What better way to have a bachelor type party with this group than starting it out with a ride? This ride (considered Stage 1 of 3 for the day's festivities) was to honor Shannon based on the limited number days of freedom he has left. They say that the shortest sentence in the world is "I am" where the longest sentence is "I do." With Shannon about ready to exchange "I dos," we decided to get him out to attack as many Strava sections as possible before his life sentence of absolute marital bliss begins.
Vince, Todd, Gary, Steve, Mitchell and I came out to be the designated lead out guys for the ride. What was obvious from this outing was that this was definitely not the strength of this group and HTC will not be knocking at any of our doors anytime soon. Seriously.
We did not have a segment to attack until Harvard, but in typical BAM fashion, it wasn't long on the bike trail when we were averaging over 26 mph. It did start out slow enough, but maybe for all of 2 minutes or so. The wind was behind us as well, so that probably helped to bring up the pace some. I guess warming up is also not one of our strengths.
Once we got on Harvard, we knew there was a segment that led up to the train tracks here. For this first segment, Todd was going to lead us out by getting up front right away, but immediately popped out of his pedals. This probably should have been taken as a sign of lead outs to come, but the rest of us jumped ahead and tried to take it down anyway. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), we hit the first stop light and knew from there that we would not be able to beat the existing record as a result.
The next section we were going to hit was the bike trail leading up to Portola. Since Harvard was completely closed, we had to take a little detour to head over. Steve led us on a sidewalk tour for a while as we made our way around, and once on the road, Mitchell got us back on the trail to start the next run.
As we tried to get ready for the section, Gary did a warm up sprint beforehand. When we neared the section, although we weren't too sure where it started, Steve led us out upon the onset of the climb. He was in full sprint mode, so after he popped off, I was too. I guess I inadvertently snapped Gary off the back and Vince had to go around almost running into Gary. By the time they caught up, we started popping off like old inner tubes. Todd managed to give Shannon a little more lead out after, and Shannon was able to finish it up getting the segment KOM by more than 5 mph over the previous holder!
A funny observation I had at the regroup point at the top on Portola was where people were already reaching for gels and finishing up bottles. We were just 11 miles out, people! Ha ha. Okay, so it was warm...but really?
Our next segment attack came with a little more planning where we set up a lead out order. It was random on the last one, so maybe coordinating the order would help. I was behind Todd and was going to perform the final leadout, so I knew it was going to take some work. When we hit Tustin Ranch road, Todd started yelling at the guys up front to pick up the pace. I said "dude, this is a long freakin' hill" and I thought their pace was good considering. Nevertheless, they picked up the pace and sure enough, almost everyone started popping off less than half way up the hill. By the time Todd had gotten up front, hanging onto his wheel was tough enough, but when I looked back and saw Shannon off my wheel, I thought we were done somewhat glad I didn't have to try and take a last pull. The next thing you know, Shannon keeps going past me and Todd picks up the leadout. Shannon did manage to get by and keep going after Todd popped, and ended up getting this segment as well. Woo hoo!
We all decided to regroup at the gas station and get some more fluids. Even though we were only 15 miles into our ride, I decided maybe more nourishment was in order too at this point. The intensity from the interval riding we were doing was going through our fuel sources a lot quicker than normal. Some even sought out Cokes at this point. Crazy. At this break, we did decide to skip the Dump hill segment and try to ride together through the canyon where our next attack zone would be Modjeska. That WAS the plan.
When we got going again, Steve and Gary started up front, but I thought it might be a good idea to take the lead and see if we can maintain a managed pace to the top of dump. I knew the guys would get antsy behind me if I went too slow, so I tried to set a decent pace that would keep everyone interested. The next thing you know, Gary kept coming up beside me somewhat encouraging me to push the group a little harder. I tried to tell him it was cool and I'll stay up front, but he kept coming up eventually causing Todd and Shannon to fall off the pace for a bit. So much for taking it easy on Dump.
Once we hit the crest, all hell broke loose and the pace picked up significantly. People kept jumping to the front with fast rotations, and Shannon was already joining even though I thought we were trying to save him up for the next KOM. I guess he figured we should go ahead and attack this section as well and see what we see. Our group started to thin out as a result and I think got down to Shannon, Vince, Todd and me. Vince, being on Shannon's wheel, tried to hang on, but at one point yells out "F#@* and waves me and Todd on rolling off the paceline. I didn't want to blow up too much trying to close the gap Vince left, so I was working just enough to keep Shannon close. Todd decided though he'd close the gap (thank, God!) and I jumped on his wheel after he passed me. We both took turns with Shannon trying to keep the pace up, but at some point, we just did what we could to hang on. Shannon had been pulling like a freight train, so that was pretty much all we could do. When we actually saw the turn off to Modjeska, I think we both were just glad we survived. I even yelled out "Modjeska!" with the little breath of air I had left. Shannon had been working so hard, he even went past the turn off just so he can cool down.
We all regrouped again at Modjeska, and the day wasn't getting any cooler. Todd and I decided to seek shelter under some shade on the road until everyone came by to head towards the North grade. Shannon decided not to go for this KOM based on how much he expended through the canyons, but Todd took off up the hill ahead of us. I went shortly after since I knew it was going to be steep, so I thought I'd find a good rhythm to get up this climb. I found a pretty good rhythm that let me catch up to Todd before the first bend, and he warned me that there was still a lot of climbing to do. I couldn't really help it though because I didn't have my compact crank and had a 26 on the back. When I saw Todd spinning a faster cadence than me (which is never the case), I knew it wouldn't take too long before he'd make his way past me again...and he did. He started to pull away some on one of the grades, and at some point, Shannon made his way past me as well. I met up with both of them on the other side albeit almost locking up my brakes before hitting Santiago. The others made their way behind us as well shortly after.
After regrouping, we all made our way down past Cooks heading toward Glenn Ranch. I was trying to recover a little bit, so I brought up the back after leading down the hill after the regroup. As we made the right turn onto Glenn Ranch where I was getting ready for that climb, Gary and the others starting pulling over. It turned out Gary was stung by a bee on the thigh, so he pulled over to remove the stinger. Since there was enough people who stopped, I started rolling a little bit ahead as Verm had never slowed down not realizing what happened behind him. He was in Verminator mode on that hill, so I thought it best to chase him down to let him know. Todd came with me and we eventually were able to corral him some time after the top of the hill.
After the rest of the group made their way over, we all rolled together and Shannon and I were just off the back for a bit. I guess at some point he thought I should have already closed the gap ahead of us on Portola and decided to just do so himself. I was still trying to digest a honey stinger at that point, but I jumped on so that I don't drop.
Going down Bake was fun, and initially, I thought it would make for a good non-pedaling downhill. Vince and Todd ended up shooting past Gary and I at one point, and I couldn't resist the chase. I worked my way towards the both of them, and I probably startled Todd a little thinking I had been blown out the back after they passed. He must have forgotten I loved downhills. The 3 of us traded pulls going down, so when we got to Irvine Blvd, we waved Vince on since he was headed to Doheny going straight on Bake.
The rest of us regrouped again and contemplated doing a fast run down Irvine Boulevard. However, we didn't think conditions were ideal and based on the time and decided to just go back via Alton/Barranca. Even though there were no segments there, we were all still having little sprints just to keep everyone honest. That was probably another not-so-smart idea on our part given that we still wanted to hit the Shady hill segment for Shannon.
As we neared, we decided once again to setup an order and the plan was to have everyone only go up to 80% output as we made our way up the hill as we took turns up front for the leadout. Every one of us agreed to do so. I thought I heard Shannon say all I need is to get up to the sign in the middle and I'll take over from there. I guess he meant that for Gary only being he would be the initial person in the lead out. As before, everyone started popping off early again going too hot initially not realizing what 80% meant...including me. Another odd thing was once everyone started going, I tried to get on it and it felt like my quads were hinting they were going to cramp. Nevertheless, when it came down to my turn to pull, I did what I could but it would be more about spinning since I was worried about my legs not holding up. I guess I spun up too fast though overcompensating, and Todd and Shannon didn't stay on my wheel when I took the front. I did manage to make it to the sign he mentioned before blowing up though, but again I did not really do anything to contribute to this segment. Todd kept a good pace and was able to pull Shannon for a good portion of the hill. Once we all got over the top and regrouped, we all thought Shannon must have been shot up from the top since he was nowhere to be seen. It turned out he was waiting for us at the gate. Unfortunately, Shannon was only able to attain a medal on this section.
We opted not to take the long route from the gate and took a shortcut on the sidewalk to go toward Bonita Canyon. We went into lunch ride mode going up the hill though and on the downhill, we started charging our regular sprint point. I was hoping with Shannon behind me, he would come with once I took off toward the bike trail opening. He opted not to, however, since he was still recovering from all the KOMs we've had him go after.
I guess at the intersection, a lot of people were wanting to go straight onto Anteater, but I must have been out of it. When the light turned green, I went ahead and started riding toward McArthur. At some point, Todd passed me and said I broke a lot of hearts given we didn't opt to take the short way back. Despite this, everyone followed and still tried to hold the pace we've been doing all day. Todd was still up for a race pace finish on Bison, so I obliged and charged with him all the way to California. BAM!
In the end, we ended up doing what we all agreed was the hardest 50 miles of riding we've done in a while. Shannon is looking forward to the next person's birthday, so we can punish the next celebrant. Thank goodness my birth certificate burned when I was a child where I no longer officially celebrate birthdays (at least not with this group).
Now there were 2 other stages that followed this ride, one of which was a dinner and the other a post dinner activity. I won't/can't go into too much detail in them, except that Tim, Eddie and Bob G. (of the mountain bike group) joined us. All I'll say is that these 2 stages were just as epic as the ride and that the coordination it takes to ride a bike doesn't necessarily translate to moves on a dance floor. Just kidding, guys!
I hope you had fun, Shannon! We did! Well...maybe not so much for Gary at the end of stage 3.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Friday, July 29, 2011
Lunch Ride - Shady, Laguna Canyon, Bike Trail, Jamboree
Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/1033884
So much for just a light spin today. I honestly did plan on taking it easy, but my legs were feeling pretty decent so I didn't mind participating in pushing the pace with the others. Todd and I worked the group up to Bonita Canyon, and Shannon led us up toward Shady. Once we got to the backside segment, the 3 of us worked together a lot and pushed the pace all the way to the top. Todd hadn't been getting in a lot of group rides in lately, so we had to work him to get him ready for the madness he'll be facing next Thursday.
On the bike trail after Alton, David got in the rotation and took a really good pull after Shannon. Todd and I finished out the section, and Dave got the Strava segment for it. Kudos! Todd hadn't uploaded his data yet though, but still a good showing from David.
After Jeffrey, Todd and I worked the front until the Shannon train came by, and we both managed to jump on while the others lost their tickets. We did take turns through that section as well, and Shannon ended up taking the Strava segment away from Vin. Nice work! The weird thing is that the 3 of us stayed together throughout, but Strava says I was 14 seconds off his pace. I wonder what Todd's data will show.
It was pretty tough going back with the wind and all on the way back, but we did our best to keep it in the 22+ mph range. We didn't sprint to CA, but we did pick the pace up some as we neared it.
On Jamboree, Todd took the lead up the hill while I was still recovering from the bike trail. Shannon held back on the hill and is probably saving it for tomorrow's madness. When Todd and I got on Bison and headed toward CA, I decided to pick up the pace just on the last section and Todd held on all the way back. There's no more sprinting to the gate given that they're down, and I was perfectly fine with it today.
Almost 21 mph average today overall, which is definitely more than just a moderate spin. Jaffe mentioned in the locker room that that was not what he considered a spin. Is it ever with this group?
Thanks for the workout, gents!
So much for just a light spin today. I honestly did plan on taking it easy, but my legs were feeling pretty decent so I didn't mind participating in pushing the pace with the others. Todd and I worked the group up to Bonita Canyon, and Shannon led us up toward Shady. Once we got to the backside segment, the 3 of us worked together a lot and pushed the pace all the way to the top. Todd hadn't been getting in a lot of group rides in lately, so we had to work him to get him ready for the madness he'll be facing next Thursday.
On the bike trail after Alton, David got in the rotation and took a really good pull after Shannon. Todd and I finished out the section, and Dave got the Strava segment for it. Kudos! Todd hadn't uploaded his data yet though, but still a good showing from David.
After Jeffrey, Todd and I worked the front until the Shannon train came by, and we both managed to jump on while the others lost their tickets. We did take turns through that section as well, and Shannon ended up taking the Strava segment away from Vin. Nice work! The weird thing is that the 3 of us stayed together throughout, but Strava says I was 14 seconds off his pace. I wonder what Todd's data will show.
It was pretty tough going back with the wind and all on the way back, but we did our best to keep it in the 22+ mph range. We didn't sprint to CA, but we did pick the pace up some as we neared it.
On Jamboree, Todd took the lead up the hill while I was still recovering from the bike trail. Shannon held back on the hill and is probably saving it for tomorrow's madness. When Todd and I got on Bison and headed toward CA, I decided to pick up the pace just on the last section and Todd held on all the way back. There's no more sprinting to the gate given that they're down, and I was perfectly fine with it today.
Almost 21 mph average today overall, which is definitely more than just a moderate spin. Jaffe mentioned in the locker room that that was not what he considered a spin. Is it ever with this group?
Thanks for the workout, gents!
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Thursday GP Crit - Cat 4/5 (Team of 3)
GPS stats: http://app.strava.com/activities/1030512
I arrived a little early for tonight's race, and Shannon about 10 minutes after. One thing I'm glad about is that getting ready is not part of the race. Shannon always ends up waiting for me to warm up, and tonight was not an exception. I REALLY need to get better organized. We did manage to get some warm up laps but wondered if anyone else was going to come out and watch and/or join us. Thankfully, Vince did show up and got a warm-up lap on his own, and Todd and Pam came out to cheer us on.
This race was yet just another one where strategy was a bigger factor in how it played out than actual ability. I STILL believe we have what it takes to do better (this was proven with Shannon's and Adrian's podium finishes), but we were just out maneuvered tonight. Although you want to be upset with how Team Velosport plays, you have to respect the fact that they're pretty organized. They also have the numbers to be able to implement their strategies, so hopefully we can do better when more show up. It's cool that Todd's now excited and can't wait to give it a try. Next week should be good!
For this race, Velosport launched an attack right after the first prime and pretty much caught us all off guard. I gave the this prime a shot and fell short based on my position going into the last turn (I had to come around one guy who I think I crapped his pants as I went by not expecting someone to sprint from where I was at). By the time I crossed the finish, the Velosport guys blew by just as I was trying to recover. The crosswinds made the sprint a little more tiring, but I gave it a shot and tried t jump on. When we hit the first corner though, the guy in front of me popped creating a gap and I was in no state to try and close the gap. Vince took off from behind me and got in a chase group, but they never got too organized where the chase group I was in was able to reel them back in.
I was under the impression that the numbers we had would be able to reel the breakaway group at some point, but two things prevented it: not enough people willing to bridge the gap and other Velosport members defending. Again, give it up for Velosport in being able to apply their tactics effectively.
Vince and I would work opposite sides of the track, but it was just not enough. I did wonder why Shannon wasn't more of a factor during this time, but it was only after the race that I found out he had gotten a flat on the 2nd lap. It's funny though that Todd yelled out at one point to get up front and help Vince more. I took two long pulls on the opposite side, and the blocking probably was the cause of this more than anything else.
I did see the sign for the final 2 laps and also heard the bell this time for the final lap unlike last week (ha ha). On the 2nd to the last lap toward the bottom of the track, I saw Shannon off the front with no one jumping on to follow. I was about 8-9 back when I saw him, so I took off to jump on his wheel and see what the two of us could do. Vince was ahead of me but opted not to try and jump on too as he wasn't sure he'd have enough not to pull the rest of the group with him. That would not have been good, so it was a good call on his part.
Shannon and I did end up breaking away on the bottom of that 2nd to the last lap and had to work the last lap together to keep the rest of the peloton behind us. Again, not knowing he was more fresh, I took stabs up front just to make sure we could keep the breakaway. It was ridiculously painful to stay on his wheel, but I did all I could to do so. When we rounded the last turn, I was pretty much done. However, Shannon encouraged me to go, so I stood up and gave it all I got. I did get passed by one guy on our group, but I think having gone into neutral when we got passed by some Cat 1/2/3 guys helped the other guy catch up to us. In the end, I think I was able to secure a top 10 finish for our team.
I'm sure if Shannon didn't get a flat, this could have been a totally different race. We learned even more on this race, so chalk it up for more racing experience for the team. My lesson is not to go for the primes when we don't have the top point leader covered. Others learned other valuable lessons as well, so we'll be out again next time with an actual strategy. Woo hoo...can't wait!
Thanks Shannon and Vince for coming out, and Pam and Todd for your support. Looking forward to having Todd join us next week. It should be ON!
I arrived a little early for tonight's race, and Shannon about 10 minutes after. One thing I'm glad about is that getting ready is not part of the race. Shannon always ends up waiting for me to warm up, and tonight was not an exception. I REALLY need to get better organized. We did manage to get some warm up laps but wondered if anyone else was going to come out and watch and/or join us. Thankfully, Vince did show up and got a warm-up lap on his own, and Todd and Pam came out to cheer us on.
This race was yet just another one where strategy was a bigger factor in how it played out than actual ability. I STILL believe we have what it takes to do better (this was proven with Shannon's and Adrian's podium finishes), but we were just out maneuvered tonight. Although you want to be upset with how Team Velosport plays, you have to respect the fact that they're pretty organized. They also have the numbers to be able to implement their strategies, so hopefully we can do better when more show up. It's cool that Todd's now excited and can't wait to give it a try. Next week should be good!
For this race, Velosport launched an attack right after the first prime and pretty much caught us all off guard. I gave the this prime a shot and fell short based on my position going into the last turn (I had to come around one guy who I think I crapped his pants as I went by not expecting someone to sprint from where I was at). By the time I crossed the finish, the Velosport guys blew by just as I was trying to recover. The crosswinds made the sprint a little more tiring, but I gave it a shot and tried t jump on. When we hit the first corner though, the guy in front of me popped creating a gap and I was in no state to try and close the gap. Vince took off from behind me and got in a chase group, but they never got too organized where the chase group I was in was able to reel them back in.
I was under the impression that the numbers we had would be able to reel the breakaway group at some point, but two things prevented it: not enough people willing to bridge the gap and other Velosport members defending. Again, give it up for Velosport in being able to apply their tactics effectively.
Vince and I would work opposite sides of the track, but it was just not enough. I did wonder why Shannon wasn't more of a factor during this time, but it was only after the race that I found out he had gotten a flat on the 2nd lap. It's funny though that Todd yelled out at one point to get up front and help Vince more. I took two long pulls on the opposite side, and the blocking probably was the cause of this more than anything else.
I did see the sign for the final 2 laps and also heard the bell this time for the final lap unlike last week (ha ha). On the 2nd to the last lap toward the bottom of the track, I saw Shannon off the front with no one jumping on to follow. I was about 8-9 back when I saw him, so I took off to jump on his wheel and see what the two of us could do. Vince was ahead of me but opted not to try and jump on too as he wasn't sure he'd have enough not to pull the rest of the group with him. That would not have been good, so it was a good call on his part.
Shannon and I did end up breaking away on the bottom of that 2nd to the last lap and had to work the last lap together to keep the rest of the peloton behind us. Again, not knowing he was more fresh, I took stabs up front just to make sure we could keep the breakaway. It was ridiculously painful to stay on his wheel, but I did all I could to do so. When we rounded the last turn, I was pretty much done. However, Shannon encouraged me to go, so I stood up and gave it all I got. I did get passed by one guy on our group, but I think having gone into neutral when we got passed by some Cat 1/2/3 guys helped the other guy catch up to us. In the end, I think I was able to secure a top 10 finish for our team.
I'm sure if Shannon didn't get a flat, this could have been a totally different race. We learned even more on this race, so chalk it up for more racing experience for the team. My lesson is not to go for the primes when we don't have the top point leader covered. Others learned other valuable lessons as well, so we'll be out again next time with an actual strategy. Woo hoo...can't wait!
Thanks Shannon and Vince for coming out, and Pam and Todd for your support. Looking forward to having Todd join us next week. It should be ON!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Lunch Ride - NPC + Double BB Route
GC: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/101968209
Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/1013885
The size of the rides have been dwindling in the past, so it was good to see 8 of us out there today for this double Back Bay painfest. Mike Z. made it out again, so it's nice to see him back in the mix. Vin was out with us too, and magically was wearing a black BRCM jersey. For the record, that wasn't from me, so I hope it doesn't incite a riot among the others not as fortunate. Maybe those who want one can ask him.
Vince and Gary led us out through Peltason and up Anteater, while everyone was content to sit in their draft through Anteater. Guilt set in toward the end, so I jumped to the front to offer them some wind coverage as well. I guess it was going to be that kind of day.
Going up NPC, Vince and I worked together, but I think we were both glad to have Shannon relieve us just after the bridge. We followed him up towards San Joaquin past one guy on a TT bike. Near the top, Vince decided to break off. Around this same time, the guy on the TT bike started to pass me where I thought he was going to get on Shannon's draft. However, he started to fall off but I stuck with him for a bit. As we got to the corner of San Joaquin, I came around him but then he came back around me on the aeros after we rounded. I couldn't resist a free ride, so I jumped back in his draft as he made his way past Shannon and Vince. We took the free ride for a while, but then Vince jumped ahead on the downhill, and I took a subsequent turn as well. TT guy passed us again at one point, and we pretty much took advantage of the draft all the way down to Marguerite where he turned off.
Shannon made the left turn on McArthur just ahead of us where Vince and I crossed both streets instead. When the light turned green, Shannon and I were interested in riding through Back Bay with the group. Vince either wanted to play the rabbit or just not stop, so he was off on his own for the rest of the route. If the others didn't get caught on the light at McArthur for as long as they did, we may have been able to give chase. Too bad it didn't work out that way.
Originally, Shannon and I took the initial pulls once we regrouped, but Vin took the lead once we got caught at a stop light on PCH. It was nice to see someone else taking up the front for a change. He even led us out on Back Bay out to San Joaquin, but then it was just Shannon and I taking turns up front. The alternating wasn't too frequent (man, you guys left me up there for a while after San Joaquin...ha ha), but it was nice that several others (David's looking impressive) were able to stay on throughout the first Back Bay pass. Shannon charged up to the top after my last pull, and S-Gary got by too from out of nowhere. Nice!
Going up Jamboree, I saw Shannon make his way past Robert and Mike Z. He just made the Bison light ahead of me, but several of us managed to catch back up on Ford/Eastbluff. Once the light turned green, we started rolling forward when Mike Z. just zoomed right by us. It took some effort to try to get in his draft but we did catch him just before we got to the San Joaquin intersection.
When we got back on Back Bay Dr., it was just Shannon, Jaffe, Gary and I. Once we hit the gate though, Shannon lead the charge followed by Jaffe and me. I wasn't sure how Steve was going to do behind Shannon, but he kept up for a pretty good distance. I don't think I came around until after San Joaquin and then Shannon and I started trading pulls. On one of Shannon's pulls, I was almost certain he had bad intentions because he took off at breakaway speeds. At that rate, all I can do was just try to get back and hold onto his wheel. I tried to come around as he did on the first pass at the gate, but he wasn't having any of it.
Shannon even broke away for a bit as we headed toward University and California, but I was able to get up front and keep the pace up as we got up to the light.
On California, we were pretty well spent so we asked Jaffe to go ahead and lead us up the hill. When I took the front subsequently to help Steve out, I look to my right and see Gary coming around past me. I let Gary worked the front for a bit but decided subsequently that I'd pay him back for the top of Back Bay. It's the BAM way. :)
Good ride today, and perfect training for this Thursday. Although no Strava KOMs were attained, it was still a helluva good workout!
Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/1013885
The size of the rides have been dwindling in the past, so it was good to see 8 of us out there today for this double Back Bay painfest. Mike Z. made it out again, so it's nice to see him back in the mix. Vin was out with us too, and magically was wearing a black BRCM jersey. For the record, that wasn't from me, so I hope it doesn't incite a riot among the others not as fortunate. Maybe those who want one can ask him.
Vince and Gary led us out through Peltason and up Anteater, while everyone was content to sit in their draft through Anteater. Guilt set in toward the end, so I jumped to the front to offer them some wind coverage as well. I guess it was going to be that kind of day.
Going up NPC, Vince and I worked together, but I think we were both glad to have Shannon relieve us just after the bridge. We followed him up towards San Joaquin past one guy on a TT bike. Near the top, Vince decided to break off. Around this same time, the guy on the TT bike started to pass me where I thought he was going to get on Shannon's draft. However, he started to fall off but I stuck with him for a bit. As we got to the corner of San Joaquin, I came around him but then he came back around me on the aeros after we rounded. I couldn't resist a free ride, so I jumped back in his draft as he made his way past Shannon and Vince. We took the free ride for a while, but then Vince jumped ahead on the downhill, and I took a subsequent turn as well. TT guy passed us again at one point, and we pretty much took advantage of the draft all the way down to Marguerite where he turned off.
Shannon made the left turn on McArthur just ahead of us where Vince and I crossed both streets instead. When the light turned green, Shannon and I were interested in riding through Back Bay with the group. Vince either wanted to play the rabbit or just not stop, so he was off on his own for the rest of the route. If the others didn't get caught on the light at McArthur for as long as they did, we may have been able to give chase. Too bad it didn't work out that way.
Originally, Shannon and I took the initial pulls once we regrouped, but Vin took the lead once we got caught at a stop light on PCH. It was nice to see someone else taking up the front for a change. He even led us out on Back Bay out to San Joaquin, but then it was just Shannon and I taking turns up front. The alternating wasn't too frequent (man, you guys left me up there for a while after San Joaquin...ha ha), but it was nice that several others (David's looking impressive) were able to stay on throughout the first Back Bay pass. Shannon charged up to the top after my last pull, and S-Gary got by too from out of nowhere. Nice!
Going up Jamboree, I saw Shannon make his way past Robert and Mike Z. He just made the Bison light ahead of me, but several of us managed to catch back up on Ford/Eastbluff. Once the light turned green, we started rolling forward when Mike Z. just zoomed right by us. It took some effort to try to get in his draft but we did catch him just before we got to the San Joaquin intersection.
When we got back on Back Bay Dr., it was just Shannon, Jaffe, Gary and I. Once we hit the gate though, Shannon lead the charge followed by Jaffe and me. I wasn't sure how Steve was going to do behind Shannon, but he kept up for a pretty good distance. I don't think I came around until after San Joaquin and then Shannon and I started trading pulls. On one of Shannon's pulls, I was almost certain he had bad intentions because he took off at breakaway speeds. At that rate, all I can do was just try to get back and hold onto his wheel. I tried to come around as he did on the first pass at the gate, but he wasn't having any of it.
Shannon even broke away for a bit as we headed toward University and California, but I was able to get up front and keep the pace up as we got up to the light.
On California, we were pretty well spent so we asked Jaffe to go ahead and lead us up the hill. When I took the front subsequently to help Steve out, I look to my right and see Gary coming around past me. I let Gary worked the front for a bit but decided subsequently that I'd pay him back for the top of Back Bay. It's the BAM way. :)
Good ride today, and perfect training for this Thursday. Although no Strava KOMs were attained, it was still a helluva good workout!
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Sunday Trainer from BRCM to Rancho Palos Verdes Loop and Back
Strava stats: http://app.strava.com/rides/1001504
When I originally asked to see if others were riding this Sunday, the plan was to take it easy. I didn't think I'd do too well after going bodyboarding on Saturday, so a mellower pace than Como Street or something other than a ride with more than 5K vert was what I hoped for. BAM translation - 94 miles of riding, 3K vert, and a race pace ending. Wha?
Vince was suppose to meet up with us but wanted to ride up from San Clemente at 6 am whereas our departure time from BRCM was at 6:30 am. Gary had to be back before 1, so we ended up leaving on time or just a little after. Unfortunately, we never got to see Vince and none of us heard our phones when he called, so we ended up going on without him. Based on Strava, it looks like he was able to put in the medium distance ride he was looking to do. Next time, buddy.
When we took off, the weather was a little nippy so we actually had a little warm-up pace heading toward Back Bay. Once we got on Back Bay, however, the pace picked up a little more mostly due to Mr. McGee wanting to turn the heat up. I do remember mentioning to him that we still have a LOT more miles to do today, but he still kept cranking all the way through the gate with me just holding on. Gary did something a little unusual today, and decided not to keep up with this pace early on. It wasn't based on ability as much as just riding smarter to conserve power given that we had a lot of riding ahead of us. Wha? I know! We were all together again after and rode out through to Bayside to get onto PCH.
On PCH, we were all taking turns and working smart together against the headwind. We ended up picking up a few riders, with some of them dropping, but continued to rotate between us 3 only as we towed them behind us. We didn't go as fast as we've gone in the past based on the wind, but we were well above a 21 mph average as we got to Long Beach. It didn't slow down much as we headed down Anaheim Blvd toward Rancho Palos Verdes where we were still at 20.9 by the time we ended up taking a bio break before getting on Palos Verdes Dr. N.
After a short break, we were off and as none of us really knew the area too well, we were all a little apprehensive about pushing too hard on the hills. Even Shannon seemed to be conserving power. As we neared the ocean, we hit some climbs but nothing too serious. Once we hit the more scenic areas overlooking the ocean, we were pretty much in touring mode at the time. Gary and I were riding together while Shannon was off the back just chillin'. We were all admiring the scenery, the houses, and the route and it was nice to just relax and look around for a change.
At one point, another guy on a road bike not wearing a helmet decided to pass Gary and I at a pretty good clip. I was telling Gary that we should just ignore him, but Gary said it wasn't the BAM way. Although I was reluctant, I decided to go ahead and give chase. I ended up getting split up from the Gary and Shannon at a light as I made my way toward and past this helmetless rider, and since I figured they'd catch up to me at some point, I just kept going. I wasn't going too fast but just enough to where I didn't think the helmetless guy would catch back up. I REALLY didn't want to mix it up since I didn't know what the hills ahead of us were going to be like.
We ended up regrouping at Palos Verdes Drive East just where the hill started up, and based on the map I saw of it, looked like a bunch of switchbacks where I didn't know just how steep they would be. Thoughts of Baldy circulated through my mind. We did end up taking in a little more nutrition before the climb, but Shannon broke off first since he wanted to charge up the hill. I followed shortly after, and Gary took off after he got some more fuel.
Shannon got a pretty good jump ahead of me and ultimately ended up disappearing after a while...as expected. The hill did have a lot of switchbacks where you couldn't see how high it pitches up after the bends, but the funny thing is it never really pitched up too bad in any of the sections. It was a grind, but nothing like Baldy or some of the other hills we've done in the past. Hindsight will definitely be an advantage the next time we do this route.
Shannon had kept going after the top where there was some descending immediately after. He probably thought there must be more climbing than that and went on to look. I did see him at a corner where we ended up regrouping before descending together. That was pretty much all the climbing there was. There may have been one small hill after, but the rest was just descending. Fun!
We made our way back to the gas station at the base of Palos Verdes Dr. N. to get some water and take our final break before heading back toward PCH via Anaheim St. We were suppose to take it a little easy after starting off, and we did. I guess I had turned it up a little much at one point where Gary let me know it was too early. I could tell, however, at that point that my endorphins had kicked in but I waited. Once we got through some of the stop lights on this street, I went ahead and turned it back up. Shannon and Gary were also helping to keep the pace up as well, which is pretty difficult on that road. It didn't take long however before we were back on PCH.
On PCH, Gary was starting to feel the miles already, so Shannon and I were ready to provide him some wind coverage as we headed back. I was a little surprised that we felt some winds as we got on PCH expecting that it would be all tailwinds. Thank goodness it didn't last. We did feel the tailwinds after, so I wanted to take advantage and push hard on the way back.
Gary held on as we made our way out of Long Beach, but didn't want to hold us up and kept telling us to just go ahead. At one of the stretches where Shannon started to pull away, I decided to go with and see what kind of speeds we can hold. Again, feeling the endorphins where I had no problem breathing and my legs felt good, we pushed pretty good and were holding speeds upwards of 26-30 mph for long stretches. We did get held up a little on some of the stop lights in Huntington Beach where Gary was able to catch back up to us. However, after we got past them, the charged continued all the way back through Newport Beach and it was just Shannon and I taking down everyone ahead of us.
When we got back to Bayside, we originally were just going to cool down through Back Bay. However, something about this road makes it just too much fun to pass up a good run where we still hit it pretty hard despite having blazed on PCH just beforehand. We still hit over a 25 mph average through this section as well.
We made our way back to CA, and I wasn't sure if Shannon was up for a charge up it or not. When I took off, I guess he was ready to cool down so I went ahead. Midway up though, I didn't I was holding a good enough speed to make a difference and just backed off. We pretty much just rolled from that point on back to Bldg 11. Gary came in not too long after, and had a good ride taking advantage of the tailwinds on his own.
I had a really good outing today, and I'm glad we did all the miles. 94 miles and almost 20 average made for a great training day. I'm glad the other guys enjoyed it as well. Thanks, gents!
When I originally asked to see if others were riding this Sunday, the plan was to take it easy. I didn't think I'd do too well after going bodyboarding on Saturday, so a mellower pace than Como Street or something other than a ride with more than 5K vert was what I hoped for. BAM translation - 94 miles of riding, 3K vert, and a race pace ending. Wha?
Vince was suppose to meet up with us but wanted to ride up from San Clemente at 6 am whereas our departure time from BRCM was at 6:30 am. Gary had to be back before 1, so we ended up leaving on time or just a little after. Unfortunately, we never got to see Vince and none of us heard our phones when he called, so we ended up going on without him. Based on Strava, it looks like he was able to put in the medium distance ride he was looking to do. Next time, buddy.
When we took off, the weather was a little nippy so we actually had a little warm-up pace heading toward Back Bay. Once we got on Back Bay, however, the pace picked up a little more mostly due to Mr. McGee wanting to turn the heat up. I do remember mentioning to him that we still have a LOT more miles to do today, but he still kept cranking all the way through the gate with me just holding on. Gary did something a little unusual today, and decided not to keep up with this pace early on. It wasn't based on ability as much as just riding smarter to conserve power given that we had a lot of riding ahead of us. Wha? I know! We were all together again after and rode out through to Bayside to get onto PCH.
On PCH, we were all taking turns and working smart together against the headwind. We ended up picking up a few riders, with some of them dropping, but continued to rotate between us 3 only as we towed them behind us. We didn't go as fast as we've gone in the past based on the wind, but we were well above a 21 mph average as we got to Long Beach. It didn't slow down much as we headed down Anaheim Blvd toward Rancho Palos Verdes where we were still at 20.9 by the time we ended up taking a bio break before getting on Palos Verdes Dr. N.
After a short break, we were off and as none of us really knew the area too well, we were all a little apprehensive about pushing too hard on the hills. Even Shannon seemed to be conserving power. As we neared the ocean, we hit some climbs but nothing too serious. Once we hit the more scenic areas overlooking the ocean, we were pretty much in touring mode at the time. Gary and I were riding together while Shannon was off the back just chillin'. We were all admiring the scenery, the houses, and the route and it was nice to just relax and look around for a change.
At one point, another guy on a road bike not wearing a helmet decided to pass Gary and I at a pretty good clip. I was telling Gary that we should just ignore him, but Gary said it wasn't the BAM way. Although I was reluctant, I decided to go ahead and give chase. I ended up getting split up from the Gary and Shannon at a light as I made my way toward and past this helmetless rider, and since I figured they'd catch up to me at some point, I just kept going. I wasn't going too fast but just enough to where I didn't think the helmetless guy would catch back up. I REALLY didn't want to mix it up since I didn't know what the hills ahead of us were going to be like.
We ended up regrouping at Palos Verdes Drive East just where the hill started up, and based on the map I saw of it, looked like a bunch of switchbacks where I didn't know just how steep they would be. Thoughts of Baldy circulated through my mind. We did end up taking in a little more nutrition before the climb, but Shannon broke off first since he wanted to charge up the hill. I followed shortly after, and Gary took off after he got some more fuel.
Shannon got a pretty good jump ahead of me and ultimately ended up disappearing after a while...as expected. The hill did have a lot of switchbacks where you couldn't see how high it pitches up after the bends, but the funny thing is it never really pitched up too bad in any of the sections. It was a grind, but nothing like Baldy or some of the other hills we've done in the past. Hindsight will definitely be an advantage the next time we do this route.
Shannon had kept going after the top where there was some descending immediately after. He probably thought there must be more climbing than that and went on to look. I did see him at a corner where we ended up regrouping before descending together. That was pretty much all the climbing there was. There may have been one small hill after, but the rest was just descending. Fun!
We made our way back to the gas station at the base of Palos Verdes Dr. N. to get some water and take our final break before heading back toward PCH via Anaheim St. We were suppose to take it a little easy after starting off, and we did. I guess I had turned it up a little much at one point where Gary let me know it was too early. I could tell, however, at that point that my endorphins had kicked in but I waited. Once we got through some of the stop lights on this street, I went ahead and turned it back up. Shannon and Gary were also helping to keep the pace up as well, which is pretty difficult on that road. It didn't take long however before we were back on PCH.
On PCH, Gary was starting to feel the miles already, so Shannon and I were ready to provide him some wind coverage as we headed back. I was a little surprised that we felt some winds as we got on PCH expecting that it would be all tailwinds. Thank goodness it didn't last. We did feel the tailwinds after, so I wanted to take advantage and push hard on the way back.
Gary held on as we made our way out of Long Beach, but didn't want to hold us up and kept telling us to just go ahead. At one of the stretches where Shannon started to pull away, I decided to go with and see what kind of speeds we can hold. Again, feeling the endorphins where I had no problem breathing and my legs felt good, we pushed pretty good and were holding speeds upwards of 26-30 mph for long stretches. We did get held up a little on some of the stop lights in Huntington Beach where Gary was able to catch back up to us. However, after we got past them, the charged continued all the way back through Newport Beach and it was just Shannon and I taking down everyone ahead of us.
When we got back to Bayside, we originally were just going to cool down through Back Bay. However, something about this road makes it just too much fun to pass up a good run where we still hit it pretty hard despite having blazed on PCH just beforehand. We still hit over a 25 mph average through this section as well.
We made our way back to CA, and I wasn't sure if Shannon was up for a charge up it or not. When I took off, I guess he was ready to cool down so I went ahead. Midway up though, I didn't I was holding a good enough speed to make a difference and just backed off. We pretty much just rolled from that point on back to Bldg 11. Gary came in not too long after, and had a good ride taking advantage of the tailwinds on his own.
I had a really good outing today, and I'm glad we did all the miles. 94 miles and almost 20 average made for a great training day. I'm glad the other guys enjoyed it as well. Thanks, gents!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Thursday GP Crit - Cat 4/5
Strava stats: http://app.strava.com/rides/985348
I originally thought this was going to be another solo adventure for me today, but found out this morning that Shannon was going to join me. He showed up shortly after I did, and we got a nice warm-up lap in where we discussed a strategy for today's race. The plan was to not be overly aggressive until it was absolutely necessary. For the final lap, we were going to try and launch an assault in the last couple turns with a good lead out for the finish. That was the plan anyways.
Eddie showed up shortly after, and although he didn't bring his bike, he came out to support us and took some cool videos a couple picture at the end. Thanks, Eddie!
As we neared 6 PM with the race starting in 15 minutes, lo and behold Noah showed up along with Kevin and Brad. Cool. They still had some getting ready to do, so we let them at it where we didn't really get to collaborate on any strategies with more people. It would have been cool, but there was just no time.
Shannon and I rolled up to where everyone starts to gather before the race, and I saw a couple guys I met before who were part of Team Sho-Air. I stopped by to say hi (somewhat obligated as well since I donned their kit) and somehow was recruited to help their top point leader (Scott) by defending. They also shared with me their strategy, so I felt somewhat obligated to help and be one of their domestiques for the race. They even already had it determined who would go for the first prime, so I didn't want to dishonor their kit and not comply. I did ask Shannon to join us, but I was still trying to find an out to make sure he could go for the finish without any problems. They did say if we had what it took at the finish to go for it, so I'm glad Shannon did and got 2nd (ahead of Scott). More on this later.
For the most part, the race seemed easier this week and no where near as sketchy as the first time in the Cat 4/5 class. I did my part where I worked a lot near the front to defend the Sho-Air points leader, but overall it didn't seem too difficult.
When the first prime came, I actually decided to sprint more as an afterthought than actually contesting for the win. Again, I didn't want to upset the Sho-Air strategy, but I did want to stay close to the guy (Sol) who they slated to try and win it. I took off after the corner, so to close on the front and come in 4th wasn't bad. My objectives were 1) to see just how fast these guys can sprint, 2) see what I can do on my Cervelo with a compact crank and 3) see whether recovery would be a problem for me. Based on the outcome, I think I'll go for primes more often. As you can see from Eddie's video below, I rolled in after the Sol not in sprint mode but still somewhat broken away from the pack...temporarily.
After this prime, the only thing I was doing was working for the team. Anytime I thought Scott would get a little ahead, I would defend by holding the wheels of anyone who tried to bridge the gap. It took some work, but it didn't really amount to much since he couldn't break off the group enough. Shannon, Kevin and Brad were also staying close, so they did what they needed to do to keep up and closing gaps as needed.
We did have some odd situations come up where we got passed by the Masters class, who started after our class went out. This didn't happen last week, but based on all the "tactics" going on today resulting in reduced speeds here and there, it was no wonder. Everyone in our class was suppose to go into neutral mode, or so we thought, but there was a Mototab guy who kept getting in the draft of the guys outside our class. He may have been the one who took it at the end, so if he was, the organized may need to evaluate that.
My problem after the first prime was I didn't really pay much attention to when the 2nd prime was and even the final 2 laps. One the 2nd prime, Sol asked me to lead him out for it, so what was I suppose to say? No? It turned out, however, that Brad was to my right and blocked my ability to be able to do so, so I didn't really get a chance. I think this was also a lap where there was another group passing, so in the end, I didn't really know whether we were to sprint or not. I remember pulling to the right after trying to advance thinking I wasn't suppose to considering we were suppose to be in "neutral" mode. All I know is this racing business is hella confusing. HA HA
On the 2nd to the last lap, a breakaway took off including Scott, and Shannon jumped on. I think Kevin was on it also, but I'm not sure. I wanted to give chase, but I again didn't want to get the other guys pissed at me. Sol and one other guy went to defend this one guy who was trying to close the gap, and when they couldn't hold his wheel, asked me to. So I did. Eventually, he popped, and that's when Sol and the other Sho-Air guy came up from behind me and asked me to try to close the gap to the breakaway group. We worked together for a while and although we closed on the top part of the track, they started to get away on the back side. The 3 of us did what we could, but when I turned around and saw another chase group behind us, I thought to just slow down and jump in on the chase group. Eventually, we caught the other 2 Sho-air guys ahead of us.
The dumb (amateur or rookie are proper replacements) thing about it was that at that point, I didn't even realize it was the last lap. That may have given me just a little more incentive to try and keep away from the chase 2 group. Hell...it was at the bottom of the track that they caught us. As we rounded the final turns, I didn't do anything to set it up and even wondered why some of the guys were sprinting ahead of us toward the finish. When I saw them turn out after, only then did I realize the race was over. Although tragic, it is also pretty friggin' funny. I was ready to even go another lap. Things I learned: pay more attention to the signs at the finish line, if they have the video camera out, it's the final lap and don't wear a Sho-air jersey if I actually want to win one of these things. HA HA.
Shannon did finish 2nd as I mentioned and stayed with the breakaway group. The cool thing was he knew better than to get up front only to be used up and spat out in the end. He had no obligations, and even when asked to pull, refused. Nice. He got it right and got the podium spot he deserved. Here's what it looked like:
In the video, you'll also see me just rolling into this one as well and pretty much with a "doh" look. Insert "Really? It's over?" caption as needed.
Kevin, Brad and Noah did awesome too. Noah worked the secondary packs, closed some gaps, and did his thing, which is more than what anyone would expect after killing it on the bike last weekend at the Vineman. Although Noah won't make it out next week, we'll definitely need to get Brad and Kevin to work with us for the next one for sure. Strong guys.
In the end, Shannon getting on the podium made for a good outing. I actually enjoyed this race just because i was able to ride with the guys unlike last week. Even seeing Noah a few times was cool. When I had dropped back on one occasion, he asked "what are you doing back here in the ghetto?" Too funny. We celebrated Shannon's finish with some of his homemade brew...good stuff! It had some kick to it too!
Great race, gents! Let's do it again next week! Just like with Strava, I'm hooked!
Here's a post ride pic of the race crew:
I originally thought this was going to be another solo adventure for me today, but found out this morning that Shannon was going to join me. He showed up shortly after I did, and we got a nice warm-up lap in where we discussed a strategy for today's race. The plan was to not be overly aggressive until it was absolutely necessary. For the final lap, we were going to try and launch an assault in the last couple turns with a good lead out for the finish. That was the plan anyways.
Eddie showed up shortly after, and although he didn't bring his bike, he came out to support us and took some cool videos a couple picture at the end. Thanks, Eddie!
As we neared 6 PM with the race starting in 15 minutes, lo and behold Noah showed up along with Kevin and Brad. Cool. They still had some getting ready to do, so we let them at it where we didn't really get to collaborate on any strategies with more people. It would have been cool, but there was just no time.
Shannon and I rolled up to where everyone starts to gather before the race, and I saw a couple guys I met before who were part of Team Sho-Air. I stopped by to say hi (somewhat obligated as well since I donned their kit) and somehow was recruited to help their top point leader (Scott) by defending. They also shared with me their strategy, so I felt somewhat obligated to help and be one of their domestiques for the race. They even already had it determined who would go for the first prime, so I didn't want to dishonor their kit and not comply. I did ask Shannon to join us, but I was still trying to find an out to make sure he could go for the finish without any problems. They did say if we had what it took at the finish to go for it, so I'm glad Shannon did and got 2nd (ahead of Scott). More on this later.
For the most part, the race seemed easier this week and no where near as sketchy as the first time in the Cat 4/5 class. I did my part where I worked a lot near the front to defend the Sho-Air points leader, but overall it didn't seem too difficult.
When the first prime came, I actually decided to sprint more as an afterthought than actually contesting for the win. Again, I didn't want to upset the Sho-Air strategy, but I did want to stay close to the guy (Sol) who they slated to try and win it. I took off after the corner, so to close on the front and come in 4th wasn't bad. My objectives were 1) to see just how fast these guys can sprint, 2) see what I can do on my Cervelo with a compact crank and 3) see whether recovery would be a problem for me. Based on the outcome, I think I'll go for primes more often. As you can see from Eddie's video below, I rolled in after the Sol not in sprint mode but still somewhat broken away from the pack...temporarily.
After this prime, the only thing I was doing was working for the team. Anytime I thought Scott would get a little ahead, I would defend by holding the wheels of anyone who tried to bridge the gap. It took some work, but it didn't really amount to much since he couldn't break off the group enough. Shannon, Kevin and Brad were also staying close, so they did what they needed to do to keep up and closing gaps as needed.
We did have some odd situations come up where we got passed by the Masters class, who started after our class went out. This didn't happen last week, but based on all the "tactics" going on today resulting in reduced speeds here and there, it was no wonder. Everyone in our class was suppose to go into neutral mode, or so we thought, but there was a Mototab guy who kept getting in the draft of the guys outside our class. He may have been the one who took it at the end, so if he was, the organized may need to evaluate that.
My problem after the first prime was I didn't really pay much attention to when the 2nd prime was and even the final 2 laps. One the 2nd prime, Sol asked me to lead him out for it, so what was I suppose to say? No? It turned out, however, that Brad was to my right and blocked my ability to be able to do so, so I didn't really get a chance. I think this was also a lap where there was another group passing, so in the end, I didn't really know whether we were to sprint or not. I remember pulling to the right after trying to advance thinking I wasn't suppose to considering we were suppose to be in "neutral" mode. All I know is this racing business is hella confusing. HA HA
On the 2nd to the last lap, a breakaway took off including Scott, and Shannon jumped on. I think Kevin was on it also, but I'm not sure. I wanted to give chase, but I again didn't want to get the other guys pissed at me. Sol and one other guy went to defend this one guy who was trying to close the gap, and when they couldn't hold his wheel, asked me to. So I did. Eventually, he popped, and that's when Sol and the other Sho-Air guy came up from behind me and asked me to try to close the gap to the breakaway group. We worked together for a while and although we closed on the top part of the track, they started to get away on the back side. The 3 of us did what we could, but when I turned around and saw another chase group behind us, I thought to just slow down and jump in on the chase group. Eventually, we caught the other 2 Sho-air guys ahead of us.
The dumb (amateur or rookie are proper replacements) thing about it was that at that point, I didn't even realize it was the last lap. That may have given me just a little more incentive to try and keep away from the chase 2 group. Hell...it was at the bottom of the track that they caught us. As we rounded the final turns, I didn't do anything to set it up and even wondered why some of the guys were sprinting ahead of us toward the finish. When I saw them turn out after, only then did I realize the race was over. Although tragic, it is also pretty friggin' funny. I was ready to even go another lap. Things I learned: pay more attention to the signs at the finish line, if they have the video camera out, it's the final lap and don't wear a Sho-air jersey if I actually want to win one of these things. HA HA.
Shannon did finish 2nd as I mentioned and stayed with the breakaway group. The cool thing was he knew better than to get up front only to be used up and spat out in the end. He had no obligations, and even when asked to pull, refused. Nice. He got it right and got the podium spot he deserved. Here's what it looked like:
In the video, you'll also see me just rolling into this one as well and pretty much with a "doh" look. Insert "Really? It's over?" caption as needed.
Kevin, Brad and Noah did awesome too. Noah worked the secondary packs, closed some gaps, and did his thing, which is more than what anyone would expect after killing it on the bike last weekend at the Vineman. Although Noah won't make it out next week, we'll definitely need to get Brad and Kevin to work with us for the next one for sure. Strong guys.
In the end, Shannon getting on the podium made for a good outing. I actually enjoyed this race just because i was able to ride with the guys unlike last week. Even seeing Noah a few times was cool. When I had dropped back on one occasion, he asked "what are you doing back here in the ghetto?" Too funny. We celebrated Shannon's finish with some of his homemade brew...good stuff! It had some kick to it too!
Great race, gents! Let's do it again next week! Just like with Strava, I'm hooked!
Here's a post ride pic of the race crew:
 |
| Kevin, Brad, Sexy White Chocolate, Shannon and me |
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
BRCM Lunch - BB, PCH, NPC, Vista, Bonita Canyon, "Shannon's House" and Bison
Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/970523
GC: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/100361061
I think Todd got it right when he said it was going to be a painful day given who was coming out. Looking at all our Strava activity, you'd think it would drop down a notch but it still turned out to be a ride that asked you what you have even when you've got nothing left...at least that's how I felt. BAM at it's finest.
We took off together, but we ended up getting separated from Seon/Vin at the lights on California. I tried in vain to see if the others were willing to wait, but once this group gets rolling, it hard to get them to stop. Sorry to those who got separated.
On the bike trail headed to Back Bay, I could tell that the winds would be a factor if others were contemplating getting the top spot for the gate-to-gate segment. I spoke up to let others know, but just like trying to get them to stop, the group today only had two switch positions: on or off. Dropping down on Back Bay, you can tell it was ON.
Given the above, I took some stabs up front to try and keep the pace up alternating with Todd, Vince, Shannon and Gary. All-in-all, the wind was too much and we did not break the previous record as I expected. Vince and Shannon duked it out at the end though, and I'm not sure who came out ahead but it was definitely between the two of them.
Todd led us out through PCH all the way to Avocado. We got a little split up from Vince at one of the stop signs in CDM near Ocean, but we were able to be all together again once we came out of Poppy back to PCH. Todd and Vince took the opportunity to break away for a bit, so I figured some crit training was in order to where I worked to close the gap. I subsequently took the last pull on PCH and was a little cooked by the time we got to NPC. I still tried to keep the pace up going up, but Todd, Vince and Mitchell got ahead and all I could do was watch them from a few yards back. Shannon was off the back for a while, but after he uploaded his Strava, I realized his tactic was not to charge initially but do so after he got on Vista. He did pass me at a pretty good clip where it flatted out on NPC. That seemed to work as now he has the KOM for the NPC to Vista segment from today's ride: http://app.strava.com/segments/664640. We still have to see Todd's though as he hadn't uploaded his ride today yet.
On Vista, I was able to catch Mitchell and I could only see Shannon and Vince ahead of me. On the last part of the hill, I thought I'd give the hill a sprint but Vince finished the hill just ahead of me with Todd and Shannon waiting on Ridge Park. We all regrouped at this point but Vin decided to keep going. Since he wore sleeves today, we let him go...at least until the bottom of Ridge Park.
On NPC, Vince got a little bit ahead of us on the descent, but we caught and pulled him into the draft down the hill. I was working that compact crank as best as I could, and after we went under the 73, Vince took over and I got worked just trying to get back on. I was gasping for air at the bottom...again.
I took a break on Bonita Canyon for a bit, but decided to pull Gary in after he had broken away just after the 73 underpass. I also was offering to lead out anyone who wanted to take my Jamboree segment away since we were going that way. Vin jumped ahead as we crossed McArthur and was trying to break away from the group for the climb up Jamboree. However, at the base where we turned from Ford, he got a little held up by some cars and we passed him shortly after. I started cranking once I got past the cars and when I looked back once I sat down, I didn't see anyone there. I kept pushing until the end anyways just to see if I can improve my prior time, and lo and behold...I did. However, after Shannon uploaded his data, it shows he took my house and made it his by 1 second: http://app.strava.com/segments/666393. Thus, I renamed the segment accordingly. According to the comparison chart, it looks like I had him all the way to the top of the hill, but he nosed me out just at the end. Way to go! At least the pressure's off now. HA
I was worked for the rest of the ride, and I think Gary and the others were sprinting on Bison where I got split off at one of the lights...gladly. I hope it was a good sprint finish for those who went for it.
Great workout today, and perfect training for this week's crit. Resting until then, so have fun for the rest of the week. Thanks, gents!
GC: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/100361061
I think Todd got it right when he said it was going to be a painful day given who was coming out. Looking at all our Strava activity, you'd think it would drop down a notch but it still turned out to be a ride that asked you what you have even when you've got nothing left...at least that's how I felt. BAM at it's finest.
We took off together, but we ended up getting separated from Seon/Vin at the lights on California. I tried in vain to see if the others were willing to wait, but once this group gets rolling, it hard to get them to stop. Sorry to those who got separated.
On the bike trail headed to Back Bay, I could tell that the winds would be a factor if others were contemplating getting the top spot for the gate-to-gate segment. I spoke up to let others know, but just like trying to get them to stop, the group today only had two switch positions: on or off. Dropping down on Back Bay, you can tell it was ON.
Given the above, I took some stabs up front to try and keep the pace up alternating with Todd, Vince, Shannon and Gary. All-in-all, the wind was too much and we did not break the previous record as I expected. Vince and Shannon duked it out at the end though, and I'm not sure who came out ahead but it was definitely between the two of them.
Todd led us out through PCH all the way to Avocado. We got a little split up from Vince at one of the stop signs in CDM near Ocean, but we were able to be all together again once we came out of Poppy back to PCH. Todd and Vince took the opportunity to break away for a bit, so I figured some crit training was in order to where I worked to close the gap. I subsequently took the last pull on PCH and was a little cooked by the time we got to NPC. I still tried to keep the pace up going up, but Todd, Vince and Mitchell got ahead and all I could do was watch them from a few yards back. Shannon was off the back for a while, but after he uploaded his Strava, I realized his tactic was not to charge initially but do so after he got on Vista. He did pass me at a pretty good clip where it flatted out on NPC. That seemed to work as now he has the KOM for the NPC to Vista segment from today's ride: http://app.strava.com/segments/664640. We still have to see Todd's though as he hadn't uploaded his ride today yet.
On Vista, I was able to catch Mitchell and I could only see Shannon and Vince ahead of me. On the last part of the hill, I thought I'd give the hill a sprint but Vince finished the hill just ahead of me with Todd and Shannon waiting on Ridge Park. We all regrouped at this point but Vin decided to keep going. Since he wore sleeves today, we let him go...at least until the bottom of Ridge Park.
On NPC, Vince got a little bit ahead of us on the descent, but we caught and pulled him into the draft down the hill. I was working that compact crank as best as I could, and after we went under the 73, Vince took over and I got worked just trying to get back on. I was gasping for air at the bottom...again.
I took a break on Bonita Canyon for a bit, but decided to pull Gary in after he had broken away just after the 73 underpass. I also was offering to lead out anyone who wanted to take my Jamboree segment away since we were going that way. Vin jumped ahead as we crossed McArthur and was trying to break away from the group for the climb up Jamboree. However, at the base where we turned from Ford, he got a little held up by some cars and we passed him shortly after. I started cranking once I got past the cars and when I looked back once I sat down, I didn't see anyone there. I kept pushing until the end anyways just to see if I can improve my prior time, and lo and behold...I did. However, after Shannon uploaded his data, it shows he took my house and made it his by 1 second: http://app.strava.com/segments/666393. Thus, I renamed the segment accordingly. According to the comparison chart, it looks like I had him all the way to the top of the hill, but he nosed me out just at the end. Way to go! At least the pressure's off now. HA
I was worked for the rest of the ride, and I think Gary and the others were sprinting on Bison where I got split off at one of the lights...gladly. I hope it was a good sprint finish for those who went for it.
Great workout today, and perfect training for this week's crit. Resting until then, so have fun for the rest of the week. Thanks, gents!
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Team BRCM - 60 Mile Hilly Trainer and More Strava Attacks
GC stats: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/99852664
Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/956952
I arrived at the Taco Mesa where Gary and Shannon got there ahead of me. As I started to get ready, Vince pulled up and decided to join us today. Awesome...the more the merrier...if you're a masochist. I knew today would be an awesome workout though.
Of course, Strava was the focus in the beginning and it was just a matter of figuring out which segments we wanted to take down. Vince still hasn't bought in to the whole Strava thing, but he was definitely out there pushing or helping to push the pace.
When we hit Irvine boulevard, we knew this was one of the segments, so after a short warm-up through Lake Forest, which if you ask me was not really a warm-up pace (cough, Gary leading, cough), we turned the screws and kicked it up a notch. Gary was helping in the beginning, but the pace kept getting more and more intense where Vince, Shannon and I just kept going for it. In the end, we got the top spot for this segment: http://app.strava.com/segments/630728. Great team effort!
We soft pedaled a little as we got on Jamboree up until we got to Portola. After it started to pitch upwards, Vince and I started working the hill and both thought that the more of a headstart we got on Shannon for Silverado, the better. Shannon was saving it, so we took advantage. Plus, we also thought that having a rabbit to chase would make him charge a lot faster.
Vince and I stayed together through the Canyons and up Silverado pretty much without stopping. As we were climbing up Silverado, we were working together and expecting Shannon to just blow by as at some point. We did what we could and managed to get the top ahead but we were often looking back to see if/when he would be coming by. It wasn't that much longer after that Shannon comes blazing by even all the way through, just to give the top spot his best shot. Unfortunately, he was just 2 seconds short. He may have benefited from a lead out from us had we not broken away, but if you look at the comparison on the stats, Shannon would have probably blown us out shortly after starting the hill. He was moving!
At the top, the plan was to take it easy and just save it for the front side of Modjeska. Of course, every one of the guys here love to descend, so Gary started us out first with Vince taking the next lead down the hill. Eventually, we were all working together down the hill, and I'm not sure about the others but I could definitely have saved more for the climb. HA HA
We ended up continuing onto Santiago again toward Modjeska, and while not race pace, we were still not soft pedaling like I thought we would. Gary was a little off the back, and I slowed down a bit but Vince and Shannon kept pulling away. Since we were planning to sit atop the hill to watch the guys from the Como street ride pass by, I sped up and ended up jumping on with Vince and Shannon. Shannon was moving at a pretty good pace, but he seemed to be pulling back some. I did ask if he wanted me to get up front, but he said it was okay. Cool. I did take the front as we started to climb up towards the top of Santiago, so I hope I avoided the wheelsucker title for this ride.
Como street didn't seem as big as it was the last time, but we sat there and watched a good size breakaway group along with a couple others strung out behind them go past. The bigger chase group was also coming, so it's curious as to whether they caught the front group this week. We looked for Jaffe and Mitch, but we didn't see them today.
We all rode together towards Modjeska, and once we made the left turn, Shannon attacked...hard! I gave it a sprinter's shot, but I ended up not setting up the right pace and was gasping midway up. I was able to recover, but I think setting up the hill differently for the next time would be better. I think Shannon felt the same way. He still got 2nd and I 3rd for that segment but with over a 30 second disparity between our times.
At the top, Shannon said he was going to take it easy going up Live Oak...and I pretty much bought it hook, line and sinker. However, when I saw him start to gap me pretty good standing and crushing it, I was fooled...again. I don't feel too bad falling off...he got the KOM for that section: http://app.strava.com/segments/609541. Sweet!
We all gathered again at the campground down at the bottom, and after some water refills, we were off. Gary must have been a little delirious at this point as he started to turn the other way. Shannon led us toward the switch back section, and once we got to that hill, I thought I'd climb it at a low gear and just see how long I could hold it. I got 7th, and while that doesn't sound like too big an accomplishment, it's 2-3 places ahead of Trent Ford. Suck it, Trent! HA HA
When we got to the top and finally Antonio Pkwy, we got ahead of the light from Gary. We also ended up breaking away at some intersections, but Shannon decided to check up after because of this. When we all got together again, everyone started to nail it. Some did try to get in our draft, but we were moving too fast for too long for them to hang on. Ultimately, we ended up getting the top spot on the Antonio segment as well: http://app.strava.com/segments/653905. Although it's by just a second, we'll take it!
Vince kept pushing the pace through Oso, so I stayed with him to keep working. We got on Felipe/Olympiad, and kept taking turns despite the pain. We just missed the top spot on that hill by a second. Bummer.
Shannon caught us by the time we got to Alicia, and there was still no slowing down. We pushed all the way until we got back to the Taco Mesa parking lot, and I guess we forgot to cool down. My legs were roasted, and I believe pretty much everyone's legs were feeling it too. Awesome workout! That was definitely the most intense 60 miles we've done for a while. My Garmin showed 19.7 mph average at the end, but Strava always drops it down after I upload. It also drops the elevation gain. Still a cool website though.
Thanks for coming out today, guys! Awesome workout for sure and one where I wished I could have stayed to drink after to numb my legs. Next time.
Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/956952
I arrived at the Taco Mesa where Gary and Shannon got there ahead of me. As I started to get ready, Vince pulled up and decided to join us today. Awesome...the more the merrier...if you're a masochist. I knew today would be an awesome workout though.
Of course, Strava was the focus in the beginning and it was just a matter of figuring out which segments we wanted to take down. Vince still hasn't bought in to the whole Strava thing, but he was definitely out there pushing or helping to push the pace.
When we hit Irvine boulevard, we knew this was one of the segments, so after a short warm-up through Lake Forest, which if you ask me was not really a warm-up pace (cough, Gary leading, cough), we turned the screws and kicked it up a notch. Gary was helping in the beginning, but the pace kept getting more and more intense where Vince, Shannon and I just kept going for it. In the end, we got the top spot for this segment: http://app.strava.com/segments/630728. Great team effort!
We soft pedaled a little as we got on Jamboree up until we got to Portola. After it started to pitch upwards, Vince and I started working the hill and both thought that the more of a headstart we got on Shannon for Silverado, the better. Shannon was saving it, so we took advantage. Plus, we also thought that having a rabbit to chase would make him charge a lot faster.
Vince and I stayed together through the Canyons and up Silverado pretty much without stopping. As we were climbing up Silverado, we were working together and expecting Shannon to just blow by as at some point. We did what we could and managed to get the top ahead but we were often looking back to see if/when he would be coming by. It wasn't that much longer after that Shannon comes blazing by even all the way through, just to give the top spot his best shot. Unfortunately, he was just 2 seconds short. He may have benefited from a lead out from us had we not broken away, but if you look at the comparison on the stats, Shannon would have probably blown us out shortly after starting the hill. He was moving!
At the top, the plan was to take it easy and just save it for the front side of Modjeska. Of course, every one of the guys here love to descend, so Gary started us out first with Vince taking the next lead down the hill. Eventually, we were all working together down the hill, and I'm not sure about the others but I could definitely have saved more for the climb. HA HA
We ended up continuing onto Santiago again toward Modjeska, and while not race pace, we were still not soft pedaling like I thought we would. Gary was a little off the back, and I slowed down a bit but Vince and Shannon kept pulling away. Since we were planning to sit atop the hill to watch the guys from the Como street ride pass by, I sped up and ended up jumping on with Vince and Shannon. Shannon was moving at a pretty good pace, but he seemed to be pulling back some. I did ask if he wanted me to get up front, but he said it was okay. Cool. I did take the front as we started to climb up towards the top of Santiago, so I hope I avoided the wheelsucker title for this ride.
Como street didn't seem as big as it was the last time, but we sat there and watched a good size breakaway group along with a couple others strung out behind them go past. The bigger chase group was also coming, so it's curious as to whether they caught the front group this week. We looked for Jaffe and Mitch, but we didn't see them today.
We all rode together towards Modjeska, and once we made the left turn, Shannon attacked...hard! I gave it a sprinter's shot, but I ended up not setting up the right pace and was gasping midway up. I was able to recover, but I think setting up the hill differently for the next time would be better. I think Shannon felt the same way. He still got 2nd and I 3rd for that segment but with over a 30 second disparity between our times.
At the top, Shannon said he was going to take it easy going up Live Oak...and I pretty much bought it hook, line and sinker. However, when I saw him start to gap me pretty good standing and crushing it, I was fooled...again. I don't feel too bad falling off...he got the KOM for that section: http://app.strava.com/segments/609541. Sweet!
We all gathered again at the campground down at the bottom, and after some water refills, we were off. Gary must have been a little delirious at this point as he started to turn the other way. Shannon led us toward the switch back section, and once we got to that hill, I thought I'd climb it at a low gear and just see how long I could hold it. I got 7th, and while that doesn't sound like too big an accomplishment, it's 2-3 places ahead of Trent Ford. Suck it, Trent! HA HA
When we got to the top and finally Antonio Pkwy, we got ahead of the light from Gary. We also ended up breaking away at some intersections, but Shannon decided to check up after because of this. When we all got together again, everyone started to nail it. Some did try to get in our draft, but we were moving too fast for too long for them to hang on. Ultimately, we ended up getting the top spot on the Antonio segment as well: http://app.strava.com/segments/653905. Although it's by just a second, we'll take it!
Vince kept pushing the pace through Oso, so I stayed with him to keep working. We got on Felipe/Olympiad, and kept taking turns despite the pain. We just missed the top spot on that hill by a second. Bummer.
Shannon caught us by the time we got to Alicia, and there was still no slowing down. We pushed all the way until we got back to the Taco Mesa parking lot, and I guess we forgot to cool down. My legs were roasted, and I believe pretty much everyone's legs were feeling it too. Awesome workout! That was definitely the most intense 60 miles we've done for a while. My Garmin showed 19.7 mph average at the end, but Strava always drops it down after I upload. It also drops the elevation gain. Still a cool website though.
Thanks for coming out today, guys! Awesome workout for sure and one where I wished I could have stayed to drink after to numb my legs. Next time.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Thursday GP Crit - Masters Solo 7-15
Strava stats: http://app.strava.com/rides/941213
For the non-believers: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/99228309
I wasn't sure how the race was going to turn out today given that I was going to do it solo. I ended up sporting the Velosport kit so I can be a little bit more inconspicuous and possibly work with others sporting Sho-Air, but I did bring a BRCM jersey in case anyone decided to come out unannounced. I could have sported our colors solo, but in some way, I thought that would be like having a target painted on my back considering how strong our team is. Peel off the Sho-Air kit though, and I'm BRCM BAM underneath for sure.
I got there a little early and the track was off limits today because they had another race going on. My wife and kids came out to support again, so I was happy to have them there to keep me company and ease my anxiety. The warm up ended up being in the parking lot along with the adjoining lot, and I ended up riding about 5.5 miles all together (comparable to about 2 laps like we did the last time).
Before the race, I started to gather with others in the same class and got to talking to some other Sho-Air guys too. I was trying to see if I could recruit others to work with, but pretty much felt I would be on my own based on the response. Cool guys and all, but there was just not enough of a Sho-Air presence in the Masters (unlike in the Cat 4/5 class) to make a difference. Oh well, I tried.
The race started pretty much like the way it did the last time where the pace in the initial lap was not too intense. One difference between the Cat 4/5 class and the Masters is that the pace didn't fluctuate as much on the latter. That's not to say the pace wasn't fast though as my overall pace compared to a friend on Strava who did the Cat 4/5 was just .3 mph under (his stats: http://app.strava.com/rides/941147)...and he won a prime and took 5th so he claims. We even had to slow down and go into neutral for a good section as the Cat 1/2/3 passed us given we were the last one to be let go, so overall the average mph was pretty much comparable.
One thing I wanted to do was be a lot more aggressive this time around than the last time. Mission accomplished. The guys in the class was a little more giving when wanting to stay on someone's wheel, but I really made sure not to give up a wheel unless it was on my terms, not theirs. I also ended up closing between 3-4 gaps and riding up front around the same number of times or more. I was determined not to be off the front pack, so I did what I had to not to drop.
On the primes, I was contemplating giving the 2nd one a shot as I was in a good position to do so. However, the thought that I may blow up after and get dropped after a post prime breakaway kept me in check given I was out there solo. Finishing strong was more important. The cool thing about the last prime was that it was the lap we were passed by Cat 1/2/3, so everyone yelled out and said let's just do the next lap...so we did. HA HA...must be a Masters class thing.
On the last lap, this was one of the ones where I had to close the gap on the breakaway. On the backside of the track, 3-4 guys had broken off and I would have jumped on when they did....but I just finished closing a gap on the front side of the track! I waited and waited for others to go, so when no one would, I took off thinking it may be too late if I didn't otherwise. I caught them and got to rest for just a bit before I we got to the bottom section of the track. As we rounded the 2 turns at the bottom, I was in the 2nd position and the guy up front tried to break off but I stuck him like glue. When he realized he couldn't shake me, he rolled off and someone yelled out...keep going! Stupid me...I listened. Here I was leading the group toward the last 2 turns of the race. Then I heard a couple guys talking and preparing for a charge. I wasn't sure what I'd have left, but I'd give it my all nonetheless.
As we rounded the 2nd to the last turn, others started to attack and I jumped up off the seat in response to hang on. One thing I regretted was how I took the 2nd to the last turn on the inside, so this left me on the outside for the last turn. I guess I didn't learn from the last race. As we rounded the last turn, it was an all out mad sprint to the finish. With no lead out, I tried to find some coverage to use for a lead out, but I just wasn't close enough to anyone to do so. In the end, I don't know where I ended up, but I'm sure it wasn't top 10. At least I was in the front pack, so I suppose this is good enough for this outing.
On my first lap that I was up front leading the group on the front of the track, I heard a familiar voice only to see Shannon out there too. It was so cool to see him there and having a beer with the guy after, he just doesn't know.
With my neck bothering me since the morning, I was just happy to get another great workout. I didn't think I could win today but as most of you can probably relate, it's no fun to lose. I'll keep going to these until I can figure out what to do to win one of them. I know it's not a matter of ability as it is tactics, so the more I play the more I learn. Hopefully, others will come out to play the next time.
Pictures from tonight:
For the non-believers: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/99228309
I wasn't sure how the race was going to turn out today given that I was going to do it solo. I ended up sporting the Velosport kit so I can be a little bit more inconspicuous and possibly work with others sporting Sho-Air, but I did bring a BRCM jersey in case anyone decided to come out unannounced. I could have sported our colors solo, but in some way, I thought that would be like having a target painted on my back considering how strong our team is. Peel off the Sho-Air kit though, and I'm BRCM BAM underneath for sure.
I got there a little early and the track was off limits today because they had another race going on. My wife and kids came out to support again, so I was happy to have them there to keep me company and ease my anxiety. The warm up ended up being in the parking lot along with the adjoining lot, and I ended up riding about 5.5 miles all together (comparable to about 2 laps like we did the last time).
Before the race, I started to gather with others in the same class and got to talking to some other Sho-Air guys too. I was trying to see if I could recruit others to work with, but pretty much felt I would be on my own based on the response. Cool guys and all, but there was just not enough of a Sho-Air presence in the Masters (unlike in the Cat 4/5 class) to make a difference. Oh well, I tried.
The race started pretty much like the way it did the last time where the pace in the initial lap was not too intense. One difference between the Cat 4/5 class and the Masters is that the pace didn't fluctuate as much on the latter. That's not to say the pace wasn't fast though as my overall pace compared to a friend on Strava who did the Cat 4/5 was just .3 mph under (his stats: http://app.strava.com/rides/941147)...and he won a prime and took 5th so he claims. We even had to slow down and go into neutral for a good section as the Cat 1/2/3 passed us given we were the last one to be let go, so overall the average mph was pretty much comparable.
One thing I wanted to do was be a lot more aggressive this time around than the last time. Mission accomplished. The guys in the class was a little more giving when wanting to stay on someone's wheel, but I really made sure not to give up a wheel unless it was on my terms, not theirs. I also ended up closing between 3-4 gaps and riding up front around the same number of times or more. I was determined not to be off the front pack, so I did what I had to not to drop.
On the primes, I was contemplating giving the 2nd one a shot as I was in a good position to do so. However, the thought that I may blow up after and get dropped after a post prime breakaway kept me in check given I was out there solo. Finishing strong was more important. The cool thing about the last prime was that it was the lap we were passed by Cat 1/2/3, so everyone yelled out and said let's just do the next lap...so we did. HA HA...must be a Masters class thing.
On the last lap, this was one of the ones where I had to close the gap on the breakaway. On the backside of the track, 3-4 guys had broken off and I would have jumped on when they did....but I just finished closing a gap on the front side of the track! I waited and waited for others to go, so when no one would, I took off thinking it may be too late if I didn't otherwise. I caught them and got to rest for just a bit before I we got to the bottom section of the track. As we rounded the 2 turns at the bottom, I was in the 2nd position and the guy up front tried to break off but I stuck him like glue. When he realized he couldn't shake me, he rolled off and someone yelled out...keep going! Stupid me...I listened. Here I was leading the group toward the last 2 turns of the race. Then I heard a couple guys talking and preparing for a charge. I wasn't sure what I'd have left, but I'd give it my all nonetheless.
As we rounded the 2nd to the last turn, others started to attack and I jumped up off the seat in response to hang on. One thing I regretted was how I took the 2nd to the last turn on the inside, so this left me on the outside for the last turn. I guess I didn't learn from the last race. As we rounded the last turn, it was an all out mad sprint to the finish. With no lead out, I tried to find some coverage to use for a lead out, but I just wasn't close enough to anyone to do so. In the end, I don't know where I ended up, but I'm sure it wasn't top 10. At least I was in the front pack, so I suppose this is good enough for this outing.
On my first lap that I was up front leading the group on the front of the track, I heard a familiar voice only to see Shannon out there too. It was so cool to see him there and having a beer with the guy after, he just doesn't know.
With my neck bothering me since the morning, I was just happy to get another great workout. I didn't think I could win today but as most of you can probably relate, it's no fun to lose. I'll keep going to these until I can figure out what to do to win one of them. I know it's not a matter of ability as it is tactics, so the more I play the more I learn. Hopefully, others will come out to play the next time.
Pictures from tonight:
 |
| Recruiting |
 |
| Master Class Lineup |
 |
| Best in class calves - HA HA |
 |
| First time up front |
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| Out of the draft again |
 |
| Yes, this is a different picture |
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| Okay, this is getting ridiculous |
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| The master class sprint |
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| And you thought Noah's race face was ugly |
Thursday Lunch Ride - Todd's Report
We had Vince, Jaffe, Seon, Mitch, David and I do the attached route. It was pretty much high paced throughout the entire route. Vince and I did a lot of the work up front, but the other guys were super fast in keeping up. It was a great team effort. Jaffe took a pull on Laguna Canyon and Mitch and Seon raced out front on the bike trail along the PCH. The excitement came on the climb where Vince led the entire group up the lower half of Ridgeline. I was in the rear checking out the pace. About half way up I made a move on the outside and jumped up front. At this point, Vince and I pulled away and drove hard for home. We did a lot of trading off where we each did a lot of work. On Jamboree, I tried to take Rich's house, but fell just short. Overall, I was pretty pleased since Vince and I worked hard and kept the pace up. 22.1mph average and a 271 ave Watts were pretty good. When we were pedaling, we were constantly over 300 Watts and hitting moments of 400+.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
BRCM Lunch - Portola and Back...Strava Style
Strava stats: http://app.strava.com/rides/925136
It was nice to do a flatter ride after last weekend, but flatter is not always easier. I think the plan for some of us was to hit some of the Strava segments as hard as we could, but that all went to crap with Gary leading us out down CA and onto the bike trail at a pace much higher than expected.
It was nice to see Seon, Hiroshi, David and Jaffe work together after Gary and actually break away for a bit while me, Vince, Shannon and Mitchell lined up behind Gary. The 4 of them seemed to have used up Gary and spit him out the back once they were done...BAM style. Nice!
The rest of us were able to reel them back in before the first bridge, but they were still taking some pulls after and some rather impressive ones I must say. Shannon decided to crank it up a notch though at some point and broke away from all of us for a good stretch of section. Vince and I worked together be able to get up to him by the 2nd bridge and ultimately arrive at the light on Harvard with him. We were all able to regroup there before the light turned green.
Once on Harvard, the pace picked up a lot, and I'm not quite sure where I was at in the pack. I know I took a pull before the bike trail, but Shannon did most of the work up front. For that, I owe him the KOM (not really a hill but...) for the "Harvard Charge" segment: http://app.strava.com/segments/680721. Okay, who's the wiseguy who named that? HA HA.
We kept the pace up going towards Portola and eventually strung the group out a bit. Once we got on the Lower Up segment, Shannon started to charge and all I could do was sit on his wheel (Noah-style) and try and shoot by at the end. Shannon got me by a tick, but unfortunately, we were 1 mph shy of the KOM holder...me. :) It was damn windy on the way up though.
On the way back, we did have Vince, Shannon, Mitchell and David with us to take turns going down the bike trail. We were moving pretty fast, but we did get held up by a truck sweeper at one point where we had to check up right before the trail leading back to Harvard.
Harvard was tough against the wind, but we kept taking turns trying to keep the pace up. Vince, Shannon and I rotated as much as we can, and Mitchell took some good pulls too where the last one was as we got on the trail by University. Shannon decided to light it up here though and had us probably finishing at almost 30 mph while Vince and I just hung on. So much for saving it for CA.
Coincidentally, who do we see at the bottom but Verm, the current KOM holder for CA. He looked like he was going for a run, but it wouldn't surprise me that he was out there spying on us to make sure no one takes away his record. He even jokingly said take it easy going up CA...or was it a joke?
When the light turned green, we could see that the light ahead of us was red but turned green. According to Strava when I did the comparison between my effort today with Steve's, he had gotten a 5 second gap on me on the bottom section and increased it to 11 seconds after the light. I started hauling ass after the light getting by Vince and just going for it. Based on my efforts, I just missed taking the KOM away from Verm by 1 second. I had closed the 10 seconds on him on the climb, but it just wasn't enough. Verm will get to keep his KOM...for now. Next time, buddy.
Beautiful day today except for the winds here and there. Shannon, you did all the work today, so you deserve the KOM on Harvard charge. Ask Noah to flag me...I'm sure he will.
Thanks for the workout, gents!
It was nice to do a flatter ride after last weekend, but flatter is not always easier. I think the plan for some of us was to hit some of the Strava segments as hard as we could, but that all went to crap with Gary leading us out down CA and onto the bike trail at a pace much higher than expected.
It was nice to see Seon, Hiroshi, David and Jaffe work together after Gary and actually break away for a bit while me, Vince, Shannon and Mitchell lined up behind Gary. The 4 of them seemed to have used up Gary and spit him out the back once they were done...BAM style. Nice!
The rest of us were able to reel them back in before the first bridge, but they were still taking some pulls after and some rather impressive ones I must say. Shannon decided to crank it up a notch though at some point and broke away from all of us for a good stretch of section. Vince and I worked together be able to get up to him by the 2nd bridge and ultimately arrive at the light on Harvard with him. We were all able to regroup there before the light turned green.
Once on Harvard, the pace picked up a lot, and I'm not quite sure where I was at in the pack. I know I took a pull before the bike trail, but Shannon did most of the work up front. For that, I owe him the KOM (not really a hill but...) for the "Harvard Charge" segment: http://app.strava.com/segments/680721. Okay, who's the wiseguy who named that? HA HA.
We kept the pace up going towards Portola and eventually strung the group out a bit. Once we got on the Lower Up segment, Shannon started to charge and all I could do was sit on his wheel (Noah-style) and try and shoot by at the end. Shannon got me by a tick, but unfortunately, we were 1 mph shy of the KOM holder...me. :) It was damn windy on the way up though.
On the way back, we did have Vince, Shannon, Mitchell and David with us to take turns going down the bike trail. We were moving pretty fast, but we did get held up by a truck sweeper at one point where we had to check up right before the trail leading back to Harvard.
Harvard was tough against the wind, but we kept taking turns trying to keep the pace up. Vince, Shannon and I rotated as much as we can, and Mitchell took some good pulls too where the last one was as we got on the trail by University. Shannon decided to light it up here though and had us probably finishing at almost 30 mph while Vince and I just hung on. So much for saving it for CA.
Coincidentally, who do we see at the bottom but Verm, the current KOM holder for CA. He looked like he was going for a run, but it wouldn't surprise me that he was out there spying on us to make sure no one takes away his record. He even jokingly said take it easy going up CA...or was it a joke?
When the light turned green, we could see that the light ahead of us was red but turned green. According to Strava when I did the comparison between my effort today with Steve's, he had gotten a 5 second gap on me on the bottom section and increased it to 11 seconds after the light. I started hauling ass after the light getting by Vince and just going for it. Based on my efforts, I just missed taking the KOM away from Verm by 1 second. I had closed the 10 seconds on him on the climb, but it just wasn't enough. Verm will get to keep his KOM...for now. Next time, buddy.
Beautiful day today except for the winds here and there. Shannon, you did all the work today, so you deserve the KOM on Harvard charge. Ask Noah to flag me...I'm sure he will.
Thanks for the workout, gents!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Death Ride 2011 - The Ultimate Challenge
If ever I complained about how hard a ride was before (which is probably ALL the ones prior), I really didn't know what I was talking about. This ride is undeniably the most insane thing on a bike I have and likely will ever do. Fortunately, 5 other Broadcom team members (Shannon, Gary, Noah, Todd and Eddie) along with our gracious host, Edward Mitoma, came with me to suffer through this event.
5 of us went up Thursday morning to get acclimated to the altitude before the ride. We also opted to pick up our packets in Markleeville. What Eddie and I didn't know/expect was that we would be riding out from the start point after picking up the packets (which by the way requires that you have the paperwork they sent you through the mail with you). After spending 6 or so hours driving up, you'd think a little rest might be a good idea, but not with these guys. Seize the moment, I guess.
Unfortunately, on our way back from our ride out (15 miles or so away), we had a little incident where it left Eddie injured and Noah bikeless. Eddie's bike was also not fully functional, but was repairable. Considering that we were out in the middle of nowhere, it was questionable whether all of us would be able to go. However, due to a loaner we got from Edward and the craftiness and group's perseverance, bikes would not be the team's limitation. Noah was set up on Edward's old bike (a Trek Madone 5.2 that was a little small for him) after a few adjustments (wheel swap, handlebars and stem, seat height, tape, pedals and some detailing). Eddie's bike was repaired by using a lever from Noah's bike and the bar re-taped), but despite this, he wisely chose to skip it since his injury left him less than 100% for this ride...something all of us agreed was in his best interest. He still squeezed out a solo 80 miler around the lake though in lieu of doing the ride and determined to move forward with doing the Vineman next weekend. Animal.
Onto the ride...we all woke up at 3 a.m., much to the dismay of Edward who was not used to our team's over-preparation routines. Noah, our professional barista, had our coffee brewed and ready to go. After we all completed our pre-ride routines, we rolled out to the event by 4:15 since it would take about 40 minutes to get there.
We parked down the road a couple miles or so since the event was hosting over 3000 riders this year. It was wild to see people with lights mounted already on the ride as we were driving up. We heard that some people started as early as 4 a.m., which sounds ludicrous...until you realize it's probably a ride that averages 11-12 hours on the bike for a majority of the participants.
It was still a little dark as we got ready to ride to where it started, but after some last minute bio breaks at the start point, there was enough light in the sky to be able to see the road in front of us. We all rode together in the beginning and the pace was relatively mild. Of course, relatively mild for our group meant passing a lot of people and picking up others in our draft, but we're accustomed to it no different than other rides.
Once we got to Monitor, the first hill of the day, S-Gary (S stood for salad this weekend), decided he was going to go for it early on. Surprised? We weren't. He blazed up the hill and didn't have anyone catch him until midway down the other side. Noah also took off after another guy passed us and tried to hold onto his rear wheel...until he saw that the guy was putting down some crazy power numbers where self-preservation kicked in.
Shannon and Todd kept a more reasonable pace going up, but still were passing a ton of people. I rode with them for a bit, but decided finding my own pace would serve me better since I was having problems adapting to the cold thin air. I did keep them in my sights for a good portion of the ride, but as we neared the top, I eventually lost sight of them.
I saw Gary starting the ascend from the bottom of the other side of Monitor when I arrived there, and Todd, Shannon and Noah just getting ready to go. I had to take a quick pit stop, so I wasn't able to roll out with them. It was good enough though to have caught a glimpse of them, as I was pretty much alone for most of the mountain. I did end up jumping in a line toward the top after the 2nd pass though. It didn't hurt that the female at the end of that line was easy on the eyes, so the motivation to speed up grew as a result.
While the descent down the back side of monitor was fun, the front side was even more so. I was moving at a pretty good clip, but at one point got passed by a female first followed by 2 guys. I jumped on after, and we were flying. At one point, I looked ahead and saw Gary and yelled out to him to jump on. We kept going down the hill and I eventually made my was past the 3 ahead of me. I suppose this was when I set my max speed of 55.2 mph for the day. Thank you, gravity!
Gary ended up catching up and riding with me for a bit on Ebbetts. We got separated after awhile and I was on my own again. Ebbetts was also a beautiful mountain like Monitor, but the road was not as well maintained. It also didn't have a line separating traffic at some point in the middle, so riders who started out real early and descending already made me a little nervous and definitely kept me to the right of the road as often as possible. Some parts of Ebbetts pitched up pretty steep (there was a warning near the base cautioning on a 24% grade) but there were some false flats that were between a 1-5% grade. There were also some false crests where you think you've reached the top only to find there was still more climbing to be done. Absolutely demoralizing.
The descent down the backside was also pretty fast, but it was only a 5 miler. I got to see Todd taking off with Shannon and Noah just behind him. My stop at the bottom was just to get my first bottle refill, and I was off again not too long after they left. I did manage to down a honey waffle as I started but downed it quickly to be ready for the climb. Although the climb back up was only 5 miles or so, it was where it held 9-11% grades remained through a lot of the climb. I was definitely doing the 34/26 dance most of the way up.
Descending the front side of Ebbetts was probably the least fun of the descents. There were large masses of cyclists going up at this point, so it was really hard to find a good flow through the turns. It improved once there was a line in the middle of the road again, but most of the steeper descents were done by that point. Even then, I still backed down some because of how many people were on the other side.
The best part about reaching the bottom of Ebbetts was running into Todd, Shannon and Noah again as they were having their lunch. I wasn't sure I was going to stop there, but as I had found my rear tire was soft and after some convincing from the guys I didn't look well, I sat down to eat. Noah graciously offered to fix my flat while I ate, which I accepted and appreciated immensely. Todd grabbed me a Coke, and as I saw they offered Uncrusttables (fancy PB&J) sandwiches, I opted to indulge rather than self-SAG.
The guys waited for me, so we could all ride together to head toward the final climb of the day: all 17 miles of Carson. Heading out, I wondered if I fully recovered after the first 4 passes. I took a couple stabs up front, but when one of the guys we picked up wanted to mix it up where Todd wasn't going to have any of it, I saw it as my perfect opportunity to drop off as I knew I just didn't have anything to give at that point. I would not see these guys anymore until the top of Carson.
Now what can I say about Carson? Although it didn't pitch up like the ones before, I do have to say it was the most grueling. It went on FOREVER. A few miles into the climb, there was a lady calling out on her bullhorn that there was 2 miles left to the next stop but 11 more miles to go after. We all agreed at the end that we didn't like her very much and her words just caused us more agony than comfort. 11 more miles?!?
Near the top, I suffered a cramp on my left leg where I tried the "Bear trick" pedaling with the other side only hoping that the Shot Bloks I was popping would kick in. Unfortunately, the other leg decided to follow suit where I panicked wondering which leg would actually allow me to unclip without falling. My left leg won. After taking in some more fluids and electrolytes, I was able to finish up the last 3 miles. At the top, Shannon came out to grab and rack my bike while I indulged in a strawberry popsicle and a can of Coke. Noah and Todd where there also, so it was nice for them to have waited.
The descent was a lot of fun too but also quite hairy given this road was not closed to motorists. There were also some potholes here and there as well, so we had to be extra careful. Signaling each other was impossible at the speeds we were reaching exceeding 50 mph (Shannon hit 53), but Todd, Shannon and I worked together nonetheless to make it down safe. 17 miles of downhill was a great way to end the ride.
If you were to ask me yesterday what I thought of the ride, I'd say it was the worst experience I've ever had. However, I'd have to qualify that it was my worst "physical" experience ever. The ride wasn't only cardiovascular. It was everything, mental and physical included. Thus, the ride name was absolutely spot on. It took you to the boundaries of each and beyond for sure.
From an objective perspective, however, this has got to be one of the best rides I've ever done. The support was unbelievable at the SAGs, the scenery was beautiful, the abundance of spectators on the side of the road who supported and encouraged us to keep going was amazing, and the hills can only be described as "legit." 3000+ participants can't be wrong. Even to those who completed the first 2 passes only (an option for this ride), that in itself was a feat.
A special thanks to Edward for letting us use his Tahoe house as a place to shack up for the weekend. We pretty much converted the house to a bike shop, a liquor store, a pizza parlor and a pseudo bachelor pad for 3.5 days. As a result, we all decided to make him an honorary member of the Broadcom team for being such a gracious host. He, too, finished the ride (all 5 passes), but we wouldn't expect any less from a St. George Ironman finisher. Stud!
Lastly, I just wanted to thank all of the guys who attended again because I would never have even tried this ride had they not come out with me. They continued to show their amazing athleticism during this ride, and their antics before and after the ride made the event even that much more enjoyable. I'm so lucky to know all of them.
GPS stats: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/97996816
After this weekend, however, we ALL now know it's all about the Strava:
Mine
Todd's
Shannon's
Noah's
Gary's
Edward's
Pictures of the area and the lake (courtesy of Eddie):
5 of us went up Thursday morning to get acclimated to the altitude before the ride. We also opted to pick up our packets in Markleeville. What Eddie and I didn't know/expect was that we would be riding out from the start point after picking up the packets (which by the way requires that you have the paperwork they sent you through the mail with you). After spending 6 or so hours driving up, you'd think a little rest might be a good idea, but not with these guys. Seize the moment, I guess.
Unfortunately, on our way back from our ride out (15 miles or so away), we had a little incident where it left Eddie injured and Noah bikeless. Eddie's bike was also not fully functional, but was repairable. Considering that we were out in the middle of nowhere, it was questionable whether all of us would be able to go. However, due to a loaner we got from Edward and the craftiness and group's perseverance, bikes would not be the team's limitation. Noah was set up on Edward's old bike (a Trek Madone 5.2 that was a little small for him) after a few adjustments (wheel swap, handlebars and stem, seat height, tape, pedals and some detailing). Eddie's bike was repaired by using a lever from Noah's bike and the bar re-taped), but despite this, he wisely chose to skip it since his injury left him less than 100% for this ride...something all of us agreed was in his best interest. He still squeezed out a solo 80 miler around the lake though in lieu of doing the ride and determined to move forward with doing the Vineman next weekend. Animal.
Onto the ride...we all woke up at 3 a.m., much to the dismay of Edward who was not used to our team's over-preparation routines. Noah, our professional barista, had our coffee brewed and ready to go. After we all completed our pre-ride routines, we rolled out to the event by 4:15 since it would take about 40 minutes to get there.
We parked down the road a couple miles or so since the event was hosting over 3000 riders this year. It was wild to see people with lights mounted already on the ride as we were driving up. We heard that some people started as early as 4 a.m., which sounds ludicrous...until you realize it's probably a ride that averages 11-12 hours on the bike for a majority of the participants.
It was still a little dark as we got ready to ride to where it started, but after some last minute bio breaks at the start point, there was enough light in the sky to be able to see the road in front of us. We all rode together in the beginning and the pace was relatively mild. Of course, relatively mild for our group meant passing a lot of people and picking up others in our draft, but we're accustomed to it no different than other rides.
Once we got to Monitor, the first hill of the day, S-Gary (S stood for salad this weekend), decided he was going to go for it early on. Surprised? We weren't. He blazed up the hill and didn't have anyone catch him until midway down the other side. Noah also took off after another guy passed us and tried to hold onto his rear wheel...until he saw that the guy was putting down some crazy power numbers where self-preservation kicked in.
Shannon and Todd kept a more reasonable pace going up, but still were passing a ton of people. I rode with them for a bit, but decided finding my own pace would serve me better since I was having problems adapting to the cold thin air. I did keep them in my sights for a good portion of the ride, but as we neared the top, I eventually lost sight of them.
I saw Gary starting the ascend from the bottom of the other side of Monitor when I arrived there, and Todd, Shannon and Noah just getting ready to go. I had to take a quick pit stop, so I wasn't able to roll out with them. It was good enough though to have caught a glimpse of them, as I was pretty much alone for most of the mountain. I did end up jumping in a line toward the top after the 2nd pass though. It didn't hurt that the female at the end of that line was easy on the eyes, so the motivation to speed up grew as a result.
While the descent down the back side of monitor was fun, the front side was even more so. I was moving at a pretty good clip, but at one point got passed by a female first followed by 2 guys. I jumped on after, and we were flying. At one point, I looked ahead and saw Gary and yelled out to him to jump on. We kept going down the hill and I eventually made my was past the 3 ahead of me. I suppose this was when I set my max speed of 55.2 mph for the day. Thank you, gravity!
Gary ended up catching up and riding with me for a bit on Ebbetts. We got separated after awhile and I was on my own again. Ebbetts was also a beautiful mountain like Monitor, but the road was not as well maintained. It also didn't have a line separating traffic at some point in the middle, so riders who started out real early and descending already made me a little nervous and definitely kept me to the right of the road as often as possible. Some parts of Ebbetts pitched up pretty steep (there was a warning near the base cautioning on a 24% grade) but there were some false flats that were between a 1-5% grade. There were also some false crests where you think you've reached the top only to find there was still more climbing to be done. Absolutely demoralizing.
The descent down the backside was also pretty fast, but it was only a 5 miler. I got to see Todd taking off with Shannon and Noah just behind him. My stop at the bottom was just to get my first bottle refill, and I was off again not too long after they left. I did manage to down a honey waffle as I started but downed it quickly to be ready for the climb. Although the climb back up was only 5 miles or so, it was where it held 9-11% grades remained through a lot of the climb. I was definitely doing the 34/26 dance most of the way up.
Descending the front side of Ebbetts was probably the least fun of the descents. There were large masses of cyclists going up at this point, so it was really hard to find a good flow through the turns. It improved once there was a line in the middle of the road again, but most of the steeper descents were done by that point. Even then, I still backed down some because of how many people were on the other side.
The best part about reaching the bottom of Ebbetts was running into Todd, Shannon and Noah again as they were having their lunch. I wasn't sure I was going to stop there, but as I had found my rear tire was soft and after some convincing from the guys I didn't look well, I sat down to eat. Noah graciously offered to fix my flat while I ate, which I accepted and appreciated immensely. Todd grabbed me a Coke, and as I saw they offered Uncrusttables (fancy PB&J) sandwiches, I opted to indulge rather than self-SAG.
The guys waited for me, so we could all ride together to head toward the final climb of the day: all 17 miles of Carson. Heading out, I wondered if I fully recovered after the first 4 passes. I took a couple stabs up front, but when one of the guys we picked up wanted to mix it up where Todd wasn't going to have any of it, I saw it as my perfect opportunity to drop off as I knew I just didn't have anything to give at that point. I would not see these guys anymore until the top of Carson.
Now what can I say about Carson? Although it didn't pitch up like the ones before, I do have to say it was the most grueling. It went on FOREVER. A few miles into the climb, there was a lady calling out on her bullhorn that there was 2 miles left to the next stop but 11 more miles to go after. We all agreed at the end that we didn't like her very much and her words just caused us more agony than comfort. 11 more miles?!?
Near the top, I suffered a cramp on my left leg where I tried the "Bear trick" pedaling with the other side only hoping that the Shot Bloks I was popping would kick in. Unfortunately, the other leg decided to follow suit where I panicked wondering which leg would actually allow me to unclip without falling. My left leg won. After taking in some more fluids and electrolytes, I was able to finish up the last 3 miles. At the top, Shannon came out to grab and rack my bike while I indulged in a strawberry popsicle and a can of Coke. Noah and Todd where there also, so it was nice for them to have waited.
The descent was a lot of fun too but also quite hairy given this road was not closed to motorists. There were also some potholes here and there as well, so we had to be extra careful. Signaling each other was impossible at the speeds we were reaching exceeding 50 mph (Shannon hit 53), but Todd, Shannon and I worked together nonetheless to make it down safe. 17 miles of downhill was a great way to end the ride.
If you were to ask me yesterday what I thought of the ride, I'd say it was the worst experience I've ever had. However, I'd have to qualify that it was my worst "physical" experience ever. The ride wasn't only cardiovascular. It was everything, mental and physical included. Thus, the ride name was absolutely spot on. It took you to the boundaries of each and beyond for sure.
From an objective perspective, however, this has got to be one of the best rides I've ever done. The support was unbelievable at the SAGs, the scenery was beautiful, the abundance of spectators on the side of the road who supported and encouraged us to keep going was amazing, and the hills can only be described as "legit." 3000+ participants can't be wrong. Even to those who completed the first 2 passes only (an option for this ride), that in itself was a feat.
A special thanks to Edward for letting us use his Tahoe house as a place to shack up for the weekend. We pretty much converted the house to a bike shop, a liquor store, a pizza parlor and a pseudo bachelor pad for 3.5 days. As a result, we all decided to make him an honorary member of the Broadcom team for being such a gracious host. He, too, finished the ride (all 5 passes), but we wouldn't expect any less from a St. George Ironman finisher. Stud!
Lastly, I just wanted to thank all of the guys who attended again because I would never have even tried this ride had they not come out with me. They continued to show their amazing athleticism during this ride, and their antics before and after the ride made the event even that much more enjoyable. I'm so lucky to know all of them.
GPS stats: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/97996816
After this weekend, however, we ALL now know it's all about the Strava:
Mine
Todd's
Shannon's
Noah's
Gary's
Edward's
Pictures of the area and the lake (courtesy of Eddie):
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
BRCM Lunch -Jamboree Bayside Ocean PCH NPC SanJoaquin Jamboree Loop
GPS stats: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/97315187
I expected it would be warmer, but it wasn't too bad going out for a mellow spin with some of the guys. Hiroshi and Jaffe were at the front keeping us all together for most of the ride. Hiroshi would shoot up the hills when possible, and it was nice to see Robert attacking some as well.
On NPC, Hiroshi took off immediately once on the hill and we lost him after getting stopped at the first Pelican light. One guy passed us who jumped the light, and we got stopped at another light where we didn't get to close on him. Another guy with a Capt. America kit was still accessible though, so I shot up to him as an incentive to push hard on the last part of the climb. I don't think he liked it very much when I said hi, but the SOB gladly jumped on my rear wheel after I passed. HA HA.
For the record, the other guys wanted to go down San Joaquin all the way to Jamboree where I would have been content going back via McArthur. Apparently, Hiroshi did not get the memo on who owns that side of Jamboree and thought he'd shoot up that one as well. As Mayor of that hill according to Strava, I just couldn't let him take it. BAM at it's finest.
Good run today, and NOW I'm ready to rest up for this weekend. Thanks, guys!
I expected it would be warmer, but it wasn't too bad going out for a mellow spin with some of the guys. Hiroshi and Jaffe were at the front keeping us all together for most of the ride. Hiroshi would shoot up the hills when possible, and it was nice to see Robert attacking some as well.
On NPC, Hiroshi took off immediately once on the hill and we lost him after getting stopped at the first Pelican light. One guy passed us who jumped the light, and we got stopped at another light where we didn't get to close on him. Another guy with a Capt. America kit was still accessible though, so I shot up to him as an incentive to push hard on the last part of the climb. I don't think he liked it very much when I said hi, but the SOB gladly jumped on my rear wheel after I passed. HA HA.
For the record, the other guys wanted to go down San Joaquin all the way to Jamboree where I would have been content going back via McArthur. Apparently, Hiroshi did not get the memo on who owns that side of Jamboree and thought he'd shoot up that one as well. As Mayor of that hill according to Strava, I just couldn't let him take it. BAM at it's finest.
Good run today, and NOW I'm ready to rest up for this weekend. Thanks, guys!
Sunday, July 3, 2011
7-3 Como Street and Extra Credit with Team BRCM
Strava stuff:
Garmin stuff:
Gary, Shannon and I met up at BJ's at 7:30 a.m. and ended up seeing Mitchell, Jaffe, and Verm in the peloton early on. We decided to wait for the peloton to pass initially rather than jump up front in the beginning like the last time, and what was immediately noticeable was how many people were out today. Even on Bryan, there was already a lot of people out but it progressively increased as we rolled out through Jeffrey and Irvine Blvd. We estimated at the end of the ride that there must have been at least 100-150 people out there today. It was quite intimidating to say the least. Will we even be able to make it up to the front?
On the warm up heading towards Jeffrey, we were content toward the back and didn't make any move to get closer to the front during this time. Mitchell and Jaffe were closer to the front while Gary, Shannon and I hung back. Steve eventually joined us as well.
Once we got on Irvine Blvd, the pace picked up as usual but with so many people out there, it helped that you can always find a spot to jump in but more difficult getting around those who were not able to hold the pace. I did start to move up a little at this point, and Gary, Shannon and Verm were nearby.
There were a couple lights we hit that ended up turning yellow as we approached where it seemed fairly safe to keep going through as a large group. However, when we approached Bake, the light turned yellow pretty early on where the guys up front should have stopped but didn't. A lot of people checked up at this point, but once they saw the front rolling through, a lot of people followed includnig most of our crew. Unfortunately, this is where we ended up losing Gary as he ended up stopping probably with a lot of others.
When we got to the light for El Toro, you can tell others were trying to get into position on the left hand turn. People were moving all around, and all I could do was watch. When it turned green, I saw Verm and Shannon start to make their way on the right side, but I wasn't close enough to ride with them. I ended up having to make my way up on the right side as much as I could but also try to save some for Cooks.
I ended up making my way up to Shannon and Verm, but I was a little worried because my HR was a lot higher than what I wanted it to be. Verm and I were riding by this one young kid who ended up blowing out his rear tire, and while Verm checked to see if he needed help, I just kept going since I was still working on getting my HR down to a reasonable level. Fortunately, I was able to calm down enough where it didn't end up being a factor. I was also in a good position with Shannon, so we were ready to make a go for it.
On the climb, I started to work my way up and was holding a pretty decent pace. It was not one of those times where it felt like I got swarmed near the top. At one point, I heard Shannon encouraging me to keep going, so I hung on and we managed to crest both hills together. There were a small number of guys who broke away at the 2nd crest, but Shannon and I were in a good sized group where we swallowed them up pretty quickly.
The downhill was pretty fast again, and there were some attacks going on up ahead of us. However, the attacks were short-lived. Shannon and I got pushed up to the front for some rotations, and the only thing you can do here is just sprint for a bit and roll out to get out of the way. There were times when we let one another in, but at one point, Shannon offered to let me in toward the front after I rolled out, and it was just too soon for me. Shannon had also been #2 in the line up, but I jumped ahead since it seems like the guys behind us were wanting us to push on. I'm not sure Shannon heard it.
When we got to dump hill, Shannon and I were in a pretty good position, so I just found a pace I could hold for a while. Shannon was a little ahead of me, but I found a good rhythm and made my way to him. I think Shannon ended up flatting out shortly after, but I didn't hear him as I passed so I kept going. When I was beginning to tire, a Sho-Air guy passed me, and I just jumped on his rear wheel and he carried us over the crest. I did pass him after we crested, but we traded places as we chased some of the guys who had broken away ahead of us. Ultimately, we ended up passing a few of the guys and catching the rest at the light on Jamboree.
On Jamboree, the pace was pretty high, but I opted not to chase anyone down going up the hill. Nonetheless, before we reached the crest, I found myself up front through the rotations and leading everyone over the hill...again. HA HA.
On the downhill, I moved toward the back of the pack and was going to wait to see if I can mix it up for the final sprint(s) after Portola. Attacks kept happening, but no one was able to break away from the rest of the group. They did pick up and try to sprint after Portola, but we got caught at the following light. One guy had gotten across, but the rest of us got stopped at the red. Some were yelling out to the guy who got through to go on and win it, but he didn't seem to want to.
I did make my way up to the front at the light expecting everyone was going to blast the next section, and when the light turned green, I was still clipped in. I took off at this point since it was clear in front of me. I was in full sprint mode, so I broke off thinking everyone was going to come after me. I passed the one guy who went through the red at a pretty good clip, and he didn't jump on. At this point, I put my head down and just went for it. Upon coming up on the next light, it just turned green in front of me so I kept going. When I finally looked back as I was coming to Irvine Blvd, either no one chased me down and opted to cool down or they just didn't catch me. I'll believe the latter until otherwise proven. HA HA
At the car, Verm, Mitchell, Gary, Shannon and Jaffe eventually rolled up where I only found out about Shannon's flat at this point. Verm mentioned how he and Mitchell got to mix it up with some guys through the canyon as well, and how there was still the shortage of people willing to pull.
While Gary was done having ridden the day before and Mitchell needing to get back, Verm, Shannon, Jaffe and I decided to do a reverse loop. Jaffe wasn't sure he was going to do it all since he had to meet his family at 11, but he ended up going to dump hill and back instead.
I think the plan was it was going to be a spin around the loop, but Shannon and I both think Verm had other ideas. Verm was pushing the pace here and there, and had some really strong pulls as well. I think my HR was just as pegged going the reverse way with these guys as it was with Como. The heat didn't help.
On the final climb up toward Cook's, I tried my best to stay with Shannon but decided not to violate Fight Club Rule #1 again. His pace and continuous power is relentless, so I instead pulled back a little and waited until I can sprint after the slight downhill before the final crest. Eventually, I was able to make my way toward Shannon on the hill towards Cook's. We were moving at a pretty decent clip, but I was thinking to myself how I should find a place to regroup since Verm had dropped off on the hill. Then, the next thing you know, Verm goes by me. Holy smokes.
We ended up going up Glenn Ranch vs. going all the way down to Trabuco, and I took the opportunity to try and climb the hill at a good clip. Shannon was feeling some pains here and there and opted not to follow...thank God!
I couldn't wait until we got to Irvine Boulevard as it is one of my favorite sections normally...until today. The headwind was pretty ridiculous, so we all did what we could just to get through it. At one point, I had been pulling at a 19 mph pace because of the wind, but Shannon kicked us back up to the 24s after. Humbling. Verm was also taking some good pulls and never skipping a beat, so it was a good effort by everyone.
In the end, combining the speeds for both rides came up to over a 21 mph average. I split up my times between the rides, so the total for the Como was 23.1 (improving by .4 over last outing) and 19.4 on the reverse route. Both were awesome workouts.
Thanks to all who came out today. It was a good day for sure despite the heat and the winds. Tomorrow will be a guilt-free day based on it where I won't be riding as I originally planned. Hopefully, I can make the Tuesday ride.
Garmin stuff:
Gary, Shannon and I met up at BJ's at 7:30 a.m. and ended up seeing Mitchell, Jaffe, and Verm in the peloton early on. We decided to wait for the peloton to pass initially rather than jump up front in the beginning like the last time, and what was immediately noticeable was how many people were out today. Even on Bryan, there was already a lot of people out but it progressively increased as we rolled out through Jeffrey and Irvine Blvd. We estimated at the end of the ride that there must have been at least 100-150 people out there today. It was quite intimidating to say the least. Will we even be able to make it up to the front?
On the warm up heading towards Jeffrey, we were content toward the back and didn't make any move to get closer to the front during this time. Mitchell and Jaffe were closer to the front while Gary, Shannon and I hung back. Steve eventually joined us as well.
Once we got on Irvine Blvd, the pace picked up as usual but with so many people out there, it helped that you can always find a spot to jump in but more difficult getting around those who were not able to hold the pace. I did start to move up a little at this point, and Gary, Shannon and Verm were nearby.
There were a couple lights we hit that ended up turning yellow as we approached where it seemed fairly safe to keep going through as a large group. However, when we approached Bake, the light turned yellow pretty early on where the guys up front should have stopped but didn't. A lot of people checked up at this point, but once they saw the front rolling through, a lot of people followed includnig most of our crew. Unfortunately, this is where we ended up losing Gary as he ended up stopping probably with a lot of others.
When we got to the light for El Toro, you can tell others were trying to get into position on the left hand turn. People were moving all around, and all I could do was watch. When it turned green, I saw Verm and Shannon start to make their way on the right side, but I wasn't close enough to ride with them. I ended up having to make my way up on the right side as much as I could but also try to save some for Cooks.
I ended up making my way up to Shannon and Verm, but I was a little worried because my HR was a lot higher than what I wanted it to be. Verm and I were riding by this one young kid who ended up blowing out his rear tire, and while Verm checked to see if he needed help, I just kept going since I was still working on getting my HR down to a reasonable level. Fortunately, I was able to calm down enough where it didn't end up being a factor. I was also in a good position with Shannon, so we were ready to make a go for it.
On the climb, I started to work my way up and was holding a pretty decent pace. It was not one of those times where it felt like I got swarmed near the top. At one point, I heard Shannon encouraging me to keep going, so I hung on and we managed to crest both hills together. There were a small number of guys who broke away at the 2nd crest, but Shannon and I were in a good sized group where we swallowed them up pretty quickly.
The downhill was pretty fast again, and there were some attacks going on up ahead of us. However, the attacks were short-lived. Shannon and I got pushed up to the front for some rotations, and the only thing you can do here is just sprint for a bit and roll out to get out of the way. There were times when we let one another in, but at one point, Shannon offered to let me in toward the front after I rolled out, and it was just too soon for me. Shannon had also been #2 in the line up, but I jumped ahead since it seems like the guys behind us were wanting us to push on. I'm not sure Shannon heard it.
When we got to dump hill, Shannon and I were in a pretty good position, so I just found a pace I could hold for a while. Shannon was a little ahead of me, but I found a good rhythm and made my way to him. I think Shannon ended up flatting out shortly after, but I didn't hear him as I passed so I kept going. When I was beginning to tire, a Sho-Air guy passed me, and I just jumped on his rear wheel and he carried us over the crest. I did pass him after we crested, but we traded places as we chased some of the guys who had broken away ahead of us. Ultimately, we ended up passing a few of the guys and catching the rest at the light on Jamboree.
On Jamboree, the pace was pretty high, but I opted not to chase anyone down going up the hill. Nonetheless, before we reached the crest, I found myself up front through the rotations and leading everyone over the hill...again. HA HA.
On the downhill, I moved toward the back of the pack and was going to wait to see if I can mix it up for the final sprint(s) after Portola. Attacks kept happening, but no one was able to break away from the rest of the group. They did pick up and try to sprint after Portola, but we got caught at the following light. One guy had gotten across, but the rest of us got stopped at the red. Some were yelling out to the guy who got through to go on and win it, but he didn't seem to want to.
I did make my way up to the front at the light expecting everyone was going to blast the next section, and when the light turned green, I was still clipped in. I took off at this point since it was clear in front of me. I was in full sprint mode, so I broke off thinking everyone was going to come after me. I passed the one guy who went through the red at a pretty good clip, and he didn't jump on. At this point, I put my head down and just went for it. Upon coming up on the next light, it just turned green in front of me so I kept going. When I finally looked back as I was coming to Irvine Blvd, either no one chased me down and opted to cool down or they just didn't catch me. I'll believe the latter until otherwise proven. HA HA
At the car, Verm, Mitchell, Gary, Shannon and Jaffe eventually rolled up where I only found out about Shannon's flat at this point. Verm mentioned how he and Mitchell got to mix it up with some guys through the canyon as well, and how there was still the shortage of people willing to pull.
While Gary was done having ridden the day before and Mitchell needing to get back, Verm, Shannon, Jaffe and I decided to do a reverse loop. Jaffe wasn't sure he was going to do it all since he had to meet his family at 11, but he ended up going to dump hill and back instead.
I think the plan was it was going to be a spin around the loop, but Shannon and I both think Verm had other ideas. Verm was pushing the pace here and there, and had some really strong pulls as well. I think my HR was just as pegged going the reverse way with these guys as it was with Como. The heat didn't help.
On the final climb up toward Cook's, I tried my best to stay with Shannon but decided not to violate Fight Club Rule #1 again. His pace and continuous power is relentless, so I instead pulled back a little and waited until I can sprint after the slight downhill before the final crest. Eventually, I was able to make my way toward Shannon on the hill towards Cook's. We were moving at a pretty decent clip, but I was thinking to myself how I should find a place to regroup since Verm had dropped off on the hill. Then, the next thing you know, Verm goes by me. Holy smokes.
We ended up going up Glenn Ranch vs. going all the way down to Trabuco, and I took the opportunity to try and climb the hill at a good clip. Shannon was feeling some pains here and there and opted not to follow...thank God!
I couldn't wait until we got to Irvine Boulevard as it is one of my favorite sections normally...until today. The headwind was pretty ridiculous, so we all did what we could just to get through it. At one point, I had been pulling at a 19 mph pace because of the wind, but Shannon kicked us back up to the 24s after. Humbling. Verm was also taking some good pulls and never skipping a beat, so it was a good effort by everyone.
In the end, combining the speeds for both rides came up to over a 21 mph average. I split up my times between the rides, so the total for the Como was 23.1 (improving by .4 over last outing) and 19.4 on the reverse route. Both were awesome workouts.
Thanks to all who came out today. It was a good day for sure despite the heat and the winds. Tomorrow will be a guilt-free day based on it where I won't be riding as I originally planned. Hopefully, I can make the Tuesday ride.
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