First (unofficial) Century Ride of the Year

This weekend I had the opportunity to ride with the RED BURRO crew out to the Nevada/California state line. Aside from it being a bit windy the weather could not have been better with temps in the low to mid 70s.

We started at the top of Summerlin, rode through Red Rocks, down Blue Diamond Hwy, through Southern Highlands and then the frontage rode that parallels the I-15. The ride was cut a bit short at Primm when we found out that the state line was another 12 miles (one way). The total ride distance was 93 miles, so just short of the official century length. I felt totally justified calling it a century due to the wind we endured.

While the ride was very enjoyable I was reminded how much work I still need on the bike; these guys were animals! For them it was a fairly easy pace to build their early season aerobic base, for me it was all I could do to keep my heart rate under 95% of my max. At one point during a climb I was pushing 190 bpm, that's pretty nasty considering my max is 193.

I'm really liking getting out for long Saturday rides and can't wait when it's time to start charging up Mount Charleston.

Can You Believe My Mom Blocked MTV?

This is what I was missing out on when my mom decided to have MTV blocked while in middle and high school. In the past I've struggled to help my mom and other misguided souls to understand that Snoop just wants to be a good example, and this photo is clear evidence. Sure he may have had to write a few edgy lyrics but everyone has to feed their family somehow.

It's a good thing I didn't tell my mom about the BET channel, think of all the other good examples I would have missed out on.

Ford Ironman 70.3 Oceanside, California

The pressure started to mount about a week ago. I was having moments where I couldn't wait for the race, and then other times where I wished I hadn't even registered. My training for the last few months hadn't turned out like I planned due to some sickness and a bit over over training. To top things off the weather was not going to be too favorable. The forecasted air temps were in the low 60s, overcast and the water was going to be about 58 degrees. Come on...I picked San Diego because the weather is suppose to be sunny and warm .

Friday came and we loaded up with the Stubbs for the drive down. When we arrived in Oceanside it was definitely cooler than I had planned; I couldn't stop thinking about how cold it was going to be coming out of the water and getting on the bike. It was at this point that I thought....the upside of the cooler weather is that maybe I'll be hypothermic half way through the swim and not have to finish. I'm pretty sure everyone could tell that I was a bit nervous.

Race morning came and I was surprisingly calm. Once I got to the transition area to setup I had forgotten about being nervous and was now super pumped. There was rad music playing and over 2000 competitors hustling to get ready. My swim wave started at 6:50 and to be honest I didn't even think about the 58 degree water. In fact most people said I was crazy for wearing a sleeveless wetsuit but I was plenty warm. The swim went well but I wished I hadn't been so conservative. Finished the swim in just under 40 minutes.

Then onto the bike...I started out feeling pretty sick with a belly full of salt water but my stomach calmed after a few miles. The first half of the 56 mile course was fairly flat and I was averaging around 22 to 24 mph, I started to get kind of excited because I thought I would beat my expected time. Then I hit the 2nd half of the bike course and it was all downhill (my performance, not the course profile). I was behind on my hydration and had to force myself to eat. On top of the course being a bit more hilly the wind had picked up. My average speed dropped and I ended up finishing the bike course in a little over 3 hours. This is not meant to be an excuse for not riding faster but I was blown away by the other competitors bikes, most of the bikes I saw had wheel sets that were more expensive than my whole bike.

The transition from biking to running was interesting due to the fact that my stomach was not happy. Nothing went down easy but I kept drinking and eating so I would have enough gas to finish. I pretty much suffered through the run and only averaged about a 10 minute mile with a run split of 2 hours 13 minutes.

Total time with transitions was 6 hours 11 minutes. I was slightly disappointed because I was hoping to break 6 hours but hey it was my first one and I learned tons. I did have some interesting thoughts while on the course; I had a few moments of intense gratitude that I was capable and had the opportunity to participate in an event like this. And even as much as I suffered at different points during the race I found myself feeling almost sad that it was over towards the end.

Anthony sure has had some good exposure on the Harber's blog lately; I fully expect 10% of his earnings if he's discover by this photo:

This one's even better because it makes him look like a giant:



It may not be for a few more years but I do see a full Ironman in my future. I would like to leave you with my opinion that racing and/or suffering in any epic event such as this will bring much joy into your life. Now get out there and find something to register for! Oh yeah http://www.active.com/ is a great place to find all kinds of events in your area.

Speed Racer & Local Spot to Score

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I don't know what's better the one piece race suit or the gold helmet. On top of looking the part this sucker has skills on the track; lets just say there were new records set last night at the Las Vegas Mini Gran Prix. I'm still not sure why the track operator was unhappy when Anthony did his victory doughnut through the grass after his lap, isn't that what all the big Nascar guys do?

We then headed to an old Vegas favorite Luv-It Frozen Custard; not ice cream...Custard! The location across from the Stratosphere couldn't be more perfect, you can satisfy that sweet tooth and then score some crack across the street. And if cracks not your thing you can head over to one of the hourly motels or just get married at one of the ten wedding chapels in the area. Hey you can't beat the custard and if you don't step on an old needle in the parking lot it's well worth the trip.

A Result of Paying Tithing!

Yesterday was one of the best days ever. I had just gotten back from the Saturday road ride and was doing a bit of cleaning up in the garage. Matt (the hero of the day) rode over to throw his bike on the stand and do a little maintenance. After he was done he headed home; after a few minutes he returned and said that he thought he saw my bike that had been stolen in a garage down the street. I bolted down the street and saw that beautiful green Surly pony sitting there. I didn't even knock on the door, I just swooped it!

I got back to my house and realized that this sucker was just on the other side of the street only about 5 doors down, I had to go back to find out who the bike thief was. The people that answered claimed they had moved in only two weeks ago and that the bike was there when they moved in. Either way I was just glad to have it back.

Huge thanks again to Matt with the eagle eye!

Oh yeah...scroll down a bit to check out the post from the Tucson 24 Hour Race.

Weber State Star

This is my little sis...when she's not dunkin she's making shots like this. Look out MJ!

24 Hours in the Old Pueblo

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Does riding your bike in circles for 24 hours sound like a good idea? Yeah I don't know who came up with this idea but he/she is crazy sucker! Even though this race was a little out of my league I had to take the opportunity to ride with Racer's Sabrosa Cycle team. Maybe someday their speed will rub off on me.

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Last Thursday we started the voyage down to Tucson. I say voyage because it took us about a day and a half to get there. We had a stop in Phoenix where we stayed Thursday night, and then visited every Home Depot on the way out of Phoenix Friday morning. The Home Depot trip was with the intent of purchasing a propane heater due to the freak weather we were about to encounter. When we finally got to the race site it was snowing/raining; it's super fun setting up camp in weather like this:

Needless to say to say I wasn't super pumped about the weather. The race was going to be epic enough without snow and freezing weather. Lucky for us the bike gods were nice enough to show show some kindness and let the sun out right before the start of the race. I felt bad for the guys that had the first lap; everyone was outfitted with gear to ride in subarctic conditions. The rest of the race was clear skys and almost warm weather.

The course was perfectly fitted for a 24 hour race. and with the recent rain it was hard packed and fast. The course was 16 miles of mostly single track through super thick cactus; it sounds ridiculous but I've never seen that much cactus. I witnessed a couple of unfortunate suckers that took corners too fast on the night laps and ended up in a cactus bed; not fun!

I'll tell you what really made the race, our support crew was amazing! Shea and "The Tammer" were top notch. These guys did just about everything for us; big thanks again to the support crew.

We ended up doing pretty well, 13th place out of about 140 teams in the 4 man open class. I've promised to bring faster lap times next year if they'll have me back so I've got to get myself in shape. Below is how the hardcore racer takes his shower, I on the other hand treated myself to the shower trailer.

Right after the finish we packed up and head back. I knew it was going to be a long drive back so I celebrated with a 2 lb bag of peanut M & Ms, raspberry filled powder doughnuts, and a 4 pack of Full Throttle. I don't think the human body is meant to have that much caffeine and sugar in one sitting. I have to apologize if I was a bit out of control on the ride back; it was the Full Throttle talking. Below is the best way to describe the way you feel after riding a 24 hour race and then getting the car for 8 hours:

Thanks again to everyone that helped make the weekend happen; I'm already looking forward to next year!