State XC Champion

It's been a while since I've posted cuz LW's Leadville training program has me on the road alot which leaves little time for writing. But, today is a good day and I'm going to toot my horn a little.


Bill Dark, me, Bruce Argyle.

The State XC Championships were held at Solitude this morning and I won my division. Yahoo... I was a little apprehensive at the start cuz I just finished a big 3 week block with lots of intervals and 9-12 hours per week, so I was less than fresh. As I look back, every time I'm anxious at the start of a race, it turns out favorably in my direction. I have to say, I felt great today. My legs felt strong on the climbs, I did not cramp, I did not crash (like I did on Thursday's pre-ride), I was a little slow on the descents and my attitude was positive. I held back after topping out on the 2nd lap cuz I couldn't see anyone behind me and didn't want to blow it by crashing or doing something stupid. And, true to past performances, I only drank about 1/2 of a small water bottle in 1:16, but it didn't seem to have an adverse effect. I've got to get this drinking thing figured out on short races. Long races aren't a problem, just the <2 hour ones.

Ed had us old guys start about 5th from the pros, instead of near the back of the pack like usual, so I had a chance to race with some fast ombres. I caught Roger Gillespie at the top of the long climb on the first lap. He was having a bad day and bailed shortly after that with a mechanical. Actually, he was probably embarassed I passed him, and that did him in. I caught pro chick Roxann Tolly at the start of the 2nd lap and rode with her and some other chick for the rest of the Serenity Loop, after which we parted ways. Keith Payne (3rd place in 40 Sport) and his fast group of 3 passed me at the end of the 2nd lap as we crossed the ski run just before the pavement and "s" turns, so that made me feel good to stay in front of him that long. KC never caught me (she started ahead of me and I was off the course before she reved it up). If I would of ridden one more lap, she would have chicked me too. Chris Holley had a good race but decided to eat dirt a couple of times and that did not play into his plans. KC & I forgot to send him the memo that we were going to win our divisions on Saturday. Chris finished 5th in a strong pro division.

Team Mad Dog had a good day winning 6 individual Championships, the most of any ICUP team, with many others finishing on the podium. We may not be the biggest team in the ICUP series, but man-for-man, and chick-for-chick, we kick ass.

I had some fun before and after the race cruising around the venue on my 1982 Specialized Stump Jumper. To my surprise, it was a big hit. It was more comfortable than I thought (it has a really long wheel base - kind of like a limo), but I can't imagine how I rode that thing on the Slick Rock and White Rim trails way back when. Maybe I'll get the guts to take it out on the local trails again, for old times sake. No, I think I protect the 20+ year old tires and stay in the parking lot.


Karl's 2008 Arantix with my 1982 Stumpie in the back ground. My Stumpie has superior rear wheel mud clearance and a much safer stem. What a difference 26 years makes.

So, now it's on to a well deserved recovery week and the Park City Perfect 10 next Saturday. The Leadville 100 is 5 weeks away and it looks like everything is coming together nicely. I think all those hard Moab rides with Chris and KC, combined LW's 100 PR program are a good potion for me. Stay tuned.

Chris takes dirt to the next level. There was more on him than there was on his bike.


Mad Dog put on a feast for the team and families after the race.

I found this tear in my rear wheel after the race. Wow, am I lucky, or what!

Credit Crisis

I try to stay away from political, religious and other sensitive topics cuz going there is the fastest way to get people pissed off, and that's not the point of this blog. I'm a happy guy and want everyone to be happy too.

That said, I ran into a podcast on NPR that artfully, and in my opinion, correctly explains how the Credit Crisis, aka the Sub-prime collapse was born. It's not a conspiracy theory, self-serving scarce tactic piece, nor does it blame Democrats, Rebublican's, or the President for the mess. Ira Glass and his talented This American Life staff in Chicago expose the Global Money Market, Alan Greenspan, large and small banks and mortgage brokers, among others, as a willing group of aggressive, self-serving "business" people looking for a quick buck, at the expense of you and me, the little guys.

Since I work in the Real Estate industry, and have seen first hand the pressured, unethical and down right wrong, look-the-other-way tactics of the mortgage industry, this piece really hits home. It should be required listening for everyone because there is a lesson for all of us to learn. Do yourself a big favor and click here to listen to the online podcast. It appears in the May section and is titled "The Giant Pool of Money". The podcast runs one-hour long, it's free if you listen to it online, or $0.95 if you download it to your MP3 player.

On a lighter note, last night was the Wednesday night series XC race at Soldier Hollow. That sure is a fun race that is getting more popular and is a great mid-week interval workout. The course is about 4 miles in length with about 380 feet of climbing, nothing too serious. I rode my Fisher Rig SS and had a blast. And, I didn't finish DFL!!! There are no age group clasifications, just experience levels. I'm riding in the Expert B group so I get to race against the 2nd level hot shots. Most of those guys are pretty fast. I planned to ride only 2 of the 4 laps, but I was having so much fun I did all 4. KC Holley passed me about 12 minutes after the start (I had a 1 minute head start on her too), and I got chicked by Erika Powers and 2 others, but what-the-hey. They're FAST!

My race went well and my legs feel like they are coming back to me. I finished a 3 week training block last Saturday and spent the next a day and a half on my back due to exhaustion. A few days of rest seems to have done me good and the "lead legs" are gone. I'll recover the rest of this week and get ready for the ICUP XC State Championship race at Solitude on July 5th, and then it's on the Leadville. I also started another 5-day "boost" IHE session Tuesday in hopes of topping off my red blood cells so I can have an Incredible Hulk performance in August. We'll see...

I'm not so sure the high price of gas is a result of the oil companies, as this symbol implies, but the artwork is right on. Ouch!!!

Single Speed Sunday

Since the weather's been so good, and I've been having such a good time riding, I decided to take my Fisher Rig single speed on a five-hour trip yesterday. The right of choice was around Glen Wild, Flying Dog, and my favorite, Round Valley. I did the same route last week on my gear bike, and with this week I rode it in a different direction with my Mad Dog teammate Bill Dark.

Although it was a little on the chilly side, the weather couldn't have been more perfect. The skies were sunny and there was a breeze, but not stiff enough to hold you back. Although the Glen Wild trailhead parking lot was jammed with cars, the trail was not as congested as we thought it would be. We left the parking lot around 10:45 a.m. and headed towards Jeremy Ranch and up over the top the traditional way to the Cobblestone turnoff. The trail was smooth and dry and pushing the 32 x 21 felt real good. About a third of the way from the top we ran into water and mud on the trail, which was significantly greater in volume than last week. Instead of coming back down the way we came up, Bill suggested we take the Jeremy side down and connect to the 24/7 trail. I've never done this variation before and it turned out to be spectacular. We got back to the Glen Wild trailhead in just a little under two hours and refilled with water. We didn't hang out very long and headed on the paved road over to Round Valley. Bill and I did a half lap together and he broke off at the National Ability Center and headed back home. I finished up a traditional lap on the E-100 12-hour course and did a second lap finishing up with a steep and sustained climb up Somewhere Elks. During the climb I hit the 4-hour mark of my ride and started to feel a twitch and cramp coming in my right quad. I popped couple enduro-lytes, backed the pace down a bit, and made it to the top cramp free. Somebody has cut a new swooping trail on the northwest face of the Round Valley Loop that provides a fun variation. It's still pretty new, and the horses have left some nice pockets in the surface, but it's well worth the ride. I took the variation and hooked back up to the main trail and finished off on the main trail to the RV trailhead. I finished up on the road riding to the Glen Wild trailhead, into a stiff headwind, to a waiting ice cold coke (compliments of Ironhorse) and Power Bar recover bar. Ah, life is good!

I seem to have recovered from my funky slump of a few weeks ago and feel stronger and more motivated. I've giving myself more recovery time and picking up the intervals, so maybe that has had a positive effect. The snap is coming back and so is my confidence. I'm still hooked on the data, I'm riding with my Polar HRM, I'm blocking the HR with tape during my races, but I'm not stressing like before. I guess somethings will never change, I like data ;-) What's the old saying - you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig! I'm always going to be hooked on data. It's my destiny!!!

When I got back to the car I saw Bob Safel and his wife Lyna who just finished their Sunday ride. Ah, nothing like family time on a Sunday... After talking to them for a while, I got all excited about soloing the 24 hours of Grand Targhee. They did the race last year and said it was an excellent event, and solo friendly. Now I just need to find a pit crew and I'm going to go for it, I think... It's 2 weeks after Leadville and the same weekend as the Brian Head stage race. What to do!

Ride recap: total time was 4 hours 45 minutes, 45 miles, 4800 feet of climbing. This was a zone 1 and 2 ride with very little time in zone 3, which makes for a pleasant recovery ride after a Saturday race. Interestingly, I did the same route last Sunday, with a slight variation on the Flying Dog section, 4 minutes quicker and my total caloric expenditure was only 25 calories more this week. I have to say, it was a lot more fun riding the single speed, and having someone to share the experience with.

Each time I ride that 29er I'm more convinced that I want to go to 29 inch route when I buy my next bike. The question is, what bike?

Deer Valley

This must be the year where snow and rain want to get into the MTB scene. Ed Chauner was able to pull off the DV ICUP race, barely, in temps that ranged from 42 to 46 F, on a revised and shortened course. Because of all the recent rain and snow, the course was fast and tacky. We encountered a few water and mud obstacles, and a small patch of snow in one spot, but overall the course was in excellent shape. What was surprising was the large number of racers that showed up. It shows how popular this series is and is a testament to the excellent courses Ed designs and how well he runs things. Kudo, Ed.

My race went well with no missed turns or major mishaps. Since my group was cut to only 1 lap, I didn't have to worry about missing the 1/2 lap turn-off. I did see it when I passed it, so that made me feel good. My rear tire started loosing air with about 10 minutes to go, so I had to nurse my Element back to the finish, but I was able to hold on to 1st place over teamamte Bill Dark. Between Bill, Dwight and me, one of us has topped the podium in a 7 ICUP races so far this season. That's good...

After the race Team Mad Dog went to Paul Moote's home in Jeremy Ranch for a BBQ put on by Paul and his wife Judy. We had a fun time, ate burgers and dog and planned out the rest of the summer. What a fun bunch of guys and gals I get to hang with. They sure love to ride!