Back in the Game

So I'm officially back in the game. All of us Faux-Pros gathered in Bloomington this week to have a team training/ drinking eek-stravaganza to ring in the New Year, and get the training jump-started. Today was the first ride of the week, and we had a good crowd consisting of all the teammates but one, and a few locals to help us slog out the miles without getting too bored. We went out for a bit over 4 hours and did some pretty solid climbs on the south side of town. I think we all went a little bit harder than we wanted, but it just felt good to get out on the bike. Tomorrow looks like some more decent weather and we're going to try to get 5 hours or so in. It's been super rad to catch up with Chris and Kim while they've been kickin' it at our Pad, they even brought Berg (dog) to join the party as well. This should be an entertaining crew to have a little New Years shin-dig with too.

I know this training camp seems like all fun and games, however, we have some real business to take care of. We are going to work on getting our race schedules for next year tentatively set up. It looks like we're going to be doing some real traveling to get all the way out to Elite Nats in Orange County, California, should be a coo site though.

So back on the real world front, I have been going to the bank to make deposits for work once a week for the last 3 weeks. When I roll to the bank I try to bring the A game. Why, you ask? Because there is a fine dime piece that works there that I'm trying to spit game in her general direction. The best part about it is that I think she's probably a few years older than me, and that would be quite the pick up for someone who looks 16 (according to the lady who cuts my hair). But I think I've got a real shot, she seems to be feelin' it. Who knows? But hey, Good Looking Girl at the Bank, if you are reading this, we should go out for a drink sometime.

Wish me luck loyal readers...

Another One Bites the Dust

Well another year of bike racing is in the books. This year was better than the last and I hope next year will be even better. As I was looking back over my results from this year, I counted a total of 74 races this year. That's including cross, road, collegiate and even 1 mountain bike race. That is over double the number of races I did last year. I hope I can even do a few more in 08, but try to plan a little bit better so I can get the most out of every season. I've also been thinking a lot during my time off about some goals for next year. It isn't really that easy to set appropriate goals for yourself, so I am still undecided on what my official goals for 08 will be as far as road stuff goes, but I kinow one thing that I am going to concentrate a bit more on next year is CX. Hopefully I'll end the road season early enough to get a bit of rest and gear back up for the pursuit of UCI points on the cross bike. I know it's a long way off, but I know that's something I really want to go after full steam next year.

Since my last update I've been able to actually think biking and get some bike work done over the past few days. My personal mechanic Andy Messer hooked me up with a sweet Campy shifter rebuild to \ get all of that nasty cross gunk out that had accumulated this season, and I spent the last few days stripping my Campy Record/ Mavic Reflex Tubular cx wheels of glue, and glued up some gum walled vittoria tubies to actually do some training on. Yep, thats right, tubies for training. I don't know why I'm doing it but it might be cool, or I might just flat every day and want to kill myself. Either way, those wheels look very Spring Classic-ish right now.

Also during this time off from the bike I have been really keeping up on the cross dudes who are over in Belgium throwin down. Cyclingnews has had some good features on the Euro Cross Camp, as well as frequent blog updates from Tristan Schouten, Jeremy Powers, and Molly Cameron. So far as a whole the Euros are beating us down pretty good, but it's just nice to see some dues over there mixin it up with the big boys. J-Pow was had a few good finishes, but everone else have yet to put it together.

I'll be heading over to start the official road season training on Sunday. I got the new plan from Jackson, and I like the way he's got it set up. I couldn't be more motivated, and I'm ready to crush some skulls.


P.S. I bought a pair of Limited Edition Neon Green Oakley Radars like Vino and Millar were wearing in The Tour this year... I can't wait for them to arrive, I'm going to look like a clown! So if you're wondering why I have those pics in this blog entry, now you know.

Looking Ahead

So I'm almost halfway through my offy, and stuff for 08 is coming together well. We got our Proofs back from Champion Systems, and our Specialized order is going to be processed around the first of the new year. In light of all of that I decided that I would share with you guys what some of our stuff will look like next year.

Jersey


Bibs


Arm Warmers


Leg Warmers


Bikes


Kicks


Thats the main stuff, or at least the stuff I think is important. I think the kits are going to go together pretty well.
I'm loving this time off, but I can't wait to get together with everyone for the camp. It should be some good team bonding time, with a little riding sprinkled in between all of the ridiculous moments. It's one thing to race on a team with a bunch of strong guys, but these guys are all beasts and they are even more hilarious to be around. This next year should be awesome!

On a side note, I don't know if you noticed, but yesterday was the Winter Solstice! That means we will finally be getting some of our day light back. It also means warm weather is just around the corner...

I hope everyone is enjoying their Holiday Season. I am, I'm getting fat... I love it.


Peace Cuz

Running from Tim Johnson

Well, we made it back from the tundra of Kansas City late last night and I slept like a baby. I spent the day today tearing down the cross bike so that I can rebuild it and have it work properly again, something it hasn't done in a while. On to the the race report...

It was 8 degrees out when we went out to the course at 9am for Pam's Collegiate race. I had tons of clothes on and I still couldn't keep warm, I was scared of what it would be like when I had to strip down to just the skinsuit. So later on in the day, the sun decided to join the party, which was good for my warmth, but it made the race course super muddy. So I had been talking about my start number being so bad, but I didn't actually think I would be in the very last row, I was wrong. The gun went off and I felt helpless as the leaders raced up the first hill and I stood there with one foot down waiting for the sea of riders to start to go forward. Once I was moving, the first lap was pretty much a blur. I went as hard as I could and tried to touch the brakes a little as possible. After the race I would learn that at one point I had made it all the way up to 23rd at one point during that opening lap. It was pure chaos, but maybe I should go like that more often. I was bangin' off random dudes, bangin' my knees on fence stakes, and monster truckin over anyone who fell in my path. I really don't remember much of the race, except for the the super loud screams from Mike, Pam, and Isaac, as well Kip and the Lindsey Wilson crew going nuts. Kip even flashed me one time through. I was pretty far into the hurt locker, but I couldn't help but laugh. Thanks to everyone, for everything! 2 laps in I was pushing it a bit hard and biffed it pretty good in one of the off camber corners, as I was sliding and bouncing over the ruts, I hear the sound of cracking plastic. I had broken my front brake lever, so I raced the rest of the race with basically no brakes. I wrecked a few more time but seemed to still be going the right direction. I knew I was having an ok ride because I wasn't far behind Matt White, and he is a bad ass. I couldn't ever catch him, but Tim Johnson did catch me. A couple hundred meters from the line where I would have been taking the bell for my last lap, TJ and Page were battling it out for the stars and bars, so I got out of their way and let them by, so close. In 34th place, it was still my best finish in a UCI race this year.

Now I am enjoying my first day off my 2 weeks off. I have a decent bit of bike work to do, but having raced in the mud for what seems like a month straight, I am going to put that off for a few days until I feel like seeing a bike again. I'm not really sure what my blogging will be like during the offy, but I try to keep on top of things.

p.s. look for official team jersey proofs for the 08 road season to pop up soon.

Thanks for readin'!

Cross Nats from the Sidelines

Mike, Pam, and Isaac got out here yesterday, and I moved hotels. The new one is way too classy for me, but really nice though.This new hotel wants us to pay for internet, so we decided to go to Panera to do our blog updates. I also wanted to say thanks to all of those friends who sent me email, texts, facebook messages, or called me to congratulate me on all the face time I have been receiving, so thanks to all of you! Unfortunately I think that is the last you'll be seein' of my mug on the interweb. I don't know how well it's going to be tomorrow starting 159th, but I guess Ill just have to see. Today's U23 race was super spread out and it was only 120 riders, the dudes in the back were already a minute down after a quarter of a lap. Mike and Isaac both road well today, ending up 14th and 13th respectively. Mike flatted on the first lap and I had to play mechanic for him with a bike exchange on the 2nd lap. He was struggling for the first couple laps after that to find a groove and he was going backwards, luckily he got it together, started drooling, and plowed through the field to make it into the top 15. Isaac got a decent start, and slowly picked some people off and then help his position for the remainder of the race. If the race had been one lap longer I think we would have gotten to see a sprint between the roommates.

The course condition were better today, I guess. The cold and new snow hardened up the mud to make it lots of firm ruts. It looked brutal to ride on, I hope it is similar for the Elite race tomorrow. I am not sure if I am mentally or physically ready for this race tomorrow, I need to get my shit together and just do it.

We saw Johnathan Page pre-riding the course this morning, he looks pretty f-ing fast, and sweet. I think my prediction for tomorrow is J Page and Trebon will battle it out, but I really hope Super Dope Todd Wells can put something together and pull out the win. Either way, I think it should favor the mtn biker types.

One more bike race, then I get to let my body heal... I need it bad.

"Knapp Time in Kansas City"

So the first race of the weekend went pretty well. I started in the last row of the 63 starters, luckily there was a long road section up a hill that let me move up in to top ten into the first corner. I slowly picked off a few riders and some others crashed, and before I knew it I was in a lead group of 3 guys. I passed them both through one of the barrier sections and never really saw them again. I just tried to keep it upright over the numerous off-camber sections of the course. One lap when I came through with a decent gap, the announcer said "It's Knapp time in Kansas City"... pretty hilarious. I cruised in for the W and had enough time to wipe the mud off the chest of my jersey to make sure the BikeReg.com logo was visible. Gotta keep those sponsors happy... At the podium presentation I got a Sram Rival crankset, a crate of California Giant Strawberries (aka dinner) and a bottle of wine with the KCCX Nats logo on the lable. Pretty good stuff!


The rest of the weekend should be super sloppy, all of this ice and snow are melting pretty fast and the more riders that get on the course are just trashing it. I wouldn't be surprised to see lots of running later in the weekend as conditions deteriorate. Here are a few pics to show the guys back home what's waiting for them.

Off-Camber Slop


More Mud


The Only Barriers


Start/Finish


SRAM Pit


First Corner


Thats all for now, laters

La Quinta- Spanish for $59 Bucks a Night?

Well I'm here in KC, posted up in my room at the La Quinta Inn. I booked this hotel online and wasn't sure what to expect, but to my surprise, this place is dope. My room is large and clean, there is a Chipotle and Subway across the street, there is a Denny's across the parking lot. The free breakfast looks pretty nice, aaaaaand there is a liquor store across the street. What more could I ask for? If only the weather were as awesome as my La Quinta Inn. As I made my way across Missouri today the scenery quickly changed from normal boring midwest scenery, to boring midwest scenery covered with snow and ice. There are a few inches of snow on the ground, with a solid covering of ice. I can't wait to see what racing on this stuff is going to be like. I took some pictures of the trees and snow and other stuff on the way out here, but I'm feeling pretty lazy, so I don't know if I'll upload the pics. I race at 10 am tomorrow, and then dont have anything to do for a really long time, so I may get creative with my blogging.
OK I need to go dial in the brakes on the bike before tomorrow.

This update was lame.

Remix

As I sit here sipping my Vanilla Latte (I really like the girlie coffee drinks if you haven't noticed), pondering today's happenings, I struggle to put it all into words. When we rolled up to the race we stopped to say hi to Kip, he said, "It's like last weekend- The Remix." He was right, it was just like last weekend only worse. It rained more, I sucked more and my bike got more messed up. The rain had made the the course the muddiest I have ever been on. It was soup. I never thought I would need an easier gear than my 42-23 for a course the was mostly flat, I was wrong! I ran about 20 psi f&r and that still wasn't low enough. To make matters worse, I couldn't get into my easiest gear, so I now had a 42-21, not cool.

I got a good start and spent the first few laps trying to convince myself that I could push that gear, it wasn't working out so well. I was pretty blown after 2- ten minute laps, then luckily Isaac wised up and dropped out, so I could have his rear wheel with a 25 on it. This helped, but I just didn't have enough left. I was also having a tough time with all of the running we had to do, I would say maybe 4-5 minutes per lap. This really wasn't making my nagging leg/groin injury feel very well either. So for the next 40 minutes I drifted back slowly to finish in 7th place... that sucks pretty bad, especially since the field wasn't as good as in weeks past. The best part about today was the fact that there was a spray car wash just down the road form the race and I rode there after the race and hosed myself and my bike off.

I got home and did some re-greasing and cable replacing, but the bike it still hurting a little, I think the shifters need to be rebuilt, but they'll make it through nats. Props to Andy Messer for breakin' through and getting that result he had been looking for this cx season.

Off to KC on Wednesday for Cross Nationals... Lets hope for a minimal amount of mud. This time next week my 2 weeks off the bike will be O-ficcially underway.

How you gonna rip it like that son?

Steve Roszko from BikeReg.com emailed me these pictures from Ohio a few weeks ago. That dude might be better than Mike at finding Cross pics online.





That's all for now. No blogging at work!

Check it

I have already linked this guys blog to my blog, but you should all check this out because this dude GETS IT!

PRO Defined: http://www.belgiumkneewarmers.com/2007/02/pro.html
Copy and Paste that shiz!


On another note, this dude is no longer in Bloomington, and it's a tragedy! I can't wait to have you keepin the races in check for the team this summer broseph!

Abused

I was hoping to do the abusing today, however, I was the one who got abused. The course abused me, the weather abused me, and the riders abused me. It really wasn't all that bad, but I am hella sore after today's race. I have umpteen bruises and cuts all over my body from my double digit number of wrecks. Oh well, I guess that bike racin' bra!

I felt pretty good this week leading up to the race, and I hoping that I would be able to do something come Sunday. But... some days you have it, other days you don't. Today I didn't have it. I wasn't feeling horrible, just not well enough to stay with the leaders and fight my way back after my numerous mistakes and crashes. The course was pretty similar to the USGP course, only this time it was waaaay more muddy. On top of the already sloppy conditions, 15 minutes in it started to POUR, like seriously coming down hard. I don't know if this made it worse or not, but I was already out of touch with the front of the race anyway. I ended up in 6th place, not terrible, just not what I was hoping for.

While I was working on my bike when we got home tonight I realized that one of the wrecks today had put a nice dent in my top tube of my Ridley, GREAT... Once again, that's racin' bra.

So also in a recent fit of stupidity, I decided that I would go to Cross Nationals in Kansas City. I had planned on not going, so I didn't register. Now that I had a change of heart, I registered and got starting position number 143... wow! Oh well, I'm just going to go hard for an hour and see how many people I can pick off. I'm also going to do the "B" race on thursday to make my trip out to KC more worthwhile. Also, if anyone is going out there or knows someone who has some extra space in their hotel, holler at me, because currently I am sleeping in my car...

laters

It's a Sledgehammer

After some morning internet browsing and a girlie Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha, Me and the roommates (Pam, you're basically a roommate) headed out on the cross bikes to Griffey to do some rippin' on the trails. Besides riding the trails for about an hour and a half, we also ramped our rigs off every slight up-slope in Bloomington. Pam was wielding the camera to capture some of our stupidity.


Mike giving Pam some pointers


Isaac bustin' a sweet 180


Me catchin' some mad air...


Mike rockin' the retro 2CC kit

In other news, today I walked into the shop and found the new Velonews sitting on the counter. I picked it up and flipped through the first few pages. I stopped at one that looked familiar.


Upon closer examination, I recognized someone... OH SNAP! Thats me in the BikeReg kit!

Nothing like some Velonews Face Time to get the day off to a good start.

Kentucky tomorrow, I'm psyched!