Revisiting Writing for 2017

Over the past several months I have been doing much self reflection and taking time and efforts to work on bettering myself so that I might be better able to help others.   

In years past I have written about goals for the year. Most often those focused on cycling and triathlon related goals or school completion items. This year is a little different as focus has gradually shifted away from racing (as the blog used to be built around). 

Action items for 2017:

1) I want to read 10 books (one a month is ideal but I’m factoring in some travel and crazy times around the holidays)

2) I would like to write and post something at least once a month. Posting it means that I am writing for a potential audience and will be held accountable. Regardless if 0 people read it or 100.

3) Complete a daily journal for the entire year to focus on gratitude and appreciating the things I have. (The Five Minute Journal -- Recommendation from Tim Ferriss)

4) Find a way to give back to the community I live in. (I have two irons in the fire on this one currently)

5) This will remain as an asterisk as I know what it is but not ready for everyone else

These are also a focus on SMART Goals: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time based.

Year in Review: 2013

2013 was a miraculous year. I couldn't have asked for a better comeback to cycling after my crash and surgery in 2012. I got my first Physical Therapy related job with 2 great co-workers and travel companions. I met an amazing girl and started a very fulfilling relationship that pushes me to better myself. I traveled. I traveled for sport, for work, for family, and fun. I had more life experiences than ever before.

Looking back on the goals I set for myself in 2013:

1. TORBRA Cat 1 BAR Champion
2. TBRA Cat 4 BAR Champion
3. Xterra Southeast Regional Champion
4. TBRA Cat 4 Crit State Champion
5. TORBRA Cat 1 XC State Champion
6. Xterra USA National Champion
7. Continue to succeed in school by learning all I need to know
8. Maintain my GA position by staying on top of my hours
9. Train methodically and scientifically for better performance
10. Fully adapt and incorporate my new, less stressful running stride
11. Travel more, for races and to visit friends
12. Ride 5,000 miles

Goal 1: accomplished
Goal 2: missed; I upgraded to Cat 3 right before State Crit thinking I had enough points and it would be much more rewarding to win the Cat 3 State Crit than the Cat 4 State Crit. In the end, someone surpassed me in the Cat 4 standings. I will still have to pay race entry's in 2014.
Goal 3: I scrapped triathlons for 2013 once my success on the bike took off. I also say it's because of my new knee not being able to withstand running early on. missed
Goal 4: I upgraded this goal to the next category. And accomplished.
Goal 5: accomplished
Goal 6: Traded in for Collegiate Track Nats; didn't bring home any hardware, so missed.
Goal 7: I passed...so far. Unfortunately facing issues that might prevent me from returning this spring and graduating on time. Pray for me. accomplished
Goal 8: accomplished (Spring term only)
Goal 9: accomplished, very pleased with that one
Goal 10: missed, gave up on running, doing better thought
Goal 11: accomplished, immensely more than I could have imagined including out of the country
Goal 12: accomplished, in the middle of August

That's 8/12, so 66%. I have to do better than that on my Boards to pass, but with these goals and what I've accomplished and gained in 2013, I am very happy and satisfied.

2014 will bring a whole new set of 'firsts' and life experiences. I will hopefully be graduating in May, dependent upon some people letting me start clinic or not. I will get my license to practice Physical Therapy. I will accept my first Physical Therapy position. I will move to a stable residence, probably. There are several hard choices in there though. I don't know where, geographically, the best location is for me and what's going on in my life right now. Geography also plays a big role in which PT position I decide to accept. I'll just keep living and praying for the best, knowing things will work themselves out under His direction.

Race Report: Velodrome Cup Pro Race Series

This past weekend was the last of the Pro Race Series at the Dick Lane Velodrome in Atlanta. I’ve enjoyed my time down there this year getting to know some really good people and learning to rail 180° turns at over 40mph. I’ve come a long way since that cold and snowy day in March when I completed my beginner track class, but I still have a lot to learn on the track.

I was fortunate enough to get upgraded to the A category for this last Pro Race which meant I got to mix it up with the big boys. (And race for big money) I wasn’t good enough to make the final podium, but I did manage to grab wins in both the 3 lap time trial and the flying 1 lap time trial. I was pleased with my times on these events as they were both PRs. The flying 1 lap time actually made the track record at 19.376s. Another plus of these results was that they let me see where I am physically going into collegiate nationals next week. I think I’m right on schedule.

I had picked out a few of the 8 races I would really try to score points in and just considered the other races as survival events, trying not to go down the rankings too far. Those targeted events (except for the timed events) didn’t exactly unfold as planned, but that’s what happens when some really fast guys show up. I knew Thomas Brown would be hard to handle, but I was thoroughly surprised and impressed by the riding of Brody Hartley who ended up winning the overall. He sure has learned and developed a lot from his time spent at T-Town this summer.

Final Podium: Brody Hartley, Thomas Brown, Steve Carrell

Standings going into the last race of the night. 

The afternoon session included the 3 lap Merckx TT (1^st), a 30 lap Split-Scratch (7^th), and a 60 lap Points Race (9^th). The evening session, or ‘main event’ with rider introductions, included the flying 1 lap (1^st), a 20 lap Reverse Snowball (3^rd), a Miss-n-Out (9^th), a Win-n-Out (5^th), and a 1 mile Scratch Race (7^th). The Points Race and the Miss-n-Out are the bane of my existence so I wasn’t expecting much there. I was expecting a little better in the Win-n-Out and the Scratch Race, but by that time of the night, my legs were pretty toast. I had already pretty much locked in my omnium position so there wasn’t much left to fight for. With those results I finished 4th in the omnium giving me my biggest cycling pay day to date.

Overall, it was a great time and fun day at the track that finished with a night out in Midtown Atlanta with some of the GA Tech boys. What a night. None of this possible without the help of Wayne Whitesides, Nathaniel Rowe, and Christian DiCenso. Thanks Guys.

I have 4 more races left this year. I registered for them today, shipped my bike out yesterday, leave for Colorado on Tuesday, and start racing one week from today. Time to finish strong. 

(Here's the link to an awesome video from the races Saturday: here)

I made the program!

Poor guy separated his shoulder

Waiting at the boards

Rider Introduction

Race Report: State Championship Criterium

Boom goes the dynamite! It was a blast surging up that final hill, braking into the final corner, jumping out of the final corner, kicking one more time, then sitting up to exclaim my excitement for winning the race I've been trying to win for two years. Winning State Crit was one of my goals from 2012. Unfortunately, I was hit by a car in June of 2012 and had to watch the State Crit in Cookeville from the sidelines as I stood in a knee immobilizer and on crutches. That day I watched Will Montgomery win the Cat 4 State Crit and Alan Rothrock win the Cat 3 State Crit. This past Sunday in Murfreesboro, I beat both of them to win my first State Crit Championship in the Cat 3's: my first Cat 3 race.

This is how it went down:

The latest forecast was calling for isolated thunderstorms late in the afternoon around Murfreesboro, like after 3pm. My race was at 12:40. However, about 20 miles from the exit, I ran into a hard downpour of rain. Once I showed up to the race, the course was drenched. I was told stories of the master's riders that started crashing hard as soon as the rain began in their race. Not what I was looking forward to. Knowing my braking is less than optimal with my carbon wheels and that I appreciate them too much to crash them and break them in this race, I made the hard decision to pull the Zipp 404's off my bike, change out the brake pads, and put back on my clunky, aluminum training wheels with a balding and cracking rear tire. I warmed up on the trainer, did a short effort on the back road, one quick lap to see the course and the wet spots, and we were lined up ready to start racing.

Off the Start Line

Like most races go, before I knew it we were starting. And off went the first attack. A VW rider went off the front for about the first 3-4 laps. I stayed calm and just moved my way up the pack, knowing who I needed to watch for. More attacks came and usually hard surges up the back side hill. Feeling like I had been working a bit, I looked down to see how much time we had run off. We were only 10 minutes into the 50 minute race, crap.

Another lap around and another attack went up the hill. We were heading into the last corner, a 90 degree left turn to the finish 100 meters down the road. Well, Will shot up the inside to cut the corner, the line I was set up for. His rear wheel hit mine. I ripped my left foot out of the pedal ready to catch myself, my bike wobbled. I couldn't move out because another rider's rear wheel was also there. Our wheels ground together for several revolutions. Somehow I stayed up and safe. It wasn't intentional to me and he checked back to make sure I was okay after we were through the corner. It was still scary though.

More attacks went off the front, usually attacking from the back side hill leading to the finish line. I watched some go, but made sure I followed and chased all of them down that had the important people in it. I knew who had been winning this year in the cat 3's. I knew who was at the top of the leader board for the Best Area Rider (BAR) classification; the guys that needed to score points. When those guys went, I went. And I was right on every one of the attacks. It pushed me, but I was able to continually respond. I caught some flak later on for not pulling as much, but I feel I did a fair share. Plus, I wasn't racing for anyone else. I had no teammates. I was racing for me. If they wanted the field strung out, if they wanted to set something up, if they wanted to breakaway, then they were welcome to go ahead and do it. I would be right there on their wheel.

See, I did more than one lap on the front.

Matching Attacks

Things had been drying out since I got there and by the time my race started the course was essentially dry. By the halfway mark, I was telling myself, "Man, I really wish I would have put my Zipp's back on. I could be rolling so much faster." And right on cue, it started raining again. It rained hard for maybe 15 minutes. Sitting on wheels became irritating as the water was flung into your face from the rear wheel in front of you, hot from the pavement. The race slowed down, and I took things extra cautious through the corners letting gaps open around most of them. I made sure I stayed up front during all of this. I was determined to not go down. I was scared to go down. Thankfully, not as many attacks were going off the front, discouraged I guess from the rain and the imminent final sprint.

One rider attacked with 2 laps to go. Coming into the first corner of the course, I could hear riders hitting the deck as carbon bounced off the pavement behind me. I was extremely thankful for my top 5 positioning as the crashes were behind me and only bettered my chances at this point, not the first time this has happened this year.

Playing Games

Closing in on 1 lap to go, I could see the breakaway rider was slowing and shouldn't be a threat. Then somehow I got caught on the front of whatever remained of the field. I would be left to lead the field around the last lap of the race and make the final push to bring this breakaway rider in. I still took everything cautiously knowing the real "storm" was about to explode as we approached the backside hill for the last time. I came around the big sweeping 120' turn. I picked up some speed and began watching over my right shoulder as I was close to the left gutter. I heard something back to my left and looked around to see Will attacking up the left side. As he passed by me on the left, a big attack came from the right. It was time to go. I began accelerating knowing we were a long way from the line. For a few seconds both riders stayed in front of me. I worried...for a second. Then my pedals really began to turn. I was off. They dropped out of my periphery as I approached the final turn. I stopped pedaling well before the turn and braked through the first part of the corner, feeling no one close to me through the corner. Once I felt safe from the slick asphalt, I stood up to finish my sprint for the line. In that burst my rear wheel hopped over some pavement. I pushed on and laid down some power. I looked over my shoulder and was finally certain I had just won the race. I gave a Hulk salute to the crowd and screamed with excitement, hands up across the line.

Finishing Straight

"Roaring" Finish

With that win, I finalized the triple crown of cycling winning all three disciplines of cycling on the road: the State Championship time trial, road race, and criterium for 2013. Throw in the State Championship Cross Country race and the BAR Championship I have locked up in the Cat 4's and it's been a very good year for me knocking down several goals. I'm thrilled to be doing so well this year after such a big injury last year. Maybe that's what it took for me to focus down on one sport and get really determined to push myself and make something happen. I thank HUB Endurance and BRL Sports for keeping me equipped and fueled with all the top end products and services. You guys have been great.

Cat 3 State Crit Podium

Race Report: State XC Championship

I was unsure how this race would go. I hadn't been feeling too good on the bike the past few weeks, unable to put out consistent power, and I haven't mountain biked much at all this year. I think the race was actually only the 6th time I've ridden my mountain bike all year. My roots are in mountain biking, but I haven't watered those roots since my devastating mechanicals in the ITU Cross Tri World Championships last May. Nevertheless, I pressed on and decided to do the race since it was in my backyard. The race would cap off my 6 week stay in Memphis this summer for an acute care rehab rotation for PT school.

I decided to not make the same mistakes I made in the first race of the season at the Pick Your Poison XC here in Chattanooga. The guy that beat me at that race would also be on the start line in Memphis, along with good friend and former co-worker Matt McCulley and one more racer.

We started hard from the gun, but I made sure not to be the first one to hit the trail, I did not want to lead everyone. I fell in behind Matt for second wheel. Taking an alternate route on a steep downhill section, I fell back one place and was now sitting 3rd wheel. A few miles later, I heard the guy riding in 4th crash. After a few miles of him not catching back on, I figured we had dropped him and he would no longer be in contention for the race. The 3 of us rode through the start/finish to start lap two. Matt attacked hard through the technical section of trail and stayed away for a few minutes. We caught back on after the steep section and continued to pedal on in our 3 man formation. The two lead riders gap'ed me a few times and Matt was even out of sight once or twice. I keep pushing on calmly and usually made up the ground when the trail went up.

In tight 3 man configuration.

About mile 6 into lap two, the rider in 2nd wheel attacked in an open section. Matt, who had been leading the entire race, sat up. He asked me if I was going to chase it down. I then realized Matt had no intention of chasing the rider breaking away. I had to jump. I closed the gap down pretty quickly and was on the lead rider's wheel by the time we dropped back into the tougher trail section. The pace had picked up. The trail was more fun and dangerous now. The two of us rode together through the start/finish again and started lap 3 together.

Railing a corner.

I had noticed this rider wasn't racing with a camelbak, but using one water bottle. I also noticed he hadn't been drinking much and he actually dropped his bottle at about mile 10 of lap two. I was expecting him to fad before the end of the third lap, especially if we kept up the pace we were setting. And this is exactly what happened. This is where I must credit and thank the people at BRL Sports for their awesome drink ENDURAFUEL. It kept me moving, hydrated, and fueled with amino acids and complex carbs in the hot and muggy woods of Nesbit Park. There was no fading or cramping for me. Anyway, riding through the steep section at the beginning of the 3rd lap, this rider went off course a bit and barely caught himself before crashing. I slowed up a bit and waited for him to get his feet back in the pedals and moving on the trail. Instead, he told me to go on, that his "leg had locked up." So I took off. I shifted up and darted down the trail trying to get as far out of sight as possible in case he was only sidelined for a few seconds. I rode the rest of that lap solo, getting to push myself as hard as I wanted and really enjoy the whole trail. I took a few more risks, and then would back off a bit. My riding was getting a little sloppy and I knew the most important thing was not crashing, not having a mechanical, and most importantly not flatting. I railed corners and hopped over roots praying not to hear that hissing sound that can and has deflated my heart in the past.

Up and Over.

Closing in on the finish, I finally felt comfortable about my position around mile 9.5. I settled in and railed the last downhill section and cruised across the bridge into the finish for the solo victory. It felt great to come away with the mountain bike state championship, something I wanted to achieve but hadn't fully committed to. Goal #5 check. And it also puts me in the lead for goal #1. A good showing in Memphis for the Chattanooga based road and cyclocross HUB Endurance Cycling Team. BTW, Matt came back to catch the 2nd place rider 50 meters from the finish and beat him for 2nd place in an awesome sprint finish with a bike throw. Awesome job and congratulations to Matt McCulley. Oh, and unfortunately I think somewhere along the race course I might have cracked my Niner Air 9 Carbon frame around the seatpost. Haven't heard anything back from them yet, but hopefully they work with me on this.

The next big challenge will be the State Road Race Championship. Thankfully my performance has been coming back over the past week and a half with some good power numbers for the times I think it will take to complete the climbs on the course. With 5 mid race climbs, it will still be a hard and challenging race. May the best rider win. I must admit that my real focus has already moved away from the road and is centered on the track. I've been enjoying my time in Atlanta and have a few big races and a training camp lined up for the rest of the season. I'll say bye to long endurance rides and pick up on all intervals of 5 minutes and less.

Race Report: Athens Twilight

After almost 4 hours in the car Friday evening, I finally made it to Athens. I was welcomed by some really cool fraternity guys yelling at me and chasing my car for turning around in their driveway. Thanks to Paul M. I had a nice place to stay that was close to downtown and both races. Not long after arriving I was settling into the couch for some sleep before the early race the next morning.

I had my breakfast, loaded up the car, and headed out to find the parking area for the first race of the day. Pulling in I saw my teammate Ben which was going to be nice to get ready alongside a familiar face. Since it was wet and still drizzling a bit, I decided to scrap the carbon wheels and just put them back in the trunk. Best decision of the weekend. I changed out my brake pads and put my aluminum wheels on in the parking lot before heading out to registration to pick up my number. This is when I realized I left my wallet in my clothes bag which was back at the house. After the trip to fetch my wallet, I made my way to pick up my number and finally had it pinned on my skinsuit with about 20 minutes to race start. I dressed in a hurry, not evening changing socks due to lack of time leaving me racing in the rain with cotton socks. With 13 minutes til race time, Ben and I departed the cars and headed for the start/finish area. So much for a warm-up before a crit. About this time I was realizing my breakfast was not substantial enough and I was already getting hungry. I also didn't have my coffee or bring an energy gel for the race. Everything was just looking up for me at this point.

We waited on the sidelines as the race before us finished. The official said we had time for one practice lap before the start if we wanted. Not having warmed up or seen the course, I decided to go and ride a lap. I was the only one. Bad decision. When I came back around, I was at the very back of the pack of 50+ racers. Walking my bike, I started to move up close to Ben for a better position when all of a sudden the race had started. I couldn't hear the official up front and had no idea we were about to start. I hopped over my saddle and onto the bike. The rider to my right leaned over into me causing me to rub wheels with the guy in front of me. I saved the fall, but was unclipped and on my feet again. I hopped on my bike again and was off for the race. I looked back and there was only one racer behind me and the motor bike with a lot of ground between me and the peloton. There was going to be a lot of chasing.

I think after two laps, I was finally up into the field. Around this time, there was at least a two man crash in corner 4 as I saw two bikes fly into the air on the inside line of the corner. I was behind the crash and had to come to a standstill before we could navigate around it. I was then chasing the peloton again, this time up the hill to the finish line. Another lap down and I moved all the way up to the front for a one lap pull and to see the best route around the course. I was swarmed and started dropping back again after this, this was the very common in this race. There were definitely some sketchy racing going on and several times I got pinched in corners by some juniors who verbally responded to me announcing my presence with sheer class and safety in mind.

I had noticed one rider earlier in the race who's carbon brakes sounded like a kid's animated machine gun fire. Going into corner two, I watched as this racer would brake, front wheel would skid out an inch or two, brake, skid out again. I watched this happen 3 or 4 times in corner two before the apex when my attention was switched to the rider behind him who was now on my inside hip and going down. I could see his front wheel launching into the air and "pedal faster, pedal faster" screamed in my brain because I knew he was sliding out and would soon hit me if I didn't get out of the way quick. I made it out safely, but like any smart peloton, the front group was attacking again with a crash occurring behind them. Time to chase again.

I think with 2 laps to go I had made my way to the front again trying to make sure I was ready for the sprint. However, it didn't last long. More bunching and swarming and I was down the line again. I was really starting to count myself out of this race. I was never able to hold position up front and always got strung out in the corners. I had been having a mental fight with myself all race. On the back straight of the last lap, I told myself, "Well, this is where you find out how good you really are at finishing a race." The group was starting to spread across the entire road and I was surrounded by racers. Coming into corner 3 on the last lap, I was sitting outside top 10 but under top 15. I figured that was it for me. Every time we had come through corner 4, the race got strung out. I would have been 20 meters back from the lead rider this time with where I was sitting. That's a lot of ground to overcome, especially on the uphill finish. But, as they had done almost every time coming out of corner 4, the group went to the right side of the road. The road had a slight left curve to it 10 meters out of the corner. The left line was the shorter and better line. The line I had taken in my warm-up lap and when I led the field earlier. So, coming out of corner 4 sitting 8-10 wheels back, out of desperation I pulled off the group and darted to the left line and started spinning with all I could. Being so far back, going from the corner, at least 200 meters out, was my only option. At this point, I still wasn't thinking this was a winning move, but a move that would place me close to the leaders to make a last ditch effort as we neared the line if I still had anything left. For a minute there in the race, I was questioning whether I would make top 10 and advance to amateur finals or not. But as I launched up the left side of the road, I had at least an 8' side-to-side separation between me and field which limited their vision and their ability to grab my wheel as I came by. And I came by with force. I tried to watch out of my periphery if anyone responded and jumped out of the line as I came by. I didn't see anything. As we came up to the last rise in the road, I passed the lead guy still 75 meters or so to the finish. I started fading once the road flattened out 20 meters from the line. I was praying I was going to hang on, but still expected to see flashes of color out of my right eye. Had the finish been much longer, I would have been toast. But it wasn't. I beat all the odds that day and came away with a win. It was one crazy race.

On to the big show: Twilight Amateur Finals

This is the race I've been looking forward to all year and been afraid of for the past week and a half. When you combine the predicted rain, field of 100+, $2,000 payout, elite talent, and screaming speeds in front of 20,000 spectators, things are bound to get very intense and risky.

I lined up super early since all the advice I had been given was get there early: start position won't win you the race, but it will definitely end it in a hurry. After sitting at the line for almost 40 minutes, I found out they were going to be doing call-ups and I could have been hanging out wherever I wanted for the last hour as I was going to be recognized as a morning race winner and be given a spot on the front line (See picture above and below).

The race started and it was a sprint for corner 1. So fast. I did a pretty good job of holding my line and keeping up with the pace the first 3 laps sitting in top 6-7 wheels. At 9 minutes in, I was starting to fall down through the pack and it always seemed to be on the back side hill. I was trying to stay in the saddle, but that was the wrong move. You had to get out of the saddle and sprint up that hill if you wanted to stay with everyone. I found that out too late and was only able to implement that on my last lap with the group. I actually advanced a position on the hill when I got out of the saddle. I remember one time heading into corner 2 I flinched and was immediately scolded and made a new enemy.

Tons of screaming, fast paced racing came to an abrupt halt when around 16 minutes in a huge crash occurred in the field. It was on the front straight mid way between the Sram neutral support and corner 1. Being in the back half of the group at this time, I saw something happening in the field and soon realized it was people going over other people. I grabbed my brakes for all they were worth and still came screaming into the pile. For one quick second, the crazy thought of "Can I jump this or ride over the top of this," entered my head. Then I was flying over the handlebars crashing into half the field laying on the ground. I rolled out the far side of the pile of people and frantically started looking for my bike. In the mix of bodies and bikes it took me probably 10 seconds to find my bike. Think about that for a minute. I hopped back over the pile and pulled my bike out from under someone. I checked the rear brake and put the chain back on making sure it would spin. I hopped on the saddle and took a few pedal strokes when I saw that everyone else was running back to the pit and neutral service. So I pedaled back that way and soon found out my saddle was crooked. I got a mechanic to mostly straighten it out and I was lined back up on the edge waiting for the field to come around so I could re-enter the race. It took me a second to get going since I was behind other racers. The field was already around corner one by the time my bike was moving and I was out on course. I tried chasing back on and encouraged some other riders falling off the back to get on my wheel so we could work together, but after 2-3 more laps I was pulled. I just couldn't ever make it back on the group. That race really puts some perspective on what crit racing is like at the next level. I now have something to work for.


On another note, I was asked why I wasn't using my carbon wheels for amateur finals. My response was I like them and wanted to keep them working. I expected it to be a sketchy race. I didn't realize it at the time, but when I was going over my bike Monday, I found out my front wheel had gotten eaten by a chainring. The rim had gouges in it along the brake track. I had to file it down with a drimmel and then smooth it out with some sandpaper. Another reason putting the carbon wheels back in the car was the best decision of the weekend. The second best was not racing Roswell the next day. I was in no shape to race and it was pouring rain.

Taking to the Track

This past weekend I decided to do something new. I tried track cycling. The track had briefly caught my eye in years past, but I never gave it a genuine consideration until I begin training with a powermeter this winter. After reading a few books to learn how to interpret and properly train with my powermeter, I began to recognize some my numbers as ones that correspond to good track racing numbers. In track racing, the weight factor of the rider is all but eliminated, so my stocky build should not hold me back on the track as it does on climbs on the road. I then looked into my cadence and noticed some high numbers I am able to hit consistently. Put all these things together, let my power become pure watts and not necessarily watts per Kg, and on paper, I should be a good track racer. 

This past weekend was the first beginner class of the year at the Dick Lane Velodrome in Atlanta, so I headed down to get acquainted and see how I liked it. Temperatures in the low to mid 30s both days with light flurries on Saturday during the class limited our riding time for the two day, 6 hour class, but I got a good enough feel for how the track works. I got to wet my appetite for flying 200 meter sprints, match sprints, getting perpendicular to 36 degree banked corners, and non-stop pedaling. 

So, Monday afternoon after this weekend experience, I was at HUB Endurance asking what my options are for a track bike and how we can make it work. I am now registered and set to go to Rock Hill, SC for a collegiate clinic at the end of my spring break in two weeks. By the time the summer racing rolls around at Dick Lane, I think I will be ready to take on the track. Looking forward, I can't help but notice that with Xterra Nationals probably dropping off my schedule, my last big "A" race now occurs in mid-July. Seems like that gives me a solid 9 week buildup to Collegiate Track Nationals in Colorado. Who knows. Might be switching one national championship for another. 

                           

           

Going Under

Well I thought I had it bad at ITU Worlds when I flatted twice and lost my first place standing. It was the worst experience I've had in the sport so far. That is until June 9th. I've waited for a while to write about this for many reasons: it was hard for me to face it for one, I didn't want to write details on the internet before the driver's insurance company accepted responsibility, and I was just feeling down and out about the whole situation without much motivation to do anything.

Most people probably already know about what happened to me, but for those that do not, or don't really know the details, here it is.

I was coming off a terrible race at Roan Groan and knew that I needed more practice at climbing, especially at the end of a race. I wanted to do well at River Gorge later in August, so I set out on Saturday June 9th, from my apartment in East Brainerd. I had mapped out a course that would take me over Missionary Ridge and the toe of Lookout before jumping into the River Gorge RR course. Things were going well and I was having fun playing out in my mind how the race would turn out this year and how things happened last year. I climbed Raccoon, stopping at the overlook to refill my bottles, eat some snacks, and take in the scenery. I started my descent from the mountain to head back home to get ready to head out to River Bend that night. Once I got off the steep slopes of Raccoon and made the hard 90 degree left hand turn, I saw a truck stopped at a stop sign on a side street to my right. He began to pull out to make a left hand turn and come up the mountain towards me. I was getting nervous and applying the brakes. As the truck got further out into the intersection, I was horrified to realize he was carrying a boat. His truck and boat were covering the entire intersection leaving me no place to go. I am grabbing as much brake as I can by this point. My wheels begin to lock up and my rear wheel starts fishtailing out from under me to the left. I was in shock and utter disbelief as I covered those last 3 meters before contact. I couldn't believe this was really about to happen. Skidding out placed me in a more parallel position to the boat so that my left shoulder and knee hit the boat first. I bounced off and swung around the back of the boat as the driver continued to pull away. I hit the ground and my bike went bouncing. I rolled around on the ground in intense pain in my left knee. It wouldn't straighten out and I knew I was injured pretty badly.

The driver and passenger got out of the truck after they pulled over to the shoulder. I laid in the middle of the intersection as they called 911 and asked if I was okay. I think the screaming and writhing in pain should have indicated I was not. Thankfully, I had just seen fellow teammate Jim Farmer at the top of Raccoon. He was packing his bike up and was about to come down. He drove up on the scene shortly after the accident happened. Another woman who had been running on Raccoon also stopped on her way down. These folks helped out a ton (Chattanooga obviously has an amazing outdoor community that cares for each other). My teammate was able to collect my bike and belongings and the other lady was able to call my parents back to let them know what was going on. The paramedics and fire truck arrived a little while later. They put me on the board and we were headed off for Erlanger ER.

Several radiographs and a CT scan later, they determined I had no broken bones and would have to follow up with an orthopedic surgeon the following week. The first visit with the surgeon was terrifying. The laxity in knee from the clinical examination pointed to several tears and disruptions in the tissue. The MRI ruled some of them out, but I was still going to need surgery. Thankfully, I didn't need immediate surgery which would have caused me to miss my first clinical rotation and be forced to sit out of the PT program for one year. Glad I avoided that disaster.

After much hassle with the police report, the driver, and the driver's insurance company, his insurance company finally accepted fault. They are collecting my medical bills and already reimbursed me for my bike minus depreciation.

I've had ups and downs over this time period. Times I would feel super energized about training for next season and all I will be able to do. Other times I was depressed and could only think about all the stuff I was missing out on and how hard it would be to come back after surgery. I missed several races including the Crit State Championship, which I was favored to win, the rest of the TBRA races, which now means I lost my Best Area Rider qualification, two Xterra races, which means I will probably lose my regional champion status and bid to nationals, as well as the Georgia Gran Prix stage race, the Huntsville race weekend, and two more crits in Atlanta. No defending my crit title at River Gorge this year. I also feel bad about letting my team down. This is the first time I've ever raced for a team and it ended with a terrible showing for myself. I wanted to do well to validate my spot on the team. I will have to settle for next year.

I got robbed, and I hate it. I've been so angry. But this is just the year I've been having with several broken pieces of equipment that required replacing and the bad finish at ITU. I have great plans for coming back next year with a more focused training plan, better knowledge of how to train, better equipment to train with, and a burning desire to come back strong and dominate the Cat 4 field. I'm trying to construct a detailed training plan without the help from a coach since I can't afford one. That being said, I would gladly take advice or suggestions from people out there that have had coaches or might be coaches just to make sure I am going in the right direction and I am interpreting my data correctly.

Surgery was yesterday (I meant to write this earlier in the week), so I have started the path to recovery and my journey back to sport. However, I guess I underestimated this surgery because of how easy my last surgery was on my right knee in 2007. I had my ACL reconstructed with a cadaver graft that time and I was able to get a full quad contraction the morning following surgery and was up ambulating without much pain at all the next day. That is not how this surgery has gone so far. I am in a lot more pain than I remembered or expected. I hope that it subsides before classes begin on the 20th. The first day of physical therapy as a patient on Monday the 13th. Should be a good experience. Just have to organize a way to get all my stuff moved to my new apartment while on crutches.

My bike got a little jacked, technically speaking

The culprits 

No big deal

No clue what this leg hit to get bruised 

Race Report: Xterra Ft. Yargo and SERC #4 MTB Race

Three weeks out from ITU Worlds, I decided to test myself and see what condition I was in at the Ft. Yargo race in Winder, GA. I’d never done this race before, so on Friday after I finished my last final exam for the spring term I headed down for a pre-ride. Atlanta traffic delayed me a bit so I missed packet pick-up, but I still got my pre-ride in before dark. The course was fun and fast. It included a lot of diving in and out of trees, semi-banked corners you could thrash, and some gnarly, deep double jumps. It was going to be a fun day. I packed back up to head to Athens where I was going to stay with some UGA friends for the night.

I didn’t make it to the race site as early as I wanted, but I also didn’t plan on standing in the packet pick-up line for 15 minutes. The longest I’ve ever had to wait outside of the Ironman venue. By the time I finally made it down to transition, I was scrambling to find any spot left in the cramped 175 racer field. I then scrambled to get my wetsuit on which I’m not sure if it occurred in my haste or because the suit was stuck together with residual water, but two spots on the right leg tore. Getting into the water, I saw Craig Evans and said hey to him. It was good to see a familiar face, but now I knew I didn’t have a chance at winning. My goal now was to take the 2 or 3 spot and make it on the overall podium with him.

No warm-up included, the race was underway. I felt tight and like all my mechanics went out the window as we dashed for the first buoy. I just kept pushing forward and finally felt decently good and like I was in some rhythm with about 300 meters left. Perfect timing, right? Maybe it will work out in my favor at ITU, or if I were to warm-up first. Going into T-1 I lost it. I was fidgety and panicked. I put on my bike shoe before taking off my wetsuit. Fail. I then had trouble getting the suit off making it just an overall crappy transition. But it was time for the bike; time for me to shine. Trying to find my groove, some old guy passed me. WTF? I don’t get passed on the bike! At least not at a non-championship race. Who did this guy think he was? About a mile later, I passed him back and left everybody else behind; I wasn’t going to depend on my run game for the win. Closing in on the finish I was still in 5^th place. I couldn’t figure out what was going on. Was my swim really that bad, and who were these guys that were leading the race? I knew Craig would be sitting 1^st, but I wasn’t sure who was sitting 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th. I caught 3^rd and 4^th right before entering T-2. The three of us started the run together until I got left about .75 miles into the 5 mile run. I wasn’t feeling good on the run, but I wasn’t feeling like total crap either, which was an improvement over all except one of last year’s runs. About 3 miles in, another set of two runners passed me after a little hill. I was hurting. Heading back towards the finish, I got passed again with one mile left. I was stuck with 8^th place overall, 3^rd fastest bike split with less than a minute behind Craig’s, and a sub 37 minute 5 mile trail run. (Results here) Not terrible, but not exactly what I was expecting or where I was hoping I’d be by this point. I got my age group points and for the prize I got a Maxxis Ignitor tire and a Cannondale jersey. Pretty sweet swag for a race. Too bad I forgot to pick up my biking gloves from where I threw them off on the run course. I looked for them the next day, but no luck. However, someone did turn one in. Who the heck turns in one lost glove and keeps the other?

Somehow I got convinced to do the MTB race the next morning instead of going to the Braves game that night. So the plan was to rest a bit, hit up the Athens Twilight Pro Crit that night, and then race again in the morning. The crit was amazing. I’ve never seen a race like that with such a huge strung out peloton and amazing speeds. Past and present Olympians were in attendance as well as the reigning USA National champion, stood by his mom for most of the race. With over 30,000 other spectators, it was definitely an event not worth missing. Although, I might have spent a little too much time up on my feet and not hydrating enough. The situation was made worse once I got back to the place I was staying to find out they were having a party; I mean it is college. I was trying to sleep in the back room on the floor on top of my sleeping bag and in my tights. It wasn’t a great night’s rest and I sweated my butt off leaving me pretty dehydrated in the morning. The race was fun though: fun in the sense of hurting a lot, pushing myself, and of course the super fun thrill riding of catching air, diving around trees, and railing sharp corners. I hung with the front group for the first few miles of lap one then faded back as they attacked on a hill. I was sitting 5^th and there was one position change where I passed 4^th and then 6^th passed me so still sitting 5^th. Towards the end of the lap, I went down in a corner I took too aggressively and then had to wait for the riders coming in hot to pass by before I could remount my bike and carry on. For lap two, I latched onto on the guys in the 39 year old age group and rode with him for a long time. Shortly into lap 3, I had to leave him though. I was feeling better and really wanted to pull that 4^th place guy back in. It didn’t take long and he was back in my site, as well as many others that had passed previously. Lap 3 was going great for me. I got a second boost of energy and was back to railing the course and having a blast making up tons of ground. I finished 4^th and closed the gap to 3^rd down to just 24 seconds. I’ll take it I guess (My results on page 10). I didn’t make my money back for the race, but it was a good experience. One thing I would like explained is how the Cat 2 riders get better prizes and awards for their entire podium than I did for getting 4^th in Cat 1? I’d much rather take a free Maxxis tire and some HEED over $20. Cool Racing Photo

My original plan had been to do the racing there in Georgia and then head over to Pelham for some more training on the ITU Worlds course, but after those two days, I didn’t think my body could handle it or that it would be worth it with the state I was in. My gooch was pissed at me for forgetting to grease up two days in a row, my lower back was killing me from the 32 mile mtb race, my shoe was soaked in blood again from a nagging heel abrasion, and I had developed a few more blisters on my feet during the tri. I wouldn’t have made it to Pelham until almost 7 o’clock too, so I just decided to bail on the whole plan and just head back to Chattanooga. Once home and unpacked, I tried to go for a run. My body quickly told me no in the .5 mile that I made it. I’m glad I didn’t waste my time in Pelham. Monday I went out for intervals and bonked before the end of the ride. Tuesday morning I went for a run and bonked before the end. I ended up drinking from a house’s water hose and sitting in someone’s yard just chilling for a while before I made it back home. Tuesday night however, my legs decided to show back up and I had a killer mountain climb on the road with the Tuesday night Red Bank group ride. I peaked second over the mountain and felt really good about my performance on a blind course and without my computer to tell me any data. Seventeen days and counting. Let’s hope everything works.

Troubles

While some things have been going great, I am still me and I will always get hurt. I'm already dealing with quite a few injuries and setbacks this year. So in no particular order:

I am trying to get back into running shape, which is hard having taken off for such a long time after the end of last season. To make matters worse, I have developed a big lump of scar tissue in my left heal from when I landed on a piece of steel last August. I was trying to mount bike hangers in the walls of my new apartment. The mount was sitting in the floor and I was up on the dresser drilling into the wall. I was done and jumped back off the dresser and my left heel hit first, right on the 2mm wide piece of backing steel for the hanger. The steel bent, the drill bit snapped off in the carpet, and my heel wrenched in pain. I had to walk on the ball of my foot for the next few days but eventually the pain subsided and the radiographs showed no fracture. Now, the knot of scar tissue is making it very difficult to stretch my plantar aponeurosis and heel striking is just about completely out of the picture. I'm slowly working it out with some painful massage though.

A week and a half ago, a few friends and I went snowboarding with the UTC Outdoors program. It was a great trip, but I didn't realize until the next day that in one of my high velocity falls I injured my left shoulder. I was scared it was a rotator cuff issue. I couldn't swim at all last week, but my stroke is coming back this week. I haven't been able to do my power cleans in the gym either. It is still painful, but the progression and the presentation of the pain leads my professor and me to believe it is more of a deltoid or impingement issue that I hope will work itself out soon.

Since I've been back at school, I have not had a pain free bike ride. My lower back has been giving me problems with most of the pain coming from the right side around L4/L5. I usually get about 30 minutes into the ride before I start noticing the pain. I can make it to about 40 mins before it peaks and I usually give in and dismount the bike to stretch and give it a little break. It subsides rather quickly and I'm back on my way. It usually comes back around 1:45. Sometimes I make it back, sometimes I have to get off and stretch again. I adjusted my fit some after I videoed myself and saw some issues. I was hoping this would take care of my issue and that the pain was just from over reaching by rocking my hips to reach the bottom of the pedal stroke. This past Sunday was the best ride I've had all year. I started out a little faster than usual so the pain started coming on at about the same distance but a little earlier, around 28 minutes. I wiggled around a bit and somehow overcame it. The ride was going great. My legs were flying around the pedals and the pace was not dropping. I was making my way the furthest east I have gone since I've been riding in Chatt. (My goal is to find a reasonable route to North Carolina. I think I can make a 7 hour trip there and back. Spring Break training camp?) I was at 19.7mph at my turn around point of just over an hour and a half. I wanted to keep going, but I really wanted to get back in time to watch Brandon wrestle App State, the last regular season home match. So, I made the U-turn and started heading back. The legs began to fade a bit and a third of the way back I had dropped to 19.5mph. I tried to keep pushing on as I grabbed a bite of Clif Bar. Carefully retracing my path to make sure I didn't get lost on the new roads, I came soaring back to my normal routes when the back pain started to hit again. I was too close and too pressed for time to get off and stretch. So, I just tucked and pushed through. I suffered through the big climb near the end and kept pushing the pace to try to maintain my average speed. I had made it back up to 19.7. With a screaming back and legs, I pulled into my apartment, stripped the chamois off and headed to the arena to catch the match. I kept the 19.7mph, but the change in bike fit and stretching had failed to alleviate my back pain.

So, I set up a time to meet with one of my professors and go through an examination. We found that my right multifidus was grossly atrophied. It was mush and weak compared to my left side. We're not sure why, maybe a strain from last November when I missed the hook for the barbell at the end of squat session, but some type of inhibition is going on and I need to wake it up. I hope it is not from anything more serious such as joint or bone trauma. I'm working on strengthening it and firing my transverse abdominis to see if that might bring it back.

In order to win the Xterra Region, I have to race four races including one championship distance race. I've done the southeast championship twice and planned on doing it again this year to help me clinch the jersey for the third time, this was one of my goals for this year. However, I got an email today saying the championship race has been cancelled in order for Xterra to host the ITU Cross Triathlon World Championship. This is awesome, but it also means I have to find another race to do. I can either travel to Richmond in June or Louisiana in May. I haven't heard too many good things about the Richmond race. They have even had issues of vandalism and competitors getting lost on course because of it. I've experienced this at the Colorado State MTB race in '07 and don't really want to do that again. Louisiana is a great course, but that would be a far drive and it's not technically a championship race. It might have to do though. This is in fact if I don't make the Team USA which will be racing in the world championship. I applied earlier this week. Fingers crossed, sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for that email.

Alberto Contador also ran into some trouble this week. His positive test for clenbuterol during the 2010 Tour de France finally caught up to him. He has been stripped of his 2010 Tour victory, his 2011 Giro victory and is banned from racing in either this year and from competing in the London Olympics this summer. Harsh stuff especially when you factor in the fine he will receive. The board is pushing for $3 million. Most have been saying this is bad for cycling, but I don't understand. The positive test was already exposed. Everyone knew about it. They only change is the punishment. This affects Contador and not necessarily the sport as a whole. Maybe I'd be more upset if I liked him, but I personally think he's an ass. I'm glad Andy gets the win now for the 2010 Tour. Sort of like retribution for Contador attacking on the slopes when Andy dropped his chain. Karma's a bitch isn't it, Contador? It's also pretty lame that Contador said he thought he was supposed to be protected and untouchable "like Lance" since he had spent so much money on lawyers. What a load of crap. Lance never tested positive during Tour.

Since this week is the Combined Sectionals Meeting for the American Physical Therapy Association, our classes are canceled for the rest of the week. Hello four day weekend. So tomorrow I'll be back on the bike and see how the back is feeling. I'm also going on another snowboard trip this Saturday with the UTC Outdoors program. Wish me luck.

I'm saying those are the mountains of North Carolina in the very far distance. 

Great Start to 2012

Since I've been back at school, I haven't missed a single day of working out. I've made some good progress in my swim stroke and put in a few good rides. I joined the UTC cycling team. I went to see one of my best friends wrestle against Cleveland State. I've been rock climbing and entered a climbing competition. I went bowling and learned a new way to throw the ball. I did my first clinical visit of PT school last week, and we attended orthopedic grand rounds at Erlanger hospital. I went on a caving trip to Petty John's cave in Georgia and I have a snowboard trip planned for this Saturday on Beech Mountain in North Carolina. I think I am doing college right. (Let's hope this test tomorrow doesn't prove otherwise.)

A few other highlights: My dad got back safely from Kuwait; he got a promotion to the best Kroger store in the Delta division which happens to be right by our house; he got a raise with his return to work; and he bought a new car. My older sister had her baby early yesterday morning; they are both healthy and doing well. And today is my little brother's birthday. He is now 21.

Ambitious 2012

Just like everybody else, the new year brings new goals and ambitions for me. Unlike everybody else, I will actually follow through with them. Heck, I've already made progress on three of them.

So here are a few of them:

#1 Win Xterra Southeastern Championships, this is largely dependent on a good run which is where goal 2 comes in
#2 Put up a sub 45 min run split at Southeasterns

Now goal three is a little tricky. Yes, I want to just go ahead and commit to it, but I don't want to show up and be embarrassed and waste the money and time and time away from school. So goal three is dependent upon completion of goal 1 and 2

#3 Race (WIN) Xterra USA National Championship
#4 Claim the Xterra Regional Championship Jersey
#5 Race at least 3 crits
#6 Win the TN crit state championship
#7 Take a girl out on a real date, not just hang out at some party
#8 Eliminate irresponsible nights of mayhem
#9 Under social obligations I guess I must include do well in school and my first rotation coming up this summer

I found this article/list of pretty good resolutions too. Not saying I'm shooting for all of them, but I think numbers 4, 9, 11, and 15 are pretty good ones that I have incorporated into my life. (Supposedly there has been some confusion. I do know my math and that I haven't listed 15 goals here. The numbers are a reference to another article that you can find by clicking the hyperlink at the beginning of the paragraph, "article/list".)


There. So now that they are down on paper and displayed to the public, they are real goals. I can be held accountable and will hold myself accountable.


Forgot to put the goal of riding 5,000 miles. I did a rough collection of my actual miles from 2011 and came up with 3,125 miles ridden. I didn't set up my training log to tally this so this is what I could come up with retrospectively. It had to be at least this much. Should make for some fun time in the saddle.