The Hills are Alive

Actually my first time trials at Crystal Ridge. 1:50+ for three laps, 12 miles, my longest strictly off road ride ever. My second lap would have been faster than my first but I had to stop several times for those who were lapping me to pass. I lifted at the gym earlier and didn't eat much so I was far from discouraged at my result which reflected my first two WORS races. Had knee pain. Must be those long uphill climbs. Perhaps if I slide higher in my seat on the ascends I will have less trouble. I tend to get scrunched down a little when I am racing.
Beautiful course with the scent of wild flowers. A whole lot of phlox. It would be nice to get some variety, bluebells lily of the valley. Lining that section of road between single tracks with hostas would be nice. It could be called Hosta Vista (hosta la vista). A nice cover of wildflowers on the ski slope, marking the switch backs with a groupings of azaleas and a couple of lilac bushes in some sunny openings in the forest would really freshen things up.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to Peter Daniel. This Memorial day birthday was with his parents at the zoo but we had a great party yesterday. Stuffed myself on a jumbo burger and quarter pound all beef hot dog among other things. Immuned myself to the smells of grilling and barbecue as a took a Memorial Day ride down the trails at Swan Boulevard. Still can't follow the loop with all the missing sign posts, but it was a nice ride. Also too many paths. It's confusing. The added wood chips hide the glass but how long will they last?

A Happy Place

A quiet rainy Saturday. Nice time to reflect on my racing. Iola was my first race and going through the course the day before with the next days sport class winner didn't build confidence, wondering if I could even finish the race. All went well and finished well ahead of last place. Those down hills were nail biting on my hard tail. Took some air out of the back tire for Treadfest. Other tips I picked up; there's more stopping power in the front brakes and I really need to do sprints in warm up to get the heart rate higher. I hit a certain grade and everyone starts passing me by.
Weighed in at 257+ at Iola, 251 at Treadfest. Took several days to recover before I could do an extensive workout at the gym, dropped another pound in two days. Experiencing the necessity of high quality components in racing. Never had a problem in the past but now the derailers are just full of complaint and their protests cost me time at Treadfest.
The way things are going I may have to consider dropping under Clydesdale weight and competing in a new class. Let me go through the Iola race in my mind again. This time with a greatly improved cardiovascular and before I start I cut a 45lb plate off my gut. Goooooooo.
I feel like a wide eyed dog with his head out the car window jowls blowing in the wind. Ahhhhh.

All in a Days Work

After investing near a morning every week, at least in the warmer months, trying to whip this yard into shape big changes occurred in the course of a day. Thanks to Scott and Karyn for their help. Received border stone and perennials from Dan, thank you, and today we finished off the flower bed at our church property near UWM. Bleeding hearts, lily of the valley, blue bells, phlox, sedum, rye grass and gladiolas. Plenty of room for more.

Treadfest

My second WORS race yesterday at Grand Geneva. I find myself at a disadvantage when I forget to breath, but going over the practice run the day before in my head I made a mental note and kept huffing and puffing the whole race through. Suffered chain suck on the small ring beginning lap two. Racing mountain bikes on a resort that has its own airport.
Still waiting for promised photos to be e-mailed but found one of myself on Extreme Photos. The camera adds pounds. Weighed in 6 lbs under my Iola weight.