Premature Exertion

2011 is off to a fast start, and I'm already slacking in the blog department. 

Since my last post, I've lost my job (within a week of the last post, actually), applied to 24 new jobs, interviewed 8 times over the phone, 4 times in person, followed up on all 12 interviews with phone calls and thank you letters, negotiated to job offers and took my now current job, making me gainfully employed once again. 


Oh, and all the while, my wife picked up a ton of extra hours at the hospital making me take on the role of Mr. Mom for exactly two months. 


The thought of being a stay-at-home used to sound a bit appealing to me...but after this experiment...NO WAY. I couldn't do it full-time (i.e. my wife is amazing, and I don't know how she's done it this whole time). I love the kids with all my heart, and had a blast with them on my time off, but I need structure and a lot more adult interaction and conversation in my life. I thought I could live my life playing LEGOs and watching cartoons and playing hide-and-seek all day long, but no. Just no.


At the turn of the year I had originally planned to ramp up my running and run the Chicago Marathon with a group of friends. A weekend trip. The weekend that I was actually going to commit and register fell immediately after I lost my job, so that plan went right through the floor. 


I had also planned on picking up bike racing where I left off in 2009, and that plan was still feasible on a fixed income, so I focused almost solely on riding the trainer in the basement whenever I could steal a couple hours with the kids asleep. 


Trainer time. At night. In the basement. Yuck. 


But, it was the only way I could log some time in the saddle, and really the only way I could unwind after full days of double-diaper duty and running around creation to do errands. I did manage to get out for a few outdoor rides when the weather cooperated, and one really good 52-mile group ride with my new racing team.


Fast forward to April, the week after I accepted my new job, and I reward myself by going to Ken Woods Memorial Road Race south of the Twin Cities. 


At the end of my first year of racing ('09), I did upgrade out of the Category 5's to the 4's. This would mark my first race as a 4. I knew I wasn't in the best race shape, but I was so excited to actually be able to race this year that I just didn't care. I just wanted to wear my new kit and try to hang on and get my heart rate higher than it's been in months for an extended period of time.




The weather was miserable for the morning wave, but luckily the rain/mist ceased for the afternoon wave and the pavement was dry. Unfortunately, our Minnesota Spring didn't totally cooperate though and continued to pound some NW winds at us, making for some really fun hiding tactics within the pack that really didn't help once we got strung out in the crosswind.


Overall the race went well. I didn't hear of any wrecks in our field. We held together the entire first lap until the last long hill approaching the finish completely blew our pack up. I attempted to hang with the front on the attack up the hill, but red-lined about 2/3 of the way up and lost it. Sucked wind all the way past the line going into lap two as I was passed by [what seemed to be] everyone else. Went solo until after the first turn, where one guy came up and passed me, then offered to let me latch on and work together to catch back up. I tried, and swapped a couple turns at pulling, but slammed the wall again when we hit a rolling hill into the wind and then told him to go ahead. I lost sight of him by the next turn heading north, but luckily another small group of three came up and pulled me in. 


We ended up working together pretty well to paceline back to our cars. 


Finished the 42 miles in just over 2 hours, 41st place out of 47 finishers. 


A finish, nonetheless. 


Since then, I've done two of the Tuesday Night Worlds / OPUS criteriums; May 10 and last night. 


May 10 (TNW #5) was a ton of fun. I started up front, and held in the top ten for the majority of the race. I still wasn't sure of my anaerobic capacity for the season, so I didn't attempt any prime sprints, but was in position to watch them pretty well. After the first prime, I accidentally found myself at the front after we reeled the sprinters back in. I led for the lap across the line, then let others come up around me to help pull again. 


Dropped back a bit in the pack, then worked back up by the next prime to position for the finish. With two to go, a couple guys go off the front, so everyone got antsy and started fighting for position. At the bell, I found myself about 13 or 14, so once we reached the top of the hill I found a gap on the right and said "what the hell, why not" and attacked up the right side into the downhill. Got up to the front of the pack (bike meter recorded a top speed of 40.1, I'm pretty sure it was here) with two other guys, but quickly learned that going into a downhill isn't the best place to attack, as we were all a group again by the time we reached the bottom. 


Hit the left turn and bottleneck, then rode as a group to the final left turn where everyone stood to sprint uphill to the finish. 


I had nothing left, so just sat up and watched. Ended up 17th of 32. 


Last night was similar, but our field felt MUCH faster this week with everyone trying to salvage any points they could on the last race of this TNW series. 


I went in with a goal of at least trying to get a point or two on a prime, with my sights set on the first, as nobody really attacked last week aside from the front couple guys. As we hit the last turn for the prime, about 20 of us stood to sprint. I was about 8 or 10 back, and right in the middle, so I had no real option other than to stick on the wheel ahead of me and just ride it up and watch the sprint ahead of me. 


We all gathered up again at the top, then went roundy-round for the next three laps. About the only excitement here was on lap 4 or 5 when a couple cars found themselves in the left lane as we swallowed them up and passed on the right. Everyone was pretty cautious though, so it was good to see common sense from the group. 


The next prime lap was fast. Really fast. All the way around. I was right in the middle somewhere and didn't have any desire to try to fight my way up again, so I just rode around and watched...again. 


Then roundy-round two more times to the bell lap. Heading to the line going into the final lap, two guys took off, and I mean blasted off. They were gone by the time the rest of us reached the top. I found a couple little gaps in the middle of the pack on the way up the hill and worked my way up to about the top ten again at the summit and into the down hill. 


Remembering last week's feeble attempt of an attack, I held in a bit longer and positioned myself on the left side for something later down the road. 


So instead of attacking on the downhill, I wait until we reach the bottom then my brain pulls the trigger and I make a dash for it up the left side right. Went through some of the leftover gravel from the winter plows that hadn't been cleaned from the road yet, but found myself alone with a second or two gap ahead of the pack going into the uphill left turn and bottleneck. I stood to keep it and knew it was all or nothing to hold at this point. I stood and torqued a bit too much on my handle bars and felt a quick skid of my rear tire, but didn't panic and held it up fine. Almost made it up to the last turn by myself, but then hit the wall again and was swallowed up as we turned to head to the finish line. 


I swear that line was closer the last 8 times we went over it...


The official full results aren't posted yet, but I didn't even try to put effort in to steal 15th place. Pretty sure it wasn't even a top 20, but it was a fun attack that at least made whoever got those two third-place-finish points try a bit harder to win. 


I've overheard a few other people saying that the Cat 4's are really fast this year. There are definitely a few guys that are working the group pretty hard, but it's making for some really fun racing so far. 

My goal this year is simply to keep finishing races and learn some more strategy during the race. I feel very comfortable in the pack, which I was nervous about coming into this year, so that's a good feeling. I definitely think I'm in good enough shape to continue to be pack fodder for the rest of the season. I'm still going to try some things here and there and try to figure out something that might stick eventually though. I just hate going on a group ride at the race until the last 200 yards.

I won't be partaking in the Square Lake Road Race this weekend. Definitely some home projects and kid time in the plans. I'm hoping to take in a Buck Hill race or three in the next few weeks leading up to the State Fair Crits (my favorite series). 


Sorry no pictures either. I'm terrible about carrying cameras, and when I do I don't really take pictures. There've been quite a few people out with cameras at the OPUS races, but I haven't seen much posting of them. If I find some, I'll share and link 'em up.