Another year of Hot Harbin TTs!

Are the results right? A fight for the clipboard and some swagger. 

I love the Harbin Park time trials. They are pretty tough and they really help set you up with a base fitness for cyclocross.

Unfortunately this year I did not get to do too many of them. And when I did, I definitely did not feel as strong as in the past. There were times I owned all the lil hills in the course and flew up them like a wannabe Alberto Contador. Now I feel like I am just crawling up them — they are really putting the hurt on me!

I thought I would look back and see how I faired in historical context.

We had a sunset picnic after the last race. 

7/11/2012 Week 1, hanging with friends
Lap 1: 24:53
Lap 2: 25:28  
8.6 mi, 0:50:21, 10.25 avg mph
AVG Heart Rate 160, Max 180
6 out of 19, finished in top 31%


8/1/2012, Week 4, Feeling a bit tired
Lap 1: 24:37
Lap 2: 26:34  
8.6 mi, 0:51:11, 10.08 avg mph  
AVG HR 164, MAX 184
5 out of 12, finished in top 42%

2011, Feeling Strong for Cross
7/14/2011 Bastille Day Chain Suck
Lap 1: 24:08
Lap 2: 26:06
8.4mi, 0:50:14, 10.03 avg mph
4 out of 9, 44%


7/21/2011 Psyched Out and Baked
Lap 1: 24:05
Lap 2: 24:42
8.4mi, 0:48:47, 10.33 avg mph
2 out of 12, 16% and Second Place!




2010, My First Year!
7/15/2010 Week 2
Lap 1 24:31
Lap 2 26:01

8 mi, 0:50:32, 9.5 avg mph

6 out of 10, 60%

8/5/2010 Week 5
Lap 1 23:57
Lap 2 24:23

8 mi, 0:47:50, 10.03 avg mph

5 out of 8, 62% but getting faster

8/12/2010 Week 6 
Lap 1 23:10
Lap 2 23:49

8 mi, 0:46:59, 10.22 avg mph

2 out of 6, 33% and bested myself!

Any Aero Time Trial Tips?

So I did something kind of silly. I signed up for the Ohio State Time Trial Championships in Cleves on Saturday. I wanted to try something new to spice things up, and being on the rivet for 45-55 minutes will be great training for cyclocross.

So... right now my aero road set up is my freshly tuned-up 1999 Steel Jamis Quest. And a skinsuit...

I think I can scrounge together some shoe covers and a fabric helmet cover... I don't want to go overboard but if anyone has any easy suggestions I will take them!

I have Bridget's old Madone. I need to get this thing built up. In reality I want to build it up, throw on some clip-on handlebars and have an aero helmet but I should save my money for my new cyclocross bike.

These were tips I received on Facebook:

Preseason (again, what is this, the third time this year?)

I'm getting a bit behind in my tales... It's been fun seeing a lot of you again!

Race #94: Lionhearts CX
Bridget and I missed the 6 Hours of Versailles. I ended up getting busy with work and the last minute registration seemed a bit high to me. I was hoping to go out there and get a podium this year, to top my 4th place finish behind teammates Charlie Miller and Nate last year. Well, it turns out it was a real drag race and my hopes may have been dashed anyway.

So we stayed close to home and kept it cheap. The Lionhearts CX wouldn't take all day and the money went to a good cause.

Races #81, 83 and 87: Plagued by Mechanicals

I love the Harbin Time Trials. They are great training races for cyclocross, the course offers a lot of short punchy climbs and corners to power out of. Typically you race in brutal heat and it really tests your fitness.

7/14 Bastille Day Chain Suck
Lap 1: 24:08
Lap 2: 26:06
0:50:14, 4 out of 9
I was still rocking the same bent up chain since Mohican, so I finally got to change it that day. Well, I didn't realize that my chain rings were toast. I spent most of the race on the side of the trail putting my chain back on (I was getting major chain suck). My legs felt great and I really think I could have easily had first or second. Oh well, at least the mechanical in the training race gave me time to fix it before the next race.


7/21 Psyched Out and Baked
Lap 1: 24:05
Lap 2: 24:42
0:48:47, 2 out of 12
I didn't see any of the usual favorites so I got pretty psyched I could win. I went out the gate like a banshee — riding a bit too rabid and ending up putting my wheel wrong a few times. At one point I ran right into a tree! I was burning myself up, the heat index was near 110F, and I was drained by the time I hit the rollers at the end of the first lap. I decided to ride smarter on the second lap and put in effort on the power sections.

I went pretty fast compared to previous weeks but it was no use. I wasn't as fast as my best time last year, and there was one rider who rode even faster...


8/11 Oops
DNS (Did not start)
My pedal fell off during my warmup. It was 3 years old and had seen a ton of muddy races. I have some replacements at home, and I was really just thankful that it didn't happen during a race where I was doing well. It was nice just to watch my friends, continue to recover from my John Bryan effort. I got to soak up some beautiful weather and even hit the trails low and slow after the race with my dog Kona. She is a blast to ride with, she made the trip worth my while and I felt so happy and content with the day.

Weird Sensations in my Legs

The weirdest thing has been happening lately (kind of since I got back from Oregon). I've been feeling pretty slow but somehow my efforts have been fooling the clock and I have been putting in decent times in time trials, races, etc. I rode a 7:18 at the EITT.

Last week I did a quick power test — just one climb up Kuglar. My average watts were higher and my quick accelerations were stronger (I need to double check all the numbers though).

I've been hitting the Devou trail for some fun "hill repeats" the past couple of weeks. Mott Sauce and I did one climb at effort, and I put in a 12:22 time. Last year during Irey's Super D-light I had an 11:38 in the uphill TT. My time wasn't so bad today despite a sloppy crash when I was throwing my bike around trying to climb like a rabid dog.

I better keep an eye on the calendar, CX season is just around the corner. Maybe some fun weeknight CX training here and there. I wouldn't mind another attempt at my personal hour record again soon, I'm gunning to beat the Henri Degrange record of 21.94 miles in one hour.

Races #77-79, Races of Good Dirt and Truth

Mark Rodgers created a new event this year, a fun little lap highlighting the new trails at England-Idlewild. A short little race but a great burst of effort to get us ready for the racing season.

6/9 Post-Mohican Legs
Lap 1: 7:51
Lap 2: 7:54
Lap 3: 7:50
0:23:35, 10 out of 22

Little Bjet was my Domestique. She set a really good pace and I gapped her at the end of the race, but we ended up finishing with the same time, both of us tied for 10th place!

6/16 Legs Well-Rested
Lap 1 7:30
Lap 2: 7:37
Lap 3: 7:36
0:22:43, 4 out of 20

It rained a few days before, I was worried it would be cancelled. But the sun was shining, I was riding on the flowy dirt with the sun shining through the trees, we had Kona the dog hanging with us. Good trails, friends and dogs. What a day! I did my best to really gun it and I came in 4th. The fast guys like Brent, Marty and Darrin were really flying — my heroes!

I have some old BioWheels jerseys and I like to pull them out from time to time, kind of like football teams play 1 game a season with a retro kit.

7/7 Vacation Legs
Lap 1 7:18
Lap 2: 7:42
Lap 3: 7:39
0:22:39, 7 out of 22

I don't know if it was the cooler weather in Oregon, or if I drank too much beer and didn't ride enough, but I felt like molasses on 2 wheels all week long. Surprisingly enough, my 1st lap was way faster than before. I thought it would be funny to wear a skinsuit, maybe it really helped! Unfortunately this one rider would not get off the trail on my second lap and I had to come to a halt and ride real slow for about 20 seconds at least. Oh well, it's a training race!

Overall I really improved week to week. In all honesty I am not the best bike handler and even found this course challenging at speed. The course really helped me work on some of these skills and I want to thank Mark for setting up a really cool event!

Hill Battle of the Networked Blogs III

Everyone was flying tonight! The weather was nice, we were feeling great, and a psychological yolk has been lifted off of us before the "big dance" at Mohican.

Since last week I rested up, been stretching and massaging my sore muscles with the Stick and a Triggerpoint foam roller. And most of all, I've been trying to get more sleep and making sure I am on top of my caloric intake. I think I was training and working so much I forgot to track my calories and I fell into a deficit for days, which ran my batteries down!

Tonight I was a bit naughty and grabbed a leftover donut from a meeting and downed it before our ride. You can see where the energy spiked and then dropped off!

6:59
6:23 (Whoa, the explosive power of the donut!)
6:37 (Still feeling donut high)
7:06 (Hurts, donut?)
6:45
6:50
3:45 (flatted),
7:22
8:10
9:50
5:19 (from flat point)

3,510ish feet of climbing on a school night, sweeeet. Just when I thought I was badass I heard Marty Sanders rode 30x up Sycamore today, proving he is a monster. I think that's like 7,000 feet of a hill that is 3x the gradient. Chapeau!

New Best Time!:
6:23, avg 15.7 mph.

I can average over 16 mph on Kuglar, I wonder if I am slower on Devou because it's harder or if it is because the road is so rough... Well, maybe the top and bottom of Devou is harder.

Choo Choo

The Little Miami Scenic Path is one of the longest bike paths in the country — just two miles from my front door. Without the path I may have been too scared to ride in traffic and I probably wouldn't be who I am today — I may have stayed overweight. Or I might have gotten used to traffic quicker without the path and I would be a faster racer now... I dunno.

Anyway, the path is nice for those days where you want to turn off the mind. Just chill and observe, or if it isn't too busy it's a great place for intervals, just flat rolling tarmac. Or if the weather is bad and you don't feel like dealing with traffic.

With storms on the horizon I scrapped my first ride idea of riding to Augusta, Kentucky taking a ferry and riding back on the Ohio side. North seemed safer, more out-of-reach from the storms. I was wrong, but I got a couple dry hours in.

I like to fly along on the old, paved rail line; churning my legs like I'm a crazy locomotive just trying to maintain the fastest pace I can. I felt okay today, a little fatigue robbed me of some of my top end. I was averaging over 19.2 in the first half but a little bonk slowed me down for a bit. I was still over 19 mph average when the final hill to my house kicked me in the teeth!

I'm just trying to get some speed endurance for Mohican. That race has me shaking in my boots. In the past I have used a similar workout to build some base fitness and speed endurance:

04/23/2011 Rainy Century TT, started from home
101.00 mi.
05:20:30
18.91 avg mi/hr

03/20/2010 Dropping off Posters to Phil in Xenia
94.16 mi.
05:28:00
17.22 avg mi/hr

09/04/2009 My first century ride
100.20 mi.
05:28:52
18.28 avg mi/hr
129 avg Heart Rate
153 (watts) (avg) 645 (watts) (max)
Notes 30 min interval = 216 watts 1 hour wattage = 189 Did another 30 minute interval on return.

06/15/2008 71 Miles on the Little Miami Scenic Trail
71.50 mi.
04:11:00
17.09 avg mi/hr
160 lbs/ 3,562
149 avg Heart Rate

09/03/2007 Newtown to Lebanon (back when I was just getting into cycling, this ride killed me!)
52.63 mi.
03:13:00
16.36 avg mi/hr
149 avg Heart Rate

Power and Training

I did my first power test last weekend. I borrowed Bjet's power tap and I hit my ole foe Kuglar Mill. I rode up about 4 times, the first time being a recon, 2 attempts at making myself vomit and a final half-hearted attempt.

It was really cold and windy but I am happy with the results. During the test I just focused on riding and tried not to glance at the numbers. Actually my second hard attempt I kept a really high cadence and my power numbers were better! Looking back I typically ride faster with a higher cadence. Perhaps I got a bit too into gear grinder mode over the winter.


Need to tweak my training a little more. Perhaps hills are better earlier in the week so I save my quads for the weekend.

I should research more intervals too. Right now I just do sprints (typically 15-30 seconds, sets of 5 with 1 minute recovery) or 10 minute intervals where I push a big gear trying to build muscle. Or hills.

Need to get my race starts stronger with some killer 10 minute intervals. I NEED TO FIGHT FOR THE ULTIMATE PRIZE! Some socks...

My first ride since January 3rd and I go out and do a time trial in the snow! A little stupid maybe but I had a lot of fun. The woods were gorgeous in the snow — I had a blast seeing old friends and sliding through corners getting rad on Patrick the Paragon. My legs actually felt okay, but some of that was the numbness of the embrocation. Philip Hurst and Full Service Racing is putting on a killer winter series. I hope the weather cooperates and the trails stay in excellent condition. It's nice to see Harbin getting a lot of action — it's a cool trail and the second half of the loop is really killer, even though I was trying to ride conservative I really suffered!

At the end I had a sweet duel to the death with Matthew Stierwalt — and I bit it in a snow drift and he won the sprint/bike run! Epic crowd pleaser!


Rad photo by Nick Dunn.

Bad Case of Zabel-itis

This year I am always the bridesmaid and never the bride! Or in this case, I'm rollin' Zabel-style. Towards the end of his career Zabel would be wearing the green jersey without winning a stage. I guess it could be frustrating but I have to just laugh and feel pretty lucky that I end up near the sharp-end of the race/pack. I never expected any of this, I just love to ride a bike and sometimes I love to punish myself by riding hard. But mainly it's just a blast to go out and make friends and wail on each other.

Tonight's Kingswood CX TT was one of those nights where I could have got a win but I mucked it up and got the consolation prize. My fitness is pretty good, but my first lap was a total stinker and I actually flew through tape a couple times and derailled myself! I got to the end of the race and all the other racers I thought were my main competition had worse luck than me. I sat there thinking, "wow, my first first place of the year!" But a younger rider Sam rode like a madman and claimed the top spot by 20 seconds. I feel good losing to someone starting their career and I hope things only get better for him! I ended up getting second place a second time in the series and third overall.


I like Cory's props from his write up that I posted above.

Racing into 'Cross Fitness

Last year at this time I was racing less and using tools like the PowerTap to test myself and get ready for cross season. This year I am racing much more — and in some ways I am stronger, some ways I am weaker. I need to work on my accelerations/sprints/starts because I am really lacking there.


Race #38: Clawing My Way Out of the Cellar
I was very embarrassed to come in last place at East Fork, and this race I didn't want to let it happen again. I got off to an ok start at the beginning, but once the trail went farther than my pre-ride I ended up sucking it big time. There was a rocky technical section with cliffs, waterfalls and creek crossings — and I had some insomnia the night before and I started riding backwards... Five experts dudes passed me, then all these sport guys passed me! I was really sucking. Finally this guy passed me, and I could tell I was better than him and I got pissed off and started riding my legs off! I think I ended up passing four guys back (although some had to DNF eventually). Versailles is cool, there are some nice power sections. I was very excited to still average 12.3 mph and not to be in last, until I looked at the results and I was last in my age group (but all ages started at the same time, so am I not last?)…

Wednesday Night Cross Worlds
Did some battle with Mitch, but he took it easy on me because he rolled his tubular. The crowd was a little small — I actually came in first twice, but only because of Mitch's bad luck.

Race #42: The Running Man
I went to my first Kingswood TT. I opened up my kit bag and no shoes! So I had to do the TT wearing my running shoes. Everytime I caught air over a bump I prayed to God my feet would find the pedals before my balls hit the seat! I still got fourth! I had a heart rate monitor and I had that thing nailed at 167 - 171 hbpm for the first two laps. Next week I want to be more consistent with my lap times, I hate when I get slower! Lap 1 was 13:59, Lap 2 14:54, and Lap 3 was 15:08 for a total time of 44:01.


Race #43: Showing my butthole on TVMy mountain bike race at E/I got off to a bad start. My friend's wedding the night before left me a little stuffed and hung over! Before the race started my kit got caught on my saddle and tore a hole in the seat, and I think the local public access TV was there filming the race. I hope I looked good and didn't show too much to make the TV show R rated!

The race start was a little rough but I eventually started attacking all the hills and trying to use my cross fitness to crush the first half of every lap. Plus Bjet and I were together for a second but she crashed in a rocky creek bed. I made sure she was okay but she slowed a little after that. I ended up gaining some spots and did lose any! Whoa!

I was totally blown away by my results, I was very consistent every lap. I would use parts of the course to attack and parts to recover (winding sections of trees and downhills). My lap times were: 29:36, 29:09, 29:14 and 29:47! I came in 6th place! This was the best cross-country mountain bike race I have ever had! Last year I came in 9th in sport only averaging 10.65 mph — this year I topped that by averaging 12.48 mph.

Over the Hill and Through the Woods against the Clock We Go!

Bridget has always been a big fan of the Harbin Park MTB TTs so I thought it would make a great series for me to improve my MTB skills. And girls like guys with skills...

Week 2/Race #35–The Vomit Comet
I met Nate up at BioWheels but all these customers came in and we left the store really late. We thought, f' it, we'll just show up and ride the trails. But we get there, see all the people starting there TTs and they were nice enough to let us race. But no warm up. I got cyclocross puketastic on the first lap, redlining Mount Mutha. I think I got 24'sumthin" on the first lap. Here and there it was tough to carry speed because some corners were a bit slick because it rained a few days before. I blew up and lost all my piss and vinegar. I focused on being efficient but added a couple of minutes to my second lap. Every second does count! There were four riders within 30 seconds of me, mostly in front of me. I ended up being 6th place with 50:32, my splits were 24:31 on the first lap and 26:01 on the second.

Week 5/Race #37 — Rookie in the Corners
Man, I cam out of the gate riding like a total loser. I was extremely inefficient in the corners. I swear I could hear my 30 second man breathing down my neck. Tthey are so many power sections before Mount Muther F*ck*r that I have to ease off so I don't blow up. And I did blow, I think I looked at a rock funny while climbing that wall and I came off my bike! But I ran up CX style and got back on and did my first lap in 23:57. I think I opened up some air behind me. After I blow I work on being more efficient in the turns and keeping my wits about me. And it worked, I turned in a 23:53 second lap for a 47:50 total. There were four riders within 10 seconds of each other, and you wonder if I could have been faster without that bobble. I only averaged about 10 miles per hour...

Week 6/Race #39 — Dialed In!
I was psyched about my last lap at the John Byran race and I really tried to bring a more aggressive leaning into corner constantly pedaling riding style to this last TT. My pre-ride was miserable, but I used Nate's pump and I think my tires were low — making my riding sluggish and bogged down. I went out hard again, constantly on the verge of blowing up. After Mount Mother the rest of each lap is usually pretty miserable! I ended up catching one rider who also rode John Bryan, and then a second on the climb at the end of the lap. I think having that rider there was a big carrot to push me to go faster and I turned in a 23:10 lap! I wanted to power away so I didn't chill and didn't drink, and I think I paid later. All the power sections before Mt Mutha blew me up a bit, and I bobbled and had to run the hill while my left leg cramped. Ugh. But I recovered and caught a third rider! That second lap was a decent 23:49 for a total time of 46:59, nipping under the 47" mark. I might have been second fastest on the night averaging about 10.7 miles per hour.

I was really happy to be improving and love having this TT as a nice tool to gauge fitness and skill. Between my three times I averaged 48:26 per lap at about 10.4 miles per hour. Hopefully I can go faster next year!

Contre Le Montre, Le Commute à Vitesse

This is dorky but sometimes to get into race fitness by time trialing my commute to work. I find it is almost the time of a cross race. I used to do it a lot more last year, but then I had less training hours because of a busy schedule so I would push intensity.

I was running late this morning and I set a blistering pace! On my 23 lb. steel Jamis Quest no less!

Commute from Madisonville via Fairfax Bike Trail, Erie Hill, Down Delta, Riverside Drive, up Eggleston, over 9th and down Race.
9.8 Miles of EcoRace Luv.

Big Ring Throwdown this mornin'
00:31:46

06/05/2009
00:32:30

On Aluminum Cross Bike
04/29/2009
00:32:45

Contre le Montre

If you overheard me speaking French you would think that I am against a small town in Switzerland, but what I mean is the race against the clock. Since Mohican I haven't done a good job of following a specific plan in my training. Here and there I have been doing sprints, but no 10, 20, 30 or 60 minute powertests. Today I got a bit bored so I thought I would do some intervals against the clock — so I can track my progress thoughout the rest of the year.

Finding Form on Kuglar Mill
Last year I did a series of PowerTests on Kuglar Mill. Bridget developed this workout with her Coach Bill Pryor. I shortened my time trial course this year (last year I would race to the stop sign, perhaps a safety issue!). I have attached a diagram of my attempts this year.


It was so hot today, the heat index in the upper-90s, but I held on without throwing up and set two times that smashed my previous efforts! I ended up riding my new course in 6:23 averaging 16.4 mph.

Jimmy's Hour Record
Well it was so hot out that I decided to take refuge on the Little Miami Scenic Trail, but that can be quite a boring ride. Since it was a Friday afternoon I knew it wouldn't be too crowded so I thought I would attempt my own personal dorky hour record. I was inspired by the old Eddy Merckx movie in the velodrome.


So I barreled along, hoping to find some form for cross. I ended up riding 21.15 miles in one hour (with stop signs and the occasional passing of slower cyclists). It's okay, I'll take it. I think I can do better, we'll see!

There is a mountain high enough

And it's just a hill... Alas, episode 3 in my quest to topple Bridget's supposed 7:15 up Kuglar Mill. It's not a steep hill, it just makes you try to ride it faster so that any changes in grade make you suffer.

I began to feel the only way to get stronger was to head off to some mountains. I noticed it was difficult to surpass the 7:31 time I set after returning from the climbs in Oregon. But a few weeks ago I felt great in cross practice, finding power I didn't know I had, and pulled off a 7:24.

So I borrowed Bridget's powertap again and had at it. I decided to take this weekend off from racing so I chose to do 4 ascents to mimic the effort required by a race. This time I analyzed some of the data (average wattage, i.e. ) from my last ride and applied it to this attempt.

I pushed myself to maintain a wattage of 320-350 and no less than 280 on any section of steeper grade. Any flatter section I spun out and pushed less watts in an effort to rest.

I was facing a rather cold and windy day, noticing also my rear tire was about 90psi and absentmindedly carried a bottle about one quarter up my first climb. But I squeeked out a 7:23 with the hopes of beating that 7:15 some day! I had to average over 16 mph up the climb to beat it. I remember a younger version happy to ride up there at 10 mph!

Need more POWER!

This has been a tough month. I've taken a few breaks off the bike and lost a bit of what little top end power and endurance I had. So I decided to borrow Bridget's power meter for the first time.

For the past few years Bridget and I have used a moderate hill call Kuglar Mill as test of form. So after a 78 mile ride with my friend Tony I thought I would climb Kuglar Mill to chart where I am at in form and power. It isn't tough, but the 3-5% gradient pushes you to maintain a high speed and you eventually grind yourself into the ground.

Hopefully as my shoulder heals and I get more time on the bike and begin to train for cyclocross I will see progress and a return to the form I had earlier in the season. I will track my progress on the blog, as well as my attempt to break Bridget's supposed 7:15 record.

I want to thank my échappé homies Bridget, Joe & Rachel, Tony, Jaden and Scott for the many group miles this month. Usually group rides only make up 10% of my training, but this month it has been over half. Thanks for the company!

Hour Record

I love this old video. Great editing, I wonder if Jorgen Loth did it.

Anyway it raises a question... What would my personal one hour be? If you ever see me haulin' ass on the bike path maulin' over toddlers and grannies you'll know why.