Wow!

I tried to post an audio update over the weekend, however, I assume that didn't work...quick recap: Bob Herbert Memorial SR

I stunk the TT up at Bob Herbert. I had a nasty run in w/johnny crapper, and spent the majority of my warm up on the can. That led to a crappy time.

So, since I was sitting like nothing overall, I went with an early move in the circuit race, which stuck, and put a minute .5 into the field. Now, I am sitting 7th overall. We had two others 4th and 5th, so my job was still to work for them.

I burnt a lot of matches early in the race on Sunday, but things payed off...we popped the two top-placed GC riders, overcame the time gap, and took 1st, 3rd, and 7th for the the weekend.

So, I am not really sure why time has seemed so short lately; maybe I am just more selfish with it. I have been spending more time with K and the pets, which has been good. Sometimes, you forget about the things that matter most in life. Cycing has been tough the past few weeks, but I think I have dug deep inside of myself and found new inspiration. There are a lot of changes I am going to have to deal with in the next several months, but this seems to be my typical life schedule. K and I have been searching for homes in STL, with little success. It seems like you have to have a decent job to purchase a home...who'd a thought?

The Tour of STL is this weekend, and I think some of the OK boys are heading our direction...I should probably not mention that the weather is supposed to be crappy; better let them find out on their own.

So, random post, but this is how things are now.

Here you go Micah

So, it has been a while. Nothing has changed too much. I still work a lot, I still ride bikes, and I still have a crazy dog named Parker.

The only thing that has really changed around the mid-MO scene, is that crits have started. Thank the lord! I have done more RR this season than all other seasons combined. Well, that may be close to being true.

This past weekend was Hillsboro and the Tilles park crit. Hillsboro was a race of attrition (as usual). It was seasonable, but unusually cool for that race. Illinois usually experiences a heat wave everytime that race comes to town, but this year, it was 50 and windy as all can be. The field was as big as I have ever seen it, and with fire power like 10 ABD guys, Nick Riestad, a few Bianchi Grand Dopers, and St. Louis teams so big it would make your heads spin; Java Doug and I had our hands full. The short version of the story is there was a break, and after a TTT by ABD for the first 50 miles brought them back, Trek Midwest sent their guys off like a pack of Saturn Missles on the 4th of July. The race comepletely shattered and nothing good came from it.

Tilles brought several early attacks, and a quickly established break. Java tried to bridge, but after several laps, came back to the field. My turn. No dice. I tried to get accross several other times, but each time was the same story. The break was stuck, so I decided to take a last lap flyer and try and sneak in the money. Tilford thought otherwise, grabbing onto my wheel, while I burned every last match I had. That guy came around me like it was nobody's busines about 20 meters from the line. Physically and Mentally defeated, I sat up and everyone came rushing around for the finish. Bummer.

I have been able to take a couple of easy days this week, and I am going to get out on my TT bike tonight just to putz around. I am excited to get that thing dialed in. We have a TT in a little over a week that will be a good first test.

That is all for now, one of these days, I will make time for things like this.

Old Mushy Man Rock

That is what I am listening to at the moment. Every work place has it's own style of music, and the music at PSCR is a genre I will not miss. Not that I really enjoy listening to the Dead or WSP all day every day, but at least there is enough going on so I can tune that out.

This week has been our Super Sale, and it has been super busy. With me finishing up my hours at PSCR, and working the sale, I have pulled several 12 + hour days. Training has been minimal this week, as I really don't want to get sick, or break my body down any more than I have to. I have been crashing after work for at least an hour, and then getting my usual crappy 6-7 hours of sleep. I can't wait until next week, when I get to sleep in until 6:30!

K, Keven and I rolled down to Flatty last night for some grub. Good times. However, we were somewhat rushed, because we were on our bikes, and well, it looked like there was a tornado comming. K and I have been kind of rashening our food out, so we can hit up Whole Foods and TJ's (you better run Teeje) when we are up in STL. This weekend is packed full of fun; Hillsboro kicks off the weekend with a painful 90ish mile RR, followed by an early morning of Half-Marathoning around Forrest Park and the Central West...later in the afternoon, we will be over at Tilles park riding bikes around in circles for 60 min plus 6. Somewhere in there, we plan on grocery shopping, house hunting, and Parker playing.

Well, that is about it, for now.

Okmoar

No, that is not the name of a Chineese entre, that is where I was over the weekend. Another weekend down, several hundred miles traversed, and a handfull of hours racing.

Flint Ridge, Kansas OK
This was a hard race. I set the pace early so that Brian Jenson wouldn't just roll off the front and away from the field. I got rolling in several early moves, that were all brought back fairly quickly. Finally, the field split, and I as in the second group...no worries, we had Fiddler up the road. Well, we thought we could bridge to the front group, and better our odds in the top 5. A few more times up the climb, and we realized they were gone. I worked with 4 BMC guys, and Chucker. For the most part, I kept it rolling, saving a bit in the tank for the finish. We managed to drop all but me and two guys from BMC and we dropped one of them on the decent. Scott Barnes attacked me at the bottom of the hill, and I waited for him to get gassed, then nailed it. I had the field sprint in the bag, but began cramping about 30 meters from the finish. I saw Scott steaming up behind me, and he got the wheel throw just in time for 7th.

NWA Spring Classic, Praire Grove AR
What a race of attrition. Strong winds and high temps with Jenson driving the pace definitly took it's toll. Our team decided to play a more conservative roll today, so we wouldn't all burn our matches early. We also decided that we were racing for 2nd, as Jenson is a complete animal. We coverd a few moves from Jensen, and MMM, but everything stayed together in the first lap. Jenson strung the field out just after the feed, only to roll solo off the front...this was good for us, because with him out of the equation, we could focus on our goal. MMM on the other hand had a different idea. They were under the impression that we could bring Jenson back, and they organized the chase. Now, I am not sure if everyone bought into the fact we could catch him, or if they were just doing the same thing we were; we had four riders in the field, and if we refused to chase (because we knew he was way gone)then we would seem like the bad guys. Well, to make a long story short, we had an organized chase for a little over an entire lap. Of course, in the end, it was all worthless. However, it may have worn on MMM, and the BMC boys, becasue we did end up accomplishing our 2nd place finish. I popped mid-third lap. I am not really sure why, I just couldn't hold the effort any longer. I dangled behind the field for several miles trying to catch back on, and soon, they slowly began pulling away. My legs were aching, something that doesn't happen too often while on the bike. Anyway, I finished up the race, and took 12th.

BoCoMO, Middle of everywhere
I am trying to not get sick this week. I have a lot on my plate: plenty of riding, finishing up my work at PSCR, and the Super Sale at http://www.waltsbikeshop.com. So, yesterday was a 12 hour workday, with a bit of recovery ride on the side, and yes, a core workout. I am going to take my TT bike out for the first time today and tinker around with it. I am not punching it today, but I want to get my position dialed in on it before I have to take it down to Arkansas for the Bob Herbert SR.

K and I are heading out to Les Bergois this evening for dinner and vino'. It will be our fist official date in quite some time. These "dates" will become much more frequent after I have to quit waking up at the butt-crack of dawn.