Anybody wanna race?

It is about this time of year when a lot of folks start to lose enthusiasm about bike racing??   Surprising, with the Tour de France starting tomorrow!   It is hot and we have been riding for a long time.

For me, my main race season is just starting and I hope I will have some company:

7/4 - Fab 4 in Tryon - 62 miles - cookie ride but a warm up
7/5 - Spinners TT at SCTAC
7/7 - GA State Games RR - Marietta, Ga
7/8 - GA State Games ITT - Marietta, GA
7/10 - SCTAC
7/14 - NC State RR Championship
7/17 - SCTAC
7/20-7/22 - French Broad Classic - TT/RR/Crit

Let me know if you can join me so we can plan team support!
 

Looking forward to Tuesday

I am already looking forward to the Tuesday B ride.... come on out......

on another note, Emily put the hurt on me on Saturday's ride up and back over the Mt Pisgah doing the 151 loop.   Then she contested the "stone pile" sprint to end a great 60 mile 7,000ft of climbing ride... She was just awesome..  (below is the original stone entrance to the Pisgah on 276)...

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Oh and Tom did not let a mechanical (only 2 gears,  rear derailleur stuck in 1st gear) stop him from having a good ride.  Although he opted out of the 151 loop he did the down and back up Mt Pisgah through all the tunnels towards the  Arboretum then started a second climb up 276 meeting us to finish the ride.

We finished it off with a trip to Dolly's......sooooo good...

Beyond the Bike

Teenie and I have taken 4 of our grandchildren to Costa Rica for 10 days.

We are satisfying dreams of spending vacation time with them (no parents allowed), giving them experiences and learning Spanish (a goal all 6 of us share).

We are at Conversa in Santa Anna, studying  for 5-6 hours daily.

Of course, I am getting about 1.5 hours of hard mountain biking in each morning.  Afternoons, after class, are filled with yoga and hiking in the rain forest.

Yo quiero carrer mi bicicleta con TEAM headstrong por muchos anos.     Hay amigos y amigas en TEAM headstrong.  Yo amo ustedes con todo mi corazón.

After 4 days, this is the best I could do..........

Hope to see you out there soon!

For the Record

A couple of weeks ago, in the South Carolina State RR Championships, I had a great day!  I mean, everything went really well for me; I had a luck-filled day.  I am happy to take these days, as they come few and far between.

In the wake of these races (Masters 50+ and Womens 123), I've had few comments come to my attention, granted, none of them said directly to me.  I've been having a difficult time understanding why people would say such things.  Mostly, I just had to let them slide, that was until I found out that people have been saying that I "cheated". 

So...I would like to set the record straight:

I was registered for the Men's 50+ race.  This IS allowed.

I raced with the Men's 50+ group.  The entire time.  I did NOT jump off the women's field to join them.

I was at the start line for this race.  

Yes, I was late for the start of the W123 race. I had to chase to catch up to them and it wasn't easy.  When I caught the group, I CHECKED WITH THE MOTO to ensure I was okay to race.  I did not do this on purpose, nor did I do it in a sneaky manner.  Many people have stories of missing the start of a race and having to chase to catch, and most people know that the only person harmed is the person who is late.  

I'm not really sure what to make of these comments, but the truth is...they hurt.  These are not strangers who I have never met saying these things.  They are people I know, and...liked.  I think they may read this post.  I hope they read this post.  In the meantime, I'm still trying to find the lesson in all of this, as I'm sure He intended.  

Tuesday SCTAC

Several of us have been having discussions on the Tuesday night ride’s participation and safety this season.   Several talking points have arisen, namely    safety (quite a number of crashes this year in the A’s)

1. safety
2. participation (paying is really down, and the B group has all but disappeared)
3.  quality / skills of riders in the A (to point number 1 and no. 2)
4.  road condition

We would like to ensure that Tuesday night continues and grows in participation as one of the key training events in the upstate.    We cannot do much about the road surface, but we can collectively address the other issues.  

• ·         First we need to re-establish the B group, pulling back some of those trying to race in the A’s. and create a competitive training environment for riders to become higher level racers   
• o    I will be riding the B’s Tuesday, and am asking any of you (and anyone you can solicit) that can, to join me as an effort to rebuild the B race.
• o   We should set a competitive B pace, I would guess somewhere between 21-23mph,   
• o   This may take time, but I would guess we would see more join us each week as those that cannot hang with A’s are overtaken by the B’s..  and that it is a better “fit” for many of the racers..
• ·         one concept is that the A’s should be for Licensed EXPERIENCED riders, specifically that it should be Men Cat IV and above, Women Cat III and above,  but this is a self regulated as no one wants to “police” the ride.
• ·         Solicit other cyclists to join us …
• ·         Encourage every participant to “ante up”…… rule is …”if you ride, you should pay”

As one of Greenville’s predominant teams we should help to improve the SCTAC Tuesday night ride in participation, safety, competitiveness, and fun.   

In keeping with that, we would like feedback and suggestions around this topic from you and any other participating cyclist.

I hope see some of you out there tomorrow night.  And feel free to share this with anyone…(I sent an email version of this out)

FAB 4

July the 4th is just around the corner.   It is about this time in June, every year, that Teenie and I ask each other if we are gonna be in town for the 4th.   Thank goodness the answer is YES, this year.

Then we both scrunch our noses and kinda agree to do the FAB 4 ride out of Tryon.  I guess it is becoming a tradition.  We're not big on traditions in the Maddox household.  We have few.

We don't love this event but it is better than setting on the couch and watching football.   Oh, it's summer...no football, I forgot.  Maybe we would go if it was football season?  They usually have some pretty bad barbecue after but it is all for a good cause....I think?  Aren't all cookie rides for good causes?

Sometimes we race and sometimes we just ride.  The start is nuts.  Not sure how we will approach it this year?  If Emily comes and says she is not racing, don't believe her.  She always races.  It's in her blood.....one of the reasons we all love her.  Bake/Sam might be building the new Shake and Bake Garage but I will try to talk them into coming.

What can I tell you??   After this blog, I am not sure any of you will show but I hope so.  Misery loves company!

DS rocks at SC TT

The DS turned in a great TT at the SC state TT in Mt. Pleasant today. His 40k average speed was faster than my 20k! Well done!

View from the back.....

SCTAC... speed is up... skills are down....

The last several weeks SCTAC A's have had its share of crashes and close calls.   This past Tuesday saw a cadre of USA Development team riders join the fray.  Some of which could not even pedal the bike smoothly, weaving left and right.  Add in some riders who display less than experienced pack racing skills and well you feel like you are in a Cat 5 race........you might want to be at the front or at the back, just in case....  (A's should be for USA Cycling licensed and EXPERIENCED riders)...

The Devo's moved near the front during the warmup and the pace started going up quickly... they were holding a good pace but displaying less than adequate skills.   Add some wind and then a little rain... well you can guess what was going to happen....

On the 2nd lap, on the back side flat, a rider came back on another rider not holding his line and BAM.. riders going down...  All the while I am thinking this is not safe, this is not safe....riding in the gutter on the right.. I don't care if the pavement is bad....good to have a bailout plan.... so I just ride out into the grass field avoiding the mayhem....

In the old days back in Atlanta, my late brother would hand out "pink slips" to riders who "did not belong" sending those riders to the back.. Needless to say, there were those who really disliked him, but the veterans of the peleton appreciated someone was doing some "policing".

I am not sure what we can do to ensure the quality and safety of the A's, but we might want to explore some ideas (Cat 4 racers and above?).... for me.. the A's used to be the safest of the Donaldson races...now, I am more and more riding on edge as I feel it is no longer "safe"....

Just my view.....

Johnson City Omnium

Saturday RR…  point to point starting at 1,600ft and finishing at Rhodendrum Gardens atop Roan Mountain at 6,200ft in just 32 miles…  … affectionately known as the Roan Groan.

The elevation profile…. Need I say more…

Except I am not a climber….( click here to continue reading......)