacks, porn, bongs, 40 oz beers, and thankfully, batteries. This has been an interesting trip to say the least.

More from the road this week! Stay on that training, this is the fitness time of year!

It's not heaven, it's Iowa!

I hate two things in the world. Actually four, but that is a subject for another blog. These two are easy: Pennsylvania and Nebraska. Let me tell you why:

I am driving across the country this week for the Cyclocross National Championships. With the Finkraft mini-trailer filled beyond reasonable capacity, me and one of our athletes left the final Verge race in Rhode Island on Sunday night headed for Bend, Oregon. After quick sprints through RI, CT, NY and NJ, the long haul through the Keystone State begins.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I appreciate the importance the Eastern part played on our Independence. Lancaster with its roots in religious Freedom is great. The industry of the West is critical to the health of our nation. My Dad hunts in the Northern parts and things it is keen.

But when you are just trying to drive through the damn thing, Pennsylvania stinks. Seriously, it takes about 75 hours to get across and after whipping though all of those tiny states so quickly, the State is a huge buzz kill. I hate you Pennsylvania.

Next let’s vent a bit about Nebraska. Previous to this trip, I had no real opinion about the Cornhusker state. Then I drove through it on Tuesday. For those who watch the TV news, they had a little weather. A lot of weather. It snowed really hard and there was a constant North to South wind that tried to blow me, my bike racer laden car, and the Finkraft mini-trailer (mentioned above) all the way down to Texas. I have been to Texas, I did not want to go back.

So, Nebraska took a really long time too. Almost twice as long. Very disappointing. I now hate corn and if I ever see another advertisement for “beef, it’s what for dinner” again, I will puke.

Whew. I actually feel much better now. So tonight I will make it to Bend. Greeting me there will be the Finster, Ralf, Kevin, and several of our New England friends and fellow bike racers. Wish them all speed and skill. Luck is for those who didn’t train.

Did I mention how it was negative five degrees this morning in Wyoming? I will, don’t worry!

Youth and the young

I received a telephone call this morning from the director of a fairly famous cycling team about one of the riders we help out here at Finkraft. I can't name any names, but the team is sponsored by that thing on most of your handlebars, and the guy wears funny glasses.

We are trying to get the young lad a job on his team. It was a good conversation and some good steps were taken. It was amazing how the director knew specific results from specific races and events. These were races where this young lad kicked some serious butt, and he was noticed. Success all around. I was very impressed as to how the director was such a gentleman and professional on the phone. No beating around the bush: this is the deal and this is how it works.

I was also pretty darn excited that he already knew who I was before the call; that was almost as cool as him knowing the rider. With rare exception, my racing days are over, nowadays it is all about the athletes and the racers.

It reminded me of the importance of setting goals when working with your coaches. These goals could be an USAC upgrade, finishing a triathlon within a certain time, or scoring well in an important race so that a Protour team winds up calling your coach a few weeks later.

Remember that these goals can be lofty or lowly; they are your dreams and you need to try to live them the best you can! Talk to your coach about 2010 during the next few weeks and follow his or her directions so that you can work towards completing the goals.

Imagine how it feels: reaching what you want after months of hard work. Good stuff all around.

We look forward to hearing from some of you soon. Tell your friends, we can help them too.

Racin' and rubbin'

It has been a while; I think GMSR was the last time I wrote anything on my blog. I raced the Bear Mountain RR and Tour of Catskills and 10 crosses since then. Not to mention I driven about 5000 miles and stayed 15-20 nights in hotels and eaten good and bad food in a dozen different restaurants.



I am the 5th week into cross right now, I am finally starting to get things together and get the hang of things. A lot of new stuff this year. Thanks to Mark at Westwood Cycle, the Zipp 303 wheels + Griffo Challenge tires even though I have not gotten to use these things due to extream mud conditions every weekend and the Dugast Rhinos are getting the full use. A pair of 2010 Ridley X-Nights courtesy of John at QBP, the best ride you can only imagine in cross. Mark is the main source behind a lot of things like building the bikes and servicing the equipment in my racing both on the road and in cross with Allan’s help of course. I do not know how many tires Allan has glued or bikes he has built this year. Bike racing is a very demanding sport of all levels and I would not achieve these results without Mark and Allan, I like to remind others and myself this fact every time I get on the bike.



Kurt at Verge came thru with the amazing looking stars and stripes skin suit, that are pretty much destroyed by now, it is like throwing your stuff into a pig pen and let the “hawgs” go wild ( great movie by the way) . You all know how I feel about the whole National thing, but it has all the sponsors on it and it looks cool as hell. Wore it for the first time at the Verge Series CX in RI, the skin suit even matches the bikes, I guess looks goes a long way after all! Last but not least, if you are looking to get a new pair of cross shoe, Shimano M310S moldable to your foot, light, firm and stiff like a road shoe – there is no power loss with this babies. Oh I forgot – Sports Balm , I am going threw the hot balm like almond butter ( my favorite food , as you know if you been around me long enough) .



First back to road racing. In one month 3 stage wins and overall at the GMSR, but also 3 second place , that is also fine with me , but there is one that still bugs me every day; Chris Thater Memorial crit! Probably the worst 2nd place I ever got in my bike-racing career. I lost $ 100.00 and a pair of Mavic wheels in a sprint that I should have won with my eyes closed. Totally my mistake and nobody else to blame, just waited to long and F…up big time! Then there is those 2nd places that I do not mind at all; Bear and a stage at the Tour of Catskills.



At the end of Sept, it felt like I just a 4 week training camp and could not been any more ready for CX, but the week before Green Mtn CX I got a stomach bug and even while up there my stomach was killing me, except on the bike, won both races and took the leaders Jersey for the first time ever in the New England World Cup.
Since then it has been ups and downs in that series, lost it in Gloucester and regained it in Rhode Island, lost it again to day in Maine and guess what regained it again the 2nd day in Maine and I still have it. The first day in Maine I almost got hypothermia from the pouring rain and upper 30’s temps. I love CX, but sometimes there is a fine line “is it really a cross course or is it mountain biking? “ I think that was the case on day one in New Gloucester, ME. The course was the same on Day 2 , but in reverse. This suited me better because the down hill became an up hill. The mud was even worse than the day before , but 60 degrees under blue skies was ideal and I managed to power away from the competition and take the win . This meant that the leaders jersey was mine again, so a good weekend after all.


The best part of CX , when it is over!

The Mac series is not my priority this year, but I love those races as well and they are a little closer to home. The competition is not as deep either as Verge, but there is no guarantee that I will win the races there either. I love when you win a race that goes down to the wire all the way to the finish and that was the case last week in Wissahikon with Matt Krause. Better yet it was filmed by http://www.cyclingdirt.com plus an interview after, how pro is that?
I have been training pretty hard lately (maybe too hard?) something I like to do . The more I ride the better I usually race. When the engine is running hot during the week, the level of performance is much higher as well on the weekend. The problem is; do I get the proper recovery from the intense CX races and all the driving? My goal is to be good again in Dec and maybe in Jan, I know I can still lift my game from where I am riding right now and that is a good feeling. Winning as much as possible and of course the New England series would be great, but winning a big one at the end it was counts the most..

Bridging From One Season to Another

As I stare out of my window into the New England woods, I become all too familiar with the impending autumn. The days are growing shorter and the evening air much crisper. Despite all the beauty of the changing leaves, I can only think of one thing: cyclocross season is almost here!

When the road racing season draws to a close many riders simply hang up their bikes for a few months, resigning themselves to indoor gym classes and the occasional weekend group ride, if the weather is nice. But for a growing group of racers, the fall season brings out the cyclocross bikes: machines akin to standard road bikes but with no water bottles, nobby tires and cantilever brakes.

The sport started about a century ago in Europe when road racers looking to continue their racing and training during the winter were forced across fields and over fences to avoid the snow covered roads. This new cycling discipline steadily grew into the very popular sport we now have today. When people ask me for a description, I tell them to imagine Steeplechase events, but on bicycles. The sport is a mass start bike race on a course loop that takes about seven or eight minutes to complete, with less than half on pavement and low hurdles and other obstacles like sand pits or dirt hills that often force a rider off of his bike to carry it and run. The races are held over a time length of 45 or 60 minutes, rather than a number of laps or a preset distance. The sport is a fantastic spectator event, as they are often held in parks or fields where one can watch most of the race lap from one location.

What makes this sport both fun and demanding is how it requires the athlete to not only be a strong cyclist, but also to be good at bike handing skills, a solid runner and have upper body strength to lift or carry the bicycle when needed. As such, the training for this sport is very different from normal cycling and sometimes can even favors triathletes.

The training for this sport often starts well before the season begins (usually in mid September), which can be tricky. Although the running distances can be short in cyclocross, their intensity and ability to change a race require that the racers be good at it. However, your average cyclist does not run much during the season. Often in August they will try to get out once a week for a short run, and then step it up much more once Labor Day arrives. The type of running required in a race usually means some track workouts for short intense speed, a few trail runs to help with the balance and high step exercises like stadium stairs and grass drills.

The intense pace and power required to go as fast as possible for under an hour also requires very strong core muscle strength. Cycling specific workouts including abdominal and lower back building exercises like crunches and planks are good and should be worked into the weekly routine as soon as possible, and then throughout the cyclocross season to prevent injury and muscle exhaustion.

Upper body workouts are also needed to help condition the arms, hands and shoulders for the lifting and carrying of the bike. Monkey lifts, wrist curls and box or ball pushups are a great way to help with this part.

And on the bike itself, most workouts are shorter and more explosive; taking advantage of the yearlong fitness level that most cyclists and multisport athletes have built. The need to be able to push the bike at high levels through the grass and mud requires that the racers can handle high intensity levels almost all the time.

Of course, the most important thing is to practice the sport itself when you train. Although you might look a little silly running around your local town park carrying your bicycle, getting use to doing all the different things associated with cyclocross is absolutely crucial.

Cyclocross is great for all levels of athletes as the bicycles are comparatively inexpensive and an entry level ride will get you through a whole season of beginner races. It is also a great way to continue your season a bit longer and stay fit in the process. The next year is always a lot easier to start when you come off of a three month racing season of fitness and power. Cyclocross racing also helps prevent burnout as you are doing a whole new sport that continues to benefit your summertime goals.

Waking Up Is Hard to Do

At a recent regional Olympic distance triathlon, open water currents and course issues made the swim portion of the race take much longer than is normally expected. When one of our clients came out of the water, she looked at her watch and we could instantly see that she was dejected. Her time was over six minutes longer than she had hoped even though she was one of the first women out of the water. In a very well attended and “important” event such as this, being at the pointy end of the race was very impressive, no matter what the time.

When what she thought was becoming a bad race was combined with the cold temperatures and driving rain, the fire in her eyes quickly faded. This could have been a difficult day for all involved but she was able to regain her wits and save her podium position.

One of the most difficult things to coach is self motivation. Defined as “the initiative to continue a task or activity without another’s prodding or supervision” it would be easy to think that athletes can only be born with such inner drive. Taking anyone off of the streets and helping them to reach those high standards or complete such a difficult accomplishment as a triathlon would itself be difficult otherwise.

Every day we ask our clients or ourselves to get out of bed before dawn for those long runs or swim classes, to join the local group bike ride in the afternoons and make it to the gym during lunch. When preparing for a long season or long distance endurance event, these personal sacrifices are almost mandatory. Something has to help athletes gain that motivation.

Narcissistic words such as self-confidence and self-awareness are important parts of becoming motivated. If the athlete has the knowledge that they can achieve a certain effort or distance, it instantly gives them that confidence and awareness and that helps get them through the rough spots and bad weather. No longer are they whispering “I think I can;” they are screaming “I know I will!”

Without sounding too preferential, TrainingPeaks is a fantastic tool to help with this process. The structure of a schedule or plan given by the coach is a great way to build a client’s fitness level and preparation towards an event or goal. Then, the ability that the client has to provide feedback about those workouts and track and gauge their fitness and abilities also helps. When the athlete downloads their workouts, fills in such information as sleep habits, body composition and time worked out, they can see tangible proof that they are finishing their workouts and that they are truly getting fitter.

Now that the seasons of most traditional endurance sports are drawing to a close, using a structure training plan is even more important to help fight the doldrums of winter and the potential monotony of indoor training exercises.

Almost everyone responds well to structure, no matter what their core beliefs about the subject. Utilizing the experience and knowledge of a coach to help reach a goal combined with the organizational help of TrainingPeaks makes those goals and races all the more attainable.

Sign up for a TrainingPeaks account today: get motivated to stay on track with your fitness!

The Last of the MohiFins

This past weekend, in that part of New York State where once the Delaware, Mohawk and Mohicans all raced their bicycles, an elder from a far away land came to claim "coup" on them all. Young men like Uncas and Magua were to compete against this man who had come to be called "The Flying Fin".

Soaring through the air is an important medicine to posess, but alas, it was the local standout, Chingackgook who would eventually rule the weekend. The man from a far away place surely tried to shoot straight like an arrow towards the sun - and to that sun he asked for speed as he was Roger, the Last of the MohiFins.

Not even the great James Fenimore Cooper could have scripted a better tribute to the great people who gave their souls to this beautiful part of New York State. The Tour of Catskills was a three stage event with an opening uphill-ish time trial, and two days of road races that would break the mind and spirit of even the strongest warrior.

There were Finkfrafters galore: Roger, Reggie, James, David, Todd, Death Row John, Jerry and lots of others. The elite race was a small field but with some very strong riders. Bruyneel Academy rider Peter Horn, cat2 strongman Cameron, Colavita pro and local boy Andy Gumpthill (straight off of Missouri), and the Bikereg duo of Alister Ratclif and local boy Justin Lindine. Now it is no secret and Justin and Alister used to race for me for several years, and I hold a special place in my blackened shriveled up heart for them, but when the road tips uphill: look out fo the Flying Fin.

Well, the time trial was pretty fast and everyone was within a few seconds of each other going into the first 80 mile road race. Incredibly, the finish came down to a sprint amongst the predicted strong men (the rest dropped like 4th period French class) and the Colavita pro beat the Fin by a hair. The resulting chaos put the Euro based Horn into the leaders jersey.

The next day was a 71 mile road race which included an almost 5 mile climb just 6 miles from the finish. It was no big secret that Roger would put the hurt into everyone on this climb and go for the win. However, a wrench was thrown in when Alister attacked early in the stage hunting the KOM and that forced the leader and others to chase. When Roger did finally go on the climb, he bought back the remants of the break, and although the attack was described as brutal, the tactics of the day allowed others to not work as hard and the group was still six going into town.

As Justin's teammate was out all day, he was able to conserve and bounce back after Roger at the finale and win the stage. While we all sat around afterwards, a quick math count also saw that Justin's bonus time netted him the overall win as well. Great. Roger took third for the day and 4th overall. Not too shabby considering the others in front of him were half his age and pretty darn quick.

All of the Finkrafters finished in style with James scoring a top ten. This race was very hard and difficult to complete after such a long season. It should be noted that I did not even kid myself into racing this year: no thank you!!!! Congrats to all of them for pressing on, now it is time to prepare for next year!

The Green Monster Stage race by Roger

After tossing a coin to decide if I should do the Pro 1 or the master beater race , well after all considered I signed up for the 40+ race . It is an expensive race , long trip and many days away from home , so we made it an family trip or a vacation race like my daughter called it.

Prior to this race we had a very tragic event happen in our Westwood Cycling Community . The son of our friend and teammate Gregg Cossgrove was lost in a swimming accedent and taken by the sea. About 15 of us at the GMSR all wore black "Livestrong bands" in memory of Chance.

Since I told Andreas to see if we could get the black bands I thought about winning the road race stage and dedicating the win on the highest point of the race to Chance. It seemed like that was the only thing ,besides wearing the bands and giving our prayers to Gregg and his family, that had any meaning still racing our bikes after something like this happened.

We were staying with Andreas, Monica, Joe, Trish , Eric and Bernadette in a ski condo on top of Sugarbush. Cool to just hang out and cook up a storm every night and not have to go out to some restaurant that you do not know what you will get. The weather was incredible this time , this was the 8th time I did the GMSR and probably the warmest it has ever been. I missed it one year when my daughter was born and that year it rained and was really cold. Lucky me!!

The TT is the first stage and the Master race does not go off until about 5.00 pm , so I had all day to chill and even go for an easy spin.It was easy until I had to ride back up the Sugarbush Access Rd , the gearing was a little off , a 46 is good on the TT , but not on this hill! Legs felt good , much better than the night before on our pre ride , I could barely keep up with Allan and Andreas . I knew a longer warm up was key on this TT , so I rode a good 45 -50 min on the road ( RT 100 ) and things started to fall in place . I knew I went too hard on the first part up the hill last year , so I held back a little and it worked out well . By the time I got over the top I felt nice and was able to really get on top of the 55 chain ring. The last K is brutal with the infamous "ditch" and a slight uphill the last 500 meters. I posted a 14.43 which was good enough for the win ! My good buddy Jon B took second this time ,21 sec back . In a TT you just go as hard as you can , try to gage your effort over the course to the max. No tactics , it is what it is , no matter what category you ride! Got the Yellow Jersey and dinner cooked by the girls. Yummy!!

Day 2 , the Circuit race is on the old course with the King of the Mountain and Sprint points at stake. We ride to the course and meet the girls there, quick wheel change , it is time for the Mavic Ultimates. Bling!! Troy wants the sprinters Jersey and Joe the KOM . I figure I probaly just help these guys and stay in Yellow. We do the lead out for the first sprint , no other team helps , but when we see the line everybody wants the points and go crazy. We missed that one ! KOM is next and we just keep it together and I let Joe take a stab at it , but I noticed he was getting swarmed by a bunch of guys , so I attacked them pretty hard 300 meters to go and got a hugh gap , so that was it , 5 points in the bag. Next sprint Troy got a few and I decided that KOM and a set of Edge wheels would become mine . 5 more points , exact same attack . It is all togther and Rob Lattenzi rolls up next to me , I told him to attack late in the race so we would not have to lead out or chase right away . Off he goes and two guys jumps on his wheel , shortly there after Max L takes himself out by overlapping Rob's wheel at the same time George Opria attacks and since he is in 3rd place in the GC I cover him . A couple more joins us Fred Thomas is one of them . There is a gap instantly and we have a break of 6. It is a head wind and we open the gap up quickly. I can see these guys are on the rivet , but it looks good . I have a teammate (Rob) so 1 K I attack them , but they are still clawing them self back , so I sit up and position myself behind the OA guys . I knew the headwind would be a factor and I waited . Mersee jumps and I get up to his wheel and now I knew I could win or at least lead out Rob . Win # 2 , 10 sprint points , 10 KOM points which means all 3 Jerseys, that is a good day! Ice bath and dinner, can not wait!!

Day 3 , I have only race about 5 masters races this year for a lot of reasons. I knew when we rolled down the neural hill onto RT 100 that this would be a painful ride either way how you looked at it. I rode on the front pretty much the entire race , if I would have not, someone would just rolled off and nobody would have cared , because they were to busy following the Yellow Jersey. I decided if someone was going to ride away they would have to earn it. I chased everything , kept it together on the Brandon Gap and got 10 more KOM points , so that was it for the KOM , since there was only 15 more left. Got in a few small breaks , but everything got chased down as quickly as it got away. Fast thru the dirt section , I do not know why ?? Right after we crawled up the Baby Gap, perfect place to attack , but nothing ! We get to the bottom of the App Gap. They should have just started our race there and skipped the first 73 miles , it was "who can beat Roger up the hill" . This where you get the time in this race and if nobody goes on the front and drills it , how is this possible?? You can race ( or hold hands) for 3 days and then loose it all in the Crit the next day with 45 sec time bonuses on the line. I also knew if we climb this 3k steady a lot more guys will hang on . Since 95% of the guys had sat in , somebody had to be fresh you would think. I surged on and off and by 2 K I was alone, now I just had to seal the deal ! I was too lazy to change my cassette out the night before , so 23 was the gear of choice! It was fine until the final 300 meter, 18% you know what I mean. Win # 3 ; This one was for Chance !

Day 4, The Burlington Crit.

We had to move out of our lovely bunk beds and once again pack up everything . It is a 45 min drive North to Burlington from Sugarbush. A really cool course in a really cool town overlooking Lake Champlaine. This is what most guys here just wait for all weekend , a 15 mile crit! I figured everybody was thinking if I would win the 4th stage and go after the Spinters Jersey as well. I acctually it crossed my mind , but Rob needed a few sec to get on the podium and Troy really wanted to win the stage, so just sat back a little to see what would happen. Man, if these guys would have raced like this all weekend it could have been interesting, it was fast! Rob got the seconds and one to go Mark Gunsales attacks and all the New Englanders was probably letting him go, I would have liked to as well ( Mark is a cool guy and a good friend of mine ) , but I have to ride for the team and help Troy try win the stage , so I got on the front at the first turn and let Troy loose at the last turn ( #6) , we would have needed Rob to take Troy a little closer, so Max L was on Troy's wheel (where Troy needed to be) and stole the show both from Mark and Troy. Oh well, it was close and good racing . There is always a bike race next week again, Bear Moutain!!!

Finley in the "Feed Zone " , no wonder I did not get a bottle!!!

The over all podium was actually really cool. The OA guys had brought a bottle of Champange ( I do not know if they had plans to win the thing or they just had a bottle on hand ??) Anyway I got to spary it around like the real deal and it was a nice touch !! Thanks Team OA!!

Now we just had to get that burger and fries at our favorite sidewalk cafe and watch the 2's got at it! This last day is such a nice race and town to hang out in , caps the great weekend off and you just do not want to get in the car and drive home for 6 hours! Oh well we will be back here again in 3 weeks for some CROSS, can not wait!!

Thanks for reading, more racing to come!!

Alien autopsy provides startling results

Dateline: Haworth, NJ. The Finkfraft Press has dug up exciting news about the sole survivor of what was thought to be an UFO that landed in this area in 1992. This Unidentified Finnish Object's pilot had apparently integrated himself with our population and began to take up our sports with what was thought to be his plot of evil world domination.




Well, breaking news from Harriman NY came this weekend when it was discovered that the UFO was actually human! Oh, my gosh is right. Despite his winning the NY Biathlon #2 with very fast runs and a bike split that would have gotten a car driver several tickets (true); this reporter was on hand to see Roger Aspholm tired and sore. It turns out that even he can regret not doing any run training prior to the 3-16-3 event. Yes, it's true, his legs hurt going down stairs on the next day just like the rest of us. Very exciting news indeed.



Also in the biathlon were the UFO's mind-melted wife Kim, who score in her age group bested only by friend Lan Huynh. Finkrafter Eric Carlson was there too with solid times and efforts.

The event also had a triathlon at the same time with a 1/2 mile swim proceeding the bike and run held on the classic Bear Mtn/Harriman course. Competing in the triathlon were Finkrafter Lyn McCabe, taking her age group with ease and 6th overall. Finkraft coach Kyle Wolfe woke up to take 9th overall and the silver in his age group. Not too shabby.



It should be noted that the UFO did not compete in the previously day's triathlon at the same location (with reverse bike loop, cool) further proving his now obvious humaness. However, Finkrafter Lyn McCabe was there, winning her age group again and 5th overall, as well as Matt Scott with a solid time and David Marcus taking the age group bronze. Not too shabby for an old guy!!



Special mention goes to friend Stephen Katz for competing in both days and doing darn good in both of them. Awesome!



This reporter is relieved that the UFO was not from another planet, but now is even more suspect of what is obviously a government conspiracy regarding human mutant gene experiments that produced the athlete rumored to be called "The Flying Fin". We can only imagine the destruction that might be rained down on our peaceful earth with this news. One thing is for certain: We Are Not Alone.

I felt like running By Fore....Roger

A couple of weeks has gone by, time flies when your are having fun. Well , it seems like it all came to a screeching halt on Sunday , I decided to do my annual duathlon without any running in my legs since last Dec and now I can not barely walk. I have run some marathons in the past, 12-15 years ago and the next 3 days was just like this after the race. Every single inch of my legs hurts like hell. To add some insult to the injury, I got a cold as well !

The duathlon went OK , it was an friendly event with my wife, Eric, Burny and Trish. Joe and Monica were our fanclub , taking pictures and cheering us on . I knew what the consequences would be , so I really tried to hold back on the run . It was 3 miles then 16 miles on the bike and another painful 3 miles run to finish of my legs! We got to sport the new FinKraft/Westwood Cycle multisport suits , the cyling farmers tan goes really well with these sleeveless things.

I love the bike part of any duathlon. Particularly this one , since I have probably ridden this Harriman race course about 300 times . Duathletes and triathltes are a different breed and my only goal is to kill them all on the bike . No different this time . There was one pro triathlte though that tried to hunt me down on the second run , but fell short and I crossed the finish line first and my legs were instantly destroyed.

The day before we did the Capitol Region Road Race , which is also the NY State Champion ships.
Three of my friends and people I ride with quite often took home the Gold. Great job Maria, Shane and Allan.
I had good legs , but bad tactics. I and the 3-4 other favorites just watched each other and next thing you know there was a bunch of guys up the road and we were 4 mins back chasing the rest of the day . There are guys that have nobody in the break and thinks it is cool to just sit on on soft pedal their way thru , so a frustrating situation . I won last weeks Tokeneke, Peter Hurst 2nd and Jamie Discroll 3rd . Well, we are all in this group with in addition of Matt Mainer who has two guys up the road, so he was allowed to sit on, no problem there . I am 41 and has no ambitions to turn pro or anything so I race hard until I blow up , if not I win a few. I like to test myself against these younger guys and it is fun for me if the race is hard. I am happy the way I felt and I made some good efforts in the race, even we were racing for 5th , not a bad day!

The week before that was a great week. I got some really quality hours of training , actually the second part of a pretty big block . It is very rare that you can do a perfect 10 mile point to point TT , almost flat and no wind. Well the Kingwood or "the Kingpin "( like I call this race) TT is just like that and an perfect opportunity to test yourself on the road. The power were up there and watts per kg what I wanted to see, 5.5 watts /kg. Besides missing my start time by a min 20 or so, this was a perfect run!
The next day was an other cool road race , yes with hills! Tokeneke road race , little short for a pro 1 2 race only 63 miles , but the field was nice and stacked with some top notch North East riders. The race was really fast the first lap and I was not feeling so sparky, but nothing went away and the next lap was slow as hell. Sure enough a few guys start rolling of the front and once again nobody seems to care . The climbs are a little longer in this race , so the break never really gained too much time and on the 3rd lap I contributed a little to the chase with two Indyfab guys , Peter Hurst and this tall Spanish guy ( pretty strong). About 30 guys were just sitting on , including 4-5 Bikereg/Cannondale guys since they had Eric S in the break. We got it close enough so they pulled the Scram car out in between the group and the break. That was my plan anyway , to get them close and maybe do a bridge attempt on the climb after the dam. Well , I just had to sit on Jamie Discroll's wheel for a mile or two at 500+ watts and the job was done, only 4-5 guys were able to hang on and we caught the break in no time , so now we are about 10 guys at the front ! I liked this situation much better, because I knew 4-5 of those guys were tired . We all came together at the bottom of the finishing climb , my plan was just to follow wheels and be at striking distance once it mattered . For some reason I felt really good now . Jamie, Peter and Alistar kept surging and that pretty much narrowed things down to 4 of us . I was the most patience I ever been in a race and once their tanks started to show signs of E (empty) , right about 200 meters to go , it was time to go ! I actually never timed a finishing sprint this well and it seem like I had several bike lenghts at the line . I personally think this was one of my better wins in a while , it is not so easy to win a pro 12 race to begin with . Last year I won Unionvale and Tour of Catskills which was big too, but this one felt good ! I got to wear a nice Foam hat on the podium and $ 250.00 , after paying my babysitter that day ,I was still ahead of the game !

The week before that we had out Westwood Velo Long Meadow TT champion ships , it was the CRCA club TT champion ships as well, but I consider this to be the Westwood Velo Worlds as well! A beautiful morning on the most beautiful TT course there is . In addition the organisation of this event is flawless with Steve Goldman behind the wheel. I had ridden the course about 3-4 times that week with various clients , besides a ton of other hours of riding , so not exactly tapered and fresh . I felt good on my warm up and down the course before the start. I do not like warming up on the trainer so I almost always choose the road ! This course is well suited to me , long gradual false flats and hills , could you ask for anything else ? A hard TT course for sure. My goal is always to win , but if you can finish on a different min than anyone else that is a bonus!

Then right after we were stupid enough to ride the TTT , same course with my buddies; Andreas, Glen and Joe. TTT is a lot of fun and I whish they had more of those , well maybe not the same day as the individiual one though , it is not that much fun! We took a respectable 3rd , beaten by the CRCA boys! Loosing sucks!!

Now this is a long time a go , I am really surprised I remembered what happened. Usually I do not remember what I had for breakfast , I am not someone who lives in the past , it is all about what can I accomplish today. Maybe win The Finally Of the Rockleigh Series , that is where I am going now.

Thanks for reading again.

Ready for a cruise....?

Another weekend went by and Tokeneke had not the expected outcome for me.
The same was true for Tour of Hillstown and Unionvale for that matter.
I questioned the reasons for the poor results and came to following conclusions. Besides the fact that my legs did not feel super in either of the two last races (Unionvale was a mechanical) compare to like mid-season, I noticed that my head was not 100% in them. The will to fight and suffer was somewhat not there.
Now, I love the bike, love riding it, thinking about it, even at work, etc. but something had changed - faded over the past couple of weeks - THE DESIRE TO RACE.
Now, most would call it a burn-out situation, but frankly I am already thinking of Capital Region so that alone is likely not the case. I truly believe that I just need to re-set, re-fresh my mind and things will once more fall in place, because the fitness is there and the coach seems to believe that also.
The other day I was on a short luncheon ride and rode up the Westside and noticed a herd of people coming off a cruise.
Weird thing about it is, that I almost never took interest in them on any level since I had a cliche picture of them - feasting on huge overgrown buffets and then just lay in some chair by a pool with a mixed drink, etc.
As that picture popped into my mind I realized that I for once would not mind being one of those "cruisers". This conclusion bundled with a stressful morning really did not make the ride itself more enjoyable.
What is the morale of this write-up? Actually, no idea - but if there is one it would be that we all may have a little slump throughout the season and unless we subcome to the "temptation of a week's cruise" we will overcome it and be stronger, or another morale could be "go on the cruise" and transform your body in one week to a dimension that will surely make you more "powerful".
Either way, I will continue to train hard and look forward to Green Mountain - a race that I really LOVE.

Practicing what I preach

I could never lie to you, my faithful readers, everything hurts. Let me tell you why. The Fin has asked me to race in the upcoming NYC Triathlon at Bear Mountain on August 16th. It's a short sprint course: 0.5m swim, 16m bike and 3m run. Piece of cake I tell him. Heck, I won it twice back in the early 90's I tell him. I did that course first when I was in High School, I tell him. What I neglect to tell him is that it has been some time since I have ran or swim. Ugh.

Let me continue to be honest here...I am feeling a little pressure. I am one of the multisport coaches at Finkraft. And we know his Finship is going to go fast, that is just what he does. And Mrs. Fin won the duathlon event last year. Yikes. I better get cracking.

I have been running a bit. That first day was ugly. My legs have been very comfortable on that saddle, not having to support any actual weight. After my first run, I was sore for a week. Then lets talk about swimming. I am primarily a bike racer. That means I have skinny arms; not ideal for upper body sports. They too are tired.

So, I hit the pool. It has been a long time since my multisport glory days. Long gone are the 90 second interval sessions. Long gone is the knowledge of being alpha male at the YMCA. Long gone is the lack of fear of drowning. I might need assistance. Well, this doesn't get any better. My girlfriend is also doing the event, plus several others. She is a former NCAA Div I swimmer. She is very fast. She is not riding her bike when in the pool, which means she can rub my face in the fact that she is finally faster than me in sports. It has been a few long drives home from the pool. I better get cracking.

It is coming back fast. I remember my strokes, I remember my drills. I ride the time trial bike a lot anyhow, so that part is easy. And running is just natural, anyone can run! I look to find my other equipment. The tri-suits have changed styles a bit; might need to get something a little less revealing. And there will definitely be more shaving involved in the coming weeks.

I am excited about it. I am looking forward to showing the Finkraft clients that they are invested in a qualified company with qualified coaches. I am looking forward to just surviving! Yikes! Really though, check out all of our resources for tips and ideals for race day for triathlons and duathlons. Thanks for reading and if you don't race, wish me luck!!!!

2nd part of the season

Bikes make good clothing racks as well!!

It has been 3 weeks since Fitchburg and I have been sleeping in my own bed now for a few weeks. Yesterday was my first race back , Tour of Hilltown. I like to ease back into it , yeah right. Tour of Hilltowns are one of the hardest and most painful races around here due to the distance( 97 mile) and hills! A tall order for a 40+ guy.

Rewind a little , after Fitchburg which went Ok , raced the 35+ , I was maybe not as hungry to win as previous years, but by Saturday starting to feel back to normal . I managed to get 2nd overall and win the road race stage after the the National tabacle , so not all that bad ! In addition team Westwood Velo won the crit stage with Troy Kimball , now also coached by Finkraft!

Just a lots of ice baths and all the other trick you have to pull out of the bag to keep going!

I still did a few more days of training after the 6 days of racing and then pulled the plug. 4 days off the bike for some family time , wedding and chilling out in pool was a nice time and a big mental recovery. The body just does not like it all that much , it really does some wired things and even it is very good for healing , 4 days not doing anything makes you feel awful!

No comments!!!



Back to work and training , low intensity , just volume, 28 hours ( first day short and easy on the Power Cranks) and 7th day the Rocket ride to introduce some intensity back to the system. Felt surprisingly good and motivated again . More Power Cranks the second week , but recovery as well and only two longer rides one little faster one up to Bear Mountain with Andreas, Evan and Allan . Come Saturday recovered just in time for the Tour of Hilltown.


Powercranks , coke and BearMountain ..........life is good , but painful!!

A little race report , very fast as usual right from the gun and 10 miles into the 97 mile race a split in the field happens and I was not going to miss that!! Who ever did miss that one would be chasing a looong time ! About 20 riders with most team represented and the pace remained high. We built up a lead pretty quickly. The real race always starts on the second lap when we get to the BIG climb, a 5 mile wall . Dan Vallencourt, Mike Barton, Mike Margarite, William Goodfellow and myself separated ourselves from the rest and this was the race !! Funny 2 years ago , it was almost the identical break. Dan, Mike B and myself. Just 2 new guys . There was definitely a few spots of bother, like Phil Liggets says . This race is very hard at times and the suffering is unbelievable if you want to be there in the end. You always have good moments and next thing you know you almost get dropped. That is the time to pull yourself inside out and hope to come back. It happened a few times and I think that is when the experience comes to play. I think a probably felt the best 1K to go ( go figure) It was a tad to late because Dan attacked and got away 2K to go , he was no doubt the strongest in the break and I new he was the guy to beat. It was a 3 man sprint for second , I just got past on the line , but held on for 3rd . Not too bad for an old fart like Lance refers himself amongst the 20 year old fast men!

Now a day rest and spend some time with my daughter then an other big training block . I do not race that much in August because it is in September when it all starts , CycloCross!! Every weekend Saturday and Sunday until pretty much Christmas! This puts a lot of stress on everything that involves me , family, work, my body and even on my car! I am pretty excited , two new X-Nights are on order I am prepared more than ever! Before that still 2 more months of hard road races, this is the halfway mark !!

In training mode , this bike weighs at least 45 lbs , should meet the USA cycling standards!!

Thanks for reading again

Roger