Lunch Ride - Chasing A Rabbit Out to Portola + and 4 Rabbits Back

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/116355981

Attendees:  Vince, Adrian, Mitchell, Jaffe and Johnny

Route:  Portola OAB

Highlights:

• Although Vince wanted to get back early, we all waited for Adrian at the corner.  However, once Adrian was approaching, Vince took off.
• Vince made the light on Bison, but the rest of us didn't so the chase was on.
• We also hit the light at California with Vince nowhere in sight, but I was determined to catch him
• We were flying down the bike trail with Adrian taking off for a couple instances and breaking away from me only to be reeled back in and towed subsequently. HA HA
• I was surprised Johnny was still with us when I was off the back at one point, but when I looked behind me again, he was gone.
• I had a good run up Harvard where we had a pretty good average.  Always nice to see Strava give someone else a higher ranking from the draft.
• Adrian took the front again once we got on the Peter's canyon bike trail and broke away for a little again with the guys.  
• I resumed the front for the rest except near the very top where Adrian helped push to the top as much as he could.  
• We did finally see Vince as we were close to the top, but he was heading back already and was still making it hard to catch him.
• We were finally closing on him before the end of the bike trail but there was no let up on his part.
• As it was inevitable, I hung back to hopefully let Adrian, Mitchell and Jaffe get organized to catch him.  Eventually, they did at a light (despite a few TLB's on Vince's part...ahem). 
• I was with them at the Barranca crossing just before the light, but they seemed eager to stay together and seemingly try to drop me after the bridge...cool.  I'm all in.  
• Admittedly, they had gotten some pretty good gaps working somewhat together, but lack of real teamwork never kept them too far away (haha).  It seemed they were even trying to drop one another.  Oh boy.
• After continuing to chase them down from some breakaway attempts and maintaining their pace off the back otherwise, I was ready to return the breakaway favor once we got on University.  
• We went up California where Vince led originally, but I slowly made my way up to the front.  I expected there was going to be some retaliation, but I think I was prepared for it with a last minute surge near the top. 
• 24.6 on the way out and 23.3 total not too shabby, and Vince doing a buttload of solo work heading out to Portola and back rendering a 22.7 average, not too shabby at all.   We definitely could have gone faster overall, but what's the fun in that? 
• Thanks again for the great workout today, gents!

Lunch Ride - The El Morro NPC Route

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/116115911

Attendees:  Vince, Jaffe, Mitchell, Jeremy and Vin

Route:  El Morro via BB and PCH with an NPC San Joaquin McArthur finish

Highlights:

- I thought I was going to be held out front for the whole ride on my TT bike but was pleasantly surprised as early as University when the likes of Vin, Jeremy, Vince and Mitchell took off leaving me and Jaffe to fend for ourselves.  I think Vin or Vince started this off, and the rest just kept it going.

- It took until Back Bay to catch the breakaway team on my cheater bike

- I pulled to the front thinking they were done, but they still kept coming around as a group while I tried to stay off to the side (need the wind time) but stay with them...not easy.

- I ended up pulling at the tail end of Back Bay and up to PCH where we just made the light onto PCH...except for Vin.  We pulled over to let him regroup.

- Vince opted to breakaway at a light before downtown CDM, so we let him go to give us a rabbit to chase.
- While we closed some through CDM, he actually held a great pace and was able to hold us off until NPC.  Jeremy had gone by seemingly to join Vince at one point, but they didn't manage to get together.

- Vince said Vin likes to attack by that dessert shack on PCH, so I saved a little for him as I lead up it to see what he had.  I guess today was not that day.

- Jeremy took the front again at one point as I guess I wasn't going fast enough for him.  HA HA.  I took it back before El Morro.

- After sitting out the light there to be safe, we headed back and I believe Mitchell was up front originally.  Of course, I had to relieve my wingman once I got to spinning up again.  He did try to relieve me again at one point, but I think he was discouraged after I didn't slow down to let him.

- I started us up NPC as well, but Jeremy and Vince passed and worked to try and reel in a guy in a Sho Air jersey.   I was trying to manage my pace/power and recover some from the pulls, so I couldn't hold their wheel.

- A skinny guy (who Vince described as looking like a CAT 1 racer) ended up passing me up NPC and shortly after reeled Vince in.  I rode his rear wheel for a bit when he passed, but I dropped after deciding it would be more fun to chase after the top...that and because I couldn't keep up.  HA HA.  Lucky for him he didn't turn on San Joaquin.  Uh huh...that's right.

- Jeremy and Vince got together at the top, and I saw them where I was hoping to catch up to them for a fast finish.  However, I got caught at the light on Ridge Park while they got the green on San Joaquin, so I figured the chase was on again.

- Jaffe actually came up behind me as we also had to wait out the light on San Joaquin (good job, Jaffe), but my plan was to see if we had any chance of catching Vince and Jeremy.

- Although slowed for one intersection, I was able to get some good momentum and just hauled ass down San Joaquin.  Despite the wind and my wheel cover on, I actually felt pretty stable.

- I was certain Vince and Jeremy were gone, but I got lucky that they caught the light before McArthur.

- Jaffe approached as the light turned green and I guess wanted to lead out for the McArthur dash.  Vince and Jeremy jumped on and I was off the back some waiting to pick a time to go.

- Vince took the front and Jeremy was pointing out a truck we had to go around, so I turned and looked back and saw a car approaching on the outside lane.  I decided that was the time to go and that I better try to match the car's pace behind me so it wouldn't take me out.  Jaffe looked down and saw he was already doing 36 mph when I passed.  I think I passed doing 42-43 mph.

- Vince took it up a notch after we crossed Bonita Canyon and we had a high speed turn going onto Bison.  Strava trophies...yay!

- 22.3 mph avg is pretty legit considering we stopped on PCH, so thanks to the group for pushing the pace today.  Great workout!

Let's ride tomorrow!

Ontario Dare to Race GP Crit - The Report

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/115667674

Photobucket Story:  http://s13.photobucket.com/user/rlaureano/story/121139

I was really looking forward to today's race only because the sooner I can get back on the horse after falling off, the better.  I wasn't sure whether a week would be enough time to be fully healed, but for the most part I was good to go.  I had a tegaderm patch on my leg after a couple suggestions of this product, so this let me run stealth on the course given it was transparent and didn't call any attention to my booboo. 

Shannon had done the Harding TT the day before, and he did great getting 3rd in his category.  I was amazed that he was still out doing this race given that the TT yielded him ~3500 ft of climbing in just over 9 miles.  Yikes.  I also rode yesterday, but it was a moderate tempo ride so the only muscle I only ended up really working was my sphincter when a dog nearly ran in front of my path at Trestles....definitely not comparable to Shannon's monstrous efforts.

Shannon had gotten there ahead of me and was checking out the prior race and the different corners of the course.  I expected that being how calculated he is in the races, so I just texted him to let him know I arrived and just started to get ready after getting my number.  I ended up parking fairly close to the start, so when Shannon was heading back, he saw me and moved closer to a nearby spot.  Sweet!

The weather was warmer than I expected, so it was nice to wear white for the race.  It didn't take long at all on the trainer to start working up a sweat, and I got to stay warm when I rode out with Shannon when he took off to warm up.  It didn't feel too bad when we were actually moving though.

The 1.2 mile course had 7 turns all together (6 lefts and 1 right), which I had mixed emotions about.  I was glad to be doing more than just 4 corners, but that also meant more opportunities to get pinched or worse yet...crash.   It was a fairly flat course, so there weren't too many opportunities to pick people off on inclines.  As with the previous crits, it would mostly be a matter of positioning, positioning, positioning.  The only other concern was one manhole and all the raised reflectors on the course, where you really had to pick your lines carefully so that you don't tuck your front over the reflectors. 

Our category was full meaning there were 75 of us all together sharing the grid.  We looked around trying to see if we recognized anyone else out there, but it was just Shannon and me.  I'm glad he was there with me as doing it alone wouldn't be fun.  My hope was that I could ride with him as much as possible, and see if we can help finish strong in the end.  We had different strategies originally, but we never had any real opportunities to enact them.  

When we started out, one guy had trouble clipping in right in front of me, but fortunately that didn't cause any problems despite being so tight with everyone else.  Shannon and I were together for the most part, but we did get separated on occasion.  Every time I would get separated though, I'd look for him and work my way toward him as best as I could.

While the pace was fast, it didn't really seem like we were working too much in the beginning.  In fact, I thought we were hardly working except for when we hit some of the corners and had to sprint out of them when we were a little further back.  However, there weren't really any corners we came out of where we worried we'd fall off.  Personally, I wanted to save some and just get a feel for the turns as well as the rhythm and flow of the group.  Plus, it helped to identify those who couldn't turn very well during this time.

At one point, Shannon pointed out who the point leader was for the race, so we stayed behind him for a while just to see what, if anything, he would do.  That lasted for a couple laps or so, but without any real attempts to break, we eventually started to look to improve our positions ourselves.

During the primes, there weren't really any breakaways and in fact, I actually thought about going for one of them.   Instead, I opted to save it for the end given I'd rather stay with/near Shannon since I thought we could do better together.  I didn't seem him around me at the time, so I would just wait until the last couple laps and see whether we can set up for a strong finish.  I knew I could move up a lot on the last half of the race, but it would take being able to come out of the one right turn fast in order to set up the last 3 turns.

When they announced two laps to go, I saw Shannon ahead of me, but I pushed up on the inside some just to see what kind of position I could get on the last lap.  Shannon stayed a little ahead still, but before entering the last lap, another inside move pushed me closer to the front but still in the unfavorable inside  position.  I didn't think pushing the pace on the inside would be safe (call it a little nervous after last week), so I checked up a little and lost some position after the first turn.  I saw Shannon get ahead again, so I was working my way to get up to him again and was closing just as we were coming up on the one right turn on the track.

After Shannon had gone through that turn, I was coming in hot, and then wham...4-5 guys biffed it in that corner just in front of me.  I was headed straight for one of them who was still on the course where I worried I wouldn't be able to brake in time.  I actually unclipped my right foot and dragged my shoe while I was braking doing what I could to stop and just managed to do so just before rolling over the guy...literally.  I didn't want to change my line not knowing who was behind me, so I was just hoping no one would take me out as I tried to stop. Fortunately, no one did.

After getting around the guy on the road, I clipped back in and got going again.  I did look around to double-check and make sure Shannon wasn't in that pile up, so once I didn't see him, I took off.  Okay, so I know I was no longer in contention for a good finish, but that doesn't mean I'm just going to soft pedal all the way to the finish.  I'm pretty sure I was close to last when I stopped, but in the end finished 36th, which to me was good enough since last week I was literally last given my crash.

Shannon had gotten through that corner, and was able to setup for a strong finish and originally thought his efforts led to a 15th finish.  However, after we reviewed the posted results, he actually finished 11th, which is downright incredible given his race yesterday and that he had no one to work with.  I REALLY wanted to be there with him so we can help finish strong together, but that just wasn't in the cards today.  All I can say though is it could have been worse...it could have been a lot worse.  Thanks, JC!

Celebratory beers were definitely in order at the end just because it was a race we both could walk away from free of any injuries, so Shannon and I hung out and shared a few.  It was perfect considering how warm it was, and I got to try out some new choice beers courtesy of Shannon's selection.   Thanks for the brew, buddy, and next week's race should be equally fun. 

Here's the rest of the pictures Lisa took for your viewing pleasure:  http://s13.photobucket.com/user/rlaureano/library/Ontario%20Crit%202014?sort=2&page=1

Lunch Ride - Mercy Thursday

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/114780541

Attendees:  Vince, Mitchell and Adrian.  Todd, Vin and Jeremy opted to do puke route instead.

Admittedly, I was a little nervous about getting on the bike today.  While my road rash seems to be on the path to healing, my other bigger concerns were my left shoulder, neck, left hip, left knee and right hamstring.  There is definitely some discomfort associated with these parts, but I was able to spin the last couple days for a little bit albeit rather gingerly.

What's funny was when I was talking to Mitchell when I was putting my shoes on outside, he was commenting how I hopefully learned a lesson from crashing on Sunday not to cross someone's rear wheel.  What?!?  Where the hell did that come from.  Of course, I corrected him and wondered what blog he's reading and getting this info from as that stung almost as much as getting blindsided in a turn.

I definitely was not up to changing our plans and doing the puke route, so once Todd changed his mind to go with Vin and Jeremy, we didn't hesitate and took off.  Vince came along and commented how he wants to ride with scabby.  Nice.  Todd, Jeremy and Vin ended up coming into the gym after telling us about how some black Mercedes were playing chicken with them on Ridge Park.  That didn't happen on our ride...just sayin'.

When we took off, I took the front (not purposely but due to a lack of participants...haha) but I obviously was just trying to get a feel for the bike again and pulling back accordingly.  It's funny how even days off can make you forget some things, so I was trying to feel my way through initially.  Vince ended up relieving me on E Peltason but then Adrian decided he was going to be amping it up today probably being fueled by recent events within his BU.  Of course (been there), it didn't hurt that he STILL has his aero bars on too.

Adrian and Mitchell actually had gapped Vince and I on Anteater some, and it took a slight burst just before Bonita Canyon just to be able to get on their wheel again.  When we got going after that, Adrian and Mitchell were still willing to work and took some good pulls.  Adrian even led us onto the side walk that leads to the bike trail loop just before the gate after Mitchell almost missed it.  Adrian and Vince actually started to gap after a while, and Mitchell and I weren't able to get back up to them until that section where it pitched up right after the first bridge.  Curiously after I finally made my way to the front again, Adrian pushed ahead of me again where I start looking around and seeing if I can locate Rod Sterling from the Twilight Zone.

Going up Knollcrest, he pushed ahead even then and I thought I was managing a pretty good pace going up.  The climb did eventually take its toll where only Mitchell was behind me after a while, but Adrian wasn't far behind after I turned around.  Vince was having asthma related breathing problems and was actually feeling it since Anteater, so he had backed off a lot and told us not to worry about him as we crossed paths.

Adrian had turned around as we passed, so he joined Mitchell and I as we made our way down and even took the front again and attempted to keep the gap even on Laguna Canyon.  It took some work just to be able to get up to him.

From the bike path on, the three of us rotated and everyone was working together through what felt like some pretty decent wind.

When we finally got to University heading toward California, Mitchell was up front just after the last underpass and I was looking for an opportunity to pass and take the front.  However, the pedestrians and cyclists made me have to wait until it was safe to do so.  After passing the last street before California, I started to bring the pace up hoping no one would contest for a sprint.  As we neared California, however, you see Adrian on his aero bars passing me where I was going to test out my sprint capabilities.  However, as there were two ladies on bikes riding abreast (no pun intended) approaching us, I backed off.   Adrian kept going as though so we had to work just to be able to get back up to him.  When he saw us coming, he backed off and relegated himself to the back.

The climb up Jamboree was pretty uneventful with me up front the whole way with Mitchell in tow and Adrian not far behind.  We all got to the light and ended up crossing together after it turned green.

When we got going on Bison after McArthur, I knew we were setting up for another sprint again.  Adrian was ahead and I was in number 2 spot waiting for Mitchell to hopefully give us a lead out.  When we hit the first light on the 73, we remained in the same order after taking off.  Once I saw we were going to clear the 2nd light, I swung around to Adrian's left and gave the sprint a go.  I was standing and cranking the bars where I wasn't sure if he was going to be able to pass me, but he did come around just as we were coming up on the corner.  Well done.

As a result of that sprint effort, I did end up hurting my shoulder a bit more where it felt better just to let my arm hang off the side of my body after.  I barely have enough strength to open a door with it now.  While the other parts of my body didn't seem to come into play, one other odd discomfort for me was my lower back.  I guess it's doing a lot more work keeping things together where it felt like I had ridden many more miles than I actually did.  Hopefully more miles tomorrow and not sprinting will have me ready for this Sunday in Ontario.  Hopefully.

Thanks for the training today, gents.  Sorry I couldn't push the pace anymore than I did, but I tried.   Good job today, Adrian.  I hope you keep pushing like this from now on.

Thanks to Galen too for letting me sport his Bell Sweep helmet that was too big for him.  What a guy! 

Dominguez Hills Crit Races - Shit Happens

CAT 5 - https://www.strava.com/activities/113826328

35+ CAT 4/5 - https://www.strava.com/activities/113826331

I figure I better write this before I'm no longer able since I'm sore and not feeling too great after today's races.  More on this later....

It was an early day of racing with the first race, the CAT 5, starting at 7 am.  Getting up at 4 am to get ready is pretty rough, but Lisa opted to come with me and help again.  It's awesome when she comes out to support me I must say.

Shannon arrived a little after, and I was already set up with my bike on the trainer when he went by to get his numbers.  Jeremy and Vin went by some time after also seemingly hating how early it was.   Jeremy talked about wanting to see if we wanted to work together with their team earlier this week, but having arrived late that just never happened.  

I had a good warmup for the race and got a couple laps in on the course with the last one finishing up with Shannon.  Shannon and I managed to line up close to the front, but we didn't see where Vin and Jeremy were.

I think the plan was to see if we can help dictate the pace and see what we could do to take part in any breakaways, but so many things go through your head when getting ready to race that I don't know how much of that plan I actually absorbed.  I was just going to try and stay with Shannon and look for opportunities to break with him should any arise.  I do remember saying let's get a feeling for the group's tempo early on, which I thought meant not being too aggressive right away.  I guess Shannon was feeling pretty good halfway into the first lap as the next thing you know, he was leading the pack!

I had pushed up not too far behind waiting to see how it would play out with him up front as I didn't think I'd have too much that early into the race.  No one broke off though, so I figure I'll work my way up to the front and see what I could do to help.  When I did, however, others finally started to make their way around him.  I lined up behind the guy who held Shannon out and did the same to him for awhile holding the #2 spot.  There were some small attacks but nothing that really drew too much response from the peloton including myself.

The race continued on and I lost my #2 position, which I held for a couple or so laps, but I wasn't too far off the front.  I had visions of wanting to try a break, but could not see anyone who was close by that I could do so with...so I didn't.

On the 2nd to the last lap, the pace started to pick up and I heard Jeremy somewhere beside me.  However, he got pinched out on the straight with some cones on the road, so he ended up losing position.

On the last lap, I was surprised to see Vin at the front of the whole group and accelerating upon hitting the first turn, but he got swarmed after and I was in no position to work with him.  I was coming around in the outside trying to get ready for the final sprint, and was trying to keep my position where I can contest the sprint to the finish (which is a slight grade up).  I wasn't close enough at the last turn to where there was a clean line to the finish, but I accelerated as best as I could passing a few on the last stretch and secured a 9th place finish.  Shannon couldn't get into a position to attack and came in at 17th with Jeremy and Vin finishing 23rd and 26th respectively.  Positioning was definitely difficult on this course, especially with one turn being a decreasing radius, cones being setup on the back straight, and guys out there who couldn't turn if their lives depended on it.

For the next race, Dina had come to join us, which was great to have her there supporting us as well.  There was about 2 hours in between races, so we got to watch some of the other races in between outs. 

We lined up a little later for the 2nd race, so we weren't as close to the front as the first race.  It didn't take long though before Shannon and I made our way to mid pack in the first lap or so since we figured it would be safer. 

This race had more people out and unlike last week, seemed to have some people out there who just didn't turn very well.  I figured staying on the outside would be safer, so that's where I tried to stay.  

Shannon tried to push up to the front, or at least I think he did, but we had some trouble staying together where I can't say for sure.  At one point, however, I believe I was in front of him and was hoping he would come with me should I see an opportunity to break away.

When I saw two guys up ahead of the peloton, I decided to breakaway and catch them hoping they would work with me to keep the break.  If Shannon was in a position to do so, I hoped he would eventually join us.  I called out to the two guys upon my approach and asked them to go, so they both immediately latched on. However, that was all they did and held me out until the peloton sucked as back in again.  I was worried when they did as I felt a little spent at the time where a lot of riders passed and had me wondering if I'd be able to latch back on.  Thankfully, I managed to do so, but I had to spend a lap or so just catching my breath and trying to get back into a good position.

There were about 5 laps left and I could see Shannon ahead, so I kept maneuvering through the pack, mostly from the outside,  until I was close 2-3 laps from the finish.  We got separated at one point after again, but coming up in the last lap, I was just behind Shannon once again.  I was hoping we can both help each other on the last lap, but I knew it may be difficult since we kept getting boxed in.

In the last lap, people were definitely riding in a large bunch, so it didn't get too strung out, which would have been safer.  Shannon an I were trying hard to keep our position, but people were getting squirly in the turns.  Then we hit turn 3 and sure enough, the unthinkable happens...someone took me out.

All I can remember was how I was holding my line through the turn to stay with Shannon, when I felt a hard bump to my right rear.  The next thing I know, I'm flying off to the left of my bike. (highside) and go tumbling on the pavement head and shoulder first.  Someone else ended up crashing into me or my bike so in the end, there were 3 of us on the ground as the peloton rode away to the finish.  

After I realized I was 1) alive, 2) awake, and 3) able to move, I was pissed!  I didn't know who took me out but I must have hollered out every imaginable profane word I could think of along with screaming at how people need to learn how to turn before they raced.  I didn't know the story of the other two who went down but neither wanted to admit to hitting me.  In retrospect, that was probably best as I was ready to literally kill someone for their carelessness.  

Shannon had made it around the block after the race, and I had stood up by that time trying to see if my bike was ridable.  My left cleat had completely sheared off and was still fastened to the pedal, but other than the bent in hoods (which I was able to put back in position), it was ok.  Shannon rode back with me and told me to make sure I get credit for the race (good call!).  When I went to the pit, I told them about crashing in last lap and they just told me to go over start/finish line to get credit...so I did.  

I did get tended to by paramedic after the race for my rashes on my leg, arm and hand, but I was okay otherwise although my neck and shoulder was a little sore.  Some self-medicating (beers!) at my car after helped too...probably more so.  Ha.

I took a closer look at my bike when I got home and did manage to get the cleat off my pedal.  Riding it around after, I found that the wheels were still true, both shifters worked as did the brakes. There was no damage to the frame or handlebars, and except for some scuffs on the shifters, it's good to go for next week's race.  I'll have to see where I am physically for that one, but I definitely want to do it again.  As with motorcycle riding, it's not really a matter of IF one goes down as much it is WHEN.  Now that I've gotten it out of the way for road racing on a bike, time to brush myself off and get ready for the next one.  I'll just have to use my white kit for the next race as my black one is toast.

Go team BRCM!

http://s13.photobucket.com/user/rlaureano/library/Dominguez%20Hills%20Crit%202-16-14

Lunch Ride - It's Like That And That's The Way It Is

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/112696192

Attendees:  Todd, Vince, Adrian, Hiroshi, Mitchell, Jaffe, Vin and Jeremy

Background music (because I can):

Highlights:

- Good sized showing of riders today

- Everyone was working today through Back Bay with some solid pulls.  Hiroshi skipped first rotation but jumped in after.  And you thought I wasn't keeping track.

- Vince started us off on PCH, but rotations continued for most...not all.

- Riding through CDM neighborhood was dog slow.  Road still closed so going over the bridge with pedestrians no bueno.

- Even riding on Ocean was painfully slow today.

- After Poppy, Adrian, Mitchell and Hiroshi were in a breakaway group (purposely) but it didn't take TJ look to reel them back in.

- Pulled to the front after the last light and brought pace up to respectable level.  Signaled to go across intersection and proceed up NPC from the light.  Jeremy and Vince missed the memo.

- With Jeremy and Vince having what seemed like a 3-5 minute headstart (stupid light), you can see the veins bulging on Todd's forehead as he anxiously wanted to cross and start climbing.

- Todd led the chase group up NPC, but after Pelican Mitchell's tubular tire exploded.  Hiroshi had to go back to the office to pick up vehicle and pick Mitchell up.  Amateur!

- Todd looked back but started going after seeing others stopping.  I slowed and did the same but waited just a little longer where I no longer had luxury of sitting on TJ's wheel.

- Jeremy was waiting at the top when Todd followed by me arrived.  Vince was gone as expected.  The three of us waited for a little bit then took off after seeing no one in sight.

- Riding to San Joaquin, Adrian rolled up behind us where I was hoping he'd be able to contribute from that point on.  He dropped before the descent.  WTF?

- Vince was waiting at exit of Horseshoe, but took off upon seeing us giving us a rabbit to chase.  We had him at one light, but you know Vince.  We had to corral him by the McArthur light subsequently.

- The 4 of us were jamming on San Joaquin headed to Back Bay and after crossing, Vince started sprinting the moment before making the right onto Back Bay drive.  Jeremy was behind him, but wasn't ready to give chase so I did.  Of course, I'd hold him out after working a bit to catch him.

- Todd took over eventually and the four of us began rotating again.

- Todd was the last in the rotation to pull leading up to the top of Back Bay, but before I could relieve him, Vince took off to break away.  I chased him down and held him out (good crit training) until it pitched up where I sprinted by just before.  He called out as I passed to save some for CA.

- I get to the top and didn't slow much and kept going with a good pace on the sidewalk (saving some as instructed).  Vince goes by and starts to pull away, where I'm thinking, "oh no you didn't."

- It took FOREVER to be able to latch back onto Vince's wheel on University, but just in time enough to prepare to contest a sprint.  When I did, Vince's called me something derogatory and a sprint diva, but I reminded him at the light how long it took to reel him back in.

- Todd and Jeremy were just behind us, and Todd said he needed a few more yards and he would have caught up.  Woulda, coulda, shoulda.  HAHA

- Todd led up CA where I continued my crit training and held him out until I thought I could go for it.  It worked and he gave me kudos at the light.  For the record, holding Todd out on a climb is not easy.

- Good training today and unfortunately may be my last for the week.  Thanks for the abuse, gents!

Parents: Stop Coddling Your Children!

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/112487539

As a parent, it concerns me to see younger parents believing that being overprotective of their child(ren) is a token of love.  Additionally, I see them giving them whatever their little hearts desire in the absence of making them feel a sense of earning it.  What's that about?  In my opinion, children who grow up in this environment will likely have a distorted perception of reality and not be able to cope with the trials and tribulations that life has to offer.  Strength comes from being able to endure them, pick ourselves back up when we fall, and be able to continue on prepared for life's next struggle.  Wouldn't preparing them for that really be more of a true token of love?  I think so.

So what the hell does that have to do with cycling you ask?  Well, today I came out half expecting that there will be a smallish crew out riding where the more "aggressive" riders would probably come out tomorrow or Thursday.  I thought that after racing yesterday, I'd be able to take it easier and not have to push so hard.  Imagine my surprise when I saw Vince, Todd and Galen in the locker room while I was getting ready.  Vince saw Mitchell too, but Mitchell rode away with his bag either because he forgot something or he didn't want any part of the madness that was to follow.  Unfortunately for us, Galen found a mechanical and didn't get to participate in the ride.  With Vince and Todd coming out though, I knew they wouldn't "coddle" me.  Instead, I expected that they were going to try and beat me up at every opportunity and look to drop me if possible.  Of course, the feeling was mutual. While this may read like more BAM behavior, the reality is by doing this, I think the guys are helping me prepare better for the racing I'm going to be doing.  In return, I'm hoping to push them harder, so that 1) they'll want to come out and race with me and 2) they'll push me even more and we all get stronger together.  While you may take that as aggro, I consider it more of a true token of cycling love since they're not doing me any favors taking it easy on me.  Now do you get it?

When we saw no one else was joining us, we took off and I wasn't going to hold anything back knowing I can only benefit from helping to push the pace.  It was great to see Todd and Vince all in on this as well.  Todd even tried to break away as early as Anteater, so I could tell it was going to be good.

When we got to the top of Shady as it descended toward Sunnyhill, Vince and I had a slight gap on Todd and we were trying to keep him off as we made our way to Turtle Rock.  Todd wasn't having any of it though and latched back on and jumped back in the rotation as we made our way around.

On the climb after Campus, Vince took off a little bit but Todd slowly reeled him in with me in tow.  I thought to push up and rotate but Todd had a good pace going up as it was (yeah that's it), so I stayed behind him until after we passed Starcrest.  Once we started nearing the stop sign, I accelerated by knowing he wasn't just going to sit there and we both blew it out as we worked toward the stop sign.  I gave in just before with Todd sprinting all the way to the end, but you can tell he was feeling it after.  When I passed (knowing Vince wouldn't be far behind and not be very tolerant of any lolligagging after a sprint), I kept going hoping to keep a gap, but the two behind me weren't too far behind and managed to latch back on by Sunnyhill again.

This madness continued as we climbed up the bike trail on Shady and I thought I had a pretty decent gap on them by the time we hit the 2nd bridge.  They reeled me back in again, with Todd on the way up.  He wasn't slowing down either, so Vince and I just latched on and made sure to keep him honest all the way up.

We didn't change orders as we made our way to the bike trail, but I was thinking about what I wanted to do there.  After the blind turn, I waited a little as Vince made his way onto my rear wheel and then came around to take the front wondering if anyone was going to contest for a sprint.  I was trying to see what I would have if they did, but I think I blew myself up trying to keep the pace up enough where I was glad no one did.  Todd did pass just as we were going under the bridge, but just chuckled and said "nice sprint."  What he didn't know was I almost couldn't latch on to them after they passed.  My right calf was starting to hint of cramping, so I drank some water (thanks to Galen for loaning me his bottle since I forgot mine) and pushed on.

Todd led us up Ridgeline at a pretty good clip, but it's always hard to say if he's pulling back some or not.  When we hit the first section that pitched up, I stood up and tried to take full advantage of his generous pull.  I was able to gap him a little bit, but he was back on my rear wheel on the following false flat.  When we hit the 2nd steep section, I stood up again and hoped to regap him but I had dropped to shorter gear to do so.  When I looked over my right shoulder to see where he was, he started passing on my left where all I could do as he did was mutter some profanity.  It was mostly directed at myself for not being able to react...mostly.

Vince had called out wingman duties at the base of the climb, and sure enough helped pick me up near the top to lead us down Turtle Rock to reel Todd back in again.  Todd had looked back at one point believing he had a pretty sizeable gap, but was surprised to see us back on his rear wheel before the turn to Campus.  I took a little push to close the small gap Vince had left, but that pretty much had me feeling it now on both calves.

Climbing up Culver was all Todd, and both Vince and I just hung on for the length of the climb.  I would have taken over if Todd had lost any momentum, but he was pretty consistent all the way up.  I was glad.

When we got to Bonita Canyon, it was more rotations where Vince had taken a pretty strong one that led us all the way over to the 73 underpass.  Todd took over after, and I took a turn up the climb, but I definitely overcommitted at that time resulting in me passing up my next rotation hoping that my calves won't fully lock up.

The little reprieve had me off the back, but I was able to stay close enough where I was hoping to just give it everything I had for a final sprint on Bison.  Of course they knew it was coming since they kept looking to see where I was as they headed toward the 73.  Once I saw the light was green on both and they were going, I dropped it like it's hot and almost closed in on Todd's rear wheel with Vince having taken off just beforehand.  That's when BOTH calves fully locked up where I could barely rotate the crank and just had to stand up until they released.  Despite the pain, I have to say I really appreciate being taken to this point as it will only help me later on.

Todd asked if I thought the crits weren't as hard given my legs didn't behave the same way for them.  I'm sure my calves would have been fine had I NOT raced just yesterday...twice at that..., but I don't really think there's any way to really compare them.  I suggest, as Shannon had before, to come out, Mr. Jacobs, and see for yourself.  This extends to Vince, Galen and whoever else wants to get in on some of this.  Then we can go out there and show the other teams just how much we love them.  

Roger Millikan Brea Crit Races Report

CAT 5:  http://www.strava.com/activities/112326671

Mens 35+ CAT 4/5:  http://www.strava.com/activities/112326676

When I found out after the Boulevard race that Shannon had already registered for the crits today (that's right...crits as in plural), I just couldn't resist.  One, it was a flatter route and two, I just like racing together with Shannon to represent team BRCM.  We  did see Jeremy there before the CAT 5 race that we were in and Vin subsequently during the race, but they were in their ARB4U team kits where we didn't want to interfere with their team strategies since there were a few of them out there.

For the first race, Shannon and I managed to get a warm-up lap on the course despite thinking originally that it wasn't allowed.  However, no one lined up for our race yet and no other races were in progress.  When we did line up, we didn't see anyone else we knew so the plan was mostly to just survive the race...especially after hearing about last week's crash at the Red Trolley.  I'm not too sure the warm-up lap we took really bought us anything in terms of course familiarity but it was better than nothing.

When the race took off, Shannon and I didn't really stay together as we were both trying to find our lines and feel the rhythm of the race.  I had been taking more of an inside line for most of the race thinking it would be ideal, but it ended up actually making it difficult to keep any kind of rhythm.  It was hard to get in a good position, which I didn't really attempt early on, but when I did try to gain in position, I would probably lose everything I worked for getting pinched in the corners.   I got by Shannon at one point in the course, but I lost sight of him after that.  I also saw Jeremy and Vin and I was thinking of riding with them for a bit, but ended up getting squeezed out in a turn where the next thing you know, I saw Jeremy up toward the front.  I tried to figure out a way to make my up, but I just didn't know how to do so.  Shannon had found a way and was able to push up on the last lap or so and had gotten 4th place as a result (woo hoo, congrats!).   That's will right there.  I still kept struggling to find position even on the last lap where it was so jerky that I only managed 19th after making some last second passes on the final stretch.  Jeremy mentioned he had gotten 9th while Vin finished behind me at 21st or so.  Good job, gents!

Since Lisa came with me, we decided to get something to eat and actually ended up going home.  I guess I was a little tired as I passed out in bed and managed to have a nice little nap before heading back to the 2nd race.  I was a little disoriented when we left and almost forgot my bib and a towel to change in, but fortunately I remembered just before driving off.  Of course, when we were on the road again, I realized I brought nothing to drink.  Oh boy.  After a quick stop at a Ralphs near the event, I was ready to go.  If Lisa didn't go with me, I'd be sitting on the sideline watching the next race rather than being in it.  Thanks, babe!

Shannon had texted me about some crashes he saw after our race, so that didn't really sit too well when I found out.  They actually had to stop the 45+ race all together I think after the 3rd crash that occurred.   I'm not sure what those guys were doing, but the race coordinators reminded our class when we lined up that we need to be safer out there.  I think that made people think a little more, so we managed to have a good race that was uneventful in terms of injuries.

There was no warm-up lap on the course when we got there and we lined up right away.  I had warmed up beforehand on my trainer while Shannon did a couple laps on a separate block.  I may have warmed up a little much given I was sweating pretty good before the race, but better warm than cold I say.

Unlike the first race, which was only 25 minutes, this second race was 15 minutes longer so I wondered how the pace would be.   However, it still seemed pretty fast despite more laps, but the good thing about this race was that I was going to ride with Shannon for the length of the race rather than trying to figure it out on my own.

I stayed with Shannon for several laps, and we weren't pushing it too hard because 1) he showed me a much better line and 2) we figured we can save it for when it mattered.  Lisa admitted to me she was a little worried because we were actually at or near the back for a good number of laps, minus some who dropped off, but I never worried since I was with Shannon playing his wingman.   Here's a video Lisa took of us in turn #4 early on.  Yes...we're toward the back.

About 6-7+ laps out or so, Shannon started to pull up toward the front and actually started to break away on the back half of the course.  I was a little stuck, but I wasn't going to let him not have any help.  I found an opening and started to give chase.  He had drawn a 3-4 guys behind him, but he was still up and away from the rest of the peloton.  It was during the climb leading to the front straight of the course that he turned it on more and ended up dropping those behind him.  I had just arrived at the wheel of those guys after breaking away from the peloton also, so there wasn't much time to rest and I just took off from behind those guys to chase Shannon and give him some support.

As I approached him, I called out to let him know I was coming so that he was able to latch on as I passed.  Although there was one other guy who had broken away ahead of us, it was just Shannon and I at the #2 and 3 spot trying to maintain the breakaway.  When one guy finally caught us, both of us were working to recover and knew that it wouldn't be long before we were swallowed back up by the peloton.  We kept the breakaway for almost 2 laps though, but there just wasn't enough of us to keep it.

Shannon making his move

Going into wingman mode

The following lap still trying to keep the gap

Just when we think we're doing okay...

...we see the peloton coming up quick behind us

When we got back in the peloton, the group was still pretty large so it didn't take much to get back on.  The teams who were racing in this class were definitely a lot more organized for this race, so they started planning for the finish.  Attempting another breakaway at that point would have probably gotten a faster response, so we stayed in the pack and tried to plan for the final lap.

During the final lap, we tried to get into a better position but it was a bit chaotic at that point.  We started sprinting two corners out, including up the final hill, but Shannon got blocked in where I found a line outside to pass and have him follow me in.  Unfortunately, it was not enough to really contend, so we ended up getting 20/21.  This was probably back from 39/40 though when we hit the 2nd to the last corner.

Here are some final sprint action shots:

What a day of racing.  Shannon and I got to share a couple beers after the 2nd race, which is why we do this stuff for, right?  I'm already signed up for next week's race with Shannon in Dominguez Hills (two again), so I'm looking forward to the drinking after, I mean, more team BRCM racing for sure.

All the pics Lisa took for today can be seen here:  http://s13.photobucket.com/user/rlaureano/library/Brea%20Crit%202014?sort=3&page=1. 

How to Survive a BRCM Lunch Ride

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/111614332

I bet you thought I was going to write about today's lunch ride.  Instead, I decided I'm going to do something that I think people have been waiting for a LONG time...sharing the secrets of what it takes to survive our lunch ride - the first edition.  Of course, I'll base it on today's ride, so your "educators" (aka the list of today's riders) incude Hiroshi, Todd, Mitchell, Steve, Jaffe, Vin, Adrian, Peter and me.

• When we meet at the corner, quietly evaluate the riders who come out and ask yourself "which strong rider can I take total advantage of?"  I'm pretty sure there are rare occasions when I have that bulls eye on my back, but it must be on flatter routes or when I have my TT bike. 
•  Make sure your bike is well tuned or not only do you risk not surviving the ride, you also risk the high probability that you'll be called an "amateuer" or worse yet, "STUPID!"
• If no one is complaining, stay in the draft as long as you can.  This works for a LOT of people.  In fact, there may even be instances when that's what they do for 95% of the ride.
• In the beginning of the ride, forget all ideas of warming up.  If you're not ready for a fast start, then be ready to ride alone.  Sorry, Peter.
• Along the lines of the first bullet above, take advantage of the climber by letting him pull on the hills as much as possible.  Todd did a bulk of the pulling heading out to Bonita Canyon and definitely all the way up NPC.
• Impress the others by taking chances on occasion and attacking when least expected.  Hiroshi started the ride off and was actually the first to take off only to have Todd reel him in by Anteater.   Hiroshi also launch a couple attacks on Pelican.  By doing this, you make the others wonder if coffee crew rides are paying off and to not chase down too aggressively.  R-E-S-P-E-C-T.   
• The down side of attacking is that you do run the risk of getting attacked back.  After Todd was doing a bulk of the work on NPC, mine and Hiroshi's attacks (although mine was teeny tiny because I know better) were countered with a huge response on the final loop up Pelican passing us both on the final climb.   Of course, this led to more attacks on San Joaquin, Back Bay, the University bike trail, and up CA. 
• Be someone's wingman.  This allows you to have someone do a bulk of the work for you, but you will be expected to return the favor on occasion.  
• If someone is smiling at some point during the ride, be ready for an attack.  Todd caught me smiling as we were heading down toward Back Bay and made the proper adjustments to respond.  
• If you think you can break away but have 2-3 strong people chasing you, check yourself before you wreck yourself.  I broke away as soon as I got on Back Bay and realized that it was pointless when the three behind me were closing.  
•  If you're mode of climbing is fast early on and blowing up, this definitely won't work.  However, Adrian proved today that setting a tempo that is half the speed of the rest of the group at the base of the hill ALSO won't work.  
• If you do not have the same tempo as others who are pulling away from you, try latching on to anyone who passes.  They may slow for you if you do, but if you don't let them know about the gap that's occurring, they may not be as willing.  Right, Vin and Jaffe?
• Wearing BRCM gear is always favorably looked upon.  While this may not help you keep up, you'll look damn sexy and can tell others that it's a recovery day from all the racing.

There are definitely more "secrets" to learn in surviving our lunch rides, but I can't give them all away on the first edition.  Plus, there are lessons to be learned from every one of our rides that can differ from one to another, so stay tuned until the next edition.  Until then, HTFU!

Peace!
 

Lunch Ride - NPC Double BB Bruiser

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/111199864

Attendees:  Vince, Mitchell, Vin, Jaffe and Adrian

Weather:  Cool temps with moderately strong winds.

Highlights:

• Mitchell told me he missed me while I was out last week.  Awww....
• It was one of those days where when we started, people were soft pedaling down Health Sciences waiting for someone to take the lead...so I did.  It was windy though, so we didn't really get anywhere too fast.  
• Vince came around to help with the pull on Anteater and he and I would exchange all the way to NPC.  Everyone else was sitting comfortably behind us.  
• I started us off up NPC, but Vince traded pulls with me while Mitchell stood by as my wingman much to Vince's dismay.  Everyone else popped off during the climb.
• Vince got to the top first and we continued to exchange pulls on the Horseshoe and down San Joaquin subsequently.  
• With Vince, it's not a matter of if he's going to launch an attack, it's a matter of when.  On San Joaquin, I tried to amp up the pace to hopefully deter them for a bit.  I knew it would only be temporary though.
• We got a bunch of green lights and after pushing past Fashion Island, so we decided at the Jamboree light we would wait for the others after crossing the street.
• Vin and Jaffe arrived together and while we waited for them to cross, they instead took the sidewalk riding on the opposite side of the road.  They didn't say anything, they didn't signal...nothing.
• Vince, Mitchell and I took off since it seemed like they weren't going to stop, so we wanted to chase them down in case they were trying to make a break.  They got to cross ahead of us on the light and kept going, but we managed to reel them in shortly after.  It's hard to say if they were trying to get away though at that point.
• Adrian had been able to get the light and managed to get back in our draft on Jamboree, although he nearly broke his arm patting himself on the back believing he caught us. Dude...we waited for you guys.  HA HA
• Everyone was going to work on Back Bay, so we rotated out and everyone pushed up to keep the pace up showing some good pulls.
• Toward the end, I took off from the front expecting someone to pass me before the top, but I ended up gapping the group.  I contemplated trying to breakaway, but 1) it was windy and 2) it was really windy.  
• Vince and Mitchell were with me by the time I started climbing up Jamboree, and Vince and I continued to exchange pulls with him taking the later ones near the top.   There was no sign of anyone else after that.
• I was leading us toward the Back Bay Entrance and just after turning right into it, Vince launched from behind me just as I'd been expecting all day.  I took off once I saw (and heard him), and I managed to close the gap from his first attack.  Of course, I had to hold him out a little to give me a little break after the pull and then chasing him down.  He loves to attack when people are most vulnerable, but this is a good thing for training.
• We started rotating again through Back Bay with Mitchell joining once again.  
• We rolled by one rider who we reeled in, and I'm not sure if he was latched on after we passed or just hanging in the back, but he may have been interested in mixing it up...when it was too late.
• For the final charge up to Eastbluff, Vince and I duked it out and I literally gave it everything I had where my left calf blew up just as soon as I got on the sidewalk...first.  :)
• Vince must have been annoyed and told me to keep pedaling while I tried desperately not to have my left calf fully lock up.  He passed me after and kept a good gap on me where I was trying desperately to close it, making ground at one point, but running out of steam on University where he got away completely hitting the CA light first.  As I checked up to make the right turn, the guy we passed passes me.  You go, tiger.
• Climbing CA, Vince and I traded pulls and as I tried to pass him toward the end, he wasn't having any of it and stood up and made me his son as he'd like to call it.  I was done, so I got what I wanted from the ride.  

Good pace out there with a 21.8/7 avg.  I'm not digging that my calf blew up, but with my power numbers near my FTP, I suppose it's understandable.  Thanks for the workout, gents!

The Boulevard Race Report

Strava: http://www.strava.com/activities/110515249

There are things in life that we are likely never going to see:  A Kenyan Olympia level bodybuilder, an all white NBA champion team,  a famous Asian porn star, etc.  In this list, you can also add me winning (or even making top 10) a hilly race like the Boulevard.   #truth

Now I'm not going to make any excuses, folks, because as with anything I enter or try to do, I always put it all out there and aim for a W.  Otherwise, I wouldn't be doing it.  However, the reality of the situation is I know my climbing on a road bike is nowhere near what it needs to be in order to be competitive in a race like this.  This is truly a venue for the likes of real climbers like Shannon, Todd, etc., but I'm glad I got to experience it nonetheless.  It truly confirms that conditioning for one type of race (time trials) does not automatically carry over to hilly road races...unless of course you're Shannon or anyone else who can go into what I like to call "beast mode."

Shannon and Dina ended up staying in Viejas the night before the race, but I opted to drive out from home given 1) the race wasn't until 10:15 a.m and 2) I'm trying to save money.  It was a pretty good drive from my place, so I was glad Lisa came with me to keep me company.  We left around 7 a.m. and managed to arrive around 9 to the Golden Acorn Casino after picking up some Starbucks along the way.  Shannon and Dina arrived a little after us.

When we got there, saying it was cold would be an understatement.  It was definitely a lot colder than the Stagecoach, but I was prepared given that I brought arm and leg warmers, a base layer, and full fingered gloves.  However, after warming up on the trainer, I opted to take off the leg warmers as did most of those in our class including Shannon.  As a testament to how cold it was, we did see snow falling around us after the race.  Brrr.

When we lined up for the race, we were close to the front and we saw John Lenell there also.   He was across from us where we really couldn't chat, so all we could do was just say hi to one another.  We didn't recognize anyone else out there despite having 60+ people in our class, but it looked like a legit class of racers considering the majority were of the typical rider built.  I also heard before the race that a lot of good mountain bike racers were in this class to prepare for their race season, so I knew it was going to be a fast one.

The race starts out from the casino parking lot, and you're led out with a motorcycle escort where it's neutral until after he lets us go.  The pace didn't pick up too much after we were let go, but I pushed up close enough to the front hoping that this would be a good position to be in.  John was just a few cyclists in front of me, while Shannon stayed behind me.  There really wasn't a lot of room to move around as there was a rule in effect where no one was supposed to cross over to the other side of the road.   Thus, there wasn't too many people jockeying for positions early on.

There were some early climbs early on, but nothing too significant.  However, some would try to amp up the pace on these kicker hills early on especially after making a turn to create that accordion effect as part of their race strategy.  Fortunately, I was able to respond to these little hill sprints as did John and Shannon.

The majority of the first part of the race was descending though, so doing this in a group of 60 was pretty intense.  In my mind, I'm always hoping that everyone would be able to hold their line, and fortunately everyone around me could.  The biggest challenge on the descent was not so much pedaling to keep up as it was braking enough to not run into the guys in front of you.  My forearms were getting more worked than my legs from all the braking, but I was glad hoping to save my legs for what I hear were some legitimate climbs on the latter part of the course.  It felt like I could have pushed up to the front on the descents, but races aren't typically won descending.

When we got half way through the course, I was still in a good position but we made a right turn to another hill and this was where I ended up getting sheared off by the top group.  Shannon passed me as we were climbing up the hill and he offered me some encouraging words, but I just couldn't respond to the uptick in pace.  I literally felt like I exploded trying to keep up, so all I could do at that point was watch people go by as I tried desperately to recover.  While I know it wasn't 60 people who dropped me at that time, it sure felt like it.

I didn't drop off too far and was able to see the lead group ahead of me through the rollers after that climb, but they were definitely pulling away at that point and I had no one to work with.  I just had to fend for myself at that point, so that's pretty much what I did.

When we hit the real climbing, it was a long climb with just a little reprieve near the top but it was reminiscent of climbing NPC and Vista but a lot longer.  I got passed by a couple people on the climb, but I eventually was able reel in everyone who had passed me on the 2nd lap.  I did think to myself that quitting after the first lap wouldn't be too bad given it was cold and I wasn't really in the race anymore, but I didn't drive this far out just to do a 22 mile ride.

I got passed on the descent by a couple guys, but I was able to reel in one of them along with some other guys who eventually fell off the front group.  The descent was definitely more fun on my own while chasing others down, but I realized that there was a good headwind on the descent, which wasn't something I felt on the first lap being in the peleton.

On the final climb, I felt better than the first and managed to reel a guy I had seen for a while back where we started working together.  After a little reprieve on the climb, however, he had popped off so I was on my own again.  A few people passed me on the climb, but they were in different classes.  I jumped in one of their lines during the climb, but I couldn't hold it when they started maneuvering for position before the finish.  When I hit the finish, it was anti-climatic given that my class had made their way past it probably 20 minutes before me.  John and Shannon were in that group, so they definitely had a good race and I believe both landed in the top 10 yielding a 20+ average on the course.  Amazing!

When I arrived at the casino parking lot, Shannon had already changed and John was ready to try out the $7.77 prime rib they offered whereas I just needed to go pee.  I saw other guys rolling in after me, so I didn't feel too bad knowing I wasn't last.  HA.

I'll probably never do this race again, but it was a good experience nonetheless.  Things I learned or would have done differently would be to only bring one water bottle and definitely bring the lightest bike with a compact crank.  I don't think doing this would have made a difference in my competitiveness, but it would have just made it easier for sure.

Congratulations to John and Shannon for their monstrous efforts.  For me, I'm just going to chalk this up as something I got to do and be happy with it.

Thanks to Dina and Lisa for coming out and supporting us.  It's always good to have support there...especially when they're able to drive our drunk asses home.  Kudos!