#WWtBD: What Would the Beard Do?

I am convinced there is magic in the beard.

Some of you may have picked up that every year traveling to Cyclocross Nationals gets a little more complex. We keep adding pieces, parts, equipment, and people to the mix. This year, thanks to the generosity of a friend and the cycling community, we are taking it yet another notch higher - a 24 foot RV with a trailer waggling along behind.

While we were driving to Denver from Cincinnati I was amazed at the response to the RV. There were thumbs ups and acknowledgements from fellow RV drivers as we drove along, similar to what you will see when two motorcyclists see each other driving opposite ways on the road.

What amazed me was the number of acknowledgements that were from men with beards. Not all of them, I honestly can't remember how many, had beards, but a good percentage certainly were wearing a beard. One in particular was boisterous, waving, thumbs up, and almost more excited than I was about the RV as he passed. He was driving a mini-van and wearing a red sweater and had a long white...beard.  Wait a second.  We were particularly close to Santa Claus, IN when he waved at us.

The past couple days I have been pondering the power of the beard. Everyone has seen the Bike Knowledge to Beard Ratio, of which Cincinnati local Tom Swallow ranks highly, but I am now convinced this applies to RV travel as well. Whether the beard is a result of RV living or personal choice, there seems to be a certain wizardry that travels with the beard.

I am now in full awe of pro cyclocross racer Robert Marion.

Travel to Denver in an RV has made me realize Robert has reached wizard status on two separate, yet important, aspects of CX racing. Some may remember Robert from his attendance at Cincy3 and Derby City, or from the tour of his land yacht and accompanying fully stocked trailer that was featured on Behind The Barriers this past fall. No matter how you remember him, this RV driver is starting to channel his inner Robert Marion.

Planning an RV trip is harder than I expected. There are way more things to think about that I was expecting.

Where do they sell bulk propane? You can't exchange a cylinder out of an RV...What Would the Beard Do?

Where will we park over night if we need some sleep? I have a house with me, I don't need a hotel...What Would the Beard Do?

Diesel fuel only...got it...where is the best place to buy it? What Would the Beard Do?

Suddenly I have the urge to grow my beard - if I can't immediately have knowledge, maybe I can grow it? #WWtBD

Headed West #cxnats2014

Great mooglie booglies another year has passed. Sitting at my computer two days before Christmas madly packing an RV and a trailer for CX Nats 2014 in Boulder, CO and wondering how we got to this point. This will be our fifth straight trip to USA Cycling's cyclocross nationals and our fifth straight year providing stories, pics, and other CX goodness from the event for The Best Bike Blog Ever.

When we look back at 2009 in Bend, OR I remember very little, literally. But, what I do remember is a rag tag group of a few kids from Lionhearts heading out to Bend. We bummed space on the Red Zone trailer for our bikes, we flew out and stayed in a Best Western. None of them had B bikes, tubular wheels, appropriate clothing for the cold, or really any idea what they were about to witness. I also know that I for one had no idea how much that trip would change me personally.

Even an RV has to stop at Chipotle

As we saddle up for a trip to Boulder we are laser focused on gear - B bikes, extra sets of tubular wheels, summer, winter, spring and fall riding gear, rain suits, winter suits, wet suits, snow boots, rain boots, tents, sides, heaters, battery operated-triggered air pumps, trailers for bikes, tow vehicles, RVs, travel companions, time for altitude adjustment, hotel rooms with kitchens paid for by Marriott points, coaches, extra mechanics, tool bags, pit bags, and I could keep going, but I am out of breath.

What hasn't changed is the passion for the sport - the passion for cycling. The four Lionhearts that will be making their fifth straight start at CX Nats love this sport. They dream about it at night. They ride 6 out of every 7 days. They read magazines and books about cycling. They talk with other kids their age that also ride all across the country. They text about their bike rides, how hard they were, and how they have to do a four hour trainer ride the next day (no, I didn't make that up).

Snug in their bed

Most importantly is the fact that no one makes them do it. Everything you see, hear, or read about them doing is voluntary. Sure there are days where they drag themselves out of bed early to get those openers in before traveling or before school, but they do it all on their own.

Whenever I feel at odds with what I am doing or feel like everything we embark to do is some crazy hair brained idea I take a look at M1 in the picture at the top racing at Bend in 2009 in sub-freezing temps in a freshly fallen snow. A smile comes to my face while a tear hits the corner of my eye. It isn't about me any more, she has made it her own.

These are the best days of our lives.

Meanwhile, look for me on a curb near you. Someone's got to keep the RV rolling while the kids get their sleep and keep their legs in compression tights in a vertical position.

Stale Fish: The Masters Wreck at Derby City

Artwork Courtesy of James Billiter

I covered my eyes.  I’m certain that’s where the realization set in that my friend and teammate may be paralyzed.  I paced.  I rested my head in my arms along the course fencing of the start/finish straight.  Little clips trickled into my ears.   “I’m a doctor.”  “He’s complaining he can’t feel…”  I didn’t catch the rest.  Emotion overcame me.  I spotted teammate Gerri on the other side of the course.  We had a good weepy hug as the EMT’s carefully went to work. 

Nate was stale fish on the ground.  They already had a collar around his neck.  I looked back, with his arms at his side, his legs shook.  Shock I presumed.  Fuck man, just fuck.  I wasn’t angry.  I feared the worst.  I didn’t want to make that phone call.  Someone handed me his glasses.  I snagged his Garmin off his bike and tucked both in my jersey pocket.  Gerri helped getting a plan together.  I hopped on my bike with inoperable brakes and coasted back to the start to collect my grid bag and thoughts.

As of this Monday morning, Nate spent the night at U of L Hospital.  An MRI showed a fractured vertebra in his upper spine.  Thankfully, he can move all his parts.  He was alert, coherent and concerned about his bike.  Despite complaining of intense shoulder pain, the news sounded somewhat positive.  Granted the possibility of surgery and rehab still looms, at the moment it appears our buddy Nate escaped the most serious of injuries.  Looking at his bike and helmet, it looks as if he sprinted into a wall at 30mph.  When I put the bike on my roof rack, the drivetrain was in the 53x17 gear. 

Derby City Cup Masters Wreck 1 by Kent Baumgardt

I saw the wreck unfold firsthand.  Despite the ruckus over the large mixed fields at the MudFund Derby City Cup, I don’t think those things had anything to do with it.  It was the simplest thing really.  A rider hooked a wheel at the front which cascaded into a chain reaction full-gas pile up. 

I personally knew 90% of the riders in the first four rows, and at least two more rows behind me.  Look at the call up list for Wave 6.  Granted not everyone on the list started, but all of those guys at the front, masters and juniors, are good riders.  Most of them I’d equate with sticklers for etiquette.  They know to hold a line and not to make unpredictable moves.  With the callups based on points, at least the first 8 rows were sorted by speed.  Additionally, throughout the last two weekends with Cincy3, every junior I raced with passed cleanly.  Between a bunch of USGP’s and Worlds, most of these guys have done this same long paved Louisville start at least 10 times.

Derby City Cup Masters Wreck 2 by Kent Baumgardt

Based on Saturday’s start, the first few hundred meters of the course were key for position in the race.  Everybody on that start grid knew we had a long paved start, a soft curve onto a long downhill straightaway.  From there, the course made a huge soft left hand U-turn before getting into the first pinch point on the course.  We all knew the position you held going into the first chicane was more or less within a few riders you’d have up the steps, through the first sand and over the flyover before you’d have another big chance to make passes.  Still I don’t think the speed at the start or the jostling for position in the first few hundred meters of the course was unusual or overly aggressive.  Yesterday, the wreck happened not much more than 120 meters or so from the grid, 3 or 4 shifts, and a mere 10-15 seconds into the race.      

Derby City Cup Masters Wreck 3 by Kent Baumgardt

I cannot say it was a bonehead move.  Someone hooked a wheel.  Only the rider who hooked the wheel in front of him knows the circumstances.  Maybe the rider in front hit a crack in the pavement or a rock.  Maybe that rider came out of a pedal or his hand slipped off his bars.  From what I remember seeing, the hook was subtle.  It was not a big sweeping move from right to left, more a matter of inches.  The wreck happened before the announcer’s trailer, way before the bend to the left and onto the grass.  I don’t know if the rider in front slowed, moved right or if there was something unseen that happened miliseconds before it caught my eye.  Regardless, two riders made contact.  The rider in back went down.  I don’t recall seeing the front rider go down. 

Front end of Nate's bike caved in

I started on the middle of the 4^th row.  My BioWheels teammate Mike was 3^rd row and to my left.  My teammate Steven was a row behind and to my left.  Nate, registering late, had a 92^nd call up.  With some no shows, I’m unsure of where he lined up on the grid.  In front of us was a who’s-who of the region’s top masters and a handful of seasoned juniors. 

At the whistle, a rider in front of me was a little slower off the grid, nothing unusual.  That held me up for a fraction of a second.  I got around on the right.  Clicking through gears, I remember seeing the two sides of the front open up.  The middle held more traffic.  Feeling the flow of the race drift to the left, I was now out of the saddle sprinting maybe just left of center. 

I saw the hook slightly ahead of me and just to my left.  A rider in front moved slight right to left and snagged the wheel in front of him.  I honestly can’t recall even a jersey color and would rather not speculate.  As he fell to the left, he went into someone else coming up from behind.  Those two went down and collected a 3^rd rider.  Three riders and bikes slid across the pavement in front of me.

Chris King Headset Cracked

You make split second decisions.  I was sort of boxed and heading straight for them.  At this speed, likely close to 28mph, there was no way I could change my line fast enough to avoid them and not take out guys on either side.  I threw my weight back, braked and aimed for the least obstructed part of the pile, the rear end of a bike in my path.  I didn’t make it.  I fell down on the other riders with my left side.  My bike rolled up and over.  I tried to curl up in a ball and cover my face.  The rider next to me did the same, hidden under a cage of frames.

Then the impacts came, seemingly endless, one by one.  Oof.  Ugh.  I caught a glimpse of Nate’s kit on my right.  Mmmph.  Ugh.  The weight of people on top of me compounded.  I heard a young man scream out.  Frames dug into my hip and body.  They just kept coming, hitting, landing, rolling over.  I worried about being crushed.  Boom.  Bam.  I could hear the crowd gasp.  My teammates Steven and Mike, starting more to the left, avoided the serious wreck, but got caught up in the course fencing.  Both got free and continued racing.

Crack halfway through downtube at BB

Then the bodies stopped falling on me.  With the clop of bike shoes on pavement, riders scrambled to pull tangled bikes off the top.  I shouted at someone, “Hey!  Hey!  Be careful.”  A call went out for medical.  I could see my shifter stuck in someone’s wheel.  As far as we knew, the race was still on.  From the ground, I helped to untie the bikes.  The weight was still heavy.  I just wanted to get out from under as quick as possible.  It was freaking me out.

It seemed like minutes passed, but I’m sure it was only seconds.  I was able to wriggle out from underneath.  Nate still lay on his back, I think propped half on top of a bike.  I found my bike along the fence.  The rear wheel had come out of the drops.  I fixed that, but couldn’t reattach the brake cables.  My front brake pads were stuck under the lip of the rim.  I was done.  That’s when I turned to see Nate.  The sight made me sick with worry.  I couldn’t leave him. 

While Nate does have insurance, copays and deductibles for a serious visit to the ER probably wasn’t in the fall budget.  Not to mention, his custom Indy Fab Planet X is ruined.  A fund has been set up to help him out.  I’m sure he’d appreciate your generosity.  Click here for more information.

Joe Bellante

Update as of 3pm 11/11 from Anna: "Final X-rays came back and no serious damage to any of the discs. A lot of ligament damage so he will be in a neck brace for awhile until that heals. Won't be going home yet today but hoping tomorrow. No surgery!!!!! Very happy. We want to thank all of you soooo much for all you are doing. We got the best friends in the world and so proud to be part of the amazing cycling community."

Going to Uranus? Hire a Coach

I'm Drunk and I'm Skinny!

He knows bourbon.  Like the Southern Comfort on a canoe trip in my youth where I never actually paddled the boat, I will never drink it again.  While Southern Comfort made me spend a beautiful blue sky Wisconsin summer day lying in a gravel parking lot along the Crystal River, Bourbon made me shout at Sven Nys, “I’m drunk and I’m skinny!”  Then it made me spend the night laying on the bathroom tile after the Cyclocross World Championships in Louisville.  Bourbon is out of my league.  I don’t get it.

While he’s a virtual genius at select Kentucky beverages and can make anyone faster on a bike, he is not a Marvel super hero.  The guy I’m talking about is a lot like you or me, a person who is passionately involved in the things he loves, maybe a chromosome or two from being a full on savant.  While I’m into writing and music, can expound on the beauty of a worn sunburst Strat and tell you exactly why the new Fitz and the Tantrum’s song “Out of My League” sounds like the Cure’s “A Forest” from 1980, he is one of a handful of people that doesn’t get an itchy heat rash and headache trying to decipher a pro’s power meter graph posted on Velonews.  He knows bourbon and bike racing.  He’s my coach. 

Do I need a coach?  Yes.  Yes I do.  Take these awesome blue suede pointy shoes I got from Banana Republic.  You want to touch them don’t you?  Don’t get your oily fingers on them.  Just know they feel like the silky top of a cat’s head.  Purrr.  For you, maybe they’re not your bag, hipster dufus material.  They’ll likely be at the outlet store in November.  I need them.  For me, working in an industry like pop radio, where the feeling of youth and cool is part of the product, these shoes help me, a middle aged creative, stay in touch with fashion and trends, the same qualities that our listeners hold dear.  Your frugal cycling side may see an unwarranted expense.  I admit.  I do feel a bit out of my skin as I wrestle them on with a shoe horn in the morning, but I see it sort of as an investment.  The second I lose sight of or fail to be directly involved in what our listeners hold dear, like (egads!) an appreciation for Miley Cyrus, I may be looking for a job at the oldies station.

It makes me want to get a fake ID to actually lower my age, but I’ve been racing and ridiculously involved in cycling for longer than most juniors have been alive.  For God’s sake, there’s a 1991 Breezer Thunder in our bike stable, and that’s not even the vintage one in my book.  Every one of those juniors should know who Joe Breeze is.  I own a truing stand.  In my junior aged days, I circumnavigated Waukesha County on a bike with down-tube shifters and a boombox strapped to my front rack blaring “The Who.”  I’ve come back from ACL reconstruction surgery where my wife had to help me as I grunted attempting a single leg lift.  You’d think I’d know it all by now: training, mechanics, skills, speed, and history.  Yet, I have a coach. 

I look at having a coach like a trip to Uranus.  You might troll the boneyard next to the airport for parts, camp out in the science section of the library and actually build a rockin’ 1978 VW shaped spaceship, but you’re not going to feel the soft pale Uranus dirt between your toes without a little input from say perhaps…an actual rocket scientist.  The main reason I have a coach is so someone, a certified cycling dork, is vested as a shareholder in team Joe.  It’s no different than having a personal mentor or work consultant.  I could go pretty far on my own, perhaps land that VW mothership in a swimming pool the next county over and be on TMZ.  But, like those swanky blue shoes, my coach will take me where I’ve never been before...to Uranus.  

His name is Chris Mayhew.  Learn more about him at the JBV Coaching Website.

Vichyssoise and Types of #Cyclocross Mud

It has been said the Inuit have 400 names for snow.  It’s only urban legend of course.  The truth is the Inuit, like me, are just a very colorful, overly dramatic and adjective laden people.  Thinking about cyclocross however, there has to be 400 types of mud.  I’ve personally ridden in Bronchitis snot, Chunky Gazpacho, Stripper Wrasslin’ Mud, Cincinnati Chili and so on. 

Saturday as the sun came out in Columbus, after 2 inches of rain, elite racers feared The Peanut Butter and not because of allergies.  Peanut Butter can quickly become Mesa Verde mud, named after the type of mud/grass mix the Anasazi used to build their cliff dwellings at the namesake National Park.  Consequently when that type freezes on contact, and can only be removed by a combination of welding torches and jack hammers, you get Dirty Igloo Mud, much like we had at Masters Worlds in Louisville this past winter.  See how that Inuit line came full-circle?

Back in Columbus Saturday, during the Masters race we had more of the chunky gazpacho type of mud.  It was a very wet mud, not as watery as the cold potato delicacy known as Vichyssoise mud or the romantic pottery mud from the movie Ghost.  Like an Italian wine with good nose, this mud featured delicate garnishes of grasses, hints of wild flowers and bites of thistles and briars.  On any Sunday afternoon in fall, you can find grandmothers selling the exact same mud concoction vacuum packed for $22/pickle jar with cute pastel labels as an anti-aging serum at the farmers market in Park City Utah. 

Sadly, as witnessed first-hand after the elite women’s race, after the gazpacho spoiled in the sun for a half hour, it became Emotional Mud, the exact type of mud that will cause a 14 year old girl racer to become so upset she will snap at her family near the start/finish between bouts of shuddering tears.  Kudos to the entire women’s podium for consoling her after the race.  For obvious reasons, one of them being how I could be perceived as a creepy old masters racer, I had to leave the estrogenfest, but it was heartwarming.

Columbus Women's Podium

Unlike the non-sticky Vichyssoise, Sunday’s mud stuck a bit to the bike but, due to the preponderance of puddles (I’m not sure if I’m using that word correctly, but the phrase sounds congressmanly awesome), washed itself off the bike every few hundred meters.  Shifters still shifted.  Brakes slowed.  The bike didn’t get that much heavier whether you rode 200 meters or 10 miles.  Not many switched bikes during the race.    

That said, there is a point when a cyclocross racer should switch bikes due to mud accumulation.  Rather than go through the entire scientific calculation on my Garmin 8045S, (which has something to do with the depth of mud cubed, divided by pi and multiplied by the square root of the area of the starting grid) I’ll spell it out simply.  You need to ditch your bike a half lap before it gets bad.  It’s like deciding whether to add another cup of kale to your morning smoothie.  You have to know when to stop before you’re stuck with a liter of bitter green barf.  Like bike stopping mud, there is nothing worse than too much kale.

Vichyssoise (Cold Potato Soup)

It should be elementary, especially for the well-educated cyclocross racer, but another confounding law of nature comes into play when racing cyclocross in the mud.  Bikes are slower in water.  Ka-pow!  Mushroom cloud above your head.  Blew your mind didn’t I?  Sure now, in your dry air-conditioned office with a heart rate 35% of max, it makes perfect sense that you would be hard pressed to ride 50 meters across an Olympic swimming pool.  However, every muddy race, I’m amazed how many people don’t realize bikes are fastest on smooth concrete.  Using these two known constants, you should be able to calculate the fastest way through any cyclocross course.  Ride the most solid ground possible, unless the reroute will cost you more time than riding over the slower surface.  However, sometimes in cyclocross common sense and elementary math are Hope Diamond-rare.  

That Happened: A Wknd w/Legend Paul Curley

Tsali, our cat (named after the 2^nd best mountain bike trail in the world) is on my chest.  I’m pinned down like he owns me.  He knows I’m not moving.  A human kitty bed, I drift in and out of sleep. I finally caved after a weekend of cycling goodness.  Periodically I hear the hostess at Eli’s BBQ a few blocks from our house announce over the PA that someone’s food is ready.  The blinds are drawn.  The ceiling fan spins.  The cool leather couch soothes my slightly sun parched skin.  I would spend the next ten hours like this.  I showered, made a giant vegan protein smoothie with frozen berries, the cat saw his opportunity and I succumbed.  At 8:30pm, I got up to buy a six pack of Bells Two Hearted at my wife’s request.  The dude abides.  The Bells was a cool reward for her MS150 and my impromptu weekend riding with cyclocross legend Paul Curley and friends. 

Paul Curley hand-slung me.  Wha?  Huh?  The multi-year Cyclocross 55+ Masters National Champion joined us on the BioWheels bike shop Saturday Morning Beatdown.  He was in the Cincinnati area visiting family and called the shop to find an area ride.  With gray hair peeking from his helmet, stars on his shorts and an old Verge CX series jersey, he pedaled stoutly on his small black Cannondale.  His skin looks a bit weathered.  His stocky legs have seen a million miles.  I flicked my elbow.  He pulled through.  He can still pull his weight on the local racer ride.  He rode smart, doing work when he could, sitting on when prudent.  Periodically, like with any guest on the ride, I’d pull even and give him heads up about a particularly nasty stretch of road, an upcoming hill, or wicked descent. 

A Track Hand Sling

On a rough winding farm road in Cincinnati’s Little Miami River Valley, a rider punctured in front of Paul and me.  I coasted back to make sure the rider had what he needed for the fix.  He waved me onward.  Looking back and seeing me trying to bridge my way back up, Paul, the seasoned vet, drifted slightly off the back of the speeding bunch and extended a hand.  “Is this really about to happen,” I thought.  With a thumb up and the back of his hand facing me, this wasn’t going to be a handshake.  This was a straight up Madison style hand sling.  I took a few hard pedal strokes.  With my left hand, I grabbed firm and he hand-slinged me within reach of an easy catch.  He jumped in my slipstream.  The group slowed slightly through a corner and we were both back on.  I get goosebumps thinking about it.  Yes.  That happened, a legendary experience with a legend.  I never expected to ride with him again. 

“Is that Paul Curley?  It is!”  JBV Coach Chris Mayhew was wrapped up in the garage right up until the moment the group rolled out of Loveland.  I was invited on this Sunday ride along with other clients and friends of the JBV coaches who held a clinic the day before.  Chris, maybe too busy with coffee, didn’t catch that Paul’s sprinter type van was parked down the street.  Paul had been planning on doing a nearby race.  It was cancelled at the last minute, so he decided to join us.  It wasn’t until we were rolling through the tunnel of trees of the Little Miami bike path that Chris pulled off the front, only to have Paul roll by on his right.  I was no-handed on the back tucking my arm warmers into my pocket and saw Chris’ double take first hand. 

The genuine excitement was priceless.  The phone came out.  There was a pat on the back, smiles, maybe a tongue in cheek muttering of “go back to the front I’m just a washed up old man,” and a moment was made.  Later, Paul asked me what I did for a living.  I mentioned we had met once before mud covered in the pits at the Masters Cyclocross World Championships in Louisville two years ago.  He was just one of the bunch yesterday.  We traded pulls up the long climb into Devou Park.  To my left sat my teammate Jason, to my right cross legend Paul Curley.  Surrounded by friends and clients of JBV coaching, the Cincinnati Skyline framed a scenic 4 hour 70 mile Sunday ride.  If I had a bucket list, this would’ve been on it.  However, sometimes it’s just as fun to make the most of opportunity and write the list as you go through life.  It seems to work for Paul.

The Most Elusive @Strava Segment Ever

In chest waders with a fly rod, I walked back from the creek after striking out fishing for Steelhead trout.  I wasn’t much of a bike rider then.  A camouflaged gentlemen rolled up the double track in a blue sun-faded early 80’s Chevy Imapla with black steel wheels sans hubcaps.  Using the crank on the inside of the door, adding to the backwoods drama, he physically rolled down his window.  Locking eyes, he quizzed me, “Nuttindoinaina?”  I stopped dead in my tracks.  A bit of water sloshed in my waders around my feet.  What the hell did he say?  Nuttindoinaina.  Miles from anything resembling civilization, I wasn’t scared, only caught off guard that I had to translate the native dialect in this land.  Nuttindoinaina was his way of asking, "Nothing going on huh?"  “Oh.  No.  Didn’t catch anything,” I answered.  He thanked me with a nod and a wave and drove off.  A few miles from the town of Gay (really...look it up), that was my first encounter with a real live native Yooper, a person from the upper peninsula of Michigan.  I’m thinking about going back, this time with a bike.

A Pastie is Like a Homemade Pot Pie

Traveling through Wisconsin, there is no physical border going into Upper Michigan.  It’s porous, sort of like Mexico.  The roads get skinnier, the signs for restaurants selling Pasties get more frequent and four wheelers seem to be the preferred mode of summer travel.  In winter they use “sleds.”  We call them snow machines or snow mobiles.  Coming through Lower Michigan however, you have the majestic Mackinac Bridge linking Mackinaw City with Saint Ignace in the UP.  It towers so high and stretches so long; you’d think a northern San Francisco is on the other side, not summer cabins.  As I discovered last night, the Mackinac Bridge is a Strava segment.  As I also learned, it must be the most elusive Strava segment ever.  I kinda want it.

It’s a 4.4 mile segment with 180 feet of elevation gain.  It’s a bridge, up one side and down the other for a zero net pitch.  The KOM is 16.1mph.  Don Kring of Grand Rapids bagged it in a time of 16:24.  I have no idea who Mr. Kring is since his Strava profile photo is a picture of a sock that says “I Heart Beer” but I thought I could easily take this one while on vacation.  There’s nothing better than bagging out of town segments, leaving the locals to scratch their heads wondering who “that guy” is.  It’s an odd segment; only 16 cyclists are on the leaderboard, not the triple digits we see in major cities or tourist destinations.  Still Mr. Kring’s KOM has stood since September 4^th, 2011.  Now I realize why he rests easy.  No one will have a chance to beat him for another few weeks. 

“If we go here, we are so doing this bridge,” I said to my wife.  I could average 16.1mph over four miles in cutoffs on a beach cruiser with a puppy in a flower basket.  Then I looked at Don Kring’s ride where he set the KOM on the Mackinac Bridge.  He rolled a very respectable 76.1 miles in 4 hours.  He ain’t no slouch.  He wasn’t riding platform pedals or stopping at the pastie-selling tavern I imagine on the other side.  There’s got to be more to this bridge than data allows.  

DALMAC2009

It's no bike path noodle.  There are deep dish wheel-yanking jacket-puffing 40mph winds howling across the deck.  I heard rumors of a steel mesh deck, sasquatches and trolls too, but haven’t seen proof.  Reader Holly told me she was once on the bridge in a car over Thanksgiving.  On windy days, the police will caravan the cars to limit the speed.  Halfway across, they closed the bridge.  Ice chunks were breaking loose from the cables and pelting Holly’s car.  I understand Mr. Kring didn’t set the KOM in November’s Edmund Fitzgerald sinking gale force winds.  It was early September, where temperatures are in the lower 70’s, the leaves start thinking about changing colors and Da Yoopers start thinking about their sleds.  Digging into it, nearly all the people on the leaderboard rode the bridge in September.  2^nd Place rode on Sept 2^nd, 2012.  5^th Place rode on September 6^th 2009.  

According to our readers on Facebook Jeni and Seldomseen, native Yoopers from what I gather, the bridge is only open once or twice a year for pedestrian traffic, otherwise it’s a freeway.  One event authorities open the bridge for is the DALMAC bicycle tour, which takes place annually from Lansing to Mackinaw around Labor Day.  However, the 2013 application deadline has passed.  It’s a multi-day bike/camping tour.  So now you can guess that Mr. Kring might have set that KOM with some heavy gear as he rode up and over the Mackinac Bridge with strong crosswinds.  Either that or he took part in the Mackinaw City Bike Tour.  This year’s event is on September 15^th.  Click here for details.  There’s still time for that, but only 400 some spots are available according to the website.  Like the Eminem song “Lose Yourself,” also a Michigan original, if you want this KOM, don’t let the opportunity slip.  The Mackinac Bridge is the most elusive Strava segment ever.

Reflections of Rimouski #juniors

I wrote it in my head while driving, riding my bike, showering.  I think I even tried to write this post in my sleep.  This post has been written at least fifty times. When you're behind the wheel of a team car and your kids are racing, you get lost between being a fan and a father.  With the race radio crackling in french and the window down, thoughts escape quickly.

Powerful events are hard to write about. On this blog, we like to keep things light and write about the humorous observation or the part of cycling that you don't read about in Velonews. Sometimes the slice of life isn't handed to you like a #5 at the drive through window.

While most adults head to the beach or the lake with their kids during the summer, I took 7 vacation days to drive a team car at a junior stage race in Canada. Unless you came up through the junior ranks, even most cycling fans haven't heard of Rimouski.  That's okay.  Some Rimouskians, weren't aware either, but impressively stopped what they were doing when the race passed their house or business and watched. Sometimes they were even surprised into watching. Take the plump, older man who was obviously surprised to see sixty bikes flying past his house with a full police escort, ten motorcycles, six organization cars following the race, fifteen team cars, then a broom wagon. I am hopeful that the Rimouski locals don't ALWAYS watch bike races on their porch in a blue thong, but hey, I was just happy he was watching the race. Of course I will never get that vision of him out of my head, hopefully the therapy will help.

However, no one takes 7 days of vacation and drives to Canada for the chuckle of seeing a big man in a little blue thong.  So why do it?  

It would be easy to expound on 150 teens staying in a two star hotel eating cafeteria style pasta every day. With several different languages in play there was no mistaking the guys checking out the French speaking girls and the girls checking out the leg shaving guys. There is a lot to see, hear, sometimes even smell.

However, Rimouski was more powerful than the evident situational humor, powerful enough that dads witnessing it could barely contain themselves. Dads seeing their kids learn that it is okay to be a cyclist, that there are other kids in the world that love their bikes, wearing lycra, and being fast.  That's a special moment.

Remember when you were a teen?  No matter what you were into, it felt weird to be 'different'.  Even if people didn't directly poke fun at you, you thought they were poking.  Admit it, no doubt, whatever circle you were in, you were probably laughing at someone else too.  It's part of growing up, learning who you are and being okay with it.

Spending a week in far-eastern Canada to support kids racing bikes isn't exactly the Dominican Republic beach vacation. I'll tell you one thing however, letting the kids have a week of racing and feeling accepted around other teens that giggle, text, roll eyes, check each other out, and still race bike fast while wearing lycra and shaving their legs is worth whatever drive was required.

Confidence isn't just about knowing how to ride the bike.

#Juniors: Riding Through Butterflies

Four years ago when I nudged my daughter Mackenzie into bike racing we had one consistent concern from week to week - butterflies. Not the kind of butterflies that flutter around your backyard and make little girls run with a net squealing with excitement, but the deep down nervousness that makes the stomach tighten and questions of doubt arise at the dinner table.

My kids were so tight, their stomachs so consumed with butterflies, they were afraid of being sick on the start line or on the bike.  I explained.  We all get nervous, especially when it matters.  Many adult racers go through the same thing.  My friends from BioWheels Gerry and Joe are known for it.  While making last minute equipment tweaks, I've heard them coughing at the team tent.  It happens, even to mom and dad.  It's a reflection that you care about what you're doing.  They'll fly away at the sound of the starter's pistol.  After several minutes of coaxing they'd typically loosen up a bit, at least enough to get them to start line.

Today, probably a few hundred races later, the butterflies before a normal Ohio Valley race have dulled to a mere blip on the radar screen. It's a local race, no big deal.  Occasionally something will rear its head, a misplaced glove or a rubbing wheel, and the wings of nervousness will flutter momentarily, but never long enough to escape the net of reason.  Lately, I thought they had migrated away. 

Not so.  There was nervousness tonight in Rimouski.  They were back, big red maple leaf winged Canadian butterflies. It wasn't unexpected.  It wasn't so much that this is a UCI level international stage race.  On top of that, it is their first time team time trial in a foreign country with hundreds of teens watching, kids their own age, peers.  At Mackenzie's side a French speaking Canadian counted down.  "Trois!  Deux!  Un!  Allez!"

Nothing was familiar tonight in Canada, except for one thing...the butterflies.  Now, after four years of racing, hundreds of start lines, the butterflies were back, but this time they were telling my kids everything would be okay.  This is normal.  This is how it is.  Now it feels familiar.  They were where they needed to be.  Like their colorful pretty fluttering cousins, this time the nervous butterflies we're comforting.  Without uttering a word every kid knew the butterflies would take them to the start and see them to the finish.

#Junior Stage Race, Dad in The Team Car

Stage racing, or at least the concept of stage racing, isn't new to the juniors, but the fine details are crystallizing as they learn the rules. The Tour de France this year was the first time that Mackenzie had really taken a noted interest in the racing portion of the broadcast, but that isn't enough to understand all the details of true stage racing.

When I say true stage racing, I am in no way belittling the Ohio Spring Series stage race that several of our juniors raced, but the level of detail of Rimouski (as well as l'Abitibi) really takes it to the next level.

The biggest difference is the support caravan. Those cars driving just behind the riders and providing wheels/food/support/instructions? Yep, that's me this week. Behind the wheel of a vehicle following the race each day. While I am looking forward to this responsibility and seeing my own kid race from the relative safety of the follow caravan there are certainly responsibilities that come along.

At the forefront is the possibility of being fined. To drive in the caravan at a UCI stage race you must have a UCI license. Pretty sure this is just to be sure there is a way to fine you for screwing up - and as I am learning there are a lot of rules to being in the caravan. Fines in Swiss Francs are worn by riders as badges of honor in some cases - I remember one rider getting fined in the pits at Masters Worlds for an infraction that frankly was ludicrous. Though I guess if you read the rules really close it could have been legit.

Now I have follow specific order of rules - something Mackenzie will tell you I am not really good at doing. As opposed to a funeral procession where the direct family slots in first and then everyone else fills in the gaps to make a line, the stage race caravan is in the order of the fastest team overall to the slowest team overall (with a couple possible exceptions). This means I have to know which team is in front of us - and recognize the car. In le Tour that is easy - the first thing they do with Tour cars is wrap them in logos making them unmistakably recognizable. At Rimouski I will have to remember whether I am being the gray Camry from Missouri or the gray Camry from Quebec. Or maybe just get fined.

Our junior riders will also have to deal with the caravan. If they flat they have to get service and get back in the race. Going too far outside the time limit will disqualify them from the stage race, soloing back up would take all their energy and possibly zap them for the next day. That leaves them trying to draft off the caravan - as a parent I am deathly afraid of this...as a rider this is the coolest thing ever.

But that brings us back to my driving responsibilities. Do I want to be responsible for running over the next Taylor Phinney? I don't know if the next Taylor Phinney is going to be here, but what if the next Ryder Hesjedal is here? Geez...now I have to not hit cars and not take out the next famous North American cyclist at the same time. I can't wait to support the team as a driver. It may be my personal most interesting experience of the trip. 

We brought footage from 7 different Tour de France's to watch in the car on the way up - you can bet I will be watching the follow vehicles hoping I get my chance to be Manolo Saiz riding up Jan Ullrich's bum while yelling ALLEZ! ALLEZ! through the radio.

#Juniors Go International - All In the Spin

Holy schnikes the summer has gone fast. Seems just a few days ago I was talking to several about this new exciting opportunity to bring international experience to a few of our local juniors. Before I knew it we are getting into the car and getting our drive back on.

For those unfamiliar with the story there are two major UCI stage races for juniors in North America, both happen to be in Canada. Tour de l'Abitibi is a 6 stage race the works its way around the countryside by Rouyn-Noranda in Quebec. Rouyn-Moranda is about 600 kilometers northwest of Montreal near the border of the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. l'Abitibi is only for boys 17-18 and this year had 22 teams of 6 riders compete. That is 132 boys racing against each other day in and day out for 6 stages.

The other UCI stage race, Tour de la Releve Internationale de Rimouski is focused on the other UCI juniors categories for both boys and girls. Boys 15-16 and girls 15-18 will compete during a 5 day, 6 stage race in Rimouski, Quebec - which is about 500km northeast of Montreal on the Fleuve Saint Lawrent. These teams will each have 4 riders and currently there are 21 boys teams and 15 girls teams registered to race.

What was I thinking? A round of rudimentary math tells me that is 144 teens - teens in their prime teen years - in a single hotel in Rimouski, QC. Guessing I will need to be up before 7am to use the wi-fi for anything important.

Besides the obvious Canad(i)a and Dudley Doright jokes the trip is a huge feather in the cap for all our juniors heading up to race. Imagine being 15 or 16 and getting the opportunity to race in another country against some of the best competition that you could find. It is a trip that will either cement ones love for bike racing - or destroy it. I am not certain there is a middle ground.

The biggest rule that impacts this race is the use of the UCI cadet cassette for racing. We all know the UCI is full of rules, some good, some bad, but what exactly is the rule for UCI cadet cassettes? European and UCI rules for juniors 15-16 require the use of a 16 tooth smallest cog on the cassette. The typical response from adults locally is "what? how can they do that?"

Let's look back at a recent race during the big crit weekend in Cincinnati. At Madeira two juniors, Ian and Spencer, pulled away from the adult men in the Category 3 race running junior gears - 14 tooth cassette. But hold that thought - I hear saying that's a 14t, not a 16t. The interesting part of this race was that Ian and Spencer never really used the 14t until the sprint at the end. In fact Spencer was spinning, remarkably, in his 52x19/52x21 most of the race - and they were closing in on lapping the field before the end.

Reaction to junior gearing locally is decidedly 'Mericun. We are a V8 and Ahnold society. Faster means more power, more muscle, bigger thighs, and a 55x11. Trying to mentally envision how they could keep up with the average group ride with only a 52x16 leaves most perplexed.

Why would they do that? Why would the UCI limit the juniors on gearing? The primary reason for junior gearing is to level the playing field for all kids and help prevent over-exertion injuries that can result from trying to push too big of a gear. Many argue the need for these specific rules - let the kids ride! Let them push whatever gear they want!

If the result of learning to spin is speed like Ian and Spencer, then I want a junior cassette on my bike too.

Stay tuned this week as we keep you up to date with the trip and the success of our kids racing.

The Leather Jersey: Who’s Cool Stages 10-15

For the first 9 stages, you were leaning towards Ted King for the overall, after his heroic attempt to make the time cut in the TTT with three broken testicles and his spleen hanging outside his jersey.  In Stages 10 through 15, some new contenders have emerged, like a one hander wheelie and a changing of the sprint guard.  Each stage of the tour we’ve been asking, “Who’s the coolest rider?”  It’s up to you to find the cool, a spirit you admire.  After this weekend we’ll know for sure.

When you join the daily conversation on Facebook, like or comment to be entered to win the Leather Jersey Prize package presented by Pearl Izumi and awarded randomly at the end of the tour which includes a GU Sample Pack and a pair of RoadIDs.

Let’s take a look back at stages 10 through 15 and who you thought was cool.

Stage 10 The Cold Shoulder

As the sprint launched going into the final corner, Cav and Argos Shimano leadout man Veelers tangled.  Cav finished 3^rd.  Vittel took the win.  Fingers pointed at Cav for deliberately riding through Veelers to make the corner on track with Greipel’s wheel.  Others cited Veelers for possibly impeding Cav’s line.  While I don’t agree with them, others said anything goes in the last 200 meters.  Personally, I saw Veelers flick his left elbow twice prior to peeling off the front of the train.  Maybe Cav didn’t see it, but that tells me Veelers at least tried to announce his intentions.  Neither gets the Leather Jersey on Stage 10.  We give it to the Argos Shimano teammates for stopping with the spatula to scrape the Veelers pancake off the tarmac.

Stage 11 What’s Cool in a Time Trial?

Sam Andy Schleck for pulling out an even more disappointing TT than we all thought him capable of!

If you fast forwarded to the last 10 riders, you would’ve missed the winning ride from Tony Martin 4 hours earlier.  Being obligated, he sat in the hot seat for well over 3 hours in the hot French sun waiting to take the stage win when the last rider Froome came up short.  While that was impressive, I’m going to give the Stage 11 Leather Jersey to Ten Dam.  I gravitate towards riders that turn themselves inside out, win or lose.  We spotted Ten Dam with a ten inch drool going from nose to mouth to chin to neck.  And for that incredible loogie, Ten Dam goes home in the Maillot Cuir on Stage 11.

Stage 12 Changing of the Guard

The top step of the podium seems shorter for sprinters.  In recent years we’ve seen Robbie McEwen, Ale Jet, and Boonen rise and fade.  On Stage 12 we got the first hint that Cav may have hit the crest of his wave, while Kittel stood up on his board and rode around Cav in a two-up battle.  Looking back in a few years, Stage 12 could be the day the sprint guard changed hands from Cav to Kittel.  For that we give Kittel and his Ivan Drago haircut the Leather Jersey.

Steven The Kittel boil over.

Stage 13 Honest Emotion

Darryn  Cav. He was so happy after winning that stage. Like a little kid.

With my boss, I always say there’s no middle ground.  It’s either great or it’s crap.  I think the same holds true for Cavendish.  It’s either a day like Stage 10 where you snatch a reporter’s recorder away, or it’s a heavenly harp glissando crowning achievement of glorious proportions.  Cav got his day on Stage 13 and he, like Jan Bakelants on his Stage 2 win, let the emotions flow as if this latest win was his first ever.  Raw emotion is always cool in my book, and for Stage 13 we pull the Leather Jersey over Cav’s shoulders.

Stage 14 Tofu in the Sun

You had no idea that Sojasun is Italian Tofu, until Julien Simon attacked a huge breakaway containing a few heavies like Jens Voigt, Tejay van Garderen and Marcus Burghardt.  It was a valiant attack.  You could hear his parents screaming at the TV as he threaded his way through the streets of Lyons lined 6 deep in Bastille weekend fans.  It was one of those pound the sofa and hide your eyes attacks, even if it didn’t make it.  You make Italian Tofu cool, and for that you get the Leather Jersey.

Stage 15 Sagan Wheelie

Jason He deserves leather for that wheelie!

This stage might be the one where you had the epiphany that Froome’s climbing attacking pedaling style resembles that of the motion you use when the sheets are tucked to tight at the foot of the bed.  However, we’re going to give the Leather Jersey to Sagan.  Not for the wheelie, not for the one hander, but for the one hander wheelie at the base of Mt. Ventoux directly in front of Team Sky at the front of the peloton.  When you go out the back, go out with a bang.

Ted   I'll see your sheet-kicking and raise you a sissy-fight between 10 year old siblings.