Road Bike | UltraRob's Adventures

Busy Weekend for Cyclists and Mountain Bikers in Colorado Springs

February 20th, 2009

There is an unbelievable amount of cycling and mountain biking events going on this weekend in Colorado Springs. I posted a few days ago about the Peak Region Cyclist Bicycle Show on Saturday from 10 AM – 3 PM. In addition to the show there is

Friday 6PM – 8PM Oscar’s (333 S. Tejon) will be setting aside their patio just for the cycling community. Cash bar with drink specials. (21+ only please).
Saturday after the show there will be a private party for vendors from the show from 6pm-7pm (aka as Industry Only) and then anyone who attended the show will be given a stamp/ticket to get into this private party from 7pm-10pm. It will be at King Chef Diner on the corner of Bijou/Nevada. Beer provided by Bristol (FREE-while supplies last). May even have a DJ spinning funk/80s music. King Chef’s legendary food will be available for purchase as well. (21+ Only please)
10pm-“American Flyers” will be shown at Kimball’s Pike’s Peak Theater. Tickets will be available at the show and very good chance could sell out at show. (Short version: Go to show early). The theater does offer beer and wine for sale. Proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the Pike’s Peak Area Independent Film Festival. Call theater for details on that.
The Return of “Cycling Sundays” @ McCabes! (220 S. Tejon) 1pm-4pm. It’s the end of the “Tour of California” this weekend and we will have it on all 3 TV’s with sound when it comes on. Sure the foosball, darts, and jukebox (one of the best in town) will keep you occupied before and after the coverage. Food and drink specials. FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY! (so yeah, don’t have to be 21+ for this Sunday/Family day event).

If you’re coming from out of town, there’s plenty of both mountain biking and road riding near the show.

The trails used for the Bear Creek races of the Sand Creek Series are just down the street. Red Rock Canyon Open Space, Section 16, Cheyenne Canon and Stratton Open Space are all nearby and have great trails. For road riding there’s Gold Camp Road, Garden of the Gods and the big climb near by. If you want more info on Colorado Springs riding ask your questions in the comments below.

I found out last night when I was hanging out at Kinfolks in Manitou after doing the Incline that I somehow had missed another event this weekend. The Women’s Mountain Biking Association of Colorado Springs (WMBA of COS) is a new group in town. They have 12 women on their Sunna Racing team.

They are having a Gear and Beer Fest fundraiser Saturday and Trinity Brewing Company on Garden of the Gods road. There will be drawings for 30 nice prizes from sponsors and they’ll be doing a silent auction for a 2009 World Cup Sid fork (MSRP: $952). Here’s the blurb from their Facebook page

Hello friends-

We would like to invite you to learn about a new and exciting organization within the Colorado Springs cycling community by joining us for a fundraising event at Trinity Brewing Company on February 21st.

Last fall, four women cyclists: Elizabeth Turnage, Jessica Conner, Hillary Hienton, and Mary Hoyle, teamed up to begin developing a women’s racing team and non profit organization. We have worked together to find sponsorship from local businesses in support of Our Mission:

To encourage women of all levels of skill and interest in cycling through making the sport and cycling community in Colorado Springs more accessible and visible. We aim to encourage participation in race events through a developmental team, organize group and training rides, educate women through skill and bike maintenance clinics, and organize social events to promote community.

Sunna Racing, our cycling team, is made up of twelve women with an additional thirty or so other women interested in joining our non profit organization, the Women’s Mountain Biking Association of Colorado Springs…or WMBA of COS. It is wonderful to have found such an incredible response from this community. Our sponsors include SRAM, Trinity Brewing Company, Criterium Bicycle Shop, Penrad Imaging, Action Potential Physical Therapy, and Alison Dunlap Adventure Camps. We are also proud to announce that we are World Bicycle Relief volunteers!

By joining us at Trinity Brewing Company for our inaugural event, you will help enable us to begin fulfilling our mission statement for WMBA of COS. We hope to see each and every one of you on Feb 21st!

Thanks,

Betty Turnage, Hillary Hienton, Jessica Conner, and Mary Hoyle

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Tags: Colorado Springs, cycling, mountain biking
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1st Annual Peak Region Cyclist Bicycle Show

February 17th, 2009

Update 2/23/09: I’ve posted my report of the Peak Region Cyclist Bicycle Show

Update 2/20/09: I’ve posted a few other cycling things going on in Colorado Springs this weekend plus some ride suggestions if you’re coming from out of town for the show.

This Saturday, February 21st, from 10 AM to 3 PM is the 1st Annual Peak Region Cyclist Bicycle Show at the Norris-Penrose Center. It looks like it will be a quality event with at least most of the local bike shops being there plus several other good exhibitors. I plan on heading over there. Part of the $5 admission fee benefits the Pikes Peak Area Bikeways Coalition.

Peak Region Cyclist is a new local cycling magazine that published their first edition last June. Every issue has had very good articles. While many print publications are struggling, Peak Region Cyclist seems to be making it work. The print version can be found many places around town and you can also read it online.

Saturday evening they’re bringing American Flyers to Kimball’s Twin Peak Theater. I think it would be really sweet to see American Flyers on the big screen. It’s showing at 10 PM. I don’t see it listed on their site but everyone is invited.

Other weekly local cycling happenings are the pub crawl Thurday evenings and Cycling Sundays at McCabe’s. Cycling Sundays are from 1-4 PM. This week the Tour of California will be on.

Highlights of the Peak Region Cyclist Bicycle Show are

Local Bicycle Shops from Colorado Springs, Monument, Woodland Park, and Castle Rock
Bicycle Advocacy Groups
Trail Building Groups from the region
Cycling related Non-Profits
Colorado Springs Bicycle Club
USA Cycling
CTS Sand Creek Series Mountain Bike Races
Carmichael Training Systems (The force behind Lance Armstrong!)
ROLL Bike Art! (Portion of Proceeds benefit Medicine Wheel)
Bicycle Companies
Vintage Bicycles

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Tags: Colorado Springs, cycling, mountain biking
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Guide to Long Distance Cycling eBook Review

January 26th, 2009

Update 1/28/09: I’m going to be part of The Ride of Your Life virtual book tour. You could win a copy of the book for submitting a question for the interview.

Many recreational cyclists make doing a century ride their big goal. If you’re one of those cyclists and now you’ve become comfortable with century rides, what do you do next?

There are plenty of cycling options longer than 100 miles. There are organized double centuries and self supported brevets. Since brevets come from France they come in metric distances of 200, 300, 400, 600, 1,000 and 1,200 km.

Ok, there’s plenty of options for long bike rides but how do you prepare for one. If you’re a seat of the pants person like me, you just do some riding and then set off on your adventure. I first did a 160 mile unsupported solo ride when I was 15 and really didn’t do much planning.

That method isn’t the best way which is why I’ve used a coach for my racing. Now there’s a new book, The Ride of Your Life, by David Rowe of Ready to Ride to help long distance cyclists achieve their dreams.

David has experience in what he’s talking about. Like many other long distance cyclists he’s never raced. Instead he started out doing centuries and then going for long distances. He has completed some of the most challenging road cycling events in the Northwest, including the Cascade 1200, the Portland-to-Glacier 1000, and the Rocky Mountain 1200.

You might expect the book to be mostly about how to train. Instead it focuses on how to set your goals and fit long distance cycling into the rest of your life. David talks about coming up with an overall plan for your rides for the year but points to other resources to come up with a day to day training play.

David talks about your goals need to be inspirational. Being inspired to do something is what has given me many of my adventures over the years. It doesn’t do any good to set a goal of doing a double century if doesn’t inspire you to get out of bed at 5 AM on Saturday to do a training ride.

On the subject of fitting long distance cycling into your life, David writes

Most of us love riding, and we are exhilarated by the thought of riding farther. We also connect the thought of physical activity with its many benefits, including weight loss, muscular strength, aerobic capacity, stress reduction, and overall physical and mental well-being.

But few of us stop to think about the impact that increasing the hours devoted to cycling and other exercise will have on our relationships with our friends, and family and loved ones. More hours on the bike means fewer hours at home. And that can create stress in our relationships. Will the people in our lives be willing to sacrifice time they would normally spend with us, so that we might achieve our goal? Will they wish us well as we ride out of the driveway? Or will our rides be under a constant shadow of guilt, because our spouse or partner does not share our goal, measuring our time on the bike as hours lost from the precious time we would spend together?

And what about the impact increased riding can have on your job? If you are a career professional, you are very likely working 45 to 60 hours a week. If you are one who is known to arrive at the office at 7:30 a.m. every day, how will your boss and co-workers react when you start showing up at 8:30? Some work cultures would be supportive of any effort one makes to improve personal health. Others simply do not care, and will measure that lost hour as lost productivity, lack of commitment, or both.

David steps you through prioritizing your goals so it’s easier to make decisions to keep your life in balance. One thing is to be flexible and know mentally up front that adjustments will be needed to keep balance with the rest of life.

In addition to the planning for long distance cycling, David included interviews with 6 recreational cyclists that have achieved inspiring long distance feats. The interviews with Greg Paley, Jill Homer, Del Sharffenberg, Kitty Goursolle, Kent Peterson, and John Spurgeon will make you want to head out for a ride now.

I highly recommend The Ride of Your Life if you want to make the move from century rides to longer rides. Even if you’re doing shorter events, you’ll find valuable planning information. You can read a 34 page preview of the book or you can head over to RoadBikeRider.com to buy it.

How you can win a free copy of The Ride of Your Life

David is collecting stories from readers who overcame physical, mental, or equipment challenges to finish a challenging ride. You can win a free copy of the Ride of Your Life, simply by telling you story in 200 words or less.

David is going to publish a compilation of the best stories in an eBook, which he will make available free in the Spring of this year. If your story is selected for publication, you’ll win a free eBook. It’s that easy.

You can download an entry form here: http://www.rideofyourlife.biz/my_ride.zip. Be sure to mention that you learned about the eBook giveaway on UltraRob.com

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Tags: century ride, cycling, ultra cycling
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Pedaling Through the Desolate Desert

October 4th, 2008

This weekend 84 solo racers and 48 relay teams are racing 508 miles through the desert of California. The Furnace Creek 508 has been the oldest RAAM qualifier. This year it’s not a qualifier due to the ongoing feud over the UMCA buying RAAM a couple years ago. Not being a qualifier doesn’t seem to have hurt the race much.

The Furnace Creek 508 is where I first qualified for RAAM in 2002. It’s a great race and has a lot of history but the desolation of the desert started getting to me mentally. There’s beauty in some deserts but not much where the 508 goes. It does go through Death Valley which has beauty but nearly all the riders go through it in the dark.

The lead riders are already through the Trona check point, 153 miles into the race. The top 5 are

Kevin McNulty
Michael Emde
Chris Ragsdale
Gerry Cody
Vinnie Tortorich

That means that Kevin McNulty has averaged 23.8 miles an hour. As with all RAAM qualifiers, that’s without any drafting!

Vinnie in 5th place was on David Holt’s RAAM crew with me this summer. He’s a great guy. Last year he DNF’d so I hope he continues to do well.

In the women’s race, Catharina Berge is the only one through Trona. In California City, Isabelle Drake was 2nd and Shanna Armstrong was third.

You can keep track of the standings as the race continues today and tomorrow. Pictures are also being uploaded to the webcast.

Related Link:

Vinnie Tortorich in Westside Today

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Tags: cycling, RAAM, Race Across America, ultra cycling
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Lance Armstrong Confirms Plan to Win 8th Tour de France

September 9th, 2008

Today a video was posted on LiveStrong.com with Lance confirming he plans to come back and win an 8th Tour de France. The Vanity Fair article that VeloNews said was to announce his comeback has also been posted online.

In the Vanity Fair article he says he had an epiphany at the Leadville 100. Even before that he must have been thinking about a comeback because he had already asked to be put back in the out-of-competition testing pool.

The impetus to come back, he says, sprang upon him quite unexpectedly over the summer, in Colorado. Armstrong had an epiphany on August 9 after placing second at the Leadville Trail 100 Mountain-Bike Race—a 100-mile “Race Across the Sky,” which climbs to more than 14,000 feet. That ascent, cycling upward in a crosscurrent, tripped something primal in him. “It wasn’t a lightbulb going off,” he says, but a realization, combined with a gradual frustration “with the rhetoric coming out of the Tour de France. Not just the Tour on TV but the domestic press, the international press, the pace, the speeds at which participants rode. It’s not a secret. I mean, the pace was slow.

“Then Leadville, this kind of obscure bike race, totally kick-started my engine. For me it’s always been about the process.… The process of getting there is the best part. You start the season a little out of shape, a little heavy. You get in better shape. You lose some weight. I mean you’re just crafting this perfect program. For several weeks I [had] trained [for Leadville] and went riding by myself. Obviously beautiful territory and fresh air, just feeling fit, losing weight, getting strong—living a very healthy lifestyle. I thought, This might be fun to try again.”

One correction to that quote from the Vanity Fair article is that the high point of the Leadville 100 is 12,600 feet instead of over 14,000 feet. The 14,000 number was also in articles when it was announced he was racing at the Leadville 100. It could be referring to the cumulative climbing during the race. I think there’s about 13,000 feet of climbing but I’ve also heard numbers higher than 14,000.

The Vanity Fair article addresses the question of why he’s coming back. He says it’s all about increasing cancer awareness and funding. He will announce an international LIVESTRONG strategy on September 24th in New York City at the Clinton Global Initiative.

Those close to him at the Lance Armstrong Foundation also realize it’s a huge risk. Even if he wins the Tour, it may not be a big deal to a lot of people. If he doesn’t win, people may use that to say he doped in the past to win.

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Tags: cycling, Lance Armstrong, Tour de France
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116 Miles Instead of Silver Rush 50

July 23rd, 2008

Over the last couple weeks, I debated whether I should go do the Silver Rush 50. It would have been just for training because I’m still in no shape to be competitive. The best way to push hard is to do a race. I can go harder in a group than by myself and I can go even harder in a race.

I ended up deciding not to do it. One of the reasons was that I wasn’t sure I’d feel like riding on Sunday and wanted to get 2 days of training in. Other reasons were the cost and time driving.

Instead I decided to ride up to Denver on Saturday to see my brother-in-law that is in the hospital with lung cancer (More about him here). It was a hot day but the ride was pleasant on 105 to Sedalia. From there I took 85/Santa Fe to less than a mile from the hospital. Once I got past C-470 to where there was lots of asphalt and concrete, the heat became almost unbearable. The sun was beating down and the temperature on my computer was reading 102 degrees.

My wife and kids had driven to the hospital. We stayed for a couple hours before heading home. Since it was about 10 miles farther to the hospital than I had guessed, I was going to run out of daylight on the way home. I had my wife take me back 18 miles to Sedalia. That way I also avoided the least pleasant part of the ride.

Some clouds had built up by the time I started riding again and I got a couple drops of rain. The good part was that it was cooler. The bad part was that I had a strong headwind.

Just a couple miles south of Sedalia I was surprised to see a herd of over 30 elk. They were running through a field as thought they had been spooked by something. The herd was made up of females and young.

The Saturday before, I had gone up to the hospital with my wife and then just rode home from Sedalia. Even after already riding nearly 70 miles, I felt better this time. I was also slightly faster even with a stronger headwind.

The ride was 116 miles with 4403 feet of climbing in 8:02. Average speed was 14.5 mph. I’m guessing the extra headwind on the way back balanced out descending slightly more than climbing.

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Tags: Colorado, cycling, mountain biking
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Fireweed 400

July 11th, 2008

The Fireweed 400 started today at noon. The 50, 100, and 200 mile races are tomorrow. There are 733 on the start list between all the different distances. 15 are doing the solo 400 mile RAAM qualifier. The Anchorage Daily News had an article today.

I’ve qualified for RAAM at the Furnace Creek 508, Fireweed 400, Race Across Oregon and the Adironack 540. The Fireweed 400 is still my favorite RAAM qualifier. The scenery is so amazing and it’s really only dark for a couple hours.

The ADN article mentions that the Fireweed 400 is tough because there’s a lot more climbing in the 2nd half of the race. The race uses an out and back course. The race starts around 2800 feet and then drops to sea level at the turn around in Valdez. Racers then have to climb back up in the 2nd half. The course profile has never look right to me on the website. I have a big version from my computer download on my Fireweed 400 page that I’ve never finished up.

Having the 2nd half harder ended up working well for me since I didn’t feel the best during the first half and felt good the 2nd half. I rode the 2nd half faster than the winner. I think I was in 5th at the turn around and finished 2nd.

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Tags: Alaska, Fireweed 400, RAAM, ultra cycling
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Two on Coast to Coast Charity Ride Looking for Places to Stay and Route Advice

July 4th, 2008

Two guys are riding their bikes from Boston, MA to San Francisco, CA to raise money for Children’s Hunger Fund. As of June 14th they had raised $14,494.06. You can still donate to their great cause (no longer active).

They left Boston on June 14th. It looks like they’re in Nebraska now. You can keep track of their progress on their blog/tracker page (no longer active).

I received an e-mail from Angela, who is the girlfriend of one of the guys. She says that they don’t have many contacts on the western part of the route. They need places to crash at night even if it’s just a backyard. They also would like advice on their route.

Angela asked me about Colorado but I think they could use help farther west too. Unfortunately they’re going through the northwest part of Colorado where I don’t have any contacts. If you live along their route and would like to help, send me an e-mail and I’ll get you in contact with Angela.

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Tags: bike touring, cycling
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Jure Robic Wins Record 4th RAAM

June 17th, 2008

Picture from www.raceacrossamerica.org< Today Jure Robic became the first person to win RAAM 4 times. He finished just under 9 days with a time of 8 days 23 hours and 33 minutes. When I raced in 2006 he was trying to become the first person to win 3 consecutive times but dropped out in Pagosa, CO with pneumonia.

In the team division another record was broken. The 8-person Byggkjøp/BMC Cycling Team set a new relay team record. Their time was 5 days 9 hours and 56 minutes. This gives them an average speed of 23.2 mph.

The rest of the solo field is stretched all the way from Maryland to Ohio which is about 550 miles of the course. David Haase is the only American in the top 5. He’s currently in 2nd on the road by less than an although it seems he’s really in 3rd place.

I have always thought there were no time credits in RAAM, just time penalties. I’m sure I’ve also read that in the rules. In any case, Mark Pattinson has been given a 4 hour and 35 minute time credit. It’s for an incident near Taos, NM involving drunk cowboys not allowing him and his crew to pass through. I haven’t really been able to find information on what happened but it seems that race officials may have told Pattinson to stop riding.

The 50+ age group is very close for 1st and 2nd. Currently in Chillicothe, OH, Arvid Loewen is less than 20 minutes ahead of Doug Levy. They have just over 500 miles left to the finish line.

Related Links:

Jure Robic Dies in Accident

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Tags: cycling, RAAM, Race Across America, ultra cycling
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Race Across America FAQ

June 17th, 2008

The Race Across America website has a RAAM FAQ. Although it has some great answers to questions, there are questions that I get asked that aren’t on the web site.

Of course with as few people that know about the Race Across America, maybe the first question should be What is the Race Across America? It’s a bike race that is 50% longer than the Tour de France and is done in about half the time.

I’ve written answers to some of the questions that I often get. I didn’t answer all the ones that are on the RAAM site or gave different answers so you may want to read that FAQ too. If you have any other questions, ask it in the comments below.

Where is the start and finish?

How many years has the race existed?

Who can do the race?

How far is it?

How long do racers have to finish?

What is the typical winning time for the solo racers?

How much do RAAM racers eat?

What do RAAM racers eat?

How much sleep do the racers get?

How much sleep does the support crew get?

What happens if the weather is bad?

Why are the solo average speeds so slow?

Why do the riders always ride alone?

How do the solo racers keep from getting sore butts?

What are time penalties?

Why would someone volunteer to crew?

Why are all times reported in Eastern Daylight Time?

Where is the start and finish?

In 2008 the start is in Oceanside, CA and the finish is in Annapolis, MD. Normally there are small changes to the route from one year to the next. Sometimes the route is totally changed.

How many years has the race existed?

2008 is the 27th year for the solo race. The first year it was called the Great American Bike Race and 4 guys competed.

Who can do the race?

Anybody can race on a relay team. Racers have to qualify to race solo. Most of the qualifiers are over 500 miles or are 24 hour events.

How far is it?

RAAM is always right around 3,000 miles. Compare that to the Tour de France which is 2,000 miles and takes 3 weeks.

How long do racers have to finish?

Generally the racers have the time below to finish. Racers riding a fixed gear bike, hand cycle, etc. are often given extra time to finish. There are also time cut-offs along the route to keep the race from getting too spread out.

Solo Men – 288 hours (12 days)
Solo Men 60+ – 309 hours (12 days, 21 hours)
Solo Women – 309 hours (12 days, 21 hours)
Teams – 216 hours (9 days)

What is the typical winning time for the solo racers?

The last several years the winning time for the solo racers has been a little under or just over 9 days.

How much do RAAM racers eat?

Most racers try to get about a little less than 300 calories an hour. Some are able to eat even more. That adds up to about 6,000 calories a day. That’s 3 times the typical calories for a man.

What do RAAM racers eat?

Many racers eat mainly liquids since they’re easier to digest. Others claim to be able to stomach pizza and cheeseburgers. I wrote fairly detailed about my RAAM nutrition when I raced in 2006.

How much sleep do the racers get?

The top solo racers typically take short naps or sleep for 90 minutes at a time. More than 3 hours of sleep a day is considered a lot. It’s said that one year Jure Robic slept 8 hours in the 9 days it took him to finish.

The racers on the relay teams can get more sleep since they can sleep while another racers is riding. For them the amount of sleep will depend on whether they are on a 2, 4 or 8 person team.

How much sleep does the support crew get?

The people on the support crew should be able to get more sleep than the racer since they take turns in the follow vehicle. Even so the crew also has to get the other vehicles down the road, find food and water, fix bikes, etc. The crew also end up being at least a bit sleep deprived.

What happens if the weather is bad?

The clock is always ticking in RAAM in spite of what happens. One rider getting caught in a storm and another one not is just part of RAAM. Riders will sometimes decide to sleep during a storm. In 2006 an official stopped me just after dark one night, he said there was a tornado in a town not far down the road. He wanted us to stay safe but I wouldn’t get any time adjustment if I stopped.

Why are the solo average speeds so slow?

The average speed is calculated on total elapsed time. It includes all the time that the racer is off the bike. Unlike races like the Tour de France, riders aren’t allowed to ride in packs so the speeds are slower. Also as most racers become fatigued and sleep deprived they struggle to go very fast. When the average speed for a time station is shown under 10 mph, it’s usually because the rider took a sleep break.

Why do the riders always ride alone?

It’s one of the rules of RAAM. It is an individual competition and no drafting is allowed. Racers are actually allowed to ride side by side for up to 15 minutes. After 15 minutes they have to separate until 24 hours has gone by. Riders get spread out and don’t pass very often. Even when they do they generally aren’t in the mood for more than a couple minutes of chatting.

How do the solo racers keep from getting sore butts?

There are lots of things like using chamois creams, good padded shorts, and keeping the shorts dry to help prevent saddles sores. Unfortunately nearly every rider ends up with a hurting behind.

What are time penalties?

Time penalties are generally given for the support crew breaking a rule. There are a lot of rules to keep the racer and crew safe. Penalties can be given for things like not calling race HQ within 30 minutes of going through a time station, not pulling the support vehicle far enough off the road when stopped, following a racer without flashers turned on, etc.

Time for penalties is as follows

1st Penalty 15 minutes
2nd Penalty 15 minutes (Total – 30 minutes)
3rd Penalty 30 minutes (Total – 60 minutes)
4th Penalty 45 minutes (Total – 105 minutes)
5th Penalty 60 minutes (Total – 165 minutes)
6th Penalty Disqualification

Who pays for the crews?

Each racer finds their own crew. The racer normally pay all the crew’s expenses. Most crew members are volunteers but in some cases they get paid a small amount.

Why would someone volunteer to crew?

It’s a way for people that don’t think they can do the race to be involved. There are some that have crewed many years. It’s also a good way for someone thinking about racing to learn more about the race. Some that crew are friends and family that are talked into it.

Why are all times reported in Eastern Daylight Time?

The race crosses 3 time zones. Rather than keep track of time zones, all times are reported in race time which is EDT. Watches and clocks in support vehicles are set to EDT before the start.

Crew still have to remember which time zone they are in to know when they must be directly following a rider. Riders must always have a follow vehicle between 7:30 PM and 6 AM. Crews also have to know local time to know when stores open and close.

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Technorati Tags: cycling | RAAM | Race Across America | ultra cycling

Tags: cycling, RAAM, Race Across America, ultra cycling
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