Races #153-154: Jimmy just got J-Pow'd (aka Jimmy vs The Pros Part 2)

Photo by Blair Fraley, my Facebook Friend

USGP Derby City Cup, Saturday
I have had a lot of fun at the USGP in the past. Pre-riding I get to ride with a lot of the Pro Women and a ton of them are super cool and don't feel the need to wear a race face. Maybe I get to ride behind Johnson or Trebon and just kind of gawk for awhile. I must admit, I'm a super fan.

But this year the pros seemed more ominous than usual! Maybe it was my head, but I cringed every time I saw one I them, knowing the thumping I was going to get later.

I had a pretty decent start, there were some crashes on the first lap and I perceived that I was passing a lot of people. My brain was saying "yay, you are not be caboose!"

Wow, the course was hard. It is very demanding and there is not a place to rest. Tons of dismounting and run-ups, sand, off-camber, hills. Ouch!

I was battling with a few more guys. I put in an effort through the sand and pushed on the gas hard through the "green monster," the Derby City's flyover with steps up and a ramp down. Well, I get about to the top and I threw up in my mouth a little bit!

My average heart rate was 179 beats per minute and my max was 189 (I swore I saw 193 for a sec)! Typically it is more like 174-176 average and 180 max.

I only made it about 29 minutes and change before I got pulled and I felt pretty happy with that performance. That night everyone let me know I was pretty much second-to-last. Evidently everyone I passed quit the race! Darnit!

Look Mom! I'm a couple of blurry pixels on a Live Stream!

USGP Derby City Cup, Sunday
I want to thank the weather gods the weekend was lovely in Louisville the weather was in the 70's the sun was out. It's so much nicer to suffer when the weather is lovely.

On Saturday I chose to race my Redline. I guess I am a little superstitious about the weight. On Sunday I was determined to race the new IF, wondering if the superior handling would make a difference. I had the worst pre-ride ever, I crashed 3 times, once endo-ing in the downhill sand! This was foreshadowing of things to come. I'm not sure if the front end of the IF is a little heavier, but my wheel kept catching zombie hands in the sand.

I had the worst race —I was in immediately popped out the back. Or at least it felt that way.

I had a crash on 1 the downhills and some stupid wipeouts. I didn't have it that day. I felt like I was dragging an anchor. When I was pulled Bridget grabbed my bike and noticed the rear brake was rubbing. Not sure if it was like that all race or because of a crash. It would be nice to have that as an excuse for my terrible ride.

There was reports of very bad hecklers saying pretty crass remarks. The heckles I received were some of the most witty heckles I have heard. I wonder if they had more time to think of something witty since I was so slow?


I must admit, it is a little disheartening to have the crap kicked out of you by your idols. Not sure if this was a cool opportunity or something no sports fan should endure! I licked my wounds and commuted to work the next day! Back to the grind.

Races #150-152: Jimmy Vs. The Pros (Part 1)

So I know I am not the hot shizz, I went into this assuming I was going to get pulled. BUT... wow, I was hoping to stay in a bit longer! These guys are really, really fast!

PHOTO BY BLAIR FRALEY

Race #150: Cyclo-Stampeded
4 Laps, 0:27:00, 37 out of 46, pulled 7 laps down
My first pro race! Yay?

I was warming up on my trainer before the race when Ben Berden came over to watch the women start. He turned around and looked at me. I idolize him, but definitely think he looks like he could eat me for supper. I didn't make eye contact because I was so scared!

I started out okay. I avoided some tangle ups. The course was tough, a lot of climbing and it was starting to hurt. I was tailgunning chase group on the second lap when my chain bounced off going downhill. That stunk. Then I was in no-man's land, suffering, looking like pooh, getting heckled. I felt so bad out there, I get like I was fighting with the bike all lap and when my friends did cheer for me I was embarrassed because I felt like I was riding poorly.

I was so upset when they pulled me. I was pedaling around trying to cool off, I was trying not to barf and I was definitely holding back tears!

This is going to sound weight weenie but I wondered later if the Redline would have been a smarter choose since it is a few pounds lighter. It felt like there was 1,000 feet of climbing per lap.

PHOTO BY JULIE LEWIS-SROKA

Race #151: Magic in the Mud
5 laps, 0:34:00, 40 out of 47, pulled 5 laps down
I dreaded going to this race. I am not a mudder. But my teammates Strecker and Karwash talked me into it. Night race? In the Pros? WHY NOT!

Bjet got me on the trainer, she was awesome enough to bring all my gear! She made me focus and I had a great warmup on the trainer.

I was pretty pissed about the day before. I was determined not to be an embarrassment again, but worried I would look like a cat 4 in the mud.

It's pretty crazy to see your idols on the start line right in front of you. Well, something sparked. We started as I hung in there. I lost some places, but then I started gliding over the mud!

My friends were out in full force! Everyone was cheering for me so much, I bet I had more fans than Ryan Trebon! You guys really lifted my spirits! I couldn't help but smile at the signs and disco Stu! So many times the cheers would drive me forward and I picked up spots immediately!

That night felt magical. I felt so lucky to have all of you cheering for me! I was pretty psyched and felt like I put up more of a fight.

PHOTO BY JEFFREY JACUCYK VIA VELONEWS.COM

Race #152: Hopeless at Harbin

3 laps, 0:29:00, 50 out of 55, pulled 5 laps down

I wanted this to be my race. Last year I set up the course, got very little sleep but still had my best result ever in the 2/3 race, placing 17th after coming back from a back row start.

Well, I felt like pooh! Only 3 hours of sleep, tons of labor and no recovery from the other races.

I started out okay again, but at some point I think I blew up a little. I lost that last wheel and I was DFL! I was trying hard, but I didnt have any power. I almost gave up and DNF'd, a kind of "spiritual wreck" on lap 2. But I decided to relish the moment. I didn't joy lap, I kept hustling hoping to pip one spot, but alas, I was the lanterne rouge!

The interesting thing is that statistically the Devou CycloStampede was my best race. I finished slightly higher in the field. It just felt that much worse! Although, I think I did beat more "finishers" at Kings and there were more DNF at Devou due to mechanicals and wrecks.

Once again, thank you to everyone who cheered for me! It was truly memorable. And thank you to my darling Bjet for supporting me so much!

In Pursuit of Power, to Battle with Powers

So I bought my big boy UCI license, and my goal for this year will be to race the USGP and UCI races with the Elite 1/2 field. I figure utter humiliation will make for incentive to train hard and be my best.

Check out this power data from Ryan Trebon, phenominal! Aside from the power, I also to work on my skills to make sure I am smooth and flawless, I can't waste any of what little power I have.

Look out Pros!

So last year I bought an international license to race the Masters Worlds in Louisville.

I want to get my money's worth, so I decided then that I wanted to use this as a opportunity to race with the big boys. I wanted to see how I stack up while I am healthy and fit, training a lot and maybe at my fastest.

Bjet is such an inspiration to me. She has been racing in the top ranks locally for years, and I am so proud of her when she gets a top-15 and finishes on the lead lap.

I am amazed at the level of quality and talent. Locally, I feel confident that I could race myself onto a podium of a CX race any day of the week. Then I go to CapCity and I am lucky to get a top 6 or 7. Then I got to OVCX and I am lucky to even break the top 20 or 30. Now I am looking at these UCI events and I will be lucky to finish a lap or two down! Then those guys go to Europe and are lucky if they finish in the top 20. Wow!

I'll keep you abreast of what it is like to race at the top. By the way, Joachim Parbo is having a clinic at Devou Thursday night. he's a cool dude. Love him! He has furry legs.

We got a little lost. Lance Armstrong was nice enough to let us ride along with him and got us back on track!

It was pretty crazy, we got to ride with him for about 10 minutes and he showed how to get back to the Shoal Creek Greenbelt path. It was kind of surreal, like riding with a unicorn.

Race #60: Race of the Falling Jimmys

Bloomingcross 2010 from CinéCinnati on Vimeo.

Nate and I shot some quick clips of my favorite homies like Jroo, Opie, Bjet, the Farrels, the Virotsko clan, and some BioBuds. Awesome post race interview by me... The race was so fast I was gassed. I meant to say I popped so I tried to rail some corners to catch up but I couldn't corner with a head full of hot blood and ending up getting "front rad" and slammed into the ground a few times. The last time I ended up dropping my chain and getting chain suck... There is always next week!

Race #44: I found myself somewhere between the trees

My goal for this year's 6 Hours of John Bryan were:
1) Prove to myself that I am getting better as a mountain biker a.k.a. get my lap times down
2) Beat last year's time, even minus the long breaks I took
3) Break that Top Ten (I was 11th last year)
4) Training race for Versailles 12 Hour (This is a big maybe, doubt I have the heart/legs to do it)
6) Tune up "the motor" for cross

But going into this race I have had "bad sensations" in my legs all week. I over trained last weekend, just because I was having fun. Maybe the extreme heat made me dehydrated during these workouts, turning my legs into ripping shreds of beef jerky... You could play the guitar solo to "Misirlou" on my hip flexor tendon — it is so tight!

The race started with a "Le Mans" style start. Even though I typically stink at these I love them because it shuffles up the field pretty well and it doesn't rely upon when you register, how many points you have or how sharp your elbows are:

LAP 1: 0:59:33
Like I said, I had a bad start. But I found Bridget's wheel, I was about 1 rider behind her, and she was doing a great job pacing us through the tight twistys. On the wider access roads she was making killer passes, and I kept finding myself two riders behind her. The second time we did this little pass dance I found myself behind a very slow rider and she was gone. Plus I took this weird slow wrong turn and lost about 6 places!

LAP 2: 0:57:32
So second lap I set out to find my beloved. I ended up riding with this LionHearts kid in the beginning of the lap — that kid was really fast! No slouch! And he was having a blast on the bike, bouncin and bunnyhoppin everything. I eventually found Bridget and we rode together for about 2 laps. We are a great compliment to each other, I follow her wheel on the more technical parts and I get in front and hammer à la Spartacus.

LAP 3: 0:59:17
Jeff Cyrus rode with us for a second — he called us roadies and took off! He was flying! And Gary Lunsford was looking incredible, he was crouched down and pedaling through every turn like a fluid dirt-fueled monster! Unfortunately just after this my impression of a downhill slalom skier went pear-shaped and I was going too fast through a turn, clipped my right handle bar on a sappling which sent my left handlebar into a big tree. I punched the tree with my left hand, flew forward and smashed my left shoulder! Oh well, we got back up and I just tried to ignore the throbbing pain.

PIT STOP: ABOUT 0:06:00ish

LAP 4: 0:59:04
There came a dark point on lap 4. Bridget froze her Camelback and it hadn't thawed, so she was out of water. She stopped at an emergency aid station and I said I would peddle ahead slowly. Well, I didn't see her after a few minutes and my mind kept thinking about my goals. A) Race for myself and try to get 7 laps in or B) continue to pace with Bridget and push her to a podium position? I chose option A after a few more minutes... I'm a heartless bastard.

LAP 5: 0:59:05 & LAP 6 0:59:27
These laps got super hazy. I think I was kind of gassed. I would ride hard, then take it easy through the twistier sections in case I had momentary lapse of judgement and crash again. I was really hoping lap 5 would be faster so I could phone in lap 6 and still make the time cut. Somewhere in here I got passed by the legend Gunnar Shogren, it was kind of having Pete Townshend smash your guitar or Picasso paint over one of your paintings. Demoralizing but BADASS! Eyeing my computer I realized I had to time trial the last 4 or 5 miles of my 6th lap. I barely made it in according to the clock, but I DID IT, onto lap 7!

PIT STOP: ABOUT 0:04:00ish

LAP 7: 0:56:27 (give or take)
I refueled and took off. Something clicked this lap. I got lower on the bike, leaning and pedaling through every turn! I finally got that "surfer's moment" where everything flows and you feel at one with the bike and the trail. I really crushed this lap, and this made the difference. I am glad I just didn't go out there just to do it.

Without knowing it, I pedaled my way onto the first podium of my mountain biking "career!" And I am so happy my parents were there to see it. Super cool! And I crushed my 2009 performance, riding my first 6 laps nearly 25 minutes faster!

2010 Stats
3rd out of 32, 7 Laps, 80.5 Miles, 7:00:25 Total Time, about 6:50 of total riding time, avg 11.78 mph

as compared to 2009 Stats
11th out of 28, 6 Laps, 69 Miles, 6:51:40, Total Time, about 6:10 of total riding time, avg 11.19 mph