Riding with The Klugs

Mt. Morris-Subaru Cup XC

2010-06-27T18:59:00.000-05:00

Friday I drove up to Mt. Morris. Kevin had just gotten back from NY so I wanted to wait to wish him a happy birthday before I left. Got there around 4 and met up with Rachael to do the preride. We set off and for some strange reason my Specialized shoes kept on unclipping with every single little bump. I rode the first lap frustrated with my shoes and before the second I went back and changed to my Northwaves.(glad I brought and extra pair!) Second lap was much better and I was totally digging the course.We went back to the hotels and got showered and all went to dinner. We went to a Mexican Restaurant(Po Po's) that used to be a Denny's or Friendly's. The menu was the old menu but an added section with Mexican fare. We were all really surprised that our plates looked just like the pictures and the food was good. We went home and it was time for sleep.

Got up early and headed over to the course so I could watch the Cat 2 races and hang a bit before having to get warmed up to race. Around 10 it was time to get changed and do a warm up. I hit the road for a bit and got the legs going. Rachael and I then headed over to the staging area. I was glad that there were no series call ups because sometimes those call ups tend to put some people on the front row that really shouldn't start there. I made sure that I got a spot on the line and was ready to go.

Don did his thing and we were off. I had a great start and hit it hard. It paid off cause when I looked back I had a nice gap on the rest of the field and knew I would be able to hold this pace all the way up. My strategy was to haul ass up the climbs and make the girls work to catch me but my plan was spoiled when I saw the congo line of Cat 1 men at the entrance of the single track. There was nowhere to go except wait in line. Foot down and all the women soon assembled in line with me. Stuck in the congo line for 2 or 3 sections of single track sucked. It was slow and guys kept bobbling on the rocks which then made us constantly running around them or putting a foot down. At one point in the congo line one of the women decided to go off the course and then back in a few spots ahead. I was thinking what the hell was that? In cross if you cut off the course you need to go back in where you went out, tape or no tape but I guess its just an etiquette thing to not do that in mt biking. It pissed me off but there was nothing I could do but try to keep my spot and not let others sneak by like that. Things started to spread out a little and we were able to ride almost at speed. I was feeling good about keeping the girl in range until the guy in front of me went down and I got caught up with him as Lisa blew by. Finally we were out of the single track and in a nice power section. I went to my big ring and got chain suck and had to stop pedaling to keep the chain from getting wedged up in my chainring and Robin flew by me. I got going but I didn't want to risk miss shifting again so it was the small ring for the rest of the race.(I have XX so it isn't the granny thank goodness!) At some point in the downhill single track I let Lori go ahead of me so I could follow her lines. We hit the section with the tight uphill switchbacks and the rock drop. I rode the switchbacks but when I went to do the rock drop I ended up sitting on the rock. People were yelling at me to get up but I was kind of enjoying the rest and hopped back on the bike. I was able to get back on Lori's wheel as we went through the lap through and charged up the hill passing and gaping Lori. From there I would remain for the rest of the race, in fourth.

Second lap went well and I felt really strong on the climbs. I got back to the rock drop section and rocked out the switchbacks and as I was about to go over the rocks I chicked out and put my foot down. The whole 3rd lap I kept on seeing Becca(?) so I wanted to keep things steady through the single track and hit the hills with everything I had. Kept on thinking about the rocks as I started the switchbacks and decided to dismount and run them. This was actually a good decisions since I was able to get through it fast. I then finished up the last bit of single track to the finish. It was weird racing 3 short laps. It would have been nice to do another since the course was awesome! I was and still am stoked about getting 4th in my first race of the season especially with the field being 35 women!

Spent the next 7 hrs with Rachael watching the pros race and then waiting around for the awards with John, Lori, Mark, Cale, and Katy. Got some CASH and then headed for home to celebrate Kevin's birthday which was on Thursday.
~holly

12 opps! 10 Hours of Muir

2010-06-24T10:36:00.000-05:00

Saturday we were given a bit more time in the AM due to a later start for the 12 hr Muir race. A couple months ago Kevin Heppner asked Tom and I to do the 12 hr team event. We then snagged Jason Labella a few days before the race to be our fourth.

Tom started us off and I made him promise not to run like a candy ass to his bike(he usually likes to do this just to annoy me). He ran like a normal human and got right up there in about 6th position. An hour ten later he came rolling in muddy as hell. Trails were a mess and he went down a few times. Jason was next and he was planning on doing 2 laps in a row.

I got suited up just in case he only wanted to do 1 and waited for him. He came in and yelled for me to go. I then set off planning on doing 2 in a row too. My first lap was slow due to the mud. Every corner in the blue was messy and slick so you would pick up speed and have to slow down before making the turn and then accelerate out again and again. I came through and felt good so I then set off on my second lap. It was a totally different course. Things were drying up and getting fast. I finished my second and Heppner set out for his lap. Things were getting faster and soon after Tom's second(fastest time for our team @1:01) we realized we were going back and forth for 2nd place.

Jason had gone off for his second lap and again was planning for 2 in a row. If this happened it would put me with the responsibility of the last lap. Again, I got ready just in case and watched as the other team came in a few minutes ahead of Jason. Again, Jason was screaming for me to go, he had crashed into a tree. I was taken by surprised and wasn't quite prepared to go. Legs were tight from sitting around and as I was busy tightening my helmet through the kids section hoping my legs would loosen up fast. Legs came around quickly and the course was perfection. I got in a good groove and was flying. I was passing people left and right. When I turned onto the orange to go the opposite way towards the white I saw the guy from the team in 2nd. Since it was a slight climb and I knew the white trail really well I quickly got right on this guys wheel. He asked if I wanted to pass but I said just keep the steady pace for now. Well, what has been happening a lot, again happened. He started to ride a little bit faster and then hit the deck. This has been happening a lot lately as I ride behind guys that don't know me. They realized a girl is behind them and can hang and all of a sudden they pick up speed and then crash. I went around him and was gone after that. I kept my groove and "girled" Russell, Tim, and Bubba. I came in a few minutes ahead of the guy and had my best lap time of 1:04!

Heppner set out for the last lap but couldn't hold off the charge of their last guy. That guy did the lap in under an hour. We only lost to second by a few minutes. Not bad for our team against an all guys team. We had a blast hanging out with everyone. Kenny put on a great race!
~holly

No Race, No 90 day Picture

2010-06-02T18:51:00.001-05:00

Last minute on Sat. I decided not to race and instead enjoy time with my family. I also forgot to take pictures on day 90. So no race results or write up and no 90 day pictures like I promised.

Sat. morning I did my leg opener thinking I was still racing and later in the day hit Kettle with Tom. I got back and made dinner with Kevin and watched the Blackhawks win game 1! On Sunday Kevin, Tom, Mark and I rode Kettle. At Emma I ran into Jason. That was fun hanging on his wheel back to the lot. Then I went out for one last orange loop with Kevin. Kevin was delighted that I was trying to see how fast I could go into the corners and had a good chuckle when I washed out on one of them. I really love the orange loop climb. They did an excellent job with it.

Mark and Tom came back to our house for some food and adult drinks. It was a beautiful bug free evening. On Monday we got up early so we could get things done before heading back to Chicago. I rode at Kettle while Kevin hit the road for a training ride. I then planted cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce and peppers in my little garden on the deck. I still am looking for strawberry plants to test out my topsy turvy garden. We left the WI house around 2 thinking there might be some traffic but got really lucky and were in Chicago a little before 4. This gave us enough time to get settled and caught up before the Blackhawks game. The Blackhawks won which was a great way to end the long weekend.

Now I am officially done with p90x and completely devoted to my bike training. I am feeling a little at a loss not having the schedule of the p90x and a slight fear that everything I worked for will disappear quickly. I probably will try to do some maintenance stuff as soon as school is out. June 18th is the magic day!
~holly

Day 90 + 1st MTB Race = May 30

2010-05-27T18:33:00.001-05:00

Wow I just realized that my day 90 of p90x is the same as my first mountain bike race of the season, WORS Big Ring Classic. Hopefully I can BRING IT like I have been with p90x! I'm a bit worried since it is very early in my bike training and the p90x hasn't been the greatest at giving me speed, in fact it has slowed me down a bit so my body could build all the lean muscle.(that's what all the forums say and I really believe it)

I have been extremely overwhelmed the last few weeks of p90x because my bike training has stepped up a bit. Combine 1:30 to 2hrs of interval training on the bike and then another 1:15 of p90x, plus work; I barely have time to do normal chores of life. When I have a rest day from the bike, I have a workout for p90x, and when I have a rest day for p90x, I have a workout for the bike. Needless to say, I haven't had a day of doing absolutely nothing since I started in March. I miss that....

Well there will be no excuses on Sunday from me. I've had a lot of people say to use it as a training race to see where I am at but unfortunately I will be my competitive self, as there is no off button for that in my body. A race is a race, there is no training ride during a race. You do that before and after a race. Will post Day 90 pics and race report next week. Wish me luck!
~holly

The OFF Seaon with BEACHBODY

2010-05-24T17:48:00.001-05:00

So right after Nationals, I had it in my head that I was going to try and maintain as close as possible my race weigh. Now when one isn't racing it is very hard to do, but it was my goal that I needed to set to get me through the holidays and wintry weather. Along with this goal, I had seen for like the 100th time(I am sure most of you have seen it) the infomercial for P90X . Thinking that p90x was mainly for guys, I checked out the website Beachbody that sold p90x and decided to do Charlene Extreme . This is also a 90day muscle building program. I told a few people what I had ordered(they were laughing and as skeptical as myself) and wanted to actually see what this program could for my already in shape self. I figured since I hate lifting weights and this will make me do it, which couldn't hurt.

Dec. 23 I started but didn't take any pictures(I am kind of mad at myself for not). By day 30 I was seeing some results and was only off my race weight by a pound. I also noticed my running pace picking up significantly due to the plyometrics portion of the training. By day 60 I was in awe of my nicely shaped shoulders and arms that I decided to order and start p90x . So around day 70 I was now switching to p90x.

For this I took pictures..Day 1- 75 are below. Can't figure out how to align these. I am on Day 85 today so Day 90 pictures to come. This really works but it definitely has been a challenge with my bike training. Thank goodness my Coach, Brian Conant, has done part of p90x so he has been taking it easy on me so I can finish this round strong.

Day 1

Not the greatest shots since I couldn't figure out how to get the flash off the camera.

DAY 15 & DAY 20

DAY 30

DAY45

DAY 60 (next 2)

DAY 75 (these 3)

All of a sudden my abs really popped out!

Nice article in CX Magazine on The Pony Shop

2009-12-28T20:10:00.002-06:00

http://cxmagazine.com/cyclocross-spoken-pony-shop-chicagoland#more-9276

Thanks....

2009-12-15T12:48:00.006-06:00

Planet Bike/WCA Series Win

A special thanks to our supporters, sponsors and Aaron Hayes for building me an exceptional bike frame. Alex from Roscoe Village Bikes was a great help...building multiple wheel sets, bikes all at the 11th hour before the first race. He dropped what he was doing in terms of his business and always supported us with last minute fixes and building all this stuff Wednesday before the first race. Even if I needed wheel builds for my mountain bikes or stringing up cables on a travel bike.

Thanks again to Brian Conant for helping me get faster this year and properly managing fitness peak and dealing with my last minute business travel and schedule changes.

Also, thanks to the individuals, sponsors, organizers for the Chicago Cyclocross Series and the WCA Planet Bike Series. 4 years ago there were few cross races in the area. Next year, I hope both series can better coordinate to offset the overlap of these races. More racers more fun for each event. We still had 22 race days this year but could always do a few more.

Mens Masters 35-39

2009-12-15T12:19:00.004-06:00

Epic conditions with standing water, mud and slick grass with a few icy corners to make it interesting. Pre riding the course felt better with more confidence inspiring traction than early this week. Call up spot in the middle of the 4th row.

Had a good start and it was elbow to elbow with a lot of pushing for the hole shot. Nowhere to really go and it was hard to get ahead with riders wide across. The start of this race was as fast as the USGP Madison and Jingle Cross races. No one is giving in inch.

First lap was still hard to pass but I was staying on my bike scrubbing speed in corners. Next couple of laps, pushing as hard as I could and not able to pass anyone sitting about 25th.

Last 3 laps, things started coming apart for me. The new defrosted ground conditions unearthed some softball sized rocks that were hard to see in the mud in corners and I found a few of them sending me over my bars twice, once in the "Velonews" corner to watch section and another at the end of the straight going by the pits. I dropped a chain and watched about 5 guys ride by my. With 3 to go, I felt like I was gaining some momentum and feeling settled and could move a up a few spots. My hands froze after going into the water.

Finishing 28th overall. I had hoped for a top 10 finish.

A special thanks to Mike Hemme and Aaron for giving me a spare derailleur hanger the day before the race.

A couple of takeaways on Nationals...

The course conditions were epic muddy and I have not been riding this stuff all year. Jingle cross was the only mud race. Probably will spend some time on the cross bike on trails. Handling skills and keeping pedal inputs smooth don't seem as well rehearsed for me versus the mountain bike. I can ride shit like this all day on fast 29er wheels but bringing it together on a cross bike is different. Can't make any mistakes since there's limited power spots to make up time. I recognize, I am better suited for dry, fast courses with limited climbing. It's all relative...the people that compete here all fast.

Can always start better. Lined up with guys just as fast or faster. Most races, there's maybe 5 guys and you can make up an average start during the next lap. With this level of comp, going into the hole shot elbow to elbow with these guys, have to expect more from a fast start. If you lose 5-10 seconds, you won't get it back.

It was still worth the trip coming out here though. Bend and Portland have alot more to offer in terms of cycling and awesome food, coffee and the best beers. I might never have come to this part of the country if it were not for this race. Plenty of nice bike shops to fix bent derailleur hangers and parts. For anyone considering the trip next year, I would suggest it. Not sure if I will come out again for Bend since I have already experienced it though. The people here were beyond enthusiastic to have all these bike racers which will be hard for any other venue to replicate. It was cool wearing the Courage Portland kit to get some extra cheers from strangers.

It was very difficult managing race days with proper warm up and mechanical support. The race site had neutral support but I would have liked to have all my tools, multiple wheel sets and spare parts. The race site had no neutral warm up tent. How do they expect people that travel all this way to bring a trainer? Thanks to the folks at Planet Bike for extending their hospitality with a warm tent and trainer.

So, Nationals will definitely be in the cards again but I would like to drive my truck there with all of my bikes, wheels, tent, trainer and my own power washer and a bad ass set of tools.

Plans next year will be the same, all about cyclocross with a couple of more WORS races in July and perhaps IceMan and Chemequon.

Though I had hoped to do better at the Wisconsin and Illinois state race and Nationals, still felt like I had a good season and I am satisfied with how things went. Certainly had alot of fun and always enjoy the camaraderie of the cross scene.
Looking forward to not looking at my bike for a couple of months.

Women's Masters 35-39

2009-12-15T09:15:00.002-06:00

So Friday afternoon was the big race I had been preparing for all season, the master's race. We got to the course around noon to preride during the open hour. The preride sucked. It was so crowded that there was no way to tell what the conditions would be like at any speed since we were going slower than a snail. Also, with everyone preriding it, it was kind of like a Zamboni making every bit of it a slick hard packed ice rink. I was hoping the sun would come out and warm it up by 2 because the thought of riding ice the whole time got me even more nervous.

One of the things that the venue did not have(Kansas City did) was a warm up tent. It is hard enough coming from so far away with four bikes and all your gear to then bring a trainer to warm up on. Riding around the streets wasn't the best since they were so slushy and full of traffic due to street closures. Planet Bike said I could warm up at their tent except they had a few other racers racing at the same time and I didn't want to intrude. So my warm up consisted of hanging out with Kevin in the car with the heat blasting and a quick 15 minute ride on the slushy road that just soaked my feet. On my way to staging I ran into Diane O, who had just won the National Jersey for 55-60. She wished me good luck and said that some of the ice had melted and I would enjoy the course. That was reassuring.

Waiting to be staged we were behind the masters 30-34 women. They had about 35 racers in their group. We were going to be going off 30 seconds after them. I was worried about that because 30 seconds isn't alot of time in between especially since the back rows of the 30-34 are Cat 3 and 4s. They finally got to us and I was in the 2nd row. I think our race had about 40 women.

The first gun went off and the younger group(their numbers were different colors) went and we pulled to the line for our gun. It went and it was a frenzy to grab positions. I was happy with my start but when we hit the hole shot left turn I lost a few spaces. As we went through the straight away before turning right to go by the pit we were already hitting traffic from the younger group. This was very frustrating because the course was still icy and slushy they were afraid to move to get out of the way. So for the rest of the race we would be dealing with traffic. This just really threw off my game. I let it frustrate me too much that I started to take risks in corners and spots that were still icy sending me down multiple times. I would gain a spot or two and then go down or get caught behind a rider with nowhere to get around. I was constantly yelling not in your age group but some of the women would still try to race you to the corner instead of letting you by.

Finally the bell lap came and I could see 2 women in my age group and 1 not ahead of me. I pushed as hard as I could and closed the gap. The woman that wasn't in my age group was on the same team as one that was in my group. I kept on saying that I wasn't in her age group but she would not move over and it even seemed that she slowed down to create a gap between herself and her teammate. By the time the course opened up for me to get around the gap was too big in the short amount of course left to the finish line. I came in 12th, pretty much where I started. I did have a huge smile on my face knowing the season was over. 21 CX races in a span of 4 months. It was a great season!~holly

Killer Bs

2009-12-13T07:38:00.003-06:00

pictures by pdx

So Thursday morning was the start of our racing at Nationals. My race was at 8:30 and was a balmy 9 degrees. I wasn't too worried about the cold except for my hands and feet. I popped some feet warmers in my shoes so that was solved but I knew I couldn't race in my lobster gloves because they are so bulky it makes braking and shifting really impossible. So I threw on some liners and my pink Defeet wool gloves and held on to hand warmers until right before the gun.

There were 40 of us for this race. Call ups were done the Cross Crusade way by random drawing of numbers. If the number drawn matched your last digit then you went to the line. My number came up 3rd and that meant third row start. I was fine with that since my starts have been really on this year and there was enough straight away before the hole shot to maybe get up towards the front. The gun went of and we were off. I made my way to about 10th for the hole shot and as soon as we hit the snowy course girls were down. Making sure that I didn't get too close to anyone since some were going down on straight aways. I decided to take the thick untraveled line as we passed the pit to pass a few more girls. We then hit the back part of the course where I was able to pass some more until I got behind the leader. I stayed behind her trying to get around her but there just wasn't room on the course to pass without taking the risky icy line. We got to the stair run up and I finally was able to pass her there. I was then able to really open up a gap on the barriers and the run up which I was able to ride.

On the second lap my fingers became numb heavy blocks and I couldn't tell if I was shifting or braking. I went down on some black ice on a corner but was able to recover quick enough to keep my gap. I yelled to Kevin in the pits about my hands but he really wasn't sure what to do except offer me his gloves when I came around again. I declined the offer and just told myself to suck it up. I rode the next 3 laps clean maintaining my lead and finally began to feel my fingers again. On the bell lap I went down on the off camber after the stairs. As I was running with my bike I saw that I dropped my chain and had to stop for a moment to put it back on. As I hopped back on my bike I could see 2nd and 3rd together coming strong. I needed to stay upright for the last bit of the course and ride the run up. I was able to do that and got the win.

It was a great way to start off and I was feeling a little bit more confident for my Masters race the next day. Since the Bs race isn't a national champion jersey race I won a really cool bag.
~holly

Thursday Course

2009-12-11T23:43:00.002-06:00

As each day passes the course is changing dramatically. Here are some pic links to cyclingnew.com's website of pictures from Kevin's race Thursday at 11AM.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/photos/usa-cyclo-cross-national-championship-course-preview/97821

Bend

2009-12-10T15:06:00.003-06:00

Been a while since I posted. Work, life etc.

Scott McLaughlin told us about the Bs race so we decided to do it as a leg opener and course familiarization. I have not ridden since Montrose. Brian told me at this point, it doesn't matter, but I usually do best when I have some kind of hard effort right before the race.

Holly won the Bs race, I took second. I raced with my Craft lobster gloves on since it was a balmy 4 degrees at the start of the race and I could not get through a lap on the pre ride in my full fingered gloves without freezing my fingers.

I was able to take the race lead after 2 laps and the corners were already getting iced up and I started losing my wheel through turns. Eventually, my gloves were waterlogged with sweat and I lost the ability to smooth out my braking in these sections since my hands were slippery and I had no feeling on the levers. I wanted to take the gloves off but Holly told me to keep them on.

2 laps to go, I went through the pit (without stopping) and tossed her the gloves. I thought I would have to come in for any exchange, however, I was supposed to come to a complete stop or would be disqualified for riding a better line in the pit.

Next 1/2 lap, I had to come in again, and stop and get off the bike or the judge would have DQ me. The gap I had was lost with 2 pit stops and Shad from KCCX was able to take the lead. I felt pretty strong but this was a blunder that cost me the race. My fault for not knowing the rules.

Either way, it was great to get out on the course and open my legs and ride everything at race speed. The course is starting to ice up in corners which is much different from my 830am pre ride. I am sure it will be different for Saturday since they're calling for mixed conditions, but it's nice to know the line. I probably went down 5 times with black ice corners. No tire can help with those but I really like riding the Fango 34s.

A couple of other mistakes.....forgot my other wheel bag in the garage so Holly and I have 4 bikes and 2 sets of wheels. Also, brought my road shoes instead of my cross shoes....they look exactly the same. Went out last night to Webcyclery and picked up some Shimano mid level shoes and eggbeater cleats. Pretty good shoe for the money. Gave us a chance to try the new Shimano electric group which was really killer.

Bend is really cool...a drive through the mountains in Mt. Hood National forest which then become high, dry desert in Bend. Obviously, cool bike friendly town. It was great they did a news piece last night on the race and hyped up the location as a hot bed for cycling. Cool people, great crowds...

Tomorrow, Holly races at 2:30 and I will probably ride the course at noon for an hour again.

Shhh, I Should be Packing!

2009-12-08T17:06:00.005-06:00

I should be helping Kevin pack up the bikes for Bend so here are a few pics from Sunday's fun. Top picture by Rusty. Bottom pictures by Cecile R.

(And yes, I still think the knee sock look is so UGLY and UNFLATTERING, but I was being festive!)

Leaving for Bend tomorrow morning. Racing the Bs on Thursday for a leg opener and my big race, Masters Women 35-39, is Friday! Wish me luck~holly

Jingle CX Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!

2009-11-30T17:21:00.004-06:00

all photos by maurio

It was cold and windy and my body was pretty fried from 2 days of hard racing. Not my best day out there.....

All in all, Kevin and I got lucky to have no broken parts. Mike Wakeley was our saving grace in the pits and Fri and Sat we sure had him working. The Eriksen is awesome!!!!! Raced it all 3 days and when I was on the Rock Lobster I couldn't wait to come in for a bike change..

Jingle CX Saturday

2009-11-30T17:17:00.003-06:00

all photos from maurio

Sunny skies made for a beautiful day. Had some brake issues that made me lose a few spots.

Jingle CX Friday Night Lights

2009-11-30T16:58:00.002-06:00

picture by maurio

Got my first UCI point. Guess I can run through mud.

Mens Wisconsin State Championship Race

2009-11-24T16:58:00.005-06:00

photo by djonnymac

My goal was to finish behind Tristan. After him, it's really the rest of us. Had a great start behind him and Travis Brown and Kyle Jacobsen. I rode really strong but my bike handling skills left alot to be desired. First half of the course was dry and bumpy, back of the course was a hill, downhill and some off camber in wet grass and mud.The barrier was uphill and felt pretty high so remount was tricky. The race did not go how I wanted to but I think I learned a little bit about tire selection in mixed conditions for next time.
photo by offonst
I pre rode twice, once with Challenge Fango 34 in front and Grifo 32 in rear, then the next ride Grifo 32 x 32. I should have used the former but I thought the more aggressive tread would slow me down uphill. My cornering in this section was slow and I lost my front wheel 4-5 times. On the uphill barrier run up, lost my pedal engagement a couple of times with the mud. Every time I lost contact with Tim I was able to catch him but I made too many mistakes to place ahead of him. Either way, he was great competition for me this year and I enjoyed the racing.

In thinking about tire selection, the Grifo is really dry condition only tire. I have the Fango 34s but the rolling resistance is surprisingly pretty good, the difference is with a 34 I can run pressure 1-2 psi lower, it absorbs bumpy stuff in corners and on the mud sections and off camber the diamond tread holds the line more. I should have used that tire but I know for next time.

I am thinking next year 34s with the XS file treads, 34 Fangos and then 32 Dugast Rhyno for my tire quiver. On the mountain bike I tend to favor low knob tire with round casing either in 2.0 -2.2 and find the low pressure and contact patch allows me to rail corners better. Should be the same for cross.

Looks like conditions at Jingle will favor Fango in 34. Usually mixed conditions or maybe it will be outright wet the first 2 days.

Hales Corners CX-WI State Championships

2009-11-24T16:38:00.002-06:00

photo by jeffkao

We had some great weather this weekend for racing. Hales Corners is a great course. It has everything, sand, climbing, bumpy terrain, pavement, downhills, slick off camber turns, open stretches and a great set of spectators!

As we got off the line Sam got the hole shot followed by Meghan then me. I decided that there was enough straight away to make my way to the front so I got out of the saddle and sprinted to get the first left turn. I then led the first lap and halfway through the second lap when Sam came around to take a pull. As for the all of the races when Sam takes a pull she drops us and of course this happened but I had a gap on Meghan that grew and got smaller throughout the race. This was the order we came in at the end. Sam, me, Meghan. Since I don't have the WI house address on my licence, Meghan got the silver and Katy got bronze. I still got the nice $100 bill for 2nd though! I then hung out with the Pegasus crew and ate some tasty soup from their new sponsor. Kevin put in a great performance and took 3rd. (his report to come)

My First Ever Wisco Win- Polska CX

2009-11-16T08:43:00.001-06:00

photo by Ron

Gibbs Lake

2009-11-15T20:20:00.006-06:00

photos by djonnymac

One of the best settings in the WCA series. I was excited to see some of my Chicago brethren make the trip for more cross racing, Scott McLaughlin, Wayne Simon and Tom Boundy from Verdigris and I also ran into a couple of guys from the Iron Horse team.

I wish we had the camera. Scenic route through trees with used trail, fast off camber downhills and some power sections thrown in. An ideal setting for me. There were 3 barriers at the end of the lap through the finish, 1 barrier by the "beach" which was a 4 foot drop trench by the swap. The rest was double track, some single track and grass and the ground was super hard except for a few corners through the pine trees at the start finish. I think we did 9 laps.

So I was looking forward to seeing what I could in favorable course conditions against some the areas best riders with 4 weeks to go to Nationals. The field was not very deep, but lining up next Tristan and Scott, it was going to be fast. My goal today was to stay with Scott. I use him as mark since we're close in age, have the same goals with age group national jerseys, and have raced in contact with each other before, though this year I am not even close. With the exceptional year he is having, I felt that if I could pace with him, I would have a really strong shot at stars and stripes in the masters race in Bend.

The race started off with Tim Pacholski from Vel Trocadero getting a great start and pulling through with about 1/2 lap. James Lalonde picked up the pace halfway through and spent the next lap pulling all of us. The pace was manageable and I was waiting for Tristan to get bored and shoot off the front. Tim also tends to do that as well.

The next lap, I decided to pull through and I went off the front pretty hard since I wanted to open the race so I would have a clean shot through the rideable log sections. I was afraid with a pack in follow, someone would make a mistake and I would get caught up. After I cleaned that section, Scott and Tristan went right ahead of me and I sat on with James behind me.

The next section of course was super fast downhill followed by left hand turn and then we had 1 barrier before riding near the swamp that sat about 4 feet lower than the ground that required a run and remount back on the course. I slipped on the exit and fell, and James went into me and I felt like an ass. I brought us both back up to Scott and Tristan.

Lap 3, right when we come through the start, Tristan opens it up and puts an easy 40 feet ahead of us. It was really impressive. James passed me and went on Scott's wheel with me behind him, but I was riding the corners slower and I was starting to feel the lactic acid in my legs.

Next lap, James gets a gap on Scott, just enough for him to get ahead. I am probably sitting about 10 seconds behind Scott. He started to open a gap on me and I had no response.

With 5 laps to go, it pretty much stayed that way. I saw Tristan and James lapping through down by the swamp trading pulls and I was trying to chase Scott like he was the metal man on a Computrainer ride. Through the race, I can see him ahead and I would get close through the open sections then through the logs but I was bombing the downhill so much faster than I was. After hitting the 3 barriers in front of the course, he had alot of power through the start finish section.

With 2 laps to go, I went as hard as I could and felt like I was closing a little bit on a 20 second gap but it really put the knife in me. Last lap I had nothing left and he made sure he put me away with a much faster lap. It went Tristan, James, Scott then me for 4th and I did not get a chance to see the final race results for the other spots.

It's getting into that time of year where people are starting to peak. I could ride with James last year and most of this year, but the last few weeks it's really coming together for him. As far as Scott, he has alot of power and strong technical skills. With the way he his riding right now, I think he can win his masters national race.

I am pretty happy with how things turned out today. I was able to push the race a bit and rode my ass off trying to catch Scott. My fitness feels better than it ever has at any point I have ever raced and it's a month away from Nationals. I have to thank Brian Conant again for his guidance in coaching. Before it was riding so hard that I wanted to go tell him to F7ck himself during the workout then to getting a point where I want more and he's backing me off. On top of it, time management and flexibility with business travel has been a huge plus.

Holly took second today and was able to hold Megan off. Pretty impressive performance again. I am going to have to find a way to get her to get coached for next year and build on a break through year.

Team Polska Kletsch Park

2009-11-14T17:34:00.003-06:00

photo by ron(squeezing into Holly's jersery)

Photos above by djonnymac

photo by mtbgirl

We keep forgetting the camera but I should be able to find some flickr and cell phone pics. It was a good day, Holly took 1st and I got 4th.

Kletsch Park is one of the better courses with some singletrack sections that make cornering at speed on a cross bike a blast. There's something about riding offroad on something that resembles a road bike, kind of like taking a production car and modifying it race offroad courses in WRC rally competition. The Polska Team always puts on a great show and let their enthusiasm known on top of the hill run up with beer dousing, ass slaps, cowbells and yelling Davai! Davai! and screaming in Polish every time through.

The hill run up is a real bitch and it resembles Mt. Krumpet at Jingle Cross. After the hill run up, you have to ride downhill on a steep section, offcamber before coming around and climbing the other side of it.

The payout was $600 for the Mens, $220 to the winner so I was not surprised to see Tristan there. They did call ups for WCA points, which was new. I got a good start and ended up behind James Lalonde and Tristan and it seemed like a mellower pace 1st lap to feel things out a little bit. Despite good position, I really struggle with these damn hills in comparison to the faster racers in the area. Though I have improved, I am still a couple of steps behind. After a couple of laps, I fell back to 4th with Tim Pacholski getting ahead of me. I was able to stay with him for a couple of laps and lost some time on the hill run up. With 4 laps to go, my front tire washed out on the offcamber downhill seciton after the run up. He had a pretty nice gap on my the entire race. I felt like I could close some but just could not hang with him uphill. I was hoping for a better result but I am stoked as my fitness seems to be improving.

With Planet Bike womens team in New Jersey, the race was up for grabs in the Elite field. Holly battled it out with Megan and got the win, her first Wisconsin race ever. She really drilled the race and held nice gap. She's getting stronger as the season progresses. Given the payouts Polska set up, 1st place was $170 which which was really cool. When I assumed it was the hill run up that got her the gap, I was corrected it was actually all the open riding sections where she felt she was making time. Awesome.

We're going to head to Janesville tomorrow. I've heard alot of good things about this course but have never raced there. It should be flatter and have regular trail type of use as opposed to grass which are conditions that tend to suit me. Legs have been feeling really good the last 3 weeks, so with the course conditions I am excited for this one.

Too Tight

2009-11-10T17:34:00.003-06:00

photo by djonn

I definitely ate too much candy on Halloween and the days that followed. This isn't really a smile, it is actually a grimace because my skin suit was just too damn tight!

Estabrook Park

2009-11-09T07:19:00.003-06:00

Yesterday's course felt like a hill repeat workout on a back yard versus a bike race. Estabrook is much better course in park venue with small single track section with a log, hill run up that was rideable with a bunny hop. There were also 4 barriers before the circle of death spiral, aka the Chicago Cross Cup swirl. There were 2 barrier sections also in the back of the course to slow things down on a straightaway before twisting and turning through some rooted sections between trees. I've always liked this course and have done pretty well, winning the masters race last year. These are the type of courses that I generally do well with.

I got off the line in 4th position, behind James Lelond and Chad Hartley form Gear Grinder. After lap 1, James flatted and pitted his bike. I went to the front and tried to go hard with Chad and Kyle on my wheel. I spent the first 2 laps in front trying to surge to see if I could drop either one of them but it did not seem to work, so I wanted to back off a little bit. James finally caught on and I ended up trading pulls with him the entire race. We would gap chad through the corners and then attack to open things up, but this guy is strong in the flat open areas, he would get right on. Through the rideable log section, James kind of slipped and I lost my momentum riding up so ran it. He had a gap, attacked by I followed but I noticed we lost Chad. I went to the front again after sitting in with James and this guy still finds a way to get on our wheel. Finally on the last 2 laps, we lose him but are holding about 7 seconds and we each work the front. James lost it on the back course barriers, but I had a hard time attacking and opening a gap through the sections with all the corners so he caught on. By now Chad is far enough behind where I thought I could leave it to sprint between James and I but with 2 laps to go people are yelling at me that he is still in contact and able to make time on the open course sections. So, I did not want to let up and we made sure we kept the gap. Final lap, James attacks the open section before the log hill run up and has about a 3 second gap. I wanted to stay on his wheel until the straightaway finish, but after riding the log hill he attacks again and this time I could not respond.

I rode a strong race for 2nd. Spent alot of time in front, did not make any mistakes and felt like I had good power throughout. There was really nothing else I could have done tactically or effort wise. So I have to hand it to James, 1 mechanical and 1 barrier miss yet he still rides in front the whole race while trading the work effort and had enough gas left to throw down a massive attack at the end. It can be very hard to get back into a race mentally but he kept bringing it on and I always enjoy racing with him.

Also, I have to give Holly some credit for her 4th place finish. Kristin Wentworth dismantles every race with Sam, an up and coming pro road rider and Katie Antonneau who gets top 5 finish in Toronto. It's fun to watch these girls race, they're so fast. She's also been battling it out with Meghan Korol, top 5 WORS elite racer. Holly was about 5 seconds behind Katie for the first 5 or so laps before she lost contact, but her riding and bike handling is way ahead of where she was the last 2 years.

Next week...Kletsch Park for some crazy Team Polska cyclocross and Gibbs Lake.

Whitewater

2009-11-07T16:56:00.002-06:00

The course was all climbing, no straightaway, no flat sections for 10 laps. Sprint uphill, ride down, bumpy corner, then turn. 1 barrier section uphill on slow grass section. Not my kind of course and nothing interesting about it. But, it's better than the Trash dash venue they used to have. Either way, it was a bike race and 1 hour of hard effort hitting hills is good training. Holly and I each got 4th.

MASTERS WOMEN!!!!

2009-11-06T15:02:00.003-06:00

If you are a masters woman and are heading to Bend for Nats this year, there is a party Thursday night just for us! Here is the info.....spread the word.....
http://www.crosscrusade.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2633 or http://cxingbarriers09.blogspot.com/

Hope to see all you ladies there!~holly

St. Charles

2009-11-02T19:31:00.003-06:00

Brian Conant told me before the race it was an epic cross course. I usually do not like this course since it's so open and full of head wind but I have to admit he was right, these were the type of conditions you love to watch as a spectator. Every section either was mud or standing water and the barriers were placed strategically in the worst sections were you were either climbing through standing water or riding so fast into a corner, it was impossible to time your braking before the barrier.

We left Wisconsin and got to the course in time for 40+ and it was a real shit show. I left the Fango tire said up at home since Washington Park was dry and every course this year was optimal for file treads. I thought it might dry for my race but wondered how Holly would do in the mud with the Grifos. It didn't matter...she went right off the front and I was impressed with how smooth everything looked with her riding.

I did one lap on the B bike to get a sense of the course. While riding on the Grifo's I realized I had plenty of traction. BTW, thanks to Lou for offering me up his Ryno wheels. Mike from Kenda was kind enough to offer me pit support in light of some of my circumstances earlier this year. It was really cool of him to offer; he says he loves to spectate but he's a real pro managing the Planet Bike guys.

Start went great since I was right behind Brian and had no problem getting to the front. My legs felt a bit tired from the day before but I was not losing ground as a result of that. It was really a combination of candy ass riding, especially through the first set of barriers that was holding me back. I kept losing my front wheel and veering into the tape the first 3 laps. Another downhill section, I went slow and washed out in front of the Cuttin' Crew. Ideal scenario for Scott to ride off. I was able to ride with Mike Hemme for a while which was really cool for a couple of reasons. First, he's doing well right now and starting to show some progress with training. Secondly, there was a alot of wind on that course and it's always nice to pace and work together.

Brian got ahead of us but Mike and I traded pulls. My halfway race surge came on and felt like I could chase him down. I told Mike I was going to hit it hard on the straightaway and to stay on my while but I lost him. I was hoping he would stay with me. I bridged and caught Brian and worked with him for a little while. After trading some pulls with Brian, I pulled through I saw he fell off for 5 seconds so I surged with 2 laps to go and rode all out. By now, I had the lines and the barriers figured out and felt like I was gaining some speed. I was not able to catch Scott but I could see him ahead but wanted to keep riding hard since I know how strong Brian is. So, I took 2nd this race. Mike Hemme took 4th so the 3 of us put in a great day.

I felt like I could have done better riding some sections cleaner but that is part of cyclocross racing, the unexpected circumstances that create game changers that make this style of racing interesting. This was really the first mud race this year. Other than that, I was real happy with the weekend overall, especially with power on the bike. Starting to reach that part of the season; a timed peak where things are starting to come along and feel easier than before and everything feels good and works. This year was a really crappy start with the mechanicals and the UCI performance, but it's starting to come together now.

Washington Park

2009-11-02T19:21:00.002-06:00

Washington Park was an awesome course. Alot of speed and hill climb sections with fun cornering in a nice long loop. I loved the twin coffin bunny hop section...no flames to leap through this year. There was only mud at the start through the grass so they started us on top of the hill and made us ride through a 5 foot wide section.

My start was OK and watched Ben Popper go off the front and establish a tempo. It took a lap for things to settle in and thin out and by then Tristian was well up on his own and James Lalonde was making some progress getting on Ben's wheel. I started to pick my way through riders and then I settled in with Kyle and Tim Pacholski for pretty much the entire race. Tim and I traded alot of pulls and Kyle was there every time on his 29er, a great choice for this course. I could tell he was catching up to me on the off camber downhill sections and was able to keep it close on the run up.

There was an offcamber corner before the hill run up that I would always take slowly and I yet still crashed and Tim road off. I have to thank Kyle since he brought me back up to Tim's wheel with a lap to go. I knew it would come down to a sprint and felt I would have better acceleration versus Kyle on his mountain bike but Tim has been riding pretty strong.

On the in your face wind section on the concrete portion of the course, Tim sprinted but it felt like a lead out; no problem staying on his wheel then 20 yards before the turn I winded up my sprint and took 3rd overall.

Alot of fast people here today so I felt good about my result. Alot of hard work into the wind and up and down some hills.

Prime!

2009-11-01T21:58:00.004-06:00

At the Halloween CX race Sat., Kevin won this awesome Snuggie for being the first across the line in a costume. It even came with a free night book light(modeled in my pic). There has been a little arguing as to who gets to use it as it is super snuggly!

Halloween CX

2009-11-01T21:40:00.005-06:00

photo by sheri

I went as Cruella Deville and Kevin went as a 70's porn star.(although, James looks more like the porn star with that stash) Kevin had to ditch his rockin' pants because he was having a hard time remounting. His mustache wasn't fully in since he had a business meeting Thurs and had to shave, but he did try to muster up a small stubbly one.

I got a good start and stayed behind Kristin, Katie, and Sam for most of the first lap. Somewhere I then lost contact and just rode the rest alone seeing Sam at turns now and then. Running up the hill was hard since my bike had a little extra weight of the dogs.

photo by mountaingoat

photo my madcross

My head also felt pretty heavy and the wig did not help with the sweat and strands of it flying in my face but I had fun being in costume. I passed Katie as she was running with her bike right before the start of the bell lap and was able snag 3rd place.

Expo did a great job with setting up the festivities and I had a blast hanging on the run up with everyone! What a fun day ~holly

First Win of Season

2009-10-26T00:57:00.002-05:00

Start of race, photo by Pony shop

Our plans for this weekend changed quickly Friday when both WI cross races were canceled. Since Kevin was up in WI and I was in Chicago, heading down to Louisville wasn't an option, plus to race the Elite UCI race one needs to preregister. So we went to the CCC's Bartlett race. This course is not one of my favorites but it is nice and long so that is always a plus.

We got to the course around 9:30, just in time to see Tom racing the 40+. He looked smooth and strong on his Eriksen singlespeed and had a great finish. I paid my $35 dollar registration fee(charged $5 more since I didn't prereg) and then went for my warm up. It was a nice feeling lining up with the other women in front of the Cat 3 men.(Finally a little respect for the ladies!) After call ups, none for me since I have been racing in WI, I rolled to the line. The official said go and we were off.

Lately my starts have been really good and today was no exception. I got the hole shot taking the first corner with a few seconds of a gap and by the barriers I was able to make it stick and grow. Let me comment on the barriers, the first set were 3 barriers set on a downhill. They were extremely fast and you really needed to scrub speed before hitting them. The second was also slightly downhill on a hard right hand turn, weirdly positioned. I was actually cringing when a photographer was taking pictures, as my barrier work today was embarrassing! Going into lap 2 I kept my gap around 20+ seconds and kept hammering. Lap 3 I started to get worried because I could see the Cat 3 leaders making their way through and I was worried one of the ladies would grab and use wheels to close the gap. I just kept hammering on and actually grabbed a wheel or two myself. I then heard Kevin and Tom scream that I had opened the gap even more and to just stay steady and strong. I rode out the last 2 laps grabbing my first win of the season!

Here's my little rant: After getting changed I went to pick up my payout. Now, I don't do this for the money but I have been spoiled from racing in WI where Renee of Madcross has fought for many years to get equal payouts for women. Unfortunately her fight has only effected the WI series, as my payout was $30, not even covering the cost of registration. Kevin though got 3rd and came out even. ~holly

Bartlett

2009-10-25T16:47:00.003-05:00

The Wisconsin races were flooded out apparently and the Park District didn't want people riding at the venues so we took off to Bartlett. 2 mile loop mostly grass with the usual wind. Terrain was slick in the morning and then turned to super soft tacky by the afternoon races where you wanted file treads. They did a nice job using all the terrain at the park for a long loop, the small heckler hill climb and 3 barriers strategically placed downhill and 1 placed up hill to slow things down. Not too many places to rest.

Holly killed it in the women's race. Great start at the whistle. It was exciting to watch, super smooth and strong and the time kept building. First win.

My race did not go as well as I had hoped. I felt very rested but flat throughout the entire race and could not jump and accelerate. My legs were not hurting but could not go harder. I ended up settling in and there was a 5 man pace group gaining. I rode with Eric Sontag most of the race and we traded pulls. He did the 30+ race that morning and yet was riding very well this afternoon, pulling hard. Look at his results and you can see he's having an awesome year. As we traded pulls, we could not shake the chase group. Last lap, I try to go harder on all the hills and out of the turns and opened things up about 5 seconds. Took 3rd overall, a distant 3rd to Scott and some guy from Michigan who won the 30+ in the morning. It was great to ride with Eric so I could sit.

A hard effort Thursday or race day Saturday might have helped open my legs a bit. Still good time and great to catch up with alot of people I had not seen in a while. Next week, we'll hit Washington Park and then St. Charles and I am planning on sporting a grown in porn mustache for costume.

Jingle Cross Inspiration

2009-10-22T17:28:00.001-05:00

Cool video from Jingle Cross 2008. You will recognize lots of the racers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmpRM69TjNo

Louisville

2009-10-20T07:06:00.002-05:00

Looks like alot of poeple are going and kind of wish I was too. Traveling for work, by the time the weekend comes,I get tired of it. Good luck to all that are going. All the riders between Chicago and Wisconsin that are traveling are putting in some fantastic results and I am looking forward to reading about it next week.

K

CAM-ROCK

2009-10-19T17:34:00.004-05:00

photos by sheri

Literally a repeat of Saturday's racing. I got the hole shot and led for a lap. Sam and Megan got around me. I lost Megan's wheel. Sam then rode away from Megan and that was the order for the race. Cam-Rock was awesome this year! Great weather and good times had by all. Another $80 bucks in my pocket. Kevin killed it in the Men's 1 2 race. His first WCA elite men's win. Oh and we got some more cool pint glasses to add to our collection!~holly

Camrock

2009-10-18T20:56:00.004-05:00

photos by sheri

Holly took 3rd, I took 1st. Felt really good before the race. Sat in 1st lap then attacked and stayed out front until the end. My style of cyclocross course.

Next week, Whitewater and Janesville.

Badger 1/2M

2009-10-18T07:37:00.006-05:00

photo by Sheri

Course was alot of climbing, with leg snapping soft grass. Really long laps, almost 10 minutes.

Finally got the brakes fixed on the other bike to pit.

Had great start. Marko Lalonde sat in for 1 lap then took off and stayed out front the whole race leaving the rest to us. Scott McLaughlin ended up crashing the first lap. I traded pulls with Tim Pacholski and Brian Conant the first couple of laps. Tim had a problem with his chain and I hit him on one of the climbs, Brian got away but caught him. Scott McLaughlin battled back and caught us both and passed us both on one of the climbs. Brian accelerated and stayed with him part of the way, and I fell off the back. Finished 4th. Not my style of cross course, but it was fun and well put together. Like the payouts up here too.

Camrock tomorrow.

Badger Prairie W 1,2

2009-10-17T16:06:00.002-05:00

photo by Sheri

Had another awesome start and led for the first long lap. Sam came around me on a climb to put in a pull and the next thing I knew she was gone with no way to reel her back. On the 3rd lap Megan put in a great effort on a climb and I just couldn't respond. I tried to close the gap and went down on a gravel corner and from there it was just riding for third. I was a good race and I made 80 bucks! Cam Rock tomorrow-my favorite course!

FINISHED!

2009-10-13T21:53:00.009-05:00

Here are some photos of the new Courage CX bike!

Grafton Pumpking CX

2009-10-12T16:52:00.002-05:00

The Grafton course was fun. Not much to say except I was on time for my race. I got 3rd and had some stomach issues that kept me at home for Sunday's race in Chicago. Really bummed that I missed it since I heard it was an awesome course.

Tuesday my Courage should be ready! Got a sneak peek of it today and it is beautiful. I can't wait to take it for ride.! Will post pictures tomorrow. ~holly

Dan Ryan woods

2009-10-11T14:51:00.002-05:00

Beverly Bike and Chicago cross cup put on an awesome venue. Outside of Camrock this has to be the best local course I've ridden in either the Wisconsin and Chicago Series. A long loop with fast sections, hill section with trail, offcamber down hills with great corners and they brought in some good food and gave us free meal tickets. The weather was 45 degrees and sunny....cyclocross is good.

Great start. Singletracky hill climb, Luca Lenzi puts his foot down and I get off my bike to run the rest....bye Scott and Brian. They opened a huge gap. Too bad I couldn't enjoy this course.....after 2.5, laps, my chain snapped. After the Jackson debacle, I may have taken too many links out. However, the chain was snapped mid cog. Truth be known....I have never broken a Sram chain but could not find them and used a Connex. Could have over stressed it yesterday on the hill....who knows. I've beaten the shit out of Sram chains going up the gnarliest root and rocky filled climbs mountain biking and never broke one.

I had no pit bike because of the Paul brakes were still not working on the Eriksen. I order new springs and sleeves and the stoners out in Chico California send me sleeves but no springs. Well...I come back last night and the springs come in the mail. I should have brought the other bike home! I could have made it to the pit and atleast salvage 4th.

I bummed because I liked the course and felt good enough to catch Luca for 3rd. Also, if I am not racing, I am drinking beer and getting slower while everyone else is getting faster. Reminds of the scene from Apocolypse Now when Martin Sheen is waiting for his mission while Charlie is in the bush....getting stronger.

Next weekend....2 Wisconsin races. I like Carpentersville and would like to come back and do the Chicago one but I love Camrock. Hopefully, I will have a new chain, Holly will have her bike and she'll be feeling better next weekend.

Grafton

2009-10-11T07:17:00.003-05:00

I got 2nd, Holly 3rd. I think Mike Hemme took 6th. Alot of people in Ohio but there were some fast racers out today.

Fast course, 1 barrier section, easier cornering with some elevation changes and sand pit and a hill climb. Hitting the hill 11 times was tough but atleast there was a fast descent. Had sluggish legs first 3 laps like Madison but I had a good start falling in behind Brian Conant. He pulled really well first 3 laps and I had trouble staying with him but he let up a bit and I sat on. Legs responded lap 4. Noticed Brian's pace slowed a bit and but we had about 20 second gap and felt the chase group was closing so started taking pull through. I pretty much pulled the last 5 laps, which was a mistake on my part, and Brian nailed it on the hill and opened a gap. Wasn't like last week where my legs felt like unlimited amount of power but I hope I've opened them up for the Dan Ryan Woods race Sunday. It's hard to keep up with training, riding when I have to travel to that sewer called New York city every week.

Registered for Nationals over weekend. To put it bluntly, the website experience for registration sucked. Could not get into website at 12 EDT after already having it ready to refresh on my PC. Given the popularity of our sport, you would think the race promoter might want to invest in a dedicated service not shared in some 15 year old's basement. Luckily, USA Cycling has found a way to create some merit consideration with Nationals racing so they moved the Cat1 racers in front of the line, so I am sitting in 25th which should be 2nd line based on 13 riders each row.

Frame

2009-10-09T07:04:00.000-05:00

Lapham

2009-10-05T06:18:00.003-05:00

I like the Wisconsin courses much better, they just have the terrain for it and have more liberties in terms of use of the venue. But man, they really love high barriers here, each set was sitting 4 inches above the ground.

We had a 2 mile loop, mostly double track dirt with off camber corners. The cornering sections were mowed long grass which made the ground super soft and kept losing traction with my front tire. There was a hill climb (rideable) that seems to be a part of every course.

At the USGP I felt like I could not get on top of my bike, whereas this week, when we got the lap marker for 5 more, felt like I could do 10. After James Lalonde lead out a nice start, I attacked on the 2nd lap to break things up a little bit and knew James would stay with it. I had trouble staying with James on the hillclimb and he was cornering better through the mowed corners. Did not have to redline my efforts through the double track and did not think attacking would shake him since he was riding really strong everywhere on the course. He got me at the end and then put in a nice effort to keep the gap open. We had atleast 2 minutes on the field.

Field seemed pretty thin due to the WORS race. With the usual suspects present, maybe would have had 5th or 6th. Just glad to have really good legs today.

Not sure what Holly was thinking. Spend all weekend drinking, start 45 seconds back at your own race, then ride into 3rd. Must be nice.

Edge Wheels & Hollys bike!!

2009-10-05T06:03:00.003-05:00

All coming together now.

Edge Wheels are in. The crappy cell phone pick in haste on Sunday morning leaves alot to be desired but they rode awesome. Lighter than the ROLS (1200 grams) and noticed improved acceleration and felt a bit smoother. I liked the higher profile 45 versus the 38. Still running the Challenge Grifo, 28 front and 30 rear seem to be best.

Holly's bike looks awesome. Aaron was going to use it at Interbike with another new design concept of his, the Paul specific machined post mounts. They're a little lighter and should provide some stiffer brake modulation. The paint...the pink will definitly stand out yet still wears the Courage race stripes. We hope to get it this weekend.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/couragebicycles/3975344831/

2009-10-04T22:20:00.001-05:00

Time Warped
I guess being at my 20th High School reunion all weekend helped in my loss for time. I missed my start at Lapham. For some reason I thought I hade 15 minutes and it was really only 8. I went to do a lap before my race and as I came in, Kevin was yelling that we missed our start. The 50+ men just went off and I at first was going to just call it the day, until someone was helping me out of my jacket and Kevin was yelling go.
So after some really hard laps, I was able to catch and pass some people and came in 3rd. It was a great fun power course and I am sorry I put myself at such a disadvantage from the start since I was already dealing with no sleep and too much boozing the past 2 nights.
Kevin's race was awesome! He and James Lalonde killed it. They were stuck like glue the whole race! James ended getting Kevin on the climb at the end.
Great Day, rookie move!
*Holly

Planet Bike Day 1 and 2- Elite Women's Race

2009-10-01T08:48:00.006-05:00

photo by Amy

Elite Women's Field Start line above.

So Sat and Sun I was all signed up for the Elite women's race. I registered early and watched the confirmed rider's list get bigger and bigger with names I couldn't believe were going to come. Wow, I mean, I will be in a race(not racing against) Katie Compton, Allison Sydor, Alison Dunlap, Kelli Emmett, Sue Butler, Katrina Nash, Amy Dymbroski, and Devon. Crap, how cool yet scary. My goal was to not get lapped and race against the women that I knew were in my league.

Photo by Renee

Above Renee captures how freaked out I was at the start of Saturday's race, waiting for the gun to go! I had a good start until I rammed into Kristin's cassette. The person in front of Kristin didn't have a good start and caused a bit of a back up for like a split second. Off we went. Boy was it fast but I felt like I was right in there. Made a few mistakes, not being aggressive in blocking turns and not trusting my tires in certain areas where I needed to let it rip. I came in 19th but was pleased with my racing.

Day 2 came and again I was nervous and worried how my legs would react. Usually I do better on the second day of racing but this is the first double of the season so I wasn't too confident. The course changed a bit and had this fun 180 degree downhill to steep climb. The picture below shows a nice perspective of it.(Yeah, not digging the butt shot).

photo by Renee

photo by Mike

I got a great start and stayed more aggressive. I kept on letting this girl in on the corners and then figured that was her tactic to scare me. When we came to the blacktop climb by the playground I decided to show her I could play those games too and gave her a bump as I went by. I was then able to gap her and another group on the steep climb. I rolled in 17th and again didn't get lapped by the leaders. It was a good race and my body responded well. Renee and John put on an amazing USGP race! They had 2 great courses and everything seemed to run effortlessly. We had a blast cheering for everyone and it was awesome to hear everyone cheering for us.

photos by Mike
I was reminded how much cross racing hurts right from the start!

Cross Practice

2009-09-30T08:55:00.003-05:00

pict. by Bonebell

Practice with us Wednesday nights 5:30 until dark! Location is south of McCormick Place north of 31st beach on west side of LFP!!!

UCI Elite Race

2009-09-28T13:02:00.006-05:00

photo:Mike Hemme

The Elite UCI race is a humbling experience. The frenetic pace of the starts and trying to find a way through people that kind of felt impossible but I think it's something that I need to experience. I took 39th both days. When driving cars on race tracks, the key to getting faster is being consistent with time then inching the envelope of confidence and focusing on 2 sections where you can mentally focus on gaining more speed. So, I guess I am consistent but I need more experience with these starts.

Last year, I came here and took 1st in 35+ with 1 minute gap and 2nd on Sunday with a dropped chain. I decided I would move from outside my comfort zone. The higher level of competition, the faster you get. Most of my cross races I have done were either Masters for Regional races or 1/2 races locally and I did pretty well with them. Besides Nationals, my cross race experience is 30 deep and I am probably racing against 5 to 6 people. An Elite UCI race, there are 60 people and everyone is super fast. In a mountain bike race, I have 2 hours to pick up the time in mass starts and they tend to be less violent.

There's 3 levels racing a UCI Men's Elite Race:

Worldcup/US Nationals level fast like Trebon, Page, Powers

Next group fastest with the Lalonde, Matter, etc

Everyone Else...

When I say everyone else, everyone is fucking fast and they've traveled from outside the area to do this race.

So, the amount of variance in speed in one race is significant versus any race. The first day, Trebon and Paged lapped through me and I kept look for the chase group. There was no chase group right behind then Kabush and Powers come through, what felt like atleast 30-maybe 60 seconds. I keep looking again to make sure I am not in anyone elses way...no one. The guys contesting these races are so far ahead of the next group who are comparatively ahead of me. Who is ahead? 2 guys that have worn US stars and stripes, 2 time world champion, and a guy that WINS UCI World Cup Mountain Bike races.

The first day, my rear brake kept binding. After seeking help from Kale @ Pegasus, Julie Popper and Sram mechanics, the brake still sticks. I decied last minute to pit the Courage, switch wheels onto the Eriksen. Thanks to Tim and Julie for helping me in the pit, I was freaking out about it. I like the new bike better and did't want to ride the Eriksen. I felt pretty good on day one and was holding my position, and there was a crash on the lead lap and I went down with a few riders. I caught maybe 6 riders and finished strong.

Day 2. Started to rain 15 minutes before staging. I liked the course much better besides the offcamber corner down fill before the rideable climb. Luck lily, I switched tires to the Fangos since the Grifo tires felt like ice skates. I am second to the last row back. I felt like I started better than the day before but my body did not want to respond. I felt very slow and sluggish and could not get my heart rate above 165. Day 2 was really easy to pull off but I decided to grind it out. Every open section was out of saddle effort to get more speed, power and I cold not redline at all. Thanks to Kale for letting me borrow brakes for my pit bike, with rain I may have needed it.

Not sure about the UCI Elite races and have to admit it kind of was a set back confidence wise for me but I am hoping the experience will be helpful down the road.Looking at the Masters, it was plenty fast race and I am pretty sure I would have had my hands full this time around.

I thought Holly raced really well given the talent and Mike really showed up, 6th Saturday and a impressive 2nd in the 2/3s. I am hoping I can put together similar performances over the next few weeks.

2009-09-27T21:44:00.001-05:00

Planet Bike USGP
Sat. Day 1. I got 19th
Sun. Day 2. I got 17th
Both days I didn't get lapped! Whoo hoo!
There were so many friends cheering for me it was truly amazing. I'm hanging in WI for a few days so that means no computer. I will post a full race report when I get home and promise pictures! -holly

No Throwing Up & Not 1st

2009-09-22T17:26:00.007-05:00

No excuses from me. I was out raced the last 3 minutes at Jackson Park to come in 2nd. Jess made a great move and it stuck. Can't say I'm not disappointed but that's racing.

Instead of a play by play of the race, I am going to give the positives and the negatives as this is the start of a long season and there will be plenty of race reports ahead.

POSITIVES

I had a great start and got the "hole shot"

photos by Gavin

Not puking, but coming pretty close at the end of the race
The sand. I love sand! (yeah, not really sand, it was baseball diamond dirt)
Twisty technical course
The rush of Enervitine Cheer packs
Everyone cheering their heads off

Seeing friends, ringing bells, and screaming my head off
Getting the first race done and realizing that I am in pretty strong form

Lapping riders and not getting caught by the 3s that started 2 waves ahead
GIRLING THE CAT 3 MEN!

NEGATIVES

Pre race nerves made for too many bathroom and porta potty trips

Race shorts feel too tight

Way too paranoid to wear my skinsuit for fear of looking like a stuffed sausage

These stupid little log things that just made me cringe as my rims would hit them

Starting behind the 50+ men. Seriously annoying and beyond frustrating!
Tape that was the same level as my handlebars
Leading the race for 42 minutes and coming in 2nd
Not getting our race results (still no results posted)

STARTING BEHIND THE 50+ MEN!

Jackson Park

2009-09-21T05:56:00.003-05:00

I overgeared the start and came out of the gate real slow and then got stuck behind alot of riders through the sand. I was able to make up alot of ground after a couple of laps and catch the chase group. The course was more cornering skill than power so it was hard to make up time. You had to push hard out of corners and by the time speed was up, there was another corner. Not only that, there was alot of "roadie" cornering on the course and I had a hard time getting passed people. Scott McLaughlin and Ben Popper had a good gap and great starts that kept them there most of the day.

By the third lap, my chain starts coming off around my crank arm and is all tangled. I pit for the other bike. I get on the other bike and the rear pressure is too low. A tip: check your pressure on spare bike an hour before the race not the night before. The next lap, rear tire is sliding everywhere. Luckily Mike from Kenda helps Holly fix my A bike and I transition on the next lap. I might have caught maybe 5 riders but it was too hard to catch the chase group again.

On the plus side, my fitness feels really good and especially liked how much easier barriers feel this year. Besides the mechanical, the new bike is killer. Puts down power really well and is stiff for steel. When I pre rode the bike, I thought I had too much pressure in the tires. Corners on rails where I almost felt like on a 29er. When I rode the Eriksen, I could not wait to get off it. With the new bike, the geometry is really dialed in for me so it should be fun this year. The Edge fork is stiff and holds a line really well in corners with no brake chatter.

The race result sucked and not every day is a great day. Time to work out the bugs for next week.

New Rig

2009-09-19T17:27:00.006-05:00

Finally have the bike built. I have to thank Alex at RVB. It was coming down to crunch time and he set aside a laundry list of work to finish of my bike and the Mike's. By Thursday, he did not even have his own cross bike built.

Still waiting on the Edge wheels and will probably throw on some egg beater 4 ti pedals. The Time's are best for mountain bike but you don't smash too many rocks in cross. I went with the old school Flite saddle but may throw on an SLR for weight reduction. I am paranoid about broken seat rails/shells so thought this with a Thomson seatpost would be solid. I would like to get the bike down to just under 17lbs, which is really light for a 170lb hammer head on steel. I decided to stay with the Campy stuff instead of Sram given the ease of wheel changeability across 5 road and cross bikes. They copied the Sram ergos which were my favorite part of the group.

Initial impression is front end feels very stiff with the Edge fork, like the Alpha Q and does not have the brake chatter of the Easton I have on the Eriksen. I think this geometry is dialed in for me much better, more aggressive for quicker handling.

Love single chain ring set up...quiet,clean and no chain slap or drop. I'll run a 44X12/26 set up. Next year, I am definitely going to run a 1x10 on the mountain bike using the new Sram XX.

Meat and potatoes cross set up starting with a custom built steel frame...

We'll see how well the new rig does tomorrow.

My Meltdown

2009-09-04T16:47:00.006-05:00

Because something is amiss with the killjoy site I am going to be doing my race report here. It will be short and sweet since it has been almost a week since the race.

I lined up in the midst of all the boys not afraid of getting a little jostled. This worked well for me last year and I knew I'd be able to hold my own at the start. I also figured it would be good to take a few elbows in preparation for cross season.

First lap I settled in behind Gage in the singletrack. There was a nice train of us and everyone was doing a great job on keeping it steady and smooth. This was also my fastest lap out of the 3. Here you can see me behind Gage going into one of the ravines.

The second lap was going really well until I felt my legs getting that crampy feeling coming on. I made sure to drink and was able to spin the feeling away. Jere my was awesome with handups as they were really needed going into the third lap. Speaking of handups, whatever Jeremy gave to Gage, all of a sudden he comes flying by like he just started the race. It was crazy fast and he was out of my sight in an instant.

That last lap was 2 minutes slower than my first two. It was more because I was told I had about 10 minutes until the next lady and really had nothing pushing me to really go. I was able to pass a few more fellas, which is always fun, and grab a HA beer as I was making my way to the finish line. It was really cool to know that Kevin won the men's race, as last year we both came in 2nd. Two big trophies, gossiping with great friends, fun fast singletrack and a race less than 30 miles from our house is priceless. Thanks CAMBR for a great race yet again!

New Kits

2009-08-31T00:55:00.006-05:00

Overall wins for both of us in the Expert race at the Palos Meltdown!

I picked up the new Courage kits on Sat. and Kevin was so excited he donned his for the Palos Meltdown.

photos were taken by Rusty. Full report will be up on www.killjoymtb.com soon..

Wed @ 5:30 Practice

2009-08-25T18:12:00.003-05:00

We are holding the first cross practice tomorrow at 5:30. We will be setting the course up earlier if you would like to help. I scoped out between part of the old course(the fast flat area) and 31st street beach. Depending on how long of a loop we want it should be a nice place to practice. It is literally right off the LFP on the west side. I will be at one end(probably 31st) but just look for us somewhere inbetween. ~holly

Practice?

2009-08-17T16:29:00.002-05:00

I bought some spray paint for the grass so we can make a practice course. Anyone up to designing something south of Goose Poop Loop to 31st? How about throwing some times and days out too for practice.

Love This!

2009-08-14T17:18:00.002-05:00

This youtube video that mountaingoat found rocks! Check it out on his blog.

USGP Registration Opened Today

2009-08-14T16:15:00.001-05:00

Kevin and I are all signed up for the Madison race!

Chicago Cross Cup

2009-07-29T17:23:00.003-05:00

Chicago Cross Cup has set up their site! Check it here http://chicrosscup.com/ .
As for anyone that is thinking of getting a coach, Brian Conant is the best and what a great deal he is providing!

Input and Rumors

2009-07-23T08:57:00.005-05:00

Input please! I have already moved things around and changed colors. The red was just too much for the eyes. The crazy quote from the Wizard of Oz has been moved since Kevin wasn't a big fan but I didn't want to nix it. Any input, both negative and positive is appreciated!

Rumor has it that the Hawthorn Woods race and the Northbrook race in the Chicago Cross Cup Series lost their venue. Hopefully they will be able to find something else for these dates. I'm not too sad that Hawthorn is gone, definitely my least favorite course, but I am sad about Northbrook. That was a fun course even though I spent alot of time on the ground. Also online registration for the CCC! This will surely be helpful.

WCA has a preliminary schedule up. A few course recommendations are Cam Rock, Badger Prairie, and Kletsch Park. If you have never raced in the WI series, I highly recommend it! They put on really well run races and the competition is fierce! I also like how they have three women's races(Cat 4, Cat 3, and Cat 1,2) and the fields are bigger than the ChiCross combined 1, 2, 3s . There is some overlapping again this year with WI and IL races which is a bummer. I wish both series would let you drop a race or two for total series points as I don't really want to have to commit to one series.

Summer is coming to a quick end for me as my school is going year round. This does mean cross practice will be starting up very soon! It seems that our Goose Poop Loop won't be a go as they have decided to incorporate the hilly part and area where we put the barriers into the bird sanctuary. Anyone have any suggestions? I was thinking of just moving it a bit more south towards 31st. Also practice times?

Still Getting the Hang of It

2009-07-22T10:48:00.000-05:00

Just signed up with blogger and still trying to figure out stuff. I would like to make my own template but have no idea how to do it. I have put a bunch of blogs on the link that we read and I am sure I have forgotten some too. Any helpful hints would be great.
~holly